The book explores the twin concepts, Womanbeing and Womanself. Using novels written by black women in the U.S., Africa and the Caribbean, the book illustrates how the characters live out their lives either in a state of womanbeing or in a state of womanself or both. To illustrate the twin concepts, the author draws from a work by Jean Paul Satre, titled Being and Nothingness. The author also theorizes on the origin of inequalities between men and women and how that led to the dominance of men over women. The author also claims that women perpetuate the surbordinate position of women unwittingly accepting the assertion by men that women are weak and need the guidance and protection of men.