The Impact on British Society of the Second Feminism Wave - Article Example

Discuss the impact on British Society of the 'second wave feminism We've got a generation now who were born with semi equality. They don't know howit was before, so they think, this isn't too bad. We're working. We have our attach' cases and our three piece suits. I get very disgusted with the younger generation of women. We had a torch to pass, and they are just sitting there. They don't realize it can be taken away. Things are going to have to get worse before they join in fighting the battle. Ema Bombeck The title Second Wave Feminism refers to the continuous movement which has been there since the late fifties ,urging women to understand the inherent politicization of their roles at home and in the society and to refuse any acceptance of these sexist values which promote a discrimination on the basis of gender which is sometimes subtle and many times blatant and offensive to whole existence of women. Second wave feminism was the battle of the female gender with discrimination and oppression unlike its predecessor (first wave feminism) which was largely concerned with voting rights for women.1Thus second wave feminism was not just struggle to convince the legislature of the equality of women. It was a battle against the traditional prejudices with in the society against the status of women so inherent in the British culture and tradition. Second wave feminism was a time of awareness for women in Britain from all walks of life and the term itself was coined by the prominent feminist Marsha Lear. Second wave feminism was not just restricted to Britain but it also refers to the increase in feminist activity occurring simultaneously in Britain ,USA and Europe. The British Second wave of feminism was different to the American Struggle which was an inevitable corollary of the Civil Rights and anti-war movements which had disillusioned women as to their roles within the society because of their second class treatment. Thus the American version emerged as a medley of anti-beauty contest protests and the mergence and re-emergence of the tones and shades of black feminism, lesbian feminism, liberal feminism, and social feminism. Second Wave Feminism in Britain was a slightly different story altogether as it was more kaleidoscopic in nature, with heavy undertones of the working-class socialism, which was apparent from the strike of women workers at the Ford Car Plant with the demands of equality in wages(1968).In essence British Society was going through a profound change in which women raised the slogan of "the personal is political' . Second Wave feminism did not just strive to obtain the social freedoms for women but it also expressed its concern for the way in which women were treated in a second rate way within the notions and concepts of reproduction, sexuality and cultural ties. The second wave feminist movement not only gave a fresh impetus to feminist thought within the British Academic system but also had a resultant effect on the media and literature. The intellectual work carried out during this period of what I would like the call "the new wave women's renaissance", affected popular thought and culture and brought forth to the intellectual agenda a range of issues formerly ignored. It has been argued by many academics (Penner ,2002) that these developments were very slow to reach the Female educational agendas in schools which is surprising because on the face of it many of the political and analyitical issues raised by the women's movement had centrally to do with women's legal and civic status. This process as compared to the US started rather late in the British Society. Penner notes thus "The gradual intellectualisation of law schools in United Kingdom alongwith an increased openness to interdisciplinary study itself in part of an offshoot of the expansion of universities in the 1970's are an important part of the history of feminist issues finding their way into the law school"(2002) Of particular interest is how Catherin Hoskyns2 has linked the second wave of feminism with the European Union sex equality law and reviews how the integration of markets and states has affected existing patterns of social integration from feminists perspective in Britain. The author has traced the development of feminism all the way back to the Maastricht treaty which had a huge role to play in the development of the principle of non-discrimination on grounds of sex is in Britain after the UK acceded to the European Union. Thus (Hoskyns 1996) has identified a kind of European Feminism transposing itself into the mid seventies struggle and traces the basis of Art 119 EC as the basis of the Equal Pay Act and the relative directives which were the results of the efforts of British Women struggling to get their rights recognised in the workplace. The author has also pointed out the feminist struggles by the "largely invisible black and migrant women" with in European and British policy, who are often ignored in the larger feminist movements. There was a clear cut absence of women's role in the media prior to these successive feminist movements and there was hardly any mention of domestic and sexual violence ,concepts which women now increasingly began to find themselves studying in legal and sociology courses. The recent Hollywood movie" Mona Lisa Smile" shows strong undertones of feminist depictions with in the British Academia in the 1950s in which a feminist "infiltrates" Wellesley college and is not very popular in the beginning for her freedom based ideas. The movie portrays the dislike of the British society of woman choosing her own husband and her own life. The influence of feminist ideals is very strong even today as the revolution of gender power relations has led to a media war. The world of advertising, fashion, news media, and the entertainment industry in Britain portrays women as equal to men. However at the extreme side of commercialism and exploitation of women it is indeed disturbing to see women go berserk over a man wearing "Axe" body spray or using a certain brand of razor. It is surprising how even in British advertising a bottle of Pepsi makes a wholly unattractive man very desirable. The biases against women continue with the likes of James Bond and his parody Austin Powers where no matter how beautiful or intelligent the sidekick woman or the vamp is, she has to give in to the seduction of good old James Bond. These are all disturbing images even in modern Britain The media has been successful in creating a world where it is easy for women who are single to be divorced or have babies out of wedlock, go to Pubs and be the proverbial "corporate vampires". The modern woman as shown as by the media can be a super mum and a high class executive at the same time ,raising children and holding down high powered jobs.The British media makes images of the high street fashion girl running down oxford street and the highly paid executive lawyer coming down Chancery lane in designer shoes and coats. It has done much discrimination to the working class battered women though who are almost always funny looking or black and will own big houses. Black women will always be super slim with amazing bodies in a "Beyonce" like fashion and show a powerful countenance. .So is the media cashing in on the ideals of second wave feminism in this fake idealized imagery It is true that these portrayals are ideal as they build on the issues feminists have raised for decades now that that women should be able to fulfil work and family expectations without marriage, that the law will always support a battered woman and empower her and the society will support her; that women of colour are not all servants or maids. This glossy idea of women in the new age of Britain looks very promising to say the least. The media-makers thus cleverly appeal to the British feminist ideals and women with a feminist sensibility without provoking the rage and criticism of feminists. In the modern British Society although you don't see Advertisements with women endorsing washing powders and looking like the perfect housewives anymore the crass commercialism involving Girl Power is also taking a toll on the true ideals of feminism. The advertisers have tended to ignore reality and made women consumers (of fashion, media, and entertainment) of fashion have a feel good image which sadly might not be true. Sexual harassment at the work place and peer pressure for young girls to get married or have sex is still inherent in this supposedly liberal society. The appeal to feminized women makes them a good and targetable segment of the British Society. However in all these antics I personally see the demise of the essence of what the Second Wave struggle of feminism sought to achieve. While women's independence and control and feminist-driven issues have become commercial gimmicks the aim of the subversion of the patriarchal society has been lost somewhere between the time we had women doing sexist adds in the late 60's to the modern image of a highly successful women executive (who supposedly never faces discrimination or sexual harassment) endorsing a type of body spray by making loud sexual advances on a male model wearing this body spray.Has the modern British woman really lost all self respect thenOr is the very image of a woman "taking" a man disturbing or a portrayal of women's emancipation. In this regard there is a strong criticism that the post modernist feminist of the British Society has lost what the brave women of the Second Wave feminism gained for them and all these "post-feminist," women are wallowing in the media attention and commercial success thus further downgrading the second wave feminist struggle. In the light of the massive migration of Asian women to Britain during the past five decades ,there has been a rather crass commercialisation of the image of the South Asian Women in British Feminism. Consider the two movies of "Bend it like Beckham" and "Provoked" where the empowerment of the Asian Females is suggested through battered wives and suppressed daughters whose tyrant Asian forefathers and paternal relatives keep getting in the way of their success and emancipation. Asian Feminists in Britain are different to the white feminists. The White or Western feminism denotes a radical transformation of the society along a non-patriarchal, non-hierarchical lines. Asian feminists appreciate the idea of a patriarchy but advocate the end of imperialism and racism.The media portrays them as having strong families, who are affluent and educated which is not quite true if you look at the conditions of South Hall and Mile End in London alone. The Asian feminist struggle is just one of the struggles being exploited by popular British media right now.What is really ironic is the low representation of Women of other races in the political structure of Britain and most European countries. The media delights in making fun of lesbian movements and "Judge Judy"charactors. Sadly women are still not welcome in the rooms where war is decided and planned. If you look at the European Community structure itself ,except the German chancellor Angela Merkel no woman is in the photo where the European Community leaders are photographed.The same goes for The US and UK Iraq war strategy where the role of women was strongly downplayed. Conclusion The role of the modern feminist has declined in Britain. This has been examined above to be the commercial exploitation of the Media. The modern feminist is forgetting her role in the bid to raise concern over the consequences of the war, the millions of civilian casualties. This is the time when the role of women needs a fourth wave of feminism because the war at the home front is very much over but a new one is just around the corner and it demands a stronger struggle by the women against inertia in getting their equal roles recognised. There are wars to be fought on many more fronts like abortion, employment policy and workplace law as well as family law which is still in its embryonic stages of reform, compared to the injustices suffered by women in the yesteryears. I would like to end this essay with a thought provoking quote by Anita Roddick who once said "Women want to be free to choose from the same range of options that men take for granted. In our quest for equal pay, equal access to education and opportunities, we have made great strides. But until women can move freely and think freely in their homes, on the streets, in the workplace without the fear of violence, there can be no real freedom." _____________________________________________________________________ References 1. Catherine Hoskyns,European Law Review,1996,Publication Review,Integrating gender, women, law and politics in the European Union 2. Penner et. Al ,(2002)Jurisprudence and Legal Theory ,Butterworths Lexis Nexis 3. Judith Lorber (2005)From Suffrage To Girl Power: Feminist Frontiers Of Thought And Action Gender Inequality: Feminist Theories And Politics (3rd Ed.).. Los Angeles: Roxbury Publishing, Read More