Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts

Star Trek TOS Fanfiction
Title:	Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts
Author(s):	Paula Smith
Date(s):	1975
Length:
Genre:	gen
Fandom:	Star Trek: The Original Series
External Links:
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Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts is a Star Trek: TOS story by Paula Smith.

first page of story from the print zine Menagerie #6

It was published in the print zine Menagerie #6.

Reactions and Reviews

1975

I enjoyed "Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts" in #6 quite a lot. It's refreshing to see a story about some ol the ordinary folk of the galaxy. So many Trek tales are about Emperor Whatzit or such and such a savior of the universe. It's much easier to relate to a plumber and his meddling mother-in-law and his ex-slave wife. I've seen some reviews of MENAGERIE lately that seem to label this kind of fiction as being depressing. I don't agree. Although the event around which the story is centered is brutal, the story as a whole is uplifting. The ending is especially nice. I like the idea of the love of Parikh's Klingon wife influencing him to help others who need him.--very touching,

'Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts' starts out very well. It concerns the problems of a Klingon woman married to a Terran. Problems ensue when she is raped by a group of Klingons on leave from their ship and her husband kills one of the Klingons. The story gets a little too cloak and dagger towards the end. This takes away a lot from the story. It's a good solid story though, with hard-hitting impact. Paula is getting much better with her stories, and this proves it.

'Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts' is a grim story concerning a human/Klingon marriage, a few unsavory events, an elaborate, tongue-in-cheek plan to foil the Klingons, and a nice ending. Ms. Smith has the unique ability among writers to put down exactly what is needed and her stories, as a result, move along, get to the point, and satisfy... I wish Paula would slow down, though, and take the time to write a loooong story so all can appreciate her talent.

1976

Some stories are anti-feminist in that women are segregated out of them; action is all concerned with the male characters, and the implication is that women are not liable to participate in such matters. Others concern women, but in a very negative light -- the stories mentioned here were "Murder, Rape, and Other Unsocial Acts" and "An Abortive Attempt"; the first of which treated a Klingon woman and her mother-in-law as respectively a piece of furniture and a bitch; and the second that had a human woman gynecologist jerked out of her office and ferried off to Vulcan on charges for an action that was legal and moral on her own world. (The argument with the latter seemed to be more on the legal precedent than the feminist issue.)