The Feminine Mystique

The clear, forceful, and inspirational words that document the means of repression of women that came to fruition in the post-war era of the 1940s and 1950s. Friedan’s work stands out today as a clear historical record of what was and what could be again and should never be. Certainly, women’s right to lead a fulfilling and happy life like any man, continues to be a battleground in many parts of the world, but the progress sparked by Friedan and her subsequent work pushed the battle line in the right direction.The book outlines the post-war societal enshrinement of the “feminine mystique", an image of women that perpetuated the idea that true fulfillment for women could only be found through their dedication to housework, marriage, and raising children. Friedan argues that this limited point of view was the root cause of the rise of depression, related forms of mental illness, and substance abuse in women and that placing limits on any segment of society was holding back that society as a whole.Structurally, she places the blame on capitalistic exploitation of women’s desire to find fulfillment in a role that was sexualized and intellectually limited, on religion for perpetuating a structure that keeps women in a servant role, and on a legal structure that allows corporations to make hiring and salary distinctions purely on gender.That’s just a sample - there’s so much more. The work is not done. The feminine mystique persists today, and though lessened in potency, still holds many women back from becoming the most fulfilled versions of themselves.I read The Bell Jar ahead of reading this book to sample the brilliance and beauty of Sylvia Plath’s writing and to witness a woman crushed by the injustice inflicted on women during the postwar era. The combination of these books read back to back brings home the tragedy that befell a generation of women who were shackled by the trappings of the feminine mystique.

Something our daughters should read so they appreciate the struggles of those who came before them and not take their rights for granted. Rest assured, there are those trying to take them away.

My favorite book! An enlightening experience filled with validation, empowerment! Not just another read. I’m 45 years old and my three children are grown. I needed this book at this time in my life!

I wanted to love The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. I picked it up with expectations of being inspired, of being enraged, of being enlightened... I was convinced this book would turn me into a militant feminist; okay not really, but I thought it would somehow change my relationship with feminism, answer questions I'd never thought to ask, radically change my life... In that, I think perhaps my expectations were too high. It is an important book. It is well written, and Friedan makes her points quite convincingly. As a way to understand the foundation of modern feminism, I highly recommend it. That said, I found myself reminding myself that some of the research she cites is outdated, has been proven incomplete and, at times, inaccurate while grimacing that we are facing some of the same battles yet again - or perhaps still. As I read The Feminine Mystique it became very clear to me that equality, at least for women, seems to wax and wane. Progress is made, then fear, misconceptions, deception, and even greed drive back the progress. Friedan delves into industry, marketing, psychology, family values, education, and expectations to explore the role of women in society and what fosters inequality. I, at times, felt The Feminine Mystique was incomplete because of its focus on the experiences of white middle class, perhaps even upper middle class, women. Reading The Feminine Mystique often felt like reading about people whose lives were so far removed from my upbringing in a small farming community as to be glimpsing into another world and yet much of it makes sense to my current life. Seeing my own life through both sets of eyes made the dichotomy in the fight for equality for all women that much more visible. There's much to learn from The Feminine Mystique as we study the history of feminism and the current fight for equality, but it is not the complete story of women, feminism, or the need for equality.

I am a boomer. I distinctly remember in the 60’s standing up in class and responding Scientist to the question in class as to what career I wanted and being told by my teacher that wasn’t possible. I was informed by her that women could be teachers, nurses, secretaries or stewardesses (but only if they were pretty and single)Poor dear. She was a product of this mindset.Fortunately I didn’t listen to her and I had the support of parents who reinforced the idea that women are just as intelligent as men.I recommend this book for the generations that came after us so that they can understand the mindset of our generation and the previous generations and understand just what we went through to get where we are today.

Ladies, the next time you decide you don't want to cook dinner that night, that you'd rather read a book instead... I want you to give a little fist-bump to the heavens in honor of Betty Friedan. It's because of her that you even have that opportunity to make that choice.Let's clear something up right now - The Feminine Mystique is not a text on how to become a man-hating, radical. If that's what you think this is about, my review isn't going to change your mind so you might as well stop reading it now.The Feminine Mystique does, however, bring attention and awareness to the mystique that is femininity - that women are good for use of their wombs and their cooking skills and maybe one or two other things, so long as those things benefit the husband (and maybe the children) more than anyone else. Friedan noticed that there was this "problem that could not be named" , this increase in fatigue in women across the country, a form of depression that made them want to sneak a few drinks when the kids were off to school or to pop a couple Valium while they vacuum the house every couple of days. What Friedan wanted to bring attention to was that it didn't need to be that way. That women could be educated, and they did not have to get married right after high school, that they could have a career as well as a family, if they so desired.Her thesis is that women stop growing after a certain point - for some women it's in grade school, for some women it's in high school. Even the women who went to college (keep in mind that this book was published in 1963 so her focus was primarily on the fifties in America) went just to hone their skills as a woman and to (hopefully) find a man. Once the ring went on the finger, the women became housewives and had children, but then couldn't figure out why they were so unhappy. Because they hadn't actually finished growing....Duh! It makes perfect sense really - you're no good to anyone if you haven't evolved yourself.

