Marie-Hélène Budworth

I have been reading How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran – a set of skills that I hope to master soon.  I picked the book up on a whim.  Chapters advertised it as the British version of Tina Fey’s Bossypants.  Well I thoroughly enjoyed Bossypants so I was all in.  In fact, I bought three copies – one for me and two for girlfriends who were having birthdays in August.  My Kindle says that I am 44% through the book and so far, I have come to believe that the comparison to Fey’s work seriously undersells this book.  How to be a Woman is a wonderful view of feminism that is relevant and useful for women in today’s world.  

The problem with feminism is that the word has come to mean something more than equal rights.  It has come to mean radical, militant, aggressive, and hairy.  Now these are not necessarily bad things but because radicalism is often viewed as extremism, anything viewed in that light is carried into a space that is not appetizing for mass consumption. Moran does a great job of arguing as to why modern women need to take back the word, own it, and live by it.  In her words, if you a) have a vagina and b) want to be in charge of it, you need to be a feminist.  Hilarious.  And true.  If you enjoy voting and are still a little ticked about the wage gap then feminism is for you.  Actually, you do not even need the vagina.  Some of my favourite feminists are men.  If you need to update your view on what the concept actually means, it is worth taking a look at Moran’s work.