Feminist Movement Essays - First-wave Feminism, Womens Rights

Feminist Movement It was in the mid-1800s when the first signs of the feminist movement came about. In 1861, a man named John Stuart Mill wrote The Subjection of Women, which was said to have spawned the ideology of the Women's Rights Movement (Ryan 11). He discussed the role of women is society during that time, pointing out how the patriarchy placed such an intense limit on what women could do. Patriarchy is the system in which the male race governs societal views, and this practice has been in existence since the dawn of time. This work raised the consciousness of many women, but the first hints of an organized movement did not come about until the approach of the twentieth century. It has been said the Black Abolition Movement was the encouragement that women needed to go after what they believed in (Ryan 10). In 1898 came the beginnings of Women's Suffrage, which was the movement intended to allow women the right to vote. During this time, over 500 separate campaigns were launched with the goal of attaining this right. Females such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony spoke all over the country on women's rights and suffrage, gaining many supporters along the way (Ryan 9). The National American Women's Suffrage Association (NAWSA) was soon formed, and Stanton was its first president. She helped to begin extensive mobilizing efforts and put a strong foot forward in the suffrage movement (Ryan 22). When the Nineteenth Amendment was passed, women nationwide rejoiced at their accomplishment with the feeling that they had made a difference, and their feeling of inferiority had subsided. Works Cited Bardon, Edward J. The Sexual Arena and Women's Liberation. Chicago: Nelson Hall, 1978. Evans, Sara. Personal Politics. New York: Vintage Press, 1979. Friedan, Betty. It Changed My Life. New York: Random House, 1976. Ryan, Barbara. Feminism and the Women's Movement. New York: Rutledge, 1992. Salper, Roberta. Female Liberation: History and Current Politics. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1972. Sinclair, Barbara. The Women's Movement: Political, Socioeconomic, and Psychological Issues. New York: Harper and Row,1975. Stambler, Sookie. Women's Liberation: Blueprint for the Future. New York: Ace Books, 1970.

I Never Promised You a Rose Garden by Joanne Greenberg essays

I Never Promised You a Rose Garden by Joanne Greenberg essays I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, by Joanne Greenberg, is a description of a sixteen-year-old girl's battle with schizophrenia, which lasts for three years. It is a semi-autobiographical account of the author's experiences in a mental hospital during her own bout with the illness. This novel is written to help fight the stigmatisms and prejudices held against mental illness. Joanne Greenberg was born in Brooklyn in 1932 and is a very respected and award-winning author. Because of her experiences as a Jewish-American and having fought her own battle with schizophrenia, Greenberg wrote I Never Promised You a Rose Garden to help people understand what it is like have to face so much hardship. After her illness was treated, she went on to earn a bachelor's degree in anthropology and English. Throughout her life, she has fought for the respect and empathy that individuals suffering from both physical and mental handicaps have been denied. Joanne Greenberg presents her experiences by relating them to Deborah Blau. Deborah Blau, who is very bright and artistically talented, creates an imaginary world she calls the Kingdom of Yr, to use as a defense against the confusing and frightening truths of the real world. When Deborah is five, she has an operation to remove a tumor that causes her to be incontinent. This is a very traumatic experience because a great deal of physical pain and shame comes along with the problems caused by the tumor and resulting surgery. Deborah suffers frequent abuse from her anti-Semitic peers and neighbors during her childhood. When Deborah first creates Yr, it is a sort of haven, but as time goes on, the gods of Yr become Deborah's masters and control her every word and action. I Never Promised You a Rose Garden shows the issue of mental illness from several different viewpoints. During Deborah's three years in the hospital, the reader is provided with a glimpse of mental illness from the patient's point of...