FEMINISM AND ITS TYPES: AN OVERVIEW

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE, LITERATUREAND TRANSLATION STUDIES(IJELR)A QUARTERLY, INDEXED, REFEREED AND PEER REVIEWED OPEN ACCESSINTERNATIONAL JOURNALhttp://www.ijelr.in (Impact Factor : 5.9745) (ICI)KY PUBLICATIONSREVIEWARTICLEARTICLEVol. 6. Issue.4. 2019 (Oct-Dec)FEMINISM AND ITS TYPES: AN OVERVIEWMOHMAD HUSSAINM. Phil (English) Research ScholarSchool of Languages, literature and Society, Jaipur National University, RajasthanEmail Id:hussaincoree@gmail.comdoi: 10.33329/ijelr.64.229MOHMAD HUSSAINABSTRACTThe main purpose of this paper is to present an overview of feminism and its types.&ĞŵŝŶŝƐŵ ŝƐ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ƉŽƉƵůĂƌ ǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ŵŽǀĞŵmale gender. The first, second and third waves of feminism are its differentdevelopmental stages. The social feminism, cultural feminism, ecofeminism, materialfeminism, moderate feminism, radical feminism and postcolonial feminism are thesome of the main types of feminism which are analyzed to some extent in this work.Keywords:Feminism, waves of feminism, types of feminismIntroductionFeminism is an ideology or belief which seeks equal rights for women in every fields ofFeministwork.criticism is concerned both with the representation of women in literature and with ĐŚĂŶŐŝŶŐ ǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ƉŽƐŝƚŝŽŶ in the society be freeing them from oppressive restraints. Central to those restraints are essentialist definition ofwhat it is to be a women: definitions that assume human nature is universal and which refuse to see who cultureplays a significant part in constricting and fixing identity. Feminist criticism is, of course, part of the largeŵŽǀĞŵĞŶƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŶƚĞŵƉŽƌĂƌLJ ǁŽƌůĚ ĨŽƌ ǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ĞƋƵĂůŝƚLJ ƚŚĂƚ ǁŽŵĞŶ ŝƚƐĞůĨ ŐƌŽǁƚŚ ŽƵƚ ŽĨ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ĐĞŶƚƵƌLJ ŽĨ struggle by women to win equal rigŚƚƐ͕ ĂŶĚ ŽƵƚ ŽĨ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ǁƌŝƚŝŶŐ͕ ŝŶ ƚĞdžƚ ƐƵĐŚ ĂƐ DĂƌLJ tŽůůƐƚŽŶĞĐƌĂĨƚ͛Ɛ vindication of the right of the women (1792), which articulate the cause of women (Martin and Feck 171). OtherŝŵƉŽƌƚĂŶƚ ǁŽƌŬƐ ƚŚĂƚ ĂƉƉƌŽĂĐŚĞƐ SubjectionƚŚĞ ofƌŝŐŚƚƐ women (1869)ŽĨ and ǁŽŵĞŶ thDĂƌŐĂƌĞƚ &ƵůůĞƌ͛Ɛ tŽŵĞŶ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ŶŝŶĞƚĞĞŶƚŚ ĐĞŶƚƵƌLJ ;ϭϴcentury carried on the campaign. In the 1920s there were clear signs of new and different approaches in relationto women writer and literature. This was noticeable in the critical work of, for example, Rebecca West, and insŝƌŐŝŶŝĂ tŽůĨ͛Ɛ ĞƐƐĂLJƐ ŽŶ ǁŽŵĞŶ ĂƵƚŚŽƌƐ ǁŚŽ ƐƵĨĨƌĂŐĞ termed a parochial society. She addressedherself to the issue of why there was so few a women to writers andwhy it is frequently difficult or impossible for a woman to write.Concept of Feminism&ĞŵŝŶŝƐŵ ŝƐ Ă ŵŽǀĞŵĞŶƚ ƚŚĂƚ ĂƌŐƵĞƐ ĨŽƌ ǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ƌŝpolitics, economics, and even daily life. It began to gain attraction in the nineteenth century over such issues asĚŝǀĞƌƐĞ͕ ŵĂƌƌŝĞĚ ǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ƉƌŽƉĞƌƚLJ ƌŝŐŚƚ͕ ǁŽŵĞŶ ĞĚƵĐĂƚexpressed as a demand for women to be taken seriously as writers and to be paid as man doing. Feminist literary229

Int.J.Eng.Lang.Lit & Trans.Studies(ISSN:2349-9451/2395-2628)Vol. 6. Issue.4. 2019 (Oct-Dec)criticism recognize that since literature both reflects culture and shapes it, literary studies can either perpetuatethe oppression of women or help to eliminate it.DefinitionKdžĨŽƌĚ ĚǀĂŶĐĞĚ ĞĂƌŶĞƌ͛Ɛ ŝĐƚŝŽŶĂƌLJ ĚĞĨŝŶĞƐ ĨĞŵŝŶƚŚĞ ƐĂŵĞ ƌŝŐŚƚƐ ĂŶĚ ŽƉƉŽƌƚƵŶŝƚŝĞƐ ĂƐ ŵĞŶ͖ ƚŚĞ ƐƚƌƵŐŐApproach Dictionary of Living English defines, Feminism as a belief or movement advocating the cause ofǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ƌŝŐŚƚƐ ĂŶĚ ŽƉƉŽƌƚƵŶŝƚŝĞƐ͕ ƉĂƌƚŝĐƵůĂƌůLJ ĞƋƵĂů ƌŝŐŚƚƐ ǁŝƚŚ ŵĞŶ͕ ďLJ ĐŚĂůůĞŶŐŝŶŐ ŝŶĞƋƵĂůŝƚŝĞƐ ďĞƚǁĞĞŶ ƚŚĞ sexes in society (Sohoni 200). After taking into consideration some of the definitions of feminism, it is essentialto study the nature of feminism and its correlations with various other factors on a broad level.Feminist Literary Criticism began to counter, resist, and eventually eliminate the traditions andconventions of patriarchy, the ideology or belief system that sees the dominance and superiority of men overǁŽŵĞŶ ĂƐ ͞ŶĂƚƵƌĂů͟ ŝŶ ďŽƚŚ ƉƌŝǀĂƚĞ ĂŶĚ ƉƵďůŝĐ ĐŽŶƚĞdžƚ- as it exist in literary, historical and critical contexts.According to Toril Moi, ͞&ĞŵŝŶŝƐƚ ƌŝƚŝĐŝƐŵ͙ nd of politicalŝƐ discourse,Ă ƐƉĞĐŝĨŝĐ a critical andŬŝƚŚĞŽƌĞƚŝĐĂů ƉƌĂĐƚŝĐĞ ĐŽŵŵŝƚƚĞĚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ƐƚƌƵŐŐůĞ ĂŐĂŝŶƐAccording toJudith Fetterley,͞&ĞŵŝŶŝƐƚ ĐƌŝƚŝĐŝƐŵ ŝƐ Ă ƉŽůŝƚŝĐĂů ĂĐƚworlds, but to changĞ ŝƚ ďLJ ĐŚĂŶŐŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŶƐĐŝŽƵƐŶĞƐƐ ŽĨ ƚŚŽƐĞ͕ Lisa Tuttlecites the goals of feminist literary criticism as: To develop and uncover a female tradition of writing.dŽ ŝŶƚĞƌƉƌĞƚ ƐLJŵďŽůŝƐŵ ŽĨ ǁŽŵĞŶ͛Ɛ ǁƌŝƚŝŶŐ ƐŽ that it will not be lost or ignored by the male pointof view.To rediscover old texts.To analyze women writers and their writing from a female perspective.To resist sexism in literature, andTo increase awareness of the sexual politics of languagetyle.and sDevelopment of Feminism:The Feminist criticism is concerned with the ways in which literature furthers the social, politicaleconomics and psychological oppression of women. They examine gender politics in literary works and trace thesubtle construction of masculinity and femininity and their relative status, positioning and marginalization withinworks. The concept of Feminism Movement got prominence and importance in the 1960s. Earlier, feminism waslimited to some female writer only but the increased number of the female writers and the representation ofwoman characters in fiction world drew large attention in the literature. The evolution of feminism movementin the literature as follows:First Wave Feminism:First Wave feminism mainly concerned with the treatment of woman in the -dominatedmalesociety. TheŵĂũŽƌ ǁŽƌŬƐ ŽĨ ƚŚŝƐ ƉŚĂƐĞ ĂƌĞ DĂƌLJ ůůŵĂŶ͛Ɛ dŚŝŶŬŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ 'ĞƌŵĂŝŶĞ 'ƌĞĞƌ͛Ɛ dŚĞ &ĞŵĂůĞ ƵŶƵĐŚ ;ϭϵϳϬͿ͘Many important works of the male writers have been studiedŝŶ ŽƌĚĞƌ ƚŽ ĂŶĂůLJnjĞ ƚŚĞ ĂƚƚŝƚƵĚĞ ŽĨ ŵĂůĞ ƚŽǁĂƌĚƐ ǁŽŵsŝŶĚŝĐĂƚŝŽŶ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ZŝŐŚƚƐ ŽĨ tŽŵĞŶ͟ ϭϳϵϮ͕ ŚŝŐŚůŝŐŚƚĞĚtivities like Susan ͘ ŶƚŚŽŶLJ ĂŶĚ sŝĐƚŽƌŝĂ tŽŽĚŚƵůů ĐŽŶƚƌŝďƵƚĞĚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ǁthe 19th Amendment.Second Wave Feminism:/ƚ ŝƐ ŵŽƌĞ ĐŽŵŵŽŶůLJ͕ ĂůƐŽ ŬŶŽǁŶ ĂƐ ͚'LJŶŽĐƌŝƚŝƐŝƐŵn with Elaine ŚŽǁĂůƚĞƌ͛Ɛ ͞ ůŝƚĞƌĂƚƵƌĞ ŽĨ dŚĞŝƌ KǁŶ͟ ŝŶ ϭϵϳϬ͘ ĞĐŽŝŶĐůƵĚĞ ůůĞŶ DŽŽƌĞ͛Ɛ ŝƚĞƌĂƌLJ tŽŵĞŶ ;ϭϵϳϲͿ͕ ůĂŝŶĞ MOHMAD HUSSAIN230

