The four waves of feminism
Through the passage of centuries, women have endured the reign of men. The reign of men over their thoughts, actions, feelings and even their bodies. This called for a collective movement to overthrow female oppression - Feminism. The preconceived notions surrounding feminism and its movements are innumerable. The words ‘feminist’ and ‘woman’ are used almost interchangeably to such an extent that ‘feminist history’ becomes ‘women’s history’ (Delmar, 2001) and the fact that even men can be feminists is woefully overlooked.
Feminism, like any noble cause, has had its haters and the journey to where it is today has most definitely not been an easy one. It has progressed primarily through four waves which have advocated for the dignity of women all throughout the world. Even though the roots of feminism date back to ancient Greece, the first wave of feminism started in the late nineteenth century at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848. During this period, hundreds of women as well as men stood up for the equality of women collectively. It dumfounds me how almost two hundred years ago, when society was relatively backward, men didn’t deter from calling themselves feminists and now when civilization is at the peak of modernization, men simply take a step back and state that being a feminist as a man is incongruous with nature.
The onset of the second wave was approximately eighty years after the beginning of the first wave. This wave focused at eradicating deep ingrained systemic sexism and inspired the middle class to form an organized movement. It was in the 1960’s that the birth control pill was approved for the first time as the only medicine meant for individuals who weren’t sick.
Until the third wave of feminism, beauty standards were defined by patriarchal ideations but with this movement, there was a paradigm shift in beauty standards and women reclaimed terms aimed to belittle them. Pinkfloor expressed a new position that stated that women could wear a push up bra and have a brain at the same time - beauty and intellect are not mutually exclusive and the assumption stating otherwise is fallacious.
The fourth wave of feminism emphasizes on violence against women, rape, slut – shaming, unnerving pressures on women for conformity and unequal pay. Feminism no longer just stands for women’s rights, its scope is wider than it has even been, it is a call for complete equality for all human beings.
One of the most common battles when it comes to feminism is whether men should be included in such movements. Male exclusion from feminism is problematic at so many levels. Men make up 50.42% of the total world population and it is not numerically possible to eradicate an evil that is so entrenched in our mindsets without a collective forefront. It is imperative that we all understand that feminism isn’t a war against men, it is a battle against injustice and inequality.
About The Author
Meherzeen Siganporia, Member of the PsyCreative Column
Psychology Committee, SDSOS, NMIMS
Meherzeen Siganporia is an 18-year-old student of Psychology who is passionate about photography, reading, and writing. She absolutely loves cycling to the beach and is always down for anything impulsive and adventurous. If having deep, intellectual conversations is your thing, she is your go - to girl.
Comments
Post a Comment