Beggars in Spain is a highly allegorical work of fiction that was impactful, not only from a pure entertainment point of view but also by delivering deeper meaning and lessons that pervade more than just the superficial. The theme of discrimination, in separation and segregation, is pervasive throughout the book. There is the dichotomy of the genetically modified, and intellectually superior, sleepless and the sleepers that brings about the book’s thematic depth. This stark contrast between the normal people, or sleepers, and the sleepless brings about a lack of congruence and explores the subsequent implications; raising questions on segregation/separation, eugenics, and morality. The minority in this story, the sleepless, had differences that gave them a distinct advantage over the general public, and this led to persecution and segregation, this theme can be applied to certain groups in contemporary society. As such, this study posits that as long as there are differences between any two subsets of a population, there will always be separation or segregation, in one form or another, and varying degrees, as it does in Beggars in Spain.
Kress’ work cautiously approaches the topic of eugenics and avoids coaxing the reader into a normative “oppose or support” scenario. However, it does take an open, dialogic, and ethical approach to this topic. The primary principle behind eugenics is that a specific section of people is deemed to be superior based on a set of practices or beliefs, and therefore, anyone else is regarded inferior and often excluded or discriminated against. In the Beggars in Spain, the sleepless are developed to be intellectually superior, and some among them feel that they should associate explicitly with their kind. In fact, they feel that they owe the ‘sleepers’ nothing, as reflected by Tony Indivino stating; “…what do productive and responsible members of society owe the ‘Beggars in Spain’, the unproductive masses who have nothing to offer except need?”. This sentiment is embodied in the “Yagaiism” worldview within the story, in which weak and unproductive are not owed anything (Kress, p. 27). This is a very prevalent ideology presented by Nancy Kress in her book, especially among the radicalized Sleepless.
Parallels can be drawn between the world of Beggars in Spain and the real world regarding the issue of Eugenics. This ideology played a significant role in the development and culture of the United States, at least up until the Second World War. The practice was marketed as a bid to improve genetic quality, but it is apparent that eugenics was implemented to preserve the power of the population’s more dominant groups. The poor, the mentally ill, racial minorities, and women disproportionately fell victim to eugenic sterilization (Newman, p. 55; Novak, p. 612). The eugenics movement in the United States is now synonymous with racist and nativist elements and is compared unfavorably with the Nazi eugenics movement. The latter was more radical and explicit, stating that the German was of the purest blood, and painting other races, societies, and cultures as tainted. In recent times, the ideology behind Eugenics can be seen in genetic engineering, where ‘undesirable traits’ can be eliminated within animals and human beings. For instance, parents can test a fetus for predisposition or presence of any life-threatening illnesses, assess how these conditions may affect the child’s life, and choose whether or not to abort the baby (Amy, Jean-Jacques, and Sam, p. 123) As long as disparities, whether perceived or real, exist between two people, separation and segregation will persist.
The entire Beggars in Spain is characterized by the tension between the normal population, and a genetically superior subspecies. In the novel, the advantage of the gifted population comes from their genetics, which removes the need for sleep in this particular populace, and the advantages that this entails. This led to segregation and persecution from the regular people, who feared the potential and achievement of the sleepless. This scenario is reflected in the contemporary world, and particularly in the segregation and often persecution of the Jewish community.
The Jewish people have been persecuted repeatedly across many societies, and throughout history, in the majority of Europe, the Middle East, and even in the modern United States. The reasons for their segregation and persecution vary but inherently come down to causes similar to those reflected in Beggars in Spain. The starkest contrast between Kress’ work and the real world would be with the Ashkenazi Jews, also commonly known as “The Jews from Germany”. These are ethnic divisions within the Jewish community that through their disproportionately higher levels of achievement have been associated with money, power, and overall intellect. Their achievements in Western civilization range from the fields of mathematics, finance, politics, natural and social sciences, and the media. Notable accolades such as the Nobel prize, the ACM Turing Award, Fields Medal winners, and chess champions have disproportionately been won by Ashkenazi Jews or individuals with Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry (Cofnas, p. 156). The Ashkenazim have also been heavily persecuted, from the Christian Crusades to the Holocaust. Their plight is much like that of the sleepless, and this alludes to the fact that, as long as there is a minority that is believed to have an inherent advantage, this minority will always be segregated.
Finally, in Beggars in Spain, there is the prevalent theme of vigilantism and extrajudicial procedures and punishments. This is apparent in several points throughout the book, such as numerous rescue missions or ‘kidnappings’ of oppressed and mistreated Sleepless children that Leisha Camden, Tony Indivino and Jennifer Sharifi planned and conducted. It is evident that, save for Leisha Camden who firmly holds unto sharing-caring and egalitarian ideals within a pluralistic society, that the sleepless have lost faith in the institutions of justice and governance that exist in their world. This neglect by the law is highlighted when Tony Indivino is arrested during a rescue attempt and summarily killed in an extrajudicial manner while in police custody. The perpetrators of the crime are neither brought forward nor charged. The scenario depicted by Kress within Beggars in Spain is reflected in the modern-day US, specifically within the African-American community. As a population that has had a long history with institutional segregation and discrimination, including slavery, and a relatively lower representation within political and governing bodies, many within the African-American community have little faith in the police and the judicial and executive systems. This distrust is further exacerbated by numerous reports of police brutality, extrajudicial arrests, and killings as well. It is, therefore, apparent that if any subset of the population feels that the systems in place are not fair or equal, then this population will always feel segregated.
