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Bianca Grino

Professor James Wilson

Engl.123

4/18/18

Looking Past the Differences

In the exciting novel, ​Cloud Atlas​ by David Mitchell, he introduces a wide variety of

themes that involve the different genres and stories that he writes about in his book. The unique

concept about having different genres and having it connect all together is what brings such an

exciting, confusing, and interesting feeling about his style of writing. An intriguing section in

this book in particular is the science fiction genre called, “ The Orison of Somni-451”, which is

about a dystopian society that is in charge of the production of fabricants or clones. In this world

humans are called “purebloods” and they treat the fabricants like they were slaves even though

they have a growing sense of curiosity that makes them hunger for knowledge about the world

around them. Some people have disagreed with the way these fabricants are being treated.

Purebloods use these fabricants like they are nothing, and that they don’t feel anything when in

fact they do. Because of the disagreement with the fabricants and purebloods, purebloods who

feel empathy for these fabricants, and the strong need to change their society, decide to start a

revolution that would sooner or later destroy their world from within. The emotions that these

purebloods feel for these fabricants bring out a theme that actually appears in other sections of

the book as well. The purebloods in this section of the book treat fabricants like they are nothing

because they are something that is completely different from what they are. They don’t try to

understand that these “fabricants” feel what they feel as well. Although, once other purebloods
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see these fabricants suffering by the hands of other purebloods who don’t think too highly or

respectfully of them, they would feel a certain connection with them that they would start to

disregard their race, status, or cultural difference to try and help them. Overall the theme that

David Mitchell brings out in this section is how human suffering can bring people together

regardless of race, status, or cultural difference.

This theme has come up in this section of the book quite frequently. Since the main

character of the story is a fabricant we see majority of the story in her perspective. In this story

the fabricants are the ones who suffer and the purebloods are the humans who are being ignorant

about how poorly they’re treating the fabricants. Most purebloods don’t see them as equals. All

they see are clones that look like them, but don’t have the same sense of feelings or sense of

knowledge they do. When the main character Somni-451 went to a university to learn with other

purebloods two students she met observed her and said, “‘It must be hell,’ said the second, ‘to

have an intelligent mind trapped in a body genomed for service’” (223). All the while Somni was

at the school, the purebloods who would be going to that same school would treat Somni with so

much dispre. Even though Somni looks just like them, majority of the students studying in that

school set her apart from the rest of them all because she is “programmed” to be a server which

is a fate she would never choose for herself. Although majority of the purebloods treat Somni

that way, some purebloods feel that the way they treat fabricants is wrong. While Somni goes to

Papa’s Song with Hae Joo to see what it is like in a pureblood’s perspective to how the fabricants

are living, she comes to a certain realization where both Somni and Hae Joo finds a special

connection, because it is between a fabricant and a pureblood. While Somni comes to a

realization to what is happening in Papa’s Song she whispers, “‘We are just slaves here for
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twelve years’ The Unanimity post grad just scratched his ear and checked no one was

eavesdropping: but his xpression told me he agreed” (231). Once Somni slowly starts to figure

out the position that her and her sisters were in, she begins to accept the fact of how wrong it is

for her to go through with a life like that without even knowing how much she is suffering on the

inside. Seeing her come to a realization like that made Hae Joo feel sympathy for her, and he

shows it through his facial expression that he agrees with Somni which shows a sense of

connection. This part in the story portrays the connection to the theme that David Mitchell is

trying to discuss about how suffering can bring people together despite race, status, or cultural

difference.

Another connection can be made about the genre to the theme as well. “The Orison of

Somni-451” is a science fiction genre. Science fiction stories are mostly about the impossible.

Most of the themes that the general science fiction works base on is love, loss, and redemption.

The science fiction genre could really connect to the theme about forming bonds through

suffering because science fiction works in general talk about redemption and saving. According

to the Salem Press Encyclopedia of Literature, “Most science fiction plots involve advanced

science, space travel, extraterrestrials, time travel, and other seemingly impossible experiences,

many of these narratives also harbor universal themes such as love, loss, and redemption.” In the

story most of the connections the main character creates through her suffering would lead to her

plan about saving the other fabricants, which then leads back to the idea of redemption.The idea

of redemption came to Somni once she realizes what she needs to do to stop her sister fabricants

from suffering. When Somni thinks about it she said, “‘That ship must be destroyed. Every

slaughtership in Nea So Corpros like it must be sunk.’ Hae Joo said yes…” (346). This scene in
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the book shows us what Somni’s plans were to save her sister fabricants. Not only that, but this

scene also shows how Hae Joo is agreeing with her which shows that he will stay with her and

see her plans through which brings out a stronger connection between these two characters.

Overall the rest of this section in the book really shows the idea about the theme with redemption

that general science fiction works have, but it also shows how the connection with the theme is

implied since the idea of suffering and making a connection is carried in through the relationship

that Somni has with Hae Joo.

