The Feminine Mystique | Literary Criticism & Book Review

The Feminine Mystique Critical Overview

When The Feminine Mystique was first published in 1963, it exploded into American consciousness. Most critics were polarized in their views of the book. In the 1963 review for the Times Literary Supplement, the reviewer notes: "If, then, there is still a feminist fight to be fought it is for the right to work. And if they are to win it women must have all the ammunition they can of the calibre of this book." Likewise, in her 1963 review of the book for the American Sociological Review, Sylvia Fleis Fava applauds Friedan's solution to the problem that has no name. Says Fava: "Her answer, that we should take women seriously as individuals, not as women, resounds throughout the book; I heartily agree with it." However, some positive critics, including Fava, had reservations about the book. Says Fava: "Friedan tends to set up a countermystique; that all women must have...
(read more)