What Went Wrong Analysis

- “The main issues we face today were prefaced by the work done by the previous waves of women. We are still working to vanquish the disparities in male and female pay and the reproductive rights of women. We are working to end violence against women in our nation as well as others. We are still fighting for acceptance and a true understanding of the term ‘feminism,’ it should be noted that we have made tremendous progress since the first

In the year 1848 America held the first gathering dedicated to women’s rights; after decades of fighting for women’s equality, the 1920’s national election was the first for women to cast their presidential vote. The feminist movement, as a unisex advocacy, has had some successes other than voting rights, such as discrimination related to equal pay, having credit cards in their own names, terminating pregnancy, purchasing contraception or “the pill”, attending prestigious schools, becoming an astronaut or supreme court justice, and many more that have now been fixed due to this movement. So the question remains: do we still need feminism? After all, there have been many successes and several women claim they “don’t need feminism anymore”; however,

Roxane Gay, author of the article entitled “Bad Feminist”, is a very accomplished American feminist writer. Her publication of “Bad Feminist” in 2012 gained national public attention (1). Feminism, as defined in the dictionary, is “the advocacy of women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes” (2), but Gay explains throughout her article that being a feminist is not just as simple as agreeing with this need for gender equality. The feminist label is too narrow and because of this the feminist movement is breaking apart. In this piece, Gay addresses how our society currently defines feminism and explains why this definition does not encompass everybody that it should.

The women’s liberation movement (or feminism as it is now known) of the 1960s and 1970s touched every home, business, and school (WA, 705). The movement even touched the sports and entertainment industries, in fact, “There are few areas of contemporary life untouched by feminism” (WA, 717). The word feminism in the early 1960’s wasn’t often used and when it was it was used with condescension or hatred. However, in the late sixties that changed thanks to a new group of women. This new diverse group of women included the: young, old, heterosexual, lesbians, working class, and even the privileged. This diverse group came together and collectively created the second wave of feminism.

When thinking about feminism in today’s society we tend to direct our minds and thoughts to a more radical and powerful train of thought. Feminism has been going on for centuries, with two main ideologies at the forefront; liberal and cultural feminism. Someone who identifies as a liberal feminist is someone who believes that women and men are a like and equal in most respects and deserve equal roles and opportunities (Wood & Fixmer-Oraiz, 2017, p. 58). And cultural feminism is someone who identifies as someone who believes that men and women are fundamentally differently; you have different rights, role and opportunities (Wood & Fixmer-Oraiz, 2017, p. 58). The women’s rights movement can be understood and broken down into three “waves”.

Feminists today are viewed as raging, man-hating bitches, but feminism in its true sense simply advocates women’s rights. While there are extremes on either side of the scale, most feminists fight

What does it mean to be a Feminist? Does it automatically mean you hate men or does it mean you're an activist for women's rights? Contrary to popular belief, feminism is not about establishing a superior gender. It is about fighting for equality and destroying the social, cultural and historical norms set upon women throughout the world. The Twenty-first century has brought change and growth to female empowerment. Although, in many parts of the world women are given the same rights as men, they are still treated and viewed inferior to men. G.I. Jane perfectly illustrates the struggle women have gone through, even when given “identical” opportunities as men.

Because women come from all races, social classes, and age, they have been an important instrument in shaping western ideology and the world. Feminism is a broad term encompassing the entirety of the historical movement in the nineteenth century and the philosophical thought leading into the twentieth century (Zophy and Kavenik 206). Although the term wasn’t popularized until the 1950’s and 60’s, it represents the ideology into the modern era. With Woman’s History being a major thread of United States history, it is important we understand the progression of women’s rights, freedoms, and feminism throughout the Colonial Era, the Woman’s Suffrage Movement, and the rise of second and third wave

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).

During these last thirteen weeks, I have discovered a lot about myself, not only as a student, but as a feminist. Before taking this class, I knew that I wanted to be a feminist. I believed that women should stand up and exercise their rights to be equal to men on every level. Be that as it may, I lacked the education required to develop my own sense of feminism--my feminist manifesto, if you will. When approaching the topic of feminism, every person needs to ask themselves a list of questions: Who am I? Who do I want to be? What has influenced me as a person? How can I help? These are the beckoning questions we, as developing and purposeful human beings, ask ourselves every day, and these are the questions that will lead each and every person

Feminism continued to flourish and women were becoming more and more empowered. But the world was changing and so the feminist movement had to change too. After World War II had ended, the lives of women across the country changed drastically. Thousands of jobs became available, household appliances were making domestic life easier, but the woman’s place was still thought by many to be

Hamlet: In The Eyes of a Feminist Through examination of Hamlet under the feminist lens, socially constructed gender roles evidently play a huge role in the socioeconomic abilities of all human beings. Society’s idea of gender provides both advantages and disadvantages for people. Through close examination of the social, political, and economic context rooted deep within Hamlet, the differences between how both Ophelia’s and Hamlet’s parents treat them clearly emphasize a plethora of examples of inequality between genders. When feminism comes up in everyday conversation, many people misconstrue its intent with extreme messages such as “exclusive power for women!”

Throughout the last century, women have had to fight to have the same opportunities as men. Women have had to earn the right to vote, the right to have a career, and the right to autonomy. However, these are all rights that men have simply been given, which is why today’s feminists work to promote equality. Despite these efforts, feminism is often misunderstood and is interpreted with a negative connotation. According to a study conducted by Precopio and Ramsey (2017), “feminism is commonly recognized as a movement driven to grant social, political, and economic equality to both women and men.” The participation of others besides women is crucial to the spread of equality among the genders. Furthermore, the stigma and negative feelings surrounding feminism must be reduced in order for the ideals of feminism to have a greater impact.

In today’s world of 2017, feminism is more relevant and controversial than ever, with a new, controversial president and more and more women in positions of power. However, feminism has changed and evolved since the first writers expressed their wish for more women’s rights, as do all movements. “It is time to … restore to them their lost dignity—and make them, as a part of the human species, labour by reforming themselves to reform the world,” wrote Mary Wollstonecraft in her Vindication in the Rights of Women (Wollstonecraft 49). Mary Wollstonecraft, the mother of the feminist movement wanted women to be able to be a good wife or mother through education, but today’s feminists are educated already- they want more rights for women, such

Some people view feminism as changing the Patriarchy into a Matriarchy, and some women act like every man is trying to rape them and that women are the dominant sex. This, however, is wrong. These people are known as Feminazis. Feminazis are not feminists, they are radical feminists, they are a misrepresentation that has been spoon fed to you. They are a minority that many people stereotype as feminists. That is incorrect for feminists are people who believe that men and women should be treated equally, for they are all humans and deserve the same rights. Almost all feminists fight for one thing which is for women to be treated equally on the grounds of political, economic and social rights. They are asking for little, very very little. They are asking to be recognized as strong. They are asking to be independent. They are asking to be seen as powerful. But every time a woman raises her voice for her rights she is silenced. Every time she talks about being a feminist, she is told to stop, not come off as ‘too strong’. She is told that it is her fault for getting raped and being traumatized for life. She is told not to say anything to men who catcall or say rude and inappropriate comments since it may shatter the man’s fragile