Feminist theory is the extension of feminism into theoretical, or philosophical, ground. It encompasses work done in a broad variety of disciplines, prominently including the approaches to women's roles and lives and feminist politics in anthropology and sociology, psychoanalysis, economics, women's and gender studies, feminist literary criticism, and philosophy especially Continental philosophy.^[1] Feminist theory aims to understand the nature of inequality and focuses on gender politics, power relations and sexuality. While generally providing a critique of social relations, much of feminist theory also focuses on analyzing gender inequality and the promotion of women's rights, interests, and issues. Themes explored in feminism include art history ^[2]and contemporary art^[3][4], aesthetics^[5][6], discrimination, stereotyping, objectification (especially sexual objectification), oppression, and patriarchy.^[7][8][9] Feminists redirects here. ... For other uses, see Philosophy (disambiguation). ... This article is about the social science. ... Sociology (from Latin: socius, companion; and the suffix -ology, the study of, from Greek λόγος, lógos, knowledge [1]) is the systematic and scientific study of society, including patterns of social relationships, social action, and culture[2]. Areas studied in sociology can range from the analysis of brief contacts between anonymous... Today psychoanalysis comprises several interlocking theories concerning the functioning of the mind. ... Face-to-face trading interactions on the New York Stock Exchange trading floor. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Gender studies is a theoretical work in the social sciences or humanities that focuses on issues of sex and gender in language and society, and often addresses related issues including racial and ethnic oppression, postcolonial societies, and globalization. ... Feminist literary criticism is literary criticism informed by feminist theory, or by the politics of feminism more broadly. ... For other uses, see Philosophy (disambiguation). ... Continental philosophy is a term used in philosophy to designate one of two major traditions of modern Western philosophy. ... Social refers to human society or its organization. ... This article is about the academic discipline of art history. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Ethnocracy Anti-discriminatory Affirmative action in the United States Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity... For the term used in Computing, see Stereotype (computing). ... Objectification refers to the way in which one person treats another person as an object and not as a human being. ... Sexual objectification is objectification of a person. ... For other uses, see Oppression (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Patriarchy (disambiguation). ...

History

Nancy Cott makes a distinction between modern feminism and its antecedents, particularly the struggle for suffrage. In the United States she places the turning point in the decades before and after women obtained the vote in 1920 (1910-1930). She argues that the prior woman movement was primarily about woman as a universal entity, whereas over this 20 year period it transformed itself into one primarily concerned with social differentiation, attentive to individuality and diversity. New issues dealt more with woman's condition as a social construct, gender identity, and relationships within and between genders. Politically this represented a shift from an ideological alignment comfortable with the right, to one more radically associated with the left.^[10] Suffragette with banner, Washington DC, 1918 The title of suffragette (also occasionally spelled suffraget) was given to members of the womens suffrage movement, originally in the United Kingdom. ... This article is about Universalism in religion and theology. ... Individualism, in general, is a term used to describe a theoretical or practical emphasis of the individual, as opposed to, and possibly at the expense of, the group. ... Social scientists and literary scholars have claimed that many things are social constructions or social constructs, or that they have been socially constructed. ...

