Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdrich is a fiction novel written in a first-person narrative. The novel is based on the reflections of the narrator, Cedar Hawk Songmaker. The novel was written in the wake of the rise of the abortion rights movement, which seeks to establish the right for women to abort their unborn babies based on their choice. Several Americans, particularly Democrats have been advocating for liberalizing the abortion laws. However, religious groups have been against the proposal terming it a violation of human nature. From the novel, Louise Erdrich seems to be relating the issue to the predicament of Cedar, the main character.
Cedar is twenty-six years old and is pregnant. She was adopted at birth by Glen and Sera Songmaker. Religious groups want to take control over women’s bodies and influence their choices regarding pregnancies. Cedar is not amused and claims an apocalypse is underway where humans are regressing. A religious movement called UPS is monitoring pregnant women to ensure babies are delivered safely. The group arrests and detains pregnant women in a detention facility. Cedar tries to hide from this group but she is eventually captured and taken to the detention center.
Cedar, along with Tia, attempts to escape from the confinement facility. The two women have limited freedom and are not happy about the situation. Finally, they manage to escape but not before killing a nurse who was trailing them. Cedar is torn between living two worlds, one with freedom and the other without freedom. The general theme of the novel is about the liberalizing of abortion laws and women’s body autonomy.
