We Should All Be Feminists

Paperback, 52 pages

English language

Published July 28, 2014 by Vintage.

ISBN:
978-1-101-91176-1
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OCLC Number:
895117279

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4 stars (3 reviews)

In this essay -- adapted from her TEDx talk of the same name -- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, award-winning author of Americanah, offers readers a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century, one rooted in inclusion and awareness. Drawing extensively on her own experiences and her understanding of the often masked realities of sexual politics, here is one remarkable author's exploration of what it means to be a woman now -- and an of-the-moment rallying cry for why we should all be feminists.

8 editions

More of an Adaptation of a Speech, but Concise and Appropriate.

5 stars

For a little while now I’ve been wanted to read more feministic literature but I hadn’t gotten round to it till today. I decided that We Should All Be Feminists should the start of my journey through feministic literature. Above all else this book started a desire within me to take up public speaking, to speak for those who have no other means of public communication, to speak to those who otherwise won’t or don’t listen, and most of all, to share, further, and develop ideals that should be globally accepted.

One point in the book that really stood out to me was the mention of the differences between referring to yourself as an egalitarian rather than as a feminist. To quote Adichie, ‘to choose to use the vague expression human rights is to deny the specific and particular problem of gender. It would be a way of pretending that …

Questionable.

1 star

Update: The biological imperative that I mention later in this review makes sense, particularly as she has recently published a personal essay that outlined transphobic views, and it's not the first time. I also find this critique of her interesting.

...

I don't have many issues with the overall theme. Feminism is a goal that we should all be working toward; strictly enforcing gender roles is something that we really need to stop doing. Those sentiments are something I can support and get behind.

I'm particularly drawn to the section about how we socialise girls (and people perceived to be girls) to work towards marriage, while we don't do the same to boys. For girls and femmes, we're taught to be likable and to seek a relationship (and that we've failed if we're not married by some magic age). We're seen as less respectable if we're unmarried, while men …

Subjects

  • SOCIAL SCIENCE
  • Nigerian Authors
  • Gender Studies
  • Sex differences (Psychology)
  • Biography
  • POLITICAL SCIENCE
  • Feminists
  • Social conditions
  • Essays
  • Feminism & Feminist Theory
  • Feminism
  • Women

Places

  • Nigeria