-
The Second Sex
- Narrated by: Ellen Archer, Judith Thurman
- Length: 39 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Politics & Social Sciences, Social Sciences
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $52.50
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Feminine Mystique
- By: Betty Friedan
- Narrated by: Parker Posey
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The book that changed the consciousness of a country - and the world. Landmark, groundbreaking, classic - these adjectives barely describe the earthshaking and long-lasting effects of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique. This is the book that defined "the problem that has no name", that launched the Second Wave of the feminist movement, and has been awakening women and men with its insights into social relations, which still remain fresh, ever since.
-
-
A landmark book of its time and relevant now
- By Anthony on 01-23-15
By: Betty Friedan
-
Gender Trouble
- Feminism and the Subversion of Identity
- By: Judith Butler
- Narrated by: Emily Beresford
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One of the most talked-about scholarly works of the past 50 years, Judith Butler's Gender Trouble is as celebrated as it is controversial. Arguing that traditional feminism is wrong to look to a natural, "essential" notion of the female, or indeed of sex or gender, Butler starts by questioning the category "woman" and continues in this vein with examinations of "the masculine" and "the feminine." Best known however, but also most often misinterpreted, is Butler's concept of gender as a reiterated social performance rather than the expression of a prior reality.
-
-
Been wanting for a long time to read Gender Trouble
- By GayIsGreat on 03-22-18
By: Judith Butler
-
Illuminations
- Essays and Reflections
- By: Walter Benjamin, Hannah Arendt
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Walter Benjamin was an icon of criticism, renowned for his insight on art, literature, and philosophy. This volume includes his views on Kafka, with whom he felt a close personal affinity; his studies on Baudelaire and Proust; and his essays on Leskov and Brecht’s epic theater. Illuminations also includes his penetrating study “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”, an enlightening discussion of translation as a literary mode, and his theses on the philosophy of history.
-
-
finally
- By Anonymous User on 12-08-21
By: Walter Benjamin, and others
-
Nausea (New Directions Paperbook)
- By: Jean-Paul Sartre
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sartre's greatest novel and existentialism's key text, now introduced by James Wood, and read by the inimitable Edoardo Ballerini. Nausea is the story of Antoine Roquentin, a French writer who is horrified at his own existence. In impressionistic, diary form, he ruthlessly catalogs his every feeling and sensation.
-
-
Glad to have existed to enjoy reading this book!
- By mohammed on 08-11-21
By: Jean-Paul Sartre
-
Feminism Is for Everybody
- Passionate Politics
- By: bell hooks
- Narrated by: Robin Miles
- Length: 4 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What is feminism? In this short, accessible primer, Bell Hooks explores the nature of feminism and its positive promise to eliminate sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression. With her characteristic clarity and directness, Hooks encourages readers to see how feminism can touch and change their lives - to see that feminism is for everybody.
-
-
Excellent Introduction to Feminism
- By Listens-a-lot on 03-29-18
By: bell hooks
-
A Room of One's Own
- By: Virginia Woolf
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Room of One's Own, based on a lecture given at Girton College Cambridge, is one of the great feminist polemics. Woolf's blazing polemic on female creativity, the role of the writer, and the silent fate of Shakespeare's imaginary sister remains a powerful reminder of a woman's need for financial independence and intellectual freedom.
-
-
Required reading for literary critics, feminists,
- By Seth H. Wilson on 07-15-13
By: Virginia Woolf
-
The Feminine Mystique
- By: Betty Friedan
- Narrated by: Parker Posey
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The book that changed the consciousness of a country - and the world. Landmark, groundbreaking, classic - these adjectives barely describe the earthshaking and long-lasting effects of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique. This is the book that defined "the problem that has no name", that launched the Second Wave of the feminist movement, and has been awakening women and men with its insights into social relations, which still remain fresh, ever since.
-
-
A landmark book of its time and relevant now
- By Anthony on 01-23-15
By: Betty Friedan
-
Gender Trouble
- Feminism and the Subversion of Identity
- By: Judith Butler
- Narrated by: Emily Beresford
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One of the most talked-about scholarly works of the past 50 years, Judith Butler's Gender Trouble is as celebrated as it is controversial. Arguing that traditional feminism is wrong to look to a natural, "essential" notion of the female, or indeed of sex or gender, Butler starts by questioning the category "woman" and continues in this vein with examinations of "the masculine" and "the feminine." Best known however, but also most often misinterpreted, is Butler's concept of gender as a reiterated social performance rather than the expression of a prior reality.
-
-
Been wanting for a long time to read Gender Trouble
- By GayIsGreat on 03-22-18
By: Judith Butler
-
Illuminations
- Essays and Reflections
- By: Walter Benjamin, Hannah Arendt
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Walter Benjamin was an icon of criticism, renowned for his insight on art, literature, and philosophy. This volume includes his views on Kafka, with whom he felt a close personal affinity; his studies on Baudelaire and Proust; and his essays on Leskov and Brecht’s epic theater. Illuminations also includes his penetrating study “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”, an enlightening discussion of translation as a literary mode, and his theses on the philosophy of history.
-
-
finally
- By Anonymous User on 12-08-21
By: Walter Benjamin, and others
-
Nausea (New Directions Paperbook)
- By: Jean-Paul Sartre
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sartre's greatest novel and existentialism's key text, now introduced by James Wood, and read by the inimitable Edoardo Ballerini. Nausea is the story of Antoine Roquentin, a French writer who is horrified at his own existence. In impressionistic, diary form, he ruthlessly catalogs his every feeling and sensation.
-
-
Glad to have existed to enjoy reading this book!
- By mohammed on 08-11-21
By: Jean-Paul Sartre
-
Feminism Is for Everybody
- Passionate Politics
- By: bell hooks
- Narrated by: Robin Miles
- Length: 4 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What is feminism? In this short, accessible primer, Bell Hooks explores the nature of feminism and its positive promise to eliminate sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression. With her characteristic clarity and directness, Hooks encourages readers to see how feminism can touch and change their lives - to see that feminism is for everybody.
-
-
Excellent Introduction to Feminism
- By Listens-a-lot on 03-29-18
By: bell hooks
-
A Room of One's Own
- By: Virginia Woolf
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Room of One's Own, based on a lecture given at Girton College Cambridge, is one of the great feminist polemics. Woolf's blazing polemic on female creativity, the role of the writer, and the silent fate of Shakespeare's imaginary sister remains a powerful reminder of a woman's need for financial independence and intellectual freedom.
-
-
Required reading for literary critics, feminists,
- By Seth H. Wilson on 07-15-13
By: Virginia Woolf
-
Inseparable
- A Never-Before-Published Novel
- By: Simone de Beauvoir, Sandra Smith - translator
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Gabra Zackman
- Length: 3 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the moment Sylvie and Andrée meet in their Parisian day school, they see in each other an accomplice with whom to confront the mysteries of girlhood. For the next 10 years, the two are the closest of friends and confidantes as they explore life in a post-World War One France, and as Andrée becomes increasingly reckless and rebellious, edging closer to peril. Sylvie, insightful and observant, sees a France of clashing ideals and religious hypocrisy - and at an early age is determined to form her own opinions.
By: Simone de Beauvoir, and others
-
At the Existentialist Café
- Freedom, Being, and Apricot Cocktails
- By: Sarah Bakewell
- Narrated by: Antonia Beamish
- Length: 14 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Paris, 1933: Three contemporaries meet over apricot cocktails at the Bec-de-Gaz bar on the rue Montparnasse. They are the young Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and longtime friend Raymond Aron, a fellow philosopher who raves to them about a new conceptual framework from Berlin called phenomenology. "You see," he says, "if you are a phenomenologist, you can talk about this cocktail and make philosophy out of it!"
-
-
Consistent look at incoherent philosophy
- By Gary on 06-19-16
By: Sarah Bakewell
-
The Myth of Sisyphus
- By: Albert Camus
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One of the most influential works of this century, The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays is a crucial exposition of existentialist thought. Influenced by works such as Don Juan and the novels of Kafka, these essays begin with a meditation on suicide; the question of living or not living in a universe devoid of order or meaning.
-
-
Talisman for diminishing suicide in our times
- By J.B. on 08-29-19
By: Albert Camus
-
Being and Time
- By: Martin Heidegger
- Narrated by: Martyn Swain, Taylor Carman
- Length: 23 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Being and Time was published in 1927 during the Weimar period in Germany, a time of political, social and economic turmoil. Heidegger himself did not escape the pressures and his nationalism, and undeniable anti-Semitism in the following decades cast a shadow over the man, but not the work. Being and Time is not coloured by expressions of his later views (unlike other writings) and remains an outstanding document.
