The Second Sex: 70 Years Later

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir discusses the role of women in society as they are oppressed by the patriarchy and the impacts which various aspects of this oppression have on women. Beauvoir analyzes this oppression and its impacts on women at various stages in their lives and in differing societal roles. The Second Sex is a text that is not only valuable to both women and men, but is also necessary for all women and men to read. For women, The Second Sex provides a rationalization for many emotions and thoughts which many, if not all, women have experienced. In addition, it provides young girls with the possibility to learn from the psychological and emotional trauma which women experience under the patriarchy. Learning from this trauma allows women to make the decision to create their own path that is not linked to the “Other” and to thus break the cycle of waiting for the “Other” which women too often fall victim to. The choice of women to create this alternate path which does not rely on the “Other” allows women to not only prove their self-worth to society, but to themselves. Women are thus no longer relegated to keeping secrets and romanticising alternate realities in order to create the reality of self-importance that they seek to live in. The Second Sex is a necessary read for men as well as it allows them to understand the history of oppression which women have and still remain subjugated to. In order to understand how to impact the future of women’s place in society and to remove women from under the oppression of the patriarchy, men must understand the history of this subjugation. Furthermore, developing this mutual understanding between men and women regarding the trauma which is inflicted upon women under the patriarchy will allow men to abandon their role as the “Other” and to instead stand with women in becoming equals in the eyes of society.

The information that The Second Sex contains is significant as it reminds our society that though women are no longer directly under the thumb of the patriarchy such that they are completely dependent upon men, women are still sent subtle hints by society that they are reliant upon men in order to successfully live their lives. For example, it is considered strange if you are not married or in a committed relationship by a certain age. However, it is important to note that this is only viewed as strange for women. Additionally, if in a married couple the wife is older than the husband, it is considered strange as the woman is considered dominant. This not only demonstrates that society frowns up the dominance of women but also that in every part of women’s lives that are subtle messages whispered by society that they must return to the oppression that they faced under the thumb of the patriarchy. In revisiting the issue of women’s oppression, both men and women are able to notice that though the previous screams of the patriarchy have become whispers, these voices of oppression still remain prominent in society. How else can it be explained that women performing the same job as men and with even more qualifications and academic merits are not paid as much as their male counterparts? Therefore, Beauvoir’s words are significant as they remind us that our fight for the voice of the patriarchy to be completely silenced is not over yet.