Both men and women are equal and irrational assumption had disadvantaged women’s rights and freedoms
Friedan exposed the stifling boundaries placed upon women (particularly mothers and housewives) and identified the multiple frustrations of those who felt trapped by the confines of social expectations.
Friedan’s view on the role of the state
Legislation should criminalise discrimination. This prevents women from having their freedom harmed by others
The emancipation of women from the confines of a patriarchal society is needed.
Society remained chauvinistic towards women though women were complicit in their repression
Free market capitalism could be an ally of female emancipation if allied to legislation.
Friedan emphasised that women should be financially independent from their husband, and that women should be allowed to make their own living
What is the ‘Feminine mystique’ according to Friedan?
A book where she challenged the widely shared belief that ‘fulfillment as a women had only one definition for American women after 1949- the housewife-mother’