However, the counter-argument could be raised, that explicit segregation, such as that outlined in Beggars in Spain cannot exist and thrive in contemporary society. This assertion, however, would be entirely unfounded as there still exists, albeit subtly, extensive institutional segregation. For instance, there has been documented racial residential segregation, whereby two races, often Caucasian and African-American are spatially separated (Reardon, p. 40). This also specifically alludes to Beggars in Spain, where Jennifer Sharifi builds the ‘Sanctuary’ for exclusively the sleepless. In contemporary society, however, some may term residential segregation as natural due to the belief that “birds of a feather…’ but rather, this segregation results from deliberate policies that subjugate the African-Americans. This subsequently creates a wealth gap and excludes the African-American community from good schools and healthcare (Williams and Chiquita, p. 406). This de facto segregation in contemporary society endures due to the legacy of de jure segregation in the past and is maintained by behavior and surviving notions regarding one race or the other.
Further, it could be countered, that the idea of eugenics, and the overall central premise of Beggars in Spain, whereby genetically superior human beings are developed is all based on science fiction, or at best, pseudoscience. However, modern developments in genetic engineering and the entire field as a whole are based on the ideology of eugenics. That is the pursuit of a flawless genetic sample. The sleepless in Kress’ book is the epitome of that fictional world’s genetic engineering. They are intellectually superior, and physiologically advanced as exhibited by an Olympic athlete being disqualified for training 16hours a day, or ultimately, the realization that they may be immortal as they possess extraordinary healing capability. In contemporary society, there are already numerous examples of genetically modified organisms, which are in one way or the other, superior to their regular species. These may be crops that have a significantly higher yield or take lesser time to mature, more hardy farm animals, and so forth. Also, research is underway on how to identify markers for genetic conditions in human beings such as sickle cell anemia, and eliminate them. Fetal screening for these defects can already be done, and termination done if requested or required, and effectively removing these unfavorable conditions from the gene pool.
Finally, one may assert that overtly discriminative policies and legislature as outlined in Beggars in Spain could not possibly have any place in modern society. However, history and contemporary politics have proven this not to be true. For instance, the Supreme Court ruling on Milliken v. Bradley (1974) declared that de-facto racial segregation was acceptable on the condition that schools did not actively pass any policies and rules that promoted racial exclusion (Hanselman and Jeremy, p. 1081). This created a weak legislative backing, and as a result, schools have been mostly segregated due to numerous indirect factors. Redlining is also, technically legal, and as a result, predominantly white communities have been able to maintain racial segregation. This includes mortgage discrimination, and white people getting better credit and being able to pay extra to live in white neighborhoods (Williams and Chiquita, 2016). This scenario is reminiscent of Beggars in Spain’s where sleepers cannot operate 24hr convenience stores, or that people can boycott sleepless-made goods.
This study has argued that Nancy Kress’ Beggars in Spain reflects historically accurate events in the course of human existence, and creates plausible scenarios with legitimate concerns regarding segregation and separation. While we can only speculate on what may occur in the future of humankind, Beggars in Spain allegorically outlines avenues of segregation as well as any non-fiction. It, therefore, follows that there will be separation/segregation between people as it does in Beggars in Spain.
Works Cited
- Amy, Jean-Jacques, and Sam Rowlands. “Legalised non-consensual sterilisation–eugenics put into practice before 1945, and the aftermath. Part 1: USA, Japan, Canada and Mexico.” The European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care, vol. 23, no. 2, 2018, pp. 121-129.
- Cofnas, Nathan. “Judaism as a Group Evolutionary Strategy.” Human Nature, vol. 29, no.2, 2018, pp. 134-156.
- Hanselman, Paul, and Jeremy E. Fiel. “School Opportunity Hoarding? Racial Segregation and Access to High Growth Schools.” Social Forces, vol. 95, no. 3, 2017, pp. 1077-1104.
- Kress, Nancy. Beggars in Spain. Harper Collins, 2009.
- Newman, Carla M. “Essay: Bartering from the Bench: A Tennessee Judge Prevents Reproduction of Social Undesirables; Historic Analysis of Involuntary Sterilization of African American Women.” Georgetown Journal of Law & Modern Critical Race Perspectives, vol. 10, 2018, pp. 53.
- Novak, Nicole L., et al. “Disproportionate Sterilization of Latinos Under California’s Eugenic Sterilization Program, 1920–1945.” American Journal of Public Health, vol. 108, no. 5, 2018, pp. 611-613.
- Reardon, Sean F. “School Segregation and Racial Academic Achievement Gaps.” RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, vol. 2, no. 5, 2016, pp. 34-57.
- Williams, David R., and Chiquita Collins. “Racial Residential Segregation: A Fundamental Cause of Racial Disparities in Health.” Public Health Reports, vol. 116, no. 5, 2016, pp. 404-416.