chose Megan’s post to feature on my blog because we answered the same question but in two very different ways. I think Megan provided a lot of good insight about Earth based off Bron’s character whereas I focused more so on the random clues Delany included and didn’t really analyze bron’s character on Earth. Even though we approached the question differently, there are many things that we both noticed and addressed.
Megan Barber 11/30
One of the more interesting aspects of Trouble on Triton is how it addresses the differences in Earth society as opposed to the Martian and Tritonian societies that Bron has grown accustomed to. In this novel, Earth appears to be a very prejudiced, materialistic, and thoroughly traditional society, where gender roles hold greater importance and individual expression is discouraged. When Bron first arrives on Earth he is tortured at length by guards who refer to him and Sam as “moonies” and make wild generalizations about people who aren’t from worlds. “”It’s funny,” one of the guards said to nobody in particular. “The moonies always sit in the corner soon as you leave ’em alone. Marsies and Earthmen always sit at the center of the wall. I’ve always wondered why” (Delany 137). A few paragraphs later another guard makes a similar remark about how “moonies” always sit in the middle of the wall once you leave them alone while “Marsies and Earthmen” sit in the corner of the wall. This is clearly an absurd generalization created by the guards to distance themselves from the Tritonians so they can continue with their horrible behavior. This scene was likely included to show the absurdity of racism and how racists justify their hatred by inventing new sources of division between themselves and who they view as “the other.” Bron also describes the use of physical money on Earth, something that is virtually unheard of throughout the rest of the solar system. When he takes the Spike out on their date, he becomes extremely preoccupied with appearing wealthy and sophisticated. He asks for one of the most expensive wines the transport carries, insists on the finest table in the restaurant, and orders an obscene amount of food and liquor. One of the most important things to notice in this scene however is how the footmen act when Bron makes them do embarrassing things to earn relatively small amounts of cash. The women promptly obey each of Bron’s orders and even begin attacking each other when instructed to do so. Bron tells the Spike, “I spent a spell as a footman myself, once,” Bron said…”It gets to you” (Delany 170). This is far different from the culture we have been exposed to on Triton where material goods and money in general are not prized as highly. In fact, Sam even tells some Earthmen that almost every Tritionian is put on welfare at some point in their life so it isn’t seen as shameful in their society. Another fascinating difference is according to Bron, women and men are seen as almost completely equal in Tritonian society. However, on Earth women are more likely to be seen in servile roles like being waitresses or footmen. These three differences together create an image of Earth that is somewhat primitive and extremely flawed, providing an interesting juxtaposition to the Tritonian society we have been exposed to throughout the novel thus far.