Women of Science Fiction: Angélica Gorodischer

Angélica Gorodischer (1928-2022) was an Argentine writer whose short stories ranged in genre from science fiction to fantasy and crime. Her works had a strong feminist perspective.

For Further Reading:

• 20 Questions with Angélica Gorodischer
• Award-Winning Author Angélica Gorodischer Has Passed Away
• Lingua Cosmica: Science Fiction from around the World (Angélica Gorodischer: Only A Storyteller)

This month, we’re talking about Women of Science Fiction. These women inspire us to imagine impossible worlds, alien creatures, and fantastical inventions, revealing our deepest fears... and hopes for the future.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more.  Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Hello from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Wamanica. This month, we're talking about women of science fiction.
These women inspire us to imagine impossible worlds, alien creatures,
and fantastical inventions, revealing our deepest fears and hopes for
the future. Today, we're talking about a writer who's blend
of the surreal and fantastical made her the queen of

(00:24):
Argentine science fiction. Let's talk about on Helka gorodische On.
Helica was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July twenty eighth,
nineteen twenty eight. When she was still very young, her
family moved to Rosario, where she lived the rest of
her life. From a young age, on Helica loved reading

(00:44):
and often found herself getting lost in the pages of
a book. When she was seven years old, she decided
that she would one day become a writer. That day
eventually came after she had a husband, three children, a
few pets, and a job as a librarian. On Helica's
first foray into writing was when she was thirty six
years old. She entered a short story in a crime

(01:06):
fiction contest and won. A year later, she published her
first short story collection Quintos consul Dados, or Stories with Soldiers.
In nineteen sixty seven, on Helica made the jump to
science fiction with her work Opus Dos. The novel details

(01:26):
a world where a previously oppressed black population rules over
the formerly dominant white population. Rather than focus on the
threat of new technology, as many science fiction works did,
Opus Dos focused on philosophical and psychological anxieties of the era.
This theme would appear in many of on Helica's later works.

(01:47):
In nineteen seventy three, and Helica published the feminist science
fiction story The Violet's Embryos. In it, a group of
military men are sent on a rescue mission to a
distant planet. There, they find a mysterios violet circle that
allows them to reproduce anything they wish as long as
they can feel the object. Despite this new power, there's

(02:08):
one thing the men can't create. Women. Soon, they turned
to each other to fulfill their sexual desires. The story
questions traditional patriarchal patterns and masculinity. And Helica's most well
known work, Kualpa Imperial, was published in nineteen eighty three.

(02:29):
Over the course of several short stories, fairy tales, and commentaries,
and Helica tells the tale of an imaginary empire's rise
and fall. Notably, when on Helica was writing it, Argentina
was in the grip of a multi year military dictatorship.
Kalpa Imperial was well received and cemented on Helica's legacy
as the Queen of Argentine science fiction. And Helica continued

(02:52):
writing through the decades and became a famous writer amongst
Spanish language readers. Her works never strayed from her traditional
social criticism, even when writing in different genres. In two
thousand and three, on Helica's works reached a new audience
when Kalpa Imperial was translated into English by fellow sci
fi writer and Womaniquin Ursula Legwin. Following in success, three

(03:15):
more of on Helica's novels were translated into English, Trafalgar
Prodigies and Jaguars Tune. In twenty eleven, on Helico was
honored with the World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement for
her contributions to the science fiction genre. In total, On
Helica produced nearly thirty books. On February fifth, twenty twenty two,

(03:37):
On Helica Gorrodi Cher passed away in her home in Rosario, Argentina.
She was ninety three years old. All month, we've been
talking about women in science fiction. For more information, find
us on Facebook and Instagram at Womanica Podcast Special thanks
to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator. Tune
in tomorrow for the first episode of a brand new theme.

(03:59):
Talk to you then,