The Feminist Killjoy Handbook

August 7, 2023
Feminist scholar Ahmed (Complaint!) delves into popular culture, literature, and philosophy in this fervent manifesto. Arguing that feminists must embrace a “feminist killjoy” ethos (a reference to the way feminists are often perceived as scolds and spoilsports), she draws on the work of theorists, activists, and poets—including Roxane Gay, Angela Davis, and Adrienne Rich—to reconstruct the negative archetype as an empowering ideal. She provides guidance for feminist killjoy activism, citing as an example her own support for students who lodged sexual harassment complaints at the University of London, where she worked, leading to her resignation in 2016. Through a process of analytical inquiry, Ahmed defines numerous “killjoy truths” (“if happiness requires turning away from violence, happiness is violence”; “discomfort reveals worlds”), which are gathered in a section at the end of the book. She writes with conviction and dedication, and while the narrative’s framework is theoretical (deploying such terms as “affect aliens” and “exteriority”), Ahmed brings impressive clarity to a field of study that is often opaque in the hands of others. Admirers of Maggie Nelson’s The Argonauts should take note.