University Sociology: Examining Third Wave Feminism and Its Impact

This sociology essay provides a comprehensive overview of Third Wave Feminism, tracing its origins as a reaction to Second Wave Feminism and exploring its core tenets. The essay delves into the historical context of the movement, discussing key concepts such as gender equality, sexuality, and the challenges to heteronormativity. It examines the influence of Third Wave Feminism on American politics, highlighting the diverse ideologies and social movements that have shaped it. The essay also analyzes the critiques of the movement, including discussions of class, race, and the complexities of multiculturalism. Furthermore, it explores the evolving nature of feminism, including its focus on social issues, queer theory, and the ongoing debates within feminist circles. The essay concludes by assessing the impact of Third Wave Feminism on contemporary society, examining both its successes and its criticisms, and acknowledging the ongoing evolution of feminist thought and action. This essay is contributed by a student to be published on the website Desklib. Desklib is a platform which provides all the necessary AI based study tools for students.

Running head: SOCIOLOGY
Sociology
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

1SOCIOLOGY
Feminism has been an assortment of ideologies, social as well as political movements
sharing a common objective. It aims to establish, identify and attain social, personal, economic,
and political equality or fairness among the genders (Nicholson, 2013). Feminism includes and
encourages to seek establishment in the professional as well as educational field, like by
providing opportunities to the women, which are equivalent to that of men.
The history of Third wave feminism started as a reaction to the apparent incompetency of
the early 1960’s second wave feminism and as reaction in opposition to the movements and
initiatives formed by the second wave feminists. The third wave feminism differed from the
second wave feminists in many ways, such as in the areas of sexuality issues; challenging the
heterosexuality of the females and celebration of sexuality as a way of attaining women
empowerment. The move from the second wave feminism resulted in the extension of various
institutional as well as legal rights to the women (Harris, 2012).
Feminism in the U.S can be termed as an assortment of ideologies, social as well as
political movements sharing a common objective. It aims to establish, identify and attain social,
personal, economic, and political equality or fairness among the genders in the United States of
America. There was a substantial influence of Feminism on the politics of America.
Thirty-eight presidents out of forty-five presidents in the United States, was self-
proclaimed to be feminists. Feminism in America has been frequently divided in a chronological
manner into first, second and third wave feminism (Anglin et al., 2013). In the United States of
America, Third wave feminism started in the earlier part of 1990.
During the past, mostly the white women belonging to the middle-class from the West of
Europe and Northern America headed most of the movements of feminism and their theories.

2SOCIOLOGY
The concept of Liberation of Women had been used for first time in the United States around the
year of 1964. It had appeared in the printed form, for the first time in the year 1966. By the year
1968, in spite of the appearance of the expression of Women’s Liberation Front in the magazine
covering, it was beginning to refer to the entire movement of the women (Evans, 2012).
The practice of ‘Bra-burning’ was also related to this movement of women
empowerment, where the women were engaged in burning their bras which was assumed to be a
statement or taking a stand for the establishment of the rights of women (Catterall, Maclaran &
Stevens, 2013). Another probable reason for burning the bras was that the practice was often
regarded as a symbol of independence of men at the same time. However, the predominance of
this practice was debatable.
One of the outspoken critics of the liberation movement of women has been the Afro-
American intellectual and feminist, Gloria Jean Watkins who put forward an argument that the
movement polished and emphasized over class structure and race. In consequence, it failed to
concentrate on the problems that caused division of women. She had pointed out the deficiency
of voices of minority in the movement of women in her book named, ‘Feminist theory from
margin to center’ in the year 1984.
A post structuralist understanding of sexuality and gender revolves around the ideology
of third wave feminism. The focus of the third wave feminism has often been on micro politics
and opposing to the paradigms followed by the second wave feminists regarding the matters that
are considered to be good as well as the matters that are considered to be bad for women.
The third wave feminists originated in the middle of 1980. Some of the leaders of Feminism,
who came up during the second wave includes Bell hooks, Gloria Anzaldua, Cherrie Moraga,

3SOCIOLOGY
Maxine Hong Kingston, Chela Sandoval, and others that included many black feminists, who
sought for the settlement of a space within feminists view for the deliberation of subjective that
are related to race (Gill & Scharff, 2013).
Third-wave feminists were also engaged in internal debates held between different
feminists like Carol Gilligan, a psychologist who believed in the idea that there are significant
differences among the genders; and there were people who believed that there were no inbuilt
differences among the genders and contended that roles of gender were caused by social
conditioning (Herr, 2014).
The use of the metaphor, waves has often been used for describing and explaining the
history or past records of feminism that took place in the United States of America. The first
wave feminism that occurred in the U.S has generally been marked by the convention of rights of
women that was held in the year of 1848 at the Seneca Falls in New York.
The second wave of feminism searched for equality with regard to the rights of women in
the public sphere by opening the doors to several professions that were previously dominated by
men. A few rights had been achieved with regard to equality in the access of jobs and education
as well as a right of abortion by the feminists in the middle of 1970 and earlier part of 1980. The
chief legislative goals were lacking, with reference to the amendment of equality of rights in the
Constitution.
A third wave of feminism has been presumed to commence in the year 1990 and it
continues till date. From the first wave feminism to the third wave feminism, women have been
successful in making progress and development in the economic, political and legal field and the
process continues even today.

