Since the times of Adam and Eve, humanity has been divided into two parts. Men and women, although living side by side, were opposing each other all the time. Without going too deep into history, somewhere in the 18th century appeared the movement called feminism, meant to fight for women’s rights. One of the representatives of the movement is Bell Hooks, an American activist and author of some books on feminism. One of particular interest is her work ‘Feminism is for Everyone’, which first saw the world in 2000. It gives a close and broad look at feminism from inside and presents the author’s view on almost every sphere of life.
Feminism is for Everybody
There are plenty of stereotypes concerning feminism. Popular feminism is about women who desire to be like men. Not many people remember that in fact, it deals with the fight for equal rights. If we ask for a definition of feminism, it is a sound thought to address Bell Hooks and her earlier book ‘Feminist Theory: from Margin to Center.’ There she states that “feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploration and oppression” (Feminist Theory 1).
Bell Hooks represents herself as a proud adherer of feminists’ beliefs. She is free to the conversations and ready for a dispute with people who have a vague idea of feminism but are eager to listen and learn. The lady shares her way to feminism and introduces her views. Her idea is that of a world without dominance, with equal people who are happy to be themselves. The book is divided into pieces, each dedicated to a certain sphere of life that feminists face.
Firstly, the author refers to feminist politics. Unlike many other feminist activists, she does not consider men as enemies. The major problem, she assumes, is sexism, which most people do not consider to be trouble at all. Much of the early feminist movements were anti-male, for at that period men were superior in all the spheres of life except for housekeeping, which led to females standing up against such convention and pushed feminism development. Nevertheless, nowadays, as Hooks claims, the modern feminist movement is losing themselves, because their definitions are not as sharp and clear as they used to be, and she suggests to “reclaim them” (Feminism is for Everybody 6).
Bell Hooks begins another chapter with the words “Feminists are made, not born” (Feminism is for Everybody 7). It is very similar to political views, which are gained in the process of life in the society. It is the choice of a person anyway and depends on the surrounding. If one wants the system and structural changes for justice, equality and personal freedom stand against patriarchy, feminism is a suitable trend to follow.
Special attention in the book is given to the concept of women’s reproductive rights. The chapter “Our Bodies, Ourselves” introduces the feminists’ views of the question. The problem arose at the time of the so-called “sexual revolution.” It was popularizing free love, which caused some burning problems. The first of them was the unwanted pregnancy, resulting in illegal abortions. No one would argue that such a situation was dangerous. It gave birth to one more aspect of reproductive rights, which is prevention. It is much easier to prevent the unwanted pregnancy than to have an abortion, whatever safe it may be. So, the issue of health care and sex education gained popularity in the feminist circles. It was important to teach women how their body functions, because with this knowledge they will take care of themselves more effectively.
With the appearance of birth-control pills, women got even more choice in their reproductive rights. It helped them to be more careful with their health, for sexual freedom was still popular. It contradicted the principles of Christianity, which was the major religion then. The possibility to have a legal abortion also came into controversy with the belief, that woman’s destination was to give birth to children. Still, the press lost the interest to this issue quickly, and it was not much discussed. No one could predict that the problem might arise again, in the 90-es. At that time an anti-abortion movement gained popularity. Nevertheless, it did not have any obvious results. Feminists stood at their positions, preserving the right to control their bodies. The same chapter of the book repeatedly states: “Losing ground on the issue of legal, safe, inexpensive abortion means that women lose ground on all reproductive issues” (Feminism is for Everybody 29).
One more essential concept of the feminist theory is the attitude to a woman. The ladies have always been evaluated by the way they look. Bell Hooks desires that women were judged not by their clothes or body shape, but the things they do and achieve in their life. It will also contribute to stopping eating disorders of many dieting girls and the fashion chase.
Next issue the Hooks’ book reveals is that of women at work. Freedom and equality in this respect is not only in the right to work, but also in the possibility to have a good salary. But many women, who were inspired by feminists to look for liberation at work, got angry because now they have to manage both home and the job. Still, it is not fair to accuse feminism in the problem. Having a job contributed to women’s self-confidence, made then believe that their aim in life can be something different than only bringing up children, cleaning the house, cooking and serving their men.
The author pays some attention to the gender aspect of feminism too. Turning to American history, she recalls the differences in statuses of black and white woman (Feminism is for Everybody 55).
One of the topics discussed in the book that cannot be left apart is that of violence. “Nowadays the problem of domestic violence is talked about in so many circles, from mass media to grade schools, which it is often forgotten that contemporary feminist movement was the force that dramatically uncovered and exposed the ongoing reality of domestic violence” (Feminism is for Everybody 61). The author reveals the influence of feminist movement on stopping violence in the families and underlines the necessity of continuing this struggle.
It is impossible to cover the content of the whole book in a couple of pages. Besides, some concepts may be argued.
Is Feminism Good for Everybody?
Although the contribution of feminism to today’s society is enormous, many people do not realize this. They may consider feminists the strange women who have nothing to do in their life. Authors argue on what feminism is (Hirsch and Keller 14), and the women continue fighting for their rights.
The surroundings and the historical periods change, but the problems that ordinary women face in everyday life are similar to those their predecessor had centuries ago. I doubt if Bell Hooks can be objective in her judging, as long as she is a representative of radical feminism. Nevertheless, her ideas are worth being discussed.
The one thing that I find important is that of the woman’s right to control her body. It is the woman who can decide whether to give birth to a child, to take pills or to avoid sex at all. According to Bell Hooks, the reproductive rights are the most important ones that a woman may have. I can agree with this to the certain extent, but not absolutely. Of course, it is a positive thing to have an opportunity of a safe and not expensive abortion in the case of necessity. Despite the fact that abortions were aimed at the good, they also caused a problem. The issue they led to the irresponsibility of many ladies. They know that there is a solution to an unpleasant problem and become careless. As long as the unwanted pregnancy is not a problem anymore, women become careless. I would also argue the allowance of abortions for everyone. It is certain that the age, health condition (both physical and mental) are to be considered. To my mind, a more important task of the feminist movement is the popularization of a healthy and happy woman; such a woman makes use of her rights cleverly.
No idea leads to something good when it is too radical, the same is about feminism. The radical one brings hatred to men; the classical may contribute to many aspects of life. No matter what sex we are, it is important to stay human.
Works Cited
Hirsch, Marianne, and Evelyn Fox Keller. Conflicts in Feminism. Routledge, 2015.
Hooks, Bell. Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics. Routledge, 2014.
Hooks, Bell. Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center. Routledge, 2015.