BIRTHRIGHT, the story of a rebel with a cause, takes place in a future where humans have become drones in a decaying,post- industrial hive. Natural childbirth is forbidden. Childhood is sacrificed to regimented training,education, and socialization, completed by the age of six. Only then may a child be assigned a âÂÂmother,â who looks after his/her practical needs and no more.
Thirty-two year-old Sarah Jacobs does not fit into this society. SheâÂÂs no flag-waving revolutionary, but her very nature keeps her out of step with what passes for life in this dehumanized environment. She is haunted by home-movie memories of her childhood before such activities were banned. She is fertile, while the norm is barrenness, and she dreams of bearing and raising a baby naturally. Sarah soon comes under the cold scrutiny of Dr. Steiner, more a machine than a man, who is Head of the Asylum where social deviants are "reconditioned."