Moving Beyond Words

Moving Beyond Words – Gloria Steinem

Through a collection of six essays that could each be their own book if they had a little more room to expand, Gloria Steinem addresses some of the most essential definitions and assumptions of what it means to be both a woman and a feminist. Steinem starts with a gender-bending reconception of Freud’s life and theories (“What if Freud were Phyllis”), which is followed by an in-depth interview with the world’s strongest woman, finding femininity and personal strength in the world of bodybuilders. She addresses a blistering essay toward the advertising industry for buying out women’s magazines and filling them consumables and editorials rather than pressing news and important products, and also discusses class differences within feminism and the importance of revaluing women’s economic contributions. She ends the book with an essay on aging, coming to the conclusion that the most radical act of rebellion is to accurately portray reality. Each of these essays is united by a theme of redefining empowerment, reclaiming women’s value, and embracing change in the face of difficulty and uncertainty.

Steinem is an honest, thought-provoking, and inspiring writer. Her essays have a casual and relatable tone which gives her writing an intimate and genuine feel, but she also conveys information from a perspective of understandable anger that borders on rage without ever coming across too strong. She has no presumption other than the belief that all people deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. While she writes to the universal experience of woman, she also constantly remembers the differences of class, race, culture, and other identity categories. The content of her essays varies as much as her own experience, and she somehow finds a way to make even census categories and paying taxes infinitely more interesting than they sound. With wit, insight, and respect, Steinem draws attention to basic, daily rituals and interactions that undermine the inherent dignity of an entire group of people and offers her own perspective, based on her own experience, on how to live in a way that counteracts these effects. Steinem writes persuasive and logical arguments that provoke both thoughtful and emotional responses.

Reading Gloria Steinem was fabulous for a couple reasons. I have never read anything by her before – or if I have, it has been too long for me to remember – and her essays were a nice reminder of why I believe in the possibility of change. She draws attention to so many things that I either take for granted or don’t notice at all, and it is important to be redirected to notice the ways in which injustice persists. She speaks to and for women with a humble understanding that she could never accurately convey or capture the experience of each individual, making her writing all the more relatable. Certain essays were more compelling than others, but if Steinem’s writing can make me interested in economics, then she is a pretty amazing author. All of these essays are well worth the read.