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The Feminist Promise: 1792 to the Present
“A unique, elegant, learned sweep through more than two centuries of women’s efforts to overcome the most fundamental way that human beings have been wrongly divided into the leaders and the led. It’s full of surprises from the past and guiding lights for the future.”—Gloria Steinem
For more than two centuries, the ranks of feminists have included dreamy idealists and conscientious reformers, erotic rebels and angry housewives, dazzling writers, shrewd political strategists, and thwarted workingwomen. Well-known leaders are sketched from new angles by Stansell, with her bracing eye for Mary Wollstonecraft, the passionate English writer who in 1792 published the first full-scale argument for the rights of women; Elizabeth Cady Stanton, brilliant and fearless; the imperious, quarrelsome Betty Friedan. But figures from other contexts, too, appear in an unforgettable new light, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who in the 1970s led a revolution in the constitutional interpretations of women’s rights, and Toni Morrison, whose bittersweet prose gave voice to the modern black female experience.
Stansell accounts for the failures of feminism as well as the successes. She notes significant moments in the struggle for gender equality, such as the emergence in the early 1900s of the dashing “New Woman”; the passing of the Nineteenth Amendment, which granted women the right to vote; the post–World War II collapse of suburban neo-Victorianism; and the radical feminism of the 1960s—all of which led to vast changes in American culture and society. The Feminist Promise dramatically updates our understanding of feminism, taking the story through the age of Reagan and into the era of international feminist movements that have swept the globe. Stansell provocatively insists that the fight for women’s rights in developing countries “cannot be separated from democracy’s survival.”
A soaring work unprecedented in scope, historical depth, and literary appeal, The Feminist Promise is bound to become an authoritative source on this essential subject for decades to come on. At once a work of scholarship, political observation, and personal reflection, it is a book that speaks to the demands and challenges—individual, national, and international—of the twenty-first century.
For more than two centuries, the ranks of feminists have included dreamy idealists and conscientious reformers, erotic rebels and angry housewives, dazzling writers, shrewd political strategists, and thwarted workingwomen. Well-known leaders are sketched from new angles by Stansell, with her bracing eye for Mary Wollstonecraft, the passionate English writer who in 1792 published the first full-scale argument for the rights of women; Elizabeth Cady Stanton, brilliant and fearless; the imperious, quarrelsome Betty Friedan. But figures from other contexts, too, appear in an unforgettable new light, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who in the 1970s led a revolution in the constitutional interpretations of women’s rights, and Toni Morrison, whose bittersweet prose gave voice to the modern black female experience.
Stansell accounts for the failures of feminism as well as the successes. She notes significant moments in the struggle for gender equality, such as the emergence in the early 1900s of the dashing “New Woman”; the passing of the Nineteenth Amendment, which granted women the right to vote; the post–World War II collapse of suburban neo-Victorianism; and the radical feminism of the 1960s—all of which led to vast changes in American culture and society. The Feminist Promise dramatically updates our understanding of feminism, taking the story through the age of Reagan and into the era of international feminist movements that have swept the globe. Stansell provocatively insists that the fight for women’s rights in developing countries “cannot be separated from democracy’s survival.”
A soaring work unprecedented in scope, historical depth, and literary appeal, The Feminist Promise is bound to become an authoritative source on this essential subject for decades to come on. At once a work of scholarship, political observation, and personal reflection, it is a book that speaks to the demands and challenges—individual, national, and international—of the twenty-first century.
528 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 14, 2010
The Feminist Promise is a chronological history of feminist movement, from Mary Wollstonecraft to the present. It is primarily from a United States slant but does cover global feminism occasionally throughout the book, and the final chapter is about global feminism.
I grew up fascinated by the nineteenth century from a primarily aesthetic slant—particularly literature, costume, architecture and interior decorating—rather than from a philosophical or political slant. For me, this history book isn’t hard to put down until it gets to the 20th century, when women finally set aside their timidity about demonstrating in the streets and came up with fun ways to promote suffrage. I particularly found the late 1960s and the 1970s fascinating, thanks to the second wave and radical feminism.
I find it very odd and biased that the book covers 1970s reform in Xianity (a patriarchal monotheistic religion centered around a male god) and doesn’t cover the revival of goddess spirituality and the birth of Neopaganism. However, that’s my only gripe. I expected the book to be a primarily political history and to therefore not include things like feminist art; it would have to be a remarkably thick tome.
While covering the Bush wars, Stansell points out that historically American feminists have actually colluded with war (ironically, in my opinion), yet she fails to also point out that war is the ultimate patriarchal evil, or at least that it is essentially patriarchal. She also overlooks the fact that many feminists have been pacifists and anti-war activists, not only during the Bush wars but also in history. I recommend reading Peace as a Women’s Issue: a History of the U. S. Movement for World Peace and Women’s Rights by Harriet Hyman Alonso; Reweaving the Web of Life: Feminism and Nonviolence edited by Pam McAllister; and End the Next War Now: Effective Responses to Violence and Terrorism edited by Medea Benjamin and Jodie Evans.
The Feminist Promise is an excellent book for someone who wants a general history of feminist movement and feminist activism. Other books are more detailed about specific times in feminist history, but without reading a book like The Feminist Promise, you will have gaps and unanswered questions in your mental timeline. I wanted to read more about feminists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Alice Paul, and Margaret Sanger, but that’s what biographies are for.
I grew up fascinated by the nineteenth century from a primarily aesthetic slant—particularly literature, costume, architecture and interior decorating—rather than from a philosophical or political slant. For me, this history book isn’t hard to put down until it gets to the 20th century, when women finally set aside their timidity about demonstrating in the streets and came up with fun ways to promote suffrage. I particularly found the late 1960s and the 1970s fascinating, thanks to the second wave and radical feminism.
I find it very odd and biased that the book covers 1970s reform in Xianity (a patriarchal monotheistic religion centered around a male god) and doesn’t cover the revival of goddess spirituality and the birth of Neopaganism. However, that’s my only gripe. I expected the book to be a primarily political history and to therefore not include things like feminist art; it would have to be a remarkably thick tome.
While covering the Bush wars, Stansell points out that historically American feminists have actually colluded with war (ironically, in my opinion), yet she fails to also point out that war is the ultimate patriarchal evil, or at least that it is essentially patriarchal. She also overlooks the fact that many feminists have been pacifists and anti-war activists, not only during the Bush wars but also in history. I recommend reading Peace as a Women’s Issue: a History of the U. S. Movement for World Peace and Women’s Rights by Harriet Hyman Alonso; Reweaving the Web of Life: Feminism and Nonviolence edited by Pam McAllister; and End the Next War Now: Effective Responses to Violence and Terrorism edited by Medea Benjamin and Jodie Evans.
The Feminist Promise is an excellent book for someone who wants a general history of feminist movement and feminist activism. Other books are more detailed about specific times in feminist history, but without reading a book like The Feminist Promise, you will have gaps and unanswered questions in your mental timeline. I wanted to read more about feminists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Alice Paul, and Margaret Sanger, but that’s what biographies are for.
January 3, 2018
Came for the 1950s-1970s, stayed for (nearly) the entire book. Second to last chapter, about Roe v. Wade was especially informative/interesting, read the whole thing even though it has nearly nothing to do with the essay I’m writing.
Favorite chapter was the one about late 60s/early 70s and daughters and mothers.
Favorite chapter was the one about late 60s/early 70s and daughters and mothers.
January 15, 2019
The first book I've ever read on feminism and it was a detailed chronological history of the movement, albeit in America. Absolutely fascinating how the feminist movement has grown each century to what it is today!
December 23, 2019
I LIKE THIS BOOK.
September 29, 2018
Rousing narrative of feminism in the United States. Christine Stansell's analytical framework of conservative mothers versus rebellious daughters doesn't entirely work (What about rebellious mothers and conservative daughters? What about transitions between generations?). She succeeds mightily in identifying major legal and cultural debates in the battle for women's rights. Her attention to racism within white feminist circles is much appreciated. While the book does not go super in-depth about the nuances of major feminist books (Wollstonecraft's "Vindication of the Rights of Women," for instance), Stansell has a lot of ground to cover, and she imbues the text with a good balance of analysis and storytelling. This book is a great starting place for understanding the history of feminism.*
*I based some of these observations on published reviews of this book, particularly Martha Nussbaum's review in The Nation, in which Nussbaum questioned the mother/daughter framework and the text's lack of intellectual history. As this is a social media site, I will not list all the formal citations. See this link for Nussbaum: https://www.thenation.com/article/rep...
*I based some of these observations on published reviews of this book, particularly Martha Nussbaum's review in The Nation, in which Nussbaum questioned the mother/daughter framework and the text's lack of intellectual history. As this is a social media site, I will not list all the formal citations. See this link for Nussbaum: https://www.thenation.com/article/rep...
January 19, 2017
An excellent book by Christine Stansell! It is 400 academic and readable pages of the entire women's rights struggle, from the late 1700s until now. It is an amazing and underappreciated story, and we all need to learn about and respect the long struggle for women's rights. I feel that Stansell comes off as fair and even-handed, and this would be an excellent required book for an advanced high school or college course.
Each of these chapters felt like crucial reading. The late 1700s, the relation to the abolition and temperance movements, the suffrage movement, the 50s, the 60s, Title VII and Title IX, abortion, the plight of many women around the world today, etc.! Also, it is interesting how the movement has evolved. As Stansell writes, feminism means lots of different things to different people. Highly recommended.
Each of these chapters felt like crucial reading. The late 1700s, the relation to the abolition and temperance movements, the suffrage movement, the 50s, the 60s, Title VII and Title IX, abortion, the plight of many women around the world today, etc.! Also, it is interesting how the movement has evolved. As Stansell writes, feminism means lots of different things to different people. Highly recommended.
June 1, 2016
Thourough study of mainly the American women's movements. The title lead me to believe it would be more international, but to be honest, I picked it up after I had seen the Suffragette movie and it showed up in my friends feed here and didn't really check it further. It sounded good.
I wish the chapters overall had been shorter and better structured to be able to sort of use it as a reference, but I guess it's not much of a problem since ebooks can be searched.
So now I still need to find a book specifically about the UK suffragettes...
I wish the chapters overall had been shorter and better structured to be able to sort of use it as a reference, but I guess it's not much of a problem since ebooks can be searched.
So now I still need to find a book specifically about the UK suffragettes...
August 30, 2011
If you want to study more about the women's movement in America and discover most everything that was left out of our traditional history books - this is a must read. Not only will you get the history, but also the psychology of what they were thinking, the tactics used by the polititions and lobbyists that held them back, and what it took to convince other women to come on board. Buy this for your daughters!
November 29, 2016
This was a good overview of the history of feminism. I learned a great deal I hadn't known, despite my women's studies classes, which in retrospect tended to focus on the second wave. My biggest critique of this book is that lesbians and women of color were given short shrift. The auhtor would mention the latter, then go on to write about white women during the time period.
May 3, 2012
Am loving this, but still not convinced that ignoring the 20s-40s is a good idea--
January 5, 2019
Excellent book about the history of women in America
November 5, 2014
Was well written, and a lot of research went in to it. I really enjoyed it.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews