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Should feminism exist
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Should feminism exist?
Introduction
This paper discusses feminism and its effects on societal beliefs about a woman’s role in comparison and contrast to a man’s role in a family. It is one of the most debated issues in our current society, and it causes a lot of heat as women try to fight for equality and equity. At the same time, some men still believe that men are superior to the other genders and hold onto male chauvinism and patriarchy. This had led to many feminist movements that try to voice the concerns and the issues women go through.
Therefore the purpose of this argumentative research paper is to bring to the face and knowledge of the audience what feminism is and what it has done so far, as well as what other people, especially the males who still hold onto patriarchy, think about feminism. The different types of feminism are also discussed. This is because most people hate toxic feminism and do not realize a person can be a feminist even when they are not harmful. Religion is also very essential when it comes to discussion about feminism (Margaret, 06)
Background
Feminism has always existed, not in an informal manner or way in which we know it today. Therefore, the earliest forms of feminism just wanted to look into how women’s rights could be supported and made available for women. Feminists have differed in purpose, goals, and objectives for fighting for women’s rights. This has been caused by the fact that there are so many feminist movements with different beliefs, and they are in other geographical locations, therefore running for various courses. However, with all of these differences, the bottom line is that feminism is about the good and the value of women in society.
According to (Margaret, 14), all groups of women seeking to advance the course for women despite them not explicitly saying that they are a feminist movement should be regarded as feminists. This assertion, even though good for some people, is a violation of others. This is because some women groups come together and want to enhance their reasonable goals and objectives. However, they still believe in patriarchy, and they are trying to live good lives by having such movements but under the male-dominated society. They are not willing to oppose this power and believe it has existed for ages.
The main question which is presented herein is whether feminism should exist or should be tolerated. This is because there have been instances where feminism has gone overboard and did a lot of harm to society. It is a complicated question and stands to the discussion because feminism positively impacts the community and its negative impact. When looking at the history of feminism, we can say that the feminism revolution in the 19th century had a lot of effect in allowing women to have a say in public platforms where they could not have a voice before. It is essential to look into the history of feminism because, as (Routledge 05) states that “feminist theorists have frequently exhibited a too casual concern toward history and have used categories which have inclined the theories towards essentialism” from the statement, we can realize that this view caused the failure of the second wave discussed below.
History of feminism
According to (Maggie 10), the feminist movement has existed in waves, and the different waves have contributed to the success and the inevitable failures associated with the trends. The waves included; the first-wave feminist movement that addressed women being suffocated and not supported by the legal framework. This was a situation whereby the women were not allowed to vote. In this type feminism, which came about in the 19th and early 20th century, women’s suffrage was the main issue.
The second wave of the feminist movement took place between the 1960s and 1980s. Its main objective was to cooperate with cultural equality in a society where women were considered low dignity (Margaret, 53). This wave mainly focused on a woman’s role in the community and made sure that the different cultures that looked won upon women were scrapped and replaced with parts that support women and make sure the women get their rights. This has been a gradual process because patriarchy has been a concept very deeply ingrained into the minds and the hearts of different people, and therefore it needs a lot of effort to change this.
The third wave of feminism took place between the 1980s to the 2000s. This was seen as a continuation of the second wave, and it is seen as a correction of the second wave because it made several mistakes and brought a new face to the second wave’s desires and goals. These three waves depict modern feminism, but feminism indeed existed even before the 18th century only that it was not voiced as much as it is expressed of late and its effects were also less compared to its impact of late.
Discussion
Feminism should exist, but there has to be caution that feminism does not bring harm than the justice it is supposed to get. Quoting an American activist Charlotte Bunch, he says, “Feminism is an entire world view or gestalt, not just a laundry list of women’s issues.” Therefore from this viewpoint, it is okay to say that feminism should exist. Like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie says in her book on raising a girl child with the spirit of feminism in her book “Dear Ijeawele,” she talks of how to submit a girl child in a feminist manner. From it, we see how feminism should be integrated into society and not be taken out of society’s context because it is part and parcel of the community.
Contemporary feminists like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie display feminism in one of the most desirable manners. At one point, Chimamanda defines a feminist as any man or woman involved in the course to make sure that women and men have equal opportunities and chances in society. From her definition, we get a completely different view of women’s and men’s equality. She insists that men have to be involved in the issue of feminism because the less they are concerned, the more the patriarchy and the male chauvinism will increase, which will lead to more conflicts. This is because men will always think that feminists are not the right people to discuss issues with, while feminists want men to change without involving them in the conversation.
Looking at some of the people who propose that feminism should not exist, we can say that they also have their firm grounds to support this. Most people use the bible as a basis to support the argument about whether feminism should exist or not. One of the most fundamental concepts used is that the bible says that the man is the head of the family, and therefore it can only be fair to follow God’s directions. (1st Corinthians 11:3). This type of argument is religion-based and leaves out the possibility of a person not believe or be from a different religion. This does not apply to society.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be said that feminism should exist. However, it should involve men, as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie suggests for it to be effective. It should also not be toxic and should not aim to counteract the many years of male domination with adverse effects on society.
Works cited
Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. Dear Ijeawele, or a feminist manifesto in fifteen suggestions. Anchor, 2017.
Coogan, Michael David, et al., eds. The new Oxford annotated bible with Apocrypha: new revised standard version. Oxford University Press, 2010.
Gamble, Sarah, ed. The Routledge companion to feminism and postfeminism. Routledge, 2004.
Humm, Maggie. Feminisms: A Reader. Routledge, 2014.
Nicholson, Linda, ed. Feminism/postmodernism. Routledge, 2013.
Walters, Margaret. Feminism: A concise introduction. Vol. 141. Oxford University Press, 2005.
Role of friendship in identity formation
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Role of friendship in identity formation
The novel Sula by Morrison portrays and describes different issues found in the society expressed through the different characters he employs in the novel. Some of these characters include Nel, Sula, Chicken Little, Eva, Hannah among other characters. All these characters express a trait which can be linked closely to a real life situation. Therefore it is important to question as well as use the novel to understand the world around us in a better manner. Morrison especially brings out the friendships between Nel and Sula as a very strong factor and theme in the novel. It is this theme I will look at in this literary analysis. The main purpose of this is to determine the role of life-long friendships and relationships in the formation of a person’s identity. This is because to a great extent Nel and Sula have a life-long bond which affects each of them in a certain manner.
In the world there exists good and evil which Morrison articulates through the characters Nel and Sula. This good and evil is a part and parcel of life. Morrison creatively and clearly shows the reader that Nel was good from an outward expression of behaviour and character. However this is goodness borrowed or perpetuated by the manner in which she is brought up by her mother who is very perfect in everything she does. This sense of being perfect is what also attracts Sula to go to their house every once in a while to visit Nel because she feels better to get away from her home which in most times is full of chaos. Therefore the friendship of Nel and Sula is a clear depiction of good meeting bad from an external point of view. This is because Nel is perfect and Sula is imperfect.
However in real life situation goodness and the sense of being bad does not exist on its own or in certain people. This is very clearly displayed in the manner in which Nel struggles to retain what is already believed about her by most people that she is good. This displays the struggles every person goes through about life. It is a lesson that even though we always want to be good we can never be fully good. It is also a lesson that we cannot be bad or negative forever. Therefore life becomes a continuous struggle just like seen in their lives whereby Nel struggles to retain the goodness while Sula struggles to be a better good.
The struggle to be good is in different levels. Nel struggles at first with her nose which her mother never liked. Sula struggles with her mother’s behaviour Sula who kept men coming at her house for sexual acts which are seen to corrupt the mind of the little Sula. Therefore the struggles to be better and to get out of the bondage of being seen as good continue internally in the inner side of Nel and Sula. This is a contrasting situation whereby Morrison tries to inform the reader that it is very possible and okay for people from different kinds of backgrounds to come together and be friends for life. To some extent Morrison tries to show the reader how good exists within the bad and how bad exists within the good. He tries to prove the fact that for one to be a full human being they must have all parts of humanity. From a different angle of view he tries to inform the reader that good and bad have to exist together and that is the reason he brings Nel and Sula together to be best friends for life. The act of being friends for so long neutralises the bad in Sula and reduces the perfection in Nel so that there is found a balance in their lives. This at the end leads to the formation of their character and who they become as they grow up.
The friendship of Nel and Sula helped them form the character of what they become because they found similar things which identified them. These to an extent were their strengths and to some other extent were challenges or even weaknesses. Some of these include the fact that they were females, that they were blacks among other reasons. Therefore the discovery of these issues which they both belonged to united them and made them even closer, to be there for one another because they viewed the world with lack of trust. They also viewed the world as one which did not value women so much and the male chauvinism was very great. This even became worse when the ladies were black as they were. Therefore the challenges brought them together and their coming together became strength for then. “Because each had discovered years before that they were neither white nor male, and that all freedom and triumph was forbidden to them, they had set about creating something else to be” (Morrison, 85). Therefore Morrison tries to explain to the reader that even those groups of people oppressed in the society can become stronger if they get together for a common purpose. However this is not always easy. Just like Nel and Sula came together became friends because of their uniting factors the people who are oppressed or even if not oppressed those who have common features can come together and create something beautiful.
