Reviews

Down Girl: The Logic of Misogyny by Kate Manne

ehalverson's review against another edition

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challenging informative slow-paced

lottie1803's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

tallulahjt's review against another edition

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4.0

finally a philosophy book that’s actually interesting!

emi_emiry's review against another edition

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informative reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

spodosol's review against another edition

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emotional informative medium-paced

3.0

madleina's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

daniel_wood's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

4.0

sara_shocks's review against another edition

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5.0

4.5 stars

I waffled for a while on whether to give this a 4 or 5 on Goodreads because of my frustration with the philosophy jargon, which is dense.

But a week after I finished this, I stumbled across a use of the word "misogynist" according to the dictionary definition, and was instantly glad I had read this book. Manne's book is predicated on defining misogynist not as a "person who hates women" but rather a person who is policing female behaviors that go against patriarchal norms and step outside of what women are supposed to be doing. This is an important reframing, and I think it provides women with a key tool for recognizing this behavior when they face it.

This book has some really insightful analysis of our modern political context, and I would encourage people to read for that. However, Manne does not seem to have written this for a popular audience, and for those of us without a strong philosophy background, it will be a slog in some places. I wish this book and its nuanced, thoughtful comments were in slightly more accessible language for a broader audience, as I think a lot of people would find it helpful.

dovewhether's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

3.75

Read this in the search for an answer. Why do some people seem to team up to bash women online. Especially within fake stories that pop up in TikTok, Reddit, and Youtube.

terpgirl42's review against another edition

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5.0

Will be reading this again.