1.

What are some of the key differences between Second-Wave and Third-Wave
feminisms?

Second-wave feminism refers to the revolution from 1960s to 1980s that identifies family and sex-
uality as key sets of oppression and calls on women to united to share their experiences. While
third Wave feminism is an iteration which rejects grand narratives in favor of a hermeneutics of
critique operating across a wide range of discursive spaces, and attempts at unification are replaced
with a dynamic and inviting politics of coalition (Synder, 2008). In this article, I will argue that
there are two main differences between the Second Wave and the Third Wave. Firstly, second-
wave feminism understood oppression as separate forces of gender, sexuality, class and so on,
whereas third-wave feminism understood oppression by perceiving those factors integrally. Sec-
ondly, second-wave feminism was a radical “victim feminism” (Wolf, 2006) with attempts at con-
structing a unity, while the third-wave empowers female as individual agents and encouraging
women in various practices of womanhood.

In the Second Wave of feminism, a majority of feminists tried to distinguish themselves from
others by presenting themselves as rigid sets of identities structured into oppression hierarchies
(Holmes, 2007). Specifically, their identities were mainly white middle class heterosexual
women, which was a lack of diversity, given that others who were excluded from this genre will
not be represented (Iannello, 2010). In this way, feminists in Second Wave were supposed to be
“women” or White women, therefore it would be difficult for Black women, lesbian, bisexual
and transgender to get counts. For instance, according to Crenshaw’s research (1989), the con-
ventional sex discrimination claim is against a white female, though claims that differ from this
norm appear to establish some form of hybrid claim. In other words, Black women cannot al-
ways represent individuals who have "pure" sex discrimination claims since their claims are
perceived as hybrid. Therefore, Black feminists are likely to be invisible since they are non-
white and consequently as non-women.

In contrast, third-wave feminism recognizes the importance of intersectionality as “there is no

single-issue struggle since people do not live in single-issued lives” (Lorde, 2007, p.133).
Specifically, gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality and class are considered integrally as identity has
interlocking nature which never function in isolation but always work as interconnected cate-
gories of oppression and privileged (Henry, 2004). In other words, third-wave feminism is mul-

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ticultural and sexually heterogeneous, compromising gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transsexual
viewpoints. For example, Crenshaw (1989) argues that if a Black homosexual women is
harmed, both sex discrimination and race discrimination bring impacts. Hence, third-wave femi-
nism has realized that all issues were caused by multiple reasons include gender, class and race
instead of a single factor because people’s identities are highly relevant to their personal experi-
ences that are usually complex. In the end, the idea of intersectionality assists to gathers femi-
nists with different background together which could greatly moderated oppressive hierarchies
and thus solve problems more easily.

Second, Wolf (2006) argues that second-wave feminism is “victim feminism” which is por-
trayed as "sexually judgemental, even antisexual," "judgmental of other women's sexuality and
appearance," and “self-righteous" (pp.14-15). Particularly, rather than increasing civil rights,
Second Wave feminism wish female to dismiss the privilege of heterosexual by anti-marriage,
and abandon beauty rather than expanding the definition. Besides, those protesters also claimed
that “women were victims of a patriarchal, commercialized, oppressive beauty culture”
(Freeman, 1975, p.147). For instance, in 1969, feminists from New York organized a protests
against the Miss America peasant and throwing gender artifacts which they believed were rep-
resentations for oppression such as bras, high heels and cosmetics into the freedom trash can.
Steinem (1984) also argues that “a women reading Playboy feels a little like a Jew reading a
Nazi manual ”. From these cases, it is easy to notice that people’s attitude towards sexuality,
beauty and fashion was extremely radical and even loose their minds, since beauty and female
artifacts become tabooed symbols of patriarchy and be defined as perpetrators. However, ob-
jects compromise high heels and cosmetics were scapegoats of those true civilization of oppres-
sion on women and those female in second wave might targeted a wrong goal because those
substances could simply just decorations without any other loaded issues.

Inversely, third-wave feminism empowers the reintroduction of "taboo symbols" including

fashion, beauty and so on, it also empowers women's agency in all aspects of femininity.
Specifically, instead of boycotting women from marriage, sexuality and beauty, third-wave
feminism confirmed the equal interaction with men and claimed sexual pleasure as they desire
it, and actively play with feminity (Synder, 2008). To put it another way, the third-wave femi-
nism believes that women should face desires and “tabooed”artifacts squarely because desires
should be irrelevant to traps of patriarchy and cosmetics should not be interpreted as a signal of
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the sway of male gaze. Furthermore, in terms of arts and culture as key sites for interventions
during third-wave feminism, popular music has been a crucial route for recognizing and, in
some cases, defining the Third Wave (Keenan, 2010). Liz Phair’s album called Exile in
Guyville, for example. This album has displayed an overt heterosexuality and and Phair’s
strong desire to men by showing herself as a both sex object and sex subject (Keenan, 2010).
Besides, the cover photo of Exile in Guyville which featured a shirtless lunging towards camera
also indicate a revolutionary feminism during Third Wave, where female pornography is no
longer regarded as the oppressed victims of a patriarchal culture and feminists are no longer be-
ing sexual-judgmental since feminists are allowed to express their desire explicitly. Particularly,
“feminism is about having control over life and one’s body” and “it is her right to choose as a
feminist and as an individual”(Karp & Stoller, 1999, p. 89).

In conclusion, there are dominantly two differences between the second and the third wave.
Specifically, compared to third-wave feminism, where intersectionality was compromised to
understood the forces of privilege and oppression, second-wave feminism was dominated by
middle class white women which lacks diversity, other female who do not belong to the group
might be excluded and become invisible. Besides, within second-wave feminism where femi-
nists were restricted in a unity, marriage and sexuality were judgmental and there were crack-
downs on female artifacts, beauty and fashion since they were defined as traps of patriarchy.
Comparatively, during third-wave feminism by applying the means of artistic and cultural rep-
resentations, empowerment on women as individual agents exists and female was engaged to
practice their womanhood.

References:

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Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Cri-
tique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics. University of
Chicago Legal Forum, 1989, pp. 139–168.

Holmes, M. (2007). ‘What are the politics of gender?’ in What is Gender? Sociological Ap-
proaches, London: Sage, pp. 110-128.

Henry, Astrid. 2004. Not My Mother's Sister: Generational Conflict and Third- Wave Feminism.
Bloomington: Indiana University Press. 2006. "'Daughterhood Is Powerful: The Emergence of
Feminism's Third Wave,' from Nat My Mother's Sister." In Heywood 2006b, pp. 121-33.

Iannello Kathleen. (2010). Women’s Leadership and Third-Wave Feminism. Sage Publications, pp.
70-76

Freeman, J. (1979). Women, a feminist perspective (2d ed.). Mayfield Pub. Co.

Keenan, E.K. (2010). If Liz Phair’s Exile in Guyville Made You a Feminist, What Kind of Feminist
Are You?: Heterosexuality, Race, and Class in the Third Wave. Women and Music: A Journal of
Gender and Culture  14, The University of Nebraska Press,14, pp. 45-71. 

Karp, M, Stoller, D. (1999). The BUST Guide to the New Girl Order. New York: Penguin, pp.
121-138

Lorde, Audre. (1984). Sister Outsider. Crossing Press Berkeley, p. 133

Snyder, R. (2008). What Is Third‐Wave Feminism? A New Directions Essay. Signs: Journal Of
Women In Culture And Society, The University of Chicago Press, 34(1), pp. 175-196.

Wolf, Naomi. (2006). '"Two Traditions,' from Fire with Fire." In Heywood 2006b, pp. 13-19.