Marianne de Pierres
I was excited to find this paper has just been published by
Dr Jessica Aliaga-Lavrijsen in the Humanities open source journal:
Pregnancy, Childbirth and Nursing in Feminist Dystopia: Marianne de Pierres’s Transformation Space
I’ve been blessed to have had several papers written about my work now. It’s a special feeling reading a considered analysis of something you’ve poured your heart into. The Sentients of Orion series was a feminist space opera written at a time when it was hard to get my kind of work published. Special mention to Tim Holman and Darren Nash at Orbit (Hachette) who published me, and with whom I had a wonderful working relationship. Darren’s since moved back to Australia for new challenges at Text Publishing, but Tim’s the big boss now, and deservedly so.
ABSTRACT:
Marianne de Pierres’s Transformation Space (2010) is a rare example of an Australian novel set in an apocalyptic and dystopic interstellar future where pregnancy, childbearing and nursing have a presence that is quite uncommon in Science Fiction (SF). Despite the fact that the genre of SF and that of space opera in particular have been traditionally quite male-oriented, in the last years feminist theories of several kinds have been an undeniable transformative influence. This article intends to analyse not only how these specifically female issues related to motherhood/mothering are presented in the novel, but also to explore their function and role. A close reading of these topics will show whether they endorse a solid feminist stance or are just colourful feminist details in a male-dominated space opera and, in turn, if they have a specifically narrative purpose in the context of the dystopic subgenre.
Keywords: childbirth; contemporary Australian literature; dystopic novel; feminism; feminist SF; nursing; pregnancy; Science Fiction; space opera
