Maria Fedorova read for us Karen Horney’s book «The Psychology of Woman».
“In the lectures, reports and articles collected in this book, Karen Horney seeks to find and designate her own, female view of the world. The starting point for her reflections was the image of the masculinity of our civilization, which was described at the beginning of the XNUMXth century by the German philosopher Georg Simmel. “Art, morality, the correctness of practical judgment and the objectivity of theoretical knowledge — all these categories …
masculine through and through. Horney continues: «And women see themselves the way men want them to be seen.» Trying to determine their place in society, they are forced to choose: to follow the “male path”, renouncing their femininity, or to leave everything as it is, to live within the usual framework of a traditional society. In both cases, the woman fails because she refuses her essence.
Accept the right to exist of your own logic and your own, special perception of the world
In order to find the strength to pave your way, you need to understand, feel your own strength, value, believe in the depth and truth of your judgments, accept the possibility and right to exist of your own logic, a different (non-male) perception of the world, a different understanding of it. And for this it is important to analyze the origins of some of their unconscious ideas (about greater female vulnerability, dependence, dissatisfaction with their lot). That is what the book is about. It is polemical from the first to the last page. Horney writes about femininity or premenstrual tension, about maternal conflicts or about an unquenchable need for love — her reflections are always a dialogue, often an argument with representatives of «male psychoanalysis».
Thus, speaking about the problem of female masochism, she disputes the view of the Austrian psychoanalyst Helen Deutsch, who suggested that the need for women to feel like victims is due to genetic and biological factors. And in the chapter «The Denial of the Vagina,» Horney argues that Freud’s idea of the early sexuality of girls is not supported by the observations of gynecologists and pediatricians. She knows how to be surprised by the usual and ask the question: is it so? Reading a book, you feel a desire to see the hidden meaning of your own and other people’s actions and motives. I would like to warn readers: do not rush to interpret, after all, in close relationships, understanding is warmth and sensitivity.