What eight million women want
is a histori cal account written during the early 20th century. The book explores the social, economic, and political status of women in America, reflecting on their increasing independence and collective desires as they push toward equality and self-fulfillment in a rapidly changing society. It addresses criti cal issues such as women'ssuffrage, laborrights, andsocialservice, highlight ing the voices and needs of millions of women actively seeking to redefine their roles. The opening of the book introduces the author's intent to shed light on the common ideals and wants of women, which have often been overlookedandmisinterpretedby society, particularlybymen. Dorrsetsthe stage by sharing statistics about women's rising participation in the work force, increasing divorce rates, and growing movements for suffrage and so cial reform. She argues against the traditionally held belief that women's de sires are too varied and complextounderstand, assertinginsteadthatthereis a unified and consistent demand for recognition and respect from both so cietal and legal institutions, framing the discussion as not just about women as individuals, but as a collective force seeking equality and justice I have had it pointed out, notaltogether facetiously, that it is impossible to determine with accuracy what one woman, much less what any number of women, wants. I sympathize with the first half of the tradition. The desires, that is to say, the ideals, of an individual, man or woman, are not always easy to determine. The individual is complex and exceedingly prone to variation. The mass alone is consistent. The ideals of the mass of women are wrapped in mystery simply because no one has cared enough about them to inquire what they are. Men, ardently, eternally, interested in Woman-one woman at a time-are almost never even faintly interested in women. Strangely, deliberately ig norant of women, they argue that their ignorance is justified by an innate unknowableness of the sex
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