Feminist Fatale - Hardcover

Kamen, Paula

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1556112564 ISBN 13: 9781556112560

Publisher: Dutton Adult, 1991

Synopsis

Interviews with young women from a wide range of backgrounds highlight a look into the issues and future of the women's movement

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

A startling view of the younger generation's attitude toward feminism, in which the older feminist generation is roundly criticized and a new style of exploration emerges. As a columnist for her college newspaper who happened to write a piece on date rape and then moved on to other ``feminist'' issues, Kamen (Ms., The Chicago Tribune, etc.), who had never given her feminist assumptions a second thought, was shocked at the damage to her reputation her writing won her. Labeled the ``campus feminist,'' a dyke, and so on, she was even more surprised at the generally low feminist consciousness on campus than she was at the furious reaction, in some camps, against it. Why are younger people so turned off by feminism, she asks here, and what can be done to inspire the new adult generation to correct the many injustices that continue to exist? A major problem--as Kamen discovered through extensive interviews of both men and women across the nation--is that the feminist movement born in the 60's and 70's is a white, middle-class movement that has historically shunted aside such issues as child care and universal health care in its all-out effort to place college-educated white women in the work-force. A reluctance to pass the torch is another discouraging factor: Kamen cites several instances in which large congregations of younger- generation feminists (as well as such gatherings as the 1989 pro- choice march on Washington) have featured only those feminist celebrities of the older generations, while younger, would-be leaders are left to speak either after the reporters have left or not at all. If the feminist movement is to survive, Kamen argues, power must be transferred to her generation, and the consciousness- raising process must begin again. A highly responsible and eye-opening work--and an excellent complement to Susan Faludi's Backlash (reviewed above). -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal:

YA-- For libraries still using tattered copies of books surviving from the 1970s to satisfy 1990s school assignments on women's issues, this title will provide a much-needed bridge. Kamen was surprised and hurt to be labelled ``feminist fatale'' by her classmates when she wrote what she felt were very moderate articles for her college newspaper on issues of concern to women. After graduation she set out on a cross-country pilgrimage to gauge the condition, and perhaps discern the future of the women's movement. In the process, she spoke with many of her peers (and their mothers), and interviewed some of the finest theorists in the field. The resulting book is lively, well written, and provocative. It was never intended to stand alone as a source on particular areas of feminist theory, but it does speak from a perspective with which YA readers are likely to identify.The thorough bibliography, index, and appendices, ``Resources and Networks'' and ``Recommended Reading,'' should prove invaluable to patrons who want to delve further, and to library staff for ready reference and collection development.
- Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Dutton Adult
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 1556112564
• ISBN 13: 9781556112560
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 404