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America (short story)
Encyclopedia
"America" is a short story by Orson Scott Card
. It appears in his short story collection The Folk of the Fringe
. Card originally published this story in the January 1987 issue of Asimov's Science Fiction
magazine.
. In it a teenage boy named Sam Monson travels to Brazil
with his father. While there he begins dreaming about a woman who lives in a nearby Native American
village named Anamari. When he goes to the village he finds the woman and begins helping her take care of the villagers. While there he learns that she also has dreams that come true and that she is dreaming about giving birth to a boy who will become the future leader of an America that is controlled by the Native Americans. On his last night in Brazil Sam sleeps with Anamari and she gets pregnant with that boy. Years after the war when Sam is the governor of the state of Deseret
, Amamari comes to meet with him to negotiate a peace treaty
on behalf of their son, Quetzalcoatl (named after Quetzalcoatl
, the Mesoamerican deity). Sam goes, and takes with him with a man named Carpenter to whom he later tells his story.
" by Orson Scott Card, Deaver Teague and the group he is traveling with meet with Sam Monson, the governor of Deseret
. In the short story "The Fringe
" the main character, is a teacher named Mr. Carpenter who discovers that some of the men in town are stealing from the rest of the people and reports it to the authorities.
/Mormon
influence is present in this story.
Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
. It appears in his short story collection The Folk of the Fringe
The Folk of the Fringe
The Folk of the Fringe is a collection of post-apocalyptic stories by American writer Orson Scott Card. These stories are set sometime in the near future, when World War III has left America in ruins. The stories are about how a few groups of Mormons struggle to survive...
. Card originally published this story in the January 1987 issue of Asimov's Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
magazine.
Plot summary
This story begins before the war that destroys AmericaAmericas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
. In it a teenage boy named Sam Monson travels to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
with his father. While there he begins dreaming about a woman who lives in a nearby Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
village named Anamari. When he goes to the village he finds the woman and begins helping her take care of the villagers. While there he learns that she also has dreams that come true and that she is dreaming about giving birth to a boy who will become the future leader of an America that is controlled by the Native Americans. On his last night in Brazil Sam sleeps with Anamari and she gets pregnant with that boy. Years after the war when Sam is the governor of the state of Deseret
State of Deseret
The State of Deseret was a proposed state of the United States, propositioned in 1849 by Latter-day Saint settlers in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years and was never recognized by the United States government...
, Amamari comes to meet with him to negotiate a peace treaty
Peace treaty
A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, that formally ends a state of war between the parties...
on behalf of their son, Quetzalcoatl (named after Quetzalcoatl
Quetzalcoatl
Quetzalcoatl is a Mesoamerican deity whose name comes from the Nahuatl language and has the meaning of "feathered serpent". The worship of a feathered serpent deity is first documented in Teotihuacan in the first century BCE or first century CE...
, the Mesoamerican deity). Sam goes, and takes with him with a man named Carpenter to whom he later tells his story.
Connection to the other stories
At the end of the story "WestWest (short story)
"West" is a short story by Orson Scott Card. It appears in his short story collection The Folk of the Fringe. Card originally published a shorter version of this story in the short story collection Free Lancers: Alien Stars IV .-Plot summary:...
" by Orson Scott Card, Deaver Teague and the group he is traveling with meet with Sam Monson, the governor of Deseret
State of Deseret
The State of Deseret was a proposed state of the United States, propositioned in 1849 by Latter-day Saint settlers in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years and was never recognized by the United States government...
. In the short story "The Fringe
The Fringe (short story)
"The Fringe" is a short story by Orson Scott Card. It appears in his short story collection The Folk of the Fringe and in Future on Ice a short story collection edited by card...
" the main character, is a teacher named Mr. Carpenter who discovers that some of the men in town are stealing from the rest of the people and reports it to the authorities.
Influences
As with many of Card's other literature, a ChristianChristian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
/Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
influence is present in this story.
Characters
- Mr. Carpenter - narrator
- Sam Monson - becomes governor of Deseret
- Anamari Boagente - Native American from Brazil
- Baniwa villagers - unnamed
- little girl with palsy - unnamed
- Sam’s father - unnamed
- Sam’s mother - unnamed
- Baniwa hunter - unnamed
- oil company employees - unnamed
- chopper pilot - unnamed
- two Native American men - unnamed
- Quetzalcoatl - Sam and Anamari's son