Feminism and the Degradation of Man Essay

Feminism is not a new concept. It has been a steadily increasing phenomenon and will continue to grow for many more years. In the article “Introduction” by Barbra Findlen, she speaks about her experience of growing up in a “massive, growing, vibrant feminist movement” (Findlen 15). From a young age many women are able to understand that there is an unfair treatment of women within any typically male dominated environment, regardless of the so-called “equality” the situation presents itself with. Findlen (16) argues that “change is possible, although [there are] struggles and risks in making change”. But why should there be so many struggles for women to receive the equality that we deserve especially when many people today, both women and men alike, consider themselves feminists? Why then do we see so many articles from feminists talking about their “feminist” co-workers for example, treating them differently than their male counterparts? I believe that it is hard for men to fully grasp the concept of feminism because they themselves have never had to experience the injustice that most women today face. I agree with Findlen when she writes:

The definition of feminism is very elusive. Maybe because of its ever-changing historical meaning, it’s not for certain whether there is any coherence to the term feminism or if there is a definition that will live up to the movement’s variety of adherents and ideas. In the book “No Turning Back,” author Estelle Freedman gives an accurate four-part definition of the very active movement: “Feminism is a belief that women and men are inherently part of equal worth. Because most societies privilege men as a group, social movements are necessary to achieve equality between women and men, with the understanding that gender always intersects with other social hierarchies” (Freedman 7).

The current feminist parties have changed the definition of feminism. Today’s current party feminists have changed from pushing for equality to bashing on men for everything. This is true because in current media feminists and even feminist parties back in the 70’s radical feminism started victimizing themselves in intentions of making men look like unintelligent brutes who intentionally try to make life harder for women. In reality, that is the very opposite of what feminism is. Radical feminists need to remember that feminism is about equality of men and women, not superiority of women.

As a result of the movement, women have been gaining rights from feminism for over a thousand years. The Feminist Movement officially started in Seneca Falls at the first Women’s convention. Where they fought for the right to vote, even though it took over 70 years for women to get the opportunity. The people who participate in the movement fought for numerous rights for women, like voting, birth control, and equality in the workplace(Simon). Without millions the of people supporting, Women wouldn’t be treated or have the same rights they do today. That’s why it’s still so important to support feminism because if no one does all the hard work of the women in the past would go to waste.

I don’t understand why people aren’t feminist or at least support women’s rights. The United States has come a far way but not that far for Women’s Rights. Women can now vote, be their own person, make their own money thanks to the people before us who had to fight for these

Although women are still facing unequal rights, feminism has affected society in a positive way. Women are now able to vote, they have freedom of speech, any women can get into college or a university, women are allowed to own property, etc. A perfect example would be Hillary Clinton who run for president in 2016. Hillary Clinton a woman who has been fighting for children in the past years. A woman who is not afraid to let her voice out. Hillary was the woman who stood against a man. Sadly, she lost the elections but people wonder what change could she had brought. Would women have had more equal rights? That’s a question which we probably won’t never know the answer. But one of the most active feminist who has fight for equal rights and wants

Feminism has changed over the years. It’s grown into a much more defined value in today’s society. Is that enough though? Not necessarily. The problem with the feminist movement is that it’s lost traction because of the diverse subgroups. It’s pretty hard for all the groups to conform onto one idealistic view of what feminism should stand for in our society. One thing stands out between all the groups though that they can agree on, and it is that women should be equal to men. Why hasn’t this been always a key thing though? Well, for America at least, this dates back to the Native Americans. Native Americans had men go out to hunt for food and do all the “strong” manual labor for the women as they sit home, cook, clean, and nurture the

“Feminist battled for decades to… wrest power from men, Congratulations men, you won.” After comments like this how do you not ask yourself if there is still a need for a feminist movement throughout the country? Although it is now 2015, women still must put up a fight for equality. Males and females are constantly being compared in society. Especially at work, whether it is by earning less, or being subjected to an unfavorable environment, women are still seen as inferior to men, even if it is not directly portrayed. This is a problem that has been ongoing since time began, movements for women to gain equality have been occurring for nearly two centuries. However, the goals set by women like, Mary Wollstonecraft, Jane Adams, and Betty Friedan still have yet to be fully accomplished. Now more than ever there is a strong need for a feminist moment, and with stronger women than ever, it can be accomplished once and for all.

