History Of Feminism

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Introduction Women have become strong symbols of identity throughout the world. They are mothers, wives, and sisters and in these roles are the keepers of culture, presenting a sight of society that has the potential to define a nation. Feminism can be a source of enlightenment and empowerment for women. Feminism is an answer to male domination in the world. For the purpose of this thesis, women’s historical development, oppression and rights are the focus. It has evolved to include women with diverse backgrounds. Feminism began with women questioning their place in a patriarchal society. Thus, feminist consciousness began to emerge with different forms of thought in different regions. What is the Feminism? Feminism is an ideology that suggests…show more content…
The wave formally began at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 when hundreds of men and women supported equality for women. The first wave refers to the period of the 19th through early 20th centuries, which struggled mainly with inequalities, suffrage, working conditions and educational rights for women. In the end of 19th century, there were some countries which firstly illustrate aspects of feminism such as the United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands and the United States. Scholz said that the history of this movement goes back to two centuries back of struggle for equal cultural, legal and political rights mainly the Suffrage rights, which is called the first wave of feminism (p.4). The pioneer work of the first wave is A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) by Mary Wollstonecraft, who published for the first time a book about women's social rights in England. Thus, it was laid the foundations of feminism. She advocated the social and moral equality of the sexes. While defending the fact that men and women must have the same educational chance. Mary Wollstonecraft wanted the women to change their…show more content…
The economic, social and cultural problems that emerged after the First and Second World Wars, it caused Feminists to engage in a different struggle. Second-wave feminism is a period of feminist activity that first began in the early 1960s in the United States, and ultimately spread throughout the Western world. It aims equal cultural and social rights. Scholz said that “Second wave feminism analyses some of the ways oppression is structured beyond inequality. (p.47)” Whereas first-wave feminism focused primarily on gaining the right of women’s suffrage, better working conditions, education and property right, second-wave feminism broadened the debate to a wide range of issue the separation of sexuality and fertility. Simone de Beauvoir had a very important effect in the beginning of the second wave, she wrote in The Second Sex book (1949), "the salvation of women will start from their bellies”. This book is the most important element of the women's struggle for many years. One of the most important words is “One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” This quotation has gained popularity

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