In considering the future of feminism, it’s important to understand the chief historical developments of feminism, from its Enlightenment beginnings through contemporary movements. Many prominent female authors and scholars today bring a strident and angry tone to discussions of women’s issues. They often speak as though women have not achieved many of the rights sought by earlier generations, but this is far from the truth. In looking at the roots of feminism, and its many achievements, women can better understand how and why it has worked and where it can continue to contribute to the welfare of women around the world.

Women have indeed made great strides, but feminism remains important as a way of honoring and building on the accomplishments of the past, as a means of supporting and encouraging women around the world in their struggles, and as a vehicle to address issues of women’s rights and the problems of remnant misogyny in the West. The kind of feminism the world requires, however, is “freedom feminism,” which advocates a synthesis of egalitarian and maternal feminism, and focuses on freedom, human rights, and legal and social equality for women around the world.

Feminism originated in the thinking of the Enlightenment. As male philosophers such as John Locke, Voltaire, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau argued for the supremacy of reason and universal rights, women too began to promote their own causes. Two strains of feminist thinking emerged. Egalitarian feminists argued for male and female equality, and made a secular plea to human rights. Maternal feminists affirmed the value of women but embraced familial roles and sought to enhance women’s traditional and family-centered work. These two forms of feminism often opposed one another, whereas the real accomplishments of feminism have been in their cooperation; together they have attained many of the privileges women in the Western world now enjoy.

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Mary Wollstonecraft, an eighteenth-century British philosopher, was an early proponent of egalitarian feminism. In 1792, she published A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, in which she argued that women are just as rational as men, and thus deserved the same rights and privileges. Though she admired the Enlightenment thinkers and their arguments, she felt they overlooked the ways those same arguments applied to all humans, not just men. Wollstonecraft proposed women’s education as the solution to much of the inequality women faced. In our day, her arguments continue to resonate with oppressed women. To take just one contemporary feminist as an example, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the Somali-born Dutch dissident, was inspired by Wollstonecraft.

Hannah More (1745-1833) – a widely popular novelist, friend of politicians, and advocate of abolition – is an example of a maternal feminist. Hannah More focused less on revolutionary change and more on moral reform. Her friendship with William Wilberforce encouraged him to end the British slave trade, and she strongly supported the rise of capitalism. More argued for the differences between the sexes, and she believed that a healthy society would make women free to express their unique character and to gain an education that would enable them to engage the world more effectively. This is known as “effective femininity.”

In the American arena, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony are well known for their nineteenth-century suffragist work, but just as influential in her day was Frances Willard (1839-1898), President of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). While Stanton and Anthony were more aligned with the egalitarian feminist approach, the results of their efforts were often disappointing, as evidenced by early resistance to suffrage causes among women. Egalitarians often interpret this resistance as a mental and cultural oppression that makes women apathetic to their own needs. And yet much of the resistance stemmed from the interests and ideals of the nineteenth-century woman, which were often focused around domestic contexts.

The WCTU, on the other hand, became an enormously popular and powerful cultural influence. Willard’s motto was: “Of the women, by the women, but for humanity.” Willard, too, promoted the franchise, and as she galvanized women in leadership roles, she initiated them into new forms of public activism. She argued that women in the public arena could “increase their humane and civilizing influence on society.” She called this “the home protection ballot.” Her message was ultimately more compelling to the women of her time. As women in other cultures around the world approach the issue of feminism, many reject what they perceive to be the radical, anti-family, and divisive feminism of the West. Their interests are more aligned with the historical maternal feminist style of Willard and More. One scholar has labeled this new movement “family feminism.”

A second wave of feminism gained steam after World War II. As women had taken more prominence in the work world, they began to lobby for equal pay. The momentum around the Civil Rights movement included prohibitions against sex discrimination in hiring and promotion, and several Supreme Court decisions in the 1970s struck down other forms of

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sex discrimination in the workforce. The promotion of the Equal Rights Amendment generated early enthusiasm, leading to the expectation of quick and easy passage. Phyllis Schlafly, a conservative political voice, took up an anti-ERA posture as she considered some of the far-reaching consequences of passing the amendment, and her arguments quickly garnered enough attention that the ERA finally went down in defeat.

