We were brought here to be workers."ĭespite its shortcomings, Gillespie believes that aspects of "The Feminine Mystique" spoke to the gender inequality in the African American rights movement. "We come from a tradition in which we have always been here as workers. "The world she was describing was not the world I knew," says Gillespie. When Gillespie read "The Feminine Mystique" for the first time in the late 1960s, she found the book to be a powerful testament to the struggles of middles class and upper-middle class white women - but not necessarily women of color. Magazine and freelance journalist Anna Holmes, founder of the website Jezebel, explain how Friedan's book resonated with women of color and the ways in which it has influenced the feminist movement. Marcia Ann Gillespie, the first African American editor in chief of Ms. However, there were serious shortcomings in her analysis, especially as it pertained to women of color in the US. It was a call to action.įriedan's revolutionary book is widely credited with bringing women's issues to the attention of mainstream America. It let every woman know that they were not the only one who was unhappy with their lives.Fifty years ago this week, Betty Friedan published "The Feminine Mystique." The groundbreaking feminist text proclaimed that the stalled rigidity of sexual roles was out of step with the other transformations taking place in the 20th century. The Feminine Mystique presented the idea to everyone that women were unhappy with their lives. Had tried to cover up their discomfort of their lives with glamorous andįeminine Mystique is one of the most influential books of the 20 thĬentury, and is credited to sparking the start of the second wave feminism inīetty Friedan had received hundreds of lettersįrom unhappy house women after the publication of her book. Betty Friedan points out in her book that women Lives regardless of living in good homes with material things, being happily The book discusses woman’s uneasiness with their
She spent five years researching and writing her book and then finally it was published. Friedan then tried to get three different magazines to publish her findings but all had refused to. In this survey, she asked each classmate if they were happy or not with their lives, and her suspicions were confirmed - most were not and couldn't explain why.
At this reunion she conducted a survey to 200 of her former classmates. The research for her book started after she attended her 15 year college reunion at Smith's College. The Feminine Mystique sparked a national debate around the US that involved woman's role in daily life.
The Feminine Mystique was written by Betty Friedan.
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