AN INTRODUCTION: THE WOMEN’S MOVEMENT AND FEMINIST THEORY HSB4U

THE WOMEN’S MOVEMENT PURPOSE = to establish and defend equal political, economic, and social rights for women Includes three ‘waves’

FIRST WAVE FEMINISM The Suffrage Movement (late nineteenth to early twentieth century)

SECOND WAVE FEMINISM Women’s Liberation Movement (1960s and 1970s)

THIRD WAVE FEMINISM Reaction to failures of the Second Wave (starts in 1990s, and is ongoing)

FEMINIST THEORY Emerges from feminist movements (specifically of the 1960s and 1970s) MAIN GOAL: to achieve political, social, and economic equality for women Used as a theory in many disciplines (literary studies, history, political science, philosophy, psychology, sociology, anthropology, etc)

WHAT DO FEMINIST THEORISTS DO? Try to explain women’s subordination, and find ways to end it

TYPES OF FEMINISTS Different types of feminists do not agree on the reasons for subordination, or how to overcome it

LIBERAL FEMINISTS removing legal obstacles will overcome women’s subordination

MARXIST/SOCIALIST FEMINISTS look at women’s subordination in the work place i.e. Double Burden

POST-COLONIAL/POST-STRUCTURAL FEMINISTS the experiences of women should not be generalized women experience subordination differently depending on their race, class, and gender

WHAT FEMINISTS THINK OF GENDER Gender (both masculine and feminine) is socially constructed Masculine characteristics are valued over feminine characteristics Gender signifies an unequal power relationship between men and women

FEMINISM AND SOCIAL MEDIA Think of the cases of Rehtaeh Parsons and Amanda Todd What might a feminist have to say about these cases? What might a feminist have to say about women and social media in general?