Beauvoir and The Second Sex

In a compelling chronicle of her search to understand Beauvoir''s philosophy in The Second Sex, Margaret A. Simons offers a unique perspective on Beauvoir''s wide-ranging contribution to twentieth-century thought. She details the discovery of the origins of Beauvoir''s existential philosophy in her handwritten diary from 1927; uncovers evidence of the sexist exclusion of Beauvoir from the philosophical canon; reveals evidence that the African-American writer Richard Wright provided Beauvoir with the theoretical model of oppression that she used in The Second Sex; shows the influence of The Second Sex in transforming Sartre''s philosophy and in laying the theoretical foundations of radical feminism; and addresses feminist issues of racism, motherhood, and lesbian identity.

Simons also draws on her experience as a Women''s Liberation organizer as she witnessed how women used The Second Sex in defining the foundations of radical feminism. Bringing together her work as both activist and scholar, Simons offers a highly original contribution to the renaissance of Beauvoir scholarship.