Int.J.Eng.Lang.Lit & Trans.Studies(ISSN:2349-9451/2395-2628)Vol. 6. Issue.4. 2019 (Oct-Dec)Women Fictions (1978), SandrĂ 'ŝůďĞƌƚ ĂŶĚ ƵƐĂŶ 'ƵďĂƌ͛Ɛ dŚĞ DĂĚ tŽŵĞ,ŽŵĂŶ͛Ɛ tŽŵĞŶ ǁƌŝƚĞƌƐ ĂŶĚ ƉŽĞƚŝĐ ŝĚĞŶƚŝƚLJ;ϭϵϴϬͿ͘ dŚŝƐand male literature and text were analyzed to understand the treatmentf femalo e characters by the male in thesociety.Third Wave of FeminismThe third wave of feminism emerged in the mid-1900s. It resisted the perceived essentialist ideologiesand a white, heterosexual, middle class focus of second wave feminism. Thirdofwavefeminism borrowed frompost-structural and contemporary gender and race theories to extend on marginalized populations experiences.The third wave was much more inclusive of women of colure than the first and second waves had been.Feminist criticismŝŶ ƚŚĞ ϭϵϳϬ ĞdžƉŽƐĞĚ ƚŚĞ ŵĞĐŚĂŶŝƐŵ ŽĨ ƉĂƚƌŝĂand women, which perpetuated sexual inequalities. Critical attention was given to books by male writers inwhich influential or typical images of women were constructed.In these sense, feminist criticism was combativeand polemical. In 1980s, it becomes more eclectic, drawing upon the findings and approaches of other kinds ofcriticism- Marxism, structuralism, and linguistics. Secondly, it switched its focus from attacking male version ofthe world to exploring the nature of the female world and outlook, and reconstructing the lost or suppressedƌĞĐŽƌĚƐ ŽĨ ĨĞŵĂůĞ ĞdžƉĞƌŝĞŶĐĞ͘ dŚŝƌĚůLJ͕ ĂƚƚĞŶƚŝŽŶ ǁĂƐ writing rewriting the history of the novel and of the poetry in such a way that neglected woman writers weregiven new prominence. These are the phases of interest that seems characteristic of feminist criticism. ElaineShowalter described the change in the late 1970s asƐŚŝĨƚ ŽĨ ĂƚƚĞŶƚŝŽŶ ĨƌŽŵ ͚ĂŶĚƌŽa͚ŐLJŶŽƚĞdžƚƐ͛ ;ŬƐ ďLJ ǁŽŵĞŶͿ͘ ŚĞ ĂůƐŽ ŝŶƚƌŽĚƵĐĞĚ ƚŚĞ,ĞŶĐĞ͕ ĨĞŵŝŶŝƐƚ ůŝƚĞƌĂƌLJ ĐƌŝƚŝĐŝƐŵ ŚĂƐ ďĞĐŽŵĞ ͚ĂŶ ƵƌŐThe Feminist Movement:Based on the various discussions, one can approximately place the feminist movement in different basiccategories. The following heading will clearly explain the different feminist movement:Bourgeois Feminism of Virginia Woolf:Woolf assertsthat women have not been able to write because of the prevalent social conditions thatacted as a barrier between them and writing. Their financial dependence on opposite gender and the absenceof independent financial stability prevent women from writing.She believes that if women are given the financialsources and freedom available to men, they will be as productive.French Feminism:dŚŝƐ ŝŶĐůƵĚĞƐ Ă ŐƌŽƵƉ ŽĨ ĨĞŵŝŶŝƐƚƐ ǁŚŽ ďĞůŝĞǀĞ ƚŚThey should reinvent language and writing so that they depart drastically from the present masculine mode ofexpression. They entrenched blind a Lacanian scholarship. They argue that the present masculine discoursesƐƚĞŵ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ƐŽ ĐĂůůĞĚ ͞ LJŵďŽůŝĐ ŽƌĚĞƌ͟ ǁŚĞƌĞ ŵĞŶ ŚĂto mask their real desires for fear of castration. Sincethe female has no symbolic organ to lose, she could write from the-ĐĂůůĞĚ ͞/ŵĂŐŝŶĂƌLJ KƌĚĞƌsofeminists can subvert all patriarchal logo.American Feminism:This movement includes another group of mainly women intellectuals who suspect the French feministmovement; and they, instead of reinventing the language, advocate a literary reading of textology against thegrain of traditional male narratives, against the canon and the high re.cultuUnder the theory of feminism there should be no difference between male gender and female gender ingetting all sorts of rights. Notice that this theory does not subscribe to differences between men and women orsimilarities between men and women, nordoes it refer to excluding men or only furthering women's causes.Most other branches of feminism do.MOHMAD HUSSAIN231