I actually loved the structure, confusing multiple POV’s, and meta-fictional aspects of the novel. Really pulled me in to the fractured universes Russ explores
Thank you for your informative review of a book I've been meaning to read. Another sci-fi author who explored feminist themes was James Tipree, Jr., the pseudonym for Alice Sheldon. I recommend her book of short stories titled "Her Smoke Rose Up Forever."
Was waiting for this video - you intrigued me mentioning it in your wrap-up! I have to say, it sounds absolutely fantastic, in the way that so few books being published in the SFF world these days are working on being more feminism-friendly and yet we're still supremely lacking in books that proudly and straightforwardly proclaim feminism at the forefront. I'm off on the hunt for a copy of this book!
+TheReadingOutlaw Yes, I'd love to see more books like The Female Man in modern day SFF. Russ really tackled her topic head on. I think most of the feminist-friendly SFF I've read published today are "show not tell" about feminism. They focus on an equal number of men and women in the story, or women with jobs that are stereotypically male. But characters don't have explicit conversations about feminism or the sexism they suffer under. It feels like Russ built a story around characters having those conversations, thinking about what was wrong with their lives. So it's very obvious and has a very outspoken feel to it!
Ah yeah, it definitely has complex writing! I feel like more older sci fi I've read has experimental writing, and not as much modern sci fi does that. The Female Man is really interesting to compare to the few other contemporary SF novels I've read that address gender inequality. I hope you like it!
I think the reason for her unusual and confusing style of writing stems from her wish to establish sort of a "feminine writing" that is nothing like classic male way of writing. She urges other women writers to create their own discourse, yet it is quite challenging for readers to absorb this style. but other than that it is a great one.
+Şeyma Erzincanlı That's really interesting! I'm very much looking forward to read more of Russ's commentary and writing, and how she does things. The Female Man brought up a lot of questions for me about why she made certain decisions in that book, including the writing style.
I really needed to hear someone else’s opinion after reading this. I agree with you. Though, the closing lines about “if you don’t understand this, than you know you’re free (paraphrasing). I felt somethings were confusing for me, and I guess this helped me to realise things have changed. it is alarming how relevant the whole thing feels. Thanks for the video! I’d recommend the book too x
amazing book, I've been looking for it in spanish, and it was imposible until I found it and got it. I think it's the book I lend the most of all the books I have
The video is nice. I am reading the novel and it is really fantastic. The concept of alternate versions of a single person is fascinating. This is also present in David Gerrold's THE MAN WHO FOLDED HIMSELF.
Wow. Wasn't sure anyone but me had read this book! I loved the idea of the book, loved parts of it, but overall I got the feeling she dashed off her first pass and sent it to the printers in a hurry. Wish she had gone through a few more drafts to make it come together better. Towards the end I couldn't quite follow what was happening. All the sections where the woman from "Whileaway" interacts with men form our own world are hilarious. I love how she wasn't offended by sexism, just puzzled and confused and maybe felt a little sorry for the men who are acting like five year olds. Very glad you posted this. Good job!
+santos D Yes, the ending of The Female Man was very confusing! I felt like I could eventually absorb what was going on, up to a certain point, but I'm still fuzzy about the final part and the fourth woman Jael (what was up with her world?!). I would love to know if this is a style Russ used for any of her other work, or if there's something experimental she was trying in The Female Man. If nothing else, it made the book a unique experience! Perhaps feeling just as confused and frustrated as the women? Janet's parts were the best! There's the one male/female sex scene near the end and her reaction, ("Oh, that's all it is?") made me laugh out loud! She shone a light on how ridiculous some things are. Thank you for watching! It is so good to hear from someone who's read the book!
+Kalanadi Hey hey. I think you're giving Russ more credit than I would regarding the structure. Unlike in Dhalgren, I don't think the confusing style and structure are intentional, but rather a result of too much enthusiasm and not enough patience. I still really like the book, I like Sci Fi from that time period a lot. A lot of people back then had a lot to say about society, human relations etc. Here's a few others in that type of category: Armed Camps, Kit Reed - 1969 (very interesting anti-war dystopian story) Cabu, John Robert Russell - 1974 (not as moving, but interesting idea) Growing up in tier 3000, Felix C Gotschalk - 1975 (generation gap gone mad) Star Maker, Olaf Stapledon - 1939 (beautiful, moving book, I thought) Pigworld, Charles W. Runyon - 1971 (an absolutely terrible book in every way, except in the passionate, opinionated, self righteous attitude of the writer. It was torture to read, but interesting as a sample of the period) Another one I really liked, but quite different form all the above was: Fledgeling, Octavia Butler - 2005 The most unique, intelligent and moving rendition of vampires I've ever read (and I hate Vampire books!)
