Professional Documents
Culture Documents
CONTENT
No. Page
1.0 Introduction 3
2.1 – Protofeminist 4
5.0 Conclusion. 26
7.0 Bibliography 27
2
Muhammad Faisal bin Abdullah
ENGL 6502
20 Disember 2017
ZIAUDDIN SARDAR
1.0 – INTRODUCTION
This paper will be tracing the history of feminism right up to the current movement.
For the purpose of the discussion, this paper will consist of three main sections. In
the first section, the discussion will focus primarily on the chronological history of
Feminism without delving into any specific discussion on the various types of
history specifically beginning from the first wave right up to the current fourth
wave. In the final section of the discussion, the focus will be on five prominent
The discussion in this section will trace back the evidence of any type of incidents
that attempt to support the betterment towards women’s status and also any
impactful efforts recorded in history that support gender equality. This section will
3
first discusses evidence of early pre-feminism movement as far back as the Ancient
Greek and will then chronologically continue forward to the present day.
2.1 – PROTOFEMINIST
The history of feminism does not begin with any of the feminism movement that
movement and the pioneers or the founding fathers that has triggered this constant
evolution of Feminism are the groups of Protofeminists. They existed long before
any of the feminism movement are founded, which is mainly the reason why they
are not labelled as Feminist. The Protofeminist are the people and activists who
Ancient Greece, the early teachings of the Islamic world and also during the Middle
Ages.
Plato is among the earliest Protofeminist of the Ancient Greece and it was
evident through one of his writings. In the book five of Plato's The Republic, he
discusses the role of women where he stated that ideally, women in his opinion
should work alongside men, receive equal education, and posses equal shares in all
aspects of the state. He suggested this ideal concept of equality with one exception;
that women should be allowed to work in capacities that required less physical
During the Middle Ages, women in the Middle East has benefited from an
early “Protofeminism movement”, long before the women in the West started
fighting for such benefits. This movement actually refers to the early reforms
within the Middle Eastern society under Islam. Through Islamic law, an early effort
4
to improve the status of women occurred during the early reforms under Islam, in
which women are then granted women greater rights in marriage, divorce and
inheritance. Among the general improvement of the status of Arab women during
the time are the prohibition of female infanticide which was going rampant and the
“bride-price” paid to the father, instead it becomes a nuptial gift retained by the
wife as part of her personal property. Furthermore, under Islamic law, marriage is
no longer viewed as a status but rather as a contract, in which the woman's consent
is mandatory. Women are also then given the inheritance rights in a patriarchal
society that had previously restricted inheritance to male relatives. These are only
parts of the advance benefits that Muslim women has had the privilege of not
having to fight for due to the reforms brought forward by the coming of Islam.
As mentioned previously, the women in the West during the middle ages
were still lacking the advantages and benefits that Muslim women were already
having during those time. This does not mean that there was no progress made in
their society. Some of the Protofeminist writers that are traced back to those era
includes a French writer Christine de Pizan, the author of The Book of the City of
Ladies and Epistle to the God of Love who is cited as the first woman to denounce
misogyny and write about the relation of the sexes (de Beauvoir, 1989). Other early
feminist writers include Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa and Modesta di Pozzo di Forzi,
who worked in the 16th century, and the 17th-century writers Hannah Woolley in
England and Juana Inés de la Cruz in Mexico. However, the most important 17th-
superior than of any other men and she was considered as a exemplary testimony of
5
2.2 – DEFENDERS OF WOMEN’S RIGHT IN THE 18TH AND 19TH
CENTURY
During the 18th and early 19th century, feminism movements has yet to emerged but
the Age of Enlightment has brought forth many enlightment philosopher who
championed the rights of women. Among the prominent philosophers are Jeremy
Jeremy Bentham was an English utilitarian and classical liberal philosopher who
exerts that it was the placing of women in a legally inferior position that made him
choose the career of a reformist at the age of eleven. Bentham fought for complete
women's rights with the poor excuse that women are of possession of inferior
Nicolas de Condorcet on the other hand was a mathematician, who was also
a fierce defender of human rights, including the equality of women and the
abolition of slavery, which was very unusual for the 1780’s. He advocated for
women's suffrage in the new government in 1790 with De l'admission des femmes
au droit de cité (For the Admission to the Rights of Citizenship For Women) and an
It is important to note however that the most cited feminist writer of the
time was Mary Wollstonecraft, who was often characterized as the first feminist
philosopher. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) is one of the first works
6
that is unarguably feminist. Wollstonecraft brought forth the argument that women
were trapped into limited expectations as their self-image are being dictated by the
contributed to inequality. She believed that both would require education to ensure
the necessary changes in social attitudes. Most critics at that time perceived
began to appear. 19th century feminist came to surface as a reaction against the
suggested that women should remain hidden within their private sphere at home,
bound to their maternal and spousal duty while the public sphere remain exclusive
for the men. This caused outrage among the feminist and Queen Victoria herself
noted in a private letter that this ‘ideal’ is a "mad, wicked folly of 'Woman's
During the 1850s Barbara Leigh Smith and her friends met regularly in
London's Langham Place to discuss the united women's voice necessary for
achieving reform. They soon became the "Ladies of Langham Place", which
included Bessie Rayner Parkes and Anna Jameson. Their focus was on education,
employment, and marital law. The ladies collected thousands of signatures for
legislative reform petitions, some of which were successful. Smith was able to
reach large numbers of women via her role in the English Women's Journal. The
positive response to this journal led to their creation of the Society for Promoting
Davies at that time were also slowly making progress in term of education reform.
7
The Queen's College and Bedford College in London began to offer some education
to women from 1848 and by the year 1862, Davies established a committee to
persuade the universities to allow women to sit for the recently established Local
Examinations, and achieved partial success in 1865. Davies and Leigh Smith later
founded the first higher educational institution for women and enrolled five
students, which contributed to the creation of three girls’ colleges; Girton College,
select few women could take advantage of them and life for female students was
The positive progress made during the 19th century became a crucial springboard
for feminism movement all around the world. All the changes and reforms has
brought forth an awareness among the feminist that there are room for better future
movement from that point forward. In this section, the discussion will focus mainly
on brief introduction of each waves with prominent events and changes that took
place during each stage. A more in-depth discussion will resume in the following
sections as the discussion will look into various strands of feminism movements
thought, that occurred within the time period of the 19th and early 20th century
throughout the world. Within this first wave the focus is mainly on legal issues,
primarily on gaining women's suffrage, or the right to vote as women all over the
8
world at this time are being treated as having less authority than men. Besides that,
this wave is main goals are also to fight for female education rights, better
important events that are included in the history of feminism first movements can
be traced back to 1809 married women property law in US up until the year 1928,
where the right to vote was granted to all UK women equally with men. There are
notably 69 important incidents and changes that took place within the first
observed their first International Women's Day on the last Sunday in February
1913. Three years later in Germany, granted women are granted the right to vote
and last but not least in 1919, the first female students were accepted in Peking
The second-wave feminism was the reason the previous wave was retrospectively
coined. This wave first began in the early 1960s in the United States, and eventually
spread throughout the Western world and beyond and it lasted through the early
1980’s. The main aim for the second wave was to further probe on the other issues
of laws for women, the cultural inequalities and also correcting the role of women
women.
There were in total 104 incidents that was recorder in the second wave of
feminism movements. Among the most prominent incident was recorded in 1966
when twenty-eight women, among them Betty Friedan, founded the National
Organization for Women (NOW). Later on in 1973, The American National Black
Feminist Organization was formed and in Canada four years later, the Canadian
9
Human Rights Act was passed, prohibiting discrimination based on characteristics
including sex and sexual orientation, and requiring "equal pay for work of equal
value.
Third-wave feminism begins in the early 1990s and continuing to the early
2000. The movement arose partially as a continuation of the second wave and also
movements created by second-wave feminism during the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, and
the perception that women are of "many colors, ethnicities, nationalities, religions,
and cultural backgrounds". This wave of feminism expands the topic of feminism to
include a diverse group of women with a diverse set of identities and allows women
various strands of feminism movements that will be introduced in the other sections
of this discussion.
Among the important issues that were addressed by this wave are the issue
of race, social class and sexuality. Besides that, it also delved further into
workplace issues such as the glass ceiling, sexual harassment and unfair maternity
leave policies all around the world. Among the most important incident recorded
during the wave is when The Gender Equity in Education Act became law in the
U.S. in 1994. This act banned sex-role stereotyping and gender discrimination in
the classroom. During the same year as well, The Violence Against Women Act
became law in the U.S. On a more global scale, China held The Fourth World
Conference on Women was held in 1995 and Norway mandates that all companies
are required to have at least forty percent women on their boards starting from
2008.
The year 2008 actually marks a new wave in the feminism movement
10
history. Kira Cochrane, the author of All the Rebel Women: The Rise of the Fourth
2009)." It is interesting to note that within this wave, the movement started to take
lighter stance towards using the label feminism and was rather more concerned with
the route towards gender equality. The fourth wavers are concerned with the fact
that the word “feminism” carries the subtext of “women only”. Thus, en route of
championing inclusivity, the new age of feminism movement are now taking place.
The types of feminism movements that come into creation will be further discussed
As mentioned previously, this section will focus on chronologically laying out the
throughout these four waves. In this sections, 18 types of feminism movements will
movements starting from the movement that originated from the first wave.
11
Diagram 1; Development of Feminism Movements During the 1st and 2nd Waves
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:23 PM
Deleted:
The first wave takes place during the early 19th Century and continues on until the
year 1960. During these waves, only two types of feminism movements were
developed. The first and earliest one would be the Mainstream feminism.
Mainstream feminism, as the name suggests, is rather a general term that identifies
feminist ideologies and movements, which do not fall into either the socialist or
radical feminist camps. The mainstream feminist movement has its roots in first-
wave feminism and in the historical liberal feminism of the 19th and early-20th
centuries and its main focus was directed towards political and legal reform.
This movement are more inclusive of men in contrast with the radical feminism,
and often focuses on issues that are no longer considered controversial nowadays,
important to note that due to the effort of mainstream feminism, major milestones
of the feminist struggle such as the right to vote and the right to education came
into fruition.
12
3.2 – Anarcha-feminism
The other movement that gained it’s momentum during the first wave is Anarcha-
feminists believe that the struggle against patriarchy is an essential part of class
struggle and of the anarchist struggle against the state. Brown (1990), justifies the
need of anarchism is interrelated with the feminist movement due to the fact that
theorists include Germaine Greer, L. Susan Brown, and the eco-feminist Starhawk.
The second wave of the feminism movement arises from the late 1960’s until the
early 1980’s. One of the earlier feminism movements within this wave is the
the existing social norms and institutions. The issues that are highlighted include
opposing the sexual objectification of women, raising public awareness about such
issues as rape and violence against women, and challenging the notion of
problematic gender roles. For the radical feminists they view patriarchy as the root
cause of women's oppression. This is where the main difference can be detected in
13
comparison with the liberal feminism, which attempts at rectifying or the anarchist
feminism, socialist feminism, and Marxist feminism that deal with the issue of class
conflict.
The Socialist feminism and Marxist feminism are often treated under the same
umbrella as they both share the same core philosophy and both gain momentum
around the same period. Socialist feminism connects the oppression of women to
Marxist ideas about exploitation, oppression and labor. Socialist feminists held the
belief that the unequal standing in both the workplace and the domestic sphere are
the reason why women are oppressed. They perceive prostitution, domestic work,
working alongside not just men but all other groups, as they perceive the oppression
of women as a part of a larger pattern that affects everyone involved in the capitalist
system.
Marxist feminism on the other hand believes that when class oppression was
that much of women's labor is uncompensated. One main criticism that arises
against these traditional Marxist ideas are the fact that they are inherently silent on
14
gender oppression since it tends to oversweep the issue underneath broader class
oppression.
In the 1970’s as well another movement was on the rise in another part of the
feminists in France from the 1970s to the 1990s. It differs from the other
This movement includes writers who are not French, but who have worked
substantially in France and the French tradition, such as Julia Kristeva and Bracha
linguistics, political theory, race theory, and literary theory. This movement
proposes the idea that difference is one of the most powerful tools that women
possess in their struggle with patriarchal domination, and therefore equating the
feminist movement only with equality will limit the chances and opportunity of
better future for women because equality is still defined from the masculine or
patriarchal perspective.
oppression, another movement came in conception to fill in the gap left by the other
types of movements. Black feminism argues that sexism, class oppression, and
racism are inextricably bound together. They believe that any forms of feminism
that strive to overcome sexism and class oppression but ignore race will
discriminate against many people, including women, through racial bias. Thus, the
15
Kennedy, Margaret Sloan, and Doris Wright. One of the theories that progressed
out of this movement was Alice Walker's womanism. It emerged after the early
feminist movements that were led exclusively by white women, were largely white
and classism. Alice Walker and other womanists pointed out that this resulted into a
situation where black women experiencing a different and more intense oppression
The second wave also witnesses another type of radical feminism with the arise of
related to this movement. Separatist feminism's advocates argue that the sexual
MrFaisal 31/12/17 2:30 PM
Deleted: proponents
disparities between men and women are unresolvable. Separatist feminists
generally held the believe that men can not make positive contributions to the
MrFaisal 31/12/17 2:31 PM
Deleted: do not feel
feminist movement and that even well-intentioned men will subconsciously
separation of various sorts or modes from men and from institutions, relationships,
roles and activities that are male-defined, male-dominated, and operating for the
16
As most of the movements during the second wave are focusing on equality and
concept began to rise. They are the libertarian feminist. Libertarian feminism
freedom from coercive interference. It holds that women, as well as men, have
similar right to such freedom due to their status as self-owners. This movement is
free and independent individual and thus freeing the women from various
3.8 – Ecofeminism
environment. Especially in the western patriarchal systems, where men own and
MrFaisal 31/12/17 2:54 PM
Deleted: W
control the land, the men are deemed responsible for the oppression of women and
MrFaisal 31/12/17 2:54 PM
Deleted: seen as
destruction of the natural environment. Ecofeminists consider women to be
MrFaisal 31/12/17 2:55 PM
Deleted: Ecofeminists argue that the men in
exploited by men in power for their own profit, success, and pleasure and apply the power control the land, and therefore are able
to exploit it for their own profit and success. In
same analogy towards men’s relationship with the environment. Therefore this situation,
MrFaisal 31/12/17 2:56 PM
Ecofeminists argue that women and the environment are both being exploited as Deleted: us
passive pawns in the race to domination. Ecofeminists argue that those people in
power are able to take advantage of both women and the environment distinctly
because they are seen as passive and rather helpless. As an effort towards repairing
social and ecological injustices, ecofeminists urge women to work towards creating
17
a healthy environment and ending the destruction of the lands that most women rely
Towards the end of the second wave, another movement regarded as Cultural
"female nature" or "female essence" that attempts to revalidate what they consider
constructed rather than focusing on the biological differences. They assert the idea
that a woman’s worth from a cultural perspective is much more valuable and if this
was to be realized, women would be in a much better position within the society, in
Diagram 2; Development of Feminism Movements During the 3rd and 4th Waves
18
The third wave began to take shape beginning from the early 1980’s. The first
movement that was started with the mission of filling in the gaps left by the first
and second wave was the Standpoint feminism. This movement have argued that
comparison to the others, it actually paved the way for other prominent movements
Postmodern feminism is one of the example of movement that benefited from the
feminist theory that incorporates both the postmodern and post-structuralist theory.
Butler (1990), argues that sex, not just gender, is constructed through language. She
draws on and critiques the work of Simone de Beauvoir, Michel Foucault, and
between biological sex and socially constructed gender. She asserts that the
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:39 PM
Deleted: says
sex/gender distinction does not allow for a sufficient criticism of essentialism. For
ethnicity, sexuality, and other facets of identity. She argues that gender is
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:43 PM
Deleted: states
performative. This argument leads to the conclusion that there is no single cause for
women's subordination and no single approach towards dealing with the issue.
19
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:45 PM
One of the most prominent and influential feminism movement from the third wave Deleted: , sometimes
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:45 PM
would be Postcolonial feminism. This movement is also referred to as Third World Deleted: known
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:46 PM
feminism, and it partly draws on postcolonialism, which discusses experiences Deleted: "
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:46 PM
endured during colonialism, including migration, slavery, suppression, resistance, Deleted: "[49]
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:46 PM
representation, difference, race, gender, place and responses to the influential Deleted: centers
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:47 PM
discourses of imperial Europe. Postcolonial feminism revolves on racism, ethnic Deleted: bound up with
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:47 PM
issues, and the long-lasting economic, political, and cultural effects of colonialism, Deleted: [50]
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:47 PM
inextricably intertwined with the unique gendered realities of non-White non- Deleted: It sees the parallels between
recently decolonized nations and the state of
women within patriarchy—both ... [1]
Western women. MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:47 PM
Deleted:
The issue with the Western feminists is the fact that they tend to MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:50 PM
Deleted: [51]
universalize women's issues, thereby excluding social classes and ethnic identities, MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:50 PM
Deleted: [52]
reinforcing homophobia, and ignoring the activity and voices of non-White non- MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:50 PM
Deleted: ,[52][53][54]
Western women. Postcolonial feminists therefore can also be described as feminists MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:50 PM
Deleted: as under one application of ... [2]
who have reacted against both the universalizing tendencies in Western feminist MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:51 PM
Deleted: [55]
thought and a lack of attention to gender issues in mainstream postcolonial thought. MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:51 PM
Deleted: Colonialism has a gendered history.
... [3]
Postcolonial feminism is closely related to transnational feminism which is MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:53 PM
Deleted: . The former has strong overlaps
... [4]
another movement that gained its momentum during the third wave. Transnational MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:54 PM
Deleted:
feminism holds to both a contemporary feminist paradigm and the corresponding MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:54 PM
Deleted: refers
activist movement. Both the theories and activist practices are concerned with how MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:54 PM
Deleted: [1]
globalization and capitalism affect people across nations, races, genders, classes, MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:54 PM
Deleted: [2]
and sexualities. The term "transnational" was also chosen in reaction and rejection MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:54 PM
Deleted: [1][3]
towards the terms like "international" and "global" feminism. Transnational MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:55 PM
Deleted: ... [5]
feminists hold the believe that the term "international" puts more emphasis on MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:55 PM
Deleted: is
nation-states as distinct entities, and that "global" speaks to liberal feminist theories MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:55 PM
Deleted: the
on "global sisterhood" that ignore Third World women and women of color’s MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:55 PM
Deleted: of
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:55 PM
Deleted: [1][4][5]
20
perspectives on gender inequality and other problems that inherently come together
with globalization.
MrFaisal 31/12/17 3:58 PM
Deleted: inherently brings.
attentive to feminism as both a liberatory formation and a practice that has been
simultaneously working to lay the groundwork for more productive and equitable
women's agency. It is not merely about merging the concerns of transgenders with MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:33 PM
Deleted: includes
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:34 PM
Deleted: trans concerns
21
feminism, but often applies feminist analysis and critiques to social issues faced by
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:34 PM
Deleted: ing
trans women and trans people in general.
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:34 PM
Deleted: more broadly
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:34 PM
Deleted: [citation needed
3.15 – New Age Feminism
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:34 PM
Deleted: ] Transfeminism also includes
critical analysis of second-wave feminism
from the perspective of the third wave.[90]
For the final and most current wave of feminism, a brand new feminism movement MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:34 PM
Deleted: ... [9]
has now taken place and it is known as the New Age feminism. The New Age
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:35 PM
Deleted: ... [10]
feminism has emerged in the 21st century and serves as both a continuation and
(Redcross, 2012) In New Age feminism, a woman or man embraces the qualities in
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:39 PM
Deleted: ."
him or herself that have culturally been defined as "feminine" without shame, while
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:40 PM
Deleted: [39]
still fighting against the discrimination that women and also "feminine" men still
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:40 PM
Deleted: (
face in the workplace and other facets of 21st century society. This movement
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:40 PM
Deleted: )
comes in response to the current culture that simultaneously claims to embrace the
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:40 PM
Deleted: (
equality of men and women and at the same time seriously devalues femininity.
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:40 PM
Deleted: )
In contrast to the Second and Third wave feminists, a New Age feminist does not
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:41 PM
Deleted: a
demand women to be treated the same way as a man, but rather that the differences
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:41 PM
Deleted: "
between men and women be recognized, understood, celebrated and accommodated
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:41 PM
Deleted: ".[40]
even while those differences are treated with equity. A New Age feminists for MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:42 PM
Deleted: Unlike
example are not afraid to have children or to get married should they choose to, nor MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:43 PM
Deleted:
do they feel shame for choosing not to. A New Age feminist knows there is great
joy in both a career and a family, and feels entitled to experience both. This
feminist is not looking for special treatment, and is not obsessed with getting purely MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:45 PM
Deleted: or even
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:46 PM
equal treatment. This movement is looking for equitable treatment, respect in the
Deleted: She is
22
workplace, and equal opportunity. New Age feminists champion the rights of
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:46 PM
Deleted: She
working women to become pregnant, take maternity leave, and nurse in public,
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:46 PM
Deleted: s
while ensuring that they are still getting paid as much as her male counterparts.
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:44 PM
Deleted: Meanwhile, she lends her support
One of the most prominent features of New Age feminists is the fact that to slut walks,[42] sex workers, belly[43] and
pole dancers, #FreeTheNipple[44] campaigns,
they do not hate men and many might have at some point in their lives identified as as well as anti-harassment and anti-victim
blaming movements. She denounces sexual
exploitation, but also believes in a woman's (or
men, or is in love with or has close relationships with men. This movement also anyone's) right to explore and be empowered
by their own "feminine" sexuality.
does not reject certain male practices like chivalry and sexual dominance as long as MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:48 PM
Deleted:
they are performed consensually between both parties. In another word, the New MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:44 PM
Deleted: Most feminists
Age feminist are no longer bound to any external expectation of specific traits that MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:47 PM
Deleted: New Age feminists
they need to conform to, as long as they are not causing any harm towards MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:47 PM
Deleted: ay
themselves or the others. MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:48 PM
Deleted: Nor do
MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:48 PM
Deleted: they
4.0 – FEMINIST WRITERS THROUGHOUT HISTORY MrFaisal 31/12/17 5:35 PM
Deleted: ... [11]
In this section, the discussion will look upon several prominent feminist
feminist literature will be provided, ranging from written works prior to the
beginning of the first wave right until the current movement of the New Age
feminism.
Long before any of the feminism movement begins in the first wave, in
1928, an English author by the name of Radclyffe Hall created a huge scandal
within the world of literature by writing The Well of Loneliness, the first ever
recorded lesbian novel. The novel narrates the life of Stephen Gordon, an
tendency from an early age. She finds love with Mary Llewellyn, but their
happiness together is short-lived due to social isolation and rejection. Hall was
23
actually portray a rather “advanced” message witihin the novel as she portrays
inversion as a natural, God-given state and even makes an explicit plea: "Give us
also the right to our existence". Although the novel’s only sex scene consists of the
words "and that night, they were not divided", a British court judged it obscene
because it defended "unnatural practices between women" and in the United States
the book survived legal challenges in New York state and in Customs Court.
Although few critics rate The Well highly as a work of literature, its treatment of
before any feminist movement came into realization was definitely none other that
Jane Austen. Even though her works might be deemed as counterproductive effort
Jane is among the earliest women writer who created strong and intelligent female
undoubtedly managed to sow the seed of feminism through her novel, especially
through the depiction of Elizabeth Bennet in her famous Pride and Prejudice written
as early as in 1797.
As we move into the prominent feminist writer during the first wave of
feminism, one name would always rise way above the other writers. Virginia Woolf
and her most prominent work, A Room of One’s Own remains the symbol of
feministic influence all around the world even to this day. Her thought-provoking
arguments provide a springboard for early feminists during her time, which
There are undoubtedly thousands of feminist authors to be listed but for the
second wave of feminism, there is one book that strongly represents the aspiration
24
of the second wave. The Feminine Mystique is a book written by Betty Friedan,
which marked the beginning of second-wave feminism in the United States. It was
survey of her former Smith College classmates for their 15th anniversary reunion;
the results, in which she found that many of them were unhappy with their lives as
housewives, prompted her to begin research for The Feminine Mystique. During
the year of 1964, The Feminine Mystique became the bestselling nonfiction book
with over one million copies sold. In this book, Friedan challenged the widely
shared belief in 1950s that fulfillment as a woman had only one definition for
American women after 1949, which is being the housewife and mother.
As the emphases and the mission of the third waves are decentralizing away
from Western feminism, another feminist writer that deserve a mention is Begum
Bengali writer, educationist, social activist, and advocate of women's rights. She
has been considered the pioneer of women's education in the Indian subcontinent
during the time of the British rule. What is most unique and interesting about her
and her written work was that even though she lived and wrote during the period of
the first wave, her ideas and thoughts are actually in tandem with what is being
championed within the third wave. Her feminist utopian short story, Sultana’s
Dream, cynically deals with serious issues such as the traditional stereotypes of
male superiority and the oppressive cultural practice in India as well as women’s
Last but not least, for the fourth wave of feminism, a perfect example of a
memoir of growing up as a British Muslim woman. Her new book titled Generation
25
M: Young Muslims Changing the World was published in August 2016. Generation
M, is dubbed by the The Guardian as the first detailed portrait of the influential
segment of the world’s fastest growing religion, Islam. Her first autobiographical
book, Love in a Headscarf, in which she is the main protagonist, is the perfect
independent woman travelling the world and also a pious daughter who is happy to
share about her search for love through arranged marriage. This proves that she
does not belong to any specific boxes and she is a New Age feminist in pursuit of
5.0 – CONCLUSION
The feminism movements has most definitely gone through an extensive historical
incidents from the Age of Protofeminist right up to the New Age Feminism with the
previously discussed in this paper suggest that the Feminism movements are indeed
might appear undecided and uncertain, provide feminism movement with the
26
Bibliography
Bomarito, J., & Hunter, J. W. (2005). Feminism in Literature, Vol. 5. Gale Group.
Bomarito, J., & Hunter, J. W. (2005). Feminism in Literature, Vol. 6. Gale Group.
CA: AK Press.
Cochrane, K. (2013). The fourth wave of feminism: meet the rebel women. The
1928. Routledge.
Frye, M. (1983). Some reflections on separatism and power. The lesbian and
27
Hill, R. J., Childers, J., Childs, A. P., Cowie, G., Hatton, A., Lewis, J. B., ... &
University of Georgia.
http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/makin/education/education.ht
21 December 2014
28