♀️ Feminism: Quick Notes

A concise overview of Feminist thought, its waves, types, and key concepts. Perfect for Political Science and UGC NET revision!

🔹 Definition

• Movement for equality of sexes in social, political, economic, and cultural life.
• Central concepts: Patriarchy, Gender, Power, Equality, Liberation.

🔹 Waves of Feminism

Wave	Period	Focus	Key Thinkers
First	19th–early 20th C	Legal rights (esp. voting)	Mary Wollstonecraft, J.S. Mill
Second	1960s–80s	Social rights, workplace, family, sexuality	Simone de Beauvoir, Betty Friedan, Kate Millett
Third	1990s–2000s	Identity, diversity, intersectionality	bell hooks, Judith Butler
Fourth	2010s–present	Digital activism, body positivity, MeToo	Roxane Gay, Chimamanda Adichie

🔹 Types of Feminism

Type	Focus	Key Figures
Liberal	Legal & political equality	Mary Wollstonecraft, Betty Friedan
Radical	Root cause: patriarchy & sexuality	Kate Millett, Shulamith Firestone
Marxist/Socialist	Capitalism + patriarchy = women's oppression	Engels, Juliet Mitchell
Psychoanalytic	Unconscious biases, family, desire	Juliet Mitchell
Eco-Feminism	Nature-woman connection; environmental justice	Vandana Shiva, Carolyn Merchant
Postmodern	Deconstructs fixed identities; language/power	Judith Butler
Black Feminism	Race + gender oppression	bell hooks, Kimberlé Crenshaw
Postcolonial Feminism	Colonial & patriarchal oppression; double colonization	Chandra Talpade Mohanty

🔹 Key Concepts & Thinkers

• "The personal is political" – Carol Hanisch (Radical Feminism)
• Sex vs Gender – Feminism distinguishes biological (sex) from socially constructed (gender).
• Gender Performativity – Judith Butler: gender is performed, not innate.
• Intersectionality – Kimberlé Crenshaw: race, gender, class intersect.
• Double Colonization – Postcolonial feminist idea: oppressed by both colonial rule and patriarchy.

🔹 Important Texts

• *A Vindication of the Rights of Woman* – Mary Wollstonecraft
• *The Second Sex* – Simone de Beauvoir
• *The Feminine Mystique* – Betty Friedan
• *Sexual Politics* – Kate Millett
• *Gender Trouble* – Judith Butler
• *Ain’t I a Woman?* – bell hooks
• *Under Western Eyes* – Chandra T. Mohanty

🔹 Post-Feminism

• Critiques traditional feminism as outdated.
• Promotes individual choice, self-empowerment, consumer feminism.
• Aligned with neoliberal ideas.

Feminism remains a dynamic and critical lens for understanding and transforming gender relations.