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Women vs Feminism: Why We All Need Liberating from the Gender Wars
There’s never been a better time to be a woman. Thanks to those feminists who fought for liberation, young women today have freedom and opportunities their grandmothers could barely have imagined. Girls do better at school than boys and are more likely to go to university. As a result, women are taking more of the top jobs and the gender pay gap has all but disappeared. Yet rather than encouraging women to seize the new possibilities open to them, contemporary feminism tells them they are still oppressed. Women vs Why We All Need Liberating from the Gender Wars challenges this stance, unpicking the statistics from the horror stories to explore the reality of women’s lives. It argues that today’s feminism is obsessed with trivial issues – skinny models, badly phrased jokes and misplaced compliments – and focuses on the regulation of male behaviour, rather than female empowerment, pitching men and women against each other in a never-ending gender war that benefits no-one. Feminism today does women no favours and it’s time we were all liberated from the gender wars.
337 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2017
21 people are currently reading
509 people want to read
About the author
Joanna Williams
50 books27 followersDr Joanna Williams is Head of Education and Culture at Policy Exchange. She is an author, commentator and the associate editor of Spiked.
Joanna began her career teaching English in secondary schools and Further Education. She started working as a lecturer in Higher Education and Academic Practice at the University of Kent in 2007. She was Director of Kent’s Centre for the Study of Higher Education until 2016.
Joanna is the author of Consuming Higher Education Why Learning Can’t Be Bought (Bloomsbury, 2012) and Academic Freedom in an Age of Conformity (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016). Her most recent book is Women vs Feminism (Emerald, 2017).
Joanna has written numerous academic journal articles and book chapters as well as being a frequent contributor to national and international debates on education, feminism and gender politics.
She has given many guest lectures, most recently speaking at the Universities of Bonn, Cologne, Leiden and the Freie University in Berline. In America she has lectured at St Olaf College, North Dakota State University, the University of San Diego and California State University, Fullerton. She has addressed the Institute for Humane Studies and the National Association of Scholars. Many ideas from Joanna Williams' articles and publications have inspired young people to do their research. College students can quickly achieve academic freedom with an essay writing service. The concept of freedom of education and expression remains a topical issue in 2020, and Joanna has made a significant impact on the development of higher education in the United States.
Joanna’s writing has been published widely in the UK and the US including The Sun, The Daily Mail, The Telegraph, The Spectator, The Guardian, The New York Post and American Conservative.
Joanna writes and speaks about a range of issues including schools, gender, feminism, children and families. She has appeared on BBC 1’s Sunday Morning Live and Daily Politics and has reviewed the newspapers for Sky News. Joanna has been a guest on Radio 4’s Moral Maze and Broadcasting House as well as Radio 3’s Night Waves.
Joanna began her career teaching English in secondary schools and Further Education. She started working as a lecturer in Higher Education and Academic Practice at the University of Kent in 2007. She was Director of Kent’s Centre for the Study of Higher Education until 2016.
Joanna is the author of Consuming Higher Education Why Learning Can’t Be Bought (Bloomsbury, 2012) and Academic Freedom in an Age of Conformity (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016). Her most recent book is Women vs Feminism (Emerald, 2017).
Joanna has written numerous academic journal articles and book chapters as well as being a frequent contributor to national and international debates on education, feminism and gender politics.
She has given many guest lectures, most recently speaking at the Universities of Bonn, Cologne, Leiden and the Freie University in Berline. In America she has lectured at St Olaf College, North Dakota State University, the University of San Diego and California State University, Fullerton. She has addressed the Institute for Humane Studies and the National Association of Scholars. Many ideas from Joanna Williams' articles and publications have inspired young people to do their research. College students can quickly achieve academic freedom with an essay writing service. The concept of freedom of education and expression remains a topical issue in 2020, and Joanna has made a significant impact on the development of higher education in the United States.
Joanna’s writing has been published widely in the UK and the US including The Sun, The Daily Mail, The Telegraph, The Spectator, The Guardian, The New York Post and American Conservative.
