The House of the Scorpion

“One of my main themes is self-reliance, the ability to compete against odds and to beat them. A lot of kids' books have somebody who learns to come to terms with some dreadful situation, and it's all about them continuing to suffer at the end of the book. I don't want to write 'victim' books. I want a triumph, a hero or a heroine, and that's what I write about.” –Nancy Farmer http://www.nancyfarmerwebsite.com/bio.html

Thus is why I liked Farmer’s science fiction novel, The House of the Scorpion, so much, and why I think young adults are also drawn to it. As I read, I found myself sympathizing with Matt, the protagonist, as he learns the pain of human rejection and isolation that comes with being “different,” and therefore feared. Matt is so innocent in the ways of the Opium/Dreamland world he lives in, and so earnest in wanting to contribute and be a good person. Unfortunately, the rest of the world is convinced that he cannot be a good “person” because he is a clone, and they have been trained to believe that clones are animals. It is not until the climax of the novel, where Matt is escaping Dreamland, that his bodyguard Tam Lin clues him in: “Here’s the dirty little secret…no one can tell the difference between a clone and a human. That’s because there isn’t any difference. The idea of clones being inferior is a filthy lie” (245).

Even though the story is told in a science fiction, futuristic setting, the parallels between its world and ours are what astounded me. Sadly, I witness such acts of intolerance and meanness every day in the high school setting. Of course, we do not have clones, but we do have students who differ in race, class, sexual orientation, religion, and personal style. Even though the students are wily enough to not be overt in their meanness in front of teachers (just as Tom and other humans tolerate Matt in front of El Patrón), I often hear stories of bullying from students later on. It’s a question that I’ve asked before reading The House of the Scorpion, but the story made me re-contemplate how we rid people of unjustified intolerance. Part of the answer is the lack of education some people have, by force or by choice (I have a lot of “refusers” in my classroom that could be learning a lot but are doing everything possible to avoid it), which is a point that Farmer also seems to make in the characters of Tam Lin, Chacho, Tom, and the eejits.

A warning about those in power also resonates throughout Farmer’s novel. Even though Matt immediately loves El Patrón, and continues to love him even after he realizes he’s been raised for spare parts, the reader is leery of the old man. Tam Lin uses an intriguing metaphor to warn Matt, and the reader, about El Patrón: “When he was young, he made a choice, like a tree does when it decides to grow one way or the other. He grew large and green until he shadowed over the whole forest, but most of his branches are twisted” (70). How often have we witnessed world leaders use corruption to gain more power? And how often have we only realized the corruption too late to stop or reverse it? Part of why I like this book so much is because it ends with hope; Matt returns to Dreamland to reconstruct the damage El Patrón created. We can only hope that his newfound power doesn’t go to his head as well.