Particular Passions

Particular Passions: Talks with Women who Shaped our Times

THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING

Gloria SteinemLynn GilbertComment
Sandro Botticelli's 'Birth of Venus' c. 1486

Sandro Botticelli's 'Birth of Venus' c. 1486

The Birth of Venus, the goddess emerging from the sea, as a fully grown woman represents rebirth, just as "springtime" represents rebirth and renewal.

Venus, the goddess of beauty, is divine love in the form of a nude Venus. Like the Eve, who tempts Adam, both are about love and desire. Through centuries the representation of woman has evolved into fashion icon of the “moment,” to please and attract men, but in the 20th century a woman becomes a person, whose mind is as important as how she looks.

Gloria Steinem one of those rare individuals who possessed beauty and brains, transformed herself from a woman that men could ogle at the Playboy Club into the trailblazer who wrote, spoke, organized women all over the country to enable them to live rich and productive lives.

But like springtime, you need a period of renewal: “You can't be flat-out active all the time... you need time to think and read.” — Gloria Steinem from “Particular Passions: Talks With Women who Have Shaped Our Times.”

Read the brief chapter and oral biography of Gloria Steinem at Amazon or Apple for just $0.99.

"One of those rare, rare books that pick your life up, turn it around and point it in the right direction." — K.T. Maclay.