Susan Kingsley Kent says that Freudian patriarchy was responsible for the diminished profile of feminism in the inter-war years,^[11] others such as Juliet Mitchell consider this to be overly simplistic since Freudian theory is not wholly incompatible with feminism.^[12] Some feminist scholarship shifted away from the need to establish the origins of family, and towards analyzing the process of patriarchy.^[13] In the immediate postwar period, Simone de Beauvoir stood in opposition to an image of "the woman in the home". De Beauvoir provided an existentialist dimension to feminism with the publication of Le Deuxième Sexe (The Second Sex) in 1949.^[14] As the title implies, the starting point is the implicit inferiority of women, and the first question de Beauvoir asks is "what is a woman"?.^[15] Woman she realises is always perceived of as "other", "she is defined and differentiated with reference to man and not he with reference to her". In this book and her essay, "Woman: Myth & Reality", de Beauvoir anticipates Betty Friedan in seeking to demythologise the male concept of woman. "A myth invented by men to confine women to their oppressed`state. For women it is not a question of asserting themselves as women, but of becoming full-scale human beings." "One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman", or as Toril Moi puts it "a woman defines herself through the way she lives her embodied situation in the world, or in other words, through the way in which she makes something of what the world makes of her". Therefore, woman must regain subject, to escape her defined role as "other", as a Cartesian point of departure.^[16] In her examination of myth, she appears as one who does not accept any special privileges for women. Ironically, feminist philosophers have had to extract de Beauvoir herself from out of the shadow of Jean-Paul Sartre to fully appreciate her.^[17] While more philosopher and novelist than activist, she did sign one of the Mouvement de Libération des Femmes manifestos. Juliet Mitchell (* 1940 in New Zealand) is a British feminist. ... Sigmund Freud His famous couch Sigmund Freud (May 6, 1856 - September 23, 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of the psychoanalytic school of psychology, a movement that popularized the theory that unconscious motives control much behavior. ... For other uses, see Family (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Patriarchy (disambiguation). ... La Beauvoir redirects here; also see: Beauvoir (disambiguation). ... Existentialism is a philosophical movement emphasizing individualism, individual freedom, and subjectivity. ... The Second Sex (French: Le Deuxième Sexe, 1949) is the best known work of Simone de Beauvoir and a seminal text in twentieth-century feminism. ... Betty Friedan, 1960 Betty Friedan (February 4, 1921 – February 4, 2006) was an American feminist, activist and writer, best known for starting what is commonly known as the Second Wave of feminism through the writing of her book The Feminine Mystique. ... Toril Moi is James B. Duke Professor of Literature and Romance Studies at Duke University. ... René Descartes illustration of dualism. ... Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (June 21, 1905 – April 15, 1980), normally known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre (pronounced: ), was a French existentialist philosopher and pioneer, dramatist and screenwriter, novelist and critic. ...

The resurgence of feminist activism in the late 1960s was accompanied by an emerging literature of what might be considered female associated issues, such as concerns for the earth and spirituality, and environmental activism.^{[citation needed]} This in turn created an atmosphere conducive to reigniting the study of and debate on matricentricity, as a rejection of determinism, such as Adrienne Rich^[18] and Marilyn French^[19] while for socialist feminists like Evelyn Reed,^[20] patriarchy held the properties of capitalism. Categories: Biology stubs ... Adrienne Rich (born May 16, 1929 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American poet, essayist, and feminist. ... Marilyn French (born November 21, 1929) is an American author known for her feminist novels and non-fiction. ... Socialist feminism is a branch of feminism that focuses upon both the public and private spheres of a womans life and argues that liberation can only be achieved by working to end both the economic and cultural sources of womens oppression. ... Evelyn Reed (1905 – 1979) was a communist in the United States and women’s rights agitator. ...

