A BOOK REVIEW: FEMINISM ANDNERSUS FEMINITY OF MODERN WOMEN THE FEMALE THING: DIRT, SEX, ENVY, AND VULNERABILITY Laura Kipnis New York: Pantheon Books 2006 173 pp. ISBN-I0: 0375424172 Reviewed by B. Retang Wohangara l One important theme attached to pop culture is the politics of representation and sub-cultural identity. The pop singer Madonna and then the Spice Girls are frequently regarded as the representation of modern women offering a different face of feminism ideology. Successfully entering the market competition, Madonna, through her cry of 'material girl', characterizes herself as an independent woman in the still dominating patriarchal world while challenging the burden of B. Retang Wohangara, S.S., M.Hum. is a full- time lecturer of the Faculty of Leners, Soegijapranata Catholic University, Semarang. He is currently working his way to being a doctorate candidate in Indiana Bloomingston, U.S.A. with Ford Foundation. B.R. Wohangara, Book Review: FeminisimlFeminity of Modem Women 195 ironic way to rouse the consciousness of the inner conflicts and inconsistencies characterizing the modem female condition. The book may be leafed through as an audit of feminism's progress, which is hopefully recognisable to every woman. Kiplin does not offer, neither does mean, to offer advices to the ambivalence between feminism and femininity of modem female situation, as she lets her readership to figure them out by stating "a full accounting of the female situation at the moment would need to start roughly here" (2006:163) at the end of the book. In this consumer-driven culture, women progress is challenged by the 'something is missing' notion and it is indeed the huge task of women to (re)construct their personalities and lifestyles without moaning too much about men. In her funny and fierce presentation, she reminds women to look at themselves as worst enemies in the battle for equal rights. BIBLIOGRAPHY Kipnis, Laura. The Female Thing: Dirt. Sex, Envy, and Vulnerability. New York: Pantheon Books, 2006. Mandzuik, Roseann. "Feminists Politics and Postmodem Seductions. In PostJeminism. Feminism, Cultural Theory and Cultural Forms. Edited by Ann Brooks. Routledge: London, 1997. Swastika, Alia. "Apakah Saya Feminist? Mengeja Girl Power dalam Majalah Gadis". In Jurnal Perempuan, Vol. 34. Yayasan Jumal Perempuan: Jakarta, 2004. logo: