The worst part of it is that I’ll also have to drag Hegel into the discussion, kicking and screaming.

Oh, Georg Hegel. Is there any discussion you can’t worm your way into?

Edit: Also, I find The Second Sex to be a book of bold assertions and an abuse of the Hegelian master-slave conflict. While certain forms of feminism might benefit from understanding “existence precedes essence,” de Beauvoir uses the idea to construct an interpretive history of the relationship between men and women that does without any understanding of biology, evolution or anthropology. She speaks as if humanity should have seen through the falsehoods of gender identity when it first walked upright, and that is a view I constantly see from postmodern feminists (who, I think, learned it from de Beauvoir). Then she uses that as a platform from which to preach.

But I read The Second Sex years ago and in English, which I’m told is a very, very bad translation. Sorry, Simone!

Anyway, if you want to read good feminist literature, junk de Beauvoir and Cixous (maybe junk the French altogether). First, skim The Feminine Mystique (you really just want an idea of what it says). Then, read something that is considered “Third Wave.” The third wave literature should disturb you and confuse you. Finally, read something considered “post-feminist” (not post-modern feminist!). Mostly, this is achieved through articles, for me, because I haven’t read any good books that I could recommend.

Then, you might have a sensible idea of where feminism is now, what it should be, and what it should not be. (Hint: Reverse the sex roles of The Second Sex, and you should realize what feminism should not be.)