Gender is irrelevant

Gender is irrelevant to the Radchaai in Ann Leckie’s novel Ancillary Justice. Early in the novel, the reader recognizes that identifiers such as “she” and “her” are not only common, but uniform. At first glance, this would appear to identify prominent characters as female, meaning a leading cast of girls and women. However, this turns out not to be the case as the chapters unfold.

While speaking about Vendaai, Breq is forced to consider things from the standpoint of local Niltians. Breq reveals that gender is a fluid thing in the Radchaai Empire, that males and females are often difficult to distinguish from one another by appearance and dress. In other words, the Radch Empire is a place of genderless identity, or androgyny. Breq later notes in the novel that reproduction must be done in consultation with medical professionals to distinguish males from...