Sitting in my bed after a long day out, I can't say that living in California doesn't have its perks. Today I got the amazing opportunity to go to the Bay Area's local Stanford campus and listen to Debora Spar, the President of Barnard College, speak about her new book 'Wonder Women: Sex, Power, and the Quest for Perfection".
Arriving a little late after countlessly circling Stanford's parking lot in a last minute attempt at finding a parking spot, I arrived to a room filled with at least 200 people sitting on the edge of their seats to listen to Mrs. Spar. Though it was mostly filled with women, I was pleased to notice the 20 or so men who were cool enough to make it out and listen to her discuss her new book.
Mrs. Spar related her experiences in an extremely interesting way, making sure to make us laugh at her jokes, gasp in outrage over this story, and forcing us to think as she discussed her point of view on feminism.
Mrs. Spar grew up after the feminist movement of the 1960s and spent most of her life avoiding the idea of feminism, thinking feminists too radical and unneccessary with the battle already won. However, as she grew older and gained experience as an aspiring careerwoman, mother of three, and previous proffessor at Harvard, she realized the simple truth that women are still not equal to men because of the "triple whammy", that is, the need to be the perfect careerwoman, mother, and wife.
President Spar discusses feminism and the unattainable ideal of perfection in our society today in a fresh new outlook on feminism by writing a book that:
I would reccommend reading her book and doing some more research about her (for example this is one of many interviews) if you're interested in Powerful Women (see what I did there?) today.
--
Shanzay Kazmi
Arriving a little late after countlessly circling Stanford's parking lot in a last minute attempt at finding a parking spot, I arrived to a room filled with at least 200 people sitting on the edge of their seats to listen to Mrs. Spar. Though it was mostly filled with women, I was pleased to notice the 20 or so men who were cool enough to make it out and listen to her discuss her new book.
Mrs. Spar related her experiences in an extremely interesting way, making sure to make us laugh at her jokes, gasp in outrage over this story, and forcing us to think as she discussed her point of view on feminism.
Mrs. Spar grew up after the feminist movement of the 1960s and spent most of her life avoiding the idea of feminism, thinking feminists too radical and unneccessary with the battle already won. However, as she grew older and gained experience as an aspiring careerwoman, mother of three, and previous proffessor at Harvard, she realized the simple truth that women are still not equal to men because of the "triple whammy", that is, the need to be the perfect careerwoman, mother, and wife.
President Spar discusses feminism and the unattainable ideal of perfection in our society today in a fresh new outlook on feminism by writing a book that:
- Embraces the fact that men and women are biologically different, but discusses how we can focus on making it work
- Concentrates on what Feminist theories say, what they've done right, while acknowledging, what they've done wrong
- Is written by a woman who embraced feminism at a later age and agrees with the goals of feminism but not necessarily how it was done (a feminist book written by someone who didn't approve of feminism in the past?!)
- Is organized through the cycle of life, starting with young girls and teens, and ending with the wisdom that comes with middle age
I would reccommend reading her book and doing some more research about her (for example this is one of many interviews) if you're interested in Powerful Women (see what I did there?) today.
--
Shanzay Kazmi