The Feminine Mystique
The Feminine Mystique took me two full months to finish reading, and by the end of it I like to believe I have a much better and clearer view of feminism and what it means than when I started. It's definitely a really good jumping off point for feminist lit and I think everyone who considers themslves a feminist should give it a read at least once.
one thing to note about The Feminine Mystique is that while its as really good jumping off point for feminist lit as a whole, It also is about an issue semispecific to the late 1950s and early '60s. It can't answer questions specific to modern feminism, but can definitely be a reference for general feminist ideas.
Final Review - ★★★★★
The Bell Jar
I read The Bell Jar November through December of 2023. I went into it with somewhat high expectations and left fairly dissapointed, if I'm honest. It would be a lie for me to claim Sylvia Plath is a bad writer, and another to claim the book wasnt good, but it lost a lot of what it couldve gotten from me by being written by a white woman in the 1950s/60s. Plath's racism is not technically a significant part of the story, but it comes up enough to become very offputting and make the book significant amounts worse.
The Bell Jar does a phenomenal job describing a mentally ill upper middle class white woman. In it's writing I'd say its fantastic and while the main character is not entirely relateable, her struggles are ones that a specific audience can find kinship with. Sylvia Plath is a great writer and great poet, but the fact she was a white woman in a racist society is very clear when reading this book.
Final Review - ★★★☆☆
The Feminine Mystique took me two full months to finish reading, and by the end of it I like to believe I have a much better and clearer view of feminism and what it means than when I started. It's definitely a really good jumping off point for feminist lit and I think everyone who considers themslves a feminist should give it a read at least once.
one thing to note about The Feminine Mystique is that while its as really good jumping off point for feminist lit as a whole, It also is about an issue semispecific to the late 1950s and early '60s. It can't answer questions specific to modern feminism, but can definitely be a reference for general feminist ideas.
Final Review - ★★★★★
The Bell Jar
I read The Bell Jar November through December of 2023. I went into it with somewhat high expectations and left fairly dissapointed, if I'm honest. It would be a lie for me to claim Sylvia Plath is a bad writer, and another to claim the book wasnt good, but it lost a lot of what it couldve gotten from me by being written by a white woman in the 1950s/60s. Plath's racism is not technically a significant part of the story, but it comes up enough to become very offputting and make the book significant amounts worse.
The Bell Jar does a phenomenal job describing a mentally ill upper middle class white woman. In it's writing I'd say its fantastic and while the main character is not entirely relateable, her struggles are ones that a specific audience can find kinship with. Sylvia Plath is a great writer and great poet, but the fact she was a white woman in a racist society is very clear when reading this book.
Final Review - ★★★☆☆