Third-Wave Feminism

The severity of World War II directly impacted the future of American women by forcing them into positions of importance - a stark contrast to their traditional role as simple housewives. Without the jolting force of World War II shoving women into the somewhat uncomfortable position as the backbone of the nation’s labor force, traditions would have been perpetuated for decades longer. Because their wartime acts gave women nationwide a sense of self-confidence, they pushed for more rights in the proceeding decades with the rise of second-wave

After the French Revolution, the feminist movements have raised against domination of men and patriarchal society in Europe. There is no equality for women in the common world. Many Canadian women come out of their homes to work as an effect of First and Second World War. During the Second Wave Feminist Movement in 1970s, feminist writing in Canada starts to emerge and plays an active role in attacking the patriarchal society. Women have started raising their voice against domestic violence and for their rights. Canadian women also have fought for peace in the country and environmental issues. Aparna Basu states

Lily Tomlin, better know as Violet Newstead from the movie 9 to 5 really came into the role and performed greatly. Her character, Violet Newstead, was hard-working and had a vision of success. She knew what she wanted and she knew that she deserved it. You could see how much the 3rd Wave Feminism affected her because towards the second half of the movie you saw her become more powerful in her ways. She is more forceful and demanding because she knows that no matter what gender she is, she deserved what she was asking for. She worked hard for that promotion and Mr. Hart gave it to a man just because the job wasn’t fit for a women.

Other than the obvious time differences between first and second wave feminism, the real contrasts are found in what it was the women, and men in some cases, were fighting for. First-Wave feminists mainly fought for suffrage, while their Second-Wave sisters fought for a wider range of women’s rights.

As Third Wave feminism is currently unfolding before us, and its aims encompass a wide array of complex issues, it is often hard to describe what Third Wave feminism is. The feminist theories, mainly associated with First and Second Wave feminism attempt to describe the power imbalances that are found in society, and while doing so expose other oppressions, such as discrimination based on race or sexual orientation. As this essay attempts to place a clear definition to Third Wave feminism, feminists are concurrently trying to deconstruct old definitions and open it up for women to determine what feminism means to them. In other words, no clear definition on what is meant to be a feminist is sufficient, as the Third Wave is about

Decades following the Seneca Falls Convention, one of the very first advocacies for women’s rights, the Second-wave feminism in the 1960s saw itself as a movement that achieved great success in terms of women’s social, economic, and political rights. The Women’s Rights Movement that began in the sixties, in comparison to the first-wave feminism in the 19th century—whereas many activists focused on only women’s suffrage—the second-wave feminism dealt with a broader range of issues. From education, the patriarchal system, sexual rights, and the workforce, to advocating for reproductive rights and abortion, the Second-wave feminism allowed women to create more spaces for themselves. Yet, amidst the growing feminist movement, in spite of it being more inclusive to women of color and other minority groups in comparison to the first-wave, the second-wave feminism continued to see white middle-class women as the forefront of feminism. The second-wave of feminism brought both good and bad to the table. While they were able to pass things such as the Equal Pay Act and ensured protection in Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act, the movement was also flawed to the extent in which they failed to address intersectionality—an understanding of how oppressions of race, gender, class, and sexuality were issues not isolated from one another—and fell short in including the voices of minority women in movements such as the Black and Chicana feminism.

Towards the end of the twentieth century, feminist women in America faced an underlying conflict to find their purpose and true meaning in life. “Is this all?” was often a question whose answer was sought after by numerous women reaching deeper into their minds and souls to find what was missing from their life. The ideal second-wave feminist was defined as a women who puts all of her time into cleaning her home, loving her husband, and caring for her children, but such a belief caused these women to not only lose their identity within her family but society as well. The emotions that feminist women were feeling at this time was the internal conflict that caused for social steps to be taken in hopes of

