Modern Feminism And Misogyny
One of the most prominent things we learn about women in history is how they usually did not have the same rights as men. Women were expected to stay home and take care of the house, the children, and their husbands while men got educations, jobs, earned money, and were in positions of power. We have definitely come a long way since then, but unfortunately, women are still treated and seen as second to men, and not exactly equals.
The “first wave” feminism period took place between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Women had begun advocating for their right to vote, which ended with the passing and ratification of the 19th amendment within the years 1919 and 1920. This became an important part of what was the start of the “roaring 20s” in America. The roaring 20s, for women, was a time where they began to express themselves in more “bold” and “outrageous” ways in order to embrace a new lifestyle for themselves; a more free kind of lifestyle. They were able to vote, which meant that they finally had some equality to the men who had been in control this whole time. The “second wave” and “third wave” feminism periods took place between the 1960s and 1990s, where women were able to have their own credit cards, bring attention to domestic violence against women, as well as the abolishment of stereotyping gender roles in society.
Judith Butler’s “Gender Trouble” was also published during the third wave period (in 1990 to be precise). It is not exactly known if there is a “fourth wave” feminism period, but we very well
might be in it right now. We have been focusing on social media more so with feminist activism and online movements (such as the #MeToo movement). We currently are pushing back against sexual harassment in both the workplace and the public, as well as rape culture, and how social media has aided in the campaigns as well as become a platform for some of them.
Misogyny, in its truest sense, means “the dislike/hatred of, or prejudice of women. ” While the word’s definition itself has gone from just meaning “hatred of women” and being used in only violent and “radical” accusations (The New York Times), misogyny is still present in our daily lives, however, its meaning is much more broader and “carries more force”. Modern misogyny can be categorized in many ways, from violent acts towards women (abuse, rape, assault, etc. ) to blatant sexism of women. The Times article expresses that the “understanding of misogyny” was very common with feminists. We live in a structured society where misogyny is commonplace despite many disagreeing; “society was organized in a misogynistic way, even if its individual members didn’t see themselves as woman-haters” (The New York Times).
Emma Jane’s “Online Misogyny and Feminist Digilantism” goes into detail about “gendered cyber-hate” in that women tend to take things into their own hands and “call out” those who are against them in order to “shame them” in front of a larger audience. Women are, unfortunately, big targets when considering online hate. Cases of cyber abuse, sexual harassment, and even stalking are not uncommon for women to experience while within online communities; to the point that it has a “chilling effect on women’s voices online. ” They choose to self-censor themselves and even write and post things under fake names or just anonymously, if only to just avoid the attacks they almost surely will receive otherwise. The scary thing about all of this is
that this is what women are currently facing since we live in an “online age”. It’s much too easy for misogynists to go after women and harass them online because there are many instances where there are no actual consequences, which is beyond unfortunate.
Gabriele de Seta’s “Trolling, and Other Problematic Social Media Practices” touches up on Jane’s work in saying how hers is a “more radical critique of both trolling and of its appraisal in academic research” (Seta, 400) and how she argues that the “dismissive scholarly accounts of abusive practices are complicit in overshadowing. . . the real harms done to real victims. ” Seta’s article is mainly about the problematic online behaviors that many people seem to take part in, many of which are indeed abusive and fall under a form of harassment. While “trolling” has affected and can affect anyone, women are still some of the bigger targets of these “trolls,” many of which partake in very misogynistic attacks (and usually just for their own entertainment. )
Modern misogyny doesn’t just stem from online harassment and physical abuse though, as it also pertains to the objectification and sexualization of women in general, such as in media, and even every day conversations among male coworkers and peers, and even right down to how woman are “expected to act and behave. ” Most women of the world have been seen as second to men for the longest time, and therefore, have been dictated by these men on how they should carry themselves. Meaning that a woman was to be a “proper lady” and never talk back, always follow orders, take care of things at home, and be presentable for their husbands and/or other men. Robin Lakoff even expresses in her work “Language and Woman’s Place” how “woman’s language” is something that has been “pre-empted by men” (Lakoff, 45) in that they have to speak in a specific way. If a girl (child) speaks “rough like a boy,” others will make fun of her or even ostracize her from whatever group they have formed. This is even present among adults. Women are supposedly “not allowed to express anger” and even if they “speak like ladies,” they will not be taken seriously. “No matter what a woman does, she is damned either way. ”
Women in general have been seen as objects to be ogled and used by men because they felt they had the right to do so (and terrifying enough, there are many men in this day and age who still feel this way. ) This brings light to cases of sexual assault/abuse in the workplace, where women who are not in high positions of power are often taken advantage of in order to either satisfy their boss’ sick livelihood, and/or to “help” them get the promotion they’ve been hoping to get; if that’s even the offer on the table, because oftentimes, women can be taken advantage of and have nothing to do about it because their jobs are being threatened should they speak out about it.
Michael Messner’s “Barbie Girls versus Sea Monsters: Children Constructing Gender” discusses organizational structures as well as cultural symbolism in that “feminist sociologists…have anticipated the recent interest in looking at gender as a dynamic performance. ” (Messner, 770) For example, the way men and women act and how they interact during their every day lives are all cases of “doing gender” (Messner, 770). The media and society go hand in hand when it concerns “doing gender” mainly because of how all of the “normal standards” are presented. Many of the media’s portrayal of women, usually in advertisements, movies, television shows, etc, have only furthered the negative level of cultural symbolism of said women. A great deal of advertisements show off the “ideal woman” to which society has adopted and forces upon both women and girls of all ages. A certain type of “standard” that they should personally uphold in order to cater to society as a whole.
Society, in general, is a very large root of the issues women face, mainly because of how the “ideal woman” and the sexualization of women has been the norm for far too long. More recently, there have been more strong female role models that young girls can look up to in order to empower them and to try and break society’s cruel and unfortunate grasp that it has upon the women within it, which should be done in all cases of what can be acclaimed as society’s “norm. ” Being a part of feminist movements in order to accomplish this goal is something all women should strive to do. While we may still have a long way’s to go in terms of how misogynistic men and society are, we can definitely make more progress by taking more stands and speaking out more. No more of this “keeping to yourself” type of attitude, and instead, more of standing up for what is truly right so we can finally see the changes being made among society.
