feminism
feminismA broad-based movement concerning the social, political, and economic rights of women. Its advocates have for the most part demanded equal rights for both sexes, although some have asserted the right of women to separate development. Throughout the ages women had generally been subordinated to men and largely excluded from education, from the ownership of property, from economic independence, and from political representation. A recognizable movement to rectify woman's subordinate position began at the end of the 18th century, finding its British mouthpiece in Mary Wollstonecraft , whose classic A Vindication of the Rights of Woman ( 1792 ) has remained a key work.
Contemporary feminism has its roots in such works as Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex ( 1949 ); The...
[The entire page is 545 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Oxford University Press Titles
