Becoming a Woman

This highly engaging analysis of the contemporary global social and political landscape of trans antagonisms draws specific attention to gender-critical mobilizations of Simone de Beauvoir's account of becoming a woman in The Second Sex to advance and justify trans-exclusionary positions. Through a careful examination and application of Beauvoir's philosophical and political commitments, Becoming a Woman compellingly explores the significance of her notion of becoming not only as affirmative of trans women, but also as an ethical demand to affirm trans possibilities.

More than a reply to gender-critical readings of Beauvoir, this book develops an original, Beauvoirian ethics of gender affirmation that shows why we ought to challenge trans exclusion and anti-trans movements.

Preface

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Trans Antagonisms and Beauvoir

Chapter One: Becoming a Woman

Chapter Two: On Females and Women

Chapter Three: An Ethics of Gender Affirmation

Conclusion: Bad Faith and Feminism

Glossary

References

“A careful, urgent book about the violence of gender norms and trans-exclusionary ideologies. As much a contribution to feminist theory as it is to trans studies, this slim volume calls us to grapple with gender ambiguity and its essential role in the practice of freedom. Becoming a Woman is astonishingly accessible and chock-full of world-shifting insights. I couldn't put it down!”
Perry Zurn, Provost Associate Professor of Philosophy, American University, and Visiting Associate Professor of Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Cornell University

“In this remarkably clear and pedagogical book, Megan Burke manages the tour de force of providing a very convincing case against gender-critical arguments, a clear-cut introduction to philosophical debates on trans issues, and a brilliant analysis of Beauvoir’s work. Far from a manifesto, this book is a very well-written demonstration that Beauvoir’s philosophy can provide a path to think about womanhood and trans issues outside of the dominating metaphysical framework and rather as a question pertaining to moral philosophy, human existence, and embodiment.”
Manon Garcia, Junior Professor in Practical Philosophy, Freie Universität Berlin, and author of The Joy of Consent

Megan Burke is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Sonoma State University and the author of When Time Warps.