THE HERMAPHRODITES

Link to order the novel-:The Hermaphrodites 

SYNOPSIS

Hermaphrodites are a new species populating the world in the twenty-second century due to the ravages by chronic pandemics and the side effect of vaccines. These hermaphrodites are superior to normal humans because they have a natural immunity against deadly viruses. Since homo sapien death rates are outpacing births, hermaphrodites will replace homo sapiens and save humanity from extinction. There is no distinction between men and women. It is a world of a single sexuality and a single gender. The problem comes if the hermaphrodite body tells you you have tendencies that lean toward the male or toward the female. The government forbids sex changes due to the dictum which states, “If God wants us to be hermaphrodites, we should not tamper with His plan.” This is reminiscent of what the traditionalists say today about the two-sex biology. When we meet the Winwards, a mixed family, some of whom are single-gendered, some hermaphrodites, some satisfied with their bodies, some not, we get a thoughtful interpretation of the struggle to make mixed relationships work. It really held my attention and I recommend it for insights into today’s discussion of sex and sexuality. 

EXCERPT FROM THE HERMAPHRODITES -WRITTEN BY  GORDON BLITZ:

 Three months later, after Sue’s water broke, their robot midwife, Debra, took control. Sue had to twist Luke’s arm when she insisted on robotic care, “I don’t want to give birth in a hospital, and I feel the safest with Debra. I know she’s a machine, but we can’t afford a human midwife if they even existed. This is the next best thing.”

With a new pandemic every decade, the medical profession had transformed itself into a robotic army of doctors and nurses to save the population from death. Luke hated the fact that in most circumstances the only way to see a real live physician was through   telehealth. The surprise came when patient satisfaction scores soared; robots had a superior bedside manner. Still to Luke and Sue, if a live person had been available, that would have been their choice.

Sue did want a natural birth with an epidural block for their first child, another compromise. The motto of their family tradition opposing the techno-medical model of childbirth had ceased during the decade of pandemics where new variants kept popping up. Weakened immune systems had wreaked havoc on giving birth unaided by anesthesia.

Both Sue and Luke’s parents had died during the barrage of plagues bludgeoning the planet, along with aunts and uncles. Cousins were scattered across the globe, distant both emotionally and physically. Thankfully, their community in Spring Well offered family-type support.

Luke was familiar with Sue’s screaming. No different than when they both attained orgasms at the same time. Of course, the difference now was that Sue did not have a happy face. Sue looked like she was gulping air, and all her facial muscles were stretched. Luke used one hand to wipe the sweat off her brow and the other clutching her hand. Each time she screamed, it felt like his fingers were in a vice that kept tightening -- more painful than when Luke broke his hand by slamming the car door on it. Luke sang “Let It Be” by The Beatles to soothe her. Sue chose that song despite him explaining that “Circle of Life” by Elton John had been voted the best song to give birth to since 1994 when it was released. But Sue was stuck in the 1960s.

 As the baby’s head was exposed, Luke could feel the release that Sue must have been experiencing. Luke found it comical that the first image of the child was that of golden hair. As if Sue had arranged to only have a child with the blonde trademark of the sixties.

Once the infant left Sue’s womb, her breathing normalized, and her face relaxed. The wailing sound meant a healthy and normal baby. At first, when the midwife asked Luke, “Here’s the scissors to cut the umbilical cord,” Luke was not sure if his numb hand from holding Sue’s was in working order again. But the way Sue smiled at him demanded that he complete the birthing process. As Sue was holding the baby, the midwife motioned for Luke to step into the hallway.

“Luke, I don’t want to alarm you. I’m sure the baby will be fine, but it looks like the child has both male and female genitalia. I’ve been seeing a few other babies like this. This might be a variant of the last pandemic, but I don’t want to start any conspiracy theories. This has been something scientists have been grappling with as a side effect of the contagion; that it is causing hermaphrodite births. It also turns out that hermaphrodites have a natural immunity against viruses.