Intertwined Lives: Margaret Mead, Ruth Benedict, and Their Circle

I wanted to like this book. And I did learn biographical information about Margaret Mead and Ruth Benedict, and a great deal of historical information about America in the early twentieth century, particularly between the world wars. Unfortunately, the sexual relationship between the two alluded to on the cover is not well supported in the text - the primary supporting source is a poem, Banner's interpretation of which left me scratching my head. Mead and Benedict's other romantic entanglements, however, are more clearly presented - both queer and straight.

It is also a slow read, quite dense with detail. During the month I was actively reading it, I sometimes refered to it as The Book That's Trying to Kill Me, because its endurance was show more clearly greater than my own. Honestly, I probably would have liked it more had I not been woefully misled by cover copy. show less

I enjoyed this book very much. I really didn’t know much about Margaret Mead and Ruth Benedict, and hadn’t a clue that they were lovers, so that was a revelation. They are both amazing women and I really appreciated the chance to get to know them better.

The book follows Mead and Benedict from birth, covers their relationship with each other and their relationships with others, lingers on their work, and continues until Benedict’s death. One of the book’s flaws is that it then ends, leaving me to wish for another chapter, a picture of Mead’s remaining years.

This book is not gossipy or sensational in the slightest. If anything, it sometimes sinks under the weight of its scholarship. It spends a great deal of time on the show more intellectual atmosphere around them, and their participation in that. The writer is very painstaking in her analysis of social attitudes towards lesbians. She traces Benedict’s and Mead’s philosophical paths in a variety of areas: sexual freedom, gender roles, progressive political beliefs, race, anthropological approaches. She shows how Mead and Benedict influenced each other and how they differed, as well as how they were influenced by the other people around them.

So much theory can sometimes make things a little dry, and these women were anything but dry. However, it’s not just a biography of Margaret Mead and Ruth Benedict, but also a description of the times in which they lived - how they were shaped by it, and how they shaped it. It’s definitely worth reading. show less

I enjoyed this book very much. I really didn’t know much about Margaret Mead and Ruth Benedict, and hadn’t a clue that they were lovers, so that was a revelation. They are both amazing women and I really appreciated the chance to get to know them better.

The book follows Mead and Benedict from birth, covers their relationship with each other and their relationships with others, lingers on their work, and continues until Benedict’s death. One of the book’s flaws is that it then ends, leaving me to wish for another chapter, a picture of Mead’s remaining years.

This book is not gossipy or sensational in the slightest. If anything, it sometimes sinks under the weight of its scholarship. It spends a great deal of time on the show more intellectual atmosphere around them, and their participation in that. The writer is very painstaking in her analysis of social attitudes towards lesbians. She traces Benedict’s and Mead’s philosophical paths in a variety of areas: sexual freedom, gender roles, progressive political beliefs, race, anthropological approaches. She shows how Mead and Benedict influenced each other and how they differed, as well as how they were influenced by the other people around them.

So much theory can sometimes make things a little dry, and these women were anything but dry. However, it’s not just a biography of Margaret Mead and Ruth Benedict, but also a description of the times in which they lived - how they were shaped by it, and how they shaped it. It’s definitely worth reading. show less

Best yet bio of two great Anthropologists, Clues into Creativity and Genius