Feminism: Equality and Freedom
What is feminism? The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines feminism as "the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes and organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests." The definition sounds simple enough. Yet, the history of feminist movements is far from simple. Actually, it can be very confusing. First there were the three major movements: Liberal, Socialist and Radical, each with its own definition. In time, smaller movements surfaced and today there are well over thirty branches of feminism. There is one consistent theme and it is the fight for rights equal to men. Equality simply does not address the larger issues of inherent femaleness and the injustices of the male system; we need a broader definition that includes freedom as the ultimate goal of feminism. Equal rights and equality are frequently synonymous with the rights of men in society. Throughout history, men have been seen as wealthy and powerful rulers. Women stayed home and raised children and did housework. Their contributions were less valued, often unrecognized. It is no wonder we battled for the same rights. Their status in society had to look appealing.
So, what is the answer? How can women succeed in a male system without sacrificing their female characteristics? ed society looked so good that feminist movements fought for the same wealth and power. Now women have nearly captured the elusive equality. We jumped right in there and became willing participants in this system built by men that is often unjust and prejudiced. Their society thrives on competition, aggression and a lack of concern for others. Their government survives on greed and corruption. Women, children and minorities rank low in their class structure. Women have entered the workforce in full force, we can climb the corporate ladder, we can vote, and we can even fight in meaningless wars. Women have to wonder if this was the victory we wanted. Unfortunately, we seemed to have confused equality with sameness. We need to work at dismantling the elite male system that will never foster freedom or acceptance, peace or respect. Collectively, we need to work at reducing the lines among the classes in society, of which women, children and minorities are frequently at the bottom. We also need to begin celebrating the female condition as it is while at the same time adopting androgynous qualities that do not threaten our femaleness (i.e., assertiveness, confidence and independence), refusing to accept maleness as more appropriate than femaleness. Nevertheless, what is most important, is that we understand that the answer to our problems, trad
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Approximate Word count = 988
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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