By imagining future worlds that defy our most basic assumptions about sex and gender, freedom and equality, and ethical values, this collection not only challenges traditional standards of morality and justice but also creates bold experiments for testing feminist hypotheses. Part I, "Human Nature and Reality," explores what it means to be human, whether there is an intrinsic difference between males and females, and the importance of language. In part II, "Dystopias and Utopias," the stories on dystopia portray misogynistic societies uncomfortably familiar to the early twenty-first-century reader. Chilling stories of future possibilities follow, including worlds where women and men separate into armies to fight a literal war of the sexes. The selections on utopias address questions of separation and androgyny: Why should women want to separate from men? What would and should these all-female worlds be like? What would be the consequences of perfect sexual equality? Full of stories that provoke and entertain science fiction enthusiasts, the volume is also designed for students of this popular literary genre
