Naomi Alderman's The Power and New Feminist Science Fiction Superheroes

Primarily male comic book creators first imagined female superheroes as being otherworldly and dedicated to working with male scientists to maintain humanity’s status quo. Then feminist science fiction (SF) authors positioned women as human superheroes who use science and technology to transform their bodies and thus their power. The next generation of women SF authors is now imagining a new female superhero. These protagonists are extrapolated from women’s everyday heroism and use community-based powers to channel women’s “eloquent rage” (Brittney Cooper’s term) to learn from past violence and generate more equitable futures. This chapter focuses on Naomi Alderman’s 2016 novel The Power and its relationship to contemporary feminist SF superheroes.