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Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights for women.[1][2] Existentialism is a philosophical and cultural movement which holds that the starting point of philosophical thinking must be the individual and the experiences of the individual, that moral thinking and scientific thinking together are not sufficient for understanding all of human existence, and, therefore, that a further set of categories, governed by the norm of authenticity, is necessary to understand human existence.[3][4][5] (Authenticity, in the context of existentialism, is to recognize the responsibility we have for our existence.[6]) This philosophy analyzes relationships between the individual and things, or other human beings, and how they limit or condition choice.[7]
Existentialist feminists emphasize concepts such as freedom, interpersonal relationships, and the experience of living as a human body.[8] They value the capacity for radical change, but recognize that factors such as self-deception and the anxiety caused by the possibility of change can limit it. Many are dedicated to exposing and undermining socially imposed gender roles and cultural constructs limiting women's self-determination, and criticize post-structuralist feminists who deny the intrinsic freedom of individual women.[9] A woman who makes considered choices regarding her way of life and suffers the anxiety associated with that freedom, isolation, or nonconformity, yet remains free, demonstrates the tenets of existentialism.[10] The novels of Kate Chopin, Doris Lessing, Joan Didion, Margaret Atwood, and Margaret Drabble include such existential heroines.
- ^ "Feminism – Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary". merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
- ^ "Definition of feminism noun from Cambridge Dictionary Online: Free English Dictionary and Thesaurus". dictionary.cambridge.org. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
- ^ Mullarkey, John, and Beth Lord (eds.). The Continuum Companion to Continental Philosophy. London, 2009, p. 309
- ^ Stewart, Jon. Kierkegaard and Existentialism. Farnham, England, 2010, p. ix
- ^ Crowell, Steven (October 2010). "Existentialism". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved 2012-04-12.
- ^ Varga, Somogy; Guignon, Charles (2016-01-01). Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2016 ed.).
- ^ Abbagnano, Nicole. "Existentialism (philosophy)". Britannica Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
- ^ Larrabee, Mary Jeanne (2000). Code, Lorraine (ed.). "Existentialist Feminism". Encyclopedia of Feminist Theories: 187–188. ISBN 0415132746.
- ^ Code, Lorraine (2000). Encyclopedia of Feminist Theories. London and New York City: Routledge World Reference, Taylor & Francis. p. 266. ISBN 0415132746. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
- ^ Hiatt, Mary P. "Existentialism and Feminism". ERIC: Education Resources Information Center. Retrieved September 27, 2012.