“On the situations of women around the world today, this one book provides more illumination and insight than a dozen others combined. . ....
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reviews
Nov 10, 2010
Naxa
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This book was a good overall historical introduction to the subject. I liked the format of it and the overall amount of information. As someone who is newer to the subject than most of the readers here it seems, I can say that I personally learned a lot from it and that it supplemented my knowledge in a lot of other ways.
The mass of the historical information was well researched and placed. The author said she wrote the book with her womens studies class in mind and I had that feel More...
The mass of the historical information was well researched and placed. The author said she wrote the book with her womens studies class in mind and I had that feel More...
Dec 16, 2011
Sarah
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This is a thorough presentation of the history and development of feminism around the world. The aspect I most appreciated about the book is Freedman's nuanced cultural analyses. She does an excellent job of setting context, discussing the variety of "feminisms" and feminist movements that exist through-out the world, and pointing out the ways in which race, class, and nationality affect women's experiences and perspectives. In fact, from reading this book I gained a new understanding
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Jul 31, 2011
Matthieutc
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This is a great book to get an overall sense of the feminist movement. It reads like a history book of the 20th century. The style is easy and loaded with examples and quotes. It's a good book to read if you want to put numbers and examples on vague ideas. I will probably use some of the examples in the book in future personal conversations.
It covers the suffragist movement and the change that lead to the 'second-wave':
After 1930, both interracial and interfaith coo More...
It covers the suffragist movement and the change that lead to the 'second-wave':
After 1930, both interracial and interfaith coo More...
Sep 10, 2009
Melissa
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A good Women's Studies primer.
Maybe it's my age, maybe it's my apathy, but at some point I had to stop reading about the domestic workload discrepancy.
The inequitable distribution of domestic/parenting responsibilities and labor is absolutely true. Even for those of us who married well. And the dynamic is changing, slowly. Reading about it, though gives rise to a resentment that I don't feel comfortable living with.
Maybe it's my age, maybe it's my apathy, but at some point I had to stop reading about the domestic workload discrepancy.
The inequitable distribution of domestic/parenting responsibilities and labor is absolutely true. Even for those of us who married well. And the dynamic is changing, slowly. Reading about it, though gives rise to a resentment that I don't feel comfortable living with.
Aug 07, 2008
Cootie
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This will be on my "currently reading" shelf for a long time, since I seem to take long breaks from it. Nonetheless, this is a great history lesson that is able to make constructive criticism of contemporary feminism while looking at movements throughout the past.
Depressing, though, is how the domination/oppression of women seemed to begin roughly at the time of the development of agricultural settlements in and around the Fertile Crescent. Women could not only provide la More...
Depressing, though, is how the domination/oppression of women seemed to begin roughly at the time of the development of agricultural settlements in and around the Fertile Crescent. Women could not only provide la More...
Jun 21, 2008
Stephanie
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Freedman tries to show how the feminist movement began much earlier than many have seen and that it's not over. She tries to present the "holes" that she sees in the arguments of many over the years. She has her own definition of feminism, so she presents the pieces of "truth" she feels Stanton, Anthony, Mill, etc. were lacking. She measures examples throughout history and into our modern age against her own point of view. I guess the greatest value I've seen in this book is
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Aug 05, 2009
Sally
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This is a good primer in feminist history. It condenses A LOT of information and makes it easy to understand.
Jul 30, 2011
Sarah
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An impressively inclusive, and far-reaching overview of the history of the feminist movement. Very readable.
Sep 02, 2009
Laura
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This is a highly readable romp throught the annals of feminist history.
Feb 02, 2008
Sarah
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Great book for people looking for an overview of the history of feminism and the general theories and practices. It's very concise and a quick read. It's not complicated or difficult to comprehend as many theoretical texts tend to be on the subject. I suggest this to women (AND men) of all walks of life.
Interestingly I read it the summer after it first came out only to have it assigned in class the next semester in college (woohoo one less book to read that semester!!).
Interestingly I read it the summer after it first came out only to have it assigned in class the next semester in college (woohoo one less book to read that semester!!).
Feb 10, 2011
Good survey of women's history. Woudl recommend to anyone looking for a survey history book but not someone looking for in-depth analysis or research on one history time or topic or theme.
Jan 10, 2010
Jessica
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Read this as part of a graduate feminism course. It is a perfect review of the history of the feminist movement. A must read for anyone who wants to know what women have gone through..... I suggest that everyone read it! Freedman makes it easy to breeze through even though it is a lot of history!
Sep 22, 2007
Claire
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I didn't read this book in entirity, but I really enjoyed the parts that I read, and it definitely shaped my paper that I wrote on feminism.
Mar 29, 2008
Kendra
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History of feminism in a nutshell. A good basic for me, but not a book for everyone.
Jan 05, 2009
shay
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i found this book to be incredibly repetitive and rather shallow. disappointing.
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