History of feminism
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Part of the series on Feminism |
|
Subtypes Topics Waves of American Feminism Lists |
Feminism, as a construct, has probably existed as long as there have been women, and women who have recognised that patriarchy and patrilineage were problematic. The word 'feminism', did not come into common usage until the late nineteenth century, having appeared first in France in the 1880s, Great Britain in 1890, and the United States in 1910. <ref>Offen, Karen. Les origines des mots 'feminisme' et 'feministe'. Revue d'histoire moderne et contemporaine July-Sept 1987 34: 492-496</ref><ref name="cott">Cott, Nancy F. The Grounding of Modern Feminism. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987 at 13-5. </ref> Over time it has been called a number of other things, such as womanism.<ref name="walters">Walters, Margaret. "Feminism: A very short introduction". Oxford University 2005 (ISBN 0-19-280510-X)</ref> The History of Feminism has largely been portrayed as the history of the Feminist Movement, and thus criticised for ignoring women's voices over thousands of years.<ref name="kinnaird">Kinnaird, Joan. Mary Astell: Inspired by ideas (1668-1731) in Spender, op. cit. at 29</ref><ref>Witt, Charlotte. Feminist History of Philosophy 2000 (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)</ref><ref name="taylor">Allen, Ann Taylor, Feminism, Social Science, and the Meanings of Modernity: The Debate on the Origin of the Family in Europe : and the United States, 1860–1914. The American Historical Review 104.4 (1999): 53 pars. 1 Dec. 2006 <http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/ahr/104.4/ah001085.html>.</ref><ref name="woolf">Woolf, Virginia. A room of one's own. 1928</ref>The new feminist literary history of the last few decades, although presaged by Virginia Woolf, has largely been a process of retrieval and recovery.<ref>Ezell, Margaret J M. Writing Women's Literary History. Johns Hopkins University 1993 216 pp. ISBN: 080185508X</ref><ref>Rich, Adrienne. When We Dead Awaken: Writing as Re-Vision, in Sullivan, John (ed.) Ways of Reading. Bedford, Boston 1999. 601-615.</ref><ref>Showalter, Elaine (ed.) The New Feminist Criticism: Essays on Women, Literature, and Theory. New York: Pantheon, 1985.</ref><ref>Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Feminist Consciousness From the Middle Ages to Eighteen-seventy , Oxford University Press, 1993</ref>"What I find deplorable...is that nothing is known about women before the eighteenth century" Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own 1928.<ref name="woolf"/>
[edit] Introduction
A broad understanding of feminism includes women acting, speaking and writing on women's issues and rights, identifying social injustice in the status quo and bringing their own unique perspective to bear on issues. Prior to the appearance of 'feminist' as a label for women involved in discussing or advancing women's issues, it is not uncommon to find the term 'protofeminist' used, although this defies a standardised definition as much as any other variety of feminist, and may not necessarily add value to the investigation of the history of feminism (For one attempt, see Botting and Houser, 2006 <ref>Botting Eileen H, Houser Sarah L. “Drawing the Line of Equality”: Hannah Mather Crocker on Women's Rights. American Political Science Review (2006), 100: 265-278</ref>). Therefore the term 'feminist' is used here universally.
