My Life on the Road
by Gloria Steinem
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"Gloria Steinem had an itinerant childhood. Every fall, her father would pack the family into the car and they would drive across the country, in search of their next adventure. The seeds were planted: Steinem would spend much of her life on the road, as a journalist, organizer, activist, and speaker. In vivid stories that span an entire career, Steinem writes about her time on the campaign trail, from Bobby Kennedy to Hillary Clinton; her early exposure to social activism in India, and the show more decades spent organizing ground-up movements in America; the taxi drivers who were "vectors of modern myths" and the airline stewardesses who embraced the feminist revolution; and the infinite, surprising contrasts, the "surrealism in everyday life" that Steinem encountered as she traveled back and forth across the country. With the unique perspective of one of the greatest feminist icons of the 20th and 21st centuries, here is an inspiring, profound, enlightening memoir of one woman's life-long journey"-- show lessTags
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Member Reviews
I wanted to read more about Gloria Steinem after watching the first two episodes of Mrs America. This isn't quite a biography, but I found the blend of stories, characters and experiences from Gloria's constant travelling to be equally if not more interesting.
Born to an entrepreneur with wanderlust and a mother who gave up her ambitions to be a journalist for motherhood, Gloria had little schooling and even less interest in getting married and settling down. After travelling to India, Gloria returned to the States and moved to New York where she became a journalist. feminist spokeswoman and political activist. Such a brief description hardly does justice to Gloria's life, talent and voice, however - she's incredible!
I loved reading show more about the many different women and causes that Gloria met with throughout her travels, broken down into chapters on everything from native Americans to politics to travelling by taxi. There are a lot of 'moments of truth', where Gloria and other feminist icons tell it how it was and is for women - 'No wonder such misogyny was almost never named by the media. It was the media' - but this book also made me realise that feminism is about choice. A fascinating read. show less
Born to an entrepreneur with wanderlust and a mother who gave up her ambitions to be a journalist for motherhood, Gloria had little schooling and even less interest in getting married and settling down. After travelling to India, Gloria returned to the States and moved to New York where she became a journalist. feminist spokeswoman and political activist. Such a brief description hardly does justice to Gloria's life, talent and voice, however - she's incredible!
I loved reading show more about the many different women and causes that Gloria met with throughout her travels, broken down into chapters on everything from native Americans to politics to travelling by taxi. There are a lot of 'moments of truth', where Gloria and other feminist icons tell it how it was and is for women - 'No wonder such misogyny was almost never named by the media. It was the media' - but this book also made me realise that feminism is about choice. A fascinating read. show less
What comes across most clearly is Gloria Steinem's warm and friendly personality. I have never met her, but she seems so open here and so willing to learn from absolutely everyone that she totally charmed me. Like Kamala Harris, whose book I just finished reading a couple of weeks ago, the best part of this memoir is when she writes about her childhood and the love between her and her father. It gave true insight into how someone like Gloria Steinem might develop into what she is today. This book is also a treasure trove of information. I had never heard of the Serpent Mound before, and now I want to go visit. I didn't know that the Iroquois had provided the basis for the Constitution and a score of other facts that she has squirreled show more away in her mind over the years. I also did not know that much about the political history she describes here (which really surprises me) and I found all of that very interesting. Oh, I know what I wanted to remember: for several years now I have known about the connection between anger and depression. When she mentions this, she makes the point that this is why so many more women are diagnosed with depression than men -- because we have no acceptable means of expressing our anger. This was a lightening bolt for me. I had long wondered about why women were so much more depressed then men and this now makes so much sense to me. Even today it is made clear to me that I should never openly express my anger and so I feel guilty when it bubbles over, but that is so much better than feeling depressed. So I am very pleased that I read this book. I did find it had one flaw: there were too many bullet points and that made certain sections appear to be undigested, but all around it is an engaging and valuable read. show less
Astonishingly well-written and wonderfully profound. I can't tell if her ability to connect with people comes from her life as an organizer, her trade as a writer, or her natural demeanor. But her travels in life have allowed her to realize that the caste systems throughout the world--racism, sexism, homophobia, wealth inequality--have not just a shared root, but a human fallout. The stories are amazing, especially about her father, life on the road, life in academia, and the final one involving a lifelong friendship with a Native American friend. Highly recommended.
