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lacafe13's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a fascinating anthology addressing popular transgender ideology rooted in queer theory. What was interesting especially was to read the perspectives of many different women who object to the current idea the sex is only a construct (gender, they, say, is a construct, but not sex).
As a conservative Lutheran with a masters in theology, it was interesting to see their take on Christianity and the “patriarchy” which I found rather uninformed, but definitely rooted in popular misconceptions. For instance, many chapters show a deep interest in motherhood and the value of women as such in a pagan/religious sense. Yet, Mary, Mother of God is honoured in much of traditional Christendom as the Mother of God. All women participate in some sense in that honour. It seems that some of the assumptions about Western Christianity are not rooted in the actual theological tradition that does give high honours to women.
I also found it interesting that the radical feminists seem to want to back up to the thought of about twenty to sixty years ago in terms of Marxist and critical theory. The main issues I have with their approach have to do with their love for Marxist theory. They seem to view their relationship with males all in terms of a female revolution against male patriarchy which is so deep seated that certain authors question the current goodness of physical motherhood because they don’t want to bear children while they are in so called captivity. Such statements are rather sad as they do point to serious issues in our society including pornography, rape, and a multitude of other ways women are objectified. However, I do not understand how they do not see such issues are actually rooted in the sexual revolution. They think freedom is found in freedom from men and children, while also worshipping pagan fertility cults that were actually about producing children. What has actually happened is that sex, marriage, and procreation have become so separated in our cultural understanding of them that even biological sex is separated from its purpose so that it is seen as a way of crafting identity rather than something given innately and to be honoured. These radical feminists want to argue that sex is indeed given at birth (albeit by an Earth Mother or some variation of that) and is immutable: men can’t be women and vice versa. Yet, they have such a fear and/or anger about men and the domination men as a class have exercised that they do not see the gift of natural marriage, a marriage that creates motherhood and fatherhood, that brings forth the fruit of the loving and intimate union between a man and woman. They accept the reality of biological sex but deny its actual purpose when they fail to see all the good given in natural marriage and the gift of children within those holy bonds. Their poor experiences with and perceptions of men have led to great cynicism and disillusionment that I simply do not and cannot buy into.
Overall, I gave the book three stars as there are some serious issues with their arguments and in order to be convinced, one would already have to buy into Marxism and even some level of critical theory and paganism in order to be convinced in many of the chapters. The best chapters focus on data and research as well as a few about personal experiences ( “lived experience”), and those were the most solid. Others are less about trans inclusion per se, but demonstrate a deep mourning and loss of community, and anger at the trans ideology that has become so politicized and powerful that radical feminists can no longer meet in the same ways that they were formerly able to do, among other “women born women.”
I would definitely recommend this book to those who want to understand the emotional place radical feminists are coming from in their arguments against trans inclusion as well as some of their strongest reason-based arguments. It is also a helpful introduction to the worldview of the radical feminist community and what their concerns and goals are.
As a conservative Lutheran with a masters in theology, it was interesting to see their take on Christianity and the “patriarchy” which I found rather uninformed, but definitely rooted in popular misconceptions. For instance, many chapters show a deep interest in motherhood and the value of women as such in a pagan/religious sense. Yet, Mary, Mother of God is honoured in much of traditional Christendom as the Mother of God. All women participate in some sense in that honour. It seems that some of the assumptions about Western Christianity are not rooted in the actual theological tradition that does give high honours to women.
I also found it interesting that the radical feminists seem to want to back up to the thought of about twenty to sixty years ago in terms of Marxist and critical theory. The main issues I have with their approach have to do with their love for Marxist theory. They seem to view their relationship with males all in terms of a female revolution against male patriarchy which is so deep seated that certain authors question the current goodness of physical motherhood because they don’t want to bear children while they are in so called captivity. Such statements are rather sad as they do point to serious issues in our society including pornography, rape, and a multitude of other ways women are objectified. However, I do not understand how they do not see such issues are actually rooted in the sexual revolution. They think freedom is found in freedom from men and children, while also worshipping pagan fertility cults that were actually about producing children. What has actually happened is that sex, marriage, and procreation have become so separated in our cultural understanding of them that even biological sex is separated from its purpose so that it is seen as a way of crafting identity rather than something given innately and to be honoured. These radical feminists want to argue that sex is indeed given at birth (albeit by an Earth Mother or some variation of that) and is immutable: men can’t be women and vice versa. Yet, they have such a fear and/or anger about men and the domination men as a class have exercised that they do not see the gift of natural marriage, a marriage that creates motherhood and fatherhood, that brings forth the fruit of the loving and intimate union between a man and woman. They accept the reality of biological sex but deny its actual purpose when they fail to see all the good given in natural marriage and the gift of children within those holy bonds. Their poor experiences with and perceptions of men have led to great cynicism and disillusionment that I simply do not and cannot buy into.
Overall, I gave the book three stars as there are some serious issues with their arguments and in order to be convinced, one would already have to buy into Marxism and even some level of critical theory and paganism in order to be convinced in many of the chapters. The best chapters focus on data and research as well as a few about personal experiences ( “lived experience”), and those were the most solid. Others are less about trans inclusion per se, but demonstrate a deep mourning and loss of community, and anger at the trans ideology that has become so politicized and powerful that radical feminists can no longer meet in the same ways that they were formerly able to do, among other “women born women.”
I would definitely recommend this book to those who want to understand the emotional place radical feminists are coming from in their arguments against trans inclusion as well as some of their strongest reason-based arguments. It is also a helpful introduction to the worldview of the radical feminist community and what their concerns and goals are.
comradebiblio's review against another edition
4.0
Two of my favourite pieces from this anthology, Why Women's Spaces are Critical to Feminist Autonomy by Patricia McFadden and I Am Not a Waste of a Woman by Max Robinson can be read online at the following links:
https://4thwavenow.com/2016/04/27/shrinking-to-survive-a-former-trans-man-reports-on-life-inside-queer-youth-culture/
http://www.isiswomen.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=630:why-womens-spaces-are-critical-to-feminist-autonomy&catid=127:theme-mens-involvement-in-womens-empowerment
The full collection is also on Scribd. There's a wide-range of perspectives, approaches and experiences included, ranging from the informative to the heart-rending to the fortifying. Highly recommend, especially in this political moment when groupthink rules the zeitgeist.
https://4thwavenow.com/2016/04/27/shrinking-to-survive-a-former-trans-man-reports-on-life-inside-queer-youth-culture/
http://www.isiswomen.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=630:why-womens-spaces-are-critical-to-feminist-autonomy&catid=127:theme-mens-involvement-in-womens-empowerment
The full collection is also on Scribd. There's a wide-range of perspectives, approaches and experiences included, ranging from the informative to the heart-rending to the fortifying. Highly recommend, especially in this political moment when groupthink rules the zeitgeist.
mbarnes's review against another edition
4.0
Read as much of this as I could - it is VERY long and can be a little repetitive, but there are some powerful essays in here and much to be talked about with nuance.
slester's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent survey of radical feminist thinking on the subject of sex and gender. It was extremely eye-opening. I was a bit dismayed at the "woo" that permeated parts of the book, but I appreciated the range of voices included.
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