Re: [*FSFFU*] Wonder Woman (was Re: Are we talking about Feminist SF?)

From: Sean Johnston (sean-johnston@UIOWA.EDU)
Date: Tue Sep 23 1997 - 13:24:41 PDT


>Fremen. Women owned by men (Paul won his first wife by killing her
>husband) polygamous, not polyandrous (as I recall and I am probably
>messing up the formal definitions) Men were the warriors.

Uh-uh--women fought, too.
Also, it was more that Paul took responsibility for the man's family than
that he won the wife. It's more like this: you kill a Fremen brother, you
don't get off scot-free--you take responsibility for his family so they're
not left so high and dry.

>
>Social structure. Royal title through male descent. Women political
>pawns (emporer's daughter), prostitutes, and playthings (emporer's
>"gifts"). Mentats: men. Security: men. Soldiers: men.
>
What about the Fish Speakers? (mighta been in later books)

>
>So, my assesment is that it is extremely sexist. With some small power
>given to some freakish women that no one much likes. Perhaps that is
>better than much, but I think there is better still.
>
>-- Joel VanLaven

Not here. I saw them as pretty much eqpal, but in different ways. There
wasn't much of a prohibition on women doing security, being soldiers or
mentats. There was, though, a sort of prohibition on men being in the B.G.
Sisterhood, but even that isn't very sexist, interpreting the term loosely.

-Sean



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