Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

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Introduction to Feminism, Topics: What Is Feminism?

Feminism is both an intellectual commitment and a political movement that seeks justice for women and the end of sexism in all forms.  However, there are many different kinds of feminism.  Feminists disagree about what sexism consists in, and what exactly ought to be done about it; they disagree about what it means to be a woman or a man and what social and political implications gender has or should have.  Nonetheless, motivated by the quest for social justice, feminist inquiry provides a wide range of perspectives on social, cultural, and political phenomena.  Important topics for feminist theory and politics include: the body, class and work, disability, the family, globalization, human rights, popular culture, race and racism, reproduction, science, the self, sex work, and sexuality.  Extended discussion of these topics is included in the sub-entries. Affirmative Action | Communitarianism | Contractarianism | Egalitarianism | Equality | Exploitation | Feminist Epistemology and Philosophy of Science | Feminist Ethics | Feminist History of Philosophy | Feminist Perspectives on the Self | Globalization | Homosexuality | Identity Politics | Justice, distributive | Justice, as a virtue | Legal Rights | Liberalism | Mill, Harriet Taylor | Mill, John Stuart
Copyright © 2002 by
 Sally Haslanger and Nancy Tuana
shaslang@mit.eduNancyTuana@newton.la.psu.edu