Literary Adaptation
The Space Traders
Summary/Adaptation:
On the first of January, Native American ancestors are seen rowing to the United States of America. They are baffled at the extent in which Americans had let their native land deteriorate to nothing but filth due to economical and political greed. The ancestors, knowing very well that white Americans would not flee just to save the land that they had built such a large economic premise, they offered the Americans the choice to trade them all the African Americans of the country for the prospect of saving the nation from declining even further.
There were several surprises that came with their arrival. Firstly, the ancestors arrived in majestic canoes, all of them made by what were clearly highly-skilled artisans, due to their intricate design, and none of them were more superior in design or function than the others. The second surprise was that they all spoke fluent English and displayed perfect etiquette. Lastly, a dozen of the canoes were filled to the brim with gold that the Americans needed.
They knew, and the Americans knew, that they had come at just the right moment. However, the offer that they were giving gave the Americans far more to contemplate as this was a moment of crisis.
The President convenes that day with his Cabinet, in which there is one African American member, Gleason Golightly.
The President says, “I think we all know what our country has come to. It appears that the offer that the Native American ancestors have given us is the only solution that we have. It is true that they are proposing a solution that will not only save our country from its current dire circumstances, but this will also be a solution to the racial dilemma that has always been at the forefront of the country since its inception.”
Golightly speaks up, “Surely, Mr. President, and I agree with you whole-heartedly. I would like to foremost say that I am mocked by my own people for siding with every decision that is made by this Cabinet, even being called “Uncle Tom.” But, putting aside the fact that what seems to be the large issue on hand is that African Americans, an entire ethnic group of people in the country, will be essentially sacrificed for gold, and I put aside the desire to argue against this as I know that they inevitably will be traded away. But I ask one question of you, Mr. President. Is it more important that you are saving the country for the sake of the country itself and its people, or for its finite economic rewards?”
Another Cabinet member speaks up, “That is a good point Golightly. We have speculated that the ancestors have arrived so that we may trade the African Americans away in order to resurrect the land that previously belonged to the Native Americans and prevent further pollution, but is it not more important to save the country for the resources that it will be able to provide for the hundreds of millions of people that will still reside within it? What’s the point in saving the land when we don’t use it for profit like we’ve always done? Yes, the African Americans will be drafted away, and that in itself will cause a disruption in every aspect of the country: socially, politically, and economically, but it is for the greater good of the entire nation. Think about it, soldiers are drafted every day for the purpose of serving our country in times of war to uphold our beliefs. This is not much different: in this moment, we need people to step up to the plate and uphold our value of commerce and capitalism.”
Analysis:
I adapt the beginning where the Space Traders surprise the people because of their apparent fluency and look of grandeur. This is like how many Americans may view people of another race as inferior. In particular, historically, Native Americans have been looked down upon because Americans think of them as lesser beings because they find beauty and significance in the natural world. However, I play with this idea by suggesting that Americans think that “the greater good of the entire nation” is based on “uphold[ing]…beliefs…of commerce and capitalism.” In a sense, this means that Americans don’t value the land the same way as other people, like Native Americans may. They may see land as a profitable resource, which is clear because the situation they’re in is all due to fossil fuels and industrial companies.
Furthermore, I chose not to include the publics’ opinion. The entire adapted passage is restricted to only a short conversation between the President and two Cabinet members. This is because in a lot of important and big political situations, it seems as though the public also becomes a minority, in a social and political sense. Their ideas cause uproars and get transmitted into the office of the President, but they do not play much part in the decision-making in the end. In the text, the African Americans end up being traded off anyway, and even Golightly, an esteemed politician, gets captured and rounded up so that he gets sent off to the Space Traders. This promotes the notion that those who are in power have more say and will stay in power. In this case, it is the white male Americans.
By changing the Space Traders into Native American ancestors, this highlights the fact that not only are African Americans excluded in a lot of political decisions, but also other minorities. Minorities live very different lives than those of politicians or whites. They have different values and this makes them view America differently. For Native Americans, they viewed the country as a piece of land in which they can all prosper. For many other minorities and even immigrants, they may feel the same way. Like in the overall text, African Americans go through more hardships than it may seem, but they are usually not given enough attention. Other minorities are treated in a similar fashion.
Also, by turning the Space Traders into Native American ancestors, this makes the audience pay more attention to a problem that’s not addressed in the original text: that not only are people affected, but nature and other organisms that live there, too. So not only do decisions need to view circumstances with political, economic, and social lenses, but also environmental lenses, and perhaps other factors. By including the ancestors, they serve as a symbol of the importance of stripping away all the unnatural and greed-driven effects of human behavior to show that there are also other underlying issues, some which may be as simple as the lack of care for the environment in which they live.
Despite the efforts of people who may also hold political presence, some may be ignored and even admonished for attempting to bring up ideas. In this case, Golightly is both an African American and supports the notion that the the country should be saved simply so that it will still exist in the future, not for political or economic reasons. However, because these ideas are out of the norm, they get ignored, which means that the country will remain a corrupted, and also as a result, a polluted one.
