Reviews for American Presidents: Farewill Messages to the Nation

The average rating for American Presidents: Farewill Messages to the Nation based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-02-14 00:00:00 Mark Cubitt I feel like Gilman's point in this book was to inspire women to apply their strengths and feminine attributes to heal their communities and thereby the world. However, her views and her approach are skewed. The biggest problem is that while she proclaims the strength of the home, she takes it to pieces and tries to debunk most of all that is good about it. It's like she only wants to use the home only for the purpose of rest and then to go out into the world again. But if there is no one at home to cultivate those feelings that provide rest, then home is not really home. It's not the same to go to your dorm room to rest as it is to go home for the Thanksgiving weekend to have Mom take care of you and welcome you with open arms. It requires the family bonds, the selfish service by both father and mother; it includes the memories and the established ties that are forged through trial, error, and sanctification. This is what home is.

Review # 2 was written on 2016-08-28 00:00:00 Johnathan Wagner Old SDMB recommendation - got it via ILL from IU Indianapolis. Written in 1903 - Gilman considers the domestic situation of most women to be the the single worst thing to have happened to human society since Cain & Abel. Women's skills - child care & to a lesser extent, food prep - are not exposed to the same developmental process as other industries, where specialization and competition lead to progress. Therefore the average woman performs them poorly. Women who are not challenged to grow and expand their skills are a drag on society. The stereotype of women changing their mind comes from their daily exposure to multitasking. And so on and so forth. Gilman comes off very sanctimonious (in a secular way) and very dismissive of "primitive societies" (i.e. non-European). Her black and white views of society and class made for frustrating reading at times. However, she has some very interesting turns of phrase, and some of what she has predicted has come to pass. Overall, this book is a fascinating look at women's place in society and some radical approaches towards solving what Gilman considers as problems.