Joanna writes and speaks about a range of issues including schools, gender, feminism, children and families. She has appeared on BBC 1’s Sunday Morning Live and Daily Politics and has reviewed the newspapers for Sky News. Joanna has been a guest on Radio 4’s Moral Maze and Broadcasting House as well as Radio 3’s Night Waves.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
May 11, 2020
I read this in order to understand some arguments against intersectional feminist, and it served to reaffirm by beliefs, as I disagreed with so much of what was written in this book. The writer clearly hasn’t understood intersectional feminist and so has used their writing to attack modern feminists through a lens of vicitimhood - not even mentioning the strength it takes to talk about sexual abuse and other issues covered. Also failing to mention the transgressions of men, and how modern feminist calls out acts that undermine equality- that patriarchy makes women victims and that feminists are no longer allowing that victim hood to take over our lives.
The turning point was when trans folk were essentially being attacked, and discredited for their existence. The language towards this group is so problematic, for instance: “People are told that their feelings are of preeminent importance and they should accept no constraints: they can be whoever they want to be. More narcissistic is the demand that everyone else they encounter should deny biological reality and refer to people in whatever way they dictate.”
I kept waiting for this book to present substantial evidence for its view points but found that over and over again it didn’t deliver. The few times it did deliver, such as the section about there being women in education and they perform better, the end point seemed unsubstantiated. For instance the writer uses the fact that there are more graduating women in education to point at there being little to no issue for women in the workplace, and that there is just a time disparity that will correct itself, ending with women in boardrooms. But this whole section fails to identify the women who are already in middle management, who have historically and continually passed up for opportunities that would bring them to the boardroom.
The turning point was when trans folk were essentially being attacked, and discredited for their existence. The language towards this group is so problematic, for instance: “People are told that their feelings are of preeminent importance and they should accept no constraints: they can be whoever they want to be. More narcissistic is the demand that everyone else they encounter should deny biological reality and refer to people in whatever way they dictate.”
I kept waiting for this book to present substantial evidence for its view points but found that over and over again it didn’t deliver. The few times it did deliver, such as the section about there being women in education and they perform better, the end point seemed unsubstantiated. For instance the writer uses the fact that there are more graduating women in education to point at there being little to no issue for women in the workplace, and that there is just a time disparity that will correct itself, ending with women in boardrooms. But this whole section fails to identify the women who are already in middle management, who have historically and continually passed up for opportunities that would bring them to the boardroom.
May 25, 2020
I like the message but not the style of writing. Its just so DAMN long. I really blame editors that they make authors write those annoying, super long books so that there are more pages in a book, so they publishers can charge more money. The message is excellent. Qazi feminism did women no favor. Whatever privilege woman had being a mother and a wife, had been destroyed and women took ALL responsibilities on themselves - thus leaving men with no purpose and no provide in being providers and protectors. So, now women are told to be superheroes which is pretty much impossible. Its a mess.
February 15, 2019
a real mixed bag. a five star book at its best (the chapters on the pay gap and schools), but williams is prone to making ridiculous claims and dropping them (she says that the rise of gender fluidity is more restrictive than freeing, and refuses to elaborate, twice). she's also a victim of her own thesis in that she argues that feminism fails in the modern world to provide a ideological framework fit for all- yet her criticisms do not apply to all feminisms as she seems to think. im glad i read it, and her points on victim culture are nice, but it would have been nice if she'd actually addressed sexual assault too.
March 28, 2018
This will have had a lot of flack from those of an opposite viewpoint but it is great to get a fresh view. Women are not victims (certainly not all!) and it is good to have books which remind us of that.
September 11, 2018
"Women vs. Feminism" is as the title alludes, a critical look at the feminism of today by busting and discussing the myths and wrongs in feminism. It is fact based, objective and fairly systematical in it's approach making it feel very professional although the author is not a fan of the movement. In it's critizim hovewer there is no "better" way presented, rather just leaving the feminist way - so in that sense there is no other agenda behind than to critizie the bad, what is most of it. That is why the subtitle is "why we all need liberating from the gender wars". The historical approach in the middle of the book is a good one to get behind the history until ending in todays third and fourth way of feminism. Williams seems to be thankful for the good things of feminism, and that is something to note, because the book is not always as critical as it is true to the facts. Sometimes it feels however more of a presentation than a discussion, and thus more of text book. It is a good read and one will learn a lot of feminism on the way from a more correct point of view than the typical women studies.
January 17, 2018
This is excellent and I really thank Dr Williams for writing it because she will have had a lot of opposition from the prevailing groupthink. I have written a history of my grandmother and women's positions in society and economics have changed enormously, except perhaps for those at the bottom of the income scale, which are definitely not the ones getting much understanding or help from modern feminism. This is a serious, well evidenced book.
February 25, 2025
“If women are to continue to live as equals to men and play a full role in forging the world for future generations, they need to throw off the shackles of feminism. Feminism’s presentation of women as victims of a dominant and rapacious masculinity, on the one hand, and faceless patriarchal forces, on the other, does neither women nor men any favours. It’s time for us to rehabilitate a word popular among feminists in the 1960s: liberation. For women and men to be truly free and able to realize their full potential today, we all need to be liberated from feminism and the gender wars.”
This hard hitting and fact-filled book from 2017 was several years ahead of it’s time. It is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the social relations between women, men, girls, and boys.
“Today’s feminist campaigns present a view of women as vulnerable rather than strong. Campaigns against skinny models in advertisements, for example, send a message that all women are at risk of developing eating disorders if they see a beautiful but undernourished woman. When many women are faring better than men in school and at work, the message that women are victims flies in the face of reality. Worse, it risks turning back the clock on previous feminist victories.”
Upfront she writes:
“there is a dominant feminist narrative that… clearly espouses one idea above all others: that women are disadvantaged and oppressed; routine victims of everyday sexism, casual misogyny and the workings of patriarchy. The better women’s lives become, the harder it seems that a new generation of feminists must try to justify their purpose through uncovering ever more obscure problems.”
“If feminism meant ignoring boys falling behind at school, and telling girls to fear members of their own families as well as half of their classmates, then it wasn’t something I wanted anything to do with… the more I’ve been confronted with fourth-wave or intersectional feminism, the more I’ve become convinced it is detrimental… On paper, women are doing better than ever before and, particularly when younger, better than men.”
“At every stage of their education, girls are now outperforming boys and yet the influence of feminism on education shows no signs of diminishing… Yet feminism, and its preconceptions with the concerns of a minority of elite women, focuses our attention on a tiny fraction of the workforce. There are more campaigns concerned with getting women into senior posts than there are into improving the pay and conditions of women who work for the minimum wage – perhaps cleaning, cooking and child minding for the Chief Executive Officers.”
“Victim feminism presents a selective view of the world that sends a message to young women that life will be difficult and the world is against them. The more this message stands in contradiction to the reality of women’s lives today, the more feminists seek out increasingly obscure examples of prejudice.”
“The interests of women are better secured in conjunction with their male colleagues rather than by opposing them… We need to move beyond a battle of the sexes in order to get more opportunities and freedom for everyone… In reducing the totality of human experience to a never ending gender war in which men are perpetually called to account for their role in the oppression of women, third-wave feminism also challenges the concept of individual autonomy.”
“What the men’s rights activists miss is that modern feminism is as detrimental and limiting to the majority of women as it is to men… Arguments over who is the most oppressed serve only to pitch men and women into battle against each other in a competition of grievances.”
“Just as with feminism, the premise of intersectionality means it can never provide a solution to the problems it asks us to observe. In its emphasis on the personal, lived experience of oppression, it constructs a barrier, an intersectional framework that prevents people transcending their experiences or campaigning for the liberation of those who are not like them.”
“The list of defining features reveals fourth-wave feminism to be a less coherent ideology or political response to a particular issue and more a branch of identity politics. Indeed, identity politics is expressed most clearly and concretely today in feminism.”
“Today’s feminists speak ‘as a woman’, or, even more narrowly, ‘as a woman of colour’ or ‘as a bisexual woman’. Fourth-wave feminism finds a comfortable home within the inherent narcissism of identity politics. It demands recognition for who people are rather than the moral or intellectual superiority of their arguments.”
“Today’s feminism appears to offer a clear values framework emanating from an assumed championing of the oppressed but it comes with a moralistic authoritarianism and is destined to play out in a gender war without winners.”
“Feminism encourages us to score successes according to gender but this is a zero-sum game. Success for men in one area of life does not spell disaster for women and likewise, women’s gains are not necessarily made at the expense of men. Women do not lead their lives in isolation from men; they have brothers, partners and sons. Women and men live, grow-up and work alongside each other. The universal aspiration for a better life is best achieved through men and women working alongside each other rather than seeing each other as bitter rivals.”
This hard hitting and fact-filled book from 2017 was several years ahead of it’s time. It is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the social relations between women, men, girls, and boys.
“Today’s feminist campaigns present a view of women as vulnerable rather than strong. Campaigns against skinny models in advertisements, for example, send a message that all women are at risk of developing eating disorders if they see a beautiful but undernourished woman. When many women are faring better than men in school and at work, the message that women are victims flies in the face of reality. Worse, it risks turning back the clock on previous feminist victories.”
Upfront she writes:
“there is a dominant feminist narrative that… clearly espouses one idea above all others: that women are disadvantaged and oppressed; routine victims of everyday sexism, casual misogyny and the workings of patriarchy. The better women’s lives become, the harder it seems that a new generation of feminists must try to justify their purpose through uncovering ever more obscure problems.”
“If feminism meant ignoring boys falling behind at school, and telling girls to fear members of their own families as well as half of their classmates, then it wasn’t something I wanted anything to do with… the more I’ve been confronted with fourth-wave or intersectional feminism, the more I’ve become convinced it is detrimental… On paper, women are doing better than ever before and, particularly when younger, better than men.”
“At every stage of their education, girls are now outperforming boys and yet the influence of feminism on education shows no signs of diminishing… Yet feminism, and its preconceptions with the concerns of a minority of elite women, focuses our attention on a tiny fraction of the workforce. There are more campaigns concerned with getting women into senior posts than there are into improving the pay and conditions of women who work for the minimum wage – perhaps cleaning, cooking and child minding for the Chief Executive Officers.”
“Victim feminism presents a selective view of the world that sends a message to young women that life will be difficult and the world is against them. The more this message stands in contradiction to the reality of women’s lives today, the more feminists seek out increasingly obscure examples of prejudice.”
“The interests of women are better secured in conjunction with their male colleagues rather than by opposing them… We need to move beyond a battle of the sexes in order to get more opportunities and freedom for everyone… In reducing the totality of human experience to a never ending gender war in which men are perpetually called to account for their role in the oppression of women, third-wave feminism also challenges the concept of individual autonomy.”
“What the men’s rights activists miss is that modern feminism is as detrimental and limiting to the majority of women as it is to men… Arguments over who is the most oppressed serve only to pitch men and women into battle against each other in a competition of grievances.”
“Just as with feminism, the premise of intersectionality means it can never provide a solution to the problems it asks us to observe. In its emphasis on the personal, lived experience of oppression, it constructs a barrier, an intersectional framework that prevents people transcending their experiences or campaigning for the liberation of those who are not like them.”
“The list of defining features reveals fourth-wave feminism to be a less coherent ideology or political response to a particular issue and more a branch of identity politics. Indeed, identity politics is expressed most clearly and concretely today in feminism.”
“Today’s feminists speak ‘as a woman’, or, even more narrowly, ‘as a woman of colour’ or ‘as a bisexual woman’. Fourth-wave feminism finds a comfortable home within the inherent narcissism of identity politics. It demands recognition for who people are rather than the moral or intellectual superiority of their arguments.”
“Today’s feminism appears to offer a clear values framework emanating from an assumed championing of the oppressed but it comes with a moralistic authoritarianism and is destined to play out in a gender war without winners.”
