Feminist literary criticism, does it talk about women empowerment?

good morning everyone. I am jovilene grace Regalado, I am cherry pluma. today, we will discuss the
features of feminism right now.

Feminist criticism defines a literary theory showing how women were portrayed as less valuable than
men in literature throughout history. Usually called feminist literary criticism, it studies how early
writings condoned the oppression of women because men dominated society. It also explores how
women writers were taken less seriously than male authors from a historical perspective.

feminism is an ideology that has always been highly controversial, it asks such questions as

do women have too much or too little power? It is not only controversial as far as traditional defenders
of the status are concerned.

Some women feel that they are in favour of equality with men, but do not like the idea of feminism.

Feminism however is also controversial in the sense that different feminists mean different things by the
term - so many writers have written about feminism and what are the common features of feminism
it focuses on roles, positions, and influences of women with in literary text concerned with the impact of
gender on writing and reading critic of patriarchal culture male fears are often portrayed thru female
characters.

maggi humm and Rebecca walker in Wikipedia in 2010 stated that the history of feminism can be
divided into three waves

the first feminist wave was in the 19th and early 20th centuries, The second was 1960s and 1970s, and the
third extends from the 1990s to the present.

the first feminist wave in the early of 19th century,

* it focused on the promotion of equal contract and property rights for women and the opposition to
chattel marriage and ownership of married women and their children by their husbands.
* However by the end of 19th century activism focused primarily on gaining political power, particularly
the rights of women’s suffrage.

the second wave of feminist was in the 1960s and 1970s

*it focused on the civil right movement
*it raised the issues of equality and justice
*the second wave of feminist wanted to get the justice in political view and also equal salary in
economic

and let’s proceed to the third wave, gender and sexuality are the main focus on the third wave
- feminism In this wave said that gender is created of patriarchy not God
-it makes terms feminine for the stereotype of men and feminine for the stereotype of of women
- gender is also determined by the culture. – it makes women to be dressed with pink color
- it also constructs women to be weak. For the men, they are doctrine to be strong

- based on the ideology, feminism can be divided into 5. liberal feminism, radical feminism, Marxist
feminism, socialist feminism, and black feminism.

let’s proceed to the liberal feminism

A. Liberal Feminism
*argues that all human have same rational ability.
*liberal feminism tends to look for the same equality between men and women.
*based on it, liberal feminism persuades women that they have capability to be same equality
and ability with men. - thus, it focuses on women’s ability to show that they have same rational
thinking and maintain to their action
- liberal feminism looks for the equality in all aspect like social, politics and economic

B. Radical Feminism
* claims that women are always pressed by men thus they have to fight them back.
*they have strong opinion that men are their enemies so that they cannot live with them. – if
radical feminist marries with men it means she serve, lives, sleeps, with the enemy. - Radical
feminism focuses on the politics
*Radical feminism tends to be lesbian – it is the way to separate them with men they make their
own community which is called lesbian

C. the Marxist Feminism

*focuses on the class.
*wants to fade in class because labor women have lower class than men. – the impact of it,
women get the salary lower than men based on the Marxist feminism.
*women get the salary lower than men.

D. the fourth one is socialist feminism.

* when we say socialist feminism -
it argues that social construction is the main reason of injustice toward women
*women have been condemned to their oppressed status by the same social forces and
relations which have brought about the oppression of one class by another, one race by
another, and one nation by another.

E. black feminism
*claims it is the hardest movement even from other feminism because the oppression not only
comes from white men but also comes from Black men.
- feminism also rejects the binary opposition – binary opposition is the separation between men
and women it is made by patriarchy to give advantages to men it also makes the stereotype of
women.

the advantages go to men based on the occupation, men are given the opportunity to work in
public area and to work in public area, men are given the chance to get high education, different
with men, women are not allowed to work in public area so they are not obligated to get high
education.

to conclude, feminism is a movement because there is injustice toward women. Men dominate
the women in all aspects of life such as social, politics and economic, men can dominate them
because there is a system that gives advantages to men, this system is called the patriarchy
system.

A. how are women’s lives portrayed in the work?

- Women are under appreciated; they work a lot and get paid little. They are also limited in what
jobs they can perform. Women are only seen employed as governesses, household servants, or
teachers in this novel.

