Existentialism In The Second Sex

Phenomenological existentialism and feminism connect with each other in many different ways. There are many themes within existentialism that can be directly applied to the themes of feminism, and that ultimately explain why feminism has been so prevalent throughout recent history. Simone De Beauvoir, in The Second Sex, describes many themes in existentialism and confronts them using a feminist perspective. Iris Marion Young, in On Female Body Experience, seeks to fill the gap between feminist theory and existentialist views, and explain why women and men exist together but separately. By comparing these two works side by side, a strong point of interaction between feminism and existentialism can be seen, and the reason for men’s feeling of
Both Young and Beauvoir play on this theme, describing immanence as state or domain assigned to women. Transcendence, the act of directing oneself towards new projects to reach the aspired end goal, is designated towards men. Beauvoir considers this immanence forced upon women as a constant imprisonment. She states, “Women do not escape the traditional feminine world; neither society nor their husbands give them the help needed to become, in concrete terms, the equals of men” (Simone De Beauvoir, The Second Sex, pg. 814). Young in turn, explains that because women are not given the freedom that men are, they feel restricted and confined, both internally and externally. She finds that women do not open up their bodies as much as men do in their
In this way, it is made to seem like a woman is always dependent on a man, or “the other,” more able sex. However, Young explains that men recognize women’s dependence on them, and use it to their advantage. She states, “In this objectifying self-reflection women serve as a material both on which to stand out and to build, and women likewise serve as a primary object reflecting himself, his mirror” (Young 128). In addition to this, Beauvoir says that men see women as a sexual partner, but not as an independent being. Her being completes a man, but without a man she is not complete. In this way, a woman feels like she is worth less than a man.
Throughout the themes in phenomenological existentialism, Beauvoir and Young both show why women have been treated as the less valuable sex. These concepts constantly interact with each other on many levels, and both authors believe that gender roles assigned by society are to blame. Through the analysis of both documents, we are able to more clearly understand why the relationship between men and women is the way it is, and how challenging it is for women to achieve liberation from the immanence they are placed in by men and society as a