Anyone read The Future is Feminine - Ciara Cremin?

[incidentalaccident]

Hi all, I just wondered whether anyone had read this:

The Future Is Feminine: Capitalism and the Masculine Disorder, by Ciara Cremin

It's written by (I think) a transwoman who seems to be suggesting (in very crude terms) that masculinity is a problem that can be mapped onto the problems of capitalism to which the answer is femininity. I am thinking of ordering it but have bought a lot of books lately so am feeling a bit skint and before I do so just wondered whether anyone else had and has opinions/thoughts? Hope it's OK to ask this here (as a gender critical academic and intermittent poster on here under different user names).

No. Is there any chance that your local library can get it for you on interlibrary loan?

Yes could try that @EmbarrassingAdmissions!

I've just seen a couple of reviews and it looks interesting so I will probably get it through ILL.

Sounds really interesting. I would be keen to hear from anyone who has read it too. Will try my library as well.

Depending on the calibre of the person who wrote it, it could be very interesting or absolutely dreadful. I will look into it.

It does highlight that (aside from the potential enormous elephant in the room) trans and gender critical feminist analysis could give each other interesting perspectives and insights. And we don’t have to agree with people to find value in their thinking.

Yes does look really interesting - I guess I am wary of the idea that femininity is the antidote to masculinity as it ends up being rather essentialist and I'm not sure how we can avoid that trap, even if femininity is detached from female bodies. I don't think that femininity is necessarily 'better' in every respect and perhaps we should be focusing on traits and behaviours rather than gender. But that might not be remotely what the author is arguing. I am going to try to get hold of it.

You can read excerpts here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/future-is-feminine-9781350149793

It's pretty much unreadable for me because I have very low tolerance for gender studies speak, but an academic would be better at navigating the syntax probably.

Does the book pre-suppose an objective understanding of the words “masculinity” and “femininity”, I wonder? It sounds to me as if it simply re-asserts tired old cliches.

@ditalini

You can read excerpts here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/future-is-feminine-9781350149793

It's pretty much unreadable for me because I have very low tolerance for gender studies speak, but an academic would be better at navigating the syntax probably.

Thank you for posting those extracts.

No. I can't read anything that badly written for anything but work. Attempting that has made me appreciate all over again just what an excellent writer Helen Joyce is.

@FrancescaContini

Does the book pre-suppose an objective understanding of the words “masculinity” and “femininity”, I wonder? It sounds to me as if it simply re-asserts tired old cliches.

It appears to be a rehash of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus

I don't think "masculine" and "feminine" have any worthwhile objectivity beyond physical appearance and the adoption of certain styles. Everything else is just personality.

The précis makes it sound utter tripe.

Oh and that cover- if I wanted an image of femininity I'd pick, oh I don't know a Laura Ashley milkmaid or a John Singer Sergent beauty?

@ditalini

You can read excerpts here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/future-is-feminine-9781350149793

It's pretty much unreadable for me because I have very low tolerance for gender studies speak, but an academic would be better at navigating the syntax probably.

One of the subheadings is:

Do Androids have Castration Anxieties?

😆😳 wtf is this about?

Actually I couldn’t care what the answer is..

its a reference to the book "do androids dream of electric sheep" i think, with the castration anxieties part being about sigmund freud's theories on castration (i assume but am probably right)