Question

simone de beauvoirs 1949 work the second sex is widely regarded as a foundational text of feminist philosophy. in the book, de beauvoir analyzes the historical and social construction of womens subordinate status across cultures and epochs. while the work addresses numerous aspects of womens experience, scholars continue to debate which of de beauvoirs arguments proved most influential for subsequent feminist thought. in an essay on twentieth - century philosophy, a scholar argues that de beauvoirs most revolutionary contribution was her rejection of biological determinism—her insistence that femininity is not an innate essence derived from female anatomy but rather a set of behaviors, expectations, and self - understandings that are culturally imposed and individually internalized through lived experience.
12 ▪ mark for review
which quotation from a scholarly work on feminist philosophy would most effectively support the scholars claim?
a “de beauvoirs exhaustive historical survey demonstrated that womens oppression has taken remarkably consistent forms across otherwise divergent civilizations, suggesting that patriarchy constitutes a near - universal structure of human societies.”
b “de beauvoirs famous declaration that one is not born but rather becomes a woman fundamentally reframed the question of sexual difference, locating femininity not in biology but in the social processes through which gendered subjects are formed.”
c “the second sex drew extensively on de beauvoirs existentialist framework, applying sartres concepts of bad faith and authenticity to analyze how women become complicit in their own subordination by accepting limiting roles as natural.”
d “by documenting the economic dependence that marriage historically imposed on women, de beauvoir revealed how material conditions rather than inherent capacities explained womens exclusion from public and intellectual life.”

Explanation:

The scholar's claim focuses on de Beauvoir's rejection of biological determinism, emphasizing that femininity is socially/culturally imposed, not innate. Option B's quotation about "one is not born but rather becomes a woman" directly ties to this, as it locates femininity in social processes (not biology), matching the scholar's argument. Option A focuses on historical oppression/patriarchy structure, C on existentialist framework and women's complicity, D on economic dependence—none match the "rejection of biological determinism" focus as well as B.

Answer:

B. "De Beauvoir’s famous declaration that one is not born but rather becomes a woman fundamentally reframed the question of sexual difference, locating femininity not in biology but in the social processes through which gendered subjects are formed."