Preview

Socialist Feminism

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2465 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Socialist Feminism
All I ever wanted was to be rich and to be successful and to have three kids and a husband who was waiting home for me at night to tickle my feet . . . And look at me! I don’t even like my hair.
(Ally McBeal)

Cultural feminism According to (Alcoff,1995 ) Cultural feminism is the ideology that a woman needs to appropriate the value of her female nature in an attempt to authenticate her female attributes that were previously determined and undervalued by masculinity itself. In cultural feminism, a woman’s enemy lies not just in an economic institution, backward values or even a social system but the root of it all lies in masculinity itself and even in male biology. It is a celebration womanhood, of the separation of a woman’s existence from mans and taking pride in the very essence of female sexuality right down to one’s anatomy.
The power of popular culture and the “Vagina monologues”
All aspects of feminist culture seems to occur in waves over periods of time however overlapping and questionable in terms of generations they may be they are most evident in western parts of the world, such as the suffragists of the 1920’s and the American women who fought for sexually reproductive rights in the 1960’s. A wave of popular culture swept across America in the early 1990”s that was indeed a reflection of how cultural feminism was present in their society known as “the vagina monologues”.
In her book Baumgardner (2011:102) writes about a how the series of fictional stories inspired by the real life experiences of women of different races, ages and ethnicity on their sex life’s, relationships and personal struggles inspired plays in different universities across the nation gave birth to the V-day an international movement that stands to end violence against all women and girls. This wave of popular culture encouraged not just the lesbian woman but the heterosexual female to be proud of every bit of her womanhood and sexuality.
In (Alcoff, 1995:435) suggest

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    When reading a book, or any piece of literature of that matter, the readers background is important. It is apart of how the reader perceives the piece. Two different readers with different viewpoints and backgrounds are naturally going to have different opinions and will analyze the same piece of writing very differently. For example, a feminist lens and a marxist lens. A feminist lens would notice all cases where a man and a women are not being compared as equal or a woman is being more dependent . A marxist lens would analyze everything as a higher power and a lower power, everything from their viewpoint would involve rank of importance and power. In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, there were many ways a person with a feminist lens and a person with a marxist lens would analyze the same situation completely different.…

    • 1025 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The first way women’s roles changed were their sex lives and how they expressed their sexuality. Clara Bow was a role model to women across the country during the 1920’s. Bow, a silent film actress, was best known for her hair and her more revealing stage outfits. Clara Bow showed a very bold personality, pushing the envelope for women’s behaviors and what was socially acceptable for women. Her fans often mocked her clothing style and drastic hair changes, daring to be different. Because of the actions of Bow, a door was created for women everywhere to express themselves in a way that had never been expressed before. Women began to pursue this flapper self-image and refused to conform to the feminist advocacy because it was “old fashioned.” Women saw inspiration to change their lives and didn’t slow down from there, they “argued that they would be the first generation of women to have it all: education, career, marriage, and children.”(170) Because of these courageous women, men have accepted the “new woman.”…

    • 603 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Margaret Sanger Analysis

    • 1658 Words
    • 7 Pages

    ‘The Feminine Mystique’ began to define a woman’s place in the post-war “family-centred, prosperous, middle-class life-style” and it combined these pre-war ideas of a sexualized and therefore modernised version of motherhood. Both the First and Second World War affected both women’s liberation and the birth control movement as reproduction was a necessary tool America needed to boost society post war and the occurrence of contraception would have prevented this. The Cold War also affected ‘The Feminine Mystique’ and added a dimension of sexual fear where anticommunism merged with homophobia starred in adverts to “purge public employment and the military of sexual perverts”. A public campaign which made women fear of the accusation of being a lesbian if they did not desire a life with a husband and children as soon as they were old enough to date. Women were the symbols of safety and security as they were in the 1920’s and society continued to support the position of women in the home after the World War Two with the public advertisements of washing machines, hoovers and cleaning products; all of which were designed to appeal to women. The country had to boost not only society itself but also the economy…

    • 1658 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although America is an ever-changing country some things never change. Within many years women have fought through countess barriers yet haven't gotten too far from the original stereotypes of them. The conventional gender identities shape women in present society, while creating a war within the women whether to be ideal feminine and motherly, or sophisticated corporate and selfish.…

    • 446 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the late 17th century and early 18th century, children were outfitted like their adult counterparts. Mothers viewed daughters as smaller version of themselves; therefore they were formed into their mother’s image (p.425). Only during the second half of the 18th century did we see a changed where girls were dressed differently. Children were viewed as different creatures that needed more freedom and liberty. Along came the Victorian era, where girls were view as innocent, with their hair curl and outfitted with long dresses, giving the image of fragility. Now, there’s a new generation, the feminist movement. Girls were being encouraged to “be the agent of her own objectification and still be empowered” (p.427). What should have been a movement towards revolutionary changes, instead bought on a boom in porn-like culture. Girls were learning that their value was based on their worth as sex objects, partially by marketing and partially by the adults around…

    • 498 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    House of Mirth

    • 9729 Words
    • 39 Pages

    At t he same time, over and above the assumptions of uniaxialiiy of female experience. women have begun to recognize critical differences that underscore the specificity of multiple female identities. The idea of a collective feminine is identified as a patriarchally informed, universalizing concept aimed at trivializing specific identities. The generic use of the term 'woman' is found inadequate to represent a huge chunk of humanity, which is divided and subdivided on diverse bases, with a surprisingly varied range of marginal experience This awareness has given rise to a n identity politics that asserts the validity of cultural differences and hence of the diversity of feminist perspectives.…

    • 9729 Words
    • 39 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Feminism: a topic of discussion in many homes and classrooms, which asserts the utmost attention amongst its listeners. A crazy ideal that believes women hold fundamental rights among men, and deserve the same treatment, the same opportunities. Feminism has grown since its conception in the early 20th century, and has catapulted upward in a grand and illustrious fashion, clinging to the souls of women who will no longer be oppressed by an abusive patriarchy. However, in this decade, feminism has become the topic of crude humor, has been made the punchline of jokes directed toward women. Feminism has become merely a way to generalize women as “crazy, hormonal monsters” who should never have a say in democracy because their “time of…

    • 562 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    ENGL 111 Definition Essay

    • 804 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In recent events, the word feminism has come up and a new debate has begun to circle around what it means, and how it should be applied to our society today. From statements made by celebrities, as a theme in a popular Beyonce song, and exposed emails from within the film industry, feminism is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance in the form of exposure to a new generation. While most people would agree that any discussion about feminism is good, there is also a circulation of misguided or false ideas of what feminism actually is. Additionally, there have been very public instances that prove that we still have some progress to make in the form of equality feminism aims to bring to various groups of people. Feminist Magazine defines feminism as the movement that “strives to end the discrimination, exploitation, and oppression of people due to their gender, sexual orientation, race, class, and other differences and supports people in being free to determine their own lives for themselves.”…

    • 804 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    raunch culture is a blow to more traditional feminist ideals. She describes how culture is changing and women are wearing less and less clothing. She also describes how she thinks this is damaging feminism. When Levy asked some women about raunch culture, she was told that these women "wanted to be one of the guys" (160). Ariel Levy concludes that we need to rethink the direction of the latest feminist movement.…

    • 1333 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Spice Girls are a cultural phenomenon; the all female group was formed in 1994 and consists of Geri Halliwell, Victoria Beckham, Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton and Melanie Chisholm. Through their names Baby Spice, Sporty Spice, Scary Spice, Ginger Spice and Posh Spice each member embraced a different female identity that helped to distinguish between them and helped their fans to identify with a certain member. The audience demographic the Spice Girls is primarily directed towards is female youths because of its large potential size and high levels of disposable income. On the surface the British all-girl band the Spice Girls appear to be strong feminist women who command control in their lives and empower the phrase “girl power” but on closer inspection the Spice Girls endorse a narrow view of fun feminist values and are commercialized objects created to generate profits and further promote the Sexualization and commodification of themselves and all women. Firstly, their choice of clothing, hair, makeup and body image contribute to damaging modes of femininity and offer traditional and sexual images for the male gaze. Secondly, the five distinct identities of the band define and shape the confines of womanhood identities and “make it difficult for [fans] to think of alternatives” (Hollows 169). Lastly, the Spice Girls have been marketed and branded so flawlessly that any original Girl Power feminism movement promoting independence and sexual empowerment has been replaced with consumerism.…

