WOMEN SHOULD RULE

Myers, D. (2008) Why women should rule the world New York: HarperCollins Publishers

Dee Dee Myers was the first female press secretary in the United States. Her book title is a bit misleading. Women” ruling “connotes a dictatorship and authoritarian state. She is arguing for more women involved in co-governance with men in liberal and social democracies.

Additionally, she begins with the standard conventional wisdom up to the early 70’s, that men are different from women and they are superior. In those days, numerous lists were shown that the best people in most positions were men. The counter argument was that women could do much better if they have the opportunity.

After this came social androgyny and unisexualism. The brain was basically a blank slate and female and male behavior were socially learned. However, data from transgender and gays and bi’s along with fMRI information suggested otherwise. Thus social androgyny still works at the macro level through laws that bring the two sexes together as peers, but the micro-level there are differences.

The new argument is that given a chance women have made profound increases in the work world, but it is still a long slog. Ms. Meyers is arguing that the sexes are equal, but in the work world, women and men have similar roles to play, but will probably carry them out differently.

She draws upon evolutionary psychology, some anthropology, and a number of scenarios of women in democracies especially the USA. Stratification is generally based upon class (money) status (prestige) and power (social dominance.) However, beneath this is

physical dominance and males generally prevail there. Evolutionary psychology indicates that males are rutish. That is a nice word for lack of empathy, conflict, exploitation of others, and meanness. Crime is pretty much a male thing. War is too. Females to survive had to be coy. That means manipulative, indirect, and exploitive. To this wing of psychology, now prevalent, humans are bad, but can be “nudged” into goodness.

She draws heavily from The Female Brain a book that leaves out much about culture and social class relative to women, but is still a major contribution. Myers argument has to compete with religious fundamentalists of all stripes that God gave humans choice and women screwed it up. Thus women are help mates, because at the core of existence they are emotional ones who allowed evil forces to prevail. Thus, the core of culture is “secondness” for women.

The other is biological reductionism that maintains that culture, social class and related demographics have little to do with females and males.

The remaining portions of the book have to do with her experiences with America in the 21st century. She draws upon a number of women who have succeeded in politics and to a lesser extent business.

Critical mass means that when women hit a certain threshold there won’t be questions about why the female is the boss. She just is and that is the way it has always been.

My own bias is toward her arguments having worked in a setting where at least 40% of the workforce is women and the boss is a female. However, this reviewer does not want to down play helpmate homemakers who like their role.

Book is recommended.

Prof Joel Snell

Kirkwood College