...“There are Liberal Feminists, Socialist Feminists and Radical Feminists but no Conservative Feminists”. Discuss. (45) Over the years different sub movements of the feminist ideology have been developed these include Liberal, Social and Radical forms of feminism, however there are also other forms less well-known forms of the ideology such as post-modernist and eco feminism. However there has been controversy as to whether there can be conservative feminists or not as it looks to be utterly incompatible. Liberal, socialist and radical feminists however all have different views to feminism. Firstly, liberal feminists want a change without having a revolution and believe in having equality and female emancipation. Socialist feminists argue this as they say that nothing can happen if a social revolution isn’t brought about and radical feminists believe have the strongest opinion which is to have a revolutionary change in society to raise awareness rather than having gradual reform like liberal feminism wanted, so they go as far to say that women should have nothing to do with men. Firstly, looking at the extent to which there are liberal feminists. The ideas of liberal feminists have come from the ideology, liberalism. They have the belief that equality can be achieved within the existing political structures in Western Liberal democracies therefore there is not need for a revolution. We should all be equal regardless of out sex, race or colour and therefore have a place in society...
Words: 1172 - Pages: 5
...“I’m Not a Feminist, But I Believe in Equality” I remember being in high school when the American education system made it completely apparent that they value a boy’s education over a girls. I wore a loose leafy skirt that was exactly 3 inches above my knee, while the dress code specified 2 inches above my knee. Furthermore, I was sent home for this incident because “it was suggestive to the boys”… Let that sink in! My school was, slowly but surely, making clear to me was that they would much rather send me home and take away any academic lesson I would have learned from that day because of the small fact that an inch of my knee might be of disturbance to a hormonal high school boy. This is the point in my life when I needed feminism. I always understood the term feminism to be straightforward: anyone who believes in equality between men and women, as well as the perseverance of self-worth regardless of gender, is a feminist. However, my generation of women has a far more straight forward view of feminism than I do. Women who recommend the values of feminism now frown upon identifying themselves as feminist. Why is that? Many misconceptions and misunderstandings become part of the issue when a person has a lack of understanding or comprehension of exactly what the term feminism truly means. It is important to know the difference between equality and feminism. Comprehending the meaning of the two also empowers a women to be grounded and given the capability to know what they...
Words: 1543 - Pages: 7
...depicts erotic behaviour and is intended to cause sexual excitement in its audience. It is an issue that has been under constant debate in our society and there are many arguments for and against pornography it has been extensively debated whether pornographic material should be legally protected or banned. Those who believe pornography must be protected argue that the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees freedom of expression, including sexual expression. A strong defender to this view is McElroy, who reflects this in her writing of “XXX: A Woman’s Right to Pornography”. Opponents of McElroy’s view raise moral concerns, arguing that the First Amendment does not protect expression that corrupts people's behaviour, therefore defending the suppression of pornography because it perpetuates gender stereotypes, as women are reduced to nothing more than sex objects which promotes violence against women and that men are viewed as “naturally” oppressive and violent and they are ruled by their sexual natures. Opponents also believe that even if pornography is viewed as speech it should be treated as a low value form of speech that is not entitled to First Amendment protection. According to the Radical feminist view, men are socialized to have sexual desires and to feel entitled to have those desires met, whereas women are socialized to meet those desires and to internalize accepted definitions of femininity and sexual objectification. As men cling to the masculine idea that...
