The world is changing and it is increasingly evident that women are fighting for their rights and equal opportunities. However, feminism has centuries of history, many important figures and four waves into which we can classify its theories. The four waves of feminism are differentiated chronologically and, although the objective is the same, each one has its own characteristics.
Do you want to know in detail the hhistory and currents of feminism? So, don’t miss this Psychology-Online article. In it, we will tell you everything you need to know about the feminist movement and, if you have any doubts or prejudices, we will try to inform you so that you better understand what that movement is about. You will find a brief summary of the history of feminism in which we include important women in the history of feminism.
What is feminism and how did it emerge?
What is feminism? Feminism is a social movement that focuses its fight on achieving equal rights for women.. It began in the 18th century, along with other movements of great magnitude such as the French Revolution, the War of Independence in the United States or the other liberal revolutions that occurred throughout the Western world.
The French Revolution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are key events in the history of feminism, since the feminist movement emerged to vindicate the role of women in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In this declaration, the rights to free expression, liberty, equality and dignity were directed to men and not to women.
Why is it called feminism?
To better understand feminism, let’s first look at the history of the feminist movement. This word can generate various doubts regarding its meaning, despite the fact that the movement fights for equality. There are many people who feel confused by the term itself “feminism“and, for that reason, we are going to explain why this movement is called “feminism“and not otherwise:
- It is called that because it was born from women with the aim of fighting for their right to equality. This movement does not seek to exclude anyone with their name, it simply describes its origin and objectives.
Starting with the French Revolution, many women began to organize themselves in collectives and protest for their rights, thus creating the first wave of feminism: enlightened feminism.
Note: in this article on the history and currents of feminism, we will focus on the origins of this movement in the Western world. We must keep in mind that there are other study focuses according to different cultures and geographical variables.
History of feminism: the 4 feminist waves
The history of feminism can be structured into four periods called the:
- The first feminist wave: the history of feminism begins with enlightened feminism.
- The second wave of feminism: corresponds to suffragism and activism.
- The third feminist wave: characterized by social revolution.
- The fourth feminist wave: Feminism continues to fight for equality and incorporates new objectives, such as the defense of sexual freedom, and new methods, such as online activism.
This is a brief summary of the history of feminism, which we can see in the following image.
Afterwards, each of the waves that make up the history of feminism and all feminist movements in history are explained in detail.
The first feminist movements: the first wave (1789-1870)
As we have previously commented on the history of feminism, the first feminist wave had its origin at the end of the 18th century and spans an entire century, until 1870 approximately. The objective of this first wave was claim the same rights that men obtained as a result of the bourgeois revolutions and the aforementioned Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Enlightened feminism
Women found themselves unprotected due to the lack of legal and social protection, therefore, they did not hesitate to organize and start fighting. From this first wave, the debate on equality and women’s rights begins. Some of the most important thinkers of the first wave are:
- Mary Wollstonecraft
- Olympia de Gouges (Author of the of the Declaration of the Rights of Women and the Citizen)
- Poullain de Barre
Image: transfeminist tools
The second wave of feminism and the suffragettes (1870-1940)
Linked to the fight for universal rights for women, the second wave of feminism was born in Europe and the United States. (1870-1940). This wave of feminism is driven by the second industrial revolution and the rapid political and economic changes that the Western world was undergoing.
The objective of this second feminist wave was to demand the right to universal vote since women did not have the right to elect their rulers, thus placing themselves in a position of political and social inferiority.
The second wave of feminism claimed the following objectives:
- The incorporation of women into the world of work during World War I
- The right to vote (that’s why they are known as suffragettes)
- The equality of sexes in the family and the prevention of subordination of women
In the United States, one of the most important achievements of the second wave of feminism and the history of feminism was the American Declaration of Seneca Falls in 1848, this declaration claimed the independence of women from their fathers and husbands. Although it does not encompass the established dates of the suffrage movement, it is considered a second wave achievement due to the nature of its goals.
Suffragism represents a very important step forward in the women’s struggle since it encompasses all social classes in the same struggle. Starting in 1871, some countries began to establish the Universal suffrage in their governments.
In Spain, one of the great representatives of the suffrage movement was Clara Campoamorwho created the Women’s Republican Union and promoted women’s suffrage in Spain.
The third wave: contemporary feminism (1950-1980)
Violence towards women, sexual repression and the lack of real equality before the male gender was still evident in the middle of the last century (in fact, it still is). The third wave of feminism arrived during the 60s, women began to achieve equality before justice, or so it seemed, and began to develop social theories in which they studied exhaustively. the reason for your situation, That is, what was there in the world that kept women in a state of permanent inferiority.
Great exponents like Simone de Beauvoir or Betty Friedan They began to point out in their books some problems that appeared in a covert, subtle but evidently serious way in society, such as sexual oppression of women, gender violence, psychological abuse…
It was at this time that many activists affirmed the existence of a patriarchal system that systematically oppressed women. Under the motto “the personal is political“The third wave of feminism fought with the following objectives:
- The abolition of patriarchy
- The education in equality
- The sexual freedom of the woman
- The elimination of violence against women (or)
- Real equality in the work environment
The fourth feminist wave (1980-present)
This fourth wave of feminism is currently being established in history and has not yet been properly defined given its complexity. Although it is true that it is very similar to the third wave of feminism, this We add other struggles that converge in the same current: anti-racism, the fight for LGBT rights, sexual freedom, class struggle… These movements already existed before, however, little by little, common spaces are being created for all of them.
The fourth wave of feminism is also characterized by online activismthe search for sorority, the elimination of toxic lovethe theory queer and the multitude of currents and debates among the same group.
There are historians and various studies that divide feminism into three different waves, uniting Enlightenment feminism with the suffrage movement and placing Simone de Beauvoir in the second wave feminist. The different currents are in continuous change and study. However, in this Psychology-Online article, we have opted for this classification of the history and currents of feminism.
Radical feminism vs liberal feminism: the main currents
These terms have already been discussed previously throughout the history of feminism. However, today they are fiercely debated on social networks and in any space where this movement is discussed.
The main currents of feminism throughout history are radical feminism and liberal feminism. Although both fight for women’s rights, they do so from different perspectives, so they have different objectives and strategies.
- The difference between the two is that the liberal feminism fights for women’s individual freedoms, treating the particular symptom of their oppression and proposing solutions based on their own actions and decisions.
- However the radical feminism, as its name indicates, studies the root of the problem and proposes drastic political and social measures in order to establish real equality between genders. An equality that goes beyond individual problems. In the following article you will find more information about it.
Here you can read all the .
We live in a time full of information and it is not surprising that this new feminist wave is generated. The world is constantly changing, and although it is true that many people oppose the rise of this fight (such as the controversial psychologist), more and more women are joining and want to know more about the history and currents of feminism. The right to live without aesthetic pressures, without machismo and without abuse is reflected in small achievements such as the #metoo movement, the demonstrations in Latin America and the success of the strike on March 8, 2018.
Currents of feminism
In addition to radical feminism and liberal feminism, there are also other feminist currents such as:
In the following article you will find all the details detailed.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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References
- HUMANS, Rights. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The International Convention on the Rights of the Child. United Nations. Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Torture, 1948.
- Miyares, A. (1999). 1848: The Seneca Falls Manifesto. Leviathan: Journal of Facts and Ideas, (75), 135-157.
Bibliography
- Romeo, GS…