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    Simone Beauvoir English

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    Ibrar Ahmed Wazir
    Simone de Beauvoir's seminal work The Second Sex argues that women have historically been defined as the "other" in a system of opposites that privileges men. Beauvoir rejects the notion of an essential female nature or essence, arguing that one is not born a woman but becomes one through social and historical circumstances. While acknowledging biological differences between the sexes, Beauvoir maintains that gender is socially constructed. She calls for mutual recognition and respect between men and women in order to overcome the traditional subordination and "othering" of women. The Second Sex helped launch second-wave feminism and its critique of patriarchal conceptions of gender difference and women's subordinate status.

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    Simone Beauvoir English

    Uploaded by

    Ibrar Ahmed Wazir
    66 views27 pages
    Simone de Beauvoir's seminal work The Second Sex argues that women have historically been defined as the "other" in a system of opposites that privileges men. Beauvoir rejects the notion of an essential female nature or essence, arguing that one is not born a woman but becomes one through social and historical circumstances. While acknowledging biological differences between the sexes, Beauvoir maintains that gender is socially constructed. She calls for mutual recognition and respect between men and women in order to overcome the traditional subordination and "othering" of women. The Second Sex helped launch second-wave feminism and its critique of patriarchal conceptions of gender difference and women's subordinate status.

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    Simone de Beauvoir's seminal work The Second Sex argues that women have historically been defined as the "other" in a system of opposites that privileges men. Beauvoir rejects the notion of an essential female nature or essence, arguing that one is not born a woman but becomes one through social and historical circumstances. While acknowledging biological differences between the sexes, Beauvoir maintains that gender is socially constructed. She calls for mutual recognition and respect between men and women in order to overcome the traditional subordination and "othering" of women. The Second Sex helped launch second-wave feminism and its critique of patriarchal conceptions of gender difference and women's subordinate status.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    66 views27 pages

    Simone Beauvoir English

    Uploaded by

    Ibrar Ahmed Wazir
    Simone de Beauvoir's seminal work The Second Sex argues that women have historically been defined as the "other" in a system of opposites that privileges men. Beauvoir rejects the notion of an essential female nature or essence, arguing that one is not born a woman but becomes one through social and historical circumstances. While acknowledging biological differences between the sexes, Beauvoir maintains that gender is socially constructed. She calls for mutual recognition and respect between men and women in order to overcome the traditional subordination and "othering" of women. The Second Sex helped launch second-wave feminism and its critique of patriarchal conceptions of gender difference and women's subordinate status.

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    Simone de Beauvoir:

    Introduction to the Second Sex


    March 22, 2006

    S. de Beauvoir and J.P. Sartre

    The Second Sex

    Woman as the second sex


    The second sex derived from the first sex
    Women in the position of the other
    What does it mean to be an other?
    I and the other
    We and the other

    The Second Sex (1949)

    Beginning of second wave of feminism


    Main idea of the book
    Women as the second sex
    The second sex as derived from the first sex
    Women have been defined as secondary to
    men who have been seen as the primary sex

    Duality of the sexes


    Duality of sexes in the history of ideas
    The male and the female acc. to traditional
    understanding that goes back to ancient
    philosophy
    The male is the rational being, the female
    deviates from the male
    Thomas Aquinas: The female is an
    imperfect male

    Traditional understanding of
    duality of the sexes

    Male
    Rationality
    Culture
    Mind, soul
    The role of men is to
    be pater familias and
    govern society

    Female
    Body
    Nature
    Emotions
    The role of women is
    to bear and rear
    children

    Women according to traditional


    duality of the sexes
    Women are dangerous in the public
    sphere because they are unprdictable as
    they are determined by their emotions
    (Hegel)
    Women should not to be allowed to take
    part in politics
    Women should keep silent in the church
    (Apostle Paul)

    Traditional duality of the sexes


    and Essentialism
    According to traditional dualisitic theories about
    sexual difference:
    Sexual difference is understood to be based on
    different anatomy of the sexes
    The anatomy of women predestines them to fulfill
    certain roles
    Women are thus essentially different from men
    Old believe that there is a womens nature or essence
    This belief is the basis of traditional ideas about the
    division of sexual roles in society

    Essentialism about sexual


    difference
    Womens essence = women have certain
    attributes, all women and everywhere and at
    all times
    This is biological essentialism
    According to it women have biological
    basis that makes them cognitively and
    morally different from men (less rational
    and less morally accountable)

    Essentialism
    Essentialism about sexual difference is therefore a
    very much criticized doctrine
    Impossible doctrine: Essence means that all
    women have to be in a certain way
    If there is one exception to this it is impossible to
    talk about essence of all women
    Is it nevertheless possble to talk about sexual
    difference?

    Sexual difference
    Men and women are different, biologically
    Are they different psychologically, cognitively?
    Perhaps not much more than men are different
    from one another, just as women are different from
    one another
    But are there tendencies or styles that are
    common to women and common to men that could
    allow us to define sexual difference?
    Perhaps

    Essentialism
    Has there been an essentialism about men?
    According to Beauvoir not to the same degree as
    about women
    Men have been associated with being human. The
    human is man. Woman has thus been considered less
    than human in the history of our culture
    Men have been the measure according to which
    women have been defined.
    The woman is defined according to which she lacks
    being a man (Aristotle)

    Beauvoir

    Are there really women? asks Beauvoir


    She means, is there a womans essence?
    She denies that
    Women and men are however different
    Their differences are determined by historical,
    social circumstances, and also different bodies
    That does not have to lead to biological
    essentialism

    Sex and gender


    To avoid essentialism about sexual
    difference anglo-american feminists make
    the distinction between
    Sex and Gender
    Sex is biological sex
    Gender has to do with the social, historical
    determinates of the difference of men and
    women

    Sex and Gender


    This distinction is based on the idea of
    social construction of the differences
    between men and women
    Beauvoir: One is not born a woman, but
    becomes a woman

    Sexual difference

    Sexual identity is nevertheless not only


    cultural (determined by culture)
    social (produced by society)
    discursive (produced by discourses)
    or
    volitional (free choice)
    it also has a basis in the body
    Beauvoirs thesis is thus that being a man or a
    woman determines the life of us all

    The Second sex


    It matters of what sex one is born
    Men have better chances, have a better position of
    power
    Women have less power in politics, in society
    Women are poorer (still women only one ca 3% 5% of the wealth of the world)
    Women are not as free as men, acc. to Beauvoir
    It is because women have been defined as being
    other, as being different

    Why a book about the second


    sex?
    Women have to define their situation
    To be a woman is being in a certain position
    Men have not had to define their position in
    the same manner according to Beauvoir
    A male is man
    Woman is what deviates from being man
    Therefore women have to define their
    position anew

    First and second sex


    Being the second sex implies that woman is
    seen as the sex
    Therefore emphasis on womens body,
    sexuality
    The male is seen as the one, as man and
    related to his cognitive capaties
    The female is the other, the lesser
    All that is differenct, negative

    The other
    Why did women become the second sex and land in
    the position of the other?
    Beauvoirs explanation
    The division of consciousness in self and other
    Self defines itself by demarcating itself against an
    other
    Self has more power and can other the other one, put
    him/her in the position of the other
    Individuals and society do this (I and other, We and
    others)

    I and other
    Hegelian dilaectic of master and slave: the
    struggle for power and recognition between
    two individuals
    The stronger one becomes master, the one
    who looses the fight becomes the other
    Not only women are in the position of the
    other
    Other minorities (Blacks in US, Jews etc.)

    System of opposites
    Women are not a minority in the same manner as
    for example Blacks in the US
    Women have always been with men
    Women do not have a common history like Blacks
    and like Jews
    Women have not formed themselves (acc. to
    Beauvoir) as a group, like other minorities
    It is now beginning, she claims
    Women are beginning to refuse being the other

    The situation of women in France


    in the first half of the 20th
    century

    Acc. to Beauvoir women and blacks are seen as they


    are more bodies, more animalic
    The one who is insecure about his masculinity is more
    arrogant towards women
    The Second sex was published 1949
    Women in France had recently gained the right to vote
    Abortion was illegal and even punished with death in
    the first half of the 20th century
    Pre-pill times, less control over procreation than now

    Time for change


    Men do not recognize women as equals
    Attributes that have been associated with
    women are considered less and even dirty
    Time to change this
    Beauvoir calls for mutual recognition and
    respect

    Ethics of existencialism
    Beauvoir is an existencialist
    Main creed of existencialism: Man is
    freedom, man always has a choice
    Man has to decide about his/her life, take
    responsibility for it

    Ethics of existencialism
    Women have acc. to Beauvoir not been able to
    exercise this freedom
    Freedom = Transcendence, go beyond oneself
    vs.
    Immanence: To be stuck in a condition, not be able
    to go beyond it
    Women should get out of immanence, and use
    their transcendence

    Beauvoirs conclusion
    Men and women should work together
    Men and women should respect each other
    as equal, although there are differences

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