Dark Matter
In her Introduction to this collection, Sheree R. Thomas explicitly discusses the metaphorical implications of the book’s title. “Dark matter as a metaphor offers us an interesting way of examining blacks and science fiction. The metaphor can be applied to a discussion of the individual writers as black artists in society and…also be applied to a discussion of their influence and impact on the SF genre in general.” The book is thus a collection of individual stories and essays in which being black in a white society is like being undetectable dark matter in the universe. At the same time, many of the authors themselves are like dark matter in that mainstream science fiction failed to detect their presence on the fringes for so long.
“Sister Lilith”
This story by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers is a first-person account of the woman who was originally created to share Eden with Adam before Eve. Naturally, she is left bitter about the consequences of this replacement. “Now all of a sudden, I’m bleached, I’m bone, a Jane-come-lately…Adam and his concubine. I just got to say that if a trophy wife was what he wanted, he sure got one.” The tone presented in her use of the modern vernacular fits with the mythic description of Lilith perfectly. Lilith demanded equality with Adam because they were co-created rather than being an afterthought built from one of Adam’s spare parts. Naturally, she had to be disposed of but the attempt to completely erase her from myth failed.
“Black No More”
This selection is an excerpt from a novel by George S. Schuyler. The novel is a satirical take on many aspects of racism and being a Black person in a white-dominant society. This excerpt is about the discovery of a process that can turn a black person into a white person. Max Disher’s initial reaction upon seeing himself is quite economical in its dependence upon metaphorical imagery. “The world was his oyster and he had the open sesame of a pork-colored skin!” Disher’s reaction indicates that the extent of the process is one that moves far beyond merely straightening hair and lightening pigmentation. Despite being the exact same person as he was when black, Disher sees a completely new life for himself now that he appears white on the outside.
“The Goophered Grapevine”
In this story by the great Charles Chesnutt, ex-slave Julius tells a story-within-the-story about a grapevine on a slave plantation which was “goophered” with a curse. A slave named Henry eats some grapes without knowing it has been goophered and subsequently undergoes a shocking physical transformation. The simile is clear even within the heavy dialect replicating Julius’ speech. “Henry’s ha’r begun to quirl all up in little balls, de like dis yer reg’lar grapy ha’r, en by de time de grapes got ripe his head look des like a bunch er grapes.” In other words, Henry’s hair begins to actually look like grapes on a vine. While the simile is clear enough, there is larger metaphor going on here which may not be apparent. Henry is viscerally linked to the grapevine through resemblance as a result of his hair becomes a metaphor describing the relationship between actual property and the slaves which the plantation owner views as property.