When they come together they not only enjoy the fruits of being together but is contribute to the formation of their character. If contributes in whom they become because they are able to see the world in a different manner or from a different viewpoint; a viewpoint of their new friends and partners. This same thing applies to Nel and Sula in the novel. After becoming friends with Sula Nel sees the world in a more different manner than the perfect way in which her mother had shown her. She begins to see the world in way of conflicts and many other undesirable issues. This she learns from Sula. This is always very important in any occasion as it shows the person what to expect and to form their behaviour to be ready for it. Sula also gets to see how such an orderly life is possible and she gets excited about it. This happens as she admires the life of Nel’s home where by a person can sit and be at peace. Therefore this environment brought to her by her friendship to Sula teaches her to yearn and create this type of perfect home which a person will not have to deal with a lot of things happening every now and then as it was the case with her family home.
Lifetime friendships also teach a person the art of keeping secrets. This is because even though it might be right to say some things it may only put a person into more danger. This is clear when the boy Chicken Little dies. Even though it hurts them that he had to die in their hands it is very difficult for them to say the truth because they are the only two people who know what happened. Saying the truth means as well that they will get into judicial problems and therefore they have to keep this secret. Therefore even though both felt guilty, they had to keep a low profile concerning the death of Chicken Little.
There is also the issue of trust which is very clearly shown in the friendship of Nel and Sula. Even though these two friends had shared everything in their lifetime it was very difficult for them to share Jude who was Nel’s husband. Jude had liked both of them when they were young and they kept close together. Nel and Sula shared even sexual partners and they were very close to one another. This shows that lifelong friendship has to come with knowing each other and depending on that to build one. It also comes along with the issue of knowing what to expect and what to do at different times so that one can accommodate their friends and not hurt them just like Nel and Sula always tried to do. This goes to the creation of their characters and behaviours in the fact that they both become dependent on each other and learn how to treat each other rather than just being selfish as most people tend to be. Trust issues come in when Jude and Nel slept together and this really hurt Sula. Therefore even though they were used to sharing sex partners this was way above the normal sex partners they had before. It is a lesson to the reader that it is okay to be close to one another but people are different when it comes to some kind of relationships like marriage.
The above incidences in the novel teach us of how good and important to see life in both ways that is to see life as good as well as seeing life and negative as well. This is because it is a reality of life. The formation of a person’s identity is mainly influenced by the people one interacts with and this forms their behaviours which determine the kind of people they are. Therefore Nel and Sula are friends who influence the behaviours of each other and at the end it determines how they relate with the outside world.
Works cited
Bjork, Patrick Bryce. “The novels of Toni Morrison: The search for self and place within the community.” (1991): 1226-1226.
Middleton, David L., ed. Toni Morrison’s fiction: Contemporary criticism. Routledge, 2016.Morrison, Toni. Sula. SPERLING & KUPFER, 2012.
Resistance to ‘The Sugar Act’ and ‘The Stamp Act’
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Resistance to ‘The Sugar Act’ and ‘The Stamp Act’
The British government having colonized many parts of America during the 18th century made several achievements and impacts on the American culture and lifestyle. They affected the people both positively and negatively. It was during this period that the concepts of the molasses act and sugar act came to be. The stamp act as well came to be during this period and it served the same purpose like it was with the sugar act which was to provide enough tax to pay for the troops which were stationed in North America and therefore enable the British powers to overcome the war which had proceeded for 7 years.
The sugar act was passed during a time of economic depression and this was a very bad time for the colonists since this sugar act made it was difficult for them to raise this tax imposed onto them due to their financial situation (Morgan et, al. 119). The major issue of the sugar act protest was mainly the economic impact it was to have but rather not the constitutional issue. The protest began immediately after this act was passed (“The Acts of Parliament | Boundless US History”).
On the other hand, the stamp act was even met with more great resistance than the sugar act. This resistance was not just concentrated among the colonies, however even British manufacturers and merchants were greatly angered by this act and they also resisted it. This type of resistance was mainly because the British colonial issues affected the businesses of the merchants and it made them unable to fully materialize as they wanted (“The Acts of Parliament | Boundless US History”). The major opposing body towards the stamp act was the congress of the American colonies which was held in 1765 and came up with their different methods of resistance whereby one of the statements was that there was no taxation which was supposed to happen without proper representation. There were other groups of protesters like the groups of merchants and landowners however the British government countered this by coming up with the declarative act which stated that the British government had the power to legislate over all matters that concerned the colonies.
Works cited
Morgan, Edmund Sears, and Helen M. Morgan. The Stamp Act Crisis: Prologue to Revolution. UNC Press Books, 1953. “The Acts of Parliament | Boundless US History.” Lumenlearning.com, 2019, courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-ushistory/chapter/the-acts-of-parliament/.