Types of Feminism

Liberal, Socialist, Third Wave, and Other Feminist Philosophies

Apr 22, 2008
Naomi Rockler-Gladen

Rosie the Riveter, WWII Symbol of Female Power - Wiki Commons, Pub. Domain

Here's a brief summary of some of the many different kinds of feminism.

Feminism is not a simple or unified philosophy. Many different women (and men) call themselves feminists, and the beliefs of these groups of people vary quite a bit. Here's a quick primer on some of the different kinds of feminism.

Liberal Feminism

Liberal feminism is characterized by an individualistic emphasis on equality. According to this philosophy, society itself does not need a major overhaul, but rather laws need to be changed and opportunities have to be opened up to allow women to become equals in society. To a liberal feminist, evidence of progress is seen largely by the numbers of women in positions previous occupied by men, especially powerful positions. In the United States and much of the Western world, liberal feminism is the most mainstream form of feminism.

Socialist Feminism

Socialist feminism (sometimes known as Marxist feminism) is different than liberal feminism in that it emphasizes that true equality will not be achieved without major overhauls within society-- particularly economic overhauls. Socialist feminists argue that there are fundamental inequalities built in to a capitalist society because power and capital are distributed unevenly. Thus, it's not enough for women to individually work to rise to powerful positions in society; rather, power needs to be redistributed throughout society. Liberal feminists focus on individual empowerment, while socialist feminists focus on collective change and empowerment.

Radical Feminism

Radical feminism is similar to socialist feminism in that it emphasizes the need for dramatic social change in order to achieve genuine equality for women (and sometimes these two philosophies are grouped together). Radical feminists believe that society is extremely patriarchal, and until patriarchy is transformed on all levels, the system will remain unjust. A minority of radical feminists are separatist feminists, who believe that men and women need to maintain separate institutions and relationships.

Third Wave Feminism

Third Wave feminism is popular among younger women, many of whom are children of feminists from the 1970s (who are referred to as Second Wave Feminists). Similar to liberal feminism, Third Wave feminism is very individualistic. Although it does not reject political activism, Third Wave feminism is focused more on personal empowerment as a starting place for social change. Third Wave feminism celebrates the construction of individual identities in a complex, postmodern world, and invites women to define themselves as they wish from the smorgasbord of possibilities. (Read more about Third Wave feminism.)

Ecofeminism

Ecofeminisim draws from and links together both the women's movement and the environmental movement. Ecofeminism draws parallels between the domination and exploitation of both women and nature.

Black Feminism

Black Feminism posits that sexism and racism are inextricably linked, and that sexism will never be overcome while the system is still so fundamentally racist. This movement grew out of the discontent of African Americans women during the Women's Liberation Movement in the 1970s, who felt their particular needs as minority women were not being addressed. The term "Black feminism" is often used to encompass the needs of all women of color.

See also:

Stereotypes About Feminism

Naomi Rockler-Gladen - Instructional designer and freelance writer, Naomi Rockler-Gladen writes some of Suite101's most read work.

Comments

Sep 25, 2010 1:07 AM

Guest :

I am a male ER nurse and have read "The Natural Superiority of Women" in college and have come to accept it as fact because of what I see in the ER every day. Dr G Medical Examiner stated that in all her years doing autopsies, she noticed one thing that almost 100% of those who died doing stupid things had in common, they were all MALE. She has seen perhaps a thousand males lying on her table while only a few women have been. I see this in the ER too. Well over 90% of those who come in for pure stupidity are male. Another group is those who come in with violent wounds such as gun shots. Almost all of these are male too and most often it was other males doing it. The few that come in because of a woman shooting them were also under police escort after being arrested for assaulting the woman. I think police stations can confirm this too such as the station in Chicago whereby a woman actually walked in and literally handed the police a pair of testicles she cut off a male who tried to rape her. As a result, the male not only lost his testicles, he was arrested and given a lengthy prison sentence. It should happen to all males who attack women but they should also get Darwin Awards, which are given to those who take themselves out of the gene poll most often by death and they too are almost always MALE

As a result of the above and what I see around me, I think that the more women are given equal chance, the more they will surpass almost all males and as such I too cannot believe in gender equality. There is far too much evidence the vast superiority of women on the average. Yes, there are some dumb females and some very smart males but overall, I would say women have the edge over males by a very large margin. Yet I know most women are willing to set aside this vast superiority to get along with us males I too wait for the day women are in charge of society. It can only improve.

Keep it up ladies. It can only help all humans including us males. There is hope because I know dozens of males who feel this same way but they will not admit it in public. Ashley Montagu stated "The natural superiority of women is a biological fact, and a socially acknowledged reality." but sad to say, it is not a socially acknowledged reality but it SHOULD be. Perhaps if his book "The Natural Superiority of Women" were to be taught in every school in the nation, it would be within a generation and oddly enough, I think the males would accept it faster than the girls.

To conclude, even though I am a male, I am waiting for the 4th wave when women do assume control of our society as the superior gender. The sooner it happens, the better society will be.

Oct 1, 2010 1:50 AM

Guest :

I am very surprised to see a man admit all of this but we women have known it for decades. I strongly agree with "everything" you have said. (And I do mean EVERYTHING)

Oct 5, 2010 10:40 PM

Guest :

As a female ER nurse, I have to agree with the male ER nurse that males are the weaker sex especially biologically. As a trauma 1 center, we have a lot of male and female trauma victims come through our doors and often with the same level of life threaten injuries. I have heard several doctors make statements like "we will have to work harder to save this one" When I first asked why, I was told because that patient was a male and males do not survive major trauma as well as females do. Of course we do not tell the families that but we have told some families that the patient they were there for would have a much better chance of pulling through because she was female. This is true from birth on through old age, the males are always the weaker ones and less likely to pull through.