When I first heard about this book I was immediately intrigued. I couldn't wait to read it and see how far women have come. Imagine my surprise when the author seemed to be describing the present day instead of a distant past. I couldn't believe how relevant a book from the 1960's is today.Betty Friedan describes a generation of women who were manipulated into thinking that motherhood and housewifery is the be all and end all for women. She explained that in the 50's and 60's women defined themselves solely through their children and husbands instead of developing an identity of their own. Women were seen as childlike with limited capabilities and, thus, education for females was dismissed as unnecessary. However, many women were unsatisfied with their only career choice as wife and mother. They were desperate for a sense of meaning and true identity. Some attempted to fill this void by using sexual promiscuity, focusing on their appearance, and/ or buying an endless amount of material things for their homes. This is still true for a lot of women today.Friedan thinks that women tried to elevate the status of housework and child rearing by obsessing over natural child birth, breast feeding, and homemade bread and clothes. Mothers became so over involved in the lives of their offspring that the kids could hardly develop into independent human beings. Researchers later found that children are actually happier, and develop better, when the mother has a career, or other purpose besides her children. Unfortunately, women seem to be falling into the same trap again. The media seems to be telling them, once again, that unless they give up everything and turn into helicopter-parents, their children are doomed for failure. It almost seems as if there is a second wave of this back- to-the- home trend. I see many women that are so preoccupied with their children that it appears as if they are trying to live their lives through them. Just think about shows like Toddlers& Tiaras- is it really the dream of those little girls to be presented like a show pony for the adults?I have to admit, there have been times when I, too, have thought about how idyllic it would be to have a big family, prepare all their organic food at home, and even (gasp!) home school the children. But after reading this book, there is no way that I will ever give up my education and career. Defining yourself through your children and husband is simply not the way to live a fulfilling life. This book may have been a bit dated and repetitive at times, but obviously our generation hasn't gotten the message yet, and it can't hurt to hear it more than once. In my opinion, they should really make this work required reading in high school. It's very powerful.

The first half of this book had me raving about how sheltered I had been, and how much I needed to break out of my shell in feminine empowerment. I recommended it to all my friends and was obsessed.However, approaching the second half - As soon as she made EXTREMELY homophobic statements (see images), and soon after spent 4 pages comparing housewivery to being in a Nazi Concentration Camp, I no longer could take interest in this book. I could only find the rest of the book as slow, opinion-focused, and exaggerated to prove Betty Fredan's strongly-felt points.

If you've enjoyed the TV Series Mrs America or Mad Men, you should read this book. Friedan's classic reveals in detail the plight of middle class women in the USA in the 1950s and 1960s - educated and clever but consigned to the drudgery of domesticity because of the expectations of the society in which they lived and which many of them internalised themselves. Based on meticulous research and interviews, Friedan also bare the shocking waste of talent, the ennui of trapped housewives eking out the housework to fill up the time and the trauma and mental breakdown this often engendered. Although an academic text in many ways, Friedan's writing style is engaging and the book is a enthralling and absorbing as a good novel. A must read for anyone interested in feminism, American history and culture and the work of this remarkable writer.

Durante mucho tiempo estuve buscando este libro que es básico en la lectura hacia la comprensión del feminismo y la lucha del poder femenino.el único detalle es que el libro vino un poco dañado por el shippment pero ya de ahí excelente!!

In the fifties, after the first feminist wave of the beginning of the twentieth century, and after the great women’s move toward the factories of the Second World War, suddenly, women were expected to go back to the kitchen.Context: the economy was booming, there were enough jobs for everyone, even women, and home appliances could replace 90% of the housework women used to have to put in. So basically, just at the time in history when the concept of housewife was being rendered obsolete, and should therefore have disappeared - and women had already fought to be considered man's equal - there was a massive counter-revolution in the western world, led by the experts and the industries, telling women that, yes, they were equal, but different from men, complementary to men. And had to stay at home.The feminine mystique is the term used by the author to describe the way the media and the experts were sublimating the role of women as housewives and mothers in order to force women back inside the homes, just when they were increasingly becoming more educated, and therefore could not be told they were inferior to men and couldn't work. At a time when you really didn't need someone doing housework full time (thanks to the new technology of dish-washer for instance) an new ideology (but really just a variation of a sexist principle) was created to convince women that they would somehow harm their children and their husband’s career if they didn't stay at home and take care of this huge suburban house. So in fact, women were bored to tears, with almost nothing to do around the house, but were consistently and systematically being guilted out into doing more and more nonsensical chores such as making their own bread, sowing their children’s clothes, waxing the floor 4 times a week, changing the sheets to times a week, etc. And the industries and the marketers were getting huge profits from women’s spare time (to shop!) and their sensation of emptiness that could easily be manipulated into buying something nice for the house.Betty Friedan, a house-wife herself, a women's magazine writer, and a psychologist by training, was really the only person who could have told this story, the whole story, this way. She had a theoretical and psychological perspective from her academic training, a professional experience of the work place where the mystique was being created, and a personal experience of the reality behind the mystique. And she did a ton of research.This book is comparable in quality to Beauvoir’s “Second sex” and is just as relevant today as it was in the fifties. Because this mystique continues to harass psychologically so many women today who feel guilty working once they have children or who quite their job when they have kids because they think that’s the only way to do right by their family. I was deeply moved, understanding the cynical roots of the mystique around childbirth, breast-feeding, motherhood and impeccable homes for one’s children…and understood my mother and my grandmother so much better after reading this book.

Classic read.

Il testo è parte delle letture obbligatorie per conoscere il femminismo storico statunitense e per comprendere la cultura femminista che su questo si è formata nel mondo.