+santos D I need to read something by Olaf Stapledon! His name keeps popping up everywhere for me at the moment. I should give Fledgeling another try. I actually skipped it because I am very, very over vampires, but you never know ... I could like it too :-)
+Kalanadi I'd skip The First and Last Men" by Stapledon. It feels like a very wordy first try at what he actually achieved in Star Maker. I personally liked Starmaker a lot.... but I can see how some people might not, it reads more like a Sci Fi version of Cosmos than a novel. As for Fledgeling... I can't stand Ann Rice and the Twilight type stuff. This is nothing like it. Butler has created a Sci Fi version of vampires and deliberately turns all the cliches around. The "Ina" are a parasitic subspecies of humans that have a pretty hard time surviving and become co-dependent on the humans they feed on. Very creative. Also, she uses the Vampire format to deal with bigotry, relationships, vigilante death squads out to exterminate the Ina... all sorts of social and political issues. Butler is an interesting lady.
Good review! I read that in college yea 15 years ago and your review of it is very similar to what I remember of my own experience and thought. Thanks!
This book is on my list of classic SF for the year and I'm so glad you reviewed it. I'll come back when I've finished and try to have a little conversation with you about it. I was going to wait to order it when I got home, but at this point, it looks like I can't get a copy in the US for under $13 (with shipping), and it's the same on Book Depository so... yeah. Looking forward to getting my brain broken. I really want to do an individual review of Venus Plus X which also broke my brain but I'm a bit overwhelmed about how to talk about it without spoiling it. :/
+tarabyt3 Wow! I think there are a lot of difficulties getting the rights to reprint Joanna Russ's works. It seems like there's a struggle with her estate or something. Is there not an ebook of The Female Man? That's too bad if there isn't. I'd love to know what you think of it! And I really need to get hold of Venus Plus X!
There might be an ebook somewhere... I'll have to look into it. :) I hope you get a chance to read V+X. I sincerely wonder what you'd think of it. Whether you'd enjoy it or not. If you'd see it differently.
Ahh, I want to read this book so bad! I've been interested in reading another book by her, called How to Suppress Women's Writing, for a long while, but I haven't gotten around to it ... it wasn't until Booktube that I realized she had written more books than that :) anyway, thank you for the review (it was absolutely stellar) and also for the heads up about the narrative structure!
I first heard about Russ because of How to Suppress Women's Writing too! I really want to read that now. I do think that other than The Female Man, she's more known for her non-fiction criticism than her novels. I'm not surprised because this book was so obviously a feminist critique wrapped in a story!
@@Kalanadi How to Suppress Women's Writing is a masterpiece & continues to be an evergreen. She does have some reductive views about male homosexuality which read really badly & those opinions crop up more in her fiction. Regardless of that she remains an amazing gift to SF, feminist thought & writing in general. There was a passage in Female Man about love which struck me as a masterclass.
Hola, escribo desde México. Es magnífico que hagas una reseña del "Hombre Hembra", busqué alguna en español antes de leer el libro, pero solo encontre reseñas escritas. He leido el libro y me encantó, Johanna Russ se ha vuelto de mis escritoras favoritas, no he encontrado más libros en español, pero tengo algunos cuentos en recopilaciones, algunas de Ciencia Ficción feminista y otras más genéricas. Sí, es algo confuso el libro, pero eso me encanta, las interrupciones de Johanna (la escritora) me hicieron sentir dentro del libro, me hizo parte de la historia y pude comprender un poco más lo que siente una mujer en este sistema patriarcal. Veré más de tus videos, parece que muchos de ellos son sobre escritoras. Y ya que estamos en aquí, me gustaría que hicieras una reseña sobre el trabajo de Octavia E. Butler, es muy, muy, muy dificil encontrar algo de ella en español. Bueno muchas gracias, un gran abrazo.
Hello! Thanks for your lovely comment, which I am a little astonished I could still read (it has been a long time since my Spanish lessons in university! I apologize that I'm not translating my own comment). It's awesome to find someone else who's discovered Joanna Russ and loves her work. I'm sad to say I still haven't read more books by her since The Female Man. So many of her books are out of print. It's hard to find them! I will read at least 2 books by Octavia Butler by the end of 2016, so I hope to review them soon!
Maravilloso, esperaré con ansias la reseña sobre Butler. Sobre Joanna Russ, tal vez puedas encontrar estas compilaciónes donde ella participa: Green, Jen, and Lefanu, Sarah. Despatches from the fronties of the female mind. The Women's Press Ltd., 1985. Sargent, Pamela. Women of Wonder. Random House, Inc., 1974. Yo tengo las ediciones españolas de estos libros y otros más donde aparece Johanna, pero son coompilaciones hechas en España y en Argentina. Espero te sirva de algo esta información, y muchas gracias por leerme y regalar un poco de tu tiempo para responder. Gracias... totales.
Goly gosh this sounds like such an interesting book. I've never heard of anything like this before. I find it really interesting the links you can pull to our so called modern world.
+Victoria Harris (ShelfVictoria) I don't think I can think of a book like it either, at least not in science fiction! It was really interesting. The structure made it hard to read, but I can see why The Female Man is still such a classic.
Oooh, this one sounds great. I loved books that have a feminist overtone so this one is on my immediate TBR now. Wonderful review, as always. You're always a joy to watch =)