-
-
Surprised it works as audio
- By Anonymous on 02-02-20
By: Martin Heidegger
-
Ain't I a Woman
- Black Women and Feminism (2nd Edition)
- By: bell hooks
- Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A classic work of feminist scholarship, Ain't I a Woman has become a must for all those interested in the nature of Black womanhood. Examining the impact of sexism on Black women during slavery, the devaluation of black womanhood, black male sexism, racism among feminists, and the black woman's involvement with feminism, hooks attempts to move us beyond racist and sexist assumptions. The result is nothing short of groundbreaking, giving this work a critical place in every feminist scholar's library.
-
-
Informative
- By Cj James on 07-23-19
By: bell hooks
-
Down Girl
- The Logic of Misogyny
- By: Kate Manne
- Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang
- Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Misogyny is a hot topic, yet it's often misunderstood. What is misogyny, exactly? Who deserves to be called a misogynist? How does misogyny contrast with sexism, and why is it prone to persist - or increase - even when sexist gender roles are waning? This book is an exploration of misogyny in public life and politics by the moral philosopher Kate Manne. It argues that misogyny should not be understood primarily in terms of the hatred or hostility some men feel toward all or most women. Rather, it's primarily about controlling, policing, punishing, and exiling the "bad" women.
-
-
A brilliant philosophical overview of Misogyny,
- By vincent martin on 10-22-18
By: Kate Manne
-
The Will to Change
- Men, Masculinity, and Love
- By: bell hooks
- Narrated by: Janina Edwards
- Length: 6 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Everyone needs to love and be loved - even men. But to know love, men must be able to look at the ways that patriarchal culture keeps them from knowing themselves, from being in touch with their feelings, from loving. In The Will to Change, bell hooks gets to the heart of the matter and shows men how to express the emotions that are a fundamental part of who they are - whatever their age, marital status, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.
-
-
A unique call to an ethic of creative love
- By Amazon Customer on 09-26-20
By: bell hooks
-
Phenomenology of Spirit
- By: G. W. F. Hegel, A. V. Miller - translator, J. N. Findlay
- Narrated by: David DeVries
- Length: 29 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Perhaps one of the most revolutionary works of philosophy ever presented, The Phenomenology of Spirit is Hegel's 1807 work that is in numerous ways extraordinary. A myriad of topics are discussed, and explained in such a harmoniously complex way that the method has been termed Hegelian dialectic. Ultimately, the work as a whole is a remarkable study of the mind's growth from its direct awareness to scientific philosophy, proving to be a difficult yet highly influential and enduring work.
-
-
My favorite audible book of the 700 I've rated
- By Gary on 01-02-16
By: G. W. F. Hegel, and others
-
Ideas
- By: Edmund Husserl
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 16 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As philosophy professor Taylor Carman explains in his helpful introduction, Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) was the founder of modern phenomenology, one of the most important and influential movements of the 20th century. Ideas, published in 1913 – its full title is Ideas for a Pure Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy – was the key work. It is arguably ‘the most fundamental and comprehensive statement of the fundamental principles of Husserl’s mature philosophy’.
-
-
Husserl WILL Change How You Think About Philosophy
- By POL-PHL-ECO on 05-12-20
By: Edmund Husserl
-
Entitled
- How Male Privilege Hurts Women
- By: Kate Manne
- Narrated by: Cynthia Farrell
- Length: 6 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this bold and stylish critique, Cornell philosopher Kate Manne offers a radical new framework for understanding misogyny. Ranging widely across the culture, from Harvey Weinstein and the Brett Kavanaugh hearings to “Cat Person” and the political misfortunes of Elizabeth Warren, Manne’s book shows how privileged men’s sense of entitlement - to sex, yes, but more insidiously to admiration, care, bodily autonomy, knowledge, and power - is a pervasive social problem with often devastating consequences.
-
-
New to the subject
- By Bruno on 08-20-20
By: Kate Manne
-
Women & Power
- A Manifesto
- By: Mary Beard
- Narrated by: Mary Beard
- Length: 1 hr and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At long last, Mary Beard addresses in one brave book the misogynists and trolls who mercilessly attack and demean women the world over, including, very often, Mary herself. In Women & Power, she traces the origins of this misogyny to its ancient roots, examining the pitfalls of gender and the ways that history has mistreated strong women since time immemorial.
-
-
Short and fabulous
- By André C. on 03-13-20
By: Mary Beard
-
The Concept of Anxiety
- A Simple Psychologically Oriented Deliberation in View of the Dogmatic Problem of Hereditary Sin
- By: Alastair Hannay - translator, Søren Kierkegaard
- Narrated by: David Rapkin
- Length: 6 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This first new translation of Kierkegaard's masterwork in a generation brings an essential work of modern philosophy to vivid life. While the majority of Kierkegaard's work leading up to The Concept of Anxiety dealt with the intersection of faith and knowledge, here the renowned Danish philosopher turns to the perennial question of sin and guilt. First published in 1844, this concise treatise identified - long before Freud - anxiety as a deep-seated human state, one that embodies the endless struggle with our own spiritual identities.
