Janice wrote:
> Regarding high tech in general, I just finished _Woman on the Edge of
> Time_, and thought that one of the less convincing aspects of the future
> utopia was the casual presence of gadgets like the "kenner." I suppose by
> that time humans may have found better ways of making logic chips & the
> like, but as it stands now the manufacture of semiconductors is anything
> but environmentally friendly. How would it fit in to their society?
I must confess, the "kenners" were something I didn't think very clearly
about. I was too focussed on how the "brooder" might fit into their
society, and the idea that to be equal women had to give up the _power_ to
give birth naturally. Now that we all know about how IVF works, I would
question whether the brooder would fit. "Harvesting" the raw materials
required to create babies outside the womb does not seem to me to be the
choice that would be made by radicals wresting the control of science from
the oppressors. What do you think, Janice?
>
> For the most part, I really liked the book. Mattapoisett approximates my
> own ideals of gender, sexuality, social fabric. I didn't quite know what
to
> make of the ending, though. Was it implied that by killing the doctors
> Connie was helping to pave the way for Mattapoisett?
I also think it is a wonderful book and that Mattapoisett has a lot to
recommend it. I think its flaws are as stimulating to debate as its
successes. I think you are right about the ending. I believe that Piercy
is stressing that direct action is required to change the status quo - not
just theorising - and that we can't leave all the power to act in the hands
of those we disagree with. We have to take personal responsibility for
change.
Having read Woman on the Edge of Time, it's very interesting to then read
He, She and It (Body of Glass in the UK where I'm based) and compare
Piercy's two different visions of the future.
Joan
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu May 25 2000 - 19:06:27 PDT