    • 1287 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Psychology

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Cultural feminism: emphasizes characteristics and qualities of women that are devolved and ignored in society.…

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The term ‘feminism’ and ‘feminist’ first started to gain popularity in the 1970s. Starting in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, continued into the 1960s and 1970s, then followed by the 1990s to the twentieth century, feminism and feminist grown across the nation. From clubs and organizations, to readings and speeches, feminist all across the nation, and world, have influenced aspects of our daily lives, including our literature. “Feminist criticism examines the ways in which literature reinforces or undermines the economic, political., social, and psychological oppression of woman” (Tyson 83). In simpler terms, feminist criticism is critiquing literary readings, through the mind of a woman’s opinion of structure and being. Like how day and night change, so do times. In our current era, being a feminist is seen as being hip and cool. Although, back in the nineteenth century, feminist were viewed as strange and were quickly overlooked. Go to a concert today, you see woman, even a teen, dressed in skin tight clothing, hanging out with the guys, drinking beer, and shooting the bull. Take our outlook on feminist criticism today, such as; gender roles, French feminism, multicultural feminism, and gender studies. Now, apply these thoughts to a text like, ‘Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?’ written in 1970s. The insights and goals of the women’s movement have been transformed and translated as they have been integrated into popular culture and daily life today compared to the nineteenth century. Connie, the protagonist of the story ‘Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?’, is a young and wild teenage girl, who in simple terms, enjoys the attention from men. Connie, the type of teenager whose “…mind was filled with trashy daydreams” (3) , and “everything about her had two sides to it, one for home and one for anywhere that was not home” (5). With a description so blunt about Connie, many would accuse her of being a “bad girl”. Now,…

    • 755 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Raise your hand when I say a word that would make you uncomfortable too here or say on a regular basis, ready? Love. Hate. Rape. Abuse. Molestation. Homosexuality. Clitoris. Penis. Vagina. All of these words play a major role in the Vagina Monologues. Although you may think that simply the title itself may be far too vulgar for your liking, the Vagina Monologues is a celebration of female sexuality in all its complexity and mystery. In this stunning phenomenon that has swept the nation, Eve Ensler gives us real women's stories of intimacy, vulnerability, and sexual self-discovery. "You don't just hook up with Eve," Glenn Close has said, "You become part of her crusade. There's a core of us who are Eve's army." "Eve Ensler can soar to astounding heights or move us with quiet compassion," writes Time. "She may not save the world, but what other playwrights even think of trying." What started as a play has become a national phenomenon, and is now celebrated as a ‘bible’ for a new generation of women. Eve Ensler is a force of nature, a woman alive with passion and conviction. The Vagina Monologues has been performed in cities all across America and at hundreds of college campuses including Nicholls. It has inspired a dynamic grassroots movement--V-Day--to stop violence against women. Witty and irreverent, compassionate and wise, Eve Ensler's Obie Award-winning masterpiece gives voice to women's deepest fantasies and fears, guaranteeing that no one who reads it will ever look at a woman's body, or think of sex, in quite the same way again. Based on interviews with over 200 women about their memories and experiences of sexuality, The Vagina Monologues gives voice to women's deepest fantasies and fears of sex. "At first women were reluctant to talk," Ensler writes in the introduction to the monologues. "They were a little shy. But once they got going, you couldn't stop them." "I am not sure why I was chosen," Eve Ensler writes in her introduction to The Vagina…

    • 793 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Feminism

    • 1174 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Women for years have been socially oppressed and not given gender equality. Feminism is the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, economical and social equality to man. According to the Dictionary of Critical Theory, feminism’s common core is the thesis that the relationship between the sexes is one of inequality or oppression and that all forms of feminism seek to identify the cause of that inequality and remedy it.…

    • 1174 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Feminism

    • 609 Words
    • 3 Pages

    There are different notions of femininity studied throughout the semester in Cat in the Rain, Bernice Bobs her Hair, Leila, and Girl from Paris. During the semester many different aspects of woman are seen through the main characters of all the stories we have seen. From being traditional and shy, to letting your husband walk all over you, to being an independent worker, all these women are different.…

    • 609 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics