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How to Be a Woman

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How to be a Woman
AuthorCaitlin Moran
LanguageEnglish
GenreMemoir
Published16 June 2011
PublisherEbury Press
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
AwardsGalaxy National Book Awards, Irish Book Award
ISBN978-0091940744

How to Be a Woman is a 2011 non-fiction memoir by British writer Caitlin Moran. The book documents Moran's early life (from teens until mid-thirties) including her views on feminism. As of July 2014, it had sold over a million copies.[1]

Overview

Caitlin Moran wrote How To Be a Woman with the goal of making feminism more approachable for every woman by telling stories of her own life's struggles. She wants women to stop seeing feminists as radical man-haters and to start seeing them as advocates for true equality. In her book Moran calls out any woman who doesn't identify as a feminist saying that all women are inherently feminists unless they reject any notion of personal freedom. Being labeled as a feminist could be positive or negative.[2] Moran tells her own feminist stories using "forceful and self-deprecating humor" that any woman can relate to. In an interview done by NPR, Moran says that she uses humour in her writing because "it's kind of hard to argue with someone who's making you laugh".[3]

Content

Moran discusses topics such as the concept of naming body parts, her own experience of childbirth,[4] and the stigma surrounding abortion.[5][6]

Fifth-wave feminism

In How to Be a Woman, Moran calls for a fifth wave of feminism to rise up.[7][8] Moran states, "But if there is to be a fifth wave of feminism, I would hope that the main thing that distinguishes it from all that came before is that women counter the awkwardness, disconnect, and bullshit of being a modern woman not by shouting at it, internalizing it, or squabbling about it—but by simply pointing at it and going 'HA!' instead."[9]

Critical response

Emma Brockes of the New York Times described the work as "a book that needed to be written".[2] Miranda Sawyer of The Guardian called the book "a joy" and "a triumph".[3] Peggy Orenstein of Slate gave the book a favorable review, writing "she is, in equal measure, intellectual, rebel and goofball."[4] The Independent wrote, "it would be almost unkind to call this an important book, because what it is mostly is engaging, brave and consistently, cleverly, naughtily funny, but actually it is important that we talk about this stuff."[5] NPR spoke positively of How to Be a Woman, describing her as in the vein of the late Nora Ephron.[6]

The Telegraph, while praising the book, noted "The book has not, however, met with universal approval. Germaine Greer, whom Moran idolises as "Goddess Greer" but nonetheless disagrees with on a number of issues, has accused Moran of setting up a 'straw woman' version of herself to argue with, and of skimping on her homework."[10] Time called How to Be a Woman "hugely lovable" but "problematically narrow."[11]

Awards

Nominations

References

  1. ^ Crocker, Lizzie (29 September 2014). "Join Caitlin Moran's Riotous Feminist Revolution". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
  2. ^ a b Brockes, Emma (26 July 2012). "These Stilettos Are Not Made for Walking, Nor Is the Thong". New York Times. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  3. ^ a b Sawyer, Miranda (25 June 2011). "How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  4. ^ a b Orenstein, Peggy (15 July 2012). "They Don't Make Feminists This Outrageous Anymore". Slate. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  5. ^ a b "How To Be a Woman, By Caitlin Moran". The Independent. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  6. ^ a b Corrigan, Maureen. "A Little Advice On 'How To Be A Woman'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  7. ^ Counter, Rosemary (17 August 2012). "Caitlin Moran forces us to ask, is it time for fifth-wave feminism?". The Globe and Mail.
  8. ^ "Dear Fifth Wave Feminists, We Need You!". The New Agenda. 31 August 2012. Archived from the original on 25 September 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  9. ^ Moran, Caitlin (2012). How To Be a Woman. New York: Harper Perennial. pp. 13–14. ISBN 978-0-06-212429-6.
  10. ^ "Ceri Radford on Caitlin Moran". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  11. ^ Gibson, Megan. "Review: In Her First Novel, Caitlin Moran Explains How To Build a Girl". Time. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  12. ^ "Caitlin Moran wins Galaxy Book of the Year". The Telegraph. 23 December 2011.
  13. ^ Katie Allen (7 November 2011). "Hollinghurst, Moran, French win at Galaxy awards". The Bookseller.
  14. ^ "A Winning Night at Bord Gais Energy Irish Book Awards". Dublin City. 18 November 2011.

Bibliography

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