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Pelican Books #38
Feminizmy. Historia globalna
Gdzie biją źródła emancypacji kobiet – i czy na pewno na Zachodzie?
W swojej nowatorskiej książce Lucy Delap przepisuje historię feminizmu, zabierając czytelników w podróż po sześciu kontynentach i kilku epokach. Interesują ją sufrażystowskie pieśni, odzyskane pojęcia, radykalne postawy i utopijne marzenia. Zamiast klasycznej opowieści o pierwszej, drugiej i trzeciej fali feminizmu brytyjska badaczka proponuje perspektywę „historii splecionych”, zgodnie z którą walka kobiet o lepsze urządzenie świata to nie linearny ciąg wydarzeń napędzanych przez Europę i Amerykę, lecz sieć czy nawet kłącze wielu różnych postulatów, dążeń i poglądów. Śledząc nieustanne przepływy idei ponad narodowymi granicami, intelektualne inspiracje i wzorce dziedziczenia postaw politycznych, Delap oferuje przełomowe spojrzenie na feminizm jako najszerzej zakrojony projekt emancypacyjny w historii ludzkości.
W swojej nowatorskiej książce Lucy Delap przepisuje historię feminizmu, zabierając czytelników w podróż po sześciu kontynentach i kilku epokach. Interesują ją sufrażystowskie pieśni, odzyskane pojęcia, radykalne postawy i utopijne marzenia. Zamiast klasycznej opowieści o pierwszej, drugiej i trzeciej fali feminizmu brytyjska badaczka proponuje perspektywę „historii splecionych”, zgodnie z którą walka kobiet o lepsze urządzenie świata to nie linearny ciąg wydarzeń napędzanych przez Europę i Amerykę, lecz sieć czy nawet kłącze wielu różnych postulatów, dążeń i poglądów. Śledząc nieustanne przepływy idei ponad narodowymi granicami, intelektualne inspiracje i wzorce dziedziczenia postaw politycznych, Delap oferuje przełomowe spojrzenie na feminizm jako najszerzej zakrojony projekt emancypacyjny w historii ludzkości.
416 pages, Paperback
First published August 27, 2020
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February 17, 2021
Lucy Delap’s accessible and compelling Feminisms: A Global History does not attempt the impossible task of writing a complete global history of feminism, but instead, picks up on a series of themes in feminist history, ranging from ‘dreams’ to ‘dress’ to ‘actions’, and draws from modern feminist activists and movements to explore how feminist thought and action was shaped internationally. Delap deliberately uses the term ‘feminisms’ rather than feminism to emphasise the multiplicity of women’s movements across the globe, and also frames this as ‘mosaic feminism’ – women may have been using some of the same inherited pieces, but they formed different patterns. And indeed, the very first chapter emphasises that one big problem for contemporary feminism might be the inability to accommodate disagreement, citing feminist philosopher Iris Marion Young: ‘we need to wake up to the challenge of understanding across difference rather than keep on dreaming about common dreams’. Not all the activists Delap writes about would even have called themselves feminists, but they still contributed to a wider history of political action that centred women’s needs.
What I found so valuable about Delap’s approach to writing about global feminisms was that non-Western feminisms are not treated simply as an ‘add-on’ to more familiar Western histories – we aren’t simply told that there were also feminist activists and organisations elsewhere. Instead, Delap illuminates how African, Latin American and Asian feminists transformed feminist thought and challenged Western priorities. The Bengali writer Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain published her utopian text Sultana’s Dream in 1905, which depicted ‘Ladyland’, a world where women and men could interact as equals through ‘sacred’ relations that had no sexual connotations; this envisaged women’s liberation through ‘the abandonment of sexual links to men’, a vision that we might more commonly associate with ‘political lesbianism’ in Britain and the USA in the 1970s. In the early twentieth century, there was also an active Chinese feminist movement, with women in some Chinese provinces gaining the vote by 1912, well ahead of many Western counterparts, and the word nannü starting to be used to indicate a ‘sexed system of social organisation’, or something like what we might call patriarchy. Meanwhile, the Egyptian activist Huda Sha’arawi organised women in the 1919 protests against British rule; her decision to unveil in public in 1923 was celebrated by Europeans, but Sha’arawi herself did not see this as particularly important, and, in fact, mocked ‘the veil of ignorance’ that Western women wore, unable to see Egyptian women clearly because of orientalist stereotypes.
Delap also shows how ideas were exchanged, translated and repurposed in global contexts. The famous US second-wave feminist text Our Bodies, Ourselves (1970), which encouraged women to look after their health and celebrate their sexuality, was reproduced and reworked in different settings. In Bulgaria, it was retitled Our Body, Ourselves, to emphasise individualism after the fall of the communist state, whereas in Latin America the text was framed with more of a focus on traditional community settings. The phrase ‘the personal is political’, coined by US feminist Carol Hanisch, was influenced both by the Black Power practice of ‘telling it like it is’ and Hanisch’s reading of French feminist Claudie Broyelle’s Half the Sky (1973), which stressed the autonomy of women in Communist China to voice and act on their emotions through the Maoist idea of ‘speaking bitterness’. (Broyelle wrote a follow-up to this work in 1980, admitting it had been a ‘day-dream’ as reports of the violent oppression of women in China continued to emerge.) However, Feminisms does not just trace the histories of familiar Western touchstones but introduces new ones, such as the memorable phrase used by Japanese activist Kishida Toshiko in 1883, who publicly spoke of her anger at how women had to live their lives in close confinement, saying that raising daughters in such an environment was like ‘trying to grow flowers in salt’.
Feminisms is primarily concerned with the intersections of gender, race and class rather than sexuality or gender identity, although it does touch on the issues faced by lesbians and trans women who tried to engage with second-wave feminism in the 1970s and 1980s. Delap writes briefly about how sex and gender might have been understood more fluidly in certain African countries before colonialist binaries were imposed, citing the work of Ifi Amadiume and Oyèrónké Oyěwùmí. Amadiume has argued that age hierarchies were more important than gender hierarchies in the organisation of some African societies, allowing women to adopt more powerful roles such as ‘female husband’. However, it is obviously impossible to cover everything in a single book, and I had the sense that Delap had been led by the priorities of many of the activists she considers, who, especially in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, were often focused on colonial or class oppression. In 1975, Bolivian tin miner’s wife Domitila Barrios de Chúngara confronted the US feminist Betty Friedan at a meeting in Mexico City, which revealed the perceived gulf between their ideas of feminism: Barrios de Chungara was an experienced union activist who worked alongside men, and thought gringa feminism was ‘a lesbian-dominated war against men’. (Friedan had actually been instrumental in banning lesbians from the US National Organisation for Women’s New York chapter in 1970, so likely shared this hostility).
Obviously, a book like this can never be more than a starting-point for the huge histories it touches upon, but this is an incredibly thought-provoking take on some of the questions we should be asking when we think about global histories of feminism.
I received a free proof copy of this book from the publisher for review.
What I found so valuable about Delap’s approach to writing about global feminisms was that non-Western feminisms are not treated simply as an ‘add-on’ to more familiar Western histories – we aren’t simply told that there were also feminist activists and organisations elsewhere. Instead, Delap illuminates how African, Latin American and Asian feminists transformed feminist thought and challenged Western priorities. The Bengali writer Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain published her utopian text Sultana’s Dream in 1905, which depicted ‘Ladyland’, a world where women and men could interact as equals through ‘sacred’ relations that had no sexual connotations; this envisaged women’s liberation through ‘the abandonment of sexual links to men’, a vision that we might more commonly associate with ‘political lesbianism’ in Britain and the USA in the 1970s. In the early twentieth century, there was also an active Chinese feminist movement, with women in some Chinese provinces gaining the vote by 1912, well ahead of many Western counterparts, and the word nannü starting to be used to indicate a ‘sexed system of social organisation’, or something like what we might call patriarchy. Meanwhile, the Egyptian activist Huda Sha’arawi organised women in the 1919 protests against British rule; her decision to unveil in public in 1923 was celebrated by Europeans, but Sha’arawi herself did not see this as particularly important, and, in fact, mocked ‘the veil of ignorance’ that Western women wore, unable to see Egyptian women clearly because of orientalist stereotypes.
Delap also shows how ideas were exchanged, translated and repurposed in global contexts. The famous US second-wave feminist text Our Bodies, Ourselves (1970), which encouraged women to look after their health and celebrate their sexuality, was reproduced and reworked in different settings. In Bulgaria, it was retitled Our Body, Ourselves, to emphasise individualism after the fall of the communist state, whereas in Latin America the text was framed with more of a focus on traditional community settings. The phrase ‘the personal is political’, coined by US feminist Carol Hanisch, was influenced both by the Black Power practice of ‘telling it like it is’ and Hanisch’s reading of French feminist Claudie Broyelle’s Half the Sky (1973), which stressed the autonomy of women in Communist China to voice and act on their emotions through the Maoist idea of ‘speaking bitterness’. (Broyelle wrote a follow-up to this work in 1980, admitting it had been a ‘day-dream’ as reports of the violent oppression of women in China continued to emerge.) However, Feminisms does not just trace the histories of familiar Western touchstones but introduces new ones, such as the memorable phrase used by Japanese activist Kishida Toshiko in 1883, who publicly spoke of her anger at how women had to live their lives in close confinement, saying that raising daughters in such an environment was like ‘trying to grow flowers in salt’.
Feminisms is primarily concerned with the intersections of gender, race and class rather than sexuality or gender identity, although it does touch on the issues faced by lesbians and trans women who tried to engage with second-wave feminism in the 1970s and 1980s. Delap writes briefly about how sex and gender might have been understood more fluidly in certain African countries before colonialist binaries were imposed, citing the work of Ifi Amadiume and Oyèrónké Oyěwùmí. Amadiume has argued that age hierarchies were more important than gender hierarchies in the organisation of some African societies, allowing women to adopt more powerful roles such as ‘female husband’. However, it is obviously impossible to cover everything in a single book, and I had the sense that Delap had been led by the priorities of many of the activists she considers, who, especially in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, were often focused on colonial or class oppression. In 1975, Bolivian tin miner’s wife Domitila Barrios de Chúngara confronted the US feminist Betty Friedan at a meeting in Mexico City, which revealed the perceived gulf between their ideas of feminism: Barrios de Chungara was an experienced union activist who worked alongside men, and thought gringa feminism was ‘a lesbian-dominated war against men’. (Friedan had actually been instrumental in banning lesbians from the US National Organisation for Women’s New York chapter in 1970, so likely shared this hostility).
Obviously, a book like this can never be more than a starting-point for the huge histories it touches upon, but this is an incredibly thought-provoking take on some of the questions we should be asking when we think about global histories of feminism.
I received a free proof copy of this book from the publisher for review.
December 30, 2022
There's absolutely a need for an accessibly written introduction to feminist history, one which stresses the plural and multivocal nature of feminisms and looks at the wide variety of feminist/women's liberation experiences and thought around the world. Lucy Delap sets out to do that in Feminisms: A Global History, which is arranged thematically (chapters are arranged around concepts like "Dreams", "Objects", and "Songs") rather than adhering to the Western-centric wave chronology. Sadly, I don't think Delap was the best person to undertake this project—there are just too many unexamined assumptions here (e.g. using "transwoman" and "Judeo-Christian" as neutral/unmarked terms) that mean the framing of the book is not as global as its aspirations.
September 7, 2020
(From the book) - Feminism - Best understood as an overlapping, internally complex set of actions, questions and demands that has been in formulation since the 18th Century or even earlier. It concerns change over time.
Feminism is an ongoing story of profound transformation. Despite it being devalued, it still strongly advocates women's rights on the grounds of equality of sexes.
In this much needed book, the author takes us through a wonderful and unique look on Feminism. It not only covers the entry point but it also throws light on limits.
Covers examples from various countries including Japan, Egypt, Germany and Russia to name a few.
- What is Feminism?
- How and Why was it developed?
- Journey of Feminism
- What does Feminism mean Globally?
A very well written and enlightening book.
Feminism is an ongoing story of profound transformation. Despite it being devalued, it still strongly advocates women's rights on the grounds of equality of sexes.
In this much needed book, the author takes us through a wonderful and unique look on Feminism. It not only covers the entry point but it also throws light on limits.
Covers examples from various countries including Japan, Egypt, Germany and Russia to name a few.
- What is Feminism?
- How and Why was it developed?
- Journey of Feminism
- What does Feminism mean Globally?
A very well written and enlightening book.
May 5, 2022
Ein umfassendes intersektionales Buch zur Geschichte des Feminismus. Must read.
April 18, 2024
Elsie Clews Parsons (1875-1941), amerykańska etnografka i antropolożka, pytana przez zaniepokojoną matkę czym jest feminizm, odparła:
„Kiedy bawiłam się z chłopcami w Bryant Park, choć mówiłaś mi, że pannie nie przystoi - to był feminizm. Kiedy zdejmowałam woalkę albo rękawiczki, ilekroć się odwracałaś, albo gdy przesiadywałam dwa dni w pokoju i nie wkładałam gorsetu - to był feminizm. Kiedy zamiast chodzić w gości zaczęłam jeździć konno i żeglować - to był feminizm. Kiedy poszłam do college’u mimo twoich protestów - to był feminizm. Kiedy trzymałam się normalnych godzin pracy mimo uwag, że jestem samolubna - to był feminizm. Kiedy urodziłam dziecko, bo tego zapragnęłam, mimo protestów, że nie jestem dość samolubna - to był feminizm.”
Czy wiecie, że był moment, w którym z języka Siri usunięto słowo „feminizm”? „Feminizmy. Historia globalna” rozpoczyna jednak cytat pochodzący z Afryki, w którym nieznana nam autorka już 200 lat temu dawała upust swojej frustracji, która wynikała z podmiotowości kobiet względem mężczyzn. Lucy Delap wykonała żmudną pracę, by odwieść nasze spojrzenie od wyłącznie europo-amerykocentrycznego spojrzenia na feminizm. Sama przekonywałam się podczas lektury, że znam jedynie nazwiska działaczek pochodzących z Ameryki Północnej i Wielkiej Brytanii, a nie wiem nic o feminizmie np. w Azji i Afryce. Nie sposób oczywiście opisać wszystko dogłębnie, wiele jest tu wzmianek, które mogą później inspirować do dalszych poszukiwań.
Sposób odkrywania brakującej wiedzy czytelnika ułatwia sposób w jaki autorka postanowiła zestawić zebrane przez siebie historie i dane. Śledzenie ewolucji globalnych feminizmów ułatwia nam prześledzenie go dzieląc rozdziały na różne kategorie. W ten sposób w klarowny sposób zaznajamiamy się z dostępem kobiet do edukacji i prawami obywatelskimi, pacyfizmem, antyfaszyzmem, opieką społeczną, ochroną matek i dzieci, prawami pracowniczymi, ale też autonomią seksualną, udziałem kobiet w kulturze czy prawami reprodukcyjnymi. Wszystkie te ważne kwestie Delap zestawia poprzez analizę strojów, pieśni, przedmiotom, formy protestów i innych. Był to ciekawy koncept, który pozwalał na linearne śledzenie ewolucji walki kobiet o swoje prawa na całym świecie.
Język książki często ma ton naukowy, co moim zdaniem nie czyni ją jednak trudną w odbiorze, a tym bardziej nie nużącą. Sposób prezentacji tak ambitnego i wszechstronnego tematu jest podzielony w zrozumiały i przemyślany sposób, dzięki czemu czytelnik nie gubi się w meandrach wątków. Z mojej perspektywy Lucy Delap podołała ambitnemu zadaniu, które sobie zamierzyła, zaznaczając jednak, że feminizmy to organizm ciągle żywy, mimo wielokrotnych prób wyciszenia, to wciąż wybucha na różnych kontynentach, gdy sytuacja kobiet tego wymaga.
„Kiedy bawiłam się z chłopcami w Bryant Park, choć mówiłaś mi, że pannie nie przystoi - to był feminizm. Kiedy zdejmowałam woalkę albo rękawiczki, ilekroć się odwracałaś, albo gdy przesiadywałam dwa dni w pokoju i nie wkładałam gorsetu - to był feminizm. Kiedy zamiast chodzić w gości zaczęłam jeździć konno i żeglować - to był feminizm. Kiedy poszłam do college’u mimo twoich protestów - to był feminizm. Kiedy trzymałam się normalnych godzin pracy mimo uwag, że jestem samolubna - to był feminizm. Kiedy urodziłam dziecko, bo tego zapragnęłam, mimo protestów, że nie jestem dość samolubna - to był feminizm.”
Czy wiecie, że był moment, w którym z języka Siri usunięto słowo „feminizm”? „Feminizmy. Historia globalna” rozpoczyna jednak cytat pochodzący z Afryki, w którym nieznana nam autorka już 200 lat temu dawała upust swojej frustracji, która wynikała z podmiotowości kobiet względem mężczyzn. Lucy Delap wykonała żmudną pracę, by odwieść nasze spojrzenie od wyłącznie europo-amerykocentrycznego spojrzenia na feminizm. Sama przekonywałam się podczas lektury, że znam jedynie nazwiska działaczek pochodzących z Ameryki Północnej i Wielkiej Brytanii, a nie wiem nic o feminizmie np. w Azji i Afryce. Nie sposób oczywiście opisać wszystko dogłębnie, wiele jest tu wzmianek, które mogą później inspirować do dalszych poszukiwań.
Sposób odkrywania brakującej wiedzy czytelnika ułatwia sposób w jaki autorka postanowiła zestawić zebrane przez siebie historie i dane. Śledzenie ewolucji globalnych feminizmów ułatwia nam prześledzenie go dzieląc rozdziały na różne kategorie. W ten sposób w klarowny sposób zaznajamiamy się z dostępem kobiet do edukacji i prawami obywatelskimi, pacyfizmem, antyfaszyzmem, opieką społeczną, ochroną matek i dzieci, prawami pracowniczymi, ale też autonomią seksualną, udziałem kobiet w kulturze czy prawami reprodukcyjnymi. Wszystkie te ważne kwestie Delap zestawia poprzez analizę strojów, pieśni, przedmiotom, formy protestów i innych. Był to ciekawy koncept, który pozwalał na linearne śledzenie ewolucji walki kobiet o swoje prawa na całym świecie.
Język książki często ma ton naukowy, co moim zdaniem nie czyni ją jednak trudną w odbiorze, a tym bardziej nie nużącą. Sposób prezentacji tak ambitnego i wszechstronnego tematu jest podzielony w zrozumiały i przemyślany sposób, dzięki czemu czytelnik nie gubi się w meandrach wątków. Z mojej perspektywy Lucy Delap podołała ambitnemu zadaniu, które sobie zamierzyła, zaznaczając jednak, że feminizmy to organizm ciągle żywy, mimo wielokrotnych prób wyciszenia, to wciąż wybucha na różnych kontynentach, gdy sytuacja kobiet tego wymaga.
May 13, 2023
Lengvai ir smagei skaitoma feminizmo istorija. Knygoje nagrinėja feminizmą, kuris prasidėjo prie maždaug 250 metų. Puslapiuose dominuoja pagrindiniai trys žemynai, kuriuose labiausiai moterys kilo prieš patriarchatą. Labai įdomu stebėti kaip su laikotarpiais keitėsi tikslo siekimo priemonės, bet ne pats tikslas - lygios lyčių teisės.
January 9, 2022
"Feminizmas siekia sąjungos, kuriai priklausytų daugiau nei pusė žmonijos. Tokias ambicijas puoselėjančio judėjimo žmonijos istorijoje, ko gero, dar nebuvo", - rašo Lucy Delap. Knygoj ji ne tik aprašo skirtingose pasaulio vietose gyvavusius feminizmus, bet ir tai, kaip sudėtinga jiems į tą vieną sąjungą susiburti (dėl rasinių, klasinių skirtumų, istorinių aplinkybių, ideologijų ir t.t.).
Feminizmą Delap siekia nupasakoti kaip mozaiką, susidedančią iš nuolatos besikeičiančių fragmentų ir šukių. Todėl vienoje pastraipoje randi XIX. Vokietiją, kitoje - XX a. pr. Japoniją, kažkur skaitai apie FEMEN (beje, buvai primiršęs!), kitur apie maorių drabužių reformos šalininkes ir t. t. Čia nerasite to istorinio linijinio pasakojimo apie feminizmo bangas. Vietoje jo - fragmentų dėliojimas į skirtingus pasakojimo rėmus: svajonių, idėjų, erdvės, objektų, išvaizdos ir kt. temas - taip užvadinti ir knygos skyriai. Delap rašo, kad šios temos - kaip cementas feminizmui, suteikiantis bendrą kontekstą šiaip jau labai skirtingoms kryptims.
