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Danfeld's Theory Of Postfeminism

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They support an individualistic and liberal agenda, consider that the political demands of first and second wave feminism like enfranchisement, equal pay, sexual liberation etc. have been met and “feminism has…become irrelevant to the lives of young women today” (Vicki Coppock, p. 3). Rene Danfeld starts her book The New Victorians (1995) with the observation that “ for women of my generation, feminism is our birthright …. We know what it is to live without excessive confinement. We are the first generation to grow up expecting equal opportunity and equal education, as well as the freedom to express our sexuality” (p. 2) . So according to this approach there is no need to enforce feminism politically, as all demands are already met.
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Whatever, its various definitions, postfeminism has some theoretical key elements. One of the important theoretical concept of postfeminism is biological determinism. In the eyes of feminism, “biology makes the traditional sexual division of labor inevitable to say that such division is proper, desirable, and even preferable” (Weiss, p. 36). The second wave of feminism has severe reaction to biological determinism at times declaring the complete lack of difference between the sexes, even biological difference. While, rejecting biological difference feminism undermined femininity and female interests thus led to the assumption of ‘being equal is being like man’. Femininity is missed by women’s movement. While feminism succeeded to establish the fact that women are equally human to men, the fact that women are also women; that is uniquely feminine- has been lost (Denison, p. 89) Oppositely, postfeminism embrace the idea of ‘unique equality’ and all things feminine. The new focus is emphasize “femininity as a means of asserting power since the feminine is equal to the masculine even though it may look different” (p. 89). Postfeminism seems to embrace feminine and masculine characteristic and differences. Postfeminism recognizes women power without losing her femininity. Instead of feminism that left women with one or two choices postfeminism embrace any choice that women take. It is ok to be a housewife with graduate diploma and nurturing your children and take care of your family and husband. There is no fight for equality in postfeminism. Man and woman are not an opposite sides of the spectrum but interconnected to each other in way or another

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