Feminism

Punctuate the following sentence Woman without her man is nothing

Is Gender still an Issue Today? Agree or Disagree: Women and men have equal rights in today’s society. Males and females receive the same opportunities to succeed in today’s society.

Agree or Disagree Continued Female high school athletes and male high school athletes receive equal treatment and opportunities. Women should receive equal treatment and opportunities in the military.

Definition: Feminism Feminism involves the organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests. Feminism is a belief in the theory of economic, social, and political equality of the sexes. Thus, anyone who advances equality can be considered feminist.

Principle Beliefs of Feminism Women and men are treated differently because of their sex This unequal treatment can and should be overturned. Sexual equality, however, does not necessarily mean that women should be like men. Feminists fight against patriarchy; the social dominance of males.

Historical Events Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 Goal: Right to vote, right to hold political office, right to own property Lucretia Mott Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution 1920 Guaranteed the right for women to vote First drafted in 1878 Most states refused to allow women to vote until 1910

Second Wave Feminism 1960s Betty Friedan's, The Feminine Mystique Argued, American women had been taught to accept traditional, middle-class gender roles of homemakers and housewives, which kept them from pursuing self-fulfillment in the workplace.

Feminism Today Great strides have been made in recent years: Janet Reno – first woman attorney general Madeleine Albright - first woman secretary of state Sandra Day O’Connor – first female Supreme Court Justice

But… 1985 the UN declared that Women make up 50% of the population yet do 2/3rds of all working hours and only get 1/10 of the world’s income and own less then 1% of the world’s progress. In the 1980’s working women were making 64% of their male counter parts. Less than 15% of the contributors to Wikipedia are women. Women owned only 15% of Fortune 500 companies in 2010.

Literary Movement Feminist theories developed in the early 1900s. Writers wrote about women’s experiences in order to change the condition for women. Stories that criticize women’s traditional roles and the effect of domesticity and try to emphasize the importance and need for women to be independent.

Virginia Woolf regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century. Wrote A Room of One’s Own (1929)

Kate Chopin Wrote about women's lives and their continual struggles to create an identity of their own within the boundaries of the patriarchy. “Desiree’s Baby” and “Story of an Hour” Famous Novel: The Awakening (read in AP Lit)

Feminist Criticism (lens) Feminist critics hope to raise social consciousness Instill social reform Study the changing roles of women in society.

A feminist critic might: Examine the female character’s role and point out restrictions, concerns, values Check whether women are portrayed stereotypically Focus on language, style, subject, or treatment of characters in a work that is gender-biased

Irony Reminders The contrast between what’s expected to happen and what actually happens… Verbal Irony: when something is said with the intended opposite meaning Dramatic Irony Audience knows something character doesn’t know Situational Irony What actually happens to the character is the opposite of what’s expected

Bibliography http://www.fofweb.com/NuHistory/default.asp?ItemID=WE52&NewItemID=True http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/business/media/31link.html?ref=thefemalefactor http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113939266 http://www.catalyst.org/publication/219/statistical-overview-of-women-in-the-workplace