“Feminism encourages us to score successes according to gender but this is a zero-sum game. Success for men in one area of life does not spell disaster for women and likewise, women’s gains are not necessarily made at the expense of men. Women do not lead their lives in isolation from men; they have brothers, partners and sons. Women and men live, grow-up and work alongside each other. The universal aspiration for a better life is best achieved through men and women working alongside each other rather than seeing each other as bitter rivals.”
February 23, 2021
The elephant in the room: The title is clearly intentionally provocative. While this book is a kind of mixed bag, overall I've come away from this book with a clearer understanding of the landscape and issues which face feminism in the 21st century.
While the books title makes it sound like Joanna holds feminism in contempt, the book strengthens her stance on what feminism should be. There is a pervasive trend in modern cultural movements to point out problems freely without offering solutions and declaring them to be a symptom of a simplistic view of the world. This book looks to tackle that style of Feminism, and liberate the movement into a more logical and fairer approach.
This book highlights what I would see as the most important issue of modern feminism, an ignorance of social class. The book highlights issues where working class women are often left behind while middle class women will skate by allowing them to ride their oppression parade to the top.
It also offers solutions to problems which effect women, which are often pushed aside (motherhood, personal choice, fitting into societal molds) for more radical changes which mainly benefit middle class women (Higher paying careers and office politics for instance).
Some of the chapters in this book are excellent, I was especially impressed with the chapter about the pay gap. Some show a limited understanding of some aspects the modern feminist literature, but overall I think this alternative stance on feminism (which is still feminism) is well informed and can appeal to all that stand for equality.
Overall an interesting take on modern feminism, and certainly a recommendation (despite the terribly headline grabbing title)
While the books title makes it sound like Joanna holds feminism in contempt, the book strengthens her stance on what feminism should be. There is a pervasive trend in modern cultural movements to point out problems freely without offering solutions and declaring them to be a symptom of a simplistic view of the world. This book looks to tackle that style of Feminism, and liberate the movement into a more logical and fairer approach.
This book highlights what I would see as the most important issue of modern feminism, an ignorance of social class. The book highlights issues where working class women are often left behind while middle class women will skate by allowing them to ride their oppression parade to the top.
It also offers solutions to problems which effect women, which are often pushed aside (motherhood, personal choice, fitting into societal molds) for more radical changes which mainly benefit middle class women (Higher paying careers and office politics for instance).
Some of the chapters in this book are excellent, I was especially impressed with the chapter about the pay gap. Some show a limited understanding of some aspects the modern feminist literature, but overall I think this alternative stance on feminism (which is still feminism) is well informed and can appeal to all that stand for equality.
Overall an interesting take on modern feminism, and certainly a recommendation (despite the terribly headline grabbing title)
January 17, 2019
Great stuff, clear, concise… the title is kind of "click-baity" in a sense, with the whole "vs", the content is actually very measured, rational and well-reasoned. It's not flawless, and there are a few points I disagree with, but overall I thoroughly enjoyed this. I might have to comeback and revise this with some favorite quotes, but bottom line, yes, we do need to let go of the oppression olympics and let go of the battles of the 60's-70's. Williams is a treasure for writing this. Even the most hardened feminist could probably benefit from a glance at this, just to get an idea of what 'the other side' thinks, so to speak.
”Rather than forging solidarity with others, we demand recognition for ourselves, for what makes us special. A focus on identity speaks to exhaustion with politics & a cynicism about humanity”"
”Rather than forging solidarity with others, we demand recognition for ourselves, for what makes us special. A focus on identity speaks to exhaustion with politics & a cynicism about humanity”"
July 2, 2022
It's long, and the second half is very scholarly. And I can see how many may not end up reading the whole thing. However there is a lot of good content within the first half, and the details in the second half about the different forms feminism has taken over the years was very interesting. A lot of people think feminism is just the one thing that they believe it is, it is their experience that defines it for them, but the reality is that feminism is very conplicated, and that those complications have had undesirable consequences, not least of which are providing distractions and creating a combative environment that both interfere with the movements ability to easily elicit support and quickly reach it's goals.
August 4, 2024
Every today´s feminist should read this one!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews