...How does contemporary ‘post-feminism’ or ‘third wave feminism’ contribute to the furtherance of women’s rights and gender equality? Research and discuss There is a good deal of controversy over the role of so-called Third Wave feminism in the quest for gender equality. Third Wave feminism emerged in the late 1980’s and 1990’s among a cohort of women who had grown up taking for granted the gains made in the first wave of feminism (suffrage) and the second wave (the 1970’s emergence of feminist activism) (Arneil, 1999; Henry, 2004). These are young women who experience feminism almost like “’flouride. We scarcely notice that we have it—it’s simply in the water” (Henry, 2004: 70, quoting Baumgardner and Richards). The controversy stems not so much from their tacit reliance on previous gains, but on the focus of Third Wave feminism, which is undeniably on self-expression, freedom of experience, and sexual flexibility. Henry (2004) writes about the American television series Sex and the City as emblematic of Third Wave feminist sensibilities. This might be a bitter pill to swallow for those who identify feminism with more stalwart causes, including combating idealised and sexualised images of women in the media and embracing women’s diversity. After all, the four heroines of Sex and the City are all white, wealthy, thin, glamorous, obsessed with fashion and arguably obsessed with men. Nevertheless there are story lines and sensibilities in Sex and the City which reveal feminist...
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...Change is the act or instance of making or becoming different. Women had being through changes over the past years in regards to concern to woman's role, concern about equality, and feminist consciousness. Women have now become self conscious about themselves and have come to understand their place in religious communities and their relationship to scripture. However, this new women change is known as "feminist critical consciousness". First and foremost, when it comes to concern for woman's role, prior to early nineteenth century, women were not known in society as compared to men. It was all about men as a man's world. Women were not recognized with their roles as men but were just part of men as an attachment. They were seen as unclean and the source to sin. When they realized in understanding how unfair they've been addressed and inferior to men, some opponents started to use what's said in the bible against them on their wishes. Women however continue to realize how they were limited to many aspects of life but they were still undervalued and even the bible says and support it in a way that the head of a woman is her husband. This makes women less equal than men. Moreover, concern about equality was another issue women experienced then in the early centuries. Feminist began to promote "women studies" as women's experience was important. Women were seen as secondary while men had to lead everything in society. They were treated as minority in society and didn't have...
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...and the Future of Third Wave Feminism Crime committed by women is on the rise, especially in the area of violent crimes such as murder (Balfour’ 739). This has produced a new form of feminist studies in an area called feminist criminology. What hasn’t been studied as extensively is the question of why women kill. I argue that by using the individuality concept of third wave feminism and doing more research in the field of feminist criminology, patterns of criminal behavior may be established which may prevent severe female crime such as murder. This paper seeks to explain how advancing the study of feminist criminology is good for the U.S. legal system and could have changed the outcome for Aileen Wuornos. In this paper I will discuss what third wave feminism is, then I will discuss what feminist criminology is and how it applies to the Aileen Wuornos case, and lastly I will show that with advanced studies into the field of feminist criminology, odds of severe crimes committed by women could decrease. The third wave of feminism is not easily describable. However, it can be framed by saying that it is a movement that continues to advance the women’s rights agenda of the second wave (Zimmerman et al. 77). Unlike the second wave which was intended to give a voice to all women, the third wave tends to reflect more on the individual. By focusing on personal narratives, responsible choices, and by individual level political activism, the third wave gives us the idea that anyone...
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...Feminism Feminism is a controversial topic among society, it is a movement that helps and supports women to have equal rights as men. Throughout the years the definition has changed, many women are taking advantage and accusing people of discrimination. In today's society the roles have reversed, some women in some cases discriminate men and take advantage just because they are women. There are many people in today’s society that agree, disagree, or do not care for feminism, but that does not mean we have the right to offended or even put down anyone for having a different point of views on any matter in what others believe in. Many can say that after reading Rebecca Rubins’ article, “The Farce of Feminism”, can agree that women nowadays do not need any support groups. I strongly believe that women do need support groups in today’s society. Rubin’s talks about how she does not consider herself a feminist but she does support women. Society has changed feminism throughout the years, but I believe that the definition remains the same. I believe that Rubin proves a point, but she is confused because feminism is supporting women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. I do not agree nor disagree with Rubin’s thoughts and point of views. I strongly believe that people, in general, alter the definition of feminism and makes it their own. Rubins stated, “Women in this country are now on an entirely equal footing with men and are sometimes...
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...How has feminism attempted to achieve women’s liberation, and has the battle been won? This essay aims to outline how feminism has and continues its attempt to achieve women’s liberation.This essay will reflect the current situation in Europe. The essay begins by describing the first and second wave of feminism, providing an overview of the ideas of some important feminist thinkers and activists. It then introduces the third wave, modern feminism and concludes with some remarks regarding the development of feminism insofar as it affects modern organizations willing to tackle gender inequality. The concept defined as the ‘first wave of feminism’ finds it origins in the mid-nineteenth century, with the ‘suffragettes’—as those pioneers were called—and their struggle to achieve equal political rights. These women’s central aim was to obtain the right to vote, even if that meant they had to protest through various hunger strikes, as they did in London. The ‘second wave of feminism’ focused on ending all forms of sexism, and it fought both psychological and sexual oppression towards women. Among others, Betty Friedan realized that women felt frustrated due to the oppression that came from their perceived role in society, namely that of staying at home. The patriarchal culture started to be criticized by many radical feminists. This second wave was very marked by Simone De Beauvoir and her work, The Second Sex. She believed “one is not born a woman, one becomes one”. Eva Figes wrote...
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...Feminism can be defined as a series of political movements originating in the USA to abolish gender inequity and gain equal rights and opportunities for women (Ritzer and Ryan, 224). The women’s movement is broken down into three consecutive waves of feminism. The first wave of feminism began in the early eighteenth century, with it’s main objective to gain women’s suffrage (Ritzer and Ryan, 224). Much of the first wave was characterized by women breaking societal norms and roles imposed upon them and redefining the stigma attached to the perceptions of what women ought to be. As a result of the first wave, the second wave of feminism began in 1972 and provided new information about feminism, as books, such as The Feminine Mystique, began publication (Ritzer and Ryan, 225). The highlights of the second wave consisted of legislative victories over sexism in education and the right to an abortion. The second wave, however, consequently noted the interaction between race oppression and gender oppression, also known as ‘intersectionality’ (Ritzer and Ryan, 225). The third wave of feminism was influenced by the first and second, with it’s existence being debatable. Scholars argue that the movement has changed forms and has indeed continued into the twenty-first century. In actuality, this generation is educated about feminism. Their knowledge derives from the first two waves, with which they draw their own political views to live their lives by, thus the creation of...
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...Philosophical Paper: Defending Men Through the Study of Masculism and Explaining 3rd Wave Feminism Further Submitted by: Xiayra Mae B. Magtibay 1LM2 Submitted to: Mr. Emmanuel De Leon Abstract This paper will be discussing gender equality through further explanation of Masculism and 3rd Wave Feminism by depending on essays and articles made by 3rd Wave Feminists and the philosophies of Plato. This paper will be pointing out the objectives of Masculism and Feminism and their similarities. This paper will also attempt to explain that the demands of both genders can be met. Defnition of Terms * Masculism: is a movement that advocates for the rights, equality and dignity of the male sex in an egalitarian framework. * Egalitarian: believing in the principle that all people are equal and deserve equal rights and opportunities * Feminism: the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men and an organized movement for the attainment of such rights for women. * Misandrist: a person who hates men * Gender : the state of being male or female * Gender Roles: is a theoretical construct in the social sciences and humanities that refers to a set of social and behavioural norms that, within a specific culture, are widely considered to be socially appropriate for individuals of a specific sex. * Gender Equality: is the measurable equal representation of women and men. Gender equality does not imply that women...
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...Feminism in Canada has been shifting, reforming and reinventing itself since its inception in the late nineteenth century in an effort to bring a genuine sense of equality to both men and women across the country. Though feminism takes many different forms – classical feminism, liberal feminism, post-modern feminism etc. – each definition maintains commonalities which attempt to shed light on issues related specifically to the historical disadvantages of women and the goal of egalitarianism. In Canada, feminism has unfolded in three distinct stages often referred to as the three waves of feminism: (i) the first wave started in the late nineteenth century characterized by basic demands for equality via suffrage and recognition as persons; (ii) the second wave originated during World War II taking a more proactive approach to women’s workforce and reproductive rights; and (iii) the third wave began in the 1990’s challenging broader issues of equality such as racism, capitalism and colonialism. The following essay will analyse each wave based on their chronological time frame, ideological foundation and the social movements which emerged as a by product. First wave feminism started the general movement and, even though its goals and fundamental ideology may seem drastically different from second and third wave feminism, it should be credited with forming the foundation in which the fight for gender equality originated. First wave feminists were primarily driven by maternal feminism...
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...BIOGRAPHY Virginia Woolf, an English author, feminist, essayist and critic, was born on January 25th, 1882 to Sir Leslie Stephen, the editor of Dictionary of National Biography, and Madam Julia Prinsep Stephen, a nurse who published a book on nursing. Virginia’s maiden name was Adeline Virginia Woolf. She grew up in an atmosphere conducive to her future career as a writer since her father, Leslie Stephen, was a respected and well-known intellectual and writer. Although she was not sent to a university as her brothers, she was able to educate herself thoroughly by delving into the volumes of her father's vast library. Woolf grew up during a period of intense feminist activity in London and was an active member of various women's organizations. By the time she came into her own as a writer, significant advances had been made in women's rights. By 1918, a limited franchise had been granted to women in England. During the interwar period, Woolf was a significant figure in London literary society and a member of the Bloomsbury Group. Her mother’s sudden death in 1885 and that of Stella, her sister whom she looked up to as a mother were the catalysts for Virginia’s mental breakdown. Modern scholars have suggested that her mental breakdown and subsequent recurring depression were as a result of the sexual abuse which she and her sister Vanessa were subjected to by their half brothers, George and Gerald Duckworth. Virginia married Leonard Woolf, a journalist, in 1912 and they collaborated...
