Scan barcode
A review by kendragaylelee
In Defense of Witches: The Legacy of the Witch Hunts and Why Women Are Still on Trial by Mona Chollet
2.0
In Defense of Witches wasn't all that I'd hoped. I dove in looking for a strong connection to historical witches & the way women's wisdom and knowing has been vilified, punished, and/or dismissed throughout history. Yes, that thread wove through the book--but it wasn't as dominant as I wanted. Especially in this moment in time, when Roe v Wade is under attack, I'm looking for a primer on how to access all that esoteric knowledge & power.
This book was not that.
There are some good ideas here. And it makes for excellent conversational fodder. I was particularly taken with the sections on women's work (including motherhood) and the section exploring the nature/rationality divide. And the examination of discrimination against women by the health care profession was useful and astute--and will surely empower some readers to find their voices and advocate for themselves.
But the arguments weren't laid out well. Often I found myself having to back-track to figure out who Chollet was talking about and why... which could be a fault in translation or due to the fact that she largely focused her discussion on French culture (French intellectuals, actors, etc). But several times I littered the margins with various comments that boiled down to "WTF?!" and "Really?!?"
Ultimately, this one wasn't for me. I didn't find enough new perspective here to recommend it to folks familiar with feminist history & ideas. And the arguments aren't cohesive and perhaps even accurate enough for me to recommend it to someone new to feminism.
This book was not that.
There are some good ideas here. And it makes for excellent conversational fodder. I was particularly taken with the sections on women's work (including motherhood) and the section exploring the nature/rationality divide. And the examination of discrimination against women by the health care profession was useful and astute--and will surely empower some readers to find their voices and advocate for themselves.
But the arguments weren't laid out well. Often I found myself having to back-track to figure out who Chollet was talking about and why... which could be a fault in translation or due to the fact that she largely focused her discussion on French culture (French intellectuals, actors, etc). But several times I littered the margins with various comments that boiled down to "WTF?!" and "Really?!?"
Ultimately, this one wasn't for me. I didn't find enough new perspective here to recommend it to folks familiar with feminist history & ideas. And the arguments aren't cohesive and perhaps even accurate enough for me to recommend it to someone new to feminism.