Words: 4001 - Pages: 17
...The woman is "in all things inferior to the man," said first century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus.[1] Rabbi Judah, a contemporary of Josephus, said "a man must pronounce three blessings each day: 'Blessed be the Lord who did not make me a heathen; blessed be he who did not make me a woman; blessed be he who did not make me an uneducated person.'"[2] Jewish Rabbis in the first century were encouraged not to teach or even to speak with women. Jewish wisdom literature tells us that "he that talks much with womankind brings evil upon himself and neglects the study of the Law and at the last will inherit Gehenna [hell]."[3] One reason for the avoidance of women was the belief that they could lead men astray: "From garments cometh a moth and from a woman the iniquities of a man" (Ecclus. 42:13). Indeed, men were often viewed as intrinsically better than women, for "better is the iniquity of a man than a woman doing a good turn" (Ecclus. 42:14).[4] In view of this low status of women, it is not surprising that they enjoyed few legal rights in Jewish society. Women were not even allowed to give evidence in a court of law. Moreover, according to the rabbinic school that followed Rabbi Hillel, a man could legally divorce his wife if she burned his dinner. It was in this oppressive context that Christianity was born. Many people - both men and women - have hailed Jesus as a feminist because of His elevation of women in a male-chauvinist society. Moreover, Paul's statement...
Words: 5956 - Pages: 24
...comedian Nicole Byer, a contemporary dogma is preached: that we are the wounded, not the winners, of the sex war. Feminists repeatedly claim we are oppressed by the builder’s whistle, that a strange man trying to flirt with us is identical to sexual assault. Unexpectedly, just as we appeared to have it all, a fresh flood of feminists has started to represent us as dim-witted, unable to survive a bad date, let alone negotiate a pay rise. Withal, they are running out on what was best about the feminist tradition: solidarity with the sisterhood and the freedom of every woman to do as she pleased. Feminism 5.0 entails unreservedly ambushing of other women over, erm,...
Words: 1285 - Pages: 6
...The Feminist Revelation The escalating academic industry of feminist/womanist studies is rife with declarations of a grand social revolution. Contemporary feminism, says Sommers, has more to do with revelation than with revolution. She notes that Alison Jaggar identifies four dominant feminist “frameworks”: liberal, Marxist, radical, and socialist. The last three frequently overlap, and all are determined that feminism requires the overthrow of prevailing social arrangements, especially the “nuclear family,” and the wresting of power from men. As Andrea Dworkin puts it: “Men love death. In everything they make the hollow out a central place for death. . . . In male culture slow murder is the heart of Eros, fast murder is the heart of action, and systemized murder is the heart of history.” Sommers simplify the typology by suggesting that there are essentially two feminisms: liberal feminism and gender feminism. She identifies herself as a liberal feminist. Liberal feminists respect what women want, also if that includes such “gendered” choices as marriage and motherhood. The goal of liberal feminism is straightforward: women have a right to fair treatment and equal opportunity in trying to realize their aspirations. Gender feminism is very different, indeed radically different. Gender feminism views all of social reality in terms of the “sex-gender system.” According to gender feminist Sandra Harding, this system is a “system of male-dominance made possible by men's control...
Words: 1099 - Pages: 5
...action film icon, and moviegoers should be very excited about that, writes Lisa Schwarzbaum. As Catching Fire ignites on movie screens around the world, this is what we know about the 21st Century heroine called Katniss Everdeen: she is strong but also soft. She is brave but she has doubts. She is a phenomenal fictional creation, yet is real enough that moviegoers can draw inspiration from her values, her resourcefulness, and her very human inner conflicts. And she is played by Jennifer Lawrence, who appears not only to be handling her current duties as Hollywood’s finest model of well-adjusted millennial female stardom but doing so with charm. Everdeen and Lawrence: golden girls both. Personified in Lawrence’s lithe movements and cool, focused gaze, Katniss is a brave, resourceful and independent-minded fighter; but she is also a troubled and vulnerably guilt-ridden human being. Nina Jacobson, the producer of the Hunger Games film franchise, puts it this way: “She is a singular heroine in that the burden of survival weighs on her. She has a ton of survivor’s guilt. And she keeps surviving.” Girl on fire It is strange that behaving like a well-adjusted and responsible young woman counts as movie-star news – or that the popularity of a female lead character who is strong and feminine, brave even when scared, compassionate even when imperfect, and respectful even when breaking with tradition counts as feminist heroism. But it does. There is a reason we delight equally in seeing Katniss...
