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Aligarh Muslim University

Centre Malappuram

Project work of sociology

Topic: Feminism: Critical Analysis

Submitted to:- Submitted by :-

Dr.faisal K.p mohd.shah momin
Asst- professor 16ballb16
Amu-mc gj6035
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TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
Books

Article on Concept of Feminism – By Shodhganga .................................................................. 4

Chaman Nahal, “Feminism in English Fiction: Forms and Variations”, Feminism and
Recent Fiction in English (New Delhi: Prestige Books, 1991), p. 17 .................................... 4
Rao Shankar C.N, 7th edition, Pg- 813 ....................................................................................... 3
Women In Islam- Pg- 140-160 .................................................................................................. 6
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Introduction:-
It is customary everywhere to classify the human community on the basis
of sex into groups of ‘men’ and ‘women’. The biological fact of sex has
created much difference between them. The aims and objectives, desires
and aspirations, duties and responsibilities, dress style and behavioural
patterns, roles and statutes of men and women are different. No where in
the history of humanity men and women were treated alike and assigned
statuses alike. Women have not been able to lead a life exactly on par with
men in spite of their urge for equality. This does not mean that men and
women represent two different cultures as such. They represent one way of
life, one culture and one heritage.1 Many scholars & thinker believes both
men & women have their different status, role and responsibility in a
society.
The term ‘feminism’ was derived from the Latin word ‘Femina’ meaning
‘woman’ and was first used with regard to the issues of equality and
Women’s Rights Movement. Ever since antiquity, there have been women
fighting to free their half of the total population of the world from male
oppression. Feminism is neither a fad nor a logical extension of the civil
rights movement, but the protest against the legal, economic and social
restrictions on the basic rights of women which have existed throughout
history and in all civilizations. Naturally, the principles of feminism have
been articulated long ago. The definition of the term ‘feminism’ differs
from person to person.2
Chaman Nahal in his article, “Feminism in English Fiction”, defines
feminism as “a mode of existence in which the woman is free of the
dependence syndrome. There is a dependence syndrome: whether it is the
husband or the father or the community or whether it is a religious group,
ethnic group. When women free themselves of the dependence syndrome
and lead a normal life, my idea of feminism materialises.”3

1
Rao Shankar C.N, 7th edition, Pg- 813
2
Triphati Mani B.N , 10th edition Pg-576
3
Chaman Nahal, “Feminism in English Fiction: Forms and Variations”, Feminism and Recent Fiction in
English (New Delhi: Prestige Books, 1991), p. 17
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Feminism is a movement influenced by the ideas postulated, popularized

and precipitated by thinkers and authors like Alice Walker, Naomi
Littlebear, Judith Felterbey, Michele Wallace, Lillian Smith, Elaine
Showalter, Simone de Beauvoir, Kate Millett and others. It is a modern
movement expressing protest against the male domination. It provides
strategies for change. The aim of feminist is to understand women’s
oppression keeping in mind race, gender, class and sexual preference. God
created human beings and divided them into man and woman, with a few
basic differences in body and mind, and introduced an element of
irresistible attraction between the two sexes to help the process of
procreation and survival of the species. The question of man-woman
relationship did not exist in the barbaric age. It was only with the dawn of
civilization, when men began to live in groups, and latter formed families,
first matriarchal and then patriarchal, that the question arose, primarily to
determine the fatherhood of every new born baby. It was the invention of
the institution of marriage that sowed the seed of slavery for women.4

 Are Women Exceptionally delicