In the United States, this view had begun to evolve by the 1830s. Early feminists active in the [abolition movement]? began to increasingly compare women's situation with the plight of African American slaves. This new polemic squarely blamed men for all the restrictions of women's role, and claimed that the relationship between the sexes was one sided, controlling and oppressive.
Most of the early feminists were Christians, especially Quakers. As feminists began to pull together these ideas about men and women, religious beliefs were also used to justify them. [Sarah Grimké]? suggested that the curse placed upon Eve in the Garden of Eden, was God's prophecy of a period of universal oppression of women by men. (Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, 1837). Early American feminists set about compiling lists of examples of women's plight, in foreign countries and in ancient times.
At the [Seneca Falls convention]? in 1848 [Elizabeth Cady Stanton]? modeled her declaration of sentiments on the United States Declaration of Independence. Men were said to be in the position of a tyranical government over women. This simplistic separation of the sexes into two waring camps was to become increasingly popular in feminist thought, despite the large number of reform minded men who supported the early women's movement.
As the movement broadened to include many women from the [temperance movement]? the slavery metaphor was joined by the stereotype of the drunkard husband who batters his wife. Feminist prejudice that women were morally superior to men reflected the social attitudes of the day. It also led to the to focus on women's suffrage over more practical issues in the latter half of the 19th century. Feminists assumed that once women had the vote they would have the political will to deal with any other issues.
Victoria Woodhull argued in the 1870's that the 14th amendment to the United States Constitution already guaranteed equality of voting rights to women. She anticipated the arguments of the United States Supreme Court a century later. But there was a strong movement of women opposed to suffrage, and it was delayed another 50 years, during which time most of the practical issues feminists campaigned for, had already been won.
Feminists of the second wave focused more on lifestyle and economic issues. "The personal is the political" became a catchphrase of this wave of the feminist movement. On the fringes of feminism, radical feminists in fact argued that men were the oppressor and the enemy.
Feminists disagree over the role of men as participants within the movement. Some female feminists on college campuses feel that it is inappropriate to call feminist men 'feminist' and instead prefer the title pro-feminist man; however, in most of American society this terminology has not caught on. One of the largest and most influential feminist organizations in the U.S., the [National Organization for Women]? (NOW) generally embraces male members and supporters. Members are wont to point out that their organization's name says for women, not of women. Most local chapters have male members.
Feminists are sometimes wary of the transgendered movement because they blur the distinction between men and women. Transgendered women are rejected by some feminists who say that no one born male can truly understand the oppression women face.
In some cases (notably equal pay for equal work) major advances have been made but feminists still struggle to achieve their complete goals.
Feminists are often proponents of using non-sexist language, using "Ms." to refer to both married and unmarried women, for example, or the ironic use of the term herstory instead of history. They are also often proponents of using gender-inclusive language, such as "humanity" instead of "mankind", or "he or she" in place of "he" where the gender is unknown. Feminists in most cases advance their desired use of language either to promote a respectful treatment of women or to affect the tone of political discourse, rather than in the belief that language directly affects perception of reality (compare Sapir-Whorf hypothesis).
There is a great variety of ideas within the movement as to how much of a problem exists, and how to confront it. Extremes on the one hand include radical feminists such as [Mary Daly]? whose ideology is overtly hostile to men. There are also debates between [Difference Feminists]? on the one hand, who believe that there are important differences between the sexes (which may or may not be inherent, but which cannot be ignored), and the [Equity Feminists]?on the other hand, who believe that there are no essential differences between the sexes. There are also dissidents, such as [Christina Hoff Sommers]? or [Camille Paglia]?, who identify themselves as feminist but who accuse the movement of anti-male prejudices, although there are many who who would question the use of the "feminist" label as applying to these individuals.
First wave,
Second wave,
Dissident feminists,
See also Feminist Spirituality, Feminist theology, Feminist science fiction