She had gone on publicity tours and was interviewed on television many times. She had a large teaching program that included about 1,500 teachers from around the world. So many women had taken her class by the time the book was printed, they sold out very quickly and found they had to publish more.īefore they actually got a publisher a few years later, they had sold about 75,000 out of their garage, Helen had written a workbook for students and was working on a sequel for single girls, more updated to the 1960’s called Fascinating Girl. It filled up their garage and they were suddenly in the publishing business. Aubrey got the best break financially when he agreed to publish 5,000 books, and that’s just what they did. In those days, paperback wasn’t really an option. She found it difficult to find a publisher for her book so she and Aubrey decided to just do it themselves. She had not only adapted them for married women, but had felt inspired to include other principals not even mentioned in the 1922 version. Some people have mistakenly thought the book she wrote was basically a copy of the original booklets. These ladies begged her to write down everything she had been teaching them in a book so they could read it multiple times. She moved to a local church and taught women on a larger scale. One thing led to another and soon her classes had gotten so big that she couldn’t teach them in her home any longer. She discovered that there were many women who longed for the same thing she did so she offered to teach a class in her home to about 8 women. Further conversations with friends on the subject inspired her to adapt portions of the pamphlets and develop a unique philosophy. She was amazed by how quickly Aubrey responded to the principles of Fascinating Womanhood and how happy her marriage became. She loaned the booklets to Helen they changed her life forever. Verna told her of some little booklets she had that might help her. Helen confided to her about her search for a deeper relationship with Aubrey. Her good friend Verna Johnson came to her one day to visit. Their marriage was stable and they were devoted to each other but there was something lacking. But the love she dreamed about seemed elusive and she longed to have her childhood dream a reality. Aubrey was handsome, smart, funny and ambitious. When she met her future husband, Aubrey Andelin, she was on her way to achieving that dream. Like many girls growing up, she dreamed of living happily ever after with the man of her dreams. This list also works as something of a nifty poem.Helen Berry Andelin was born May 22, 1920, the 6th of 7 children with 3 sisters and 3 brothers. To give you a feel for her book, without actually having to read it, here is a selection of terms from the index of Fascinating Womanhood. But I think most of us agree that taking responsibility for your own happiness by assuming the burdens of a self-actualized person is infinitely better than retreating into fear, dependence, and submission. Many, if not most women do want to find a life partner who will cherish, support and protect them, and maybe even open a door or two, and many of these women find themselves emotionally crushed under cultural pressure to be strong, independent women who can be all things at all times. The general message is "be delightful and compliant, and your husband will stop being a dick to you."ĭespite the knee-jerk reaction of anger and disgust most people now have toward these books, they do have valuable things to say about what we lost as we moved closer to gender equality. They promote traditional gender roles and divisions of labor, and generally abhor the idea of a woman taking a leadership role in her relationships. Anti-feminist texts, such as Fascinating Womanhood, The Surrendered Wife, and Created to Be His Helpmeet, are pretty much what you'd expect them to be. In 1963, Helen Andelin wrote a book called Fascinating Womanhood, which captured the tenor of the anti-feminist backlash.
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