Studs Terkel interviews writer and artist Simone de Beauvoir at her home in Paris, France, where they discuss her family history, early writing career and artistic influences, individualism, and the creative commitment required to be a successful writer.

A 1976 interview with the feminist novelist and poet is rebroadcast after her passing in 1995.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

The journalist and writer discusses Heartburn, her first novel, which, according to Terkel, is best read out loud. He and Ephron take turns readings their favorite passages and analyzing the characters. The novel was later made into a film of the same name starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

Discussing the book, 'Uncommon Women', published in 1981. The book chronicles the lives of Gwendolyn Brooks, Julie Harris, Sarah Caldwell, Maria Tallchief, Alice Neel, Mary McCarthy, Eugenia Zukerman, Roberta Peters, and Mary Lou Williams, discussing the impressive things they have accomplished in their respective professions ranging from poetry, to opera, to literature, and art and abstraction.

Sasha, the main character in Alix Kates Shulman's book, "Memoirs of an Ex-Prom Queen" is obsessed and worried about her good looks. Sasha is all of 24 now, and she was told that by the time she's 30, her good looks will fade. Once a new queen is named, Sasha's mother tells her, you become a has been. The prom queen theme of the book, says Shulman, is to compete for the man and to be #1. Similar to the Miss America contest, women are parading before the men, parading before the judges for their attention.

Margaret Atwood discusses her book "The Handmaid's Tale" and the real life and biblical events that inspired it. The show also includes two interludes with Erich Fromme discussing "Escape from Freedom".

In Susan Brownmiller's book, "Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape," Brownmiller shows her audience how and why rape is a crime of one's mind and not one of passion. According to Brownmiller, rape is man's dominance over a woman.