Rather than being a tell-all autobiography, My Life on the Road is a set of memoirs linked around the theme of travel. Gloria Steinem's career has taken her all over the world and brought her into contact (and sometimes conflict) with any number of notable figures from politics and the feminist movement: Betty Friedan, Wilma Mankiller, Hillary Clinton, Florynce Kennedy. The tone is warm but sometimes disjointed. There were some anecdotes that I wished Steinem would linger over, tease out some more; some that didn't seem of a piece with the rest of the text. I was fascinated to learn about the National Women's Conference, which took place in Houston in 1977 and which Steinem calls "the most important event nobody knows about", and which show more seems to have been an intersectional gathering avant la lettre.
Steinem is right to quote Native American scholar Paula Gunn Allen, who wrote that "the root of oppression is the loss of memory" (226)—that when women and other oppressed groups do not have a knowledge of their own past it is more difficult to dismantle contemporary systems of oppression. I'm in agreement with a lot of what Steinem says about the necessity to recover older rhythms of living with the Earth, for more people to be aware that the Western gender binary is not the only way for people to relate to their bodies.
And yet I also found myself frustrated at several points with the way in which Steinem uses history to make her point. Correlation is not causation. The political system of the United States is not directly modelled on the egalitarian democracy of the Iroquois Confederacy. Not all pre-modern forms of political organisation in Europe were hierarchical or feudal—how else could Iceland have a parliament as old as it does?—and Steinem's claims erase with a stroke of a pen the powerful (and sometimes non-Christian) women of medieval Europe. There were not eight million women burnt at the stake for witchcraft and practice pre-Christian traditions in the Middle Ages (no footnote for that eyebrow-raising number), and nor is the layout of a Catholic church an echo of female genitalia ("a vaginal aisle up the center of the church to the altar (the womb) with two curved (ovarian) structures on either side" (207)) in anything other than a manner so general that the same could be said of almost any building you care to mention.
Women can find ourselves in the past without having to resort to myth-making of our own. show less
Steinem is right to quote Native American scholar Paula Gunn Allen, who wrote that "the root of oppression is the loss of memory" (226)—that when women and other oppressed groups do not have a knowledge of their own past it is more difficult to dismantle contemporary systems of oppression. I'm in agreement with a lot of what Steinem says about the necessity to recover older rhythms of living with the Earth, for more people to be aware that the Western gender binary is not the only way for people to relate to their bodies.
And yet I also found myself frustrated at several points with the way in which Steinem uses history to make her point. Correlation is not causation. The political system of the United States is not directly modelled on the egalitarian democracy of the Iroquois Confederacy. Not all pre-modern forms of political organisation in Europe were hierarchical or feudal—how else could Iceland have a parliament as old as it does?—and Steinem's claims erase with a stroke of a pen the powerful (and sometimes non-Christian) women of medieval Europe. There were not eight million women burnt at the stake for witchcraft and practice pre-Christian traditions in the Middle Ages (no footnote for that eyebrow-raising number), and nor is the layout of a Catholic church an echo of female genitalia ("a vaginal aisle up the center of the church to the altar (the womb) with two curved (ovarian) structures on either side" (207)) in anything other than a manner so general that the same could be said of almost any building you care to mention.
Women can find ourselves in the past without having to resort to myth-making of our own. show less
I thought I would love this book. I liked it and really liked a couple sections. What I did not expect was to learn so much about native american culture...fascinating history as it pertains to women's roles in the tribes. Also appreciated the regular references to Gandhian organizing circles. This book was not so much about Gloria Steinem, but more about her circles and influencers.
