Why We Should All Be Feminist Analysis

In both situations women are delved punishments by misogyny and sexism for trying to stand out in a male dominated world, but both require different solutions. Acknowledging and understand misogyny and sexism as two individual things allows them to be resolved more

Looking in from the outside, the journey of Women’s rights was a lengthy one, and it has come a significant way from what it began as. It was a long road to freedom that started with just a few women protesting together for change in the mid 1800’s to the large movement it is today. What started only as an effort to put women on equal footing with men in the voting realm blossomed into a full on fight against gender norms and independence through protesting, speeches, and gatherings. Gender norms or ‘roles’ are (as defined by Webster’s dictionary) “a set of societal norms dictating what types of behaviors are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on their actual or perceived sex” and they are one thing that modern feminist have set their sights on to change for the better. Traditional gender roles have continued to exist for hundreds of years through perpetrators such as religion, government and society, and its effects have been felt by every woman, whether they realize it or not.

Throughout history, there has always been a rivalry between the two sexes and in the end the women have always come in second place. Time over time it has been proven difficult for women to hold any type of power that they have wanted except for the tasks that they have been given due to their gender. In society and in their own homes, it has been difficult for women to grow and sustain their power beyond the limits that they have been given. Women have been differentiated from men and have been discriminated with regard to jobs and other types of privileges that they have wanted. Throughout the course of history, they have been denied many freedoms that every man has and they want to be equal to their counterparts. In 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified in the United States of America and developed the women’s suffrage. Slowly, women are receiving the freedoms of being their own person rather than this stereotypical woman figure that has been long awaited for because they should already be treated equal among men. The key features that women have been viewed as stereotypical is femininity, care, nurture, maternity, and dependent upon men. Society expects women to have the ideal feminine characteristics; however, women do not always generally have those types of traits and can have some just like men.

Establishing male supremacy is the mindset of a misogynist. This is specifically important because gender is constantly changing; when femininity alters and masculinity changes to compensate, always fluctuating based on the other gender. Constantly changing genders cause confusion, but change also brings awareness to the issues it causes. Recognition of the subordination of women has compromised the dominance of males leading to new forms of masculinity. Since women have begun to explore the “domains” of men, misogynists change what it means to be masculine to compensate. Berit Brogaard mentioned in an article in Psychology Today that misogynists often mistreat women to spite them, “He will make promises to women and often fail to keep them.

Misinterpretation on feminism becomes an issue in America because the definition altered in various communities. In the essay, “Feminist Politics: Where We Stand”, the author Bell Hooks discusses the misconception of feminism in the United States. Bell Hooks states that the reason of the misconception of feminism occurs because of the patriarchy of America because mass media represents feminism as an anti-male group. However, feminism is the exact opposite of an anti male groups. Feminism defines itself for equality between men and women. Women created feminism because of the unfair treatment women face because of the male dominated patriarchy. Bell Hooks tries to convey her readers in “Feminist Politics: Where We Stand” by stating, “Feminist politics is losing momentum because feminist movement has lost clear

Although we can technically act the way we want, women are still expected to be ladylike and feminine. In most cases, women are still considered to be weaker than men. Society still frowns at us at a few things. We are judged on how we present ourselves, what we wear, and our marital status. Women are still expected to get married and have kids. Another thing that has not changed is that the wage gap has not closed. Today, females are paid only eighty percent, on average, of what males are paid. This gap is worse for colored women. Even though this gap has decreased since the 1930’s, it is still not right. Today, sometimes women still get victim-blamed, slut-shamed, and even being accused that rape was their own

Conformity is described as the compliance with standards, rules, or laws. While to an American, complying with laws and standards may seem like common sense, since most laws exist for a reason. This is usually to protect the safety of citizens. However, in Afghan culture, conformity means something entirely different. It means that people must conform to the laws of society, no matter how sexist or unfair they may seem to be. This means that males must accept their position of power over women, while the women must live to serve the men. In the novel “The Kite Runner”, by Khaled Hosseini, the protagonist Amir is troubled by the frequent and sometimes extreme mistreatment of women that his culture allows. He also struggles to live his life according

Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun presents the rise of feminism in America in the 1960s. Beneatha Younger, Lena Younger (Mama) and Ruth Younger are the three primary characters displaying evidences of feminism in the play. Moreover, Hansberry creates male characters who demonstrate oppressive attitudes towards women yet enhance the feministic ideology in the play. A Raisin in the Sun is feminist because, with the feminist notions displayed in the play, women can fulfil their individual dreams that are not in sync with traditional conventions of that time.

