FEMINISM AS I KNOW IT

 

I was sucked into the "not a feminist but an equalist" wave long before I truly understood the meaning of feminism. So, the teen me wanted to be anything but a pseudo feminist, it made sense because I didn't want to hate men. The men in my life have been nothing but kind and supportive, they were simple men driven by simpler ideologies. My father was more than content with his two daughters, despite coming from a society that was famous for seeking multiple abortions in the desperation to have a male heir. He was found punching above his weight to give his little girls the education that was multiple notches higher than their male counterparts. Is he a feminist? certainly, to an extent, not sure if he knows what it meant to be one. My brothers were more than okay with knowing that their sisters were as equally competent as them and sometimes more. And hence I did not want to be a man hater. I loved the men in my life, and they were doing everything they could to empower me.   

So, what changed?

Funnily enough nothing. Like all teenagers entering adulthood since the time immemorial I became a rebel without a "real" cause. Questioning seemed like the norm, why would it not? I had learnt that women were being oppressed since centuries and I was a woman, so the math made sense. I would be the one to change the course of this family's history, that's what they showed in movies and shows that it took just one moment of courage to smash years of patriarchy, one act of courage and all of it would change. the funny thing about being a teenager or at least about me as a teenager was that the amount of passion severely outweighed the knowledge I had. I wanted to express more than I was willing to listen because silence is what has led to oppression of women across generation and only if they spoke up things would change for the better. The thought in itself is not incorrect but the argument of feminism as I understand it today is far more nuanced. 

And before you scratch your head thinking about why do I choose to delve into something so "political"?  And if the blogs that come after this will be of similar nature? And is this the trajectory that I wish to take for my blogs?      

Let's answer one at a time, I choose to talk about feminism because it is a cause that I hold quite dear to me. I do not believe that feminism is merely a political debate, like they say, " Feminism is for all of us". my blogs are a way for me to record the evolution of my thoughts, they are a way for me to broaden my horizon and to introspect, so anything that moves me would find itself on the blog, it could be anything. the trajectory of my blog will be the evolution of my thoughts, that is all I can commit as of now.

Where do we begin to understand feminism then?

Should we start from the time when " Brahamavadini Gargi" stepped forward to challenge Rishi Yajnavalkya over his claim of superiority of knowledge in Brihadranyaka Upanishad and became a 21st century feminist icon or the times when Savitribai Phule pioneered women's education in India? Let's not get too ahead of ourselves and start with the fundamental argument of feminism which is of "equality of sexes" or to put it simply no pre-defined gender roles or that is to say that I do not belong in the kitchen just because I was born a female or you cannot cry or be expressive or dress a certain way just because you were born a male.

we have had various females in India across centuries who have defied gender norms by gaining education, becoming rulers and so on. But credit where its due to the American and British societies of 1890s where the term as we know it today gained momentum. A quick history lesson is that what we are living through is the fourth wave of feminism, the first took place in the latter half of 19th century and mainly focused on suffrage which could become a reality decades later. The second wave picked up in the 1960s, this time around it was less elitist and more inclusive, from reproductive rights to sexuality and much more. Third wave feminism picked up where second wave left but internet had appeared on the scene, so this was what I would refer as " globalized feminism" and finally the fourth wave of feminism whose greatest challenge is the revivalist approach that some seem to have with respect to issues already settled, however the silver lining is the fact that the feminist movement is at its most inclusive and diverse.

still on board?  

I promise this is the last part about the theory of feminism, post which we get to the real deal of what has feminism to offer to you as a man/woman?

so yes last aspect of the theory that matters is that there is "intersectional feminism " the simplest way to explain this is the Hindi proverb "Gareebi me aata geela" (i shall not translate this, because i just don't wish to). Jokes apart, intersectional feminism talks about how race, religion caste, class, sexuality play a pivotal role in determining the extent of female empowerment. Basically, not to put one against other but our society would be much kinder to a straight upper caste middle class woman then to a homosexual lower income Dalit woman.

As a woman, I fail to think of any reason to not be a feminist but if you still want me to convince you I present you the following case that you are already a feminist, weird argument? I disagree. you are already a feminist because you have educated yourself, you my dear friend have already taken a step. So, my job is half done, the part I need to convince you of is that to not let the notion of "gender roles" limit you. Broaden your horizon, empower yourself so that you are independent. Spread your wings and let yourselves fly as high as you desire even against the wind. And as a woman of 21st century you and I owe it to Savitribai, Kamala devi Chattopadhyay, Amrita Shergill and innumerable women who shattered the glass ceiling through their actions, thoughts, arts and so on.(if you wish to take anything back from the 10 mins that you have ever so graciously given to this piece of writing, I would request you to give 5 more and google these women, look at them and I mean stare a little deeper into their story and you shall be inspired.) 

To the miniscule of men who have made it so far in the blog and not rolled their eyes thinking 'there goes another woman ranting about feminism ' welcome. when you subscribe to feminism you join a long line of men who have flown against the tide to do the right thing. If you cannot be Rajaram Mohan Roy and tirelessly work to abolish Sati or write innumerable pamphlets about the position of women in Indian society, when your society has labelled you as a "modernist blinded by passion", you can at the very least be a brother who stands alongside his sister when she wishes to live life on her own terms. 

Feminism not only makes you an ally for women, but it also gives you freedom as a male to be who you truly want to be, it simply allows you to explore parts of your identity tucked in deep inside because the society taught you that "this is not how men are supposed to be". In Feminism there are not a male's job or a female's job, what matters is if they are both paid equally for the same job. 

I have barely scratched the surface of this well documented ideology, and I am sure most of you have more to add too. Hence, this is where I wrap my words with a belief that there would be a time in the near future where the only place patriarchy would find for itself is half a page in the history textbook. does it sound like wishful thinking? I differ because I have faith and that keeps me going.