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Elizabeth Gould Davis

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Elizabeth Gould Davis
Davis in 1970
Davis in 1970
Born1910
Leavenworth, Kansas, United States
DiedJuly 30, 1974(1974-07-30) (aged 64)
Sarasota, Florida
OccupationAuthor, librarian
EducationMaster's degree in librarianship
Alma materUniversity of Kentucky
Period1971
Literary movementSecond-wave feminism
Notable worksThe First Sex

Elizabeth Gould Davis (June 23, 1910 – July 30, 1974) was an American librarian who wrote a feminist book called The First Sex.[1]

Early life and education

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Davis was born in Leavenworth, Kansas to Colonel Robert Davis and Edwina Bailey McCarty, one of four daughters. The family traveled extensively when she was growing up.[2] She received her A. B. degree from Randolph-Macon College and, after a brief marriage in 1934, went on to earn her master's degree in librarianship at the University of Kentucky in 1951.[3] She worked as a librarian at Sarasota, Florida, and while there, wrote The First Sex.[3]

The First Sex

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Davis had originally intended The First Sex to be "a short essay on wrongs towards women" inspired by the death of her sister in 1968.[4] As she researched, she learned more about historical periods when women were in charge, and about subsequent anti-women prejudices.[4] She argued that congenital killers and criminals have two Y chromosomes, that men say they don't mind women being successful but require femininity when feminine qualities work against success, and that a matriarchy should replace the existing patriarchy.[5] Prof. Ginette Castro criticized Davis' position as grounded "in the purest female chauvinism."[6]

Davis committed suicide on July 30, 1974, by shooting herself. According to feminist author Andrea Dworkin, Davis' suicide was largely impacted by the rape she underwent a few years prior in 1971, as well as the cancer she suffered from.[7] Her papers are held by the Charles E. Young Research Library at UCLA.[8]

Bibliography

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  • 1971: The First Sex, Penguin Books, ISBN 0-14-003504-4

References

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  1. ^ Jones, Judith P. (2000). "DAVIS, Elizabeth Gould". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  2. ^ "SOCIETY". Evening Star. Washington DC. November 27, 1931. p. B-2. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Davis, Elizabeth Gouyld (1975). The First Sex. Putnam. p. Preface. ISBN 9780140035049. Retrieved July 27, 2020 – via Internet Archive. Miss Davis received her A. B. degree from Randolph- Macon College and, after a brief marriage, went on to earned her master's degree in librarianship at the University of Kentucky in 1951.
  4. ^ a b Glendining, Sally (August 30, 1970). "Sarasota Librarian Writes 'First Sex'". The Miami Herald. p. 18F. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  5. ^ Davis, Elizabeth Gould, The First Sex (N.Y.: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1971 (Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 79-150582)), p. 18 and see p. 339.
  6. ^ Castro, Ginette, trans. Elizabeth Loverde-Bagwell, American Feminism: A Contemporary History (N.Y.: N.Y. Univ. Press, 1990 (ISBN 0-8147-1448-X)), p. 36 and see pp. 26, 27, 32–36, & 42 (trans. from Radioscopie du féminisme américain (Paris, France: Presses de la Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques, 1984) (French)) (author prof. Eng. lang. & culture, Univ. of Bordeaux III, France).
  7. ^ Dworkin, Andrea (1981). Our blood : prophecies and discourses on sexual politics (1st ed.). New York, N.Y.: Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-50575-X. OCLC 7553475.
  8. ^ "Elizabeth Gould Davis Papers 1990-1999". Online Archive of California. November 26, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
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