[edit] Early origins
Some feminist writers, and writers on feminism have yearned romantically for a utopian and mythical past that if not strictly matriarchal (gynocratic <ref>Davis, Elizabeth Gould. The First Sex.Penguin 1972, 384 pp. ISBN: 0140035044.</ref> ), was at least matrilineal or at worst equilineal. Best known of these is Robert Graves, whose "The White Goddess" was first published in 1948, and is itself based on Fraser's "The Golden Bough" (1890-1922). Other writers include Charles Fourier<ref>Davis, Philip G. (1998) Goddess unmasked : the rise of neopagan feminist spirituality. Dallas, Tex.: Spence Pub. ISBN 0-9653208-9-8.</ref> in the early nineteenth century. While the debate over the origins of patriarchy has been long running, a seminal work was Johann Jakob Bachofen's "Mutterecht" (1861).<ref name="taylor"/>This has generated vigorous debate, for instance Cynthia Eller criticises the work of Elizabeth Gould Davis, Marija Gimbutas and others in The Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory,<ref>Eller, Cynthia. The Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory: Why an Invented Past Will Not Give Women a Future. Beacon Press 2000. 276pp. ISBN: 080706792X</ref> and is in return refuted by Joan Marler. <ref>Marler, Joan. The Myth of Universal Patriarchy: A Critical Response to Cynthia Eller’s Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory. Feminist Theology, Vol. 14, No. 2, 163-187 (2006) For an earlier version of this article, see Marija Gimbutas</ref>
Women's voices are often difficult to discern in the ancient world, but although classical Greek philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato are sometimes claimed to be feminists, a role that is debated,<ref>Annas,Julia. Plato’s Republic and Feminism. Plato 2: Ethics, Politics, Religion, and the Soul. in Fine, Gail (ed.) New York Oxford 1999</ref>.although their works have been one element shaping feminist and gender studies, even if only in rebuttal of inherent misogyny.<ref>Bar On, Bat-Ami. Engendering Origins: Critical Feminist Readings in Plato and Aristotle. State University of New York Press, New York, 1994.</ref>
In the Judaeo-Christian world women found themselves depicted in negative imagery by religious leaders who also set social norms. This extended from Genesis, with the Creation and the Fall, to the teachings of St. Paul in the New Testament. <ref name="lerner">Lerner, Gerda. Religion and the creation of feminist consciousness. Harvard Divinity Bulletin November 2002</ref> Certainly political and social patriarchal systems were firmly entrenched by the beginning of the Christian era.<ref>Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Patriarchy. Oxford University Press 1986. 344 pp ISBN: 0195051858</ref>
While women's voices were few in relation to men, nevertheless we have records of a number of women who brought feminine perspectives to the interpretation of religion, and questioned patriarchal models. There are glimpses of feminist thinking in the Bible, but probably the first recorded activities go back to at least the 12th century, in which Hildegard of Bingen was writing on religion in a uniquely feminine way, describing the 'motherhood of God', and encroaching on a hitherto male profession, that of preaching.<ref>Hildegarde of Bingen. Selected writings. Atherton M (trans.)Penguin 2001</ref>Secular women writers included the fourteenth century Italian-French Christine de Pizan who attacked misogyny in 'The City of Ladies' (1404). <ref>Spearing, Elizabeth. Medieval writings on female spirituality. Penguin 2002.</ref>
By the 15th century Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe <ref>Windear, B (trans.)The Book of Margery Kempe. Pengiuin 1986</ref> were writing feminist religious literature.<ref>King, Margaret L. Women of the Renaissance. University of Chicago 1991</ref> The Reformation allowed more women to add their voices in the 16th century, although it is argued that the closure of convents deprived women of one path to education. These include Jane Anger, Aemilia Lanyer, and Anna Trapnell.<ref>Wright, Stephanie Hodgson. Women's writings of the early modern period 1588-1688. Edinburgh University 2002.</ref> <ref>Hobby, Elaine. Virtue of necessity: English women's writing 1649-88. University of Michigan 1989.</ref><ref name="lerner"/> Giving voice in the secular context was more difficult, deprived of the rationale and protection of divine inspiration. Queen Elizabeth I demonstrated leadership amongst women, even if unsupportive of their causes, and was a role model for the education of women. <ref>Elliott, Kimberly. "Eliza's works, wars, praise": Representations of Elizabeth I in Diana Primrose and Anne Bradstreet. Womenwriters.net December 1999</ref>
[edit] Seventeenth Century: Nonconformism, Protectorate and Restoration
The 17th century saw the development of many nonconformist sects which allowed more say to women than the established religions, especially the Quakers. Noted feminist writers on religion and spirituality included Rachel Speght, Katherine Evans, Sarah Chevers and Margaret Fell. <ref>Fraser, Antonia. The weaker vessel: Women's lot in seventeeth century England. Phoenix, London 1984.</ref><ref>Marshall-Wyatt, Sherrin. Women in the Reformation era. In, Becoming visible: Women in European history, Renate Bridenthal and Claudia Koonz (eds.) Houghton-Mifflin, Boston 1977.</ref><ref>Thomas, K. Women and the Civil War sects. 1958 Past and Present 13.</ref>
This increased participation of women was not without opposition, notably John Bunyan, leading to persecution, and emigration to the Netherlands and the Americas. Over this and preceding centuries women who expressed opinions on religion or preached were also in danger of being suspected of lunacy or witchcraft, and many like Anne Askew<ref name="lerner"/> died "for their implicit or explicit challenge to the patriarchal order".<ref>Moses, Claire Goldberg. French Feminism in the 19th Century. State University of New York, 1984 at 7.</ref> In France as in England, feminist ideas were attributes of heterodoxy, such as the Waldensians and Catharists, than orthodoxy. Religious egalitarianism, such as embraced by the Levellers, carried over into gender equality, and therefore had political implications. Leveller women mounted large scale public demonstrations and petitions, although dismissed by the authorities of the day.This century also saw more women writers emerging, such as Anne Bradstreet, Bathsua Makin, Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle, Lady Mary Roth,<ref>The poems of Lady Mary Roth. Roberts, Josephine A (ed.) Louisiana State University 1983</ref><ref>Greer, Germaine. Slip-shod sybils Penguin 1999, at 15-6</ref> and Mary Astell, who depicted women's changing roles and made pleas for their education. However they encountered considerable hostility, as exemplified by the experiences of Cavendish, and Roth whose work was not published till the 20th century.
Astell is frequently described as the first feminist writer. However this depiction fails to recognise the intellectual debt she owed to Schurman, Makin and other women who preceded her. She was certainly one of the earliest feminist writers in English, whose analyses are as relevant to day as in her own time, and moved beyond earlier writers by instituting educational institutions for women.<ref name="kinnaird"/><ref name="walters"/> Astell and Behn together laid the groundwork for feminist theory in the seventeenth century. No woman would speak out as strongly again, for another century. In historical accounts she is often overshadowed by her younger and more colourful friend and correspondent Lady Mary Wortley Montagu.
The liberalisation of social values and secularisation of the English Restoration provided new opportunities for women in the arts, an opportunity that women used to advance their cause. However female playwrights encountered similar hostility. These included Catherine Trotter, Mary Manley and Mary Pix. The most influential of all<ref name="walters"/><ref>Goreau, Angeline. Aphra Behn: A scandal to modesty (c. 1640-1689) in Spender op. cit. 8-27</ref><ref>Woolf, Virginia. A room of one's own. 1928, at 65</ref> was Aphra Behn, the first Englishwoman to achieve the status of a professional writer. Critics of feminist writing included prominent men such as Alexander Pope.
In continental Europe, important feminist writers included Marguerite de Navarre, Marie de Gournay and Anne Marie van Schurmann (Anna Maria van Schurman) who mounted attacks on misogyny and promoted the education of women. In the New World the Mexican nun, Juana Ines de la Cruz (1651-1695), was advancing the education of women particularly in her essay entitled "Reply to Sor Philotea".<ref>Juana Inés de la Cruz, Sor. Respuesta a Sor Filotea 1691. pub posthum. Madrid 1700 </ref> By the end of the seventeenth century women's voices were becoming increasingly heard, becoming almost a clamour, at least by educated women. The literature of the last decades of the century being sometimes referred to as the "Battle of the Sexes",<ref>Upman AH. English femmes savantes at the end of the seventeenth century. Journal of English and Germanic Philology 12 (1913)</ref> and was often surprisingly polemic, such as Hannah Woolley's "The Gentlewoman's Companion".<ref>Woolley, Hannah. The Gentlewoman's Companion. London 1675</ref> However women received mixed messages, for they also heard a strident backlash, and even self-deprecation by women writers in response. They were also subjected to conflicting social pressures, one of which was less opportunities for work outside the home, and education which sometimes reinforced the social order as much as inspire independent thinking.
[edit] Eighteenth Century: The Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was characterised by secular intellectual reasoning, and a flowering of philosophical writing. The most important feminist writer of the time was Mary Wollstonecraft, often characterised as the first feminist philosopher. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792), written in response to Gouges' "Declaration of the Rights of Women", is one of the first works that can unambiguously be called feminist, although by modern standards her comparison of women to the nobility, the elite of society, coddled, fragile, and in danger of intellectual and moral sloth, may seem dated at first, as a feminist argument. Wollestonecraft saw that it was the education and upbringing of women that created their limited expectations based on a self-image dictated by male gaze. Despite her perceived inconsistencies (Brody refers to the "Two Wollestoncrafts"<ref>Brody, Miriam. Mary Wollestonecraft: Sexuality and women's rights (1759-1797), in Spender, Dale (ed.) Feminist theorists: Three centuries of key women thinkers, Pantheon 1983, pp. 40-59 ISBN 0-394-53438-7</ref>) reflective of problems that had no easy answers, this book remains a foundation stone of feminist thought.<ref name="walters"/> Wollstonecraft believed that both sexes contributed to the inequalities and took it for granted that women had considerable power over men, but that both would require education to ensure the necessary changes in social attitudes. Her legacy remains the need for women to speak out and tell their stories. Her own achievements speak to her own determination given her humble origins and scant eduction. As Pope attacked Astell and Montagu, so Wollstonecroft attracted the mockery of Samuel Johnson who described her and her ilk as 'Amazons of the pen'. Given his relationship with Hester Thrale<ref>Prose, Francine . The lives of the muses. Harper Collins New York 2002 pp. 29-56</ref> it would appear that his problem was not with intelligent educated women, but that they should encroach onto a male territory of writing. Other important writers of the time included Catherine Macaulay. Meanwhile women novelists such as Fanny Burney and later, Jane Austen were addressing the dilemmas that women faced, often taking the form of melodrama, such as Ann Radcliffe, and Austen in Northanger Abbey (1818). Some male writers like Samuel Richardson also drew attention to these issues.The French Revolution focussed people's attention everywhere on the cry for "égalité", and hence by extension, but in a more limited way, inequity in the treatment of women. In 1791, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, elicited an immediate response from the writer Olympe de Gouges who amended it as the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen, arguing that if women were accountable to the law they must also be given equal responsibility under the law. She also addressed marriage as a social contract between equals and attacked women's reliance on beauty and charm, as a form of slavery.
The eighteenth century also saw male philosophers attracted to issues of human rights, and men such as the Marquis de Condorcet championed women's education, while liberals such as the utilitarian, Jeremy Bentham, demanded equal rights for women in every sense, as people increasingly came to believe that women were treated unfairly under the law. The first scientific society for women was founded in Middelburg, a city in the south of the Dutch republic, in 1785. Journals for women which focused on issues like science became popular during this period as well.
[edit] Nineteenth century: The Women's Movement
The feminist movement is rooted in the West and especially in the reform movement of the 19th century. The organised movement is dated from the first women's rights convention at Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848.
[edit] In Britain
Emmeline Pankhurst one of the founders of the suffragette movement and aimed to reveal the institutional sexism in British society, forming the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). for forms of activism that broke the law, particularly property destruction, inspired members to go on hunger strikes. Their jailors then often force-fed these women by nasogastric tubes, which caused many to become sick. This treatment and their injuries served to draw attention to the brutality of the legal system at the time and to further their cause, but apparently in an attempt to prevent these women from serious injury, the government introduce a bill called the Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill Health) Act 1913 that became known as the Cat and Mouse Act, which allowed women to be released when their illness or injury became dangerously acute, but officers were then not prevented from arresting and charging these women again once they were well.
[edit] In France
In France, following the fall of the conservative Louis-Philippe in 1848, feminist sentiment exploded throughout Paris, including several newspapers and organizations; the largest of which was the Voix des Femmes, or the Women's Voice. However because of the emergence of a new, more conservative government in 1852, Feminism in France would have to wait until the Third French Republic.
Other notable 19th-century feminists include, Emma Goldman, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Dame Ethel Mary Smyth and Margaret Sanger.
[edit] In the Middle East
The Feminist movement in the Muslim world saw Egyptian jurist Qasim Amin, the author of the 1899 pioneering book Women's Liberation (Tahrir al-Mar'a), as the father of the Egyptian Feminist Movement. In his work, Amin criticized some of the practices prevalent in his society at the time, such as polygamy, the veil, and women's segregation. He condemned them as un-Islamic and contradictory to the true spirit of Islam. His work had an enormous influence on women's political movements throughout the Islamic and Arab world, and is read and cited today. Less known, however, are the women who preceded Amin in their feminist critique of their societies. The women's press in Egypt started voicing such concerns since its very first issues in 1892. Egyptian, Turkish, Iranian, Syrian and Lebanese women and men had been reading European feminist magazines even a decade earlier, and discussed their relevance to the Middle East in the general press.
[edit] Twentieth century
Many countries began to grant women the vote in the early years of the 20th century, especially in the final years of the First World War and the first years after the war. The reasons for this varied, but included a desire to recognize the contributions of women during the war, and were also influenced by rhetoric used by both sides at the time to justify their war efforts. For example, since Wilson's Fourteen Points recognised self determination as a vital component of society, the hypocrisy of denying half the population of modern nations the vote became difficult for men to ignore. (See: Women's suffrage)
The 1920s were an important time for women, who, in addition to gaining the vote also gained legal recognition in many countries. However, in many countries, women lost the jobs they had gained during the war. In fact, women who had held jobs prior to the war were sometimes compelled to give up their jobs to returning soldiers, partly due to a conservative backlash, and partially through societal pressure to reward the soldiers. Many women continued to work in blue collar jobs, on farms, and traditionally female occupations. Women did make strides in some fields such as nursing.
In both World Wars, manpower shortages brought women into traditionally male occupations, ranging from munitions manufacturing and mechanical work to a female baseball league. By demonstrating that women could do "men's work", and highlighting society's dependence on their labour, this shift encouraged women to strive for equality. In World War II, the popular icon Rosie the Riveter became a symbol for a generation of working women. The rise of socialism and communism advanced the rights of women to economic parity with men in some countries. Women were often encouraged to take their place as equals in these societies, although they rarely enjoyed the same level of political power as men, and still often faced very different social expectations. The revolutions occurring in Latin America saw changes in women's status in countries like Nicaragua where Feminist Ideology During the Sandinista Revolution was largely responsible for the significant improvements to the quality of life for women but still fell short of achieving a true social ideological change.In some areas, regimes actively discouraged feminism and women's liberations. In Nazi Germany, a very hierarchical society was idealized where women maintained a position largely subordinate to men. Women's activism was very difficult there, and in other societies that deliberately set out to restrict women's, and men's, gender roles, such as Italy, and much later Afghanistan.
Early feminists and primary feminist movements are often called the first wave and feminists after about 1960 the second wave. Second wave feminists were concerned with gaining full social and economic equality, having already gained almost full legal equality in many western nations. One of the main fields of interest to these women was in gaining the right to contraception and birth control, which were almost universally restricted until the 1960s. With the development of the birth control pill feminists hoped to make it as available as possible. Many hoped that this would free women from the perceived burden of mothering children they did not want; they felt that control of reproduction was necessary for full economic independence from men. Access to abortion was also widely demanded, but this was much more difficult to secure because of the deep societal divisions that existed over the issue. To this day, abortion remains controversial in many parts of the world.
Many feminists also fought to change perceptions of female sexual behaviour. Since it was often considered more acceptable for men to have multiple sexual partners, many feminists encouraged women into "sexual liberation" and having sex for pleasure with multiple partners. (See: Sexual revolution)
These developments in sexual behavior have not gone without criticism by some feminists.[citation needed] They see the sexual revolution primarily as a tool used by men to gain easy access to sex without the obligations entailed by marriage and traditional social norms. They see the relaxation of social attitudes towards sex in general, and the increased availability of pornography without stigma, as leading towards greater sexual objectification of women by men. Catharine MacKinnon and Andrea Dworkin gained notoriety in the 1980s by attempting to classify pornography as a violation of women's civil rights.
There is a so called third wave, but feminists disagree as to its necessity, its benefits, and its ideas. Often also called "Post-Feminist," it can possibly be considered to be the advancement of a female discourse in a world where the equality of women is something that can be assumed—rather than fought for.
[edit] Recent activities
In many areas of the world women are still paid less than men for equivalent work, hold much less political and economic power, and are often the subject of intense social pressure to conform to relatively traditional gender expectations. Feminists continue to fight these conditions. The most high profile work is done in the field of pay-equity, reproductive rights, and encouraging women to become engaged in politics, both as candidates and as voters. In some areas feminists also fight for legislation guaranteeing equitable divorce laws and protections against rape and sexual harassment. Radical feminism was a significant development in second wave feminism, viewing women's oppression as a fundamental element in human society and seeks to challenge that standard by broadly inverting perceived gender roles along with promoting lesbian and gay rights.
In the Arab and Islamic world, feminist movements face very different challenges. In Morocco and Iran, for example, it is the application of Islamic personal status laws that are the target of feminist activity. According to Islamic law, for example, a woman who remarries may lose custody over her children; divorce is an unqualified male privilege; in certain countries polygamy is still legal. While not attacking Islamic law itself, these women and men in different Islamic countries offer modern, feminist, egalitarian readings of religious texts. In Egypt feminist gynecologist Nawal al-Sa'dawi centers her critique on the still-prevalent custom of female genital mutilation. Feminist groups in other African countries have targeted the practice as well.
One problem feminists have encountered in the late 20th century is a strong backlash against perceived zealotry on their part. This backlash may be due to the large amount of radical feminist activism that has been perceived as representing the feminist movement as a whole. Many women, and some men, have become reluctant to be identified as feminists for this reason. Outside of the West, feminism is often associated with Western colonialism and Western cultural influence, and is therefore often delegitimized. Feminist groups therefore often prefer to refer to themselves as "women's organizations" and refrain from labeling themselves feminists.
[edit] References
[edit] Historical feminists of note
For a more complete list, see: List of notable feminists
- Abigail Adams
- Susan B. Anthony
- Gloria E. Anzaldúa
- Simone de Beauvoir
- Angela Davis
- Betty Friedan
- Fatima Mernissi
- Dame Ethel Mary Smyth
- Gloria Steinem
- Harriet Tubman
- Mary Wollstonecraft
- Virginia Woolf
- Concepción Arenal Started and led the "Spanish Feminist Movement" in the Iberian Peninsula (1820-1893)
[edit] See also
- Feminist history in the United States
- Feminist history in the United Kingdom
- Feminist history in Latin America
- List of feminism topics
- List of notable feminists
- List of notable feminist literature
- Women's Music
- Feme covert
- Bluestocking
[edit] Other sources
[edit] Books
For a chronological list of historically important individual books see: List of notable feminist literature
General
- Anderson, Bonnie S. and Judith P. ZinsserA History of Their Own: Women in Europe from Prehistory to the Present, Oxford University Press, 1999 (revised edition), ISBN 0-19-512839-7
- Cott, Nancy F. The Bonds of Womanhood. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977.