This is true from the first responders also. Some EMT's and paramedics have told me that they usually help women first because they are more likely to survive than the males are (again this is for the same level of trauma) but several have told me that if they had to choice between saving a male or a woman, they would save the woman every time first.

When I asked if this made it less likely for males to survive, they said no, it had little bearing as they did try to treat everyone at the same time but if there were not enough personal, they went to the ones most likely to survive with minimal emergency care and this was most often the women.

On a side note, I also agree with the rest of what you have said as I have seen more women entering the medical field and they are "leaving the males in the dust" so I have to also agree with your other statement "There is far too much evidence the vast superiority of women on the average. I will have to get that book you suggested and yes it does sound like it needs to be taught in every school in the country. I know too many girls who doubt their self worth and too many males who have egos as big as they think their testicles are so if it will help both males and females realize that women are superior and the male is the weaker sex, you are right, maybe more males will look for help.

Oh, I love what that woman in Chicago did to her attacker. I would have loved to see the look on the face of the police when she brought his testicles into them. I hope she handed them to a female cop. Too bad she could not keep them and use them for a necklace. She could always tell people she grew a pair of....b's but add they did below to someone who tried to rape and as a result is now a male who does not have the b's to do it to any other woman. Too bad it could not happen to every rapist.
Ginger

Oct 17, 2010 10:10 AM

Guest :

I strongly agree

Feb 23, 2011 7:38 AM

Guest :

Christina-Taylor Green in her death was able to save another girl. I am glad she could save a girl because it compesates for her death, a girl.

I love the ideal of telling the males who have expressed so much misogny that they would be exectuted in a way that would enable their organs to save WOMEN. It would be very ironic if they would execute those males in such a way they could use their organs to allow others to live. It would be poetic justice if since almost all of those who need to be executed are males that they would use their organs to allow women to be able to live, especially for those males who have killed women. They also need to let these males know their organs will be used to save women. That would tick some of those males off one last time.
But why not execute all males by hanging in public after stripping them and not just those who have sexually assaulted women. This way everyone would fully realize the vast number of males who commit crimes vs. women who do as it would be fully evident that those being executed are male. It would even be more obvious that they were males because males who die by hanging often get an erection. Many also ejaculate spontaneously so it certainly would give a display for any woman watching. It is not widely known but many medical examiners have reported that many males get an erection after death. It is called a post mortem erection and it is a fairly common. (Just like a male to give a show one last time) but it is just fine with me if all the women and girls around could see this event. It would be educational for them.

I do agree with this comment that those who are convicted of sexual crimes should be hung by their balls. They are what got them in trouble and maybe as this comment suggested; more males would keep their dicks in their pants as this would make it a lot safer for women and children. I know it is easy for me to say because they could not hang me by my balls, I do not have them. This method would also certainly show the difference between boys and girls but as far as executing males only, there are a few women who should be executed also but I feel that in the very rare event a woman has to be executed, it needs to be done in private or at least with her fully clothed.

Feb 23, 2011 12:44 PM

Guest :

"I love the ideal of telling the males who have expressed so much misogny that they would be exectuted in a way that would enable their organs to save WOMEN."

I love that thought but why not execute all males given the death sentence by hanging in them in public after stripping them and not just those who have sexually assaulted women. This way everyone would fully realize the vast number of males who commit crimes vs. women who do as it would be fully evident that those being executed are male. It could also tick these males that hate women off as they are fully exposed to perhaps hundreds of women and young girls while they will not get the pleasure even one last time to see women.

It would even be more obvious that they were males because males who die by hanging often get an erection. Many also ejaculate spontaneously so it certainly would give a display for any woman watching. It is not widely known but many medical examiners have reported that many males get an erection after death. It is called a post mortem erection and it is a fairly common. (Just like a male to give a show one last time) but it is just fine with me if all the women and girls around could see this event. It would be educational for them. . Especially if they can view the body close up so the mothers could explain the male anatomy to them and if there is any semen on their dicks they could tell them what it is. They could also tell them why so many males are executed and why almost all of them are male.

I do agree with this comment that those who are convicted of sexual crimes should be hung by their balls. They are what got them in trouble and maybe as this comment suggested; more males would keep their dicks in their pants as this would make it a lot safer for women and children. I know it is easy for me to say because they could not hang me by my balls, I do not have them. This method would also certainly show the difference between boys and girls but as far as executing males only, there are a few women who should be executed also but I feel that in the very rare event a woman has to be executed, it needs to be done in private or at least with her fully clothed.

I see I am not the only male who thinks that few males deserve to be called "men" as most think that just because they have testicles they are better than women. After all, one of the old sayings about how good someone is to put it bluntly is that they have big balls. There is another saying that if it has tires or testicles it will cause you trouble. Most women I know would fully agree with that. Well our balls help make us the inferior gender. I like what several here have said however one of the last statements, "We do not want to have to hang more naked males do we?" Why not? If a prick cannot keep his prick in his pants, I would say hang him just as this person suggested and to add insult to his injury, tell him he will be an organ donor to women only as women are used to hang him when women are used to tie the rope around his nuts. If they have raped a woman, they could draw a target on his balls and let girls use a BB gun to see if they can hit the target. Of course, the head of his cock would be a great secondary target.

Someone said we would lose maybe tens of thousands of males if they executed all the rapist. If some thinks that is a lot of males, remember Russian lost 20 Million males during WW 2 and they did just fine without them.

Of course we would not need to do any of this if males had the balls to admit women are the superior sex and we would treat them like we should. All through nature, we see the female is the focus and males support the female so why not with humans too? If life was a play, women would be the headline stars and males would simply be supporting actors.

Once I realized and accepted my role as a male, I have been happy with being a male. The world would be a much better place if all the males accepted this too.

6 Comments