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Teachers' Resource Web Study Questions on Simone de Beauvoir The Second Sex (1949) *It is important to maintain clear distinctions between de Beauvoir's own positions and the views she attributes to others--often in this selection she characterizes other authors' views about women. 1. From 994-96, excluding Stendhal, what does de Beauvoir say is wrong with the way certain male writers deal with women? What does their handling of women reveal about the male writers themselves? 2. What makes Stendhal a better writer on women than the others? Does de Beauvoir nonetheless criticize even Stendhal to some extent? If so, why? 3. What is "the myth of woman," as de Beauvoir articulates it from 996-97? 4. To what use have male-oriented societies and individual males put this myth, especially as regards the alleged mysteriousness of women? See 996-97. 5. Why, according to de Beauvoir from 997-99, is it futile to define "what one is"? In other words, what is misguided about making statements about one's supposed inner essence? What is in fact responsible for one person's seeming mysterious to another person? 6. According to de Beauvoir from 999-1000, what should relations between the sexes be like? You may want to trace this position of hers from earlier parts of our selection as well as look at 999-1000. 7. Does de Beauvoir seem hopeful about our achieving the kind of relations she believes would be best? The last page or so of the selection may provide some material here. Also, given that de Beauvoir wrote The Second Sex over half a century ago, would you say that there has been a significant improvement in the way men and women relate to one another? *The reading selections are from Adams, Hazard. Critical Theory Since Plato. Rev. ed. New York: Harcourt, 1992. 993-1000. (Ch. X Summary and selection from Ch. XI. of The Second Sex.) |