USABLE PERFORMANCE FEMINISM FOR OUR TIME 343 signs showing the cffects of these phenomena in a venue where I least expected them: a pair of obituaries in the Smith Alumnae Quarterly that appeared two years apart. "Remembering Julia McWilliams Child '34"(SAQ,summer 2004)is a glowing and respectful pacan to the French chef,complete with a bullet list of accomplishments and a quoted demurral on the part of the recently deceased that her success was due to any talent.Indeed,Child claimed that she was uncomfortable about the notion of being remembered as a celebrity.The online version of the article includes a link to a 2003 interview.Later in 2004.Smith started an annual Julia Child event that featured, in its third year,a panel titled"What I Learned in the Kitchen."Two years after Child's obituary,Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz's "A Player on the World Stage"remembered the recently deceased Betty Goldstein Friedan (class of 1942)(SAQ,summer 2006).Here, the writer gives with one hand and withholds with the other.We learn of a Friedan interested in having her colors done and misjudging Gary Hart's escapades.While praising Friedan's "energy and sass,"Horowitz offers a reminder that Friedan "will never be elevated to sainthood in some kind of political heaven,for she brought to the game of life too much that insulted and offended others."There is no bullet list of books,no mention of how Friedan would like to be remembered,no link to any interview,and no impending annual event.There is also no mention of Friedan hav- ing achieved "the most outstanding record of any student ever matriculated at Smith" at the time of her graduation.0 There is,however,in the same issue,an excerpt from Child's last book,as well as interview with Alex Prud'homme called "Baking Pies with Aunt Julia." How baking pies and learning in the kitchen came to trump sass and sociological insight in an editorial notion of what will appeal to a Sisters'School imaginary is not unrelated to how Friedan's signature style(direct,eager,forthright,rough-edged)and even appearance(plump,blowzy,grey-haired,unreconstructed by surgery or personal trainers)came to be the antithesis of feminist chic.Nor is this shift unrelated to how Broadway and high-priced Off-Broadway have dealt with women's issues and with women as characters and actresses in the years since the appearance of The Feminine Mystique.In Friedan's case,professional(read critics and other high-profile feminists who knew her personally)response to her writing was perhaps colored by a sense that she was unpleasant in her personal dealings.In live public forums,however,among people outside any feminist"inner circle,"she was routinely received as captivating, magical,and galvanizing.Mediated forums offer an opportunity to consider how the needs and norms of television and journalism themselves construct a feminism and females in which style overwhelms-or at least outweighs-sociological insight and trying to return later.Only 74 percent of women who leave the workforce and want to return manage to do so,and only 40 percent return to full-time professional jobs,according to Bennetts's findings. Women's standards of living typically drop 36 percent when they divorce,while men's rise 28 percent. Bennetts is a full believer in the emotional benefits of marriage as partnership;her project here is to expose the financial realties of opting out of the workforce,even for just a few years. Jennifer Maddox Sergent,"Remembering Julia McWilliams Child34,"Smith Alumnae Quarterly, summer 2004. 10Daniel Horowitz,Betty Fricdan and the Making of The Feminine Mystique (Amherst:University of Massachusetts Press,1996),86.Friedan did say in an interview that she would like her epitaph to read:"She helped make women feel really good about being women.Therefore,they were better able to freely love themselves and more fully love men";see Glenn Lewis,"Betty Friedan's Life So Far: Personal Truths Spark a Movement,"Library Journal(1 April 2000):112. This content downloaded from 183.195.251.166 on Sat,16 Jan 2016 12:04:58 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and ConditionsUSABLE PERFORMANCE FEMINISM FOR OUR TIME / 343 signs showing the effects of these phenomena in a venue where I least expected them: a pair of obituaries in the Smith Alumnae Quarterly that appeared two years apart. "Remembering Julia McWilliams Child '34" (SAQ, summer 2004) is a glowing and respectful paean to the French chef, complete with a bullet list of accomplishments and a quoted demurral on the part of the recently deceased that her success was due to any talent. Indeed, Child claimed that she was uncomfortable about the notion of being remembered as a celebrity.9 The online version of the article includes a link to a 2003 interview. Later in 2004, Smith started an annual Julia Child event that featured, in its third year, a panel titled "What I Learned in the Kitchen." Two years after Child's obituary, Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz's "A Player on the World Stage" remembered the recently deceased Betty Goldstein Friedan (class of 1942) (SAQ, summer 2006). Here, the writer gives with one hand and withholds with the other. We learn of a Friedan interested in having her colors done and misjudging Gary Hart's escapades. While praising Friedan's "energy and sass," Horowitz offers a reminder that Friedan "will never be elevated to sainthood in some kind of political heaven, for she brought to the game of life too much that insulted and offended others." There is no bullet list of books, no mention of how Friedan would like to be remembered, no link to any interview, and no impending annual event. There is also no mention of Friedan hav￾ing achieved "the most outstanding record of any student ever matriculated at Smith" at the time of her graduation.10 There is, however, in the same issue, an excerpt from Child's last book, as well as interview with Alex Prud'homme called "Baking Pies with Aunt Julia." How baking pies and learning in the kitchen came to trump sass and sociological insight in an editorial notion of what will appeal to a Sisters' School imaginary is not unrelated to how Friedan's signature style (direct, eager, forthright, rough-edged) and even appearance (plump, blowzy, grey-haired, unreconstructed by surgery or personal trainers) came to be the antithesis of feminist chic. Nor is this shift unrelated to how Broadway and high-priced Off-Broadway have dealt with women's issues and with women as characters and actresses in the years since the appearance of The Feminine Mystique. In Friedan's case, professional (read critics and other high-profile feminists who knew her personally) response to her writing was perhaps colored by a sense that she was unpleasant in her personal dealings. In live public forums, however, among people outside any feminist "inner circle," she was routinely received as captivating, magical, and galvanizing. Mediated forums offer an opportunity to consider how the needs and norms of television and journalism themselves construct a feminism and females in which style overwhelms - or at least outweighs - sociological insight and trying to return later. Only 74 percent of women who leave the workforce and want to return manage to do so, and only 40 percent return to full-time professional jobs, according to Bennetts's findings. Women's standards of living typically drop 36 percent when they divorce, while men's rise 28 percent. Bennetts is a full believer in the emotional benefits of marriage as partnership; her project here is to expose the financial realties of opting out of the workforce, even for just a few years. 9 Jennifer Maddox Sergent, "Remembering Julia McWilliams Child '34," Smith Alumnae Quarterly, summer 2004. 10 Daniel Horowitz, Betty Friedan and the Making of The Feminine Mystique (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1996), 86. Friedan did say in an interview that she would like her epitaph to read: "She helped make women feel really good about being women. Therefore, they were better able to freely love themselves and more fully love men"; see Glenn Lewis, "Betty Friedan's Life So Far: Personal Truths Spark a Movement," Library Journal (1 April 2000): 112. This content downloaded from 183.195.251.166 on Sat, 16 Jan 2016 12:04:58 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions