What is Feminism?

What kind of an animal is feminism? Has feminism become obsolete? Was it ever effective or necessary? Is it all about gender power? These are but a small fraction of the myriad of questions the very mention of ‘feminism’ inadvertently triggers.  

Feminism, like any other –ism, has as many definitions as it has uses. What makes feminism even more excruciatingly difficult to pin down is its non-homogeneous history and content. Feminism is a political and social movement, as well as a philosophical temperament. It is a way of life as well as a moral stance. There are as many feminisms as there are women and men speaking out on issues concerning gender inequalities and social injustices. The great Greer Knox once said she understands feminism as ‘women helping women’. Today, feminist philosophers such as Karen Warren and Lorraine Code link feminism to ecological thinking where care for one’s surroundings (including, but not limited to, the natural environment) is part of the feminist agenda.

Traditionally, feminism has been divided into three waves (although not all historians agree with this categorization!). The roots of the first wave are placed either with Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman published in 1792, or the Seneca Fall Convention in 1848 where around 300 women and men gathered to sign a Declaration, prepared by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, proclaiming gender equality. The Seneca Fall Convention is very important for feminism since it early on links it to two other movements that were crucial for the period: the suffrage and the abolitionist movements.

The second wave of feminism is often associated with the publication of Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex in 1949. It bears the marks of Marxism and Radical Feminism.

The third wave begins, roughly, in the mid-90s of the 20th century. It is characterized, like everything else in the intellectual history of the period, with post-colonialism, post-structuralism, and post-modernism.

Where are we now? I think the best way to describe our situation today is with the, somewhat vague but still useful, term ‘post-feminism’. It is ‘post-‘ in the sense that many of the political and social struggles of 20th century feminism have born fruit: women are legal persons; they can not only vote, but also run for political office, have access to education and paid work, the list goes on. But feminism is still very much relevant today.  

Due to its inborn theoretical and practical flexibility, it has expanded to incorporate the struggles of all underprivileged, vulnerable, and underrepresented groups, be it human or non-human. To use Karen Warren’s words: feminism is to address all types of discrimination. Let’s not forget that since its first baby steps, feminism has targeted not only specific injustices but more importantly, the very logic of domination, which generates power-based social structures where competitiveness and ‘winner takes all’ are not only encouraged but dearly rewarded.

To me, feminism is an embodied philosophy which ‘forces’ us to regard the world, including ourselves, with care, and concern, but not without critical assessment. Being a feminist is the most adequate way for me to keep alive the memory of the generations of brave women (and men) who fought against slavery, poverty, and all other forms of gender, social, political, and moral oppression, for reproductive rights, and equal access to opportunities in life; it is carrying on the legacy of all mothers (and fathers), including my own.  

But there is still so much work to be done all around the world, as well as here, in the west. So, feminists, roll up your sleeves and let the fun begin!

*This blog is dedicated to my mom, Katya.