Fear and Prejudice vs. Curiosity Theme Analysis

Teenage Binti, as the first member of the Himba tribe to be accepted into the prestigious Oomza University, is an object of curiosity and scorn when she enters the wider world populated primarily by the Khoush people, who are lighter-skinned and hold political power in Binti’s world. However, when jellyfish-like aliens known as the Meduse take over Binti’s spaceship, killing everyone but Binti and the pilot, Binti finds herself not just the only Himba on the ship—she’s also the only non-necessary human on the ship. Therefore, in the eyes of the Meduse, Binti is the enemy. As Binti discovers that she can communicate with the Meduse and begins to get to know a young Meduse named Okwu, both Binti and Okwu begin to understand that the only way to move past one’s prejudice is to replace feelings of fear and suspicion with genuine curiosity.

As part of the minority group at home, Binti is well aware of how prejudice works. She knows that the Himba tribe’s deep connection to their lands (to the point that most never leave home) and their practice of applying a perfumed clay substance called otjize to their skin make others—notably the Khoush—think of the Himba as uncivilized, provincial, and dirty. Importantly, the Khoush persist in this line of thinking even though the Himba are celebrated for their astrolabes, communication devices that also hold information about an astrolabe’s owner, including their past and future. Especially given that most of the discrimination Binti experiences over the course of her journey has to do with her looks, regardless of her unusual aptitude for math, Binti understands that the prejudice of the Khoush is ridiculous and stems from their lack of knowledge about the Himba. If the Khoush could learn to admire and respect what the Himba contribute to the world, Binti believes they’d be far less nasty—and indeed, this is exactly what happens once Binti proves herself to her future classmates.

When the Meduse enter the picture, however, Binti is forced to confront another aspect of prejudice that she hadn’t entirely considered when thinking about the issues between the Himba and the Khoush: fear. The Meduse and the Khoush have an uneasy relationship after a bloody war and still don’t trust each other. Due to the fact that the Khoush came out on top of that conflict and the fact that the Khoush are a powerful majority on Earth and in the galaxy, nearly everyone fears the Meduse—in addition to considering them subhuman, given that they resemble jellyfish and don’t communicate with people. This includes Binti. Even though she’s not Khoush, she was still taught about the Meduse in school (the Khoush design curriculum for everyone and make sure that everyone knows abut their war with the Meduse). Given what Binti knows, she’s understandably terrified when she realizes she’s the only person to survive the Meduse’s attack thanks to a piece of old technology, called an edan, that she keeps as a memento and that turns out to be poisonous to the Meduse. And to the Meduse, Binti’s identity as a Himba who also has issues with the Khoush doesn’t matter. To them, she’s human and therefore, part of the problem. On all sides, fear and prejudice reign supreme and keep everyone involved in the conflict from coming to a meaningful solution.

Communication and curiosity, the novel suggests, are some of the best and only ways to counteract fear and prejudice. On the ghostlike ship, with the Meduse prowling through the corridors trying to come up with a way to kill Binti, things only begin to change when Binti discovers that her edan enables her to communicate with the Meduse. Once it becomes clear that the Meduse cannot kill Binti without hurting themselves—and when they understand that Binti can’t and won’t do anything to them unless provoked—each side becomes increasingly comfortable and curious about the other. Through Binti’s budding friendship with the Meduse Okwu, she begins to learn about the Meduse culture and the conflict with the Khoush. At the same time, the Meduse discover that Binti’s otjize can somehow heal their wounds. Through this, both Binti and the Meduse begin to gain respect for the other’s culture and start to understand that they’re all individuals deserving of respect and kindness.

This mutual respect culminates in the novel’s climax, in which Binti is able to broker peace between the Meduse and the final targets of their attack at Oomza Uni—and ultimately, when the university offers Okwu a spot as a student. Through conversation, listening, and curiosity, Binti, the Meduse, and the faculty at Oomza Uni are able to make a start at repairing many years of strife, fear, and the prejudice. With this, the novel makes the case that the first step to overcoming prejudice is to approach new individuals and new situations with curiosity and openness, not fear.