Inferior
Author: Angela Saini
Published by: Harper Collins
Pages: 280
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★
Published by: Harper Collins
Pages: 280
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★
Are women more nurturing than men?
Are men more promiscuous than women?
Are males the naturally dominant sex?
And can science give us an impartial answer to these questions?
Taking us on an eye-opening journey through science, Inferior challenges our preconceptions about men and women, investigating the ferocious gender wars that burn in biology, psychology and anthropology. Angela Saini revisits the landmark experiments that have informed our understanding, lays bare the problem of bias in research, and speaks to the scientists finally exploring the truth about the female sex.
The result is an enlightening and deeply empowering account of women’s minds, bodies and evolutionary history. Interrogating what these revelations mean for us as individuals and as a society, Inferior unveils a fresh view of science in which women are included, rather than excluded.
Are men more promiscuous than women?
Are males the naturally dominant sex?
And can science give us an impartial answer to these questions?
Taking us on an eye-opening journey through science, Inferior challenges our preconceptions about men and women, investigating the ferocious gender wars that burn in biology, psychology and anthropology. Angela Saini revisits the landmark experiments that have informed our understanding, lays bare the problem of bias in research, and speaks to the scientists finally exploring the truth about the female sex.
The result is an enlightening and deeply empowering account of women’s minds, bodies and evolutionary history. Interrogating what these revelations mean for us as individuals and as a society, Inferior unveils a fresh view of science in which women are included, rather than excluded.
My thoughts:
Inferior investigates the gender wars in biology, psychology, and anthropology, and delves into cutting-edge scientific studies to uncover a fascinating new portrait of women's brains, bodies, and role in human evolution.
The writing is lively and interesting, with the potential to correct many of the assumptions around women and science. Saini has written an incredibly balanced book, laying out all the information and then picking apart the stereotypes surrounding us.
Science and scientists influence important decision-making all the time. Such as abortion rights, education, and voting. And we trust science to give us objective facts. In her book Angela Saini argues that when it comes to women ‘much of this story is wrong’.
The book documents her findings as she examines the research, looking at everything from whether little boys really do prefer playing with cars rather than dolls, to whether the structure of the female brain is different from the male, and even whether it was inevitable that humans would end up with a patriarchal society. With great diligence, Angela Saini combs through decades and decades of research that tried to show how women are inferior to men in several areas, ranging from intelligence to aptitude for work to physical health.
It is clear that Saini has used a thorough understanding of science and a fine eye for detail to reveal how many of these perceived gender differences were really the product of biased researchers or flawed studies.
There's a lot of research here, which Saini systematically explains, evaluating both strengths and weaknesses. However, “this doesn’t always make for comfortable reading,” she warns from the start, pointing out that not all studies overturn the stereotypes.
Ironically, almost everything Saini says is known. Common Knowledge. Yet here we are in this century, still battling issues that have existed for centuries. There has been progress, but not enough, and in many parts of the world we see ideologies in men and women that should have been left in the past long ago. Ultimately, this book pierces through the notion that women are biologically inferior to men. I found this an extremely powerful, timely and worthy read.
Overall reaction:
Inferior investigates the gender wars in biology, psychology, and anthropology, and delves into cutting-edge scientific studies to uncover a fascinating new portrait of women's brains, bodies, and role in human evolution.
The writing is lively and interesting, with the potential to correct many of the assumptions around women and science. Saini has written an incredibly balanced book, laying out all the information and then picking apart the stereotypes surrounding us.
Science and scientists influence important decision-making all the time. Such as abortion rights, education, and voting. And we trust science to give us objective facts. In her book Angela Saini argues that when it comes to women ‘much of this story is wrong’.
The book documents her findings as she examines the research, looking at everything from whether little boys really do prefer playing with cars rather than dolls, to whether the structure of the female brain is different from the male, and even whether it was inevitable that humans would end up with a patriarchal society. With great diligence, Angela Saini combs through decades and decades of research that tried to show how women are inferior to men in several areas, ranging from intelligence to aptitude for work to physical health.
It is clear that Saini has used a thorough understanding of science and a fine eye for detail to reveal how many of these perceived gender differences were really the product of biased researchers or flawed studies.
There's a lot of research here, which Saini systematically explains, evaluating both strengths and weaknesses. However, “this doesn’t always make for comfortable reading,” she warns from the start, pointing out that not all studies overturn the stereotypes.
Ironically, almost everything Saini says is known. Common Knowledge. Yet here we are in this century, still battling issues that have existed for centuries. There has been progress, but not enough, and in many parts of the world we see ideologies in men and women that should have been left in the past long ago. Ultimately, this book pierces through the notion that women are biologically inferior to men. I found this an extremely powerful, timely and worthy read.
Overall reaction: