Splicing in Octavia Butler's novel Dawn

2. Dictionary.com:
1) to join together or unite (two ropes or parts
of rope) by interweaving the strands.
5) Genetics. To join (segments of DNA or
RNA) together.

3. “It’s what I said it was. A trade. The ooloi
will make changes in your reproductive
cells before conception and they’ll
control conception.” Jdahya (42)
The Oankali depend on the mixing of DNA with
other species for their ever changing biology and
survival. The trade is not considered unnatural or
in Lilith’s words “crossbreeding” (42), it is necessary.

4. “Your people will change. Your young will be more like us and
ours more like you. Your hierarchical tendencies will be
modified and if we learn to regenerate limbs and reshape our
bodies, we’ll share those abilities with you. That’s part of the
trade. We’re overdue for it.” Jdahya (42)
““Our children will be better than either of us,” it continued.
“We will moderate your hierarchical problems and you will
lessen our physical limitations. Our children won’t destroy
themselves in war, and if they need to regrow a limb or to
change themselves in some other way they’ll be able to do it.
And there will be other benefits.”” Nikanj (247,48)

5. “It won’t be a daughter.” She pulled again at her arms, but
it would not let her go. “It will be a thing- not human.”
(246)
“But they won’t be human,” Lilith said. “That’s what
matters. You can’t understand, but that is what matters.”
(248)
““I think I wish your people had left me on Earth,” she
whispered. “If this is what they found me for, I wish
they’d left me.” Medusa children. Snakes for hair. Nests
of night crawlers for eyes and ears.”” (43)

6. “Somehow!” he hissed. “Anyhow!” They took stuff from men
and women who didn’t even know each other and put it
together and made babies in women who never knew the
mother or father of their kid-and who maybe never got to know
the kid. Or maybe they grew the baby in another kind of
animal. They have animals they can adjust to-to incubate
human fetuses, as they say. Or maybe they don’t even worry
about men and women. Maybe they just scrape some skin from
one person and make babies out of it- cloning, you know. Or
maybe they use one of their prints-and don’t ask me what a
print is…” Paul Titus (94)

7. The Oankali also can alter human DNA for other reasons such as improving
memory:
“I must make small changes- a few small changes. I mist help you reach your
memories as you need them.” Nikanj (75)
“Very small things. In the end, there will be a tiny alteration in your brain
chemistry.” Nikanj (75)
They also alter human DNA for the ability to open their walls:
“Lilith has caused two walls to grow at a corner of it so that she had a room,
enclosed except for a doorway where the walls would have met.” (115)
“The walls and floor of the great room were hers to reshape as she pleased.
They would do anything she was able to ask of them except let her out.” (115)

8. Are Lilith’s reactions and views on this “trade”
justified or is she over reacting?
Why?
Does the Oankali argument of making the
new human/Oankali hybrids better able to
survive on Earth acceptable?