Introduction

Chapter Seven continues the themes developed in Chapter Six and explores the position of contemporary women public intellectuals and considers initially the issue of whether women successfully combine a high-level and demanding political or corporate life with a family life. This is particularly an issue for women with children. The question is posed in the context of an article written by Anne-Marie Slaughter, a highly successful and experienced academic who moved into the administration to serve under Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and who outlines some of the challenges for women of combining political roles with family life. Slaughter (2012) draws on the experiences of three women in particular in outlining her case: Elizabeth Warren, Hillary Clinton and Sheryl Sandberg. This chapter examines how all three women fared as public intellectuals in the context of contemporary political and corporate life.

Anne-Marie Slaughter is president of the New America Foundation and is the Bert G. Kerstetter ‘66 University Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University. She was previously Director of Policy Planning for the US State Department under Hillary Clinton and the dean of Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. She was the first woman director of policy planning at the State Department, taking a two-year public service leave from Princeton University.

In a startling article in The Atlantic magazine in 2012, entitled ‘Why Women Still Can't Have it All’, Slaughter sets out the issues for women who have moved from academic life into the administration in Washington, DC and how this impacts on family life. Given her high-profile positions in academic and corporate life, her article and subsequent decisions surprised and indeed shocked women who are attempting to balance career aspirations with a family life. As Slaughter (2012: 3) comments: ‘I routinely got reactions from other women my age and older that ranged from disappointed (“It's a pity that you had to leave Washington”) to condescending (“I wouldn't generalise from your experience. I’ve never had to compromise and my kids turned out great”).’

In her article, Slaughter sets out the differences between academic and political life, at least in the US, saying that she spent her career in academia as a law professor and then as a dean.