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Beyond Chaos:

Wrestling with Jordan Peterson's Notion of the Feminine

By Annette Poizner, MSW, Ed.D.

Available in Print and E-book

A Woman's Guide to Jordan Peterson?
 

Thousands report that Jordan Peterson's insights have helped them achieve life-altering change. Yet, by Peterson's own admission, the lion's share of his followers are male. A question looms: are there jewels in his opus which could be accessed by women? Annette Poizner says there are, but first this group needs to better understand what Peterson is actually saying about the feminine in order to dismantle the resistance that prevents some women from approaching Peterson's work.
 

Does Peterson's talk of 'chaos' as feminine trigger you? Do you disagree with many of his political positions? Poizner asserts that approaching his material with a will to understand yields rewards: readers can benefit from insights that many have used to motor dramatic life changes, while maintaining the license to reject those (political or otherwise) that don't jibe for any given woman. Women can benefit from the materials that Peterson has generously shared online, delving into constructs of masculine and feminine that are as old as antiquity. Peering through the lens of Traditional Chinese Medicine and ancient Jewish mysticism, Poizner will flesh out Peterson's model, showing how his material resonates deeply with classic philosophies that guide us well, even in contemporary times.

Annette Poizner, a writer, counselor, executive coach and feminist, brings unique credentials to the task of introducing Peterson's opus specifically to those women who have, to date, stood in opposition. Born in the 60s, Poizner grew up strongly identified with the feminist movement and remains committed to the cause of progress for women, finding justification for that progress that extends back to Genesis, in the Hebrew Bible. Her worldview, influenced by Chinese Medical theory, Jewish mysticism and the psychology of Carl Jung, equips her to perform a rich and detailed rendering of Yin and Yang, masculine and feminine, towards the end of unpacking Peterson's frame and bringing those teachings to life. Poizner, who differs with Peterson on some issues, provides a bridge for women who need help getting over the hump; helping them understand where Peterson has been vilified and misquoted, where he advances clinical insight that can make life better and where they can easily agree to disagree. In terms of the latter, in so doing women can deliciously host the paradox of life, itself; the paradox that the masculine and feminine polarities are, more than anything else, here to teach us.
 

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