What is Feminism?

Feminists are criticized for various reasons including self-entitlement, anti-male attitudes, and general snobbishness. Whether these stereotypes are true or not, many feminists maintain that those who attack feminism simply don't understand what feminism is about - and this is true. To the average person who is neither a feminist nor anti-feminist, feminism doesn't seem to have a clear goal. The movement lacks true organization and seems to be a loosely connected group of people that fight for various causes under the name "feminism". This is almost directly opposite from the successful Black Lives Matter movement and Gay Rights movement, both of which had clear goals that all supporters rallied around. 

An example of such confusion even comes from two feminist authors whose pieces we've read in class. Stanton, in a 1869 woman suffrage convention in Washington, DC, says "The male element is a destructive force, stern, selfish, aggrandizing, loving war, violence, conquest, acquisition, breeding...death". This, however, is completely contradictory to what Bell Hooks writes, saying "folks think feminism is anti-male. Their misunderstanding of feminist politics..." The foundation of feminism isn't even clear to two promininent feminists. How can a movement be successful when its proponents arean't even sure of what they're fighting for? A movement like this can be compared to a bad essay, one that Ms. Valentino has surely graded. Even through the first month of this school year, Valentino has stressed the importance of a strong claim. Simply put, a claim must be clear, concise, and debatable. The goals of the feminism movement are not any of these three.

Furthermore, the goals of feminism are so muddled that Bell Hooks herself contradicts herself in her own essay. Starting her essay with "feminism is a movement to end sexism" she later writes "women could not band together to furthur feminism". As innocent as this mistake seems, Hooks implies that feminism is a movement for women only, going against her initial claim. Such small discrepancies and the lack of a clear focus causes feminism to be viewed by many as a joke, even though parts of what it stands for are clearly positive.