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Right-Wing Women by Andrea Dworkin | Abortion | Chapter 3
Welcome to another discussion post for Right-Wing Women: The Politics of Domesticated Females by Andrea Dworkin.
In this post, we are discussing Chapter 3 Abortion.
Share your thoughts on this chapter and overal book section in the comments. (Feel free to also share thoughts and suggestions on the discussion post and bookclub structure itself.)
Anyone who hasn't read the book but wants to give input on the topics discussed are welcome to as well! (I recommend mentioning that you haven't read the chapter in your post, so people are aware of that when replying.)
Readers are welcome to join in at anytime. Find a free copy of the book at frauenkultur.co.uk.
Previous Discussion Posts
Chapter 4 discussion post is going to be on May 4th!
The part about how no girl would accept the hundred million lessons on how to be a girl, or want boys to like her, if she knew what she was for, was so relatable. I remember thinking that guys liked me as a person, thought I was interesting when they showed interest in me, and being bitterly disappointed when I found out that was wrong. But of course I internalized it, thought it meant I wasn't good enough. It's so effective, to have women riddled with insecurity makes us much easier to manipulate.
I can see how the free love movement would have been appealing after so long of women's sexuality being repressed and controlled. Of course men didn't care at all about women being able to finally explore our own sexuality, they took advantage of the movement to shape our sexuality into what suited them. We have the extreme of that now with things like pornhub, only fans and sex work is work mentality. I find it hard to imagine what will come next. How can we get men - and women for that matter- to see women as fully human if they are growing up on media and in a culture which so thoroughly trains us to see women as objects?
That is a really good question. I feel like documentaries like Killing Us Softly might help open some eyes. I think also just generally pointing out how fucked up shit is, constantly pointing it out and saying how it's not okay, helps too. Other than that, I'm really not sure.
I think Brainwashed does this as well with many more contemporary examples. Something that relies on advertising is less persuasive in today's streaming content world. We barely see 'ads' anymore. Women Art Revolution is another one from the art world specifically.
I think seeing how women responded, how strong and widespread the Women's Liberation Movement was in the day--before the internet--is also very eye opening, like She's Beautiful When She is Angry or The Glorias.