Books like The Female Thing by Laura Kipnis
In *The Female Thing*, Laura Kipnis interrogates the paradoxes at the heart of twentieth‑century feminism. She argues that every stride toward sexual equality is met with new, often invisible, obstacles—many rooted within women's own attitudes and behaviors. Drawing on sociology, psychology, and sharp humor, Kipnis explores how the quest for self‑affirmation intersects with the desire to maintain independence, and how women’s complicity in sustaining male privilege can foster tension between the sexes. The book offers a candid, unapologetic look at the ways in which politics, culture, and personal identity shape contemporary womanhood.
First publish date: October 17, 2006
Genre: Psychology/Social Psychology
Authors: Laura Kipnis
★
★
★
★
★
4.0 (1 community ratings)
How are these books recommended?
The books recommended for The Female Thing by Laura Kipnis are shaped by reader interaction. Votes on how closely books relate, user ratings, and community comments all help refine these recommendations and highlight books readers genuinely find similar in theme, ideas, and overall reading experience.
Have you read any of these books?
Your votes, ratings, and comments help improve recommendations and make it easier
for other readers to discover books they’ll enjoy.
Books similar to The Female Thing (13 similar books)
A concise guide of fifteen practical suggestions on raising daughters as strong, independent feminists, drawn from the author's personal letter to a friend.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Betty Friedan’s 1963 classic uncovers the invisible barriers that kept women confined to domestic roles, sparking a cultural awakening that reshaped ideas about equality and personal fulfillment in the United States.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Virginia Woolf’s essays, First a lecture‑turned‑book on women’s economic and social freedom, followed by a critical study of war, combine fiction, history and feminist theory to examine the constraints shaping female creativity.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Inga Muscio follows the journey of the word "cunt" from ancient reverence to modern profanity, encouraging women to reclaim it as a symbol of empowerment and bodily autonomy.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A non‑fiction work that shines a light on the oppression of women in developing countries, offering case studies of survivors and exploring how empowering women drives economic progress.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A classic of feminism, *Backlash* exposes the backlash against women's rights.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Chesler explores how women’s interpersonal aggression shapes identity and hampers feminist progress, drawing on psychology, anthropology, and decades of interviews.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Colette Dowling challenges the long‑standing myth of female frailty, presenting research that shows women can match or exceed men in physical strength through training, and arguing for bodily empowerment as a key to gender equality.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
The Girls Who Went Away traces the untold story of over a million mothers who surrendered children for adoption before Roe v. Wade, revealing the psychological, social, and familial forces that shaped their decisions.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Some Other Similar Books
Untrue: A True Story of Freedom, Religion, & Love by Wednesday MartinCome as You Are: The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life by Emily Nagoski
The Myth of Sanity: Divergent Perspectives on Gender and Culture by Martha Stout
Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics by bell hooks
The Gendered Brain: The New Neuroscience That Shatters The Myth of The Female Brain by Gina Rippon
The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women by Naomi Wolf
Women & Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard
Delusions of Gender: How Our Minds, Society, and Neurosexism Create Difference by Cordelia Fine
The Sexual Paradox: Men, Women, and the Real Gender Gap by Susan Pinker
The End of Men: And the Rise of Women by Hanna Rosin
Have a similar book in mind? Let others know!
Please login to submit books!