Words: 16355 - Pages: 66
...Feminism is the belief that women should be treated as both potentially intellectual and socially equal to men. It embraces the thought that all people are entitled to freedom and liberty within reason; including equal civil rights and the discrimination that should not be made based on gender, sexual orientation, skin color, ethnicity, religion, or culture. Feminist movements have campaigned and continue to campaign for women's rights, including the right to vote, to hold public office, to work, to earn fair wages, to own property, education, and to have equal rights within marriage. Feminists have also worked to promote bodily independence, integrity, to protect women from rape, sexual harassment, and domestic violence. Feminism underlies five major concepts. First, we have patriarchy which is the authority of men in society and the oppression of women for men’s gain. Second, discrimination that leads to the unequal treatment that women receive. Third, we have gender stereotypes which are negative misconceptions about women. Forth, economic dependency; where women are forced to quit their job in order to take care of their household responsibilities. Fifth, emotional work; where women are predicted to do the majority of emotional care of their family. As feminism started to rise, it encountered three waves. The first wave of feminism took place in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, where it emerged out of an environment of urban industrialism and...
Words: 1255 - Pages: 6
...Have fourth wave feminists turned the feminist movement into a man-hating movement? Fourth wave feminism began in 2012 and is associated with the use of social media. The fourth wave advocates for women who have been victims of sexual harassment and violence. Since this movement uses social media as its main outlet, it impacts society greatly because in this day in age more people are using social media than ever before. Anything this movement does or says is heard by millions around the globe, especially young women. Although some fourth wave feminists have the right idea about change in this world, they have transformed from being real progressives to man-hating and stereotyping other women. If extreme feminists could come together with the men in America, they could make a huge difference exceptionally fast because men and women work better together than apart....
Words: 1675 - Pages: 7
...Feminist Theories Liberal / Reformist Feminism * Concerned with civil rights and freedom of individuals * They believe that all human beings should have equal rights * Reformism is the progress towards equal rights and freedoms through gradual reforms * They feel that laws against sex discrimination will lead towards a rise in equal rights * Also they feel that changes in culture will help equality, e.g. stereotypes being abolished Sex and Gender * Like Ann Oakley liberal feminists find a difference between sex and gender; * Sex refers to biological differences * Gender refers to culturally constructed differences between masculine and feminine roles * While sex differences are fixed, gender is different for different cultures, this is the part Liberal feminists want to change * Want to promote equality in education and the media * Take political action to introduce anti-discriminatory laws * Liberal feminist criticise the Funtionalist views of Parsons, regarding the Instrumental and Expressive roles * They feel that men and women are equally capable of performing either role, however society is constructed to tell us which role to adhere to * Liberal feminists do have a consensus view on society – they accept that there are conflicts between men and women but argue that it’s a product of outdated attitudes Evaluation of liberal feminism * Experiments conducted by liberal feminists have produced evidence legitimising...
Words: 1156 - Pages: 5
...The congregation of men have never been too supportive of feminists. The pure thought of feminism is silenced by society. In this paper, the topics of how the public supports women’s political, social, and economic equality to men and a woman’s actions will be discussed. What feminists want and believe is simple in a way. They believe in equality among the sexes and they want to be treated as equals. One movement was the by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. They protested basically because they wanted women to be able to vote. They also wanted an Amendment that stated so. Feminist want everyone to understand and realize that they are just like any man and can do the same work and deserve the same rights. Feminism is when females...
Words: 725 - Pages: 3
...with men. It is a discourse that involves various movements, theories, and philosophies which are concerned with the issue of gender difference, advocate equality for women, and campaign for women’s rights and interests. According to some, the history of feminism can be divided into three waves. The first wave was in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the second was in the 1960s and 1970s and the third extends from the 1990s to the present. Feminist theory emerged from these feminist movements. It is manifest in a variety of disciplines such as feminist geography, feminist history and feminist literary criticism. Although feminism has emerged in nineteenth in the world, it is yet unknown to women of our country. The concept of feminism in Bangladesh has been rising since last 20th years and women got some equal right such as voting right, politics right, education right, job right, decision making right, child raring right etc. But, they got some right constitutionally, not practically yet. But, it is hopeful that we will be able to establish equal right within next 20th year. Key words: Equal rights, Secure Society, Establishing women...