4SOCIOLOGY
The theory of feminism is a prime branch of theories within Sociology that is distinct for
the method by which its creators modify their topical focus, analytic lens and assumptions away
from the male point of view and experiences. In doing that, the theory of feminist focuses on
social problems, issues and trends, which have been otherwise misidentified or overlooked by
the traditionally dominant perspective of male within the social theory.
In the Sociological context, Third wave feminism is a concept that has been recognized
with various diversification of feminist study and activities, whose precise boundaries in the
history of feminism has been a debatable subject. However, third wave feminism has often been
referred to as commencing in the year, 1980 and continues even today (Lindsey, 2015).
The movement emerged as a reaction to the apparent incompetence of the second wave
feminists and as a reaction to the movements and initiatives of the Second Wave feminism that
took place around the year 1960 to 1980. It was based on the cognizance that women belonged to
various ethnicities, colors, cultural backgrounds, religions and nationalities (Ritzer & Stepnisky,
2017).
Feminist Sociology focuses on analysis of the rationale of the restrictions that were faced
by the females when the right to equality with the males that had been claimed (Stanley, 2013).
The discrimination that existed among the sexes has been a phenomenon, which goes back to
around four thousand years (Lerner 1986). The ways and forms by which feminism had been
practiced vary between the different cultures, subsequently, it changed considerably through the
past, and the persistence of it has resulted to the formulation of the notion of patriarchy.
The concept of Patriarchy establishes a group of institutional structures, such as, rights to
property, accessing position of power, relationship with the income sources, which had been

5SOCIOLOGY
based on the conception that women and men were unequal and dichotomous categories. The
concept of patriarchy may be explained as the philosophy of the dominant gender towards sexual
differences, on the hypothesis that physiological gender differences between the females and
males are connected with the dissimilarities in their behavior, character, and abilities (Coppock,
Haydon & Richter, 2014).
The differences have been used for the justification of a gendered distribution of social
roles and inequalities in accessing of rewards, privileges and position of power. The query that
has frequently been asked by the feminists is regarding the process of distinction between
females and males, as well as the attribution of diverse qualities, that serve for the organization
of our various institutions like, the occupational structure, family, religious institutions, law, the
division between private and public; and the perpetuation of inequality among the genders.
(Ramazanoglu, 2012)
Third wave feminism has been a distinctive type of critical Sociology. The feminist
perspectives often criticized the exclusive understanding of sexuality, as in the case of
heterosexism. Heterosexism can be explained as a coordination of attitude, biases, as well as
discrimination that favors female-male relationship and sexuality. There was a time when
heterosexual marriages was the only legitimate union that took place between two people, which
was accepted, allowing full benefits and recognized in the United States (Szymanski & Henrichs-
Beck, 2014).
Though the perspectives of the feminists focused on liberation and diversity, it has often
been criticized of not being compatible with the multiculturalist policy. Multiculturalism intends
to allow diverse cultures to reside and dwell together. One probable outcome of multiculturalism

6SOCIOLOGY
is that certain traditional or religious practices, which might lead to the oppression of women,
might be accepted on the justification of cultural sensitivity. From the perspective of the
feminists, those practices were considered objectionable and offensive to the rights of humans
and its criminalization on those grounds were mandatory (Evans, 2015).
Third wave feminism began to concentrate more on the social issues. It was perceived
that merely having legal provisions on the book might not be adequate for ensuring equality in
the society when there are various social norms which are in contradiction to the impartial and
equal treatments of women.
The third wave feminists were progressive, ambiguous and determined. The goals of
Third wave feminists focused on concepts such as queer theory, thereby abolishing the
stereotypes and expectations of gender roles, unlike the resolute opposition of the second wave
feminist to women in prostitution, sex work and pornography. Hence, it can be perceived as a
response or continuance of the second wave feminism.
It also identifies the right of a woman to choose as liberally as a man. It intends to expand
the scope of feminism for the inclusion of women with diversified identities recognizing that
women are of numerous nationalities, religions, colors, cultural backgrounds and ethnicities.
Feminism has not posed men as a competition to men. Women stand with men and not in
opposition to them. The conception of feminism originated for the introduction of proper
livelihood, education, jobs, and others for both the genders. However, often it has a negative
view of society, as the new wave of feminist or third wave feminists aim at crushing men at
times, not being concerned about removing inequality. They want the society to be biased
towards the women (Dicker & Piepmeier, 2016).

7SOCIOLOGY
There are other factors which lead the why third-wave feminists to have a negative look
on the society, not focusing on equality of both men and women. Such as uploading or spreading
pictures with sanitary napkins, in order to create awareness about period shaming, and other
issues. At times, such expressive exhibition becomes unacceptable to the society.
Other instances include posing in the underwear by the women to showcase
empowerment has often not been approved by the society. It has often been regarded as a fight
for nudity rather than equality. The right to lodge First Information Reports has often been
misused by women. Consumption of toxic substances or alcohol has often been practiced by
women in recent times to show that they are equal to men.
Often the third wave feminists have had a bad look on society, not focusing on the
equality of both men and women. Crushing and hating men has been the objective of some third
wave feminists. Many feminists or feminazis of the recent times has stereotyped the men stating
that all men have the similar mentalities. However, all men are not rapists, acid attackers or
criminals for that matter. There are men with a positive approach and working for the equality of
rights for women (Fraser, 2012).
The third wave feminists, to an extent more or less inconceivable to the associates of the
first and second waves feminism, was multifaceted and plural, that comprised people of various
ethnic groups, class identities, with different interests and genders. As such, its biggest strength,
was multivocality, which was criticized by some as its biggest weakness. The focus was more on
the individualistic identities rather than political changes.

8SOCIOLOGY

9SOCIOLOGY
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