Pats esu nemažai paskyręs laiko feminizmo istorijos studijavimui ir kiekvieną tokią knygą imu su dideliu entuziazmu - visada įdomu tiek naujų faktų, asmenybių atradimas, tiek pati autorės (-iaus) prieiga prie jų. Ši knyga man pačiam labiau suskambėjo enciklopediškai - kaip įdomių šaltinių visuma. Atradau negirdėtų faktų (pvz., ar girdėjote apie sufražisčių pardavinėtą "Lygybės arbatą"? arba JAV moterų teisių aktyvistę Lietuvos žydę Pauliną Newman, gimusią Kaune?). Visa knygoj sudėta medžiaga yra kaip vertingos nuorodos tolimesniam domėjimuisi. Bet ko galiausiai pritrūko - kad knyga "kvėpuotų", būtų gyvesnė: gal asmeninio priėjimo (užsimena, bet neišvysto), gal stipresnių storytellingo segmentų, gal vietomis mažesnio detalumo. Žodžiu, kažko, kas paverstų knygą labiau paskaitomą (juolab, kad ir apimtis nemaža).
Sunku pasakyti, kiek ji tinkama pirmai pažinčiai su tema. Jaučiu, kad gali būti rimtas iššūkis, tiek dėl akademinio, enciklopedinio knygos stiliaus, tiek dėl struktūros. Knyga originaliai leista Pelican books, vadinasi, norėta akademiniu tekstu pasiekti platesnes auditorijas, bet, pvz., sprendžiant iš goodreads platformos, kol kas sekasi nelengvai. Turbūt rekomenduočiau imti į rankas jau šiek tiek susipažinus su kanonine feminizmo istorija, kad būtų aiškiau, kodėl jos čia atsisakoma.
Galvojau dar ir apie tai, kad šioje knygoje garbingą vietą laisvai galėtų užimti ir mūsų istorinės feministės - Felicija Bortkevičienė, Petkevičaitė-Bitė, bet vis dar, matyt, nepasiekėm feminizmo istorikų ausų.
P.S. Vertimo siuprizas: Havelock Ellis pristatytas kaip mokslininkė. 🙂
Leidyklos Alma Littera dovana.
Feminizmą Delap siekia nupasakoti kaip mozaiką, susidedančią iš nuolatos besikeičiančių fragmentų ir šukių. Todėl vienoje pastraipoje randi XIX. Vokietiją, kitoje - XX a. pr. Japoniją, kažkur skaitai apie FEMEN (beje, buvai primiršęs!), kitur apie maorių drabužių reformos šalininkes ir t. t. Čia nerasite to istorinio linijinio pasakojimo apie feminizmo bangas. Vietoje jo - fragmentų dėliojimas į skirtingus pasakojimo rėmus: svajonių, idėjų, erdvės, objektų, išvaizdos ir kt. temas - taip užvadinti ir knygos skyriai. Delap rašo, kad šios temos - kaip cementas feminizmui, suteikiantis bendrą kontekstą šiaip jau labai skirtingoms kryptims.
Pats esu nemažai paskyręs laiko feminizmo istorijos studijavimui ir kiekvieną tokią knygą imu su dideliu entuziazmu - visada įdomu tiek naujų faktų, asmenybių atradimas, tiek pati autorės (-iaus) prieiga prie jų. Ši knyga man pačiam labiau suskambėjo enciklopediškai - kaip įdomių šaltinių visuma. Atradau negirdėtų faktų (pvz., ar girdėjote apie sufražisčių pardavinėtą "Lygybės arbatą"? arba JAV moterų teisių aktyvistę Lietuvos žydę Pauliną Newman, gimusią Kaune?). Visa knygoj sudėta medžiaga yra kaip vertingos nuorodos tolimesniam domėjimuisi. Bet ko galiausiai pritrūko - kad knyga "kvėpuotų", būtų gyvesnė: gal asmeninio priėjimo (užsimena, bet neišvysto), gal stipresnių storytellingo segmentų, gal vietomis mažesnio detalumo. Žodžiu, kažko, kas paverstų knygą labiau paskaitomą (juolab, kad ir apimtis nemaža).
Sunku pasakyti, kiek ji tinkama pirmai pažinčiai su tema. Jaučiu, kad gali būti rimtas iššūkis, tiek dėl akademinio, enciklopedinio knygos stiliaus, tiek dėl struktūros. Knyga originaliai leista Pelican books, vadinasi, norėta akademiniu tekstu pasiekti platesnes auditorijas, bet, pvz., sprendžiant iš goodreads platformos, kol kas sekasi nelengvai. Turbūt rekomenduočiau imti į rankas jau šiek tiek susipažinus su kanonine feminizmo istorija, kad būtų aiškiau, kodėl jos čia atsisakoma.
Galvojau dar ir apie tai, kad šioje knygoje garbingą vietą laisvai galėtų užimti ir mūsų istorinės feministės - Felicija Bortkevičienė, Petkevičaitė-Bitė, bet vis dar, matyt, nepasiekėm feminizmo istorikų ausų.
P.S. Vertimo siuprizas: Havelock Ellis pristatytas kaip mokslininkė. 🙂
Leidyklos Alma Littera dovana.
January 7, 2023
Ozdrojované, hutné dějiny třech století aktivismu, přesto je to stále populárně naučné a přístupné. Četla jsem dlouho, k odstavcům se vracela a některé kapitoly mě táhly více než jiné, ale cítím se obohacena o tolik nových informací - a to napříč celou zeměkoulí.
Obzvlášť zajímavé mi přišly části Předměty, Vzhled, Prostory, Činy a Písně (ty jsem vůbec nečekala, že by mě mohly tak zaujmout, ale jo).
S klidem doporučuji.
Obzvlášť zajímavé mi přišly části Předměty, Vzhled, Prostory, Činy a Písně (ty jsem vůbec nečekala, že by mě mohly tak zaujmout, ale jo).
S klidem doporučuji.
July 30, 2021
I grew to appreciate this more as I read it and changed my expectations. Overall, it was an enjoyable experience, although I would have liked something with more fire to it.
"Feminism: A Global History" provided an introduction to the feminist and liberation work undertaken by women from Brazil to Japan, highlighting histories that are often ignored by mainstream histories of feminism in the West. I can also appreciate it for solidifying that there are aspects of history that keep repeating themselves. For instance, I didn't know that feminists in Chicago had tried to institute a single-sex "co-working" space (to borrow a contemporary phrase) in the 1960s that bore a striking resemblance to The Wing, from its mission statement, to its practices that foregrounded a feminism that was out of touch with the needs of poor women and women of color.
In principle, I agree with Delap's argument that the fight for women's liberation has never been ideologically cohesive and had to adapt to the needs of individual actors over time and space. But something about this book felt toothless to me. Part of it is this need to address every single issue under the sun, the many caveats, the talk about how men had helped women too (though there were few examples of that in the book). It made it feel too safe for a book that focused on women risking their very lives to bring about radical change.
Plus, in focusing only on women's actions and agency within the narrow constraints of a patriarchal and capitalist system, it failed to address in any meaningful way the systemic issue and power dynamics that informed women's options and actions. And while it is true that women had different demands for equality and liberation given their specific circumstances, Delap's refusal to provide an ideological framework for feminism leaves a burning question unanswered: why focus on women specifically? I know this sounds rather convoluted, or circular in its reasoning, but any discussion of feminism that doesn't address that is bound to feel weak.
Delap addresses this in her conclusion, but to me this book seemed to be less about the diverging demands of women over spaces and time, and more about the way feminist ideas travel and how women have managed to inspire and help each other despite living far apart-both in spatial and temporal terms. Considering how little work there is on the intellectual history of feminist thought, this feels like a missed opportunity.
Not an unenjoyable book. But it felt both too broad for someone who might know some of the topics it addresses in depth, and a bit overwhelming with new names and contexts if you are not used to it.
"Feminism: A Global History" provided an introduction to the feminist and liberation work undertaken by women from Brazil to Japan, highlighting histories that are often ignored by mainstream histories of feminism in the West. I can also appreciate it for solidifying that there are aspects of history that keep repeating themselves. For instance, I didn't know that feminists in Chicago had tried to institute a single-sex "co-working" space (to borrow a contemporary phrase) in the 1960s that bore a striking resemblance to The Wing, from its mission statement, to its practices that foregrounded a feminism that was out of touch with the needs of poor women and women of color.
In principle, I agree with Delap's argument that the fight for women's liberation has never been ideologically cohesive and had to adapt to the needs of individual actors over time and space. But something about this book felt toothless to me. Part of it is this need to address every single issue under the sun, the many caveats, the talk about how men had helped women too (though there were few examples of that in the book). It made it feel too safe for a book that focused on women risking their very lives to bring about radical change.
Plus, in focusing only on women's actions and agency within the narrow constraints of a patriarchal and capitalist system, it failed to address in any meaningful way the systemic issue and power dynamics that informed women's options and actions. And while it is true that women had different demands for equality and liberation given their specific circumstances, Delap's refusal to provide an ideological framework for feminism leaves a burning question unanswered: why focus on women specifically? I know this sounds rather convoluted, or circular in its reasoning, but any discussion of feminism that doesn't address that is bound to feel weak.
Delap addresses this in her conclusion, but to me this book seemed to be less about the diverging demands of women over spaces and time, and more about the way feminist ideas travel and how women have managed to inspire and help each other despite living far apart-both in spatial and temporal terms. Considering how little work there is on the intellectual history of feminist thought, this feels like a missed opportunity.
Not an unenjoyable book. But it felt both too broad for someone who might know some of the topics it addresses in depth, and a bit overwhelming with new names and contexts if you are not used to it.
September 19, 2020
Unlike earlier books that traced the origins of feminism to a small group of white women from Western Europe and the United States, this book offers a truly global history of feminisms. The "s" at the end of feminism is a critical inclusion by Lucy Delap, a reader of British and Gender history at Cambridge University, as it attests to the author's awareness of the ambivalence of the term and the problematic content of past and present feminist agendas that have demanded "the radical transformation of exclusionary structures" even as those agendas have advanced their own forms of marginalization. It also highlights the author's commitment to avoiding the trap of assuming that feminism should and did look the same in all places at all times. Because the book is organized thematically, rather than by geographic space, the reader is treated not only to a "pluralized picture" of feminist movements, but one in which the "discrepant histories of different women's movements" in for example Russia, India, England, and Brazil are juxtaposed and the points of contact and conflict between them exposed.
My one critique is that on rare occasions the author drew conclusions that did not necessarily follow from the evidence. This was particularly the case in the first chapter in which the author offered interpretations of the nocturnal dreams of feminists as if no other interpretation was possible. But this one critique should not detract from what is otherwise a very readable and thought-provoking global account of women's struggles since the nineteenth century.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author of this book for an advance copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.
My one critique is that on rare occasions the author drew conclusions that did not necessarily follow from the evidence. This was particularly the case in the first chapter in which the author offered interpretations of the nocturnal dreams of feminists as if no other interpretation was possible. But this one critique should not detract from what is otherwise a very readable and thought-provoking global account of women's struggles since the nineteenth century.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author of this book for an advance copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.
August 25, 2020
A wonderful and unique look at feminism, I was hooked by this book from the very start, counting myself as a feminist I was so eager to read this. I loved the fact this looks at feminism globally rather than just the westernised ideal and focused on everyone, how your idea of feminism may not be another’s. It’s an enlightening read and definitely needs to be widely available, I’d hope schools and libraries would buy this.its well presented, the author has a wonderful accessible and inclusive writing style. A must read for all.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
Read
August 26, 2022Tw: descriptive anti-trans rhetoric
Parts of three anti-trans discourses were present in the last chapter with little critic or discussion around them. Was this really necessary? I don’t know, as I don’t really know if the author agrees with them or not. Very disappointed to be hit with terf discourses in the last part of the last chapter of an overall ok book on feminism, but not surprised.
April 29, 2022
Feminisms: A Global History traces feminist thought and activism through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The book is organised thematically, each chapter has a somewhat abstract title like 'Touch', 'Speech', or 'Dreams'. However, I didn't feel that Delap really developed enough on the idea to justify it being something other than a gimmick. Chapters often feel like a whistlestop tour through things various feminists have thought in the past often without much depth beyond straight exposition so that I felt like it was only worth reading for the other books Delap references rather her own analysis.
So that my review isn't wholly negative, I appreciate Delap's inclusion of non-European and more obscure feminist thinkers outside the usual pantheon and it's written well enough - despite its heft, it's a breezy read.
The book is organised thematically, each chapter has a somewhat abstract title like 'Touch', 'Speech', or 'Dreams'. However, I didn't feel that Delap really developed enough on the idea to justify it being something other than a gimmick. Chapters often feel like a whistlestop tour through things various feminists have thought in the past often without much depth beyond straight exposition so that I felt like it was only worth reading for the other books Delap references rather her own analysis.
So that my review isn't wholly negative, I appreciate Delap's inclusion of non-European and more obscure feminist thinkers outside the usual pantheon and it's written well enough - despite its heft, it's a breezy read.
March 31, 2022
Wie hat sich der Feminismus auf der ganzen Welt entwickelt, was haben Feministinnen erreicht und was können wir heute aus der globalen Geschichte des Feminismus lernen? Diesen Fragen widmet sich die Historikerin Lucy Delap in ihrem Werk “So sieht Feminismus aus”, das 250 Jahre profunder Analyse des Feminismus in Afrika, Asien, Australasien, Amerika und Europa umfasst. Vom Frauenaktivismus während der Meiji-Zeit in Japan über die philippinischen Kampagnen für das Wahlrecht nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg, die von Frauen geführten Proteste gegen die britische koloniale Steuerpolitik in Nigeria im Jahr 1929 bis hin zu feministischen transnationalen Begegnungen in Lateinamerika und der Karibik in den 1980er Jahren - die Autorin zeigt die Bandbreite feministischen Denkens über die Zukunft in unterschiedlichen kulturellen, politischen und religiösen Kontexten auf.
Unterteilt in acht thematische Kapitel untersucht diese globale Geschichte den Feminismus in einem weiten Rahmen, abwechselnd zwischen Weitwinkel-Zusammenfassungen verschiedener feministischer Überzeugungen oder Kampagnen und einer fokussierteren Darstellung des Lebens einzelner Frauen, die gegen die Ungleichheit der Geschlechter kämpften.
Immer wieder macht die Autorin deutlich, dass es über Zeit und Raum hinweg kein einheitliches Verständnis von Feminismus oder Frauenbefreiung gab. Delap applaudiert jedoch nicht einfach der Pluralität und Differenz des Feminismus. In ihrer Arbeit geht sie auf die "Kämpfe, Konflikte und Machtspiele" ein, die die Kampagnen gegen die Ungerechtigkeit zwischen den Geschlechtern geprägt haben. An verschiedenen Stellen des Buches wird das gespannte Verhältnis des westlichen Feminismus zum Kolonialismus, zum orientalistischen Denken und zu rassistischen Vorurteilen aufgegriffen, die zum wiederholten Ausschluss von Frauen *of Color* und zur Marginalisierung des globalen Südens führten.
Eine sehr bereichernde Lektüre, die stellenweise im Ausmaß der Informationsmenge überwältigend sein kann. Aber es lohnt sich!
Unterteilt in acht thematische Kapitel untersucht diese globale Geschichte den Feminismus in einem weiten Rahmen, abwechselnd zwischen Weitwinkel-Zusammenfassungen verschiedener feministischer Überzeugungen oder Kampagnen und einer fokussierteren Darstellung des Lebens einzelner Frauen, die gegen die Ungleichheit der Geschlechter kämpften.
Immer wieder macht die Autorin deutlich, dass es über Zeit und Raum hinweg kein einheitliches Verständnis von Feminismus oder Frauenbefreiung gab. Delap applaudiert jedoch nicht einfach der Pluralität und Differenz des Feminismus. In ihrer Arbeit geht sie auf die "Kämpfe, Konflikte und Machtspiele" ein, die die Kampagnen gegen die Ungerechtigkeit zwischen den Geschlechtern geprägt haben. An verschiedenen Stellen des Buches wird das gespannte Verhältnis des westlichen Feminismus zum Kolonialismus, zum orientalistischen Denken und zu rassistischen Vorurteilen aufgegriffen, die zum wiederholten Ausschluss von Frauen *of Color* und zur Marginalisierung des globalen Südens führten.
Eine sehr bereichernde Lektüre, die stellenweise im Ausmaß der Informationsmenge überwältigend sein kann. Aber es lohnt sich!
November 12, 2022
Ten stars!
Extremely informative, contemporary, and a pleasure to read all the way.
I especially like how the writer tries at all times to keep her focus on "global" - I learned a lot about feminisms in underrated continents and countries.
The last chapter, about feminism in relation to sound, was the cherry on top.
Extremely informative, contemporary, and a pleasure to read all the way.
I especially like how the writer tries at all times to keep her focus on "global" - I learned a lot about feminisms in underrated continents and countries.
The last chapter, about feminism in relation to sound, was the cherry on top.
March 13, 2024
Wspaniała książka, udowadniająca, że źródła feminizmu są nie tylko na zachodzie, obalająca projekt trzech fal feminizmu, przyglądają się feminizmowi przez przedmioty, przestrzeń, pieśni... ✨️
August 26, 2023
4,5 ⭐️
April 16, 2021
While the research itself may have been good, unfortunately the bougie, feel-good, out of touch writing turned me off. First off, it's evidently not written by a feminist. As another reviewer put it, she refers to "the two sexes" and "transwomen" which any feminist should at least know is not up-to-date, inclusionary discourse. Second, as the blurb on the back about "every generous, undogmatic page" may suggest, this is written to be palatable to reactionaries. It refers to "gender injustice" instead of "gender oppression." What kind of book on feminism can't even acknowledge that women are oppressed? It starts off with all this lofty babble about dreams... We became feminists because we were oppressed, not (just) because we idly sat around dreaming of "utopia." She makes feminism sound like an optional and inspiring pastime rather than a struggle for liberation, and clothes it all in such "inoffensive" language to anti-feminists that it just comes off as mocking feminism. It's too bad, because the author did some things right, like acknowledging black feminism and covering feminisms all over the world.
August 26, 2020
In this of all years, this is a much-needed trot through of the history of feminism. Here, for example, the reader will discover the origin of, and the different meanings given to terms like “patriarchy”, why feminists have always placed special significance on spaces, and the views and concerns of prominent feminists on women as consumers.
A special strength of this book is the effort it makes to present the feminisms in different continents, the reader will be exposed to the ideas of Japanese, Brazilian, Nigerian, and Indian, feminists among many others.
An essential read with some good illustrations.
A special strength of this book is the effort it makes to present the feminisms in different continents, the reader will be exposed to the ideas of Japanese, Brazilian, Nigerian, and Indian, feminists among many others.
An essential read with some good illustrations.
December 20, 2020
“Feminisms” gave me a lot of new insights on the global history of feminism. At times I felt quite overwhelmed with information as this book contains a lot of it, but reading it with some breaks in between really helped keeping it interesting!
The book kind of reads like a textbook, so it’s harder to really delve into, but nevertheless it is really interesting!
The book kind of reads like a textbook, so it’s harder to really delve into, but nevertheless it is really interesting!
April 11, 2022
A book on feminism that is not racist, colonial apologist, transphobic or anti socialist. Yes, highly recommend.
April 3, 2022
Was haben Feminist:innen auf der Welt gedacht, geschrieben und erkämpft? Was können wir von früheren Feminist:innen lernen? Wie hat sich der Feminismus über die letzten Jahrzehnte und Jahrhunderte entwickelt? … 💭
Diese Fragen 💭 greift die Historikerin Luca Delap in ihrem Sachbuch «So sieht Feminismus aus. Die Geschichte einer globalen Bewegung» (übersetzt von Alexandra Hölscher, 2022; Original «Feminisms: A Global History» 2020) auf.
Dabei geht sie in 8 Kapiteln auf den Feminismus der letzten 250 Jahre auf 5 Kontinenten ein. Die Kapitel gliedern sich nach den Themen wie bspw. K1: Träume, K3: Räume und K6: Gefühle. Abgerundet wird das Sachbuch mit einem Fazit der Autorin sowie Anmerkungen, Literaturhinweisen & Stichwortverzeichnis. Es ist ein sehr wissenschaftliches und sehr fundiert recherchiertes Sachbuch. Die ausgewählten Themen werden intensiv mit Literaturauszügen von Feminist:innen bearbeitet und ausgeführt. Lucy Delap zeigt mit diesem umfassenden Sachbuch auf, dass Feminismus schon immer ein Anliegen von Menschen auf der ganzen Welt war und ist sowie, dass die Geschichte des Feminismus weit zurückreicht und in Zukunft relevant sein wird:
»[…] »Feminismus zu machen« führt nicht zu einem Endzustand, sondern ist eine Reise. Eine globale Geschichte offenbart die Tiefe, die Ausmaße und die Vielfalt der Sehnsüchte und der Entschlossenheit, Geschlechtergerechtigkeit zu erlangen.« (S. 391)
Stellenweise waren mir die Details zu den ausgewählten Personen zu ausschweifend und die Informationsquantität damit zu groß. Aufgrund der Wissenschaftlichkeit hätte ich mir mehr Begründungen für die Wahl der vorgestellten Feminist:innen sowie mehr Einordnung und Interpretation der Autorin gewünscht. Die Themen-Aufteilung nach ist passend – es gab dadurch jedoch sehr viele Zeitsprünge und Ländersprünge, bei denen ich es teilweise schwierig finde, den Überblick zu behalten.