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...1. Introduction It is highly believed that fashion magazines contain various portrayals of women not only because fashion magazines target women as their biggest readers, but also become the facilitator to teach women how they view themselves in feminine elegant ways just like most women want them to be. Nonetheless, those views are more likely shaped by how the society views a woman. As such, if fashion magazines are indeed in the means of shaping women's view as well as society's view of a woman, then the representation of women in the magazines becomes very important in order to explore how women are portrayed according to those two views. Reading a fashion magazine on the surface simply contains fashion-related articles in thick glossy pages. On deeper surface, on the other hand, those articles actively are where women as well as society see how a woman should be. It is also implied that they become the source of stereotypes of women which many of them are always about marginalising women. Amongst many high fashion magazines, Elle is strongly believed to be one of the most leading high fashion magazines in regards to the fact that this French origin magazine widely spreads its international editions published in over 60 countries which one of those includes Indonesia. Like other Elle editions worldwide and other mainstream high fashion magazines, many ultra expensive bags, clothes, perfumes, and the sorts appear in Elle Indonesia in two forms: articles and advertisements...
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...The Television series Charmed can be interpreted as a postfeminist text in popular culture. Yvonne Tasker and Diane Negra’s book “Interrogating Post Feminism: Gender and the Politics of Popular Culture” (2007) discusses the importance of post feminism in contemporary popular culture. In this book, Tasker and Negra focus mainly on film, television and advertising. According to the article “The Myth of Postfeminism”, the United States entered a postfeminist era around 1990. (Hall, J. E. (2003) p. 878) In America Charmed was television series which ran from 1998 up until 2006. Post-feminism, also known as third wave feminism emerged after second wave feminism and was a response to what second wave feminism excluded. The shows central characters are three sisters who are witches, the show is hailed as a feminist text because of its portrayal of strong female characters, and the fact the...
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...Assignment/Dissertation Submission Form Student Information Please complete all parts of this form and submit with your assignment. All parts of the assignment must be stapled together before submission PLEASE USE BLOCK CAPITALS Student Registration Number | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 3 | Class Code and Title - PRINT the code and title as it appears in the student handbook V | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | | History of the USA since 1877 | Tutor’s name | Mark Ellis | Submission date | 17/11/13 | | | Extension/Re-submission Yes No | Extension/Re-submission date: | Where appropriate please √ your year, Now √ the attempt. 1st | 2nd | √ | | Yr 1 | Yr 2 | Yr 3 | Yr4 | | Postgraduate | | √ | | | | | | | ...
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...active in China: "One of the most striking manifestations of social change and awakening which has accompanied the Revolution in China has been the emergence of a vigorous and active Woman's Movement." Beginning in the 70s and continuing in the 80s, however, many Chinese feminists began arguing that the Communist government had been "consistently willing to treat women's liberation as something to be achieved later, after class inequalities had been taken care of."[9] Some feminists claim that part of the problem is a tendency on the government's part to interpret "equality" as sameness, and then to treat women according to an unexamined standard of male normalcy.[10] Chapter two: definition, development, and categories of feminism 1. Definition of feminism Throughout history, women have always struggled to obtain equality, respect, and the same rights as men. This has been difficult because of patriarchy, an ideology in which men are superior to women and have the right to control women. This ideology has spread...
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...The role of men and women in a family are not explicitly defined and vary vastly from across many countries. In Iran for example, men’s roles are normally more valued and rewarded than women’s roles. This research report will outline the basic assumptions about families prior to any feminist changes and explain the rationale for this. It will then discuss the initiation of the feminist movement and the way in which it affected the roles within a family and the structure of a family. The report will analyse the implications of feminism and discuss the types of feminism, which have affected the basic assumptions of families. In order to fully understand the challenges feminist have posed, the report will consider the importance of feminism in today’s society, assessing our assumptions about families and to what degree it is considered a priority. As a matter of interest, there will also be a discussion on the effect of feminism on families on an international scale. This research report will seek to conclude concisely the ways in which feminists have challenged the basic foundation and ideas in relation to families. In the seventeenth and eighteenth century Cheal cites that the term nuclear family emerged describing a couple who are legally married and have their own children residing in a permanent home. (Cheal, D. 2002) Talcott Parsons (1956) has suggested a possible rational justifying why the basic assumption of families exists. Parson’s view was based on the facts...
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...women is natural matter which is unchangeable. People tried to find the reason why this belief occurred and has still endured for a long time. In addition, there is a social movement which tried to change this belief, including the condition of the inequality between men and women. This social movement is called feminism. This social phenomenon began, in 19th century, in the western side of the world, because women didn’t accept the original culture, their role in society, the inequality of gender, and the oppression of men. However, this contradiction in terms of gender has been argued up to the beginning of 20th century. Feminism has rapidly grown since the last forty years of 20th century. People become awakened to study about women in several measurements, especially in the study of the relationship between men and women, by using the idea of gender to be the equipment of the analysis. The inconsistency of gender causes the movement which people demand the equality between men and women. Moreover, there are many studies, explanations and ideas about the secondary status of women in many terms, in the last for decades. Almost explanations and ideas of feminism develop from main...
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