Feminism: A Very Short Introduction

Front Cover
OUP Oxford, Oct 27, 2005 - Social Science - 176 pages
How much have women's lives really changed? In the West women still come up against the 'glass ceiling' at work, most earning considerably less than their male counterparts. What are we to make of the now commonplace insistence that feminism deprives men of their rights and dignities? And how does one tackle the issue of female emancipation in different cultural and economic environments - in, for example, the Middle East, the Indian sub-continent, and Africa? This book provides an historical account of feminism, exploring its earliest roots as well as key issues including voting rights, the liberation of the sixties, and its relevance today. Margaret Walters touches on the difficulties and inequities that women still face more than forty years after the 'new wave' of 1960s feminism, such as how successful women are at combining domesticity, motherhood, and work outside the house. She brings the subject completely up to date by providing an analysis of the current situation of women across the globe, from Europe and the United States to Third World countries. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
 

Contents

Introduction
1
1 The religious roots of feminism
6
2 The beginning of secular feminism
17
Amazons of the pen
26
reforming women
41
campaigning women
56
suffragists
68
suffragettes
75
8 Early 20thcentury feminism
86
the late 20th century
97
10 Feminists across the world
117
Afterword
137
References
142
Further reading
149
Index
151
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About the author (2005)

Margaret Walters did a B.Litt at Oxford, went on to lecture in English at Reading University for 20 years, and is now a freelance writer and reviewer: she is currently working on a book entitled Femme Fatale for Cape, and she reviews for the TLS and the Sunday Times.

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