My Life on the Road Final

Before reading Gloria Steinem’s My Life on the Road I researched the author and anticipated reading a book centered on feminism. I expected many of her journies on the road to be in advocacy of spreading women's rights. While she does talk extensively about her first trip for social activism in India and traveling across the country preaching for equality, I was more fascinated by her connection to the road and what it really meant to her.

Gloria’s life on the road began as a child of a doting father who couldn’t sit still. She talks about her father being an impulsive and spontaneous man, never settling down for a minute and becoming a jack of all trades in order to get by. In her early years, she was forced to living on the road because she was living under the wing of her father who brought her along for all of his adventures. But in her later years, after his unfortunate death, she continued living on the road by free will. I find the idea of living on the road to be quite metaphorical. It appeared to me that the road became her liberation. Not that Gloria lived an oppressed life, but her dad had alternative wishes for her path into adulthood and her mom suffered from mental issues which shackled Gloria down during the years that she had to take care of her. It makes sense to me why the road attracted her so much. Not entirely because that’s what she grew up doing, but because in a sense it gave her control over her own life and was the only constant throughout the years. I don’t interpret it as her driving away from her troubles, but rather using the road as a way to reflect on them, learn from them, and be able to move forward to make a difference. The road was a symbol of independence and clarity. It reminded her of her father, who she loved dearly and shared a very special bond with, and relieved her from the feeling of being trapped by her mother’s troubles.

It might seem ironic that for a woman who spent most of her life traveling, with adoration for the road, she didn’t have a license. I find it speaks to her character and personality which comes through during the book. She is very conscious and introspective of her surroundings. She doesn’t simply sit in a car and drive. She listens to her taxi drivers’ stories and forms ideas on what social issues are apparent in the daily lives of citizens. She cares for the people and wants to take action to better their lives. She learned a great deal from her cab drivers because throughout their day they gained knowledge by interacting with diverse people, listening to the news on the radio, and having the time to think out the world and make forecasts. It seemed as though not driving herself was ideal as it served to be the platform of her work as an activist. Through driving with others she learned about what issues mattered that she could then work towards fixing.

Gloria Steinem is a formidable woman. She devoted her life to making a difference in the world while being very analytical about things which she shared in her book. I found these explanations and interpretations of the world we live in to be very insightful. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book!