In the introduction “Come Closer to Feminism” Hooks describes the conversations she tends to have with people who are interested in what she does. The misconception that feminism is hatred towards men by women is one that is constant according to her. As she explains most men and even women have the idea that feminist hate men, that they are all lesbians and they take jobs away from white men to make their lives harder, but when asked what they have read or know of feminism most will answer saying that they have never read a book. Their ideas of theories have arrived from that of what others say or mention.

A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines, is about Grant and Jefferson who are two black men that have drastically different views on life as one of them is college educated, while the other has no formal schooling. They refused to change their old ways and stayed closed minded throughout most of the novel . Being African American in Louisiana during the 1940s facing racism didn’t help Grant and Jefferson since whites did everything they could to degrade them. Towards the end, they evolved into caring and brave characters due to the influence of motherly-like women such as Grant's aunt Tante Lou and Miss Emma, who is Jefferson’s godmother . Miss Emma and Tante Lou, were influential female role models who instructed Grant to visit Jefferson and see him stand up for his rights, and so did Vivian, Mr. Wiggin's girlfriend who encouraged her significant other to follow Miss Emma’s and Tante Lou’s advice.

Over time women have faced and overcome multiple obstacles. In this day and age, women have gained the right to vote, receive an education, and make their own decisions about their life. However, women are still faced with the struggle of fitting into societal norms, and this is becoming increasingly dangerous in our mass media society. For centuries, society has made females feel as if they must fit into the barbie doll image created by a patriarchal society. Some women face eating disorders, plastic surgeries, an abundance of makeup, or even the idea of suicide to elude thoughts of being less than ideal in other people's eyes. “Barbie Doll”, a hyperbolic poem about the dangers of body dysmorphia, depicts a young female confronted with a

Both the article Oppression by Marilyn Frye and the article Feminism is for everybody that includes men by Katherine Fritz both talk about the way women are demoralized by society on what society assumes about the person not what they know about the individual. That just because a woman dresses sexy does not mean she is sexually easy or deserves to be called derogatory names or harassed or worse raped. There should also not be one set of rules for men and another set for women. If a man has multiple sexual partners, he is labeled a stud and if a woman has the same number of sexual partners, she is labeled a whore or slut. Society attaches labels to us since birth, which is where female oppression starts. Little girls are expected to be reserved

Sexism has been a major issue in American history that continues to be a problem in the present day. It starts in schools, where the dress code is absurdly strict to prevent the male population from being distracted from their work. The school system chooses to restrict what women can wear to avoid addressing the true offenders, which are the men who allow themselves to be easily controlled by a female's physique. Additionally, the media fosters sexism further by showcasing movies and TV shows of a beautiful woman being controlled by a powerful man. As a result, young boys learn that girls are pretty objects to be dominated. And the young girls learn that being attractive is easier and more rewarding than being intelligent. From then on girls

Whenever the slightest portrayal of sexism is seen, feminists are quick to react and correct what is wrong. The solution to sexism is not to blatantly ignore it and say it does not exist anywhere; the solution is to stand up for what is right and implement the actions that need to take place. In “Bad Feminists” by Roxane Gay, it was stated that “[her] favorite definition of a feminist is one offered by Su, an Australian woman who...described them simply as ‘women who don't want to be treated like shit’” (Gay 169). That is basically essential for all bad feminists. In relation to that, the women in the article “Female Chauvinist Pigs” use that approach to feminism to define different aspects of life. More so than not wanting to be treated like shit, they just want to be recognized by their male counterparts to even get a start. Based solely on their gender, women are already placed at a disadvantage in the workplace

Many women limit themselves by stay home and not taking on their own jobs, not driving because their husbands don’t want them to, and not following their aspirations because of what their husbands need. It’s almost implied that it has to be that way in many places. Especially in countries like India and countries in the middle east, it’s socially and physically extremely hard for women to to have a position of power similar to what men do. Even if women do get a good job, or a political position, most men don’t take them seriously and don’t respect them. The disrespect doesn’t just fall in India and the middle east, even American women are subjected to oppression that is now a part of the