Feminism’s meaning evolved from female qualities to a theory of sex equality.

Evidence

Feminism is an ideology in the making. According to the Oxford English Dictionary the term “feminism” was first used in the latter part of the 19th century and it was defined as having the “qualities of females.” The meaning of the term has been gradually transformed and the 20th century dictionary definition of feminism is a “theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.” — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 560

Categorization

• DEFINE: Traces the historical shift in the term ‘feminism’ from OED definitions across centuries.
• XREF: connects to: Feminism must combat domination across sex, race, and class, not just male chauvinism — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 562; African feminism pairs critique of male supremacy with change toward gender balance.; Gender is a social power structure rather than a genetic trait. (+3 more)

Related

• Early feminist demands centered primarily on women’s right to education. (similarity 0.91)
• Feminism analyzes how women were inferiorized and connects sexism to other dominations (similarity 0.86)
• Feminism must combat domination across sex, race, and class, not just male chauvinism (similarity 0.85)
• A racist and classist feminism merely perpetuates women’s bondage to patriarchy. (similarity 0.84)
• Feminist political visions risk destroying the life forms they claim to liberate. (similarity 0.83)
• Understanding black women’s status requires analyzing race and sex together (similarity 0.82)
• Black women rejected the movement’s execution, not feminism’s ideology. (similarity 0.82)
• American women perpetuate the very racism and sexism that oppress them (similarity 0.82)
• Black women needed a separate feminist intellectual tradition (similarity 0.82)
• Racist, sexist socialization conditioned black women to devalue femaleness and identify only with race (similarity 0.81)
• Liberation modeled on white male power inherently divides women from each other. (similarity 0.81)
• Queer theory aims to deconstruct gender binaries, not eliminate them. (similarity 0.81)
• Black women’s exploitation is better described as masculinization than black men’s de-masculinization. (similarity 0.81)
• Feminism is shaped by the same ideological sureties it challenges. (similarity 0.80)
• Women’s liberation depends on liberating all oppressed strata simultaneously (similarity 0.80)

Broader Connections

• Individuality and universal equality historically arise as twin reactions to inequality #corroborates (0.78) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 687
• Feminism must combat domination across sex, race, and class, not just male chauvinism #expands (0.55) — bell hooks, Ain’t I a Woman_ Black Women and…, 562
• African feminism pairs critique of male supremacy with change toward gender balance. #expands (0.50)
• Gender is a social power structure rather than a genetic trait. #expands (0.45)