Annie Lennox said, “We all fight over what the label ‘feminism’ means but for me it’s about empowerment. It’s not about being more powerful than men – it’s about having equal rights with protection, support, justice. It’s about very basic things.” This quote summarizes the true meaning of feminism. It also addresses the goals of feminism; not to be more powerful than men, but to be equals. According to Merriam Webster dictionary, feminism is “the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.” However, feminism is more than equality between genders. Feminism is not about hating men, traditional family structures or typical gender tastes. Feminism is about independence and acceptance for every one of every gender and sexuality …show more content…
The hating of men is actually called misandry. Feminists don’t want women to rule over men; they want men and women to be on the same level. Many people think badly of feminism for this reason. As with any movement, there are radicals who call themselves feminists and portray it as a man-hating ideology. But the whole movement cannot be defined by only a small fraction of it’s members. As stated numerous times, feminism is about fighting for equality and fixing issues both genders face. For example, men have a much higher suicide rate than women. This is one problem feminists must fight to fix. Another false idea about feminists is that they are opposed of anything feminine or relating the traditional family structure. This is also false. Feminism is about choice and acceptance, not hate. True feminism accepts women who are independent and build careers and don’t have children. But it also accepts women who want to get married and be a housewife. There is nothing wrong with the traditional ideal about families. Feminism accepts women who like pink, and wear makeup and dresses even though these are commonly seen as feminine. What feminism is against is the generalizations that all women like the color pink, and to wear makeup and dresses. Feminism is against generalizing a whole sex to the typical gender roles and tastes. Assuming all women are not athletic or all men like the color blue is …show more content…
Feminism is a source of empowerment for women. True feminism supports both men and women, and understands that both genders have social issues that must be fixed. Feminists can be from anywhere, or be anyone despite gender. Feminism has been a movement for a long time, first becoming prominent during the fight for women’s suffrage and changing since then in the problems it faces. Feminism is important because it fights for social, political, and economic equality by giving strength to women and encouraging independence and acceptance. It is also important to be aware that true feminists do not hate men, typical feminine lifestyles, or people who want to follow traditional family structures. Everyone needs to know what feminism really means. So much hate is thrown at feminists because of misconceptions about what true feminism is working towards. Once society understands what feminism is truly about, only then can it work at it’s best to fight for equality for
Feminism, as defined in the dictionary, is “the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.” This doesn’t mean that women are just a bit tired of earning 75% that a man does for the same job. This means that women are standing up for themselves and are trying to achieve rights that they should already have. We were all brought into this world by a woman, but they are still not a man’s equal. Why is that? Is it too much to ask for to not be raped or killed or cast aside simply because of gender? Why is it that there are men out there that believe feminism is a scourge upon this earth that must be wiped out? They feel that their power over women is being threatened.
The word feminism is sometimes misinterpreted and associated with female superiority and hatred of men, although most people probably agree that feminism can mean the desire for social and economic parity. There is so much baggage surrounding this term that clarification of what feminism is and is not, is essential. Indeed, the way feminism has developed has not been pretty. “Feminism over the years have [sic] evolved away from its noble purpose of creating awareness and defending women rights to creating new ridiculous ‘belief systems.’...feminism has become more like a medium for angry women to vent their hatred and frustration towards man”(“Feminism is Chauvinism”). This definition goes completely against the true meaning of what feminism entails. Feminism can be defined as a fundamental respect for others and the desire for equality between men and women.
“Feminism”, as defined today, is “1: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes,” and “2: organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests.”2 Many critics claim that feminism has been active longer than the word itself has existed.3 The word, “feminist” was not in true use until the late 1800s and early 1900s, but activism for women’s rights was alive and well a...
Feminism can simply be defined as a range of movements and ideologies in which share a common ground in terms of defining, establishing and achieving equal opportunities to that of males, in regards to economic, cultural and social rights. It is a critique of male supremacy with efforts in changing this to end the social oppression of women. (Hooks, 2000)
Man hating and unhygienic are the words typically used to describe a modern-day feminist, but the words that should be used are passionate and righteous. Incomprehension of the meaning of feminism leads to a lack of necessary female empowerment. Feminism, by definition, is the belief in social, political, and economic equality of the sexes (Issitt). When women participate in feminism, instead of working against it, they can tackle the everyday issues that try to silence women in society. Women were finally given the right to vote in 1919 and have gained more prominence in society today. Though, they still face many issues and many walls that have to be broken down before they can be given the equal life opportunities that men are granted at birth (Lee). Feminism is still prerequisite in the world today to battle against the iniquity in financial, social, and political aspects so gender equality can be achieved.
With the strong belief and desire to have equality for all people, feminists shape our society in ways to which they fight for the betterment of humans. “Feminist” is a genderless and raceless noun, meaning anyone can be a feminist if they please. Feminism is performed and executed differently amongst varying communities—such as white, black, or brown communities. There are no written procedures one must do or go through to become a part of feminism. The only requirements for feminism are having the personal want for equality, and the personal preference to be labeled as a feminist. Many times, people think of feminism to be a movement in which women try to become superior to men. Along with this, being called a “feminist” to some is frowned upon and seen as a form of domination. These thoughts tend to be due to the lack of understanding feminism. What many people believe to be the hatred for men and the
Women are given a set of expectations, roles, and limitations within institutions run by men that have long been embedded into society and feminism seeks to change the unproportionate power which would ultimately lead to a more equally represented body of people. Feminism is a tool that can aid women in abolishing all the connotations that come with gender. In One Is Not Born A Woman, Monique Wittig argues that "To refuse to be a woman...does not mean that one has to become a man," to refuse to conform to the ideal images of women, and to break free from the social constraints, stereotypes, controlling images, expectations, and oppression from social institutions does not mean becoming a man. Feminists aren 't aiming to make everyone a man, it does not aim to "bring down" men or favor women, its goal is to liberate all oppressed groups because the privileges exclusive to men "should be considered as the entitlement of everyone" according to Peggy McIntosh in White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. Feminism today is very important because it is not longer exclusive, and advocates for fairness for all (people of all ethnicities, any race, any religion, any social class, community, sexuality, etc). Instead of excluding people with different identities or
The movement to extend equal rights to women is the main goal of feminism, which is a great thing. However, the media portrays feminism in a much more negative light. Media often portrays feminism as crazy women who view men in a negative light, that want more rights than men. In turn, a negative response comes out of this misinterpretation, even causing people to even identify themselves as “anti-feminist”. A sad reality in todays world caused by various aspects. One of the major reasons feminism is seen in a negative light is because some women claim they are feminists, however are strongly misguided on exactly what the principles of feminism entail. Many women consider themselves to be feminists, but will actually end up attacking men, which in turn causes feminism to be associated in a negative manor or even be considered a hate group. This ends up being very counterproductive, making no progress toward the ultimate goal of feminism which is simply to reach equality in various aspects of society. Another example of a hate group being counterproductive for a movement is the “Black lives matter” movement. This movement stemmed from the ultimate goal to reach equal rights between races, but has turned in to a hate group which advocated the exact opposite. Seeing the group in which the movements goal is to attaint equal rights with as the enemy is the
Feminism is, “the advocacy of women 's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.” It is not the belief or avocation that females should have more power or influence than men. Instead, feminists promote change and eliminating patriarchy from society, “accepting everyone as an individual human being, not categorizing them as male or female” (News, 2015). They advocate people be seen as individuals rather than associating someone and their abilities with a gender. The term “feminist” often has an extreme connotation placed behind it which causes people to hesitate when considering what they may consider themselves. According to a survey held by the Huffington Post, only 20% of the Americans considered themselves
Feminism is the advocacy of women’s rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes. In simple terms, it is the ideology of women being equal to men and it is often misinterpreted as the belief of women being above them. Feminists believe in diminishing patriarchy which is a system of society and or government in which men are considered more powerful than women. When people are against feminism they are supporting sexism which is why it is important to educate ourselves on the matter and to understand why we need it.
Feminism, in its simplest definition, is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. (Webster) Feminists fight for equality for women to men socially, politically, and economically. At the peak of feminist discourse is equality for men and women in education and in employment. However, feminism also focuses on more than issues regarding the rights of women in relation to men. Issues of gender equality and women’s right to control their sexuality are also at the core of feminist theory. A key argument made by many feminists is how women have very little control over their sexuality, mainly being defined and controlled by men. T...
When I hear the term Feminism I automatically think its about doing things for women, and what they stand for, so I didn't really have a good idea about it. So I went online and looked it up. "Feminism consists of ideas and beliefs about what culture is like for women just because they are women, compared to what the world is like for men just because they are men. In ethical terms, this form or aspect of feminism is descriptive. The assumption in feminism is that women are not treated equally to men, and that women are disadvantaged in comparison to men" (http://womenshistory.about.com/od/feminism/a/feminism.htm). I have to say I definitely agree that women and are not treated the same as men, and I don't think we ever will. Theres a saying I believe it is "its a mans world", I don't know if I believe that. I just feel like men were always held
The term “feminism” tends to have a negative connotation in today’s culture. Feminism is now focusing on female dominance and male disrespect. Women are fighting for equality, yet using personal bias to define equality, claiming identical rights for all will produce an equal culture. The mainstream feminist movement is using this corrupted view of equality to force rights of women. Contrary to popular belief, true feminism fights for true equality for women, as well as other people groups. The false view of feminism causes women to distort gender roles, dishonor themselves, and degrade men.
Feminism is the movement towards women’s equality. It fights for equal rights in the social, political, cultural and economical aspects for women. Feminism also fights for equal opportunity for women in employment and education. A feminist is someone who advocates their support for women’s rights but is not restricted to only women; anyone who supports women’s rights and equality are feminists, including men. Feminism is not only about the females, it fights for gender equality for all. Feminist movements, or Women’s movements, campaign for reforms in household issues with domestic violence, political issues with equal pay, employment and maternity leave, and reproduction rights. All feminism movements fight for equal rights, but it cannot be conquered or be made known all at once. First wave feminism was mostly about women’s suffrage and political equality in general. Second wave feminism went more in depth about the social and cultural inequalities.
Feminism is defined as the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. It began as an organized activity on behalf of women?s rights and interests. This concept was developed to help women earn a place in a predominantly male society. Unfortunately over the years, the intentions of feminism have become distorted, not only by anti-feminists, but also by the feminists themselves. The principle of equality for women and men has turned into a fight in which feminists wish to be better than men. Feminism has been twisted and misunderstood so much that it has become a harmful idea.