Louise Perry and Mary Harrington: The Feminization of Society

In this thought-provoking episode of Socrates in the City, Mary Harrington and Louise Perry engage in a deep, wide-ranging conversation about the state of modernity, feminism, and societal transformation. They trace Perry’s intellectual journey from her progressive education at SOAS to her current critical stance on the sexual revolution and fourth-wave feminism, highlighting how exposure to extreme ideological currents early on sharpened her ability to recognize their flaws. The discussion explores the paradox of online culture: while it enabled radical ideas like gender fluidity to flourish, it has also led to a backlash as people grow weary of its emotional volatility and disembodied discourse. They examine the 'feminization of society' not as a cultural decline but as a symptom of broader shifts—managerialism, technological change, and the erosion of physical embodiment—arguing that social media itself may be feminizing public life by suppressing violence and amplifying endless talk. The hosts also confront the growing tension between feminism and concerns about women’s safety, particularly regarding migrant grooming gangs and the limitations of identity politics. Perry’s forthcoming book on fertility, grounded in the theory of mortality salience, posits that the sharp decline in birth rates across the West is not due to economics or ideology alone, but to the psychological effect of near-zero child mortality: when children are guaranteed to survive, the instinct to reproduce fades. Despite the existential risks of technological collapse and demographic decline, both hosts express cautious hope—rooted in the resilience of the human spirit and the enduring value of modernity, even if it must one day end.