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The Mommy Myth and Assertive Woman

The Mommy Myth

Susan Douglas first took on the media's misrepresentation of women in her funny, scathing social commentary Where the Girls Are. Now, Susan Douglas and Meredith Michaels, have turned a sardonic (but never jaundiced) eye toward the cult of the new momism: a trend in American culture that is causing women to feel that only through the perfection of motherhood can true contentment be found.
This vision of motherhood is highly romanticized and yet its standards for success remain forever out of reach, no matter how hard women may try to have it all. The Mommy Myth takes a provocative tour through the past thirty years of media images about mothers: the superficial achievements of the celebrity mom, the news media's sensational coverage of dangerous day care, the staging of the mommy wars between working mothers and stay-at-home moms, and the onslaught of values-based marketing that raises mothering standards to impossible levels, just to name a few. In concert with this messaging, the authors contend, is a conservative backwater of talking heads propagating the myth of the modern mom.
This nimble assessment of how motherhood has been shaped by out-of-date mores is not about whether women should have children or not, or about whether once they have kids mothers should work or stay at home. It is about how no matter what they do or how hard they try, women will never achieve the promised nirvana of idealized mothering. Susan Douglas and Meredith Michaels skillfully map the distance traveled from the days when The Feminine Mystique demanded more for women than the unpaid labor of keeping house and raising children, to today's not-so-subtle pressure to reverse this thirty-year trend. A must-read for every woman. The Mommy Myth : The Idealization of Motherhood and How It Has Undermined Women by Susan Douglas and Meredith Michaels
ISBN: 0743259998

The Assertive Woman

The fourth edition of this classic bestseller, revised and updated, is an original and lively self-help resource, packed with tested exercises, step-by-step guides, and solid advice on how to express yourself with co-workers, authority figures, lovers, family, and friends.
The Assertive Woman debunks the tired old myths and stereotypes of women bosses, stay-at-home moms, bully broads, and superwomen, and presents a refreshing, positive alternative. From breaking out of the compassion trap and countering manipulation, to nurturing a hardy spirit and reaching out to friends and lovers, The Assertive Woman delivers real answers and steadfast support to real women everywhere.
The Assertive Woman (4th Edition) by Stanlee Phelps
ISBN: 1886230498

Feminism: The Essential Historical Writings

Here are the essential historical writings of feminism. Many of these works, long out of print or forgotten in what Miriam Schneir describes as a male-dominated literary tradition, are finally brought out of obscurity and into the light of contemporary analysis and criticism. Included are more than forty selections, covering 150 years of writings on women's struggle for freedom, from the American Revolution to the first decades of the twentieth century.
This updated, wide-ranging collection encompasses the crucial issues of women's oppression. A surprising degree of continuity between the ideas of the old and the new feminism is evident throughout. In her selection, Miriam Schneir has by passed writings that deal exclusively with the outdated topic of suffrage in an effort to focus attention on the still unsolved feminist problems: Marriage as an instrument of oppression, woman's desire to control her own body, the economic independence of women and the search for selfhood.
This richly diverse collection contains excerpts from books, essays, speeches, documents, letters, as well as poetry, drama, and fiction. Extensive commentaries by the editor help the reader see the historical context of each selection.
Feminism: The Essential Historical Writings by Miriam Schneir
ISBN: 0679753818

Feminism in Jeopardy

It took 144 years for women to gain the right to vote; today women only have to turn 18. Yet, in the 2000 presidential election, nearly 19 million young women declined to vote. Today's young women avoid both the word feminist and the ballot box for similar reasons.
Too confining, they say, parties and labels don't define me. But all young women can accurately be described as struggling - struggling to balance work and family, struggling against a widening wage gap, struggling to have their concerns and issues taken seriously.
The F-Word reminds women of their incredible latent power, challenging them to move beyond labels and to work to protect and further women's rights and freedoms.
The F Word: Feminism in Jeopardy, Women Politics, and the Future by Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner
ISBN: 1580051146