Summary Of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique

Betty Friedan wrote the book based on a survey she did for her former Smith College classmates on the their fifteenth anniversary reunion. The results of the survey showed that many of her former classmates were unhappy, despite being affluent and married with children. The reason her Smith College alumnus were so unhappy was due to the fact that their lives consisted of taking care of her family and children, but not doing anything that held significance to themselves and the nation. Her book The Feminine Mystique, was a major influence of the 1960s and 70s American Feminist Movement, selling 1.4 million copies.The Feminine Mystique, made in 1963 is a nonfiction book that is based on the lives and unhappiness housewives felt during the early 50s and 60s. The reason this book was so popular and influenced the 1960s and 70s American Feminist Movement was due to the books widespread relatability among housewives who were financially stable with children, the book impelled women to fight for a change in salary, the workplace, and laws; during a time where women did not have the same equal rights as men. Another popular writer during the 1960s and 70s American Feminist Movement is Robin Morgan. Robin Morgan is an

In her essay “The Importance of Work,” from The Feminine Mystique published in 1963, Betty Friedan confronts American women’s search for identity. Throughout the novel, Betty Friedan broke new ground by seeking the idea of women discovering personal fulfillment away from their original roles. She ponders on the idea of the Feminine Mystique as the cause for the majority of women during that time period to feel confined by their occupations around the house, restricting them from discovering who they are as women. Friedan’s novel is well known for creating a different kind of feminism and rousing various women across the nation.

In her Feminine Mystique essay, “The Importance of Work”, writer Betty Friedan talks about how the identity crisis of American women beginning about a century ago. More and more of the work that was used by human abilities in which they could find self-realization that was taken from women. The identity crisis for women did not begin in America until the fire, strength, and ability of the pioneer women were no longer needed. Women today whom feel that they have no goal, purpose, or future will commit suicide. Betty Friedan attempts to explain the causes of women’s unhappiness as she tags it, “the problem that has no name”. (Friedan, pg.790, 1963) Friedan’s rhetoric in the essay is constructed and based upon three persuasive techniques, which are known as ethos, pathos, and logos. In her essay, her main goal was to bring about how successful her approach in determining the role of women in society. She did an excellent job at defending her argument with facts from history to back it up.

However, the methods they used to strive to change these ideals differed from those employed by ethnic minorities. Writers, such as Betty Friedan, voiced many of the views of the feminism movement that emerged in this decade. According to Friedan in her book, The Feminine Mystique, women in the 1960s realized the, “delusions of the feminine mystique” were their, “perception[s] of entrapment.” (Doc A) Friedan’s purpose in writing The Feminine Mystique is to convince women that their current status is unsatisfactory, thus sparking a new wave of women attempting to escape the trap they had fallen into and urging her audience to redefine the role of women. Her purpose is significant because it enables her to convey to a large audience that women, in their current state, were unable to achieve social equality with men. Additionally, the National Organization for Women (NOW) emphasized the necessity to redefine the democratic and social role of women from its inception in 1966. In its purpose statement, the NOW stated, “Working women are becoming increasingly—not less—concentrated on the bottom of the job ladder.” (Doc J) The purpose of this statement is to explain what the NOW seeks to accomplish and how it strives to do so. This purpose is significant because the NOW will not falsely represent what it intends to achieve and will employ facts supporting its intentions, even if slightly

Strong-willed, intelligent, and motivated are only some of the words we can use to describe Betty Friedan. Credited as being the mother of the second wave of feminism, Friedan was an influential women’s right activist during the twentieth century but her legacy has continued to strive well into the twenty-first century. Friedan is the author of a variety of books including The Feminine Mystique, which became a phenomenon because of its powerful message to women for self-exploration outside their traditional roles. This book helped to define Friedan’s role in the fight for women empowerment and equality. It evoked emotions in many women who agreed that they did not want to fulfil traditional roles, creating an atmosphere of change. She was also the cofounder of the National Organization for Women (NOW), serving as its first president and also helped to create the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws and the National Women’s Political Caucus. With these organizations, Friedan became the face of the women’s movement and encouraged women to take a stand against the pathological idealization of women by creating a sense of community

Friedan, however, was no ordinary housewife. Before starting her family, she had worked as a newspaper reporter; even after her children came, she wrote regularly for the major women 's magazines. By 1957 she was fed up with the endless stories about breast-feeding, the preparation of gourmet chip dips, and similar domestic fare that was the staple of ‘Redbook‘, ‘McCall 's‘, and ‘Ladies ' Home Journal‘. She had noticed many women like herself who worked outside the home and felt guilty because their jobs threatened their husbands ' roles as providers or took time away from their children. Thus Friedan began to wonder not only about herself as a woman, a wife, and a mother, but also about the role society had shaped women to play.

Betty Friedan believed that women should feel and be treated equal to men. Friedan fought for women to embody their power and worth. She was an activist for the women’s rights movement and a founder of the National Organization for Women (NOW). Her book, The Feminine Mystique, connected with her readers by illustrating the standards that women were put under for decades. In the 60’s, women were viewed as nothing but maids and child-bearers. Many women were hesitant to take a stand for this taboo subject; their own rights. Friedan took initiative when everyone else was afraid to. Betty Friedan’s contribution clearly advanced the progression of women’s equality. She accomplished this by writing her famous book, giving a debatable speech, and founding the National Organization for Women.

