Men are from Mars Women are from Venus
1 journaler for this copy...
Overrated, in my opinion.
As an introduction to interpersonal skills this is an OK book to start.
But... you get all the basic information in the first half; the rest is mostly repetition. In terms of writing style, it is non-technical and the concepts are easy to grasp, but I have to say the metaphors tire easily.
There are some obvious limitations to the theories here. The categorization of gender into two distinct 'types' doesn't allow for adequate interpretation of the varieties of personalities within the 2 genders.
The author assumes that a man-woman relationship involves the traditional (long-term) goals of marriage, family, etc. Also, he does not bother to offer a disclaimer regarding the fact that many of the relationship crises offered as examples to be analyzed here can and do occur in non-heterosexual relationships, where the mars/venus gender distinctions obviously don't apply.
I've also been asking myself to what extent Mr. Gray is biased by his own masculine gender (or even his Western/Anglo upbringing). Not all women are the way the author assumes they are by nature/nurture. As for myself, I have to put a conscious effort into being an "empathic listener" (a Venusian attribute) and I certainly don't have the ability to understand other women intuitively, as Mr. Gray believes we women do.
As an introduction to interpersonal skills this is an OK book to start.
But... you get all the basic information in the first half; the rest is mostly repetition. In terms of writing style, it is non-technical and the concepts are easy to grasp, but I have to say the metaphors tire easily.
There are some obvious limitations to the theories here. The categorization of gender into two distinct 'types' doesn't allow for adequate interpretation of the varieties of personalities within the 2 genders.
The author assumes that a man-woman relationship involves the traditional (long-term) goals of marriage, family, etc. Also, he does not bother to offer a disclaimer regarding the fact that many of the relationship crises offered as examples to be analyzed here can and do occur in non-heterosexual relationships, where the mars/venus gender distinctions obviously don't apply.
I've also been asking myself to what extent Mr. Gray is biased by his own masculine gender (or even his Western/Anglo upbringing). Not all women are the way the author assumes they are by nature/nurture. As for myself, I have to put a conscious effort into being an "empathic listener" (a Venusian attribute) and I certainly don't have the ability to understand other women intuitively, as Mr. Gray believes we women do.
