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Geek Love by Katherine Dunn

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In Katherine Dunn’s, "Geek Love," the extreme reproductive method is practiced between the Al and Lily couple, who are parents of the Binewski family, trying to make deformed babies in order to have them perform at a circus. While the reproductive method they use seems to be extreme, the level of extremeness is actually determined by what the readers’ perspective is towards the novel. In order to answer whether or not Dunn actually defends the moral and ethics of Lily and Al’s reproductive methods, one has to look back to where the idea of prescribing drugs first came to mind. The idea of course was brought up by Al, but is it forced upon Lily? Or is it a choice Lily decides for herself? The whole idea of this extreme reproductive choice starts from Al’s selfishness. As Al’s wife, it was Lily’s kindness to and respect for her husband that compelled her to follow his ideas whether or not she liked it. The significance that rises at this point is that, while it seems like Al and Lily are both sacrificing themselves to have deformed babies, the person who is actually sacrificing is Lily because she is the one consuming the drugs. Al really doesn’t have anything to do with sacrificing. While one’s first impression towards the couple might be disgust for both of them and their reproductive decisions, by close reading more into the novel, readers can easily find that Al and his greed are the negative influences in the book while Lily really cares about her children. People who say that the idea of Al was a force might argue that the intension of creating these “loved ones” in their sense is all about their greed. However, by the end of the book where the whole crazy incidents of most of the Binewski children dying happens, Lily speaks out to Al that they should have more babies. Now, fundamental questions rising about her saying that is “Did she need more children to earn money?” or “Does she really love the children she had?” If readers pay close attention to the acts Lily makes in the novel, it is truly a fact that she did love her children deeply. A reader’s first impression of Lily might be that she is just as immoral as Al. It is interesting that Lily said the phrase “What greater gift could you offer your children than an inherent ability to earn a living just by being themselves?” (Dunn 7). Readers might think the “prescriptions of drugs, insecticides and radioisotopes” (Dunn 6) to create unique individuals are due to the love for their children. It is also common in today’s American society that parents are willing to sacrifice whatever they can for their loved ones. But, readers should carefully look at the phrase “earn a living”. If a parent really wanted their children to be happy throughout their lives, they wouldn’t only think that money is what matters. However, from the beginning of the creation of their children, Al and Lily

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