Looking through history, feminism can be traced all the way back to the revolutionary war. In this time, women went as far as dressing as men in order to fight for their country and what they believe in. Later on, it is presented during the time of the Women’s Suffrage movement, allowing women to vote with the 19th Amendment. Although women always found ways to fight back against society, feminism was never an actual developed idea. It only began in the early 1960’s that women really started questioning why they were so inferior to men. Women weren 't allowed to have much of an opinion before the sixties; if they dared to say what they thought it would be considered absurd.

"Do you have a vagina? And do you want to be in charge of it? If you said 'yes ' to both, then congratulations -- you 're a feminist!" (Kingston). People who advertise feminism in this manner are exactly how feminists have reached the point they are today. Feminists are demonizing men to sexual predators and using popular culture as ground zero for their activism campaigns, to show females as either a victim or the hero who empowered herself as a woman. These absurd characteristics come to mind when someone speaks of feminism today. When a modern feminist does not adhere to some ridiculous trait people ask, is she really a feminist? As a society we do not recognize what feminism was created for. The true role of a feminist is to advocate women’s rights in hopes to achieve a political, social, and economic equality to men. Politically, a feminist should follow the lead of women candidates in the running for United States president. Socially, a feminist should stand against the men who exert social control over women. Economically, a feminist should stand against unequal pay for men and women. A feminists’ job is to uphold a civic responsibility through creating an equal environment for men and women. This is what feminism should be about, but that is no longer the case. The Western feminist is not interested in civic obligations that should be occurring, but instead with the overreaction to sexist elements in popular culture and the fixation of identity privileges.

Feminism has been portrayed in the media in a different perspective. It has been portrayed as a fight against men. This has created a picture that the female gender was fighting against the male gender.

So behind the scene, there are so many factors that jeopardize the efforts. Among them, male chauvinism accounts for the largest portion of it. In some parts of the world, men are taught that men are to be strong, to be courageous, and to be dominating, while women are weak and submissive，that men are superior, women are inferior, that women are property and objects. Just like what Tony Porter said in Ted: it is the collective civilization of men, better known as the “man box”, this man box has in it all the ingredients of how we define what it means to be a good man. They are acting like now we call “male chauvinism”. For them, feminist means anti-men and aggression. Consequently, they show great passion to crack down women’s fight for equality, thus making it untoward to

Canadian society is governed by customs and conventions – omnipresent norms that dictate behavior and define identities. They are typically resistant to change. While some of these customs and conventions are socially beneficial, others reinforce systemic oppression and stifle positive social growth. Typically, men are not overtly oppressed. The oppression of men and boys is entrenched within our society – deeply ingrained, and often difficult to notice. Make no mistake – men are suffering. The male gender role is socialized and maintained, damaging men’s well-being. The constraints of hegemonic masculinity often enforce violent behavior, prevent men from getting help, and perpetuate the notion that men cannot be victims of sexual abuse. We

"People who are liberal thinkers have been enslaved by these poseurs, these racketeers, people who are pretending to be liberal but who are in fact just naïve politically. I have been congratulated by women...who are so sick of being bullied by these sanctimonious puritans who call themselves feminists." --Camille Paglia

Feminism has been a topic of large debate over the last century or so. Lots of progress has been made in favor of women, and I for one am very pleased about that. I am a firm believer in equality for both men and women in all aspects of life, not just in the workforce or daily social norms. I was raised by a single mother along with a brother and two sisters. My mother did everything when were too young to contribute. She did everything from paying bills, cooking, providing housing, to cleaning. Seeing my mother do all of those things really engrained the fact that women are just as equal as men. I agree with Dorment’s assertion that “In the end, isn 't this what