by Cynthia Enloe
University of California Press
9/19/2023, paperback
SKU: 9780520397675
Renowned scholar-activist Cynthia Enloe lays out the lessons that women activists have drawn from their immediate experiences of war.
Twelve Feminist Lessons of War draws on firsthand experiences of war from women in places as diverse as Ukraine, Myanmar, Somalia, Vietnam, Rwanda, Algeria, Syria, and Northern Ireland to show how women's wars are not men's wars. With her engaging trademark style, Cynthia Enloe demonstrates how patriarchy and militarism have embedded themselves in our institutions and our personal lives.
Enloe reveals how the social and political influences that shape war--from military recruitment and economic collapse to sexual assault and reproductive rights (and their denial)--are deeply gendered and pervade women's lives before, during, and in the aftermath of war. Her razor-sharp analysis, at once accessible and provocative, highlights how women's emotional and physical labor is used to support government policies and how women's rights activists--against all odds--remain committed in the midst of armed violence. Twelve Feminist Lessons of War is the gritty and grounded book we need to understand what is happening to our world.
Reviews:
"There is no one comparable to Cynthia Enloe when it comes to writing from the heart as she delves into the everyday survival of women affected by war. And no one covers this subject in the inimitable way that she does, documenting victimization that women experience while also making space for enduring forms of resistance." -- Marsha Henry, Associate Professor, Department of Gender Studies, London School of Economics and Political Science
"This is a book that is urgent and necessary for any and all of us concerned about the state of the world and the deep-rooted reasons that have led us here." - -Sunny Singh, author
"With incredible historical breadth and depth of analysis, Cynthia Enloe takes us on a worldwide exploration of the gendered dynamics of militarization and the gendered causes and consequences of war. From Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Nicaragua to Fiji, Israel, and Turkey, Enloe draws from decades of research, her constant feminist curiosity, and powerful clarity and engaging writing to investigate issues from the wielding of masculinities to ensure boys and men keep joining the military, to asking searing feminist questions about the causes and consequences of sexual violence during conflict. As this inspirational book powerfully argues, staying curious about women's (and men's) lives means we are more realistic about war and the causes of war. And as Enloe concludes, feminist lessons are for everyone and 'kindling to fuel a fire of thinking.'" -- Daniel Conway, Reader in Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster
About the Author:
Cynthia Enloe is Research Professor at Clark University and author of fifteen books, including Bananas, Beaches and Bases: Making Feminist Sense of International Politics. In 2018, Enloe's name was installed on the Gender Justice Legacy Wall at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.