Austin Chapter
Reader's Guide

March 2005

The Dance of the Dissident Daughter
Sue Monk Kidd

1. Somewhere midway the book, I asked myself: Is this a memoir or a thesis? I think I was reacting to all the cited references. Do you agree or disagree with my reaction? How did you feel about the book in general in comparison to other memoirs?

2. On page 14 she quotes Pinkola Estes: "When a woman is cut away from her basic source, she is sanitized." What do you think this means?

3. Beginning on page 45 Kidd lists her feminine scripts as being: gracious lady, church handmaid, secondary partner, many-breasted mother, favored daughter and silent woman. Can you list your scripts?

4. On the bottom of page 58 is a quote familiar to SC members. What is the significance of this quote to you?

5. Prior to page 63, Kidd has been discussing masculine and feminine differences. On page 63 she makes the statement "...the problem seemed to me not that there are difference but rather how we value these differences." What are some positive ways to value the differences between men and women?

6. The first complete paragraph on page 82 that begins "As a woman,..." suggested to me a source for her initial problem. How do you respond to this paragraph?

7. Throughout the book, Kidd makes much mention of her husband and their relationship during her journey; however, it is on these two pages that she really sums up this relationship and particularly how he was affected. What do you think he is like? From a writing perspective, why did she "give away the ending" here?

8. Close to the bottom of page 111 is the statement: "Wherever there is deliverance and release in a woman's life from the oppression of patriarchal consciousness, there is Theseus." Do you have a Theseus?

9. I was struck by the abundance of "symbology" she reacted to and how significant her dreams were. Do you think her journey made her more aware, or had she always been so sensitive and aware?

10. It frequently takes a series of wake-up calls or collisions with the truth to jolt a woman into a deep awakening to the Sacred Feminine. What experiences have served as wake-up calls for you?*

11. How do you respond to the word Goddess? Does it create anxiety in you? Why? Do you think it helps to break the lock that patriarchy has on divine imagery?*

12. Kidd concludes that since images, symbols, and words for God are necessary, they should be balanced and equitable. Do you agree with her that imbalance in our pictures of God perpetuates imbalance in our societies? In what ways does our world suffer from this imbalance? What impact does it have on the psychological and spiritual unfolding of girls and boys, women and men?*

*Questions from back of book.

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