HearWriteNow

In post-birth bliss my plans were simple: spend as much time as I can handle at my baby’s eye level trying to see the world from his perspective; take it easy, live simply, let the housework go for a while; and gradually, as the mood takes me, get back into the writing I really love – my many novels planned out and half-begun.

I never would’ve imagined that I would be dragging my baby off to a protest rally to fight for my right to have a natural birth again. Nor would I have believed that almost the only writing I would manage would be letters and Senate Inquiry submissions arguing against the proposed Bill that aims to deprive me of a midwife at my next birth.

I can’t help but wonder at the reality of this situation. It seems to be something out of a work of fiction; across two pieces of legislation lies a technicality that strips women of a basic right that most wouldn’t exercise anyway… until…  [cue sinister music]. Even in our very real protest against this oversight we enter into the realm of Speculative Fiction. What if?

So let’s speculate. Let’s take this into the realm of fiction* and have a close, but safe, look at what may be:

— What if there really was a higher level conspiracy against women? What if iatrogenic depression and trauma has been a convenient way of suppressing women for years, but the alarming trend towards homebirthing has been empowering women instead?

— What if there were an obstetric monopoly? Or, conversely, what if there were a midwifery monopoly? What if only a tiny percentage of a country’s obstetricians were actually retained for emergency situations? How hard would a character fight to hold onto a profession for which they have trained for many years? What tactics could a large body use to ensure a lucrative and easy profession, sought after but exclusive, continued to be protected at government level.

— What if it were an extreme natural birthing model being enforced by law and no woman would be allowed pain relief or caesarean surgery? What would happen in a true emergency?

— Isaac Asimov’s The Naked Sun explores in part a world where contact between people is abhorrent and children are simply products delivered as efficiently as possible and then raised in a communal nursery until they each, too, can be isolated. Research has since gone further to suggest that removing a baby from human contact following birth increases the possibility that it will attach to material objects. So who could stand to benefit from a civilisation trained to attach to possessions and not people?

— The movies Code 46 and Gattaca involve authoritarian interference in conception and birth in an attempt to avoid certain defects or to engineer the type of person who is preferable to the particular society. How easy a road is this for a society to go down starting with just tiny modifications that gradually increase? What if a world’s authorities have the legal right to order the termination of a pregnancy? Conversely, what type of vast improvements in human biology might be achieved by truly and accurately understanding the genome and being able to pinpoint exact genes for change?

–A study is being done in Sweden into whether caesarean section delivery of a baby causes epigenetic changes to the baby’s genome. What group might benefit from being able to deliberately alter the genes of such babies while making it seem accidental? How might such a group ensure that enough babies are available for their requirements?

So, you’ve received some insight into how one newsworthy item can spark a whole list of story ideas. Why don’t you try it? Take a news report that interests you and let your imagine go for a ride on the What If? train.

*Remember this is intended to be fiction. This speculation does not necessarily reflect my personal beliefs or theories and is intended to encourage further thought and debate in the realm of fiction.