Bad Feminist Review

Roxanne Gay’s novel, Bad Feminist, is a collection of essays that address an incredible incite on not only feminism, but also intersectionality in the United States. This is not just another analytical book about how the male species suck and women rule, but rather her own experience of being a woman in our society. Gay dives into her own experiences with feminism and intersectionality throughout her life as not only a woman, but also a woman of color in her collection of essays. She uses humor, irony, pop culture references, empathy, compassion, you name it. Gay’s personality shines through these essays, with a voice that is both relatable and refreshing. She embraces the ‘Bad Feminist’ label given to her and rolls with it, as she talks about herself, gender and sexuality, race and entertainment, politics, gender, and race, and concludes with herself once again. She opens the book with an introduction on feminism, and states, “The cultural climate is shifting, particularly for women as we contend with the retrenchment of reproductive freedom, the persistence of rape culture, and the flawed if not damaging representations of women we’re consuming in music, movies, and literature,” (Gay ix). She dives into how the media depicts women in such a negative manner, rarely getting the attention or opportunities to matter. In her first chapter, she talks about online dating, to who is depicted in the media, to her experiences as an adviser of the black student association. She touches on issues people get too afraid to bring light to, which is the only way we will be able to fix the inherent issues within our society. She talks about how white men become defensive after pointing out their inherent privilege. Those with privilege should understand and acknowledge that they have privilege, according to Gay. They should be aware of their social, political, and economical privileges, whilst also realizing that there are people who are different from them and have experienced something they will never be able to understand. Gay also brings light to what it means to be human. In her essay, Not Here to Make Friends, she talks about as a child; she was seen as mean and aggressive for speaking what is on her mind. “[She] was being honest (admittedly, without tact), and [she] was being human. It is either a blessing or a curse that those are rarely likeable qualities in a woman,” (Gay 84). It is understood in our society that when a girl is unlikeable, she is the problem. In the media, women will declare, “I’m not here to make friends,” in order to establish that they are only here to do what they need to do in order to win whatever award, man, or exposure they need to give them however much fame they want. They are freeing themselves from the chains of society and likeability, and there is nothing wrong with that.

You do not have to be a feminist to read this book. In fact, everyone should read this book,  because it is a modern collection of essays written by a woman that touches on issues people are too afraid to talk about, with a sense of humor and intimacy. The book is thought provoking and addresses a story of identity, coming from a woman of color in our society today. This book can give insight on what it means to be a human, a woman, and a person of color in our society today.