Feminist
Criticism
What does
being a
woman mean
in our
society?
Table of Contents
01
03
Concept of
Feminism
What is Feminist
Criticism?
02
04
History of
Feminism
Analyzing Text through
Feminist Lens
01
Concept of
Feminism
What is Feminism?
Feminism is a range of social
movements, political
movements,
and ideologies that aim to
define and establish the
political, economic, personal,
and social equality of the sexes.
The Social Movement
Feminist movements have
campaigned and continue to
campaign for women's rights,
including the right to: vote,
hold public office, work,
earn equal pay, own
property, receive education,
enter contracts, have equal
rights within marriage,
and maternity leave.
Types of Feminism
Radical Feminism
Liberal Feminism
Socialist Feminism
focuses on the theory
of patriarchy as a
system of power
aims to achieve equal
legal, political, and
social rights for
women
reproduces the sexual
division of labor
02
History of
Feminism
History of Feminism
The First Wave
Men's treatment of
women
The Second Wave
Gynocriticism
The Third Wave
Individuality and
Diversity
03
What is
Feminist
Criticism?
Feminist criticism is the literary and critical theory that
explores the bias in favor of the male gender in
literature, and which reexamines all literature from a
feminist point of view.
Feminist criticism aims to
reinterpret the old texts
and establish the
importance of women's
writing to save it from
being lost or ignored in
the male-dominated
world.
Feminist Criticism has two premises:
01
02
Women presented in
literature by male
writers from male
point of view.
Women presented in
writing of female
writers from female
point of view.
Important Terms in Feminist Criticism
Patriarchy
Gender
Essentialism
: a system of beliefs
and social practices
that supports male
dominance
: a socially constructed
set of expectations for
what is “masculine” and
what is “feminine.”
: the belief that every
woman is inherently
different because she
is a woman.
04
Analyzing
Text through
Feminist Lens
Guide Questions
01
How is the relationship
between men and women
portrayed?
02
What constitutes
masculinity and
femininity?
03
What does the work reveal
about the operations of
patriarchy?
04
How are the effects of
patriarchy evident in the lives
and attitudes of the characters?
05
Do female characters show signs
of resistance to patriarchy? If so,
how is this resistance portrayed?
06
How are the concerns unique to
women in a particular place/time
portrayed in the work?
Three-Part Structure of Feminist Criticism
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01
Basic Literary
Information
z02
Feministic
Analysis
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03
Reflective
Emphasis on
Feministic
Perspective