Sara Abraham

Word count: 669

Non-fiction task: Book review on “The Feminine Mystique” by Betty Friedman (Final
Draft)

History of Feminism: Is “The Feminine Mystique” still celebrated today?

The “Feminine Mystique” is a revolutionary book by Betty Friedman, published in 1963. This
highly acclaimed literary work challenges the perceptions of women in society and explores
case studies of frustrated and unhappy housewives in America. Commented [RC1]: Semantic field of ‘repressed’ women,
drawn from feministic lexis.
Friedman was asked to conduct a survey of her former Smith College classmates for their
Commented [RC2]: Persuasion technique: Statistic
15th-anniversary reunion in 1957 and discovered that many were disappointed with their
roles as housewives. Thus, she began investigating for “The Feminine Mystique”: conducting Commented [RC3]: Colon for listing
interviews on other suburban housewives as well as researching psychology, media, and
advertising. Commented [RC4]: Semantic field of research methods

The title “The Feminine Mystique” is a phrase that summarizes the ideology that women
must devote themselves to their families, regardless of the sacrifices required. This ideology
was prominent in the late 1950s, as women conformed to themes of domesticity, popularized
by mainstream media who failed to connect with social issues. Commented [RC5]: Antithesis

Consequently, Friedman’s book became a best-seller and had a significant role in provoking Commented [RC6]: Alliteration
the second wave of feminism. Freidan’s influence also contributed to the introduction of “The
Equal Pay Act of 1963” and the National Organization for Women. Commented [RC7]: Discussing and stating influences of
the book in real life.
In chapter one, titled “The Problem That Has No Name”, Friedman starts with, “The problem
Commented [RC8]:
lay buried, unspoken, for many years in the minds of American women”. In this chapter, she
introduces ideas of oppressed suburban wives and how young girls are manipulated into Commented [RC9]: Repetition of ‘oppression’ to
thinking that the necessary essentials of life are that they should find a husband and give emphasize the struggles facing women.
birth, at the earliest. She supports her arguments with hard to swallow statistics like “the Commented [RC10]: tautology
average marriage of women in America dropped to 20 and is still dropping into the teens”.
Commented [RC11]: Metaphor for difficult to accept
Friedman also perfectly stated the irony of equal rights with “She was free to choose
automobiles, clothes, appliances, supermarkets”. The author also stated, “The shortages in
the nursing, social work, and teaching professions causing a crisis in almost every American Commented [RC12]: triple noun colon sentences
city”, as a response to the negative impact on the economy because of the lack of women in
the workforce, or even educated women.
The book was especially popular because of Betty’s own honest experiences: Her accounts
as a housewife in Chapter three, after abandoning a career in psychology and her struggles
with establishing an identity, allowed her to touch the hearts of American women. Commented [RC13]: Idiom

In terms of self-identity, Friedman also uses Abraham Maslow's hierarchy to strengthen her
argument. She believes that women are confined at the most fundamental, physiological
level because they are supposed to establish their identity only through their assigned
function. She proposed that women, like men, require more meaningful and rewarding
employment to reach "self-actualization" - the highest hierarchy level. Commented [RC14]: Alliteration

However, an article by The Atlantic: “4 Big Problems with The Feminine Mystique” by Ashley
Fetters, highlights the reductionist and racist aspects of the book. The article focuses on the Commented [RC15]: Alliteration
arguments presented in Bell Hook’s “From Margin to Centre” – Freidan ignorantly describes
the challenges faced by all women, while failing to recognize the added racism, along with
misogyny that the African-American women faced in the 1950s.
The book has been praised and criticized. At the time of its publication, there were a gazillion Commented [RC16]: Juxtaposition
letters written to Betty for her brush-offs and attacks on seemingly happy housewives.
Commented [RC17]: Hyperbole for effect
Although, in recent times, the book has been slammed for its narcissism and insensitivity, Commented [RC18]: Colloquial tone
and so we must raise the question: Is “The Feminine Mystique” still celebrated today?
Commented [RC19]: Collective pronoun
An article by Hermione Hoby for The Guardian highlights her callous and ludicrous parallels Commented [RC20]: Colon for emphasis
between the romanization of domesticity and the tragedies of the Holocaust. Friedman Commented [RC21]: Rhetorical Device
insisted, “The women who ‘adjust’ as housewives, who grow up wanting to be just a
housewife, are in as much danger as the millions who walked to their own death in the
concentration camps”.
In a nutshell, “The Feminine Mystique” may not be used in recent times to explain the
perceptions and the oppression of women due to its controversies, outdated statistics, and
partially irrelevant and subjective case studies. Yet, we cannot ignore its influence of igniting Commented [RC22]: Semantic field of research methods
marching women to combat 1950’s misogyny using bullets of justice.
Commented [RC23]: Conjunction to contrast
Commented [RC24]: Metaphor to compare strategic
military methods to protests held during the 2nd wave of
feminism.