I really liked it. this is a cheesy word, but it did make me feel "empowered." I also liked the emphasis on the importance of having the right partner... otherwise it's just the same old "women trying to 'have it all'" thing that is so exhausting and makes everyone feel like a failure.
For my life, "lean in" doesn't mean working more hours to reach a better position - it means taking risks, being confident and thinking creatively. The Atlantic has an article this month that really hit home - a lot of women pass up opportunities because they believe they are not perfectly qualified, but men are more willing to dive in.
The Confidence Gap: http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/04/the-confidence-gap/359815/
This summer I am supervising 2 interns - I hope I can be a good example to them even though I still second guess my own skills at times.
absolutely agreed! I related to the parts about "imposter syndrome" and related concepts so much it hurt. it's probably what I liked most out of the book.
bell hooks' rebuttal was really interesting. I definitely don't think of Sandberg as a "high priestess of feminism." I don't know that she necessarily sees herself that way either, so I think that criticizing her for not digging deeply into feminist theory is maybe a little unfair. and sure, maybe the subject matter was old hat to people who already know a lot about feminism, but I think it's pretty obvious from the chord that it struck that a lot of people had NOT read something like this before.
sometimes it seems like people who have been involved in a movement or issue for a long time are hypercritical of "watered-down" versions that have a broader appeal. IMO, anything that is a baby step into critical thinking about feminism for wide swaths of people who haven't had much exposure to it is AWESOME! what's the point in saying "oh that's not radical enough" when the radical views may have a much smaller audience and therefore make it that much harder to effect broad change? or, as ch12 summed it up better:
I think that it exposed a lot of new people to feminist ideas, and that's always a good thing.
I guess a big criticism by the bell hooks response was that the book didn't go deep enough -- didn't talk about women outside of Sandberg's race and class, and presented "nothing new." In rebuttal to the criticism that the book presents nothing new, I honestly don't think the general public finds feminist theory, largely published in an academic setting, accessible on a regular basis, and obviously Lean In has struck a chord with people, there's something there they are finding worth listening to. Is that itself a problem?
Also in the bell hooks rebuttal -- that the book does not speak to other classes and races besides upper-class white women-- is this true? Necessary? Possible in a single book? I don't know the answers to these questions.
yeah, great questions. I would totally agree that there needs to be more digging/a broader range of racial and socioeconomic feminist views represented and discussed
in general, obviously those voices need to be heard, but why would an upper-class white woman be the one to write about it?! what would she have to say on the experience of black women or Latina women? or women of any race who grew up poor? speaking as a middle-class white woman myself, I would be honored to be INVOLVED in such a discussion and to learn from these women, but for me to try to lead it by writing a book about it would be really stupid and presumptuous (IMO).
I guess what I'm trying to say in summary is that I think hooks' expectations for the book were too high. I don't think Sandberg was trying to write a magnum opus of feminism for the 21st century... if anything I think it was the media response that spun it that way (but maybe she is partly responsible). anyway, I'm a middle-class white woman and I got a lot out of it that I felt I could apply to my own life, so maybe that's why I liked it. and/or maybe I'm just a bad feminist. :) interestingly I don't even remember the part where she talks about her husband managing their finances... I guess I skimmed over it 'cause I DON'T relate to that part at all :)
Osprey, it's interesting that you felt berated rather than supported. we actually read the book as part of my (coed, and we read a lot of really diverse books) book club last year. although I really liked it, I had a friend who I worked with at the time who expressed views more similar to yours, that she felt like it didn't address systems that are working against women, and was just more of the "you can have/do it all, be superwoman!" rhetoric (which I agree SUCKS, but I just didn't get that out of the book). I guess for me I liked that it didn't focus on too much that is outside my "circle of control," a la MMM :) and instead made me feel like I am a) not alone for undervaluing myself and lacking confidence, and b) able to do SOMETHING about it.