Doris Lessing's The Golden Notebook - Feminist manifesto in 2008...?

Feminist manifesto in 2008...?

admin — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 08:47:48 -0500

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Feminist manifesto in 2008...?

lucebird — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 08:55:40 -0500

I disagree. I find the term feminist so difficult to apply to myself even though most people would say I am a staunch man-hater because of my understanding (and voicing) of the way we are still deeply disempowered, especially if you think globally.
But I also need men, love men, and can completely relate to Anna because I think she epitpmises what is so different about men and women's attitudes to sex, love and life. When I read TGN I saw for the first time a female character who made sense. Unlike the 'strong' women of something like The Rainbow or Jane Eyre, or the idiots in Bridget Jones, here is a woman who constantly, constantly looks within herself and almost lives more of a reality in her head than in the real world. I think that is something some women fail to understand is a very female trait, and something that leads to a frustration and anger towards men that is at times unfair.
I don't think Anna is supposed to be a feminist. I think the book is seen as a feminist book when in fact it just captures the female psyche perfectly.

Feminist manifesto in 2008...?

nona — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:09:57 -0500

"I don't think Anna is supposed to be a feminist. I think the book is seen as a feminist book when in fact it just captures the female psyche perfectly."

This could be true. But I still don't think TGN has general resonance for modern feminism as it stands now. I did think Anna's inwardness was relatable at times, but mostly it struck me as narcissistic, which I don't think usually tinges the vast majority of women's inner dialogues nowadays. Yes, many of us obsess, live in our heads, and self-reflect. But the smugness, the self-destruction admidst incredible privilege? It just made me roll my eyes.