Very few books have the power to awaken you, or make you think about aspects of your life differently but that is exactly what this book did for me. It was an honest to goodness eye opener. Before reading this I am ashamed to admit that all I knew about Gloria Steinem was that she was an outspoken feminist, I had just never paid attention. I had also never paid all that much attention to feminism; I agree that women should be equal but I never stopped to consider in all the ways that we still inequal. I'm a travesty, I have a graduate degree and I just never stopped to consider how my gender is treated. I mean, I knew it was lopsided but had I ever spoken out against it or taken action? Never. Reading this memoir of Gloria Steinem's show more travels, encounters, and feminist beliefs really made me aware of how little I've done. This book has definitely motivated to read more of her books, research more, and take action! Steinem talks a lot about organizing and uniting women, it's really motivational. I also got teary eyed when she described her friendships with different Native American women and the hardships they've had to overcome and still have to overcome. It was very moving and very well written. Thank goodness I'm a Harry Potter fanatic. Had it not been for Emma Watson's feminist book club I can honestly say I never would have picked up this book! show less
Primeiro livro do Clube do Livro da Emma Watson
A verdade é que não gosto de livro de memórias, falando sobre o estilo formulaico que ele normalmente se apresenta, mas a Steinem é tão carismática e a própria descreve pessoas tão formidáveis de uma maneira tão desprovida de orgulho que é humanamente impossível não apenas gostar desse livro como bem das pessoas que circulam por ele.
A verdade é que não gosto de livro de memórias, falando sobre o estilo formulaico que ele normalmente se apresenta, mas a Steinem é tão carismática e a própria descreve pessoas tão formidáveis de uma maneira tão desprovida de orgulho que é humanamente impossível não apenas gostar desse livro como bem das pessoas que circulam por ele.
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Author Information
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Gloria Steinem was born in Toledo, Ohio on March 25, 1934. She graduated from Smith College in 1956 and then spent two years in India on a Chester Bowles Fellowship. She is a writer, lecturer, political activist, and feminist organizer. In 1968, she co-founded New York magazine, where she was a political columnist and wrote feature articles. In show more 1972, she co-founded Ms. magazine, and remained one of its editors for fifteen years. In 1993, she co-produced and narrated Multiple Personalities: The Search for Deadly Memories, which was a documentary on child abuse for HBO, and co-produced the original TV movie Better Off Dead, which examined the parallel forces that both oppose abortion and support the death penalty. She has written numerous books including Marilyn: Norma Jean, Moving Beyond Words, My Life on the Road, and Revolution from Within: A Book of Self-Esteem, Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions. She has received numerous awards including The Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Medal Award in 2014 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013. In 1993, she was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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- Gloria Steinem
- Epigraph
- "Evolution intended us to be travelers...Settlement for any length of time, in cave or castle, has at best been...a drop in the ocean of evolutionary time." --Bruce Chatwin, Anatomy of Restlessness
- Dedication
- Dr. John Sharpe of London, who in 1957, a decade before physicians in England could legally perform an abortion for any reason other than the health of the woman, took the considerable risk of referring for an abortion a twen... (show all)ty-two-year-old American on her way to India.
Knowing only that she had broken an engagement at home to seek an unknown fate, he said, "You must promise me two things. First, you will not tell anyone my name. Second, you will do what you want to do with your life." Dear Dr. Sharpe, I believe you, who knew the law was unjust, would not mind if I say this so long after your death: I've done the best I could with my life. This book is for you. - First words
- When people ask me why I still have hope and energy after all these years, I always say: Because I travel.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Neither do you.
Classifications
- Genres
- Sexuality and Gender Studies, Biography & Memoir, General Nonfiction, Nonfiction, Travel
- DDC/MDS
- 305.42092 — Social sciences Social sciences, sociology & anthropology Groups of people Women Social role and status of women Standard subdivisions History, geographic treatment, biography Biography
- LCC
- HQ1413 .S675 .A3 — Social sciences The family. Marriage, Women and Sexuality The Family. Marriage. Women Women. Feminism
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- 1,278
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- Reviews
- 71
- Rating
- (4.09)
- Languages
- English, German, Portuguese, Spanish
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- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 19
- ASINs
- 7