Insgesamt ein gutes und sehr fundiertes Sachbuch zum Feminismus und dessen Entwicklung in den letzten 250 Jahren auf 5 Kontinenten 🌎🌍🌏
_______________________
What have feminists thought, written, and fought for around the world? What can we learn from earlier feminists? How has feminism evolved over the past decades and centuries? ... 💭
These are the questions 💭 historian Luca Delap tackles in her nonfiction book "This is what feminism looks like. The History of a Global Movement" (translated by Alexandra Hölscher, 2022; original "Feminisms: A Global History" 2020).
In doing so, she explores currents, thought, and documentation of feminism over the past 250 years on 5 continents in 8 chapters. The chapters are organized according to topics such as K1: Dreams, K2: Concepts, K3: Spaces and K6: Feelings. The non-fiction book is rounded off with a conclusion by the author as well as notes (=sources), references and an index. It is a very scientific and very well researched non-fiction book. The selected topics are intensively worked on and elaborated with literature excerpts from feminist:in. Lucy Delap very successfully demonstrates with this comprehensive non-fiction book that feminism has always been and continues to be a concern of people all over the world as well as that the history of feminism goes way back and will be relevant in the future:
"[...] "Making Feminism" does not lead to an end state, but is a journey. A global history reveals the depth, extent, and diversity of aspirations and determination to achieve gender justice." (S. 391)
In places, I found the details about the selected individuals too extravagant and thus the quantity of information too great. Due to the scholarly nature, I would have liked to see more justifications for the choice of the presented feminists as well as more classification and interpretation by the author. The division of topics by is appropriate - however, there were a lot of time jumps and country jumps, in which I find it difficult to keep track.
Overall, a good and very well-founded non-fiction book on feminism and its development over the past 250 years on 5 continents 🌎🌍🌏
Diese Fragen 💭 greift die Historikerin Luca Delap in ihrem Sachbuch «So sieht Feminismus aus. Die Geschichte einer globalen Bewegung» (übersetzt von Alexandra Hölscher, 2022; Original «Feminisms: A Global History» 2020) auf.
Dabei geht sie in 8 Kapiteln auf den Feminismus der letzten 250 Jahre auf 5 Kontinenten ein. Die Kapitel gliedern sich nach den Themen wie bspw. K1: Träume, K3: Räume und K6: Gefühle. Abgerundet wird das Sachbuch mit einem Fazit der Autorin sowie Anmerkungen, Literaturhinweisen & Stichwortverzeichnis. Es ist ein sehr wissenschaftliches und sehr fundiert recherchiertes Sachbuch. Die ausgewählten Themen werden intensiv mit Literaturauszügen von Feminist:innen bearbeitet und ausgeführt. Lucy Delap zeigt mit diesem umfassenden Sachbuch auf, dass Feminismus schon immer ein Anliegen von Menschen auf der ganzen Welt war und ist sowie, dass die Geschichte des Feminismus weit zurückreicht und in Zukunft relevant sein wird:
»[…] »Feminismus zu machen« führt nicht zu einem Endzustand, sondern ist eine Reise. Eine globale Geschichte offenbart die Tiefe, die Ausmaße und die Vielfalt der Sehnsüchte und der Entschlossenheit, Geschlechtergerechtigkeit zu erlangen.« (S. 391)
Stellenweise waren mir die Details zu den ausgewählten Personen zu ausschweifend und die Informationsquantität damit zu groß. Aufgrund der Wissenschaftlichkeit hätte ich mir mehr Begründungen für die Wahl der vorgestellten Feminist:innen sowie mehr Einordnung und Interpretation der Autorin gewünscht. Die Themen-Aufteilung nach ist passend – es gab dadurch jedoch sehr viele Zeitsprünge und Ländersprünge, bei denen ich es teilweise schwierig finde, den Überblick zu behalten.
Insgesamt ein gutes und sehr fundiertes Sachbuch zum Feminismus und dessen Entwicklung in den letzten 250 Jahren auf 5 Kontinenten 🌎🌍🌏
_______________________
What have feminists thought, written, and fought for around the world? What can we learn from earlier feminists? How has feminism evolved over the past decades and centuries? ... 💭
These are the questions 💭 historian Luca Delap tackles in her nonfiction book "This is what feminism looks like. The History of a Global Movement" (translated by Alexandra Hölscher, 2022; original "Feminisms: A Global History" 2020).
In doing so, she explores currents, thought, and documentation of feminism over the past 250 years on 5 continents in 8 chapters. The chapters are organized according to topics such as K1: Dreams, K2: Concepts, K3: Spaces and K6: Feelings. The non-fiction book is rounded off with a conclusion by the author as well as notes (=sources), references and an index. It is a very scientific and very well researched non-fiction book. The selected topics are intensively worked on and elaborated with literature excerpts from feminist:in. Lucy Delap very successfully demonstrates with this comprehensive non-fiction book that feminism has always been and continues to be a concern of people all over the world as well as that the history of feminism goes way back and will be relevant in the future:
"[...] "Making Feminism" does not lead to an end state, but is a journey. A global history reveals the depth, extent, and diversity of aspirations and determination to achieve gender justice." (S. 391)
In places, I found the details about the selected individuals too extravagant and thus the quantity of information too great. Due to the scholarly nature, I would have liked to see more justifications for the choice of the presented feminists as well as more classification and interpretation by the author. The division of topics by is appropriate - however, there were a lot of time jumps and country jumps, in which I find it difficult to keep track.
Overall, a good and very well-founded non-fiction book on feminism and its development over the past 250 years on 5 continents 🌎🌍🌏
November 19, 2020
I read about Feminism for my own knowledge and this book gave me a global history of the feminist movement that is required. The fact Lucy Delap is. White feminist academic was not lost on me as being the author of a book examining the global perspective. It will lead be to more resources to broaden my reading.
It is a book that reads as. textbook, it is set out in chapters relating to Feminism in relation to Dreams, Ideas, Space, Objects, Looks,, Feelings, Actions and Songs, rather than a chronological history. This style worked well for me and you could dip into the areas of your interest for research.
Overall I enjoyed the book and gained insight. I do feel that it could be more diverse with regards transwomen to be discussed within the text. I would recommend as a history of feminism to anyone interested in a starting point to develop their understanding.
I was gifted an eARC of the book University of Chicago Press via NetGalley for an honest review.
