I wrote this a long time ago—maybe 25 years ago? Not sure. I’ve updated it occasionally since, but I’ve seen no reason to alter the message. It’s awkwardly written but I stand by it. Feminism is a failed universalistic creed that denies the centrality of blood ties.
I think I have read this post before, but rereading now thanks to today’s post. Your thoughts on women’s relationships to “blood ties” reminds me of a book I read last year that mentioned how the male and female representatives of a species evolve together for mutual survival (obviously) but also in opposition to one another, which had not occurred to me before. This was very obvious this morning as I watched male ducks fighting in the pond over a mate, who then also fought back against the victor. Evolution can have ugly consequences for one sex or the other.
It might be more fundamental that survival itself matters more than modern notions of equality, but I think the latter notion springs from the realization that the former has left many victims along the way.
I think I have read this post before, but rereading now thanks to today’s post. Your thoughts on women’s relationships to “blood ties” reminds me of a book I read last year that mentioned how the male and female representatives of a species evolve together for mutual survival (obviously) but also in opposition to one another, which had not occurred to me before. This was very obvious this morning as I watched male ducks fighting in the pond over a mate, who then also fought back against the victor. Evolution can have ugly consequences for one sex or the other.
It might be more fundamental that survival itself matters more than modern notions of equality, but I think the latter notion springs from the realization that the former has left many victims along the way.