When Was 'The Second Sex' Published?

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir is a classic text of feminism. The year of publication of The Second Sex in France was 1949. The year of publication of The Second Sex in the U.S. was 1953. In both countries, the book quickly sold thousands of copies.

Simone de Beauvoir was an influential existentialist writer, philosopher and feminist. She had published other writing in France before 1949, including the novel She Came to Stay (in French, L’Invitee) in 1943. Many U.S. feminists of the 1960s and 1970s cited The Second Sex and Simone de Beauvoir as important influences. The Second Sex has been widely studied in classes on women’s studies and feminist theory.

There was some controversy about the first translation of The Second Sex into English.  Critics have said that the translation was rushed and that essential parts of the book were both cut out and mistranslated. A long-awaited new translation into English was published in 2010.