Free Women, Free Men

Free Women, Free Men: Sex, Gender, Feminism
Cover of the first edition
AuthorCamille Paglia
Cover artistJanet Hansen
LanguageEnglish
SubjectFeminism
PublisherPantheon Books
Publication date
2017
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hard and paperback)
Pages352
ISBN978-0-375-42477-9
OCLC960762431

Free Women, Free Men: Sex, Gender, Feminism is a 2017 essay collection by American academic and cultural critic Camille Paglia. Comprising previously published essays, the book's central principles, according to Paglia, are "free thought and free speech—open, mobile, and unconstrained by either liberal or conservative ideology"; she argues for an "enlightened feminism, animated by a courageous code of personal responsibility".[1]

Reception

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Dwight Garner of The New York Times felt that, though the collection has moments where "she's a fearless public intellectual and more necessary than ever", Free Women, Free Men "[displays] her worst qualities". While praising Paglia's arguments as "incisive and worth tangling with", he found her vain and criticized the book as repetitive, opining that reading it "is like being stranded in a bar where the jukebox has only two songs, both by Pat Benatar."[2] In Kirkus Reviews, it was stated of the essays that "to read a few is to read them all".[3]

In The Province, Mark Abbott argued that although Paglia's views can be inflammatory, she "genuinely cares about the current state of education". Abbott also called the book "timely" and stated that it "serves as a good introductory text to Paglia 101".[4]

The Huffington Post included the book in their list of "27 Nonfiction Books By Women Everyone Should Read This Year", stating that "at times infuriating, at times glittering, Paglia's prose is always biting and relentless."[5]

References

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  1. ^ Paglia, Camille (March 21, 2017). "Camille Paglia: Women Aren't Free Until Speech Is". Time. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  2. ^ Garner, Dwight (March 23, 2017). "From Camille Paglia, 'Free Women, Free Men' and No Sacred Cows". The New York Times. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  3. ^ "Free Women, Free Men". Kirkus Reviews. December 26, 2016. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  4. ^ Abbott, Mark (March 14, 2017). "Book Review: Free Women, Free Men – Sex, Gender, Feminism". The Province. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  5. ^ Brooks, Katherine (January 9, 2017). "27 Nonfiction Books By Women Everyone Should Read This Year". The Huffington Post. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
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