Essay
The Female Eunuch
Germaine Greer · 1970
Synopsis
An essay in several parts, from the body and the soul to love, hatred and revolution. The author argues that the nuclear suburban family, devoted to consumption, represses women's sexuality to the point of making them eunuchs, that men hate women without the women knowing it, and that women are raised to hate themselves. In the last part, she calls for a revolution rather than a slow evolution, and mocks the bourgeois committees for women's rights that stick to petitions.
Context
The essay appeared in London in October 1970 from MacGibbon and Kee; by March 1971 the second printing was almost exhausted, and the book became an international success, translated into eleven or twelve languages depending on the sources. Its author was then teaching at Warwick. In 1971, her debate with Norman Mailer at New York's Town Hall made history, and she was elected woman of the year in Great Britain. A sequel appeared in 1999.
Who it is for
An essay in English with the tone of a pamphlet, translated into French as early as 1971 under the title La Femme eunuque.
Prizes and reception
For Camille Paglia, a marvellous book; the Australian press was divided between Thelma Forshaw's panning and Sylvia Lawson's praise.