It is a book that reads as. textbook, it is set out in chapters relating to Feminism in relation to Dreams, Ideas, Space, Objects, Looks,, Feelings, Actions and Songs, rather than a chronological history. This style worked well for me and you could dip into the areas of your interest for research.
Overall I enjoyed the book and gained insight. I do feel that it could be more diverse with regards transwomen to be discussed within the text. I would recommend as a history of feminism to anyone interested in a starting point to develop their understanding.
I was gifted an eARC of the book University of Chicago Press via NetGalley for an honest review.
June 9, 2022
Still, there is no good, informative intellectual history of feminism(s). Delap's book is good, but it's not that; it's essayistic, in a good way, but not (meant to be) cohesive. It is admirably broad, well written, thoughtful, and informative. Hopefully someone soon will write a more linear, traditional history to sit next to this one and join the (wonderful) dots together.
April 14, 2022
Schafft einen großartigen ein- und Überblick über die gesamte Geschichte der Bewegung
May 28, 2022
Sehr informativ und mit intersektionalem Ansatz. Leider haben mir ein paar wichtige Theorien und auch Hintergründe zu feministischen Strömungen der letzten 20 Jahre gefehlt.
February 23, 2023
read this towards my degree, it contains some really helpful insights into feminist ideology through acts, historical writing and popular culture.
November 24, 2020
Pretty tough read because of the overwhelming info, but here's one favorite quote: "Claiming and creating spaces has been a core feminist activity, though the spaces that resulted have not been free of boundary work and policing."
September 11, 2022
I'm kind of freaking out, because I'm starting my Masters (in gender studies) in a month. So... I'm reading a lot of feminist books. ... I read this one on audio, so I don't really remember as much as I would like to. (I listened to a biggest chunk while cleaning our kitchen... I'm enjoying the beautiful irony of listening to feminist ideas while doing chores way too much...)
1.First of all, I need to appreciate the unbelievable amount of work that had to go into this book. The scape is unbelievable. The amount of cultures and countries mentioned is massive. Delap usually uses some US/British/other well known persons/events/etc. to mirror the lesser known parts of the movement(s) all around the world. Which might seem as undermining the point of the book, but I actually found it very useful as solid points to take hold of her meanings.
2.Delap is pretty good (as far as I can tell) at calling out the specific feminists for their biases, but she occasionally fails. She opens the book with Adichie without mentioning that she is gender critical/trans-exclusionary feminist. She also once uses the term "born women" for describing cis-women (which isn't ideal) and closes the book with saying that the clashing currents of feminisms are good for the movement - with which I can generally agree, but when put in practice means that trans-exclusionary feminism is bringing something good to the movements with which I can't agree. To be completely clear, I don't think that Delap is transphobic in any way, she is openly supportive of trans rights in this work, she just isn't as mindful of the subject as I would have liked - especially since she is (as far as I can tell) diligent when it comes to racism and colonialism. (No one is perfect. It's fine. I just wanted to leave it out there. Edit: A lot of other reviewers are commenting on this, some of them calling her transphobic, which I think isn't entirely fair, but she didn't really do her homework on the subject properly.)
3.The whole book is of course very selective - in its themes and the people it chooses to represent, but Delap reflects on that and I can't possibly see how it could have been done differently. There were sections I wasn't the biggest fan of - the celebration of tampons (? this seems very American, idk) and eventually sea sponges, like... no, thank you. The menstrual products are an important feminist theme, but the take here felt a bit useless. I liked the mention of use of tampons in art/fashion though because I didn't hear about that before.
4. This book also gave me some interesting thoughts on calling someone "feminist" vs. "an ally". It firmly stands on the position that men can be feminists too - with which I theoretically agree, but sometimes in practice... it seems, just strange (I don't know). The idea of calling oneself a feminist ally while dealing with issues that really don't affect me is kind of appealing to me... (Have to thought more on that...
I am absolutely sure I wanted to mention some more of my brain farts, but I can't remember now, so... I'm just going to post this and edit it in later, because this review is a mess anyway 😅😂
The point is, would absolutely recommend this book!
1.First of all, I need to appreciate the unbelievable amount of work that had to go into this book. The scape is unbelievable. The amount of cultures and countries mentioned is massive. Delap usually uses some US/British/other well known persons/events/etc. to mirror the lesser known parts of the movement(s) all around the world. Which might seem as undermining the point of the book, but I actually found it very useful as solid points to take hold of her meanings.
2.Delap is pretty good (as far as I can tell) at calling out the specific feminists for their biases, but she occasionally fails. She opens the book with Adichie without mentioning that she is gender critical/trans-exclusionary feminist. She also once uses the term "born women" for describing cis-women (which isn't ideal) and closes the book with saying that the clashing currents of feminisms are good for the movement - with which I can generally agree, but when put in practice means that trans-exclusionary feminism is bringing something good to the movements with which I can't agree. To be completely clear, I don't think that Delap is transphobic in any way, she is openly supportive of trans rights in this work, she just isn't as mindful of the subject as I would have liked - especially since she is (as far as I can tell) diligent when it comes to racism and colonialism. (No one is perfect. It's fine. I just wanted to leave it out there. Edit: A lot of other reviewers are commenting on this, some of them calling her transphobic, which I think isn't entirely fair, but she didn't really do her homework on the subject properly.)
3.The whole book is of course very selective - in its themes and the people it chooses to represent, but Delap reflects on that and I can't possibly see how it could have been done differently. There were sections I wasn't the biggest fan of - the celebration of tampons (? this seems very American, idk) and eventually sea sponges, like... no, thank you. The menstrual products are an important feminist theme, but the take here felt a bit useless. I liked the mention of use of tampons in art/fashion though because I didn't hear about that before.
4. This book also gave me some interesting thoughts on calling someone "feminist" vs. "an ally". It firmly stands on the position that men can be feminists too - with which I theoretically agree, but sometimes in practice... it seems, just strange (I don't know). The idea of calling oneself a feminist ally while dealing with issues that really don't affect me is kind of appealing to me... (Have to thought more on that...
I am absolutely sure I wanted to mention some more of my brain farts, but I can't remember now, so... I'm just going to post this and edit it in later, because this review is a mess anyway 😅😂
The point is, would absolutely recommend this book!
January 6, 2023
Lucy Delap's historical analysis of feminist movements around the world is highly educating and entertaining at the same time. Her approach on intersectional perspectives was especially well done when she talks about the early 20th century, where feminist movements often were not sensitive towards issues linked to class and race. I would have wished to read more about how this transpires until today.
Sadly, the oppression of trans women is mentioned only in the margins. Even then the wording was rather off (calling cis women "born-women"). To me it seemed like she just tried to squeeze a few words about trans people in, I didn't feel like she was genuinely interested in mentioning the struggles of them at all.
Overall an okay introduction to the historical development of different feminisms.
Sadly, the oppression of trans women is mentioned only in the margins. Even then the wording was rather off (calling cis women "born-women"). To me it seemed like she just tried to squeeze a few words about trans people in, I didn't feel like she was genuinely interested in mentioning the struggles of them at all.
Overall an okay introduction to the historical development of different feminisms.
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