please recommend me a dystopia sci-fi including artificial womb?

[David]

The entire Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold features artificial wombs extensively, or "uterine replicators" in that world's chronology. The books don't totally revolve around them or anything, but they're plot points in quite a few of the stories and play an important role in worldbuilding.

Bujold's take is very much that the technology would be liberating to women.

[Monica]

^^ What David said. Specifically, Barrayar and Ethan of Athos come to mind in dealing with the technology of artificial wombs

[Margaret]

Not that the Vorkosigan saga really qualifies as "dystopian"! But yes, if you want a thoughtful exploration of several different consequences of artificial wombs, Bujold is your author. She's a terrific writer, too!

[David]

Hah, I completely missed that it was supposed to be a dystopia. Sorry!

I don't read so many of those, but Brave New World is the obvious choice.

Of course, if you're looking for dystopias, you're going to find mostly negative portrayals of the technology. If you want to see artificial wombs bringing more freedom and better lives, you'll probably have to look outside of that genre.

[Trike]

Yeah, Brave New World is the grandfather of this idea, especially considering that it was published in 1932. It's basically the definitive example of "dystopian artificial womb", too, which is testament to Huxley's brilliance. Even his use of the phrase "decanted" rather than "born" is brilliantly evocative.

Another good example is Logan's Run, where humans are raised by machines, including uterine replicators, in places called Nurseries. In the movie version they heavily imply that some people react badly to being raised by machines, thus becoming the feral "cubs". I don't think an explanation is given for the wild child under-society in the book, but it's been 40 years since I read it.

In Beowulf's Children, colonists on an alien planet have to resort to artificial wombs for the first generation born there because of genetic damage done during the flight out, but Niven, Barnes & Pournelle underscore how the teams that made the things designed them by committee and not only did they not take into account all of the many variables involved in a pregnancy, but that ideological concerns interfered, as well. They specifically call out how liberals wanted one thing while conservatives wanted another when it comes to the hormones a baby is exposed to, thus resulting in less-than-perfect results in some cases. (view spoiler)[I think the main bad guy, or one of them, anyway, is a murderous sociopath precisely because he didn't get the right mix of hormones in utero. (hide spoiler)]

Then there are movies such as The Matrix, The Island and Replicant. I could mention others, but the fact that they are artificially-created people is a spoiler.

On the positive side of the artificial womb idea, I recall that in one of the Honor Harrington books she becomes pregnant and has the fetus transferred to an artificial womb and put in suspended animation so that she can continue with her military career. Basically a pregnancy snooze button. Handy!

Also, in John Varley's Eight Worlds series, people often opt for a similar path in order to have kids when convenient. But just as many people do it the natural way, and sometimes they have a mix of natural and artificial.

[Kristin B.]

I believe Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang fits the criteria. I see that it's shelved as dystopia. We read it with this group last year. They definitely have pregnant women, but I believe if I am remembering correctly there is a point in the book where some of the children are grown in the lab. I could be misremembering, so other group members can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. :)

[Marc-André]

In the Dune series, artificial womb are used by the Bene Tleilax. They are called axlotl tanks and serve various purposes. There is a twist to them. (view spoiler)[The axlotl tanks are actually the brain dead Tleilax females. Creepy. (hide spoiler)] The axlotl tanks aren't central to plot though.

A "fetologist" who works in birthing centers in space is a killed in Isaac Asimov's The Naked Sun.

In The Stars Are Legion, the artificial womb trope is turned on its head. Everyone is a women with a womb in that space opera. The wombs can produce various tools, not just babies.

[Marc-André]

Ain't Brave New World dystopic? Huxley, the author, certainly thought so.

[Julia]

Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series should probably be started with Shards of Honor, which can also be found as Test of Honor (Omnibus: Shards of Honor \ The Warrior's Apprentice) or Cordelia's Honor. Barrayar is really, really good, but not a great introduction to the series.

[David]

Julia wrote: "Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series should probably be started with Shards of Honor, which can also be found as ..."

I'd definitely recommend going with Cordelia's Honor if you're going to start with the Cordelia books. Shards isn't as good as Barrayar and it sometimes isn't enough to convince people to continue with the series, so Cordelia's Honor is a good way to give them that extra nudge into continuing, since they already have the second half of Cordelia's story arc in their hands. ;)

[Karin]

This is already old now, but people born to be spares grow in cattle wombs in The House of the Scorpion, so not exactly artificial.

[Karin]

David wrote: "Julia wrote: "Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series should probably be started with Shards of Honor, which can also be found as ..."

I'd definitely recommend going ..."

Good to know. I didn't love Shards nor the second book, but quite liked the prequel Falling Free.

[Sha]

Regarding Vorkosigan Saga;

I'd recommend starting with The Warrior's Apprentice. Miles and his train wreck of a thought process are fascinating introductions to the world, and once you get attached to him it's much easier to be drawn into the world building.

If you really want a story focusing on Artificial Reproductive Technology, I'd recommend starting with Cetaganda. It falls into the middle of the series, but it's fairly self-contained. Still would recommend reading at least Warrior's Apprentice before that though.

Oh also Ethan of Athos. That might actually be a better option.