Humanity and Power

Is it more human to want to change the world (past, present, or future), or to shy away from such expansive power?
In The Lathe of Heaven, Haber and Orr have fundamentally different approaches to power. Haber thirsts for power, although he does not even accept his own ambition, instead convincing himself that he is working for the betterment of mankind, asking us to accept that his own rise to power was merely a side effect. At first, Haber appears to be more sane than Orr, but as the plot progresses he spends an increasing amount of time with the Augmentor and less time with other people. In the end, his efforts at change leave him completely mad, suggesting that perhaps man isn’t equipped to seek out power with such abandon. Haber even asks, “…isn’t that man’s very purpose on earth- to do things, change things, run things, make a better world?” (82) In contrast, Orr, initially considered crazy, becomes more human through his relationship with Heather Lelache. But, at the same time, Orr also begins to associate more with the aliens and becomes stronger for it. That implies that perhaps humans are incapable of handling that much power safely. In The Matrix Reloaded power over one’s environment is shown in a much more positive light. Within the Matrix, humans, and Neo in particular, excel at adapting the environment to their own needs, even though it is a medium designed for machines. In fact, exerting that power is the only way to survive. However, even when control is necessary it can cause a negative response, as evidenced by Cypher in the first movie. He preferred the ignorance of being one among many rather than being singled out and having great power. This same type of power can be found in the real world in writers’ ability to reshape the past. In Playing in the Dark, Toni Morrison criticizes those who try to write racism out of our past or try to confine its discussion to the distant past rather than confronting it.
Another idea I found interesting was that race is an inherent part of one’s identity. In Lathe, race is only mentioned in reference to Heather Lelache. As Orr realizes, “Her color, her color of brown, was an essential part of her, not an accident… She could not exist in the gray people’s world.” (130) Her identity is so tied to the color of her skin that Orr cannot imagine her being any other color, even though it is in his interest to. However, it is interesting that neither Orr nor Haber’s description rested so heavily on race or any other singular attribute. Just as Morrison says, any character that isn’t specifically described otherwise is assumed to be white. Morrison also discusses how blackness is used to define whiteness in American literature. Without unspoken blackness to contrast with, American whiteness would be meaningless. I think it is interesting how both works place such a large emphasis on race as a part of identity. It leads to the question, would you be able to exist in a world of gray people?