Elaine Showalter describes the development of Feminist theory as having a number of phases. The first she calls "feminist critique" - where the feminist reader examines the ideologies behind literary phenomena. The second Showalter calls "Gynocritics" - where the "woman is producer of textual meaning" including "the psychodynamics of female creativity; linguistics and the problem of a female language; the trajectory of the individual or collective female literary career [and] literary history". The last phase she calls "gender theory" - where the "ideological inscription and the literary effects of the sex/gender system" are explored."^[21] This model has been criticized by Toril Moi who sees it as an essentialist and deterministic model for female subjectivity. She also criticized it for not taking account of the situation for women outside the west.^[22] From the 1970s onwards, psychoanalytical ideas that has been arising in the field of French feminism has gained a decisive influence on feminist theory. Feminist psychoanalysis deconstructed the phallic hypotheses regarding the Unconscious. Julia Kristeva, Luce Irigaray and Bracha Ettinger developed specific notions concerning unconscious sexual difference, the feminine and motherhood, with wide implications for film and literature analysis.^[23] Elaine Showalter (1941- ) is an American literary critic, feminist, and writer on cultural and social issues. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Sigmund Freud - the central founder of psychodynamics Psychodynamics is the application of the principles of thermodynamics to psychology. ... For the journal, see Linguistics (journal). ... The history of literature is the historical development of writings in prose or poetry which attempt to provide entertainment, enlightenment, or instruction to the reader/hearer/observer, as well as the development of the literary techniques used in the communication of these pieces. ... The sex/gender distinction is a concept in feminist theory, political feminism, and sociology which distinguishes sex, a natural or biological feature, from gender, the cultural or learned significance of sex. ... In philosophy, essentialism is the view, that, for any specific kind of entity it is at least theoretically possible to specify a finite list of characteristics —all of which any entity must have to belong to the group defined. ... This article is about the general notion of determinism in philosophy. ... French feminism (which is a phrase mostly used in English-speaking countries) refers to the work of a group of feminists in France from the 1970s to the early 1990s. ... Julia Kristeva in 2007 Julia Kristeva (Bulgarian: ) (born 24 June 1941) is a Bulgarian-French philosopher, literary critic, psychoanalyst, feminist, and, most recently, novelist, who has lived in France since the mid-1960s. ... Luce Irigaray (born 1930 Belgium) is a French feminist and psychoanalytic and cultural theorist. ... Bracha L. Ettinger (also known as Bracha Lichtenberg Ettinger, Bracha Ettinger, Hebrew: ברכה אטינגר, ברכה ליכטנברג-אטינגר) is a renowned artist, painter, photographer, theorist and psychoanalyst. ...

Feminist disciplines

There are a number of distinct feminist disciplines, in which experts in other areas apply feminist techniques and principles to their own fields.

Feminist psychoanalysis

Psychoanalytic feminism is based on Freud and his psychoanalytic theories. It maintains that gender is not biological but is based on the psycho-sexual development of the individual. Psychoanalytical feminists believe that gender inequality comes from early childhood experiences, which lead men to believe themselves to be masculine, and women to believe themselves feminine. It is further maintained that gender leads to a social system that is dominated by males, which in turn influences the individual psycho-sexual development. As a solution it was suggested to avoid the gender-specific structuring of the society by male-female coeducation^[8][9]. In the last 30 years, the contemporary French psychoanalytical theories concerning the feminine, that refer to sexual difference rather than to gender, with psychoanalysts like Julia Kristeva^[24][24], Luce Irigaray^[25][25] and Bracha L. Ettinger,^[26][27] has largely influenced not only feminist theory but also the understanding of the subject in philosophy and the general field of psychoanalysis itself^[28]. Today psychoanalysis comprises several interlocking theories concerning the functioning of the mind. ... Sigmund Freud (IPA: ), born Sigismund Schlomo Freud (May 6, 1856 – September 23, 1939), was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist who founded the psychoanalytic school of psychology. ... Today psychoanalysis comprises several interlocking theories concerning the functioning of the mind. ... Gender in common usage refers to the sexual distinction between male and female. ... // Gender Inequality refers to the obvious or hidden disparities among individuals based on performance of gender (gender can be separate from biological sex, see Sex/gender distinction). ... Manliness redirects here. ... In some cultures, makeup is associated with femininity. ... Coeducation is the integrated education of males and females at the same school facilities. ... Julia Kristeva in 2007 Julia Kristeva (Bulgarian: ) (born 24 June 1941) is a Bulgarian-French philosopher, literary critic, psychoanalyst, feminist, and, most recently, novelist, who has lived in France since the mid-1960s. ... Luce Irigaray (born 1930 Belgium) is a French feminist and psychoanalytic and cultural theorist. ... Bracha L. Ettinger (also known as Bracha Ettinger, Bracha Lichtenberg Ettinger, Hebrew: ברכה אטינגר, ברכה ליכטנברג-אטינגר) is a renowned artist, painter, photographer, theorist and psychoanalyst. ...

Feminist literary theory

Main article: Feminist literary criticism

Feminist literary criticism is literary criticism informed by feminist theories or politics. Its history has been varied, from classic works of female authors such as George Eliot, Virginia Woolf, and Margaret Fuller to cutting-edge theoretical work in women's studies and gender studies by "third-wave" authors.^[29] Feminist literary criticism is literary criticism informed by feminist theory, or by the politics of feminism more broadly. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. ... Mary Ann (Marian) Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880), better known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist. ... For the American writer, see Virginia Euwer Wolff. ... Margaret Fuller, by Marchioness Ossoli. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Gender studies is a theoretical work in the social sciences or humanities that focuses on issues of sex and gender in language and society, and often addresses related issues including racial and ethnic oppression, postcolonial societies, and globalization. ... Third-wave feminism is a term identified with several diverse strains of feminist activity and study beginning in the early 1990s. ...

In the most general, feminist literary criticism before the 1970s was concerned with the politics of women's authorship and the representation of women's condition within literature.^[29] Since the arrival of more complex conceptions of gender and subjectivity, feminist literary criticism has taken a variety of new routes. It has considered gender in the terms of Freudian and Lacanian psychoanalysis, as part of the deconstruction of existing power relations.^[29] Sigmund Freud (IPA: ), born Sigismund Schlomo Freud (May 6, 1856 – September 23, 1939), was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist who founded the psychoanalytic school of psychology. ... Jacques-Marie-Émile Lacan (French pronounced ) (April 13, 1901 – September 9, 1981) was a French psychoanalyst, psychiatrist, and doctor, who made prominent contributions to the psychoanalytic movement. ... Today psychoanalysis comprises several interlocking theories concerning the functioning of the mind. ... Deconstruction is a term in contemporary philosophy, literary criticism, and the social sciences, denoting a process by which the texts and languages of Western philosophy (in particular) appear to shift and complicate in meaning when read in light of the assumptions and absences they reveal within themselves. ...

Feminist film theory

Main article: Feminist film theory

Feminists have taken many different approaches to the analysis of cinema. These include discussions of the function of women characters in particular film narratives or in particular genres, such as film noir, where a woman character can often be seen to embody a subversive sexuality that is dangerous to men and is ultimately punished with death. In considering the way that films are put together, many feminist film critics have pointed to the "male gaze" that predominates in classical Hollywood film making. Through the use of various film techniques, such as shot reverse shot, the viewer is led to align herself with the point of view of a male protagonist. Notably, women function as objects of this gaze far more often than as proxies for the spectator.^[30][31]. Feminist film theory of the last twenty years is heavily influenced by the general transformation in the field of aesthetics, including the new options of articulating the gaze, offered by psychoanalytical French feminism, and in particular by the Ettingerian notion of the matrixial gaze^[32][33]. ^[34] Feminist film theory is theoretical work within film criticism that is derived from feminist politics and feminist theory. ... A narrative is a construct created in a suitable medium (speech, writing, images) that describes a sequence of fictional or non-fictional events. ... For the gay mens lifestyle magazine, see Genre (magazine). ... Two silhouetted figures in The Big Combo (1955). ... This article is about the issues and phenomena pertaining to sexual function and behavior of human females. ... The concept of gaze (often also called the gaze), in analysing visual media, is one that deals with how an audience views other people presented. ... Special effects (FX): 3-D film for movie history Stereoscopy for 3D technical details 3-D computer graphics Computer-generated imagery Digital compositing Optical effects Bluescreen/chroma key Stop trick Stop motion Editing: Timecode A Roll B Roll Cross cutting Cutaway Cut in Cut out Dissolve Establishing shot Hairy Arm... Shot reverse shot is a film technique wherein one character is shown looking (often off-screen) at another character, and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character. ... Look up Gaze in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... French feminism (which is a phrase mostly used in English-speaking countries) refers to the work of a group of feminists in France from the 1970s to the early 1990s. ...

