I Hate Men

Written by Pauline Harmange

Narrated by Emily Lucienne

The feminist book they tried to ban in France ‘A delightful book’ Roxane Gay

Women, especially feminists and lesbians, have long been accused of hating men. Our instinct is to deny it at all costs. (After all, women have been burnt at the stake for admitting to less.)

But what if mistrusting men, disliking men – and yes, maybe even hating men – is, in fact, a useful response to sexism? What if such a response offers a way out of oppression, a means of resistance? What if it even offers a path to joy, solidarity and sisterhood?

In this sparkling essay, as mischievous and provocative as it is urgent and serious, Pauline Harmange interrogates modern attitudes to feminism and makes a rallying cry for women to find a greater love for each other – and themselves.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Translator: Natasha Lehrer
• Release date: Nov 26, 2020
• ISBN: 9780008457617

Pauline Harmange

Pauline Harmange (born 1995) is a French feminist writer and self-declared misandrist who became the subject of international news coverage after her 96-page essay I Hate Men sold out its press run after a French governmental official attempted to censor the book. She lives in Lille.

Reviews for I Hate Men

[A_Mulligan · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Surprisingly, this book was very inspirational to me as a man. In a way, it’s all about how to stop letting people who resent you define your self worth. There are a lot of men who deserve that same self confidence. Additionally, this book helped me realize how much easier I have it than I have realized; how much more I could get away with. Not that I think it’s right to try to get away with as much as the author grants men, but it helps me realize I have been so much harder on myself than I need to be. There are people out there who will simply hate you, and that’s okay.

[Ezioma Blog · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A book about feminism, misandry, toxic masculinity and other related topics.

[DanielOreno · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Im a man. I listened to this hoping to find either insight or comedy but there is neither. Man hating and feminist cheerleading is fine but the book is vapid and lacks any substance. It’s just boring and thoughtless complaining. Yawn.

[smirnovasarla · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Listened to inform myself, thank you, women. 100% suggest to anyone, i, myself struggle with books and audiobooks, but this was a perfect fit for me. From the reading to the content, truly amazing.

[nonodarkheart98 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It was an enjoyable audiobook. I loved the topic, it's a reflection of the world we live in.

[Simi Ha · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amazing book! So refreshing to hear a woman speak openly.

[YQ · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a must-read for all women. Reading/Listening to the essay was like doing a self-check-in around all the areas of my life to identify how to reshape them intentionally with women's power, influence, and nourishing bonds. It's also generally great to hear another woman, albeit being someone so different from myself, articulate the same darn frustration and anger you have regarding men and their systematizing misogyny.

[Madalena Afonso · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

3.5⭐️ Witty and entertaining. It brings some new perspectives and refreshes some old ones.

[anna · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved all of it. It almost seemed to be one run on poem. Just every cylibal, it put so many new questions & thoughts in my mind & anger in my gut. Loved it, everything, the reader, I’m so in, thank you my loves. ❤️

[Cinnamon Trundle · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed listening to this and the narration was brilliant. Some aspects of the book were very problematic for me but I also agreed with so much of the text. Definitely thought-provoking

[maria eduarda · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

é bom mas não me falou nada de novo. uma boa leitura pra quem ainda tá sendo introduzido no assunto

[brittany · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

All women should read this! Especially if you aren’t a feminist.

[AC Morgavi · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A good hour with some interesting insights, though nothing really new under the sun. I can't make peace with the concept of hating men. I think it tars everyone with the same brush and I think it is unfair. Still is another book to reflect on the damage of patriarchy, so always a good thing.

[thewestwing-864351 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

While I can see why people criticise this book, I thought it provided some good insights into how persistent the patriarchy is and how it’s often ingrained into both sexes psyche.

[Lisa Isablogger · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I don't think I'd embrace hating men to the extent of the author if I was in a long happy marriage like her. But overall, she's right.

[Margot · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Short book but very well explained. Excellent for learning more about feminist issues and misanthropy. (Translated from Spanish)

[SofaP · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very interesting reading if you don't know much about the feminist topic. It's very interesting. I got it from the blind book section of the library, and it's the first book I've read on this subject. But it's really, really interesting.

FEBRUARY 2022 (Translated from Spanish)

[antao-3 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Why, Mrs. Harmange , when you state you believe women are powerless to stop this, do you believe men can? Why then hate us when that's turns out not to be true? Do I, as a man, have any louder a say on this issue than a woman? Any bigot, abuser, murderer or other such actively destructive misanthrope engendered by our culture can only be stopped by all of us together. The confrontational approach of feminists only aggravates the situation, and loses any sympathy there otherwise may be for their cause. All you're saying here is "we can't stop this alone". But rather than engage with others and solicit their assistance rationally, you automatically condemn before them there's any attempt to even put your case.

I loathe feminists. I equally loathe chauvinists.

Please stop with all this "it's your fault" and simply continue to highlight the issues that disgust us all so we can all work together to solve them. The "Full Stop" campaign did not demonise men as a whole, only those loathsome enough to commit these atrocities, and asked us *all* to help. You'll never influence behaviour when you crassly persecute half the population simply for having been born. Continue to do that, and you'll simply add to the numbers of those unwilling to take women seriously - and feminists in particular.

Anyone who uses physical violence against another person (except in self defense) deserves nothing but contempt. I'm not sure many people would disagree. Others can argue about statistics, which I always mistrust, and about who does what to whom more often and whether or not they report it to the police. Still, the most common situation I see when I'm out and about involving violence is mothers hitting their children. And if you've ever tried speaking out about that, you'll KNOW what thanks you'll get for it. Does this mean women are more violent than men? Of course not. Does this mean that children who grow up thinking violence is a way to get a message across are the victims of female indoctrination? Probably not. But if I wrote a book with a headline "Why I hate women - at least those who beat their children, and those who do nothing to stop it" would I be guilty of misogyny? Of course I would. And if I wanted to try to reduce the incidence of children being brutalised in this way, it would be a self-defeating book to boot. It's not that we disagree Harmange. But if you want a fruitful debate, your book (and its pathetic qualification) are never going to achieve it.

With this line of inquiry, I think Harmange's hit a rich seam of material for future books. I look forward to next one, "Why I hate blacks - At least those who perpetrate robberies and those who do nothing to stop it", and perhaps "Why I hate Muslims - At least those who murder in the name of Islam and those who do nothing to stop it". Of course, some might argue that this viewpoint is simplistic and unhelpful. But what's an internet blog for, if not for people like yourself to display their stupidity and ignorance to the aghast world?

The trouble with books like these is that it reinforces tribalism. Male, female, gay, straight, black, white, young, old, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, atheist ....within all these groups are people of all kinds- compassionate and definitely not so. The moment we pigeonhole people - according to some broad definition or other- and then say it is okay to hate them, we perpetuate the deep violence which is latent in the human race. Let's go for compassion and then deal with injustice when it arises in specific cases with individual people, or groups which have a explicit policy of aggression or oppression or have institutionalised it informally.

[Sh · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A simple essay on how women can slip away from the gaze of others, masculine and patriarchal, to give ourselves to ourselves and our friends. The resentment towards the masculine is, after all, a formula for resistance and the preservation of a space that is constantly invaded and assaulted. (Translated from Spanish)