Feminist Dystopia

[Brad]

I'm a fan of feminist dystopian novels (I've even written one), but it seems to me that very few books fall into this category. THE HANDMAID'S TALE by Margaret Atwood, NATIVE TONGUE by Suzette Elgin, WALK TO THE END OF THE WORLD by Suzy McKee Charnas. Can anyone think of any more?

[Cherie]

The Gate to Women's Country by Sheri Tepper. Much of what Octavia Butler writes. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant may fall into this category although it isn't speculative fiction.

[Brad]

I've read THE GATE TO WOMEN'S COUNTRY, and if I recall correctly, it's more of a feminist utopia, with men and women living separately. Margaret Atwood has argued that technically, even THE HANDMAID'S TALE isn't really a feminist dystopian novel, since some women are in positions of power.

[Cherie]

I considered it a utopia as well, and was doing a paper on it for a graduate course on utopia. But re-reading and applying the criteria for utopian literature, it is actually a dystopia. If you consider that the men are under the control of the women, although they don't know it, and the women actually do not have complete control of their own lives (everyone must have a vocation and a craft, can't choose their mates without intervention from the ruling council, etc.) it doesn't really meet the criteria for a utopia. I'll look for the paper and see if I can upload a copy.

My masters thesis was on themes in dystopian literature and film, and whether they changed post 9/11. They didn't. :)