The New Feminine: Womanhood in the 21st century

An exceedingly thoughtful mystery guest takes us on a tour of how notions of femininity and motherhood are changing culturally, politically, symbolically, and psychically. We discuss the history of the masculine and feminine archetypes, especially in mythological representations, and recent efforts at their revival by figures like Jordan Peterson. While there is value in salvaging what we can from these, it seems undeniable that contemporary gender politics, much like the broader existential vacuum in which we find ourselves, is a function of these classic maps of meaning being substantially played out. What will replace them? We explore some answers in recent representations of "bad" women and the "heroine's journey", an amalgam of the hero's journey and virgin's journey that are omnipresent in myths and fairy-tales.