THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE FEMININE MYSTIQUE THE REFORM MOVEMENTS ARTS EDUCATION AMERICAN CULTURE INTRODUCTION MANY PEOPLE CREDIT A RENEWED INTEREST IN FEMINISM TO THE PUBLICATION OF BETTY FRIEDAN'S THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE IN 1963 FOR HER BOOK FRIEDAN INTERVIEWED SOME 200 OF HER FORMER COLLEGE CLASSMATES AND FOUND THAT THERE WAS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE REALITY OF THESE WOMEN'S LIVES AND THE IMAGES THEY FOUND IN WOMEN'S MAGAZINES SHE CALLS THIS DIFFERENCE THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE IN THE FOLLOWING SECTION FRIEDAN ADDRESSES AN IDENTITY CRISIS EXPERIENCED BY MANY WHITE MIDDLE CLASS WOMEN I DISCOVERED A STRANGE THING INTERVIEWING WOMEN OF MY OWN GENERATION OVER THE PAST TEN YEARS WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP MANY OF US COULD NOT SEE OURSELVES BEYOND THE AGE OF TWENTY ONE WE HAD NO IMAGE OF OUR FUTURE OR OURSELVES AS WOMEN I REMEMBER THE STILLNESS OF A SPRING AFTERNOON ON THE SMITH CAMPUS IN 1942 WHEN I CAME TO A FRIGHTENING DEAD END IN MY OWN VISION OF THE FUTURE A FEW DAYS EARLIER I HAD RECEIVED A NOTICE THAT I HAD WON A GRADUATE FELLOWSHIP DURING THE CONGRATULATIONS UNDERNEATH MY EXCITEMENT I FELT A STRANGE UNEASINESS THERE WAS A QUESTION THAT I DID NOT WANT TO THINK ABOUT IS THIS REALLY WHAT I WANT TO BE THE QUESTION SHUT ME OFF COLD AND ALONE FROM THE GIRLS TALKING AND STUDYING ON THE SUNNY HILLSIDE BEHIND THE COLLEGE HOUSE I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO BE A PSYCHOLOGIST BUT IF I WASN'T SURE WHAT DID I WANT TO BE I FELT THE FUTURE CLOSING IN AND I COULD NOT SEE MYSELF IN IT AT ALL I TOOK THE FELLOWSHIP BUT THE NEXT SPRING UNDER THE ALIEN CALIFORNIA SUN OF ANOTHER CAMPUS THE QUESTION CAME AGAIN AND I COULD NOT PUT IT OUT OF MY MIND I HAD WON ANOTHER FELLOWSHIP THAT WOULD HAVE COMMITTED ME TO RESEARCH FOR MY DOCTORATE TO A CAREER AS PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST IS THIS REALLY WHAT I WANT TO BE THE QUESTION NOW TRULY TERRIFIED ME THE QUESTION WAS NOT IMPORTANT I TOLD MYSELF NO QUESTION WAS IMPORTANT TO ME THAT YEAR BUT LOVE I DISCOVERED TALKING TO SMITH SENIORS IN 1959 THAT THE QUESTION IS NO LESS TERRIFYING TO GIRLS TODAY ONLY THEY ANSWER IT NOW IN A WAY MY GENERATION FOUND AFTER HALF A LIFETIME NOT TO BE AN ANSWER AT ALL I ASKED THE ONES AROUND ME WHAT THE PLANNED TO BE THE ENGAGED ONES SPOKE OF WEDDINGS APARTMENTS GETTING A JOB AS A SECRETARY WHILE HUSBAND FINISHED SCHOOL THE OTHERS AFTER A HOSTILE SILENCE GAVE VAGUE ANSWERS ABOUT THIS JOB OR THAT GRADUATE STUDY BUT NO ONE HAD ANY REAL PLANS THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE PERMITS EVEN ENCOURAGES WOMEN TO IGNORE THE QUESTION OF THEIR IDENTITY THE MYSTIQUE SAYS THEY CAN ANSWER THE QUESTION WHO AM I BY SAYING TOM'S WIFE MARY'S MOTHER BUT I DON'T THINK THAT MYSTIQUE WOULD HAVE SUCH POWER OVER AMERICAN WOMEN IF THEY DID NOT FEAR TO FACE THIS TERRIFYING BLANK WHICH MAKES THEM UNABLE TO SEE THEMSELVES AFTER TWENTY ONE IN MY GENERATION MANY OF US KNEW THAT WE DID NOT WANT TO BE LIKE OUR MOTHERS EVEN WHEN WE LOVED THEM WE COULD NOT HELP BUT SEE THEIR DISAPPOINTMENT DID WE UNDERSTAND OR ONLY RESENT THE SADNESS THE EMPTINESS THAT MADE THEM HOLD TOO FAST TO US TRY TO LIVE OUR LIVES RUN OUR FATHERS LIVES SPEND THEIR DAYS SHOPPING OR YEARNING FOR THINGS THAT NEVER SEEMED TO SATISFY THEM NO MATTER HOW MUCH MONEY THEY COST STRANGELY MANY MOTHERS WHO LOVED THEIR DAUGHTERS AND MINE WAS ONE DID NOT WANT THEIR DAUGHTERS TO GROW UP LIKE THEM EITHER THEY KNEW WE NEEDED SOMETHING MORE FROM THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE BY BETTY FRIEDAN COPYRIGHT 1963 1973 1974 1983 1996 1997 BY BETTY FRIEDAN ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED BY W W NORTON COMPANY REPRINTED BY PERMISSION OF CURTIS BROWN LTD