At the same time another relation that can be made to the theme can be through the

literary features in the “Orison of Somni-451” which supports the theme of connections being

made through suffering regardless of race, status, and cultural difference. The characters in most

science fiction works all have at least some human qualities. According to Rebecca Gibson in the

academic article, “More Than Merely Human: How Science Fiction PopCulture Influences Our

Desires for the Cybernetic”, she explains that authors of science fiction works “describe what an

ideal almost human looks like, what they say and do, and much of the time they withhold enough

humanity that we, the reader or viewer, understand what is missing. With the use of the

bodyscape as a blank canvas, the author can create new beings that embody humanness without,

questioning it”(225). This could relate a lot to Somni because she’s the main character in this

section who has the same certain human qualities as other characters in this section of the book,

but was made by technology, and this is what sets her apart from the other characters since

they’re all basically human except the fabricants like Somni. This literary feature about the

characters connects with the theme because majority of the characters in this section have a

connection regardless of race, status, or cultural difference because they all have some of the
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same human qualities. The literary features for characters contribute a lot to the connection to the

theme because in science fiction stories the main character would usually find another character

who is unique. This is basically how Somni meets Yoon and Hae Joo. The bonds the main

character and a unique side characters create is evident in other works of science fiction as well.

Like the story by George Orwell called ​1984. ​The main character in this novel, Winston, met a

another character, Julia, who was unique because she doesn’t follow the rules that were held

strictly in their society. This is a similar situation that Somni had when she met Yoona and Hae

Joo.​ ​This is continually describing how the main character is creating bonds with different

characters even though they are different.

In addition to the characters as literary features, the narration of the story can also make a

connection to the theme. Since it’s an interview and Mitchell uses present tense, it creates a

conversational tone between the main character and her interrogator. The way the present tense

of this section of the book creates a conversational tone, means that the characters have a

connection, and see each other on even ground. Since its a conversational tone, none of the

characters look down on each other so they respect each other despite race, status, or cultural

differences. This kind of conversational tone is very evident in this section because the way

Archavist is interrogating Somni is nothing like the interrogation that Winston and Julia

experience in ​1984. ​The interrogation methods the authority use on Winston and Julia are very

tortuous, and the characters that are doing the interrogating really stamp their authority on

Winston. While on the other hand, Archavist and Somni had more of a conversational

interrogation which shows that they really didn’t mind each other even though they are

supposedly at different levels in status. Seeing that conversation on even ground really goes back
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to the idea of how people can make certain connections through suffering regardless of status or

cultural difference.

Other than that one interrogation scene from ​1984​, there are a lot of things that can

compare to ​Cloud Atlas ​based on the theme from other different works as well. For this section

of the book there can be a lot of comparisons that are made from the book to ​1984 ​and the film

Blade Runner. The book ​1984​ is also about a dystopian society that is being runned by an unfair

government, and has treated people unfairly with the rules guarding that society. In ​1984​, the

main character Winston also believes he is unique, and by following the society’s rules he is

suffering at the same time. Once he found someone other than him who felt the same way he did

he made connection to that character. Winston and this character named Julie shouldn’t have to

make a connection with each other, but the way they suffer disagreed with society rules, so

through that they create a connection. On the other hand, Blade Runner also showcases a relation

to the theme that David Mitchell is trying to imply. This movie is also a science fiction genre,

and it has a relation to the book ​Cloud Atlas​ because it involves clones called replicants. Not

only that, but there can be a connection made to the theme as well because there were characters

in the movie that involves an agent and replicant who end up together and have a child. Both of

these characters show that they made a connection despite what they were. Although one of them

is a replicant or clone and the other is a normal human being they put their differences aside and

didn’t care whether they were a different race, so they create a special bond and end up being

together in the end of the movie. These characters from this movie coming together continue to

connect to Mitchell’s argument about the theme that he is trying to describe in his book ​Cloud

Atlas.
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Overall in this book, we could say a lot about the theme that David Mitchell is implying

while writing ​Cloud Atlas​. The importance of what he is discussing about making connections

through suffering, and disregarding race, status, and cultural difference was very important to the

section “Orison of Somni-451”. All of the literary features that he uses in this section of the book

contributes to the theme that we is trying to get across to his readers. He really stresses the points

in his book that the connections that the characters create with each other through their suffering

was important. The section “Orison of Somni-451” wasn’t the only section that held the concept

about making the connection through suffering while disregarding status, race, or cultural

difference. This theme was actually really evident in other section of the book as well. Majority

of the characters in other sections have shown certain connections towards each other and it

really didn’t depend whether they are similar or not. The connections that these characters would

make with each other really impact the story, and how it is told as well. Until these characters

make these certain connections with other characters things don’t usually happen until they do.

Somni doesn’t make serious actions without Hae Joo’s help or until she met Yoona who

catalyzes Somni’s curiosity about the world around her. The making of these connections

between these characters were so important because things wouldn’t be able to start without

having the characters work together through certain situations. The science fiction genre in this

section of the book really stresses the importance of connections as well. Since majority of

science fiction works have a recurring theme about redemption, things in the “Orison of

Somni-451” wouldn’t have a connection to a theme like that if the character herself didn’t make

a connection through suffering with the other characters. With all the literary features, genre, and

writing style, David Mitchell creates this book that could really teach his readers that human
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suffering can really bring people together to the point where they would disregard race, status,

and cultural difference.

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Work cited

Gibson, Rebecca. "More Than Merely Human: How Science Fiction Pop-Culture

Influences Our Desires for the Cybernetic." ​Sexuality & Culture​, vol. 21, no. 1, Mar. 2017, pp.

224-246. EBSCO​host​, doi:10.1007/s12119-016-9391-9.

Mitchell, David. ​Cloud Atlas: a Novel​. Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2004.

Orwell, George. ​1984​. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, 1984.

Scott, Ridley, et al. ​Blade Runner​.