The following version of this short story was used to create the guide: Butler, Octavia, E. "The Evening and the Morning and the Night." Callaloo, Volume 24, Number 2. The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001. Pages 401 - 418.

Octavia E. Butler's short story "The Evening and the Morning and the Night" is a work of science fiction, written in the past tense from the first person point of view of the main character, Lynn.

Lynn was born with a rare condition known as Duryea-Gode disease. Both of her parents also had the disease. Individuals living with DGD were most commonly born to parents who underwent a new cancer treatment. DGDs suffered from a range of atypicalities, including proclivities towards suicide, murder, and self-mutilation.

In order to control her condition, Lynn was supposed to eat a strict diet. However, when she was 15, she was desperate for independence, and began compromising her food intake. To scare her, her parents admitted her to a DGD ward. Traumatized by her experiences there, Lynn attempted suicide shortly after returning home. Her father found her in time.

Three years later, Lynn's father's condition overcame him. While Lynn was at graduation practice, he killed her mother and himself.

A while later, Lynn started attending the University of Southern California. She thought college might be a good distraction. She struggled with isolation and loneliness for her first two years. Students judged and marginalized her when they discovered her condition. In her third year, she moved into a house with four other DGDs. This new community offered her a sense of stability and comfort. She put herself in charge of delegating house chores and making sure her housemates kept up with their tasks. No one seemed to mind her nagging.

Then one day, an attractive DGD named Alan started spending time at the house. He and Lynn were attracted to each other from the outset. Lynn was especially interested in him because both his parents had also been DGDs, which was rare. The more time they spent together, the more apparent Alan's despair and bitterness became. Even when Lynn was annoyed with him, however, she could not stop spending time with him. Soon they started sleeping together, and confiding in each other more and more.

Their relationship inspired Alan to seek out his mother, who he had not seen since he was a small child. When he discovered she was living at the Dilg DGD facility, he asked Lynn to come with him to visit her. Lynn was hesitant, but agreed.

The following week, they drove up the coast to Dilg. At the facility, they were met by a woman named Beatrice. Lynn disliked her at once. Beatrice led them through the facility, explaining Dilg's history and methods.

Then they met Alan's mother, Naomi. Alan and Naomi shared an intimate moment. Naomi was glad Alan and Lynn planned to marry. She thought they could protect one another.

Afterwards, Beatrice pressed Lynn and Alan to move to Dilg. Alan was terrified, and tried running out. Lynn thought a life at Dilg might be her calling, but she felt confused. Outside the facility, Beatrice tried convincing her to get rid of Alan and to join Dilg. Lynn felt upset, and fled into the car. She was afraid to even look back at Beatrice. She knew Dilg offered safety, but she did not want to live Beatrice's life.