Outspoken critic Jessa Crispin delivers a searing rejection of contemporary feminism . . . and a bracing manifesto for revolution.
Are you a feminist? Do you believe women are human beings and that they deserve to be treated as such? That women deserve all the same rights and liberties bestowed upon men? If so, then you are a feminist . . . or so the feminists keep insisting. But somewhere along the way, the movement for female liberation sacrificed meaning for acceptance, and left us with a banal, polite, ineffectual pose that barely challenges the status quo. In this bracing, fiercely intelligent manifesto, Jessa Crispin demands more.
Why I Am Not A Feminist is a radical, fearless call for revolution. It accuses the feminist movement of obliviousness, irrelevance, and cowardice—and demands nothing less than the total dismantling of a system of oppression.
Praise for Jessa Crispin, and The Dead Ladies Project
"I'd follow Jessa Crispin to the ends of the earth." --Kathryn Davis, author of Duplex
"Read with caution . . . Crispin is funny, sexy, self-lacerating, and politically attuned, with unique slants on literary criticism, travel writing, and female journeys. No one crosses genres, borders, and proprieties with more panache." --Laura Kipnis, author of Men: Notes from an Ongoing Investigation
"Very, very funny. . . . The whole book is packed with delightfully offbeat prose . . . as raw as it is sophisticated, as quirky as it is intense." --The Chicago Tribune
Fascinating. I don't agree with all of Crispin's statements - especially her stance on men seems counterproductive to me - but she lays down some interesting ideas. Her comments on contemporary revenge-culture are spot-on, and I like the idea of turning feminism towards the source of our problems rather than trying to quell the symptoms.
Upon rereading: What I appreciate about Why I Am Not a Feminist is that it is hard on complacency. The tone is often angry and yes, Crispin's criticism is quite harsh. The book is not so much a manual of how everyday feminism should be reformed, but about the highest aspirations of feminism. When every woman identifies as feminist, are we done? When we reach an even fifty-fifty split on the workfloor, are we done then? Crispin's answer is a resounding no. And while I'd agree that her comments cannot be implemented by everyone - when you struggle to keep yourself afloat, there is no room for the "discomfort" she discusses. In this regard, her argument is lacking. On the other hand, I do appreciate the rallying call for a philosophical feminism with a proper critical edge rather than a watered-down "universal" one.
