Feminists, Puritans, and Statists

Feminism’s ideological diversity makes fools of those who generalize grandly about the movement, but many critics are undeterred. A foolish view of feminists as a monolithic group of male bashers and prudes was eagerly adopted by impeachment pundits. Confusing feminism with a sexual-purity movement, they naturally pronounced all of us guilty of hypocrisy for not abandoning Clinton, embracing Paula Jones, and fretting about the victimization of Lewinsky. It was as if women’s-rights advocates had no mission but the policing of male sexual behavior, as if securing reproductive choice, economic equity, and political power were afterthoughts to the elimination of harassment and adultery.

Where did they get this idea? In part, the p...