The Mother of All Questions Further Reports from the Feminist Revolutions Rebecca Solnit Books
Download As PDF : The Mother of All Questions Further Reports from the Feminist Revolutions Rebecca Solnit Books
In a timely follow-up to her national bestseller Men Explain Things to Me, Rebecca Solnit offers indispensable commentary on women who refuse to be silenced, misogynistic violence, the fragile masculinity of the literary canon, the gender binary, the recent history of rape jokes, and much more.
In characteristic style, Solnit mixes humor, keen analysis, and powerful insight in these essays.
The Mother of All Questions Further Reports from the Feminist Revolutions Rebecca Solnit Books
The thinking behind this book is exactly the quality of thinking that has been missing in American civic life for this past election cycle. Solnit is incisive, challenging and more than a little disturbing. She is focused throughout this collection on the silence that patriarchy imposes on women (and, in a different way, on men) and the way that silence is extended to include people of color, lesbians, gay men, etc.In this review, I mostly want to talk to men who are challenged by and resistant to her arguments. One of Solnit's main themes is the role that violence or the threat of violence plays in maintaining patriarchy. I would like to recount for you two quick stories:
Many years ago, I read a review of Susan Brownmiller's Men Women and Rape which stated that Brownmiller's thesis could be summarized as saying that all men want to rape all women. I found that summation absurd but it also made me wonder. So I performed a social experiment. For the next five years or so, I asked women (who I knew well enough) if they had ever been the victim of some sort of sexual assault. Out of the 20+ women who I had this conversation with, all of them said yes. The assaults ranged from men masturbating in front of them in some sort of public space to overly aggressive dates to actual rape one of which occurred at knife point. Some of these assaults were able to be laughed off and some changed the lives of the woman involved. All involved the possibility or actuality of violence.
My second story come from a recent bout of jury duty in Portland, OR. I was pooled along with 47 other people for a case involving resisting arrest. One of the questions that we all were asked was had we ever been the victim of a crime and, if so, what? Of the 24 or so women in our pool, 10 stated that they had been the victim of a sexual assault. None of the men had been the victim of a violent crime.
My suggestion is to read Solnit as though you are thirsty and her book is a glass of water. Then go out and talk to some of the women you know about what you read and ask them what they think. And then listen to them. And then read Susan Brison's Aftermath and then listen some more.
Maybe the best way for men and women to really have a real conversation about feminism, patriarchy and violence is for us men to be quiet for a while. Just saying.
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The Mother of All Questions Further Reports from the Feminist Revolutions Rebecca Solnit Books Reviews
I love Solnit's writing, but some of these essays were not new for me, and some left me feeling lukewarm. The last essay, however, is fantastic!
I've considered myself a feminist off and on for most of my life. I try to keep up with black lives matter, gay rights, disability rights, among other mostly positive upheavals in contemporary society. Solnit's essays are wonderfully clear and non-pugnacious.
Rebecca Solnit is an amazingly talented thinker and writer. "The Mother of All Questions" is an inspiring book which I highly recommend.
Must have essay collection. Includes "80 Books No Woman Should Read" and "Men Explain Lolita to Me".
Another winner by the writer who has become my favorite contemporary feminist essayist! I first stumbled on her work in a bookstore in San Francisco, with "Men Explain Things to Me." Filled with intelligence, wit, enough righteous indignation for the current world, and explorations of some of the hottest issues of the day. Solnit hits it out of the park.
This book presents a wide range of information about women's daily struggles in our current political climate. I think that this book would be highly beneficial for men to read to learn more about what the opposite sex goes through on a regular basis when it comes to harassment, pay grade, etc.
I preordered this book with high expectations, having recently finished Men Explain Things To Me. And let me say It surpassed them! This book is a phenomenal look into how men need to (also) be feminists. What I especially appreciated about this book is that it was even more aware of intersectionality and privilege than Men Explain Things To Me. Solnit shows much more awareness and appreciation for not only race, sex, cisgender, sexual orientation, class, age, religion, etc. ... she also calls out how these combine and interact. Another thing I like is how surprisingly relevant the book is, making references to occurrences as recent as Donald Trump's "Grab them by the pussy" comment.
Now, I do not want to call this a flawless book. Remember, it is a collection of essays, and while they generally build upon each other, you might get to the end of the book and think, "What kind of ending was that?" I found the first half of the book especially exceptional, with the second half being still great, but not *as* great, especially with final chapter. But Solnit, as always, is a magician with her writing, and will take you on a meandering, but laser-focused, journey through modern-day feminism.
The thinking behind this book is exactly the quality of thinking that has been missing in American civic life for this past election cycle. Solnit is incisive, challenging and more than a little disturbing. She is focused throughout this collection on the silence that patriarchy imposes on women (and, in a different way, on men) and the way that silence is extended to include people of color, lesbians, gay men, etc.
In this review, I mostly want to talk to men who are challenged by and resistant to her arguments. One of Solnit's main themes is the role that violence or the threat of violence plays in maintaining patriarchy. I would like to recount for you two quick stories
Many years ago, I read a review of Susan Brownmiller's Men Women and Rape which stated that Brownmiller's thesis could be summarized as saying that all men want to rape all women. I found that summation absurd but it also made me wonder. So I performed a social experiment. For the next five years or so, I asked women (who I knew well enough) if they had ever been the victim of some sort of sexual assault. Out of the 20+ women who I had this conversation with, all of them said yes. The assaults ranged from men masturbating in front of them in some sort of public space to overly aggressive dates to actual rape one of which occurred at knife point. Some of these assaults were able to be laughed off and some changed the lives of the woman involved. All involved the possibility or actuality of violence.
My second story come from a recent bout of jury duty in Portland, OR. I was pooled along with 47 other people for a case involving resisting arrest. One of the questions that we all were asked was had we ever been the victim of a crime and, if so, what? Of the 24 or so women in our pool, 10 stated that they had been the victim of a sexual assault. None of the men had been the victim of a violent crime.
My suggestion is to read Solnit as though you are thirsty and her book is a glass of water. Then go out and talk to some of the women you know about what you read and ask them what they think. And then listen to them. And then read Susan Brison's Aftermath and then listen some more.
Maybe the best way for men and women to really have a real conversation about feminism, patriarchy and violence is for us men to be quiet for a while. Just saying.
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