MISMEASURE OF WOMEN : WHY WOMEN ARE NOT THE BETTER SEX, THE INFERIOR SEX, OR THE OPPOSITE SEX

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Summary: Rationally discussed similarities and differences between
Review: ...men and women. Like the book jacket says, this book will clearly, rationally, and scientifically explain why women are not the weaker sex, the superior sex, nor the opposite sex. While some differences between men and women are obvious (women get pregnant, men don't) some are totally fabricated. Tavris shows the idiocy of insisting that we are "exactly the same" as well as the stupidity of insisting that we are "completely different." Read this book and find out in which ways women and men are more alike than different, and in which ways we cannot be compared. Discover the pitfalls of comparing men to women - and women to men. Examine your biases - double check your assumptions. Excellent. Men should not hestitate to read this book. Neither should women.

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Summary: Excellent look at how science studies women
Review: An analysis of the way science views women, this book has three main points: Women are not inferior to men, women are not superior to men, and women are not the same as men.

I read this book in college and almost immediately used a small portion of it in my final project for Human Sexuality. From my own research, I learned that the author's analysis of my topic (the G-Spot) agreed with the primary sources. I do not doubt that the rest of the book is just as accurate.

The reviewer who said that the author does not address the issue of abuse properly doesn't understand what the book is really about. It certainly is not about abuse, incest, or the like, nor what to do when you are recovering from it. It is about SCIENCE, and examples of biased interpretations of the same.

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Summary: Thought-provoking,intelligent book that everyone should read
Review: As a college student majoring in psychology and ethnic/gender studies, I have read numerous books about psychology and gender. Tavris has written one of the best. She looks at each side of every argument she brings up, and is not afraid to make new arguments that go against status quo beliefs. Every reader will learn something new about discrimination against women in areas such as medicine, education, and science while reading this book. Open your mind and open Tavris's book. You will wish you would've read it sooner.

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Summary: Tavris Mismeasures Women
Review: Carol Tavris, Ph.D., is a social psychologist who lectures and writes on many aspects of psychology. Her brilliant book, Anger: the Misunderstood Emotion, is a classic, and this book promises to become one, too.

In Mismeasure of Woman, Dr. Tavris carefully exposes the origins and structure of the prevailing habit of virtually all societies, even our so-called "enlightened" one, of describing men--particularly socially powerful men--as the "norm" and derogatorily measuring women in comparison to them. Dr. Tavris's direct, concise, highly readable prose is filled with documented examples showing that the differences between men and women are not primarily biological. Instead, they are created by socially mandated discrepancies in power, resource allocation and life experience.

Though many feminists have written about the relegating of women to penis-envying, second-class men, I consider Dr. Tavris one of the most clear and persuasive of those speaking out against this "mismeasure of woman." In this book, I believe she does a better job of describing the extent of the problem, and is very inspiring in brainstorming possible solutions.

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Summary: Balanced and Rational!
Review: I found this book to be well reasoned, well written and thought provoking. I am not saying that I agree with everything (I completely disagree with her assertion that same-sex schools are ok for women but not for men) but in most cases I found her insight to be refreshing.

An example of such insight: it is often claimed that women students have poor self esteem due to the fact that males score higher on "self-esteem" inventories. She points out that this could well be due to the fact that women mature quicker and therefore have a more realistic picture of themselves; that is, this is a case in which it is wholly inappropriate to compare women to the *men's* standard.

In short, she has helped me understand that "equal treatment" is not always the same as "fair treatment".

I'd highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in seeing a feminist point of view that is NOT inherently anti-male.

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Summary: A case for real equality
Review: I read this book for a class on gender issues in the workplace. Tavris has done a thoughtful and thought-provoking job of bringing out the reality of a world measured in single sex terms, whether it be male or female. What needs to be done, and it isn't easy, is to remember to look at as many sides of an issue, as many definitions of a concept, as possible. We have a tendancy to look at things via absolutes: "I am depressed because my cat died." When in fact there are a multitude of reasons and motivations behind the things we do. And finally, to remember that the best way to create equality is not to first create inequality on one side in order to "balance out" past inequality on the other. I was brought up with the simplistic but nonetheless true maxim that "two wrongs do not make a right." Tavris states the same thing in a much more eloquent and profound way.

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Summary: One of the best gender books I've read
Review: I would recommend this book to anyone interested in gender issues, and even those who aren't. It's very well put together. No, men and women aren't the same in all ways, and no, men aren't the norm and aren't the standard setters. We've probably all heard that women smile more than men or smile "too much" yet it could be that men don't smile enough! A simple point, yet one of many in her well written and researched book. The reader from CA is looking for compassion in this book, but it's not a theraputic book per se. The author's point of view is that women get stuck in being victims and it becomes their only identity and their only lense. Her point is that support groups can help but if women stay in the victim role for too long, they will focus inwardly on themselves and not realize some of the things that they're angry about are real - not just a reaction as an incest victim that's to be handled within themselves in therapy, but real injustice or not being treated with respect that needs to be dealt with.

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Summary: Tavris Mismeasures Women
Review: The greatest problem with this book is Tavris' refusal to admit real differences in the mental capabilities of women and men, to the advantage of the latter. She goes to great lengths to shatter "myths" about the irrationality of women, and doesn't seem to want to admit that the reason that women are considered irrational is because, quite frequently, they are. It's a fact - one Tavris can't deny - that women are subject to hormonal fluctuations that affect their moods, and the way they perceive the world around them. .... ...

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Summary: political science major in minority rights and womens rights
Review: This is my passion. I read everything I can possibly get my hands on with this kind of stuff. Tavris's writing style is brilliant. The way she gets her point accross with sarcasim, statistics, and personal examples makes this book reach out to so many different groups of people. I love her non-male-bashing ways, her demonstrations of bias and scandles in both the medical industry and with scientist and biologist. Even if you don't agree with all her points, which not even I do, she makes a point in her book saying that these are her thoughts even though they might not be right or agreed upon by others, either.