What Happened to Tom (Inanna Poetry & Fiction Series) - Softcover

Tittle, Peg

Softcover

ISBN 10: 177133293X ISBN 13: 9781771332934

Publisher: Inanna Publications, 2016

Synopsis

Fiction. Women's Studies. Inspired by Judith Jarvis Thomson's philosophical thought experiment "The Violinist," WHAT HAPPENED TO TOM? is a psychological and philosophical thriller. Plan B became available without a prescription well after Viagra became so very popular. No surprise then, that Tom, like many men, assumes that since pregnancy is a natural part of being a woman, it's no big deal: a woman finds herself pregnant, she does or does not go through with it, end of story. But then Tom wakes up to find his body's been hijacked and turned into a human kidney dialysis machine. He has to stay connected to Simon for nine months or Simon will die. Much of the novel is written as dialogue between Tom and the female doctor who did this to him (they met in a bar and he remembers nothing more); Tom and his friend Steve; his girlfriend, Beth; and, eventually, the violinist named Simon. Tom finds he is powerless to take legal or medical action to deal with the situation and loses everything. Considering this situation analogous to an unwanted pregnancy, this book draws out the ethical dimension of a pro-choice position. WHAT HAPPENED TO TOM? is ultimately a feminist allegory about women's reproductive rights.

About this title

About the Author

Peg Tittle, feminist, writer, philosopher, is the author of What If... Collected Thought Experiments in Philosophy (2004) and Critical Thinking: An Appeal to Reason (2011). She is also the editor of Should Parents be Licensed? Debating the Issues (2004). Her articles and essays have been published in a number of North American magazines and journals and she has been a columnist for the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies, The Philosophers' Magazine, and Philosophy Now. She is also the author of six screenplays. WHAT HAPPENED TO TOM? (Inanna Publications, 2016) is her first novella. She lives in Sundridge, Ontario.

Review

"I read this in one sitting, less than two hours, couldn't put it down. Fantastic allegorical examination of the gendered aspects of unwanted pregnancy. A must-read for everyone, IMO."  Jessica, goodreads

Edition details

• Publisher: Inanna Publications
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 177133293X
• ISBN 13: 9781771332934
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 130