Susan Bolotin's Theory Of Post Feminism

According to Fien Adriens, post-feminism has no fixed meaning; “it is a contradictory, pluristic discourse that is mainly located in the academic context of television and cultural studies, in the media context of popular culture and within consumer culture” (2009).

One of the earliest published references about post-feminism was Susan Bolotin’s article ‘ Voices from the post-feminist generation’ (1982). Based on interviews with women aged 18-25 years-old, she outlined that women wanted to reinforce institutionalised notions of heterosexuality, marriage and domestic life and rejected feminists as unhappy, embittered, man-hating women. Bolotin underlined that the concept of this post-feminism consisted of rejection of feminist theory and politics.

Elaine Hall and Marnie Salupo Rodriguez (2003) argue that post-feminism is a myth and that women continue to support feminism and find it relevant nowadays. However, recent studies show that there is the so -called fear of ‘feminism’ and many women reject to call themselves feminists for the sake of their social recognition.

As follows, I will examine three main aspects of post-feminism as a concept. Firstly, I will investigate post-feminism in popular culture. Secondly, I will discuss why there is the fear of the word ‘feminism’ and why do women try to distance themselves of these ideas. Last but not least, I will argue that feminism is still relevant and needed in contemporary society.

Post-Feminism and Popular Culture

As Angela McRobbie explains in her work ‘Post-Feminism and Popular Culture,’ conservative reactions to the achievements of feminism are actually being denied. Post-Feminism in popular culture, as she argues, relies on the achievements of

A woman who tends to oppose traditional patriarchal understandings of lifestyle and marriage, specifically when this does not meet her interests and the way she views the world. ‘Post-feminism critiques especially the second wave’s binary thinking and essentialism, its vision on sexuality and its perception of the relationship between femininity and feminism’ (Adriens, 2009). Post-feminism denies the idea of binary thinking about gender and promotes the idea that women should be free to choose their personal mix of