RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Woman Hating (1974) by Andrea Dworkin; E.P. Dutton or Plume. "To see where we are going we must understand where we have been. Woman Hating is a much needed and long overdue addition toward that understanding." In this book, Andrea Dworkin points out the historical misogyny of society. She gives her powerful analyses of patriarchal religions, the fairy tales' various representations of women, pornography (such as the Story of O and more), women's "Herstory" of having suffered persecutions and cases of gynocide such as the witch-hunt in medieval Europe and Chinese footbinding. Dworkin also reveals what is at the root of women's oppression: "gender." This book is a call for the utter demise of male dominance. "A bold and visionary book... Her ideas are poweful"... "This is a particularly important book on matters of considerable significance." Available at Adall
Life and Death: Unapologetic Writings on the Continuing War Against Women (1997) by Andrea Dworkin; Free Press. Gathers essays published between 1987 and 1995 in which the author comments on society's ongoing and tacit approval of aggression against women. Includes some of Andrea Dworkin's best writings on pornography, prostitution, rape, and battery. This book is an absolute masterpiece! "A collection of her most incisive essays and unpublished speeches, Life and Death makes it clear why Dworkin has found her place in the canon of modern political thought. She begins here with a poignant autobiographical piece... Finally, she guides us back to the core issues at stake in women's lives -- pornography, domestic violence, rape, and prostitution -- and reminds us that even after decades of feminist so-called progress, gender is an ongoing war." Available at Amazon
Dangerous Relationships: Pornography, Misogyny, and Rape (1998) by Diana E.H. Russell; Sage Publications. Diana E. Russell, well-known for her pioneer research on the prevalence of rape and child sexual abuse, the reality of wife rape, the trauma of incestuous abuse, and the misogynistic killing of women (femicide), breaks new ground once again in her analysis of pornography and its relationship with misogyny and rape. In this unflinching and uncompromising volume Russell contends that pornographic relationships are in fact dangerous to women. This book contains more of her analyses and research on pornography, and is a serious call for the society to recognize the harms. Available at Barnes and Noble or Sage
Take Back the Night: Women on Pornography (1980) edited by Laura Lederer; William Morrow & Co, or Quill. The very first feminist anthology against pornography. This book is an important part of the history of the women's movement. Among the contributors are Alice Walker, Gloria Steinem, Andrea Dworkin, Audrey Lorde, Diana Russell, Kathleen Barry, and Susan Brownmiller. Available at Barnes and Noble or Adall
The Sexual Liberals and the Attack on Feminism (1990) edited by Dorchen Leidholdt and Janice G. Raymond; The Athene series, Pergamon Press. This book documents a concerted assault on the goals, principles and achievements of the women's movement. It shows how radical feminists have been unfairly criticized and misrepresented by liberals. Among contributors are Catharine MacKinnon, Twiss Butler, Phyllis Chesler, Evelina Giobbe, Mary Daly, Andrea Dworkin, Susan Cole, and Sheila Jeffreys. Available at Barnes and Noble or Adall
The Price We Pay: The Case Against Racist Speech, Hate Propaganda, and Pornography (1995) edited by Laura Lederer and Richard Delgado; New York: Hill & Wang. A book that refuses to separate the issue of misogynist pornography from racism, Klan propaganda, anti-semitism or homophobia. A book which debates on the subject of hate speech and the First Amendment. Among the contributors are Wendy Stock, Ann Simonton, Evelina Giobbe, Andrea Dworkin, John Stoltenberg, and Dorchen Leidholdt. Available at Barnes and Noble or Adall
Ordeal (the truth behind "Deep Throat") (1980) by Linda Lovelace, with Mike McGrady; Citadel Press. The auto-biography of Linda Marchiano (a.k.a. "Lovelace"), a young woman who was forced into the sexual slavery of prostitution and pornography. Linda made "Deep Throat" under unbelievable duress. Available at Amazon
Out of Bondage (1986) by Linda Lovelace, with Mike McGrady; Berkley Books. The follow-up to Ordeal. In Out of Bondage, Linda explained how she had to face the public scorn and disbelief of her story, as well as the ghosts of her past. Available at Amazon
Only Words (1993) by Catharine A. MacKinnon; Harvard University Press. "Catharine MacKinnon contends that pornography, sexual harassment, and racial hate are acts of intimidation, subordination, terrorism, and discrimination, and should be legally treated as such. Only Words is an indictment of a legal system at odds with itself, its First Amendment promoting the very inequalities its Fourteenth Amendment is supposed to end." Available at Amazon
Women’s Lives, Men’s Laws (2005) by Catharine A. MacKinnon; Belknap Harvard Press. "In the past 25 years, no one has been more instrumental than Catharine MacKinnon in making equal rights real for women... This collection brings together previously uncollected and unpublished work in the national arena from 1980 to the present, defining her clear, coherent, consistent approach to reframing the law of men on the basis of the lives of women." Contains some of MacKinnon's best essays and anti-pornography writings. Available at Amazon
Are Women Human? And Other International Dialogues (2006) by Catharine A. MacKinnon; Bellknap Harvard. "More than half a century after the "Universal Declaration of Human Rights" defined what a human being is and is entitled to, Catharine MacKinnon asks: are women human yet? If women were regarded as human, would they be sold into sexual slavery worldwide; veiled, silenced and imprisoned in homes; bred, and worked as menials for little or no pay; stoned for sex outside marriage or burned within it; mutilated genitally, impoverished economically, and mired in illiteracy -- all as a matter of course and without effective recourse?... Taking her gendered critique of the state to the international plane, ranging widely intellectually and concretely, she exposes the consequences and significance of the systematic maltreatment of women and its systemic condonation. And she points toward fresh ways -- social, legal and political -- of targeting its toxic orthodoxies." Available at Amazon
AntiClimax: A Feminist Perspective on the Sexual Revolution (1990) by Sheila Jeffreys; Women's Press. AntiClimax is Sheila Jeffreys' compelling critique of the so-called sexual liberation. In it, she explains that the "sexual liberation" is merely another form of male oppression which is directly opposed to women's search for genuine sexual freedom and equality. Available at Amazon or Adall
The Idea of Prostitution (1997) by Sheila Jeffreys; Spinifex Press. "This is thought-provoking, courageous and important scholarly work... essential reading." This work explores the idea of men's entitlement to abuse and profit from the abuse of women in prostitution. It aims to show how this idea is central to male supremacist ideology, and has been bolstered by masculine systems of thought such as sexology, sociology, historiography and queer theory. It asserts that the feminist challenge to this idea has become more difficult in recent times because sexual liberalism, economic individualism and free "choice" ideas have persuaded even some feminists that prostitution should be seen as "just a job like any other". The book argues that it is important to recognise men's abuse of women in prostitution as a variety of male sexual violence and a violation of women's human rights. Available at Amazon
Beauty and Misogyny: Harmful Cultural Practices in the West (2005) by Sheila Jeffreys; Routledge. A radical feminist critique of the beauty industry (breast implants, labiaplasty, etc.). Jeffreys shows that plastic surgery -- for instance -- is no more "empowering" to women than Chinese footbinding was; it is merely another part of the socialization to the pornographized culture. Available at Amazon
The Age of Sex Crime (1987) by Jane Caputi; Women's Press. "This book is a feminist analysis of the sexualized murder of women by men in modern Western society, a subject that is at once frightening and enraging." Available at Amazon or Adall
Men Confront Pornography (1991) edited by Michael S. Kimmel; Meridian Books, or Crown Pub. "25 men take a candid look at how pornography affects their lives, politics, and sexuality." Contains thorough analyses of male consumption of pornography through different men's perspectives. Available at Amazon or Adall
Refusing to Be a Man: Essays on Sex and Justice (1989) by John Stoltenberg; Taylor & Francis, Inc or Routledge or Meridian. "Since its original publication in 1989, Refusing to be a Man has been acclaimed as a classic and widely cited in gender studies literature. In 13 eloquent essays, Stoltenberg articulate the first fully argued liberation theory for men that will also liberate women. He argues that male sexual identity is entirely a political and ethical construction whose advantages grow out of injustice. His thesis is that precisely because masculinity is so constructed, it is possible to refuse it, to act against it and to change." Contains compelling critiques of both heterosexual and homosexual pornography. A fascinating, liberating, and courageous book. Available at Barnes and Noble or Amazon or Amazon UK [International shipping available]
The End of Manhood: Parables on Sex and Selfhood (1993) by John Stoltenberg; UCL Press. "In this practical follow up to Refusing to be a Man, John Stoltenberg uses a combination of case studies, autobiography, checklists and discussion points, to speak directly to men about how the social construction of manhood operates in everyday relationships and to show how these same dynamics drive the behaviour of gangs, race-hate groups, and international imperialism. Readers will find here new perspectives on intimacy, gender, and violence and be pushed to re-examine their ideas of manhood and gender identity generally. Stoltenberg's new introduction sets the book in academic context, summarising the game theory of gender which underlies all his work." Available at Amazon
What Makes Pornography "Sexy"? (1994) by John Stoltenberg; Milkweed Editions. "What makes pornography "sexy" to men? John Stoltenberg devised a unique experiential workshop in which several men are selected at random and each given a photograph from magazines such as Penthouse, Playboy, or Hustler; they are then asked to "do the pose" in the photo... Stoltenberg provides a means for men to confront their perceptions of pornography and its true meaning, and he delivers a vivid activist memoir, filled with original and provocative insights into men's perceptual relationship to pornography. What Makes Pornography "Sexy"? is a provocative look at the dehumanizing impact of pornography." Available at Amazon
Pornography and Sexual Aggression (1984) edited by Neil M. Malamuth and Edward Donnerstein; Academic Press. Prominent social science studies on the effects of pornography viewing. Available at Adall
Pornography: Research Advances and Policy Considerations (1989) edited by Dolf Zillman and Jennings Bryant; Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. More Social Science studies on the effects of pornography. Available at Adall
Pornography: Women, Violence and Civil Liberties (1993) edited by Catherine Itzin; Oxford University Press. Includes a lot of information on the UK pornography industry, and the evidence of the link between pornography and sexual violence. Available at Amazon
Pornified: How Pornography is Damaging our Lives, our Relationships and our Families (2005) by Pamela Paul; Owl Books. Journalist Pamela Paul interviewed more than a hundred people (many of them, pornography users), and conducted a nationwide poll to find out about the effects of pornography on the US society. This book is the result of her investigation. Among her arguments, Pamela Paul explains how porn harms men too. Available at Amazon
Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture (2005) by Ariel Levy; Free Press. A book that shows how many young women have unfortunately internalized the sexism of the society by being "female chauvinist pigs". According to Ariel Levy, a female chauvinist pig is a woman who makes a sex object of another woman and/or of herself. Available at Amazon
Transforming a Rape Culture, Revised Edition (2005) edited by Emilie Buchwald, Pamela R. Fletcher and Martha Roth; Milkweed Editions. This anthology analyses the origins of sexual violence, and asks for nothing less than a fundamental change in basic attitudes about power, gender, race, and sexuality. Among the contributors are Gail Dines, D.A. Clarke, Michael Kimmel, and Andrea Dworkin. Available at Amazon
Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape (1975) by Susan Brownmiller; Fawcett Books. "As powerful and timely now as when it was first published, Against Our Will stands as a unique document of the history of politics, the sociology of rape and the inherent and ingrained inequality of men and women under the law. In lucid, persuasive prose, Brownmiller has created a definitive, devastating work of lasting social importance." Available at Amazon
Female Sexual Slavery (1979) by Kathleen Barry; New York University Press. A landmark study of prostitution and violence against women. Examines the nature and extent of female sexual slavery, exploring the psychological foundations of male dominance and surveys the by-products of a patriarchal society -- pimps, procurers, rapists, enforced marriages, and polygamous arrangements. A major book that documents the oppressive systems of prostitution (including pornography). Available at Adall
The Prostitution of Sexuality (1995) by Kathleen Barry; New York University Press. As a follow-up to Female Sexual Slavery, Kathleen Barry assesses how far we have come since the publication of her first book, and how far we have to go. Shifting her focus from the sexuality of prostitution to the prostitution of sexuality, Barry exposes sexual exploitation, emphasizing the worldwide role of the expanding pornography industry. Available at Adall
In case you encounter any difficulty(ies) in trying to find any of these books, you can try http://used.addall.com/ You can also try Amazon or Amazon UK (International shipping is available from both Amazons -- .com & .co.uk).
For ordering any one of Andrea Dworkin's books, you can also try This Page Here
EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS:
"Hip-hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes" by Byron Hurt. "Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes" provides a riveting examination of manhood, sexism, and homophobia in hip-hop culture. Director Byron Hurt, former star college quarterback, longtime hip-hop fan, and gender violence prevention educator, conceived the documentary as a "loving critique" of a number of disturbing trends in the world of rap music. He pays tribute to hip-hop while challenging the rap music industry to take responsibility for glamorizing destructive, deeply conservative stereotypes of manhood. This documentary was critically acclaimed for its fearless engagement with issues of race, gender violence, and the corporate exploitation of youth culture. Available at Media Education Foundation
"DreamWorlds 3: Desire, Sex & Power in Music Video" by Sut Jhally. Sut Jhally, professor of Communication at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and founder and executive director of the Media Education Foundation (MEF), created this video to present his critique of representations of women in popular culture, music videos and commercial images. Available at Media Education Foundation