In Motherlines by Suzy McKee Charnas, the main character breaks free from a society dominated by cruel males to find her own kind – proud, strong, independent women who are free of men and even breed without men.
Motherlines, published in 1978, is the second volume of The Holdfast Chronicles. The feminist story takes place in a dystopic science fiction future where the Earth has been polluted and civilization destroyed. “Holdfast” is one of the surviving communities.
Men and “fems” are raised separately from birth. The fems are essentially slaves to the men. Alldera, the main character, breaks free and finds the independent Riding Women and other escaped slaves. Motherlines is often remembered for the strong female characters who no longer need men for anything and can even use their horses for human reproduction.
Like much feminist science fiction, Motherlines imagines an extreme version of society, which can teach lessons about women’s freedom in actual, contemporary society. The book explores what it means to be female and examines feminist empowerment and the dynamics of power in relationships.
The first book in The Holdfast Chronicles is Walk to the End of the World (1974); the two books that follow Motherlines are The Furies (1994) and The Conqueror’s Child (1999).