The Myth of Male Power

Rating:
Summary: Overrated, unfair, and inaccurate
Review: As stated below, Farrell distorts the case of Laurie Dann and provides bizarre citations to back up his (false) claim that she was a serial killer of men. There are other bizarre claims in this book, such as the one that women who wear lipstick and perfume to the office are signaling that they are "traditional" women who are not serious about work. The book is not even-handed, and any man who thinks it is fair to women should try having an actual conversation with an actual woman some time. Finally, the book is rife with poor reasoning, anecdotal "evidence", and just plain bad writing. That Farrell's prose is considered powerful and persuasive by so many is baffling to me.

Rating:
Summary: Men Must Read This Book. Things Are Not What They Seem.
Review: Your jaw will drop at how many of these issues ring true already. This book is a timeless resource for men and women who can look at the broader picture of male/female issues. Men, we do need to draw the line. Arm yourself with insight.

Rating:
Summary: Manipulated information and bizarre comparisons.
Review: Aside from deliberate distortions of well documented facts such as the case of Laurie Dann, I find it impossible to take seriously or have any respect for the opinion of a man who claims to see the genders as equal, yet feels no shame in comparing an unemployed man to a woman who has been raped. It obviously does not occur to him to compare an unemployed man to an unemployed woman, nor does he recognize the significance of rape or that this lack of recognition disproves his point.

Rating:
Summary: Eye-opening, or actually, eye-popping
Review: Quite simply what Warren Farrell is saying here is that, effectively speaking, men are slaves, have been slaves, and will continue to be slaves to feminine interests until they are disposed of (i.e., until they drop dead). He begins with the fact that our culture programs men to die to protect the interests of women (literally in wars and in high-risk jobs, and in dying younger than women) and ends with the fact that the rules of sexual politics allow women to pursue their interests unimpeded while men risk ending up in jail for sexual harassment or rape for pursuing theirs. He shows that a double standard of expectation exists throughout the society, a double standard that consistently protects women and puts men in harm's way. He demonstrates that this situation exists because women have cleverly hoodwinked men into doing their bidding while all the while crying that they are the ones being discriminated against.

Quite frankly, in reading this, one is led to believe that men are "the disposable sex" because women really are superior.

But wait. There is hope. What men really need to do is discard the macho notion they makes them put women on pedestals as innocent creatures who desperately need protection. Talk about being sold a bill of goods! Men need to realize that in the modern social and political environment they have no advantage over women. On the contrary. Their superior size and aggressiveness amounts to less than nothing. Because women are socially and politically more sophisticated than men, men are actually at a disadvantage and need to put more energy into protecting their right to life, liberty, health, love and happiness than women do. Men haven't, and that's why we have a smaller portion of the real goodies of life, goodies we have exchanged for a macho scroll or the tin badge of being The Protector and the One Who Takes the Risks. We need to realize that in order to survive in a post-war world, we need to work a lot harder than we have been working. We need to understand that male superiority really is an illusion, a kind of sly of hand women have put over on men to keep us subjugated. What this book is saying is that women have the real power and men are just self-deluded figureheads.

Thus spake Warren Farrell. Well, his book is a fine example to the contrary, proving (I hope) that men are not about to take all this lying down. Lot's daughters got us drunk and raped us? I don't think so.

I've always assumed that the sexes are equal. The real truth, though, is that the sexes may not be equal at all. It really depends on the environment. If women really are superior to men in terms of social and political skills, skills that are now, with the imminent death of the war system, very much in the ascendency, then men are in trouble. We need to use our brains instead of our brawn. In particular we need to realize that women are masters of manipulation because during the long millennia of the tribal wars, when physical strength held sway, they had to be to get their way. The savannah is long gone, and in the glass and concrete jungle that is our home, subtle manipulation counts for a lot more than physical force.

I missed this book when it came out in 1993. From the title, The Myth of Male Power, I thought it was another feminist put down of men, and I didn't feel like reading another one. I should have read the subtitle, Why Men Are the Disposable Sex. Now I just feel exhausted thinking about all the people who ought to read this refreshing polemic.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting yet fightening
Review: I was astonished to read this book to find out how men feel on the subject of the different sexes. I found the book interesting but it can hardly be based on fact. Any author that compares an unemployed man to a raped woman needs to have had the violent experience. I was disturbed but also inclined to read on if only to see what other outlandish statements he would make. I read the book together with my husband and he had a little different reaction than me. While he open my eyes as to what the author was trying to say he also shared some of my opinions on the unresearched claims made by Mr. Farrell. Although I would say it was interesting reading I would hope no one took it as a factual account of the society we live in today.

Rating:
Summary: The single best "men's lib" book!
Review: If Farrell is (as he's been described) the Betty Friedan of the men's movement, this is his equivalent of the The Feminine Mystique. However, it's much better researched and far less polemical.

From on-the-job deaths, to violent crime, to suicide, to lower concern about their health and the subsequent lower life expectancy, the air-tight conclusion that it's MEN who are the disposable sex and the second-class citizens makes about 99% of feminist theory about what men do to women look like a huge projection of what women in actuality are doing to men. Even if the non-critical material on, say, Anita Hill is starting to look a bit dated, no one will come away from reading this book without a vastly changed outlook on society and the behaviors and motivations of the people around them. If you haven't read it, you don't know what the men's movement is about.

Rating:
Summary: A must read--for men and women
Review: This book rocks my world. When I read it, I was at once excited to the point where and couldn't sleep and touched to point of crying. Finally, an author who not only has touched on many realities faced by men, but expresses ideas clearly and articulately with gobs of statistics and examples.

