burton (12/16/82)
I have just completed Piers Anthony's "Viscous Circle", which is altogether a fine book. However, I noticed how blatantly sexist Anthony is in his science fiction; prior to this novel, I had only read his Xanth novels, and so contributed his sexism to the genre in which he was writing. Now I can no longer use this excuse. Was it just my imagination? Was I being overly sensitive? I realize Anthony's sexism has been discussed on the net before, but has anyone discussed his attitudes with regards to science fiction novels? I recall such lines in "Viscous Circle" as: It is the nature of the [female] sex to not give love away, but to always use it to gain some advantage. There were many instances (which I can't remember well enough to quote) where Anthony makes statements (such as the one above) about various characteristics of the female sex, which I felt were at least a little, and in some cases greatly, demeaning. Has anyone else out there read "Viscous Circle" and gotten a similar impression? Doug Burton inuxc!burton