Beauvoir argued womanhood is socially constructed, not innate

Evidence

After a broad-brush historical overview of myth and reality in the first half of the book, Beauvoir devoted the second half to relating a typical woman’s life from infancy on, showing how — as she said — ‘One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.’ — Sarah Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café, 669

Categorization

• DEFINE: The single most quotable line associated with The Second Sex, contextualized within the book’s structure.
• CANDY: ‘One is not born but becomes a woman’ is a compact, shareable line.
• XREF: connects to: Beauvoir argued women become Other through history, not by nature — Christine Daigle, Jacob Golomb (eds.), Beauvoir and Sartre: The Riddle of…, 265; Womanhood is socially constructed, not biologically destined — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 676; Some feminist scholars reject Beauvoir’s claim that womanhood is purely constructed — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 19 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Beauvoir argued women become Other through history, not by nature #corroborates (0.95) — Christine Daigle, Jacob Golomb (eds.), Beauvoir and Sartre, 265
• Womanhood is socially constructed, not biologically destined #corroborates (0.92) — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 676
• Some feminist scholars reject Beauvoir’s claim that womanhood is purely constructed #qualifies (0.88) — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 19
• Beauvoir holds that sexual difference gains meaning only within the social realm #expands (0.85) — Christine Daigle, Jacob Golomb (eds.), Beauvoir and Sartre, 109
• Beauvoir’s transcendence and immanence derive from gendered biology, not Sartrean metaphysics #contradicts (0.80) — Christine Daigle, Jacob Golomb (eds.), Beauvoir and Sartre, 600