SEXISM IN HIGHER EDUCATION

by Betty Richardson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 1974

An odd hybrid of a book -- a critique of the higher education bureaucracy that is as academic in its fashion as the professors it loves to loathe. Oversimplifying, the author types lady Ph.D.s into five self-defeating types -- Medea, Medusa, Hebe, Penelope, and Circe -- whose various ritual interactions with their male colleagues almost inevitably backfire and sabotage their tenure, equal pay and privileges -- if, indeed, they've gotten jobs in the first place. The author's suggestion that to maintain their growth colleges must extend their resources to working-class women seems but a mild sop compared to the real tone of the book -- which should discourage any woman from a graduate degree. In addition, the vehemence, puritanism, and lack of compassion with which Richardson attacks her stereotyped women belie what is supposedly a review of male chauvinism in university structures. Much of what she says is true, albeit obvious, but the logic is so peculiarly skewed that the final result might do more harm than good, attacking as it does the efficacy of women's caucuses and generally supporting the narrow view of achievement-oriented women.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1974

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Seabury

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1974

Categories: NONFICTION