Stephanie Coontz started off her article about the 50th anniversary of the publication of Betty Friedan’s international best seller, “The Feminine Mystique”, which was written about the women’s movement of the 1960s. What Coontz is trying to explain is that gender equality is not stalled, but “It has hit a wall”. Her title is the opposite of what she is trying to write about in the article. At first she talked about women’s rights back when the book was written. Instead of blaming the beliefs of gender roles from individuals, she points the finger at the economy and the work-family policies as the major problems to gender equality. She explains the gender equality stalled during 1990s and the first few years of the 2000s. She brought into text the usual statics, “the percentage of Americans preferring the male breadwinner/female homemaker family model actually rose to 40 percent from 34 percent. Between 1997 and 2007, the number of full-time working mothers who said they would prefer to work part time increased to 60 percent from 48 percent. In 1997, a quarter of stay-at-home mothers said full-time work would be ideal. By 2007, only 16 percent of stay-at-home mothers wanted to work full time.”(Coontz) She also talked about how 70 percent of men and women want an egalitarian relationship and how the demand of work has intensified.

“The Importance of Work” is an essay from The Feminine Mystique, by Betty Friedan. The whole essay talks about how humans can contribute to the society with their full capacities through work and that women should hold jobs equivalent to men. Friedan insists that men and women need work that satisfies their creativity and contributes to human society. Today, doing paid work is a necessity because it helps us get through the day wether for our needs or our pleasures. The money earned from work supports the whole family. According to Mrs. Olive Schreiner, “if women did not win back their right to a full share of honored and useful work, women’s mind and muscle would weaken in a parasitic state; her offspring, male and female would weaken progressively, and civilization itself would deteriorate.” (Friedan 8) I strongly agree with this statement. I believe that the work ethic of most generations are influenced by parents. It is obvious that we look up to our parents. If the parents do not show any desire to work, their children will copy them and will not contribute to society. If a mother who is a stay-at-home mother or has a different job does not work hard or does not show any work ethic, her children will look up to her and follow her footsteps and eventually “civilization would deteriorate.” (Friedan 8)

The Feminine Mystique is a first person narrative about the struggles of feminism. It highlights the problems of women in the 1950s to the 1960s and challenges gender roles. The book includes several first person interviews and discusses the Second Wave of feminism. It introduces the idea of the sexulization of women being used in consumerism and the lack of sexual education in school during the time. The Feminine Mystique is a useful resource because it is considered the groundbreaking book about feminism and lists issues that women have had to deal with from the 1960s until now. The book could be used to argue the struggles that women have faced and continue to face.

The Feminine Mystique is the title of a book written by the late Betty Friedan

In the book The Feminine Mystique, Betty Friedan brings attention to what she calls the feminine mystique, or “the problem that has no name”. Through the use of anecdotal narratives, her own personal experiences as a journalist, editor, mother, and the interviews of many women from different backgrounds in order to unveil the truth about the women of the 1950’s. The problem which sparked the second wave of feminism in the United States is one that focuses on the inequality between men and women and the undervaluing of women in both the social and private spheres. The women of the time gave up pursuing their passions, such as getting an education or careers in science or business in order to fit the image of the stereotypical stay-at-home mom whose main goal in life is to raise her children while providing a safe and comforting home for her husband. The Feminine Mystique, as she called it, was the idea of widespread unhappiness of women, despite the preconceived notion that women were happiest when they have a family. Throughout her work, she dives into many of the problems associated with the feminine mystique and builds a powerful concept of what would eventually be labeled feminism.

In accordance to Betty Freidan, the 1950’s suburban housewife was “the dream image of the young American woman” ; it was the ultimate feminine fulfillment . Friedan exposes in her book, The Feminine Mystique that women were dissatisfied with their primary role of housewife, a phenomenon present throughout Western societies that Freidan identified as “the problem that has no name.” Today across contemporary Western societies, many women have the choice to enter the workforce, however the common notion that a woman’s predominant role as a housewife is still prevalent. This adds complexities to women’s lives as they attempt to juggle the double burden of paid and unpaid work, a barrier that reinforces women’s subordinate role in society and in many cases prevents women from obtaining

Betty Friedan wrote that "the only way for a woman, as for a man, to find herself, to know herself as a person, is by creative work of her own." The message here is that women need more than just a husband, children, and a home to feel fulfilled; women need independence and creative outlets, unrestrained by the pressures of society. Throughout much of history, women have struggled with the limited roles society imposed on them. The belief that women were intellectually inferior, physically weaker, and overemotional has reinforced stereotypes throughout history. In the 1960s, however, women challenged their roles as "the happy little homemakers." Their story is the story of the Women's Liberation

Second wave feminism started when women were forced out of the workplace after the end of World War II and focused on expanding women from their traditional roles. After World War II, writers began to question how women in society were perceived and the result of this perception. In her book The Feminine Mystique, Betty Friedan brings consciousness to women "the problem that has no name", the dissatisfaction and yearning that women are suffering from as a result of society’s encouraged fulfillment of femininity. In her book The Second Sex, Simone de Beauvoir investigates popular definitions, or rather “myths” of femininity and how these definitions have been used to suppress women. Both writers paved the work of second wave feminism to transform society and women's place in it.