Have you ever seen a slut walk? I mean women walk around naked saying that they are not asking for attention. Feminism originated in New York, 1848. “The first wave of feminism in the United States began with the Seneca Falls Convention, the first women's rights convention, held at the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, New York, on July 19 and 20, 1848.” (Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America:) Third Wave Feminism started in the mid-90’s. (“Four Waves of Feminism.”) More women hate third wave feminism than men. Third Wave Feminism claims that North America is a rape culture, that women are always right, and that all men are the same. We have no need for Third Wave Feminism. Although people may claim that we need Third Wave Feminism in the United States there are many reasons to prove that we indeed do not need this cancer in our country. “Feminism is Cancer” - Milo Yiannopoulos.

“You cannot be a humanist unless you are a feminist. You either advocate equality for all or you are a misanthrope” (Michael A. Sherlock). From women’s suffrage to abortion laws feminism has evolved with contemporary battles and a variety of approaches. The

Feminism can be described as a collection of ideologies that share the same aim; the belief that all people, regardless of gender, are entitled to the same rights and should be treated as equals. Women have been fighting for equal rights and expressing their feelings and concerns about discrimination since as early as the 18th Century, when the European Enlightenment developed the idea of ‘natural rights’ and Mary Wollstonecraft published her 1792 novel, ‘A Vindication of the Rights of Women’. Mary Wollstonecraft is often thought of as the first feminist philosopher and this novel is one of the first to be called ‘feminist’. Over time, there have been surges in feminist activities and times in history when feminists have pushed for their rights more than before.

The first and second wave feminist movements have led to a revaluation of the dominant patriarchal values perpetuated by the media, which is evident as ‘representations of women have changed greatly in the last 20 years alone to accommodate the changing role of women in society.’ This chapter seeks to explore the validity of this statement through content analysis of top-grossing feature films from the 1950s to the present day to determine whether ideals surrounding love and gender roles have been deconstructed in film over time.

Feminism by definition means the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social and economic equality to men. But many a time’s people restrict the boundary of these forgetting the very important element of diversity of women living in different places and in varied situations.

When referring to the history of feminism in the manner of the first, second, or third wave, one is undermining the experiences that were ongoing during, in middle of, and before those waves that history defines. What ideologies of oppression were being spoken of to raise awareness and whose experience was being excluded/diminished? The articulation of feminism in using the metaphor of waves to describe how the ideologies peaked and rescinded, is incorrect because it focuses only on the voices of those who were able to bring their problems to the surface and excludes those who had a different experience or may have brought awareness in a quieter manner. There are many feminisms and each interpretation is defined by the collective oppression, rather than looking at the situation in an individual perception, which is what creates disagreements and division between feminists. Many definitions of feminism, feminisms, exist simultaneously because it is evolving as fast (or, well, as slow) as the world is changing and if one group of people are to speak of others experience of oppression (or lack of) in place of them, the result can be the glossing over of experiences and therefore, undermine experiences of others.

The idea of women being equal to men has been debated for a very long time. Even when civilizations were just starting, most women were treated very differently from men. When women started fighting against this oppression they were called feminists. Feminism can be separated into three waves. The first wave of feminism was from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s. The second wave was from the 1960s to the 1980s. The third wave of feminism started in the 1990s, but its end is unclear. Some people believe it has ended and the fourth wave of feminism has started, but others believe it continues today. The different waves have been very different in some aspects, but very similar in others. The main differences between the first and third wave of feminism are what they fought for, how they protested, and society’s reaction to their cause.

In 1776, the then First Lady of the United States was the first to raise her about women’s rights, telling her husband to “remember the ladies” in his drafting of new laws, yet it took more than 100 years for men like John Adams to actually do so. With the help of half a dozen determined, and in this case white upper-middle-class, women the first-wave feminism, which spans from the 19th century to the early 20th century, finally led to their goal after 72 years of protesting. The Nineteenth Amendment, which secured the rights for women to vote finally passed in 1920. This grand victory brought other reforms along, including reforms in the educational system,