Feminism: More than just women in literature

Feminism: the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.



Women have been fighting for equal rights to men for years and this has often become the sole thought that comes to people's minds when they hear the word 'feminism.' However, this theory has much more meaning when applied to literature.

While equality issues are dealt with in the form of feminism writing, this theory also applies to other gender and race based topics. Questions are often focused on such as 'Are women equal to men?' or 'How does the oppression of women of color differ from that of white women?' or 'How does oppression effect women and their role within society?'

Different sections of feminism theory include Rights Based Feminism, Essentialist Feminism, Materialist Feminism, French Feminism, and Foucauldian Feminism.

Rights Based Feminism is what much of the media focuses on. This movement aims for women to have equal rights to men in terms of economical and professional standings. Women should have equal rights to vote, equal job opportunities, and equal salary incomes that men do.



Essentialist Feminism focuses more solely on the social aspect of women compared to men. This theory focuses on exactly how women are viewed differently from men in terms of values and emotions.

Materialist Feminism shows the oppression that women have gone through over the years. Materialists focus on how men have used power to overshadow women in many different aspects of life, as well as the importance of women overcoming this oppression.



French Feminism takes a more post structuralism approach to the situation. This theory shows how the opinion of women should not be created by men, but by other women to avoid the binary that has already been put into place. By standing together, women can overcome the oppression they have received.

Lastly, there's Foucauldian Feminism. This theory takes a look at how bodies and people display gender rather than one's anatomy. This view opens the doors to topics such as cross dressing and transgenders. This theory also takes a look at the cultural reactions and opinions in regards to these topics.

While dealing with many different aspects and sections of this single theory, each part of feminism shares one thing in common. This theory takes a look at women as a whole and how they are viewed by men, society, and themselves. With the ever changing laws and standards regarding women in every day life, this leads to feminism being a theory that always stays relevant.


Citations:

"Free Image on Pixabay - Oppression, Women, Violence, Barbie." Free Photo: Oppression, Women, Violence, Barbie. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2015. <https://pixabay.com/en/oppression-women-violence-barbie-458621/>.

"OpenClipartVectors." Pixabay. N.p., n.d. Web. <https://pixabay.com/en/emancipation-eurythmics-feminism-156066/>.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2015. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcha-feminism>.