Feminist art history

Linda Nochlin ^[35]and Griselda Pollock ^{[36] [37]} are prominent art historians writing on contemporary and modern artists and articulating Art history from a feminist perspective since the 1970s. Pollock works with French psychoanalysis, and in particular with Kristeva's and Ettinger's theories, to offer new insights into art history and contemporary art with special regard to questions of trauma and trans-generation memory in the works of women artists. There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... This article is about the academic discipline of art history. ...

Feminist history

Main article: Feminist history

Feminist history refers to the re-reading and re-interpretation of history from a feminist perspective. It is not the same as the history of feminism, which outlines the origins and evolution of the feminist movement. It also differs from women's history, which focuses on the role of women in historical events. The goal of feminist history is to explore and illuminate the female viewpoint of history through rediscovery of female writers, artists, philosophers, etc, in order to recover and demonstrate the significance of women's voices and choices in the past.^{[38][39][40][41][42]} Suffrage parade in New York City on May 6, 1912 The history of feminism reaches far back before the 18th century, but the seeds of modern feminism were planted during the late part of that century. ... Perspective in theory of cognition is the choice of a context or a reference (or the result of this choice) from which to sense, categorize, measure or codify experience, cohesively forming a coherent belief, typically for comparing with another. ... The History of Feminism is the history of Feminist movements. ... The feminist movement (also known as the Womens Movement or Womens Liberation) is a series of campaigns on issues such as reproductive rights (including abortion), domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, sexual harassment, and sexual violence. ... Womens history is a term that refers to information about the past in regard to the female human being. ...

Feminist geography

Main article: Feminist geography

Feminist geography is often considered part of a broader postmodern approach to the subject which is not primarily concerned with the development of conceptual theory in itself but rather focuses on the real experiences of individuals and groups in their own localities, upon the geographies that they live in within their own communities. In addition to its analysis of the real world, it also critiques existing geographical and social studies, arguing that academic traditions are delineated by patriarchy, and that contemporary studies which do not confront the nature of previous work reinforce the male bias of academic study.^[43][44][45] Feminist geography is an approach to study in human geography which applies the theories, methods and critiques of feminism to the study of the human environment, society and geographical space. ... Postmodernity (also called post-modernity or the postmodern condition) is a term used by philosophers, social scientists, art critics and social critics to refer to aspects of contemporary art, culture, economics and social conditions that are the result of the unique features of late 20th century and early 21st century... Social studies is a term used to describe the broad study of the various fields which involve past and current human behavior and interactions. ... For other uses, see Patriarchy (disambiguation). ...

Feminist philosophy

Main article: Feminist philosophy

Feminist philosophy refers to philosophy approached from a feminist perspective. Feminist philosophy involves both attempts to use the methods of philosophy to further the cause of the feminist movements, and attempts to criticise or re-evaluate the ideas of traditional philosophy from within a feminist framework.^[46] Feminist philosophy refers to philosophy approached from a feminist perspective. ...

There is no one school of feminist philosophy: feminist philosophers, as philosophers, are found in both the analytic and Continental traditions, and the myriad different viewpoints taken on philosophical issues within those traditions; and feminist philosophers, as feminists, are found belonging to the many different varieties of feminism.^[46] Analytic philosophy (sometimes, analytical philosophy) is a generic term for a style of philosophy that came to dominate English-speaking countries in the 20th century. ... Continental philosophy is a term used in philosophy to designate one of two major traditions of modern Western philosophy. ...

Feminist sexology

Main article: Feminist sexology

Feminist sexology is an offshoot of traditional studies of sexology that focuses on the intersectionality of sex and gender in relation to the sexual lives of women. Feminist sexology shares many principles with the wider field of sexology; in particular, it does not try to prescribe a certain path or “normality” for women's sexuality, but only observe and note the different and varied ways in which women express their sexuality. Looking at sexuality from a feminist point of view creates connections between the different aspects of a person's sexual life.^[47] Feminist sexology is the study of sexuality from a feminist viewpoint, i. ... Sexology is the systematic study of human sexuality. ... Intersectionality is a paradigmatic approach to sociology, cultural studies, and other social sciences, especially as applied to activism and social work. ...

