Rape in SF

Examples of rape in SF.

List of Works

Works in which rape is a central theme, or central in development of plot or character. This list includes works that are hideously sexist as well as works that are generally feminist.

• Suzy McKee Charnas, Walk to the End of the World
• Lois Gould, A Sea Change (1976)
• Elizabeth Hand, "Cleopatra Brimstone" in Redshift: Extreme Visions of Speculative Fiction, edited by Al Sarrantonio (2001)
• Nalo Hopkinson, Midnight Robber (2000) [child abuse]
• Gwyneth Jones, The White Queen [alien rapes human thru mixed signals]
• Gwyneth Jones, Life
• Sylvia Kelso, Amberlight (male rape)
• Mercedes Lackey, Magic's Price (1990) (homosexual gang rape of protagonist Vanyel Ashkevron)
• Mercedes Lackey, Arrows' Fall (1988)
• Robin McKinley, Deerskin
• Sam Merwin, Chauvinisto (1976)
• Diana Rivers, Journey to Zelindar: The Personal Account of Sair of Semasi: Book 986 of the Hadra Archives (Lace Publications, 1987) (Hadra 3) (A country of lesbian separatists, the Hadra, is protected by the Goddess in a patriarchal society. After a gang-rape, Sair of Semasi escapes her country after a rape and is taken in by the Hadra.)
• Mary Doria Russell, The Sparrow and Children of God
• James Tiptree, Jr, "Mama come Home" (1968) [alien females rape human males]
• John Varley, Titan (Gaean Trilogy v.1)
• Kate Wilhelm, The Clewiston Test (1976)
• Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, "False Dawn" (the story, which was part of the book) in Strange Bedfellows edited by Thomas Scortia (1972).
• Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. "Un Bel Di" in [[Two Views of Wonder], edited by Thomas Scortia and Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (New York: Ballantine, 1973)

• "Pegasus" episode of Battlestar Galactica Season 2, episode 10 (2005) - Female cylon on Pegasus was apparently raped repeatedly; another female cylon character, regular character, is sexually assaulted.
• "Berserker" (a 2001 film in which a female character is raped to disempower her and prove that she was Brunhilde, an "evil" Valkyrie; see review by SunlessNick)

See also

• Rape in Greek mythology - Greek mythology contained numerous stories of rape or seduction (depending on the story); often followed by the female character transforming herself, as in Medusa, Leda, Daphne

Discussions, critiques, analyses

• The Fantasy of Rape: The Use of Rape as a Catalyst on Female Protagonists in SF/F, Naamenblog + comment thread on FSFblog, and relatedly, rape and revenge in SF and female protagonists who did not experience sexual assault
• books to make my flist's heads explode: John Ringo, hradzka, 2008/03/22 - Analyzing John Ringo's Ghost, first book in the Paladin of Shadows series; series protagonist Mark Harmon hates rapists because he, too, wants to rape, but valiantly resists. The immortal phrase: "OH JOHN RINGO NO".