Female Autonomy

Red Clocks examines the questions around female autonomy, and what it means for a woman to have, or not have, control over her own body and life. Each of the main characters struggles against rules imposed by society, the government, and even biology in order to create fulfilling lives. The most obvious way the novel deals with this theme is around the issue of abortion. Lawmakers decided that abortion should be outlawed, and make receiving one a criminal offense. Women are no longer allowed to decide whether or not they want to carry their pregnancies to term, and instead are forced to either give birth to a baby they do not want, or seek an abortion in a termination house, which could be dangerous. The mender became pregnant before abortion was illegal, and so she was able to choose what she wanted to do with...