-
-
A book about nothing
- By Gary on 03-20-17
By: Alastair Hannay - translator, and others
Publisher's Summary
Unabridged and available on audio for the first time
Simone de Beauvoir’s essential masterwork is a powerful analysis of the Western notion of "woman", and a revolutionary exploration of inequality and otherness. This unabridged edition of the text reinstates significant portions of the original French text that were cut in the first English translation, and is now available on audio for the very first time. Vital and groundbreaking, Beauvoir’s pioneering and impressive text remains as pertinent today as when it was first published, and will continue to provoke and inspire generations of men and women to come.
Critic Reviews
"[A] masterpiece.... Restores essential passages that have been missing for 60 years." (The Times)
"Groundbreaking.... A fresh, much expanded, more intelligible book which repays re-reading by adherents of the old version, and cries out for attention from young women who have not been exposed to this most powerful of feminist thinkers. The Second Sex [is] the foundation text of second-wave feminism. It is probably the most important and influential philosophical treatise of the 20th century." (The Irish Times)
"The Second Sex is an inquiry into a subject with profound implications for the entire human race, and its ideas are as fresh and inspiring as they were when [Beauvoir] began work.... Now Beauvoir’s great work is available in a full English translation for the first time.... It is a fine piece of work, a lucid translation." (The Independent)
Featured Article: J'adore—The Best French Authors to Listen to Now
Ah, France—the food. The wine. The style. From the City of Lights to the countryside, France is one of the most popular tourist destination spots in the world. But whether your French travel plans are on hold or you’re ready to take a virtual trip now, French literature is one of the best ways to get to know France’s fascinating history, people, and culture. Discover three centuries of the best French authors and their greatest works.
More from the same
What listeners say about The Second Sex
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anne Infeld
- 10-30-20
Great book, performance lacking
Seminal work on feminism, doesn't shy away from any topic. In love with Simone for her intelligence and forthrightness. But the reader was too perky and her French accent was not very good.
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Emily Meyers
- 06-12-20
Work of Art
Absolutely incredible book. Worthwhile investment of time. Brilliant, nuanced, deep. Truly work of art. Bravo!
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 05-13-20
Amazing
Enlightening experience, a must listen for both sexes. Great to question our own standing in the world.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 07-21-20
a must read for everyone
I truly loved this book! I truly shook me to my core. there were a lot of points in t his book that I will never forget!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jimmie Hughes
- 03-04-21
Meh...
The hype among academics didn’t help my apathetic reaction or manage my expectations. If you are looking to reinforce your own ideologies about the evils of the patriarchy, you may love it. The book raises some good points at times and over steps in others. Mostly the latter. Took a long time to get through it all as it gets dry at times but I would recommend it to anyone trying to gain perspective to the crafting of the modern feminist’s positions on equity.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kara Selwa
- 03-29-22
Important read
I'm so glad that this is on Audible! I've wanted to read this for years and it was as thought-provoking as I thought it was going to be.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Oliver
- 03-09-20
Brilliant
Quiet simply the best book I've ever had the pleasure of consuming.
Fantastic narration - seriously, clear to any listeners will be the passion on display. Aside from Jim Norton's reading of Ulysses, the best I've encountered.
Content a point of eternal majesty with numerous moments of clarity and epiphany that create a cerebral shiver, almost as if the content was always known but buried deep below societal prejudices and stereotypes. The last book which evoked such feelings to this extent was Orientalism by Edward Said.
Perhaps the best aspect, and the greatest signal of virtue in any work, a good handful of other works have been thrust onto my reading list!
Many hours, but each one well spent... and so many bookmarks!!! :)
11 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Arlene Finnigan
- 04-04-21
A formidable work but a tough read
Well this was quite the challenge. I thought I'd 'get' this - after all, I've got a degree in sociology. I don't, however, have degrees in philosophy, psychology (the Freudian stuff made me cringe I'm afraid), history, politics, evolutionary biology, etc etc. It's a formidable work and very impressive in its scope but I have to admit a lot of it went over my head.
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- PPG
- 02-26-22
Superb
Excellent feminist bible.
So relevant still today.
Essential reading for all humanity
Wish I’d read it when I was a teenager
1 person found this helpful