2001: A Space Odyssey

“The drought had lasted now for ten million years, and the reign of the terrible lizards had long since ended. Here on the Equator, in the continent which would one day be known as Africa, the battle for existence had reached a climax of ferocity.”

This opening to the novel sets the scene by describing a sweeping landscape. It is almost cinematic in its grandeur, as the writing of this novel coincided with the scripting of Kubrick’s movie. The passage’s diction—for instance, “terrible lizards” and “climax of ferocity”—suggests cruelty and extremity, immediately immersing readers in the drama of survival that will drive this part of the novel and contribute to The Need to Evolve.

“When the first faint glow of dawn crept into the cave Moon-Watcher saw that his father had died in the night. He did not know that the Old One was his father, for such a relationship was utterly beyond his understanding, but as he looked at the emaciated body he felt a dim disquiet that was the ancestor of sadness.”

This passage uses light as a metaphor for change and development. The dawning day echoes the hints of the evolution of intelligent life, including the idea that Moon-Watcher is experiencing a feeling that is “the ancestor of sadness.” This description creates distance and proximity in readers’ relationship to Moon-Watcher; he is not human and can’t comprehend the idea of family relationships, but he is humanity’s “ancestor.”

“Over the valley, a full moon was rising, and a chill wind was blowing down from the distant mountains. It would be very cold tonight—but cold, like hunger, was not a matter for any real concern; it was merely part of the background of life.”

The Moon is a key image that ties together this novel; it stands for many things, not least for striving beyond immediate circumstances and seeking knowledge. The prospect of manned Moon missions was looming when this novel was written, giving the Moon connotations of exploration and human accomplishment. Here it signals a cold night and a harsh environment that limits the “man-apes.