Words: 6113 - Pages: 25
...Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Hooks, Bell. Feminism is for everybody: passionate politics / Bell Hooks. p.cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-89608-629-1 - ISBN 0-89608-628-3 (pbk.) 1. Feminist theory. 2. Feminism - Philosophy. 3. Feminism Political aspects. 4. Sex discrimination against women. 1. Title. FEMINIST POLITICS Where We Stand 1 CONSCIOUSNESS-RAISING A Constant Change of Heart 7 3. SISI:ERHOOD IS STILL POWERFUL 4. Vll 13 00-036589 South End Press, 7 Brookline Street, #1, Cambridge, MA 02139 06 05 04 7 8 9 Printed in Canada 19 OUR BODIES, OURSELVES Reproductive Rights 25 6. HQl190 .H67 2000 305.42'01 - dc21 FEMINIST EDUCATION FOR CRITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS BEAUTY WITHIN AND WITHOUT 31 7. FEMINIST CLASS STRUGGLE 37 8. GLOBAL FEMINISM 44 5. 9. WOMEN AT WORI( 48 10. RACE AND GENDER 55 11. ENDING VIOLENCE 61 12. FEMINIST MASCULINITY 67 13. FEMINIST PARENTING 72 14. LIBERATING MARRIAGE AND PARTNERSHIP 78 15. A FEMINIST SEXUAL POLITIC An Ethics of Mutual Freedom 85 16. TOTAL BLISS Lesbianism and Feminism 93 INTRODUCTION 17. TO LOVE AGAIN The Heart of Feminism 100 18. FEMINIST SPIRITUALITY 105 19. VISIONARY FEMINISM...
Words: 37459 - Pages: 150
...Assess the contribution of feminist perspectives to our understanding of society (33 marks) Feminists see society as patriarchal. They seek to describe, explain and change the position of women within society. The first ‘wave’ of feminism appeared in the late 19th century with the suffragette’s campaign for the right for women to vote. Even though all feminists oppose women’s subordination, there are disagreements on its causes and how to overcome it. Liberal or reformist feminists believe that traditional prejudices and stereotypes about gender differences are a barrier to equality. They believe all human beings should have equal rights. Since both men and women are human beings, both should have the same opportunities. Liberal Feminists argue that laws and policies against sex discrimination in employment and education can secure equal opportunities for women. Campaigning for changes in law can bring about change and we can bring about change through a cultural shift within society. They reject the idea that biological differences make women less competent or rational than men or that men are biologically less emotional or nurturing than women. To bring about change we must shift society’s socialisation patterns. For example society must seek to promote appropriate role models in education and the family by doing this we will benefit from a cultural shift and gender equality will become the norm. Liberal Feminists believe that changes in socialisation and culture are gradually...
Words: 1744 - Pages: 7
...and their Implications for Feminist Debates Eva Midden A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment for the requirements of the degree of PhD at the University of Central Lancashire May 2010 Student Declaration Concurrent registration for two or more academic awards I declare that while registered as a candidate for the research degree, I have not been registered candidate or enrolled student for another award of the University or other academic or professional institution Material submitted for another award I declare that no material contained in the thesis has been used in any other submission for an academic award and is solely my own work Signature of Candidate Type of Award School ___PhD_________________________________ ___Centre for Professional Ethics___________ 1 Abstract It was long assumed that both multiculturalism and feminism are connected to progressive movements and hence have comparable and compatible goals. However, both in academia and in popular media the critique on multiculturalism has grown and is often accompanied with arguments related to gender equality and/or feminism. According to political scientist Susan Moller Okin for example there are fundamental conflicts between our commitment to gender equality and the desire to respect the customs of minority cultures or religions. If we agree that women should not be disadvantaged because of their sex, she argues, we should not accept group rights that...
Words: 97145 - Pages: 389
