Advancement and Ecological Relationships within A Door into Ocean

An interesting theme I find in science fiction is that, when it ventures to a more “fantastical” side, those who are in touch with the environment seem to be more advanced and smarter than those who are not. This is explored in novels such as Dune, as well as Joan Slonczewski’s A Door into Ocean. The novel tells of a young man named Spinel from the planet Valedon who ventures as a sort of recruit to the all female planet Shora as a way to learn from the “Sharers” who live there, under the protection of the one he lives with, Merwen, and her family. On page 33, Slonczewski writes that “ Their ‘lifeshaping’ skills in particular were advanced, she believed, the incomprehensible to Valan doctors.” I found this particularly interesting because on a planet of nude, all female fish-like people, they are much smarter and have access to more advance technology than regular human doctors. This is even brought up when a sharer almost gets devoured by creatures called “fleshborers” and they use a lifeshaping chamber to recreate her limbs. “She had barely a head and chest left after we fished her from the fleshborers. But she’s growing back, now.” (152). These creatures have technology that can help a person regrow limbs, and it’s all from their relationship with the environment. With Shora being an all ocean planet, the Sharers have to live on rafts that constantly regrow and change and the Sharers have learned to adapt better than most people anywhere. With their “learnsharing” language, as well as having a keen touch within the environment, they also get along better as a people, with them living in peace for at least ten thousand years.” (33). As a result of their ability to “learnshare” from each other and adapt to their ever-changing environment, it seems this had made the Sharers of Shora an extremely advanced people. While the Sharers are not perfect, and will often argue with each other over certain things, their abilities to listen to each other and interact have kept them advancing more than any other civilization out in this novel’s universe, it seems.

Slonczewksi, Joan. A Door Into Ocean. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, 1986. Print.