Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
I’m ashamed it took me so long to read this seminal work, especially considering the influence it has had on second, third, and forth wave feminism. Simone de Beauvoir’s brilliance is without question, and the amount of research she put into the crafting of this work is outstanding—pulling on philosophy, religion, biology, psychology, economics, politics, literature. The idea of existential feminism, which I’ve seen referred to elsewhere and has been explained to me by many incredible women in my life, was illuminated in ways that had me reconsidering my own views as a feminist man, especially with regard to traditional gender norms and the role that women are supposed to play in society. Highly recommend for anyone trying to better understand the foundations of feminist ideology and the inner mechanisms of one of the most brilliant 20th century thinkers.
Note: It’s mad long, just a heads up.
Note: It’s mad long, just a heads up.
A surprisingly modern work, which is in many ways unfortunate. I was surprised by how well the scientific perspective in Part 1 held up. The section on Myth is exceptional, and, even now, is instrumental to understanding contemporary politics. Unfortunately, the latter half of the work contained in Volume II ("Lived Experience") is outdated, if not in substance then in style. Beauvoir makes concessions for the sake of argument which would be considered too great by current standards. She would do well to provide an update to these chapters, though I suspect she may not get around to it.
Despite being written decades ago, these thoughts on societal conditions for women are upsettingly still salient. Some insights - like those on sapphic women - do not age as well, which is a bit strange given the author’s known predilections.
slow-paced
A narrative overview and critique of literature seeking the answer to what causes women to be the "Other" sex.
An important read; I'm glad I took the time to work through it.
An important read; I'm glad I took the time to work through it.
Just really not in the mood to read a dissertation right now. Not sure if I will get back to it eventually.
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
read for philosophy--life changing. incredible that it was written in 1949 and still ahead of us in so many ways...
reflective
slow-paced