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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!floyd!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!orca!andrew
From: andrew@orca.UUCP (Andrew Klossner)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: heinlein and FRIDAY
Message-ID: <670@orca.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 3-Mar-84 22:42:14 EST
Article-I.D.: orca.670
Posted: Sat Mar  3 22:42:14 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 4-Mar-84 09:11:53 EST
References: <143@hocse.UUCP>
Organization: Tektronix, Wilsonville OR
Lines: 25


	"In all the flaming of Heinlein on the net, not one person has
	stated the real objection I have to FRIDAY: in real life, women
	do not fall in love with their rapists ...  Most women are not
	so calm and collected as Friday, and while she may be SUPPOSED
	to be extraordinary, Heinlein does a grave disservice to all of
	us who are not such "together" people ... Heinlein may very
	well leave men with the mistaken impression that rape is no
	worse than purse-snatching."

Throughout the book, Heinlein hammers away at the theme that Friday did
not consider herself to be a human being and had a far different
attitude toward sex from that of "real" women.  This was instilled in
her during her upbringing as an "artificial person", the product of
genetic engineering.  During her schooling, she was told daily that she
was not a real person.  She was also given extensive training in
"doxology", the study of how to please a man in bed, so that when she
became of age and her contract was sold, she could serve as a
concubine.

I think that the purpose of the rape scene is to emphasize this
indifference.  Friday really did believe rape to be no worse than
purse-snatching.

  -- Andrew Klossner   (decvax!tektronix!orca!andrew)      [UUCP]
                       (orca!andrew.tektronix@rand-relay)  [ARPA]