The Feminine Mystique by Friedan, Betty - 1963

New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 1963. Third Printing. Fine/Near Fine. 1963 [but later]. First edition, third printing. Signed by the author on the front free endpaper, inscribed to a former owner. Bound in publisher's full black cloth lettered in gilt on the spine. Previous owner inkless emboss to title page, else Fine, in a Near Fine un-clipped dust jacket with light rubbing, light sunning to the spine and light shelf wear. A lovely copy. Fifteen years after graduating from Smith College, Friedan was tasked with surveying her fellow all-female alumni. Curiously, she found that despite having children and enjoying material comforts, many of the women she spoke to were unhappy in their role as housewives. She coined the phrase "feminine mystique" to highlight the prevalent assumption that a "feminine" woman would be completely fulfilled by domestic life and not seek anything more, such as education, work, or even have political opinions. Shining a floodlight on women's previously-hidden problems, Friedan takes aim at society's structural sexism and urges women to find fulfillment outside of the domestic realm that engages their full mental capacity. The Feminine Mystique is credited with sparking the second wave of feminism in the United States, and is considered one of the most influential nonfiction books of the 20th century.