One of my projects for this year was to educate myself about Joanna Russ, a major figure in the history of feminist SF. I have read quite a lot about her, but very little of her actual work.

I started with On Joanna Russ, edited by Farah Mendlesohn, and only a few essays in, I’m thoroughly mesmerised. At the same time, I ordered a pile of paperbacks, including The Adventures of Alyx and How to Suppress Women’s Writing.

I read the first story of the Alyx collection, “Bluestocking,” immediately upon reading the first essay of the Mendlesohn book, “Alyx among the genres” by Gary K Wolfe. All very meta, but I enjoyed the experience very much. I was surprised to discover that Alyx is not, as I thought, another of those Jirel of Joiry types (glamorous swordswomen on horseback) but is instead more of a trickster character – small, unassuming, with more in common with the Grey Mouser or the noir private detectives than with the pulp fiction glamazons.

Even more interesting, according to Wolfe, the stories get more meta the deeper in you get to them, and move from heroic adventure through to planetary romance: in other words, from fantasy to science fiction. Also, Alyx’s stories often revolve around other women: the first one has her playing bodyguard/mentor to a fluffy redhead, and having quite an effect on her. The ending bemused me, and entertained me, and I’m still thinking about the story days later. Considering how many stories I read a year for LSS, that’s quite an achievement.

Further in, I’ve been reading about Russ’ contribution (both positive and negative) to the way people thought about female-authored and feminist science fiction, as well as her history of writing deeply critical reviews in F&SF. Her work was often in response to that of the well known male writers of the time. (One essayist mentions a woman who refused to read anything by men. “But how can you hope to understand Joanna Russ?” was his response) Each essay is my new favourite. I just finished Helen Merrick’s “The Female ‘Atlas’ of Science Fiction?” which details the way that Russ participated in the letters-columns-in-fanzines 1970′s equivalent of internet slapfights – the communications might have been slower in those days but the arguments, the anti-female invective and quite frankly the conversations themselves have not changed much.

Phillip K Dick on Joanna Russ:
“Lady militants are always like Joanna, hitting you with their umbrella, smashing your bottle of whiskey – they are angry because if they are not, WE WILL NOT LISTEN.”

I’m not nearly finished yet, but this is a journey that is going to take some time. I’m trying to resist the urge to buy more books until I’m finished with these ones – and oh yes, I suspect I’m going to have to re-read Justine Larbalestier’s The Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction all over again. What a shame!

Tags: alyx, critical thought, fantasy, feminism, gender, joanna russ, reading, science fiction, sexism