Week 13: Literary Speculation

            This week we read the Aquatic Uncle; it reminded me a lot of the scenes from Fantasia. The story takes place in the primordial days as fish make their way onto land from the sea. This seems to be the first or second generation of fish with feet, but the old generation still leaves in the nearby ocean.

            Our main character Qfwfq, is part of the new generation and has an old uncle by name of N'ba N'ga, who is still an aquatic fish. Qfwfq and his uncle do not agree about the future of their species, which calming that land or sea is better. Qfwfq’s wife falls in love with N’ba N’ga over a visit with them. Finally she ends up leaving Qfwfq for him, falling in love with living in the sea.

                        The ending of story has an interesting paragraph. Qfwfq comes on to name a number of animals who have something “superior” and that never change over the course of ages in a massive way. Animals like crocodiles and roaches and things. He states that

“They all had something, I know, that made them somehow superior to me, sublime, something that made me, compared to them, mediocre. And yet I wouldn't have traded places with any of them.”

I think the theme of the story is pretty much in these sentences. It’s roughly that few though, my wife left me to go leave with my old sea uncle and his old way of life. He believes that he isn’t a crocodile and that he needs to move on because it’s important for his kind, and that they can’t go back. It’s a very pro evolution and change theme, which I do happen to agree with. I liked this one, a bit of a sad one but that’s just fine sometimes.