DWORKIN, ANDREA

born Sept. 26, 1946, Camden, N.J., U.S. American feminist and author, an outspoken critic of sexual politics, particularly of the victimizing effects of pornography on women. Dworkin began writing at an early age. During her undergraduate years at Vermont's Bennington College (B.A., 1968), she became involved with the student demonstrations against the Vietnam War. Her experience in the New York City Women's House of Detention following an arrest during one such demonstration led her to analyze critically what she perceived as the male subjugation of women. A number of books, such as Woman Hating: A Radical Look at Sexuality (1974) and Our Blood: Prophecies and Discourses on Sexual Politics (1976) followed, along with studies on pornography, which, according to Dworkin, is one of the main weapons men deploy to control women. In collaboration with the feminist lawyer Catharine A. MacKinnon, Dworkin wrote Pornography and Civil Rights: A New Day for Women's Equality (1988). Together they also drafted a controversial antipornography ordinance that, classifying pornography as a form of sex discrimination, empowers those who have been victimized to sue those who make or distribute pornography. A radical lesbian, Dworkin has also published in Gay Community News and other periodicals. In addition to her books on feminist theory, including Letters from a War Zone (1989) and Right-wing Women: The Politics of Domesticated Females (1983), Dworkin has also written a collection of short stories and the autobiographical novels Ice and Fire (1986) and Mercy (1991).