This book should be read by every male and female who cares about the subject of gender relations. Several male friends of mine have read it, with similar reactions to mine. None of my female friends, however, have taken the time. It's a shame, but maybe someday soon they will get around to it. What Farrell does so well in this book it talk about both men and women, without resorting to an "us vs. them" attitude.

WITHOUT A DOUBT, ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ!

Rating:
Summary: Thank you, Mr. Farrell
Review: The book I've been waiting for since the day I could read.

Read it on the Subway, in class, at home, at work, and everywhere found myself grinning, crying or sometimes even LAUGHING with recognition and a sense of finding a voice that echoes my own heart.

Thank you, Mr. Farrell

Rating:
Summary: Review by leader in Men's Movement
Review: The Myth of Male Power, by author and gender-reconciliation champion, Dr. Warren Farrell, is truly a landmark work. Over the course of the next century it will come to be seen for what it is: a bold and inexorable challenge to American society to rethink from its deepest foundations the present and past attitudes and approaches towards gender equality - an approach that has been dominated by victim feminism. The Myth of Male Power confronts the politically correct myths that undermine true equality and gender reconciliation. Given the current climate of politically correct misandry and the feminist hegemony of gender discourse, it takes tremendous courage to challenge the orthodoxy and establishment. Both Dr. Farrell and his publisher, Simon & Schuster, deserve the highest kudos for their willingness to face the fire on this one.

One thing that makes The Myth of Male Power so fair-minded and authentic is that it affirms the legitimate concerns of women. Because of this, no female reader need fear that it is simply the flip side of feminism (ie: an ideology that preaches that society is actually not male-dominated and patriarchal, but female dominated and matriarchal, and that all problems are due to women with men its primary victims). This is important because it helps fair-minded men and women to see that Dr. Farrell is not seeking to replace feminism with masculism, or engage in "backlash". Indeed it demonstrates his absolute and unwavering commitment to real gender equality and fairness. At the same time, Dr. Farrell does not limit the discussion of gender to women's issues.

The Myth of Male Power explains how almost all societies in general (but American society in particular) are both matriarchal and patriarchal, how men's and women's roles provide unique benefits and limitations on each gender. Both men and women may be seen to be privileged and disadvantaged, each in different ways. Of course, the focus of the book, as the title suggests, is on the male role. This is done not to slight women's issues, but rather to supplement the ever-growing body of literature and research on gender issues which tends to frame the problems from an essentially female perspective.

Well researched, meticulously documented, and richly footnoted, The Myth of Male Power is sure to appeal to the intelligent reader, as well as to scholars who require the references to verify for themselves that no foul play is underfoot. Using a multi-modal approach, Dr. Farrell combines hard statistics, charts, and data tables, with cartoons, humor, and the moving personal anecdotes of individual men and women.

Despite its fair-minded and rigorously documented approach, it does take courage to read the book. Male readers will no longer be able to console themselves (if ever they did) with the myth that they have all the power and privilege in society. Female readers may feel threatened by the challenge to claim their power and its attendant requirement of authenticity and personal responsibility, rather than continuing to hide behind the apron strings of victim feminism.

Despite the strengths of The Myth of Male Power there will always be detractors to Dr. Warren Farrell's work. Why? There are reasons that the current climate of feminist misandry exists. A lot of men have a deep psychological investment in the code of chivalry - protecting women against all threats (real or imagined). Such men may misconstrue Dr. Farrell's challenge as an attack on women. (This is ironic given Farrell's understanding of women's issues, and credentials as the only man ever to have been elected three times to the board of directors of N.O.W. in New York city.) Similarly, a lot of women have a deep psychological investment in feminism and its cozy reassurance that women are always victims, never needing to feel responsible for any of the problems in their lives. Such men and women may find that the challenge of The Myth of Male Power is a threat to them and they may object vociferously. Fortunately, however, such voices are beginning to face some opposition. In my own years of experience as a leader in the movement for men's rights and the establishment of real gender equality, I have seen that men and women alike are now beginning to see through the feminist myths of male power and privilege. Many people are beginning to tire of hearing that women are victims and men oppressors. While this is a good start, the process of correcting society's anti-male biases is in its infancy. Dr. Farrell's book will be seen to have played a crucial role in helping us move towards real equality, and mutual love and respect between the sexes.

After reading this book, some readers (both men and women) may feel inspired to help take action to head off American society's headlong flight towards misandry, masculophobia, and the destruction of fatherhood and the American family. Such readers may consider joining or making a donation to gender-egalitarian organizations that work towards addressing the sex-discrimination faced by men and boys in our society (thus harming everyone, including women). For such readers, the National Coalition of Free Men (on whose Board of Advisors Dr. Farrell sits) offers a unique spring-board for social activism. NCFM is unique in that it is a generalist men's rights organization, not focussing only on one specific men's issue (such as father's rights, men's health, domestic violence, etc.), and because NCFM, founded in 1977, is a grassroots organizations with chapters, membership, and group meetings across the country. To learn more about the National Coalition of Free Men, please visit our website. For readers interested solely in Fathers' Rights, the National Congress for Fathers and Children is an excellent organization. Although women are welcome in these organizations, female readers may prefer organizations aimed primarily at women, like the Women's Freedom Network. The Myth of Male Power includes an appendix listing many other outstanding organizations committed to true gender equality and fairness.

With best wishes for a good read!

Pradeep Ramanathan, Executive Vice-President, National Coalition of Free Men

Rating:
Summary: Restores male dignity
Review: This book exposes an all-out cultural jihad against men perpetuated by the feminists and their stooges. If you had enough of this war, join men who are not afraid to stand up to it - National Coalition of Free Men.