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Line 21: == Comic Books == * In ''[[Elf Quest]]'', nature decides when two elves are ready to have a child, and the elves aren't allowed to protest. This turns into a [[Mate or Die]] situation for several elves, most prominently Dewshine, who ''hates'' the mate that was chosen for her by destiny. But since [[Babies Make Everything Better]], she loves her child regardless. ** This trope actually gets ~~twisted -- nature~~twisted—nature seems to consider genetics ''and'' population when deciding which two elves are to reproduce. The Skyriders, for example, have an ''inversion'' forced upon them: none of them had been able to conceive {{spoiler\|aside from Winnowill via magic}} in centuries, despite very much wanting to have children among them. The Go-Backs, on the other hand, have an amazingly short lifespan because of their warring with trolls and living in harsh conditions and breed like any other mammals; when the Wolfriders mention Recognition, Kahvi is surprised that they still bother with that. As with [[Protagonist-Centered Morality\|most things, the Wolfriders have the ideal balance]], as they reproduce often enough to maintain a cycle of life and death, but still have Recognition and only breed genetically superior children. (Except for Pike). == Fan Fiction == * This is ubiquitous in [[Shipping]] fic. The happy couple ''will'' have kids, even if neither of them would ever want them in their canon personality and [[Mister Seahorse\|even if neither of them has a womb]]. There's no such thing as contraception, and miscarriages only happen when [[Deus Angst Machina]] decrees it. And if abortion exists, we're generally treated to a tedious speech about how [[Good Girls Avoid Abortion]] ~~-- sometimes~~—sometimes right away, sometimes after a few equally tedious scenes where they pretend to consider it. If the character isn't a "good girl" to begin with, she generally becomes one in short order thanks to [[Deliver Us From Evil]]. ** A [[Fandom Specific Plot]] for ''[[Harry Potter]]'' is the "Marriage Law fic," where the Ministry passes a law saying that every available Pureblood and Muggle-born have to get married and produce a child within x number of years. Generally used just to force Hermione with whichever Pureblood that you prefer (though [[Die for Our Ship\|for some reason]] her [[Official Couple\|official]] [[Love Interest]] [[Ron the Death Eater\|Ron]] [[Fridge Logic\|is never chosen]].) * [[The Ikaris]] has an implied example. Due to three billion people dying in Second Impact, numerous countries implemented laws to loosen marriage conditions and discourage divorce to encourage family development and birthrates. Japan apparently never bothered to repeal them, due to being too busy trusting shadowy agencies to build giant robots to fight off alien monsters. Asuka angrily dubs Japan "the Las Vegas of Asia". Line 44: * Subverted in Ursula Vernon's ''[[Black Dogs]]'', where a character is raped for the sake of producing a powerful heir, but she aborts the zygote and to ensure that it never happens again she sterilizes herself. * ''The Iron Star'' has a thief who does ''not'' want to be a housewife or a mother or any kind of family woman. A Goddess overrules her (but the [[Arranged Marriage\|husband the goddess chose for her]] agrees to make life luxurious for her). * The ''[[Doctor Who]]'' novel ''The Eyeless'' takes place on a world where 99% of the population has been wiped out. The couple of hundred remaining survivors have worked out a plan for how many children each women must have in order for the species to survive long ~~term -- and~~term—and the loss of just a few children or potential parents could be devastating. The repopulation attempt is presented as an unfair, but necessary process, as it really ''is'' the only way their race is going to stay alive. At least one of the main characters, Alsa, is understandably upset about it, and her unwillingness to be a birthing machine for the rest of her life shows. What happens if you refuse? Some extremely [[Unfortunate Implications]], there. * The society is portrayed as level headed and moral, as well as pragmatic so it's probably meant to be an unrealistic idea that the issue would be ''forced''. However in reality, who knows what could happen in such a situation. * The ''[[Warrior Cats]]'' don't often touch on this but in ''Bluestar's Prophecy'', the title character is good with kits and raises her nephew after her sister's death but has no interest in having any of her own, {{spoiler\|Although it doesn't work out this way in the end}}. Naturally one of the Clan elders tells her she needs to "live her own life" now that her sister's son is grown. [[Sarcasm Mode\|Because in order to live your own life, you have to have and raise children]]. * Lois McMaster Bujold's ''[[Vorkosigan Saga]]'' has a particularly odd one. While there was always an element of [[Mandatory Motherhood]] for Vor women, it was nevertheless understood and frequently referenced that many women might not want to have children, if only because, given the levels of technology available, it was a life-threatening risk every time. With the introduction of the uterine replicator into Barrayaran society, however, the concept of a woman who doesn't want children is erased, because the culturally acceptable 'excuse' for it is no longer valid. Barrayar is still somewhat underpopulated even during Miles's young adulthood, and as his mother points out, traditionally the planet has had to struggle to maintain, let alone increase, its population. Plus the Vor are aristocracy, so it literally ''is'' mandatory for both men and women to have children if they want their line to continue. It's pretty much ingrained in the entire planet's society. True, but prior to the introduction of the uterine replicator a cultural space existed in which it was possible for a woman to acknowledge not ''wanting'' children, if only for the reason of pregnancy being dangerous to life and ~~health -- even~~health—even if she couldn't get out of actually having them. With the introduction of a technology intended to improve women's health and reproductive freedom, that space was erased, making [[Mandatory Motherhood]] even more ~~present -- and~~present—and insidiously ~~so -- in~~so—in Barrayaran culture. *** On the other hand, the uterine replicator itself is an instrument of sexual empowerment. It's noted that the Traditionalist political party won't be able to shove the new Empress into a maternity ward; she can breed and heir and still be a dominant force in the politics of the empire. Lady Vorkosigan herself has a fierce devotion to the galactic reproductive technology itself as a delayed action social time bomb; a few decades of gender selection of offspring results in an acute shortage of eligible brides, and the girls and their families are able to pick and choose from the bachelors available. A man expecting the traditional child gestation that left Miles himself teratogenically crippled finds it night impossible to get hitched. It should also be pointed out that Cordelia Vorkosigan was born and raised on Beta Colony, where children are precious commodities requiring a license for even a single offspring; Cordelia's displays of genetic greed have less to do with Barrayar than with Beta Colony. * Alluded to in Terry Pratchett's ''[[Nation]]''. It's not clear exactly how old Daphne is, but her own culture certainly considers her a child; the people of the Nation, however, have pretty much a response of 'what do you mean you've not had a kid yet?'

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