B. is the form and content of the work influenced by the writer’s gender?
C. how do male and female characters relate to one another? Are these relationships sources of
conflict resolved?
D. does the work challenge or affirm traditional views of women?
E. how do the images of women in the story reflect patriarchal social forces that have impeded
womens’s efforts to achieve full equality with men?
F. what marital expectations are imposed on the characters? What affect do these expectations
have?
G. what behavioral expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these
expectations have?
H. if a female character were male, how would the story be different (and vice versa)?
I. how does the marital status of a character affect her decisions or happiness?

Women are under appreciated; they work a lot and get paid little. They are also limited in what
jobs they can perform. Women are only seen employed as governesses, household servants, or
teachers in this novel.

B. Is the form and content of the work influenced by the writer's gender?
Yes; because Charlotte Bronte is a female, she shows an understanding that although women in
the nineteenth century, when this novel takes place, are expected to act proper and be passive,
they have the same feelings as men, so they shouldn't be expected to behave any different.

C. How do male and female characters relate to one another? Are these relationships sources
of conflict? Are these conflicts resolved?

The male characters in the book are dominant over females in every male-female relationship in
this book. This does cause a conflict because it gives Jane a reason not to marry Mr. Rochester.

D. Does the work challenge or affirm traditional views of women?

This novel challenges the traditional view of women in the nineteenth century because Jane is
expected to be submissive to men and never challenge them in conversations, but she does
challenge their opinions anyway, and this is shocking to some men.

E. How do the images of women in the story reflect patriarchal social forces that have impeded
women's efforts to achieve full equality with men?

Jane initially believes that marrying Mr. Rochester would put her in a position of inferiority,
which makes her hesitant to immediately accept his proposal.

F. What marital expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these
expectations have?

Jane is expected to be submissive to whoever she marries; this makes her reluctant to accept
Mr. Rochester's proposal. She is also expected to never leave her husband if she does get
married, which is why Jane is very careful not to marry the wrong man. This expectation also
affected Mr. Rochester because he could not leave his wife, although she was violent and
insane.

G. What behavioral expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these
expectations have?

Jane, like all other women of the nineteenth century, is expected to be docile and obedient
without questioning her superiors. This causes her to suppress her feelings for the majority of
the book.

H. If a female character were male, how would the story be different?

Jane would have probably been treated with more respect and would have been able to stand
up for herself when she was a child living at the Reeds'. This would have caused the story to
have an entirely different outcome.
I. How does the marital status of a character affect her decisions or happiness?

Although Jane is very satisfied with her married life with Mr. Rochester at the end of the novel,
she would have been very unhappy if she accepted Mr. Rochester's first proposal because she
would have been going against her moral code. She also would have been unhappy if she
decided to become a missionary wife to St. John because it would have been a loveless
marriage.

Thesis: If Jane would have succumbed to the inferior social position of a female of the
nineteenth century, her life would have turned out dismal and loveless.

How do you define feminism?

- the advocacy of women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes.
- focuses on how literature presents women as subjects of socio-political, psychological, and
economic oppression.

Do you consider yourself to be a feminist?

- Yes, I am a feminist. Feminism is the belief and practice of equality between all sexes. I
personally think if you believe in the equality of rights for women and men and any sexual
orientation, then you are a feminist.

what did you learn about feminism?

- Quite simply, feminism is about all genders having equal rights and opportunities. It's
about respecting diverse women's experiences, identities, knowledge and strengths, and
striving to empower all women to realize their full rights.

What is the main purpose of feminism?

- In general, feminism can be seen as a movement to put an end to sexism, sexist

exploitation, and oppression and to achieve full gender equality in law and in practice.

SEXISM - prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the

basis of sex.
What is an example of feminism?

- Feminist movements have campaigned and continue to campaign for women's rights,
including the right to vote, run for public office, work, earn equal pay, own property, receive
education, enter contracts, have equal rights within marriage, and maternity leave.

What is the main goal of feminist criticism?

o By seeking to view women in a new perspective and discover women's contributions

to literary history, feminist criticism aims to reinterpret the old texts and establish
the importance of women's writing to save it from being lost or ignored in the male-
dominated world

feminism is about all genders having equal rights and opportunities.