A Cage Of Butterflies

A Cage of ButterfliesA Cage of Butterflies introduces the controversial idea that there is potential for the misuse of scientific knowledge and practice by unscrupulous people. Brian Caswell has written this fictional book to make people aware of this problem in our society. The theme of the book can be seen from the different perspectives of the characters; the babies, the think tank group, Susan and Eric and the scientists. Caswell points out that some people place such things as fame and money in front of ethics and morality. The author also highlights the dangers in practices on which no restrictions are in place to prevent research like this going on behind closed doors.

A Cage of Butterflies tells the story of an institute for teenagers whose social skills border none yet have very high IQs. The seven teenagers: Greg, Mikki, Gretel, Chris, Gordon, Leslie and Katie live at the clinic in the outskirts of Newcastle in New South Wales. These kids made up the think tank group. The farm is run by three scientists: Brady, Larsen and Macintyre.

"We're like a new toy"¦they're just playing with us, experimenting" (Page 19) The novel is choreographed in a way in which not many novels are. Each chapter tells the story from a different point of view. This is an effective way of telling the story without giving it all away at once.

Deep inside the facility, Larsen and Macintyre were secretly documenting "the babies". These babies were a scientific phenomenon. At the age of eight they were super intelligent beings. Larsen was determined to find the cause of this intelligence even if it meant going beyond ethical and moral boundaries.

"He's got the ethics of a sewer-rat." (Page 119) An example of the lack of ethics is the deceit that Larsen used on the baby's parents at birth. In the novel, the babies were given a drug called Metamide. The drug was administered by the scientists without the consent of the parents. Not only did this occur, but the Government refused to acknowledge that it was happening "A means of producing a genius and telepathy through an inexpensive pill"¦and every mother needn't know what she's been given"¦every defense department in the world would buy it." (Page 119) The drug had a profound effect on the baby's health. They fell seriously ill with fever. After their recovery it was found that they had changed both physically and mentally. The babies had developed a brain condition where the two halves of the brain fused together.

"The babies. A freak accident had created them. And that was what they would be in the eyes of the world"¦freaks." (Page 148) An example of the effect the drug had on the babies both physically and mentally was by the way they had to be institutionalised. The babies were turned in to vegetables, and Larsen did not think twice about it. His actions showed how little respect he had for the baby's physical and mental well being. He had created a super intelligent life form which would not fight back or ask questions. The babies were harmless.

"At eight years old the babies were pacifists"¦they would " could " hurt no one. Not even to save themselves." (Page 135) A Cage of Butterflies is a book which allows the reader to understand text further by it conveying the points of view of all the characters without allowing for bias conclusions to be made. However Brian Caswell has made sure to underline the main theme of that there is potential for the misuse of scientific knowledge by unscrupulous people. He has done this by stereotyping the scientists as the "big company" etc thinking that they can get away with anything no matter the cost to human life.