While many of the goals of the ERA had already been achieved, many women still lobbied for further equality and lamented the pervasive mentality among so many women who still demonstrated traditional sex roles and characteristics. Studies show that gender differences are more marked in post-industrial advanced societies, and less apparent in traditional cultures – suggesting that increased freedom leads to greater differences, not lesser ones.

Contemporary feminist movements are often embedded in academic settings and cultural trends. Many university programs that focus on women’s studies spurn the values and attitudes of earlier feminism – both maternal feminism and egalitarian feminism. Calling itself “liberal feminism,” it argues that earlier forms of feminism were inadequate because they tacitly supported the larger patriarchal, capitalist, and racist systems already in place. These feminists draw on Marxist theories of revolution and Foucauldian theories of power and oppression, and they often promote erroneous statistics that support the existence of gross inequalities and victimization of women.

The National Council for Research on Women (NCRW) and partner organizations advocate a gender-integrated society where differentiated sex roles play no part. They suggest that the reason women continue to choose the domestic roles of home and family is that they are victims of bias, hostile work environments, and patriarchal oppression. Their determination to equate the real disparities, oppression, and violence against women in cultures around the world with the kinds of inequities that do still exist in the United States – evidenced in the 2012 “Women in the World” summit – reveal a disheartening ignorance of the real accomplishments American women have achieved.

“Freedom feminism” alone acknowledges the needs and rights of women and invites the recovery of a reasonable understanding of the real experiences of both injustice and empowerment of women around the world. It invites a pro-woman position without the need for hostility toward men, and it allows women to determine their own values and political postures, rather than imposing a singular stance.

Christina Hoff Sommers is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. A former philosophy professor who taught ethics, she is probably best known for her critique of late-twentieth-century feminism. She is also known for her extensive writings, among them Who Stole Feminism? (Touchstone Books, 1995), The War Against Boys (Touchstone Books, 2001), One Nation Under Therapy (St. Martin's Press, 2005), and The Science on Women and Science (AEI Press, 2009). Her textbook, Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life, a bestseller in college ethics, is currently in its ninth edition. Her newest book is Freedom Feminism—Its Surprising History and Why it Matters Today (AEI Press, 2013).

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Outline of Freedom Feminism

I. INTRODUCTION: OVERVIEW

A. Feminism is still relevant because its history teaches us how to build on earlier successes.

B. Feminist movements are still important because global women’s rights movements need our support.

C. Feminism in the West is still necessary to address ongoing misogyny and other forms of oppression against women.

II. CHAPTER ONE: FEMINIST FOREMOTHERS: THE EIGHTEENTH AND NINETEENTH CENTURIES

A. There are two primary schools of feminist thought:1. Egalitarian feminism is more progressive and individualistic.2. Maternal feminism is traditionalist, popular, and influential.

B. Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the earliest feminists.1. Wollstonecraft wrote an Enlightenment-derived argument in A

Vindication of the Rights of Women (1792), calling for recognition that women were just as rational and deserving as men.

2. She also called for equal education for women.C. Hannah More, another early feminist, had different goals.

1. More was pro-family, pro-capitalism, and traditional in her aim.2. More also called for women’s education and a greater opportunity

for women’s involvement in society.D. In the American arena, several outstanding feminists were at work in the

nineteenth century.1. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony both worked for

suffrage from the egalitarian viewpoint.2. Frances Willard, leader of the WCTU, advocated suffrage from

the maternal viewpoint.

III. CHAPTER TWO: THE SECOND WAVE: SINCE 1960

A. In the post-WWII era, women’s expectations were raised because of their wartime contributions to the workforce.

1. Mid-century feminists demanded equal pay for equal work.2. They also called for protection from discrimination based on

gender.B. The Civil Rights era witnessed several notable achievements for women’s

rights.

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1. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 prohibited different salaries for men and women doing the same work.

2. Title VII of Civil Rights Act 1964 prohibited discrimination based on sex in hiring and promotion.

3. In 1966, Betty Friedan, an “egalitarian feminist,” founded the National Organization for Women.

C. The years between 1968-1975 are often considered feminism’s “golden years” because of the considerable advances in women’s rights.

1. Title IX in 1972 granted equal rights in education.2. The Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 strengthened

and expanded the Title VII rights.3. A series of Supreme Court decisions further enhanced women’s

privileges. These:a. Made it possible for wives to own community property,

1971.b. Protected the rights of mothers to employment, 1971.c. Permitted servicewomen to claim spouses as dependents,

1973.d. Abolished mandatory maternity leave, 1974.e. Mandated equality in jury duty, 1975.

D. The Equal Rights Amendment, initially introduced in 1923, gained widespread approval by 1970.

1. It won nearly unanimous approval in the House in 1971.2. Opposition by Phyllis Schlafly, a “maternal feminist,” led to its

ultimate defeat.E. Despite women’s growing prominence in leadership roles, gender roles

have persisted.1. Psychological research continues to support recognized

differences between men and women.2. Gender roles are actually more evident in prosperous, post-

industrial societies than in more primitive ones, leading to the conclusion that more freedom for women enhances rather than diminishes gender differences.

IV. CHAPTER THREE: CONTEMPORARY FEMINISM AND A WAY FORWARD

A. Contemporary feminist theory and women’s studies are radically new approaches to the feminist question.

1. Influenced by Marxist and Foucauldian theories regarding oppression and power, they argue that previous forms of feminism were embedded in antiquated systems.

2. They often denigrate achievements of both “maternal feminists” and “egalitarian feminists” in favor of “gynocentric feminism.”

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a. “Gynocentric feminism” argues that old forms of feminism, “liberal feminism,” supported western, capitalist, patriarchal, and racist systems.

b. Contemporary feminists often advocate rejection of stay-at-home mothering and traditional marriage.

3. Contemporary feminist theory is often based on false information regarding past achievements, equality levels in pay and hiring, and current statistics in domestic abuse and victimization in the U.S.

B. The National Council for Research on Women (NCRW) was established in 1981 for the purpose of research and policy change on behalf of women’s issues.

1. The NCRW has focused on discrimination, some of it imagined.2. The NCRW believes that the workplace is the only legitimate

option for women.3. The NCRW supports legislation such as the Paycheck Fairness

Act, which called for redress for past discrimination.

V. CONCLUSION: A FREEDOM FEMINIST AGENDA

A. Take back reason.B. Be pro-women but not male-averse.C. Pursue happiness.D. Respect female diversity.E. Do not impose political litmus tests.

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Question Bank and Other Resources

Short-Answer Questions

CHAPTER ONE: FEMINIST FOREMOTHERS: THE EIGHTEENTH AND NINETEENTH CENTURIES

1. What are the two primary forms of feminism, as evidenced in post-Enlightenment thinking?

Pages 10-11: Egalitarian feminism, focused on a radical equality between the sexes, and maternal feminism, focused on traditions and families.

2. How did the goals and values of Mary Wollstonecraft compare with those of Hannah More?

Pages 12-22: Wollstonecraft argued for complete moral and political equality, to be achieved in large part through education in every field and discipline. More was working for a revolution of morals and a wider arena for women’s influence in the world. She, too, pushed for more freedom and a serious education.

3. In what ways did Frances Willard change the face of feminism in the nineteenth century?

Pages 26-34: As the President of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, Willard aggressively pushed the women’s suffrage movement to success, but she did so as a way of making women’s home and family interests of greater influence in the larger society.

CHAPTER TWO: THE SECOND WAVE: SINCE 1960

1. Betty Friedan’s 1960 The Feminine Mystique articulated the frustrations and ambitions of second-wave feminism. What were some of the political and cultural achievements of this momentum?

Pages 43-47: Several key legislative actions—such as the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act—brought about greater equality for women in salaries, hiring, and promotions. The establishment of the National Council of Women in 1966 galvanized further political attention resulting in a series of bills in the early 1970s that eliminated many forms of entrenched discrimination.

2. Why did Phyllis Schlafly and her associates oppose the ERA?

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Pages 48-56: Schlafly, a conservative Catholic, activist, and constitutional lawyer, recognized that the Equal Rights Amendment’s broad and vague language would bring about cultural, political, and economic consequences that threatened the traditional expressions of home and family and that mandated military parity.

3. Contemporary psychological research suggests that gender differences increase in post-industrial societies. Why, according to the author, might this be so?

Pages 60-62: It is hypothesized that greater freedom and opportunities offer more avenues for self-actualization, thus suggesting that sex difference variation is not a result of oppression, but of liberation.

CHAPTER THREE: CONTEMPORARY FEMINISM AND A WAY FORWARD

1. According to the author, what are the aims and methodologies of current feminist theorists?

Pages 66-71: Many contemporary feminists, especially found in women’s studies departments in academia, employ Marxist ideas of revolution and Foucauldian ideas of power to argue that women in the West are still mired in systems of oppression and discrimination. They aim at the development of a fully androgynous, gender-integrated society. They argue that the work of earlier feminists, which they call “liberal feminism,” was ultimately ineffective because it was entrenched in the racist, capitalist, and patriarchal systems that it ultimately endorsed.

2. In what ways do these radical feminists support their arguments?

Pages 72-79: Many theorists bandy about statistics that, according to the author, are not only misleading, but clearly erroneous. For example, Joni Seager’s 2009 publication, Penguin Atlas of Women in the World, says that “22-35 percent of women who visit a hospital emergency room do so because of domestic violence.” Sommers points out that studies by the Centers for Disease Control and the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics show that the actual figure is less than 1 percent.

3. What are some of the efforts of the National Council for Research on Women (NCRW) and its affiliates?

Pages 80-90: NCRW and its affiliates, what Sommers calls “the feminist brain trust,” promotes an egalitarian future in which women’s rightful place is the workplace, and that the domestic sphere should be increasingly shunned. Its many initiatives are focused on perceived discrimination and reject the possibility that there are genuine differences between men and women. While some of their international efforts have been admirable, their American lobbying has resulted in

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dangerous legislative proposals, such as the Paycheck Fairness Act. Even worse, their cultural rhetoric that equates extant discrimination in the American arena with the real suffering and oppression of women around the world is embarrassing and damaging to the cause of women everywhere.

CONCLUSION: THE FREEDOM FEMINIST AGENDA

1. How does “freedom feminism” compare to egalitarian feminism or maternal feminism?

Pages 94-96: Freedom feminism recognizes both forms of historical feminism and seeks to integrate them into a powerful and reasonable argument for women’s opportunities and happiness.

2. What five agenda points of freedom feminism does Sommers suggest?

Pages 94-99: 1) Take back reason. 2) Be pro-woman but not male-averse. 3) Pursue happiness. 4) Respect female diversity. 5) No political litmus tests.

3. What is Sommers’ final recommendation?

Page 100-102: That we mobilize our efforts to address the needs of women in developing countries by galvanizing both those who focus on the domestic sphere, like pro-life evangelicals and Catholics, and those whose efforts are more progressive. Such a united effort could result both in greater freedom for women around the world and increased liberation for women in the West.

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Multiple Choice Questions

1. One of the earliest British egalitarian feminists, who pushed for a radical equality between the sexes was:

A. Frances WillardB. Hannah MoreC. Mary WollstonecraftD. Susan B. Anthony

Answer: C

2. Frances Willard’s efforts to attain women’s suffrage were more successful than were those of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony because:

A. She was more aggressive about her political platform.B. She combined women’s suffrage with their interests in home and family.C. She spoke more powerfully about women’s autonomy and equality.D. She focused on the educated elite among women.

Answer: B

3. Why did the Equal Rights Amendment fail?

A. Because the male-dominated political culture squashed it.B. Because the National Organization of Women opposed it.C. Because it did not promote an absolute equality between men and women.D. Because its broad-sweeping language jeopardized women’s interests in the

domestic sphere.

Answer: D

4. Why do women around the world often reject the Western arguments regarding feminism?

A. Because the arguments divide men from women and reject the traditional values of home and family.

B. Because the arguments do not address real grievances of women who lack education and opportunities.

C. Because the arguments advocate too many religious values.D. Because the arguments ignore non-American contexts.

Answer: A

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5. Which of the following is not one of the suggested actions of “freedom feminism”?

A. Propose a single standard for all women that eliminates gender differences. B. Support legislative proposals that enhance the real freedoms of women, but do

not generate hostility toward men.C. Recognize that women have many options, and no single political or cultural

litmus test should define them.D. Engage women’s studies and research critically, and promote a new platform

of policies that deal with accurate statistics and real issues that women face.

Answer: A

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Essay or Term Paper Suggestions

1. Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn’s 2010 book, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, argues that the key to economic progress around the world is the liberation of women from oppression. How does the evidence Sommers offers in her book support this argument?

2. Choose another historical feminist, such as Olympe de Gouges, Lucretia Mott, or Simone de Beauvoir, and compare their contributions to women’s issues to both the “egalitarian feminism” and “maternal feminism” Sommers describes.

3. In what ways do biblical and other religious values enter into and shape feminist perspectives? How can contemporary feminist movements embrace these values, while advocating for the broadest possible opportunities for women in culture, politics, and the business world?

4. Read the National Organization for Women’s Statement of Purpose. How well do you think Sommers articulates their agenda? How much room does their platform make for the “domestic sphere”? How do they define the identity and purpose of women?

Cross Disciplines

1.Sociology: Compare and contrast the feminist movement’s agendas and tactics to that of the Civil Rights movement.

2.Literature: Examine some of the cultural expressions of feminism, as portrayed in literature from different centuries. Examples: Pride and Prejudice (Austen), The Mill on the Floss (Eliot), Marianne (Sand), The Awakening (Chopin), Their Eyes Were Watching God (Hurston), A Room of One’s Own (Woolf), etc. Where do you see egalitarian feminism being personified, and where do you see maternal feminism? Which characters are described in the most appealing way? Can you discern any development in the portrayal of strong female characters through the centuries?

3.History: Trace the rise of feminism in America through the political shifts of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. How did presidential politics, international military involvement, and internal domestic issues shape the interests and desires of women?

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For Further Reading

Baker, Jean H. Sisters: The Lives of America’s Suffragists (2006). A historical overview of five key American women whose activism achieved the foundations of women’s rights.

De Beauvoir, Simone. The Second Sex (1949). De Beauvoir’s groundbreaking work argued that gender differences are entirely the result of social constructs.

Freedman, Estelle. No Turning Back: The History of Feminism and the Future of Women (2003). An overarching discussion of the history of women’s movements and their contemporary efforts.

Kristof, Nicholas D. and Sheryl WuDunn. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide (2010). Examines the lives of women in developing countries and the ways they are overcoming oppression and changing their worlds.

Lees, Francis E. Mascia. Gender and Difference in a Globalizing World: Twenty-First-Century Anthropology (2009). An anthropological study of the development of gender and sexuality constructs and their inequities around the world.

MacLean, Nancy. The American Women’s Movement, 1945-2000: A Brief History with Documents (2008). A collection of primary sources dealing with the women’s movement across the broad spectrum of ages, classes, and ethnicities.

Oyewumi, Oyeronke. African Women and Feminism: Reflecting on the Politics of Sisterhood (2004). A collection of essays by African women on the realities of feminism within the African context.

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Further Online Resources for Freedom Feminism

Feminist Foremothers

Burns, Ken. “Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony,” Video. Hulu.com. Plus membership required.Gouge, Olympe de. “Declaration of the Rights of Women,” Modern History Sourcebook, 1791.Mandaglio, Lia A. “Hannah More, the Conventionalist, and Mary Robinson, the Radical: Differing Feminist Perspectives on 19th Century Women’s Progress, Purity, and Power,” Lethbridge Undergraduate Research Journal, 2007.Marilley, Suzanne M. “Frances Willard and the Feminism of Fear,” Feminist Studies, Spring 1993.May, Arthur J. "Susan B. Anthony: Perspective on a Pioneer,” JSTOR, April 1947.Stanton, Elizabeth Cady. “The Solitude of Self,” Women’s Speech Archive, January 1892.Stillings, E.B. “History and Minutes of the National Council of Women of the United States,” Harvard, 1898.Tomaselli, Sylvana. “Mary Wollstonecraft,” The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, April 2008.Wollstonecraft, Mary. “A Vindication of the Rights of Women,” Google e-Books, 1792.

The Second Wave of Feminism

Friedan, Betty. “The Feminist Mystique,” W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1963.“National Organization of Women Statement for Purpose,” Feminist Chronicles, 1966.Schlafly, Phyllis. “Phyllis Schlafly, Conservative Activist,” Video. Makers: Women Who Make America.Schlafly, Phyllis and Buckley, William. “Video Clip: Interview on Firing Line,” Video. Seca, March 1973.Schlafly, Phyllis and Martin, Michel. “Phyllis Schlafly Still Championing The Anti-Feminist Fight,” NPR Interview, March 2011.

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20th Century Legal Developments

“George P. Shultz, Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor, Appellant, v. Wheaton Glass Company, a Corporation,” United States Court of Appeals Third Circuit, May 1969.“Griswold vs. Connecticut (No. 496) 151 Conn. 544, 200 A.2d 479, reversed,” Cornell University Law School, June 1965. Johnson, Lyndon B. “Executive Order 11375 - Amending Executive Order No. 11246, Relating to Equal Employment Opportunity,” October 1967.“Mrs. Lorena W. Weeks, Appellant, v. Southern Bell Telephone & Telegraph Company, Appellee. Southern Bell Telephone & Telegraph Company, Appellant, v. Mrs. Lorena W. Weeks, Appellee,” United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit., March 4, 1969.“The Equal Pay Act of 1963,” Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1963.

Equal Rights Amendment

Kennedy, John F. “Letter to Mrs. Emma Guffey Miller, Chairman of the National Woman’s Party, on the Equal Rights Amendment,” October 1960.Lowenthal, Kristi. “Conservative Thought and the Equal Rights Amendment in Kansas,” Kent State University Department of History, August 2008.Shanahan, Eileen. “Equal Rights Amendment is Approved by Congress,” The New York Times, March 1972.“S.J.RES.10 -- Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to equal rights for men and women,” March 2013.“The Equal Rights Amendment,” U.S. History.org. n.d.

Contemporary Feminism

Gillis, Stacy; Howie, Gillian; and Munford, Rebecca. “Third Wave Feminism: A Critical Exploration,” 2004.Loren, Arielle. “Is Beyonce the Face of Contemporary Feminism?” May 2011.“ ‘Paycheck Fairness’ Will Mean a Pay Cut for Men,” The Wall Street Journal, 2012.“S.84 - Paycheck Fairness Act,” Congress.gov. US Senate session 2013-2014.“The Third Wave Foundation.”Wilcox, Clyde. “Feminism and Anti-Feminism Among Evangelical Women,” Georgetown University, 1989.“Women in the World Foundation.”

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Different Perspectives

Blaise, Melissa and Dupuis-Deri, Francis. “Masculinism and the Antifeminist Countermovement,” Social Movement Studies: Journal of Social, Cultural and Political Protest, December 2011.Engle, Eric. “Marxism, Liberalism, and Feminism – Leftist Legal Thought,” Serial Publications, 2010.Gallagher, Sally K. “Where are the Antifeminist Evangelicals? Evangelical Identity, Subcultural Location, and Attitudes toward Feminism,” Gender & Society, August 2004.Mackie. “The Branches of Contemporary Feminism,” 1994.

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