From the gender perspective, feminism can be defined as an international trend that is aimed at addressing or tackling issues and affairs affiliated with women all over the world. It’s a movement that is mainly concerned with fighting for women’s rights in terms of gender equality and equity in the distribution of resources and opportunities in society. Feminism in a broad sense encompasses women’s rights in the political, socio-cultural, and economic sectors within a given social or cultural setting. Generally, feminism is the movement against gender inequality and practices which discriminate against women in all aspects of life (Kali, 2008).
Sex versus Gender
Feminists’ theory offers a succinct distinction between sex and gender. Sex is the biological distinction between males and females. It involves the biological features as well as the sexual intercourse act between males and females. Gender on the other hand entails all the culturally learned and assigned roles between males and females. However, gender and sex are interchangeably used when addressing issues concerning women’s affairs. Traditionally, the roles of women were confined to household chores, giving birth, and raising families, while men enjoy social privileges such as leading. Modern feminism is opposed to the traditional views and fights for gender equality and equity in society. A good example is in the political front, where political feminism highly encourages women to actively engage men in leadership opportunities in society.
Patriarchy
Patriarchy is a social organization that is characterized by total male dominance and supremacy. In a patriarchal setting, women are discriminated against in proportional sharing of power. For instance, a father in the family is the overall controller where the wife is supposed to be a submissive follower. In most cases, patriarchy usually results in the oppression of women. Patriarchal oppression is highly criticized by feminist theorists, as it undermines and violates females’ rights in society (Patriarchy, 2009).
Consciousness-raising
Consciousness-raising is a feminists approach is a program that empowers women’s liberation in creating awareness of societal problems, concerning women’s discrimination on the basis of sex. Sarachild (1978) noted that in her thought about women’s oppression, her consciousness becomes higher. Sarachild (1978) thought that consciousness-raising was all about mobilizing masses of women to rise against oppression and violation of women’s rights.
Intimate Partner Violence
Every woman is entitled to enjoy her conjugal rights without any form of intimidation or violence from her male partner. A good example is a case where the husband batters his wife in demand of sexual favors when the wife is not in a good state for it. This is a major issue of concern to all feminism campaigns against intimate violence inflicted on women and men, although cases for the latter are minimal in society.
Femininity & Masculinity
Femininity is described as the way of expressing receptiveness, which is usually a representation of a passive potential, associated with the females. On the contrary, masculinity implies the expression of transitivity, which entails active potential. In a traditional approach, the feminine gender is perceived to be passive, while the masculine to be the active gender. this perception is highly criticized by the feminism movement, which strives to fight for equity in the perception of both genders. (Masculinity, Femininity, 2008)
The myth of the weaker sex
Society perceives women as weak people in all perspectives, ranging from thinking to conducting themselves. The feminism theory, on the contrary, dismisses these allegations as mere myths, targeting to oppress and violate women’s rights in society. Feminists stand strong in fighting this myth for the recognition of women as equal to men, especially in their thoughts.
Pay equity
In the workplace, women should not be segregated on the basis of sex when it comes to payments. Feminists argue that fairness should persist in determining the allowances to both men and women in the workplace. The basis should be what one has delivered irrespective of sex.
References
Kali, Sanjay. “Definition of Feminism”. Ezine. 2008. EzineArticles.com. Web.
“Masculinity, Femininity: Two Definitions”. Huckleberries. 2008. Web.
“Patriarchy.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2009. Merriam-Webster Online. Web.
Sarachild, Kathie. “Consciousness-Raising: A Radical Weapon.” Feminist Revolution. 1978. Web.