/lit/ - Literature

I finished the 4th and final book of the Long Price Quartet. And I don't feel like reviewing it all. But there are a few things I'd like to note:

1. It's interesting how the matter of slavery is never important to the plot. They have slaves, they have slave traders. And this is never an issue to anyone. Not even the "good guys" of this tale have a second thought about it.

2. In the 4th book, The Price of Winter, I can't help but think there is a strong feminist message there. If becoming a poet is similar to becoming a coder or engineer, then it's very progressive for women to become poets. It's akin to women getting into STEM. The whole book is about female agency. And who gets to control wombs. And are women things to be bought and sold and used only for their ability to breed? Or are they more?

And that's why I think it's interesting that nobody in the world questions slaves. You have this super progressive female character who defies her already rather progressive dad. Giving two middle fingers to all traditions, she becomes a physician and later a poet.(which again, is like becoming a computer scientist) Her whole character is carrying about what women are free to do. But for slaves? Not even a thought.

Now I'm not saying that she SHOULD care about slaves. In fact, it might actually take away from the story if it started questioning slavery. Since there is already so much else going on. But I'm just pointing out how it kind of undermines some of her righteousness. I have to wonder if the author actually did this on purpose. Sometimes the mention of slaves came out of nowhere. Was it just random flavor text, or did the author want the reader to think of slavery in that moment?

3. Conversely, the book also has some "redpilled" takes on women. That many simply aren't cut out to become a poet. That they're baby crazy, and prone to childish squabbling.