Feminist economics

Main article: Feminist economics

Feminist economics broadly refers to a developing branch of economics that applies feminist insights and critiques to economics. Research under this heading is often interdisciplinary, critical, or heterodox. It encompasses debates about the relationship between feminism and economics on many levels: from applying mainstream economic methods to under-researched "women's" areas, to questioning how mainstream economics values the reproductive sector, to deeply philosophical critiques of economic epistemology and methodology.^{[citation needed]} Feminist economics broadly refers to a developing branch of economics that applies feminist insights and critiques to mainstream economics. ... Face-to-face trading interactions on the New York Stock Exchange trading floor. ... Heterodox literally means pertaining to other doctrines or other worship. ... Theory of knowledge redirects here: for other uses, see theory of knowledge (disambiguation) According to Plato, knowledge is a subset of that which is both true and believed Epistemology or theory of knowledge is the branch of philosophy that studies the nature, methods, limitations, and validity of knowledge and belief. ...

One prominent issue that feminist economists investigate is how the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) does not adequately measure unpaid labor predominantly performed by women, such as housework, childcare, and eldercare.^[48] Feminist economists have also challenged and exposed the rhetorical approach of mainstream economics.^[49] They have made critiques of many basic assumptions of mainstream economics, including the Homo economicus model.^[50] They have been instrumental in creating alternative models, such as the Capability Approach and incorporating gender into the analysis of economic data. Marilyn Power suggests that feminist economic methodology can be broken down into five categories.^[51] GDP redirects here. ... Homo economicus, or Economic man, is the concept in some economic theories of man (that is, a human) as a rational and self-interested actor who desires wealth, avoids unnecessary labor, and has the ability to make judgments towards those ends. ... The Capability Approach is a conceptual framework developed by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum for evaluating social states in terms of human well-being (welfare). ...

Feminist legal theory

Main article: Feminist legal theory

The study of feminist legal theory is a school thought based on the common view that law's treatment of women in relation to men has not been equal or fair. The goals of feminist legal theory as defined by leading theorist Claire Dalton, consist of understanding and exploring the female experience, figuring out how law and institutions oppose females, and figuring out what changes can be committed to. This is to be accomplished through studying the connections between the law and gender as well as applying feminist analysis to concrete areas of law.^[52][53][54] The study of feminist legal theory is a school thought based on the common view that laws treatment of women in relation to men has not been equal nor fair. ...

References

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See also

• Gender studies
• Women's studies
• Feminist anthropology
• Liberal feminism
• Radical feminism
• Marxist feminism
• Socialist feminism
• French feminism

Gender studies is a theoretical work in the social sciences or humanities that focuses on issues of sex and gender in language and society, and often addresses related issues including racial and ethnic oppression, postcolonial societies, and globalization. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Feminist anthropology is an approach to studying cultural anthropology that aims to correct for a perceived androcentric bias within anthropology. ... Liberal feminism is a form of feminism that argues that equality for women can be achieved through legal means and social reform, and that men as a group need not be challenged. ... Radical feminism is a branch of feminism that views womens oppression (which radical feminists refer to as patriarchy) as a basic system of power upon which human relationships in society are arranged. ... Marxist feminism is a sub-type of feminist theory which focuses on the dismantling of capitalism as a way to liberate women. ... Socialist feminism is a branch of feminism that focuses upon both the public and private spheres of a womans life and argues that liberation can only be achieved by working to end both the economic and cultural sources of womens oppression. ... French feminism (which is a phrase mostly used in English-speaking countries) refers to the work of a group of feminists in France from the 1970s to the early 1990s. ...

External links

• Feminist theory website (Center for Digital Discourse and Culture, Virginia Tech University)
• Feminist Theories and Anthropology by Heidi Armbruster
• [2] The Radical Women Manifesto: Socialist Feminist Theory, Program and Organizational Structure (Seattle: Red Letter Press, 2001)