- Cott, Nancy and Elizabeth Pleck, eds., A Heritage of Her Own; Toward a New Social History of American Women New York: Simon and Schuster, 1979,
- Cott, Nancy F. The Grounding of Modern Feminism. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987.
- Ezell, Margaret J M. Writing Women's Literary History. Johns Hopkins University 2006 216 pp. ISBN: 080185508X
- Freedman, Estelle No Turning Back : The History of Feminism and the Future of Women, Ballantine Books, 2002, ISBN B0001FZGQC
- Jacob, Margaret C. The Enlightenment: A Brief History With Documents, Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001, ISBN 0-312-17997-9
- Lerner, Gerda. The Creation of Feminist Consciousness From the Middle Ages to Eighteen-seventy , Oxford University Press, 1993
- Offen, Karen M. European Feminisms, 1700–1950: A Political History. Stanford: Stanford University Press. 2000.
- O'Neill, William L. Everyone was brave: A history of feminism in America. Chicago 1971
- Scott, Joan Wallach Feminism and History (Oxford Readings in Feminism), Oxford University Press, 1996, ISBN 0-19-875169-9
- Smith, Bonnie G. Global Feminisms: A Survey of Issues and Controversies (Rewriting Histories), Routledge, 2000, ISBN 0-415-18490-8
- Spender, Dale (ed.) Feminist theorists: Three centuries of key women thinkers, Pantheon 1983, ISBN 0-394-53438-7
Great Britain
- Melanie Phillips; The Ascent of Woman - A History of the Suffragette Movement and the ideas behind it, Time Warner Book Group London, 2003, ISBN 0-349-11660-1
- Martin Pugh, Women and the women's movement in Britain, 1914 -1999 , Basingstoke [etc.] : St. Martin's Press , 2000
- Walters, Margaret. "Feminism: A very short introduction". Oxford 2005 (ISBN 0-19-280510-X)
India
- Feminism in India, ed. by Maitrayee Chaudhuri, London [etc.] : Zed Books, 2005
Italy
- Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, liberazione della donna. feminism in italy, Wesleyan University Press 1986
Japan
- Vera MacKie, Feminism in Modern Japan: Citizenship, Embodiment and Sexuality, Paperback Edition, Cambridge University Press 2003, ISBN 0-521-52719-8
Latin America
- Nancy Sternbach, Feminism in Latin America : from Bogota to San Bernardo in: SIGNS, Winter 1992, pp.393-434
USA
- Susan Brownmiller, In Our Time: Memoir of a Revolution, Dial Books 1999
- Ellen Messer-Davidow: Disciplining feminism : from social activism to academic discourse, Durham, NC [etc.] : Duke University Press, 2002
- Public Women, Public Words: A Documentary History of American Feminism, ed. by Dawn Keetley, 3 vls.:
- Vol. 1: Beginnings to 1900, Madison, Wis. : Madison House, 1997
- Vol. 2: 1900 to 1960, Lanham, Md. [etc.] : Rowman & Littlefield, 2002
- Vol. 3: 1960 to the present , Lanham, Md. [etc.] : Rowman & Littlefield, 2002
- Alice Echols, Daring to Be Bad: Radical Feminism in America, 1967-1975, University of Minnesota Press 1990
- Eleanor Flexner, Century of Struggle: The Woman's Rights Movement in the United States, Paperback Edition, Belknap Press 1996
- Elizabeth Fox-Genovese, "Feminism Is Not the Story of My Life": How Today's Feminist Elite Has Lost Touch With the Real Concerns of Women, Doubleday 1996
- Benita Roth, Separate Roads to Feminism: Black, Chicana, and White Feminist Movements in America's Second Wave, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004
[edit] Journal articles
- Cott, Nancy F. Feminist Politics in the 1920s: The National Woman’s Party. Journal of American History 71 (June 1984): 43–68.
- Cott, Nancy F. What’s In a Name? The Limits of ‘Social Feminism’; or, Expanding the Vocabulary of Women’s History. Journal of American History 76 (December 1989): 809–829.
