Introduction
Second-wave feminism came in the mid-twentieth century to expand not only voting rights. It embraced the direction of the sexual revolution, the redistribution of social roles, the redefinition of culture and politics, jobs, and reproductive rights. The women’s protest movement had gained strength and prominence by the 1990s, which was repeatedly realized in feminist literature. Such works include Ana Castillo’s “Women Don’t Riot” (1998) and Katie Rolfe’s “The Morning After” (1993), which tell the story of what women are.
“Women Don’t Riot”
Themes of Oppression and Resistance
“Women Don’t Riot” is a poem by Ana Castillo, published in the late ’90s when the third wave of feminism was coming. The poem reveals the hardships of a woman’s life while hiding from rebellion and fighting for her rights. Castillo always begins with a new thought, with the lines “women don’t riot,” pointing out the historical injustice of suppressing the voice of women (Castillo 1:10).
She is deeply concerned for the lives of those who “do not speak the official language” (22), who were “molested as children” (25), who struggle “for all of us” (Castillo 47). Women cling to each other in grief, perpetual battle, and the constant need to cope with the many complex roles that have fallen to them through the fault of the majority. The majority was willing to rape, beat, and oppress women because they felt powerful (Castillo 26-28). However, Castillo believes the third millennium will be a new page in the eternal struggle (Castillo 35). She declares that no more women will be alone because a joint effort will change society and the world.
Legacy of Third-Wave Feminism
One must consider events occurring in the early 2000s to understand Castillo’s poem. Feminists were convinced that the struggle was not over and that much work would be ahead. They claimed that the protest required the creation of safe spaces for men and the separation of women to improve the quality of life. Only women could make a difference, and Castillo sees that: “From this day on no more, not me, not my daughter, // not her daughter either” (Castillo 36-37).
The Call for Feminist Solidarity and Collective Action
Following the principle of self-sufficiency and confidence, she convinces her female readers that only by continuing to struggle can one achieve something. Poetry became a way for Castillo to act and educate women who could not cope with the struggle (Trodd 423). The poem is a call to action, a small revolution that can encourage women to fight for their freedom.
It is essential to consider that Castillo’s poem is not a mockery of those who cannot fight because she understands these reasons. Moreover, she sympathizes with the women holding their children’s hands to teach their girls a secure way of life. She is alien to what they try to instill in her, so Castillo struggles to ask women to rebel. The perception of the second wave can also be noted: women were constrained by positive thinking, which did not allow them to fight and fight radically (Ng and McGowan 178).
While Castillo’s remarks are fair, women could not overcome the barriers that feminism had instilled in them. In this regard, Castillo’s poem should be seen as an act of enlightenment, intent on ensuring that the brainchild of the quest for freedom and security is not lost and remains a beacon for women even when the night is complete. To summarize, Ana Castillo had an evident vision of the reality in which she had to fight and strove hard to change the status of women.
The Morning After
Critique of Feminist Perspectives on Sexuality
The Morning After is a book by Katie Roiphe, published as part of her exploration of the sexuality of a new generation of feminists. Unlike Ana Castillo or other authors on the cusp of the third wave, Roiphe distinguished herself in her prose with a unique combination of ideas. The critique of sexuality and its change within feminist activism were essential aspects of her book. Roiphe explores how the focus on sexuality has changed and how feminism has perverted the sexual experience.
Roiphe boldly states her position, which is based on the fact that feminism gives false statistics on the issue of rape (Trodd 424). She allows herself to make bold statements that feminists undeservedly accuse men of sins and sexual pressure. She believes that feminism, at the time of writing, no longer aims to achieve equality. She belongs to the liberal trend in which men have a role to play. Moreover, in this case, Roiphe’s feminism is categorical and unique to accepted behavior in society in the ’90s.
Controversial Views on Rape, Victimhood, and Gender Roles
Roiphe’s position is crude and brutal, and one cannot agree with it because it destroys the gains made by feminists in the importance of supporting rape victims. She writes: “Have you ever had sexual intercourse when you didn’t want to because a man gave you alcohol or drugs?… A man may give a woman drugs, but she decides to take them” (Roiphe 53). Such words cannot be related to feminism and sexual freedom because these concepts are perverted.
Nevertheless, in Roiphe’s understanding, freedom is to return to the perception of sexual intercourse as reproduction. In thinking about why Roiphe’s thought is so, one can look back to her past, pointing to an affluent life and opportunity. In her mind, the world believes rape victims because their voices are louder, though now they are not.
Many people blame the victims for the violence. Sex is perceived from the same position as Roiphe – simply an act to be tolerated and forgotten (Trodd 426). Sympathy for the male rapist is stronger than for the abused woman because they cannot recognize their own libido as well (Bongiorno et al. 12).
In Roiphe’s understanding, “Being a victim of sexual harassment is a way to get attention, a way to get the final word. In teaching children to recognize sexual harassment, we train them in victimhood” (Roiphe 165). This is an oppressive and cruel position in which Roiphe wants to see women fighting for their rights without regard to sexuality.
She is probably convinced that only by rejecting pain and violence, by disregarding these variables, can feminism discuss broad themes and move forward (Trodd 427). For obvious reasons, Roiphe’s position is incomprehensible to many, but she is right that movement is possible through discussion. Otherwise, her position does not evoke positive associations, even though she is as dissatisfied with feminism as Ana Castillo.
Conclusion
To summarize, feminism tells a different story about women. Ana Castillo seeks to teach every woman to fight and not to give up despite difficulties. Katie Roiphe convinces us that we should not see everything as an enemy and that negotiation is the key to a solution. The protest movement at the end of the second wave of feminism was not ideal. Still, it made progress in advancing the role of women in society. The current third wave also has some problems, but continues to bring women together.
Works Cited
Bongiorno, Renata et al. “Why Women Are Blamed for Being Sexually Harassed: The Effects of Empathy for Female Victims and Male Perpetrators”. Psychology of Women Quarterly, vol. 44, issue 1, 2020, pp. 11–27. Web.
Castillo, Ana. “Women Don’t Riot, 1998”, Random House, no date. Web.
Ng, Eddy S., and Rosemary A. McGowan. “Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Views of Women from the Second-Wave Feminist Movement”. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences / Revue Canadienne des Sciences de l’Administration, vol. 40, issue 2, 2022, pp. 173-187. Web.
Roiphe, Katie. The Morning After: Sex, Fear, and Feminism on Campus. Hamish Hamilton, 1994.
Trodd, Zoe. American Protest Literature. Belknap Press, 2008.