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feminine mystique  

Definition

  • Feminine mystique, a term coined by feminist Betty Friedan in her 1963 book The Feminine Mystique, is the notion that, post-World War II, mainstream American society advocated that white, middle-class women could and should only find fulfillment in life through housework, marriage, sexual passivity, and childrearing. Part of the ideology of the feminine mystique was that truly feminine women did not want higher education, careers, or a political voice. [Source: Encyclopedia of Gender and Society; Feminine Mystique]

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https://concepts.sagepub.com/social-science/concept/feminine_mystique

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