A Feminist Mythology

by Chiara Bottici

A Feminist Mythology takes us on a poetic journey through the canonical myths of femininity, testing them from the point of view of our modern condition. A myth is not an object, but rather a process, one that Chiara Bottici practises by exploring different variants of the myth of “womanhood” through first- and third-person prose and poetry. We follow a series of myths that morph into each other, disclosing ways of being woman that question inherited patriarchal orders. In this metamorphic world, story-telling is not just a mix of narrative, philosophical dialogues and metaphysical theorizing: it is a current that traverses all of them by overflowing the boundaries it encounters. In doing so, A Feminist Mythology proposes an alternative writing style that recovers ancient philosophical and literary traditions from the pre-Socratic philosophers and Ovid's Metamorphoses to the philosophical novellas and feminist experimental writings of the last century.

Genres: Feminism, Mythology, Nonfiction

216 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2016

Reviews

[Conejo Literario · Rating 3 out of 5]

No culpo a nadie que odie este libro. mi experiencia fue agridulce y de alguna forma, encantadoramente poética.

[Melanie Lara · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
Deberían cambiar el nombre a "Mitologías Femeninas" porque eso es lo que es. La introducción está muy aburrida, las historias del inicio y del medio sí están interesantes, pero las últimas no tienen ningún sentido en el libro, no sirven ahí. Solo disfruté la mitad del libro, lo de en medio.

[Persaefone · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mi sono creata tanto hype inutilmente.
L'idea era originale ma lo stile di scrittura è ciò che mi ha spinta a finirlo il prima possibile perché anche no.

Proprio brutto.

[nadia anne · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's a short book, quiet a fast read buuuttt it was totally not what I expected. It was not as educational as I wanted it to be. Some stories were interesting and some just.... weren't. Very often, I was confused about who spoke in the dialogues

[Melanie Solar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting, but it was ok. Some stories were better than others.

[Ida · Rating 2 out of 5]

Aunque no era lo que esperaba, tiene algunas historías en forma narrativa interesantes relacionado al papel de la mujer y el feminismo en la sociedad.

[Crystal · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't even know where to begin—

Author should've done more research on what polytheism is before running away with the whole polytheism > monotheism, monotheism is oppressive, polytheism is better. Not sure if author is aware of this but polytheism ≠ syncretism, polytheism ≠ tolerance of other faiths and beliefs.

And then later we get a monotheism vs polytheism 2.0 with the monogamy vs polygamy debate... And then goes on to conflate polygamy with polyamory. 😶

I guess it's no surprise, because later author conflates "butterfly" (a specific species was named too so you can't even give author the benefit of the doubt that they're talking about a fantastical kind of butterfly) with "moth." Huh.

Would also appreciate if author didn't appropriate biology, physics, math, botany, zoology, and all our other friends.

Not sure if it was a publishing error or intentional but why were the line breaks changed for Elsa Morante's poem? It ruins the rhyming...

[Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have enjoyed Bottici's social theory books. This is a short story collection exploring some of the themes that Bottici addresses in their theoretical work. A little uneven, particularly early on, but there is interesting material to be found here especially the longer it goes along.

[Amanda Check · Rating 2 out of 5]

Un'ottima idea ma un'esecuzione che lascia a desiderare. Qui pecca proprio lo stile narrativo. Non penso davvero di riuscire a proseguirlo e mi dispiace molto.

[Ellie Appelgren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is so beautifully written, composed of little vignettes that kept me hooked but much of the symbolism went over my head. Will 100% be revisiting in a couple years.