Customer Reviews

Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Perhaps my problem with the book came from the fact that it was written by two people working together, which probably contributed to its uneven tone. Jennifer and Amy (as they call themselves) try to encompass quite a bit of description and critique of certain youth-oriented trends in feminism, and sometimes it falls apart by the sheer width of their scope. And even though they continually point out that they are members of the Third Wave, the younger wave of feminist women, sometimes they seem strangely removed from the ideas that they purport to describe. For instance, they feel obliged to dismiss Girlie feminists as ineffectual, when this brand of feminism probably attracts more young people to the movement than any other. They were also dismissive to the huge contributions that Third Wavers have made to incorporating men to the cause. On the other hand, they were particularly adept at dismantling some of the myths that are commonly believed about feminism, which is a valuable task for anyone, Second or Third Wave. It's worth reading, but don't accept it as encompassing as a manifesta should be. Even the authors ask this of the reader.

(This review was not actually written by Anthony Schmitz. I'm Anna Schmitz, his 15-year-old daughter.)

I suppose this book had good intentions. The writers seem smart, and the book probably rings true for their select group of dinner party friends (young, urban, in the media business). However, the research is shoddy, the authors' arguments often become long-winded whining, and the arguments themselves are occasionally absurd.

It's unclear whether the authors simply grew bored of their book, or if a deadline was rapidly approaching, or if research was unavailable, but too often the authors rely on "according-to-my-friend-Jane" in lieu of actual research. In an actual quote from the book, in an argument for Take Back the Night, Baumgardner and Richards assure you that Take Back the Night remains important because "Jennifer Gottesman, a junior at Barnard College, confirmed that her college's Take Back the Night rally and march are the most important political events on campus." Say no more! If Jennifer thinks Take Back the Night is the most important event on campus, it surely is.

However, even this she-said research is often overshadowed by the authors' whining about their lack of importance in the eyes of Second Wave feminists. As important as it is to feel approval, it seems that the best way to gain it would be to carve out one's one niche instead on relying on older feminists to advance concerns that they may not fully understand. The authors complain about feeling patronized and disrespected by Second Wavers, about not being invited to speak at panels, and although these concerns are legitimate, it's not hard to see where Second Wavers are coming from when reading "Letter to an Older Feminist". The letter is patronizing and petty. It implies that Second Wavers are no longer useful in the movement-- that although they once wrote important books and had important ideas, they are no longer needed as innovators, and should sit back and hand over all controls to Third Wave women. Second Wave feminists are not dead, and don't need to be treated as such.

On a personal level, I found the book's criticism of New Moon Magazine to be both offensive and off-base. As both a former reader of New Moon and a former Girls' Editorial Board member, the authors' shallow appraisal of the magazine struck me as laughable. The authors argue that the magazine represents feminist mothers' ideas of what girls want, and not what the girls themselves want. The authors are prone to nostalgic reflections on Sassy magazine, and its embrace of fun/funky outfits, hairstyles, and articles. They seem disappointed that New Moon is not a twin of the magazine of their youth, and is instead an outright feminist magazine, with artwork and not Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love on the cover.

Baumgardner and Richards inform the reader that New Moon is not actually what girls want. I beg to differ. New Moon is not what teen girls want-- that's true. Most girls end their subscription by the time they hit 13. But for 8 to 12-year-olds, New Moon is a great magazine. If girls are looking for what Sassy once provided, there are other magazines. New Moon does not have to provide the tips on hair, makeup, and boys that the authors of Manifesta are convinced that girls actually want. What their argument amounts to is two Third Wave feminists advancing their agenda by accusing Second Wave feminists of starting a girls' magazine to advance their agenda. Perhaps Baumgardner and Richards should follow their own advice and let girls themselves decide and control what they want, as opposed to letting Third Wave feminists tell them what they want.

This book does an excellent job of evaluating the feminist movement from an insider's perspective. However many of the threads involve women who work either in the movement or live in a liberal cultural environment. I am disappointed though that it doesn't address what I see as an important current problem: why does feminism fail to connect with a large percentage of women who are reluctant to identify themselves as feminist. Until the voices/minds of the apparently apathetic nurse/beautician/receptionist and "annoying dissentors" etc are explored (and considered "valid" not just "unliberated") I am afraid that feminism will remain in its ivory tower and not as effective as it should be, perhaps hijacked from the "ordinary" "unliberated" plebs. These women vote. (Why would a women's shelter volunteer be put off by her women's studies class?) The authors didn't explore why many women (and potentially supportive men) are totally put off by their women's studies class and never want to be associated with the feminist label after that. Where does an orthodox Jewish women fit into this picture. Is she just too stupid to know she's oppressed since she doesn't share the "agenda". What does she think? I haven't found a book who's interviews explore these marginalized, "unliberated" women's perspective with respect. The attitude of "support our troops" (feminist or otherwise) seems to pervade our society.

The most recent in a string of books about "Third Wave" feminism, Manifesta is one of the more well-researched and forceful out there, and its attempt to reconcile "Girl Power" with Second Wave philosophy laudable. It is, unfortunately, lacking in several areas.

As the Kirkus review mentions, there is quite a bit of repetition in this book. There is also far too much of a meandering and verbose approach to making their statements and conclusions. It shouldn't take 41 pages to say that the "Girlie" feminists are cool, but lack a political foundation. I imagine that much of this wishy-washy feel is probably the authors' own attempts to come to agreement about many issues, but what that results in is something that is very much unlike a manifest(a) and more like a jointly written diary- a soul-searching hunt for a true opinion and foundation. The authors also seem to blindly present an essentialist and "difference" feminism viewpoint without, apparantly, an understanding of what those two philosophies really mean, and a clear idea of why those viewpoints are, in their opinion, more important and relevant than constructionism and "equality" feminism. The authors also come from a background of suburban and urban feminist culture (including feminist mothers) and access to good educations and high-profile media jobs, and don't seem to be aware of how that biases the conclusions they make- especially in their examinations of "Girlie" feminism and Girl Power. They don't go very far into examining the effect class and capitalism have on creating those two movements, for instance. It is also clear that they are coming from a background of publishing and print media, but they don't seem to understand, much less clearly state, exactly how deeply this colors their examination of media, culture and women in general.. "Write what you know" of course, but make sure the reader knows that that's the reason you're skimming over certain things. I'm also very disappointed at the lack of examination of heterosexual and binary gender dynamics as they contribute to current feminist culture. I would hope that women's/gender studies has advanced to the point where we truly understand that feminism is not solely an issue for biological women, but they seem to have missed that class. GLBT and alternative sexuality culture and writings are probably the most cutting-edge and insightful examinations of gender dynamics, theory and politics out there today, and it's unforgiveable to completely ignore what has been said from that perspective. I would higly recommend that the authors read Kate Bornstein's Gender Workbook, for instance, just as a start into seeing exactly how clearly GLBT culture understands feminism. I do, however, give great praise to their thoroughness in researching feminist history. If you buy the book for this information alone, it is well worth it- just skip the conclusions they make about what Third Wavers should be doing now.

I was raised from the ages of four to thirteen by some dianic, pro-communistic, ass kicking women. However, I was pretty stifled as a child about what I could or could not wear, whether I could experiment with "girly" things, or even if I could have my hair long. My grandma even made my barbies lesbians. She told me I could not join the Girl Scouts because they were Nazi's.When I left my house at age thirteen, I was a hardcore feminist that believed makeup was a kick in the shins to strong women everywhere, and that dresses were for sissies. I slowly started moving out of that shell around ages fourteen to fifteen, experimenting first with eyeshadow and then moving up to dresses and boys. I realized my feminism isn't downplayed by my feminine wiles and that yes, I could wear a dress and kick ass at the same time. I even came to the theory that capitalism isn't half bad, but mixed economy is still probably better.

However, there are not many books out there for Feminists my age (ages 25 and under). Sure, there are Zines, but for my sisters and brothers that are not technologically efficient, its pretty hard to network, especially in smaller towns. So when I saw this book at my local Women's Center, I had to pick it up and read it. The women who wrote the book are my sisters' ages (early thirties), but they had a lot of wisdom to bestow upon the younger ages, and say that feminism is NOT dead. Women are still undervalued in this society, and the sexes have yet to become equal without the stigmas attached to both disappearing. I loved the pieces about Kathleen Hanna, nail polish, and riot grrls, myself growing up as one during my stint as a teen of the nineties.

I had to shelve the book about half way through, not because I grew bored with it, but because I was rather agitated with the authors' perceptions that they had to be PC and talk about mothers on every other page. I realize a lot of feminists grow up, get married and have kids, but there are also a huge percentage of us who do not. Feminism is not just about deciding to keep your female parts and saying no to a potentially life saving hysterectomy. Feminism is not just about bragging about getting "in" on the real deal story because of your white priviledge. Feminism is not about promoting having children despite the barrier of poverty, because that is asinine and naive. Any feminist that encourages women to have children even though they cannot feed themselves are not only crazy, but have not lived the life of poverty. I have been there, as have most of my family, and we can all tell you its not worth it. Women need to step away from the assumption we were put here to JUST have babies. I'm all for reclaiming domesticity, but they ruined a good book when they aliented their child free, and probably more economically logical, readers.

Kat's rating: Three stars. Had a good message in it, but the message was skewered about half way through. Enough of the gorram baby propaganda!

As we enter the millenium -- and now that I've married and am giving some casual thought to procreation -- I have been thinking about the world I would be leaving for any hypothetical children I may have. Part of my exploration of this topic has led to me reading books like this, books which attempt to galvanize "the movement" and give it a kick in the shins

Anyway, this book attempts to take the energy of young, politically-minded women, and direct it towards issues of women's rights and feminism in general. It takes a path less chosen, one that involves not only giving suggestions but providing a context for those suggestions in the historical roots of the women's movement thus far. By the same token, it doesn't focus exclusively on the work of the Gloria Steinem/Betty Friedan 2nd Wave set, but expounds on the influence that Jane Pratt (ed. of the now-defunct "Sassy" magazine as well as the currently published "Jane") and Katie Roiphe have had on young women.

It discusses dissent within the movement -- one of the most vital chapters, I think, because it points out what should be pbvious, but isn't -- specifically, the break between 2nd and 3rd Wave, as well as the "young upstart" feminists who occasionally seem to be fueling the fire for the attacks of conservative groups.

Additionally, the book discusses the personal/political problem...especially in the context of young women, whose focus on the personal has far overshadowed their motivation to do some political agitation, except for causes removed from women's issues. As a young woman who still struggles with not just politicizing the personal, but also with taking action on that politcal end, I found the ideas in these chapters very helpful.

The book is critical of the status quo, both in astute and unsophisticated ways. It calls for a 3rd Wave Manifesta, a document towards the end of the text, and it serves as a call to action, to reform both the state of feminism as a divided and sluggish movement, and to to reform the world into which we bring our future generation of female leaders.

It's written in a conversational sort of tone, complete with swearing and sly asides, which can be either comforting or terribly annoying, depending on your point of view, but it seeks to truly connect with the young women who may need some guidance on how to be a better feminist and woman. It is not a text for academics but a text for practical use.

All in all, this book is a great handbook for building a women's movement that is inclusive towards women of all ages. Highly recommended.

This book is one of the most interesting books I've read on third wave feminism. The two young authors tell it like it really is (or was, as reading today you can see that the book is already somewhat dated even though it was only published a few years ago). They give a very fair and open-minded look at many feminist issues from dealing with different generations of feminism (and why they often struggle when working together) to whether it is good or bad that companies such as Mattel (makers of Barbie) sponsor feminist-oriented organizations. The book is highly entertaining, and even though it looks like a hefty read, it is so enjoyable and fast-paced that it will be done before you know it. The thing that makes this book really unique though, is the resource kit in the back complete with webpages, books, and addresses for just about anything a feminist of any age could be looking for. I highly reccomend this book!

I was pleased to learn that a new book about Gen-X feminist was taking root in American culture. And after reading the book, I'm glad it's there, and this is a good start. The authors have many insights and personal stories which help frame their arguments -- some better than others, but they are MAKING arguments instead of answering those of others, which is a big step.

My biggest criticism is that I wish they knew more women -- at least the women that I tend to know, most of whom are young and consider themselves to be feminists.

I was reading about their dinner party, where they all "bonded over STDs and abortions" While these are important issues, they do not loom over the lives of most women. The statistic that 1 out of every two people will encounter an STD and that 43% of women will have an abortion does not factor in that many women who find themselves in either situation will find themselves there more than once. (I highly recommend Susan Faludi's book BACKLASH to learn how to read statistics.)

This was a disappointment. While it promises to be a third-wave critique of second-wave feminism, I found both the context and the critiques to be lacking. The over-emphasis on personal anecdote and the lack of actual research make this less of a text and more of a handbook, which may appeal to some, but the book fails to deliver as a primer of 3rd-wave feminism.

Personally, I found the writing style a bit obnoxious - pithy and cute, with a lot of name-dropping and references that date the authors to the nineties. Baumgardner and Richards have an obvious chip on their shoulders about 2nd-wave feminists' critiques of the third wave, but rather than address those critiques, acknowledging the importance of the second wave, and moving forward, they instead come across as dismissive and even downright rude at times. In fact, the authors themselves do little to overcome the anglo-centric, upperclass perspectives that the second wave has een critiqued for.

The 15-point "Manifesta" at the end of the book doesn't actually contribute anything new to the 3rd-wave movement, and was surprisingly superficial and generalized. The book suffers from poor editing throughout and a general lack of organization. As someone who's read a lot of primary second-wave texts, I found the book too introductory, while a friend who isn't familiar with Friedan and Stein didn't get the background and context she needed. In all, the book reaches too far and falls short, with little in the way of critical analysis and far too much generalizing.

Manifesta is truly inspirational and a call to action for all people, but third wave feminists in particular. Women today live better lives as a result of changes feminism has made in society; this book examines these changes and where we need to go in order to make more progress in the future. Manifesta also includes extensive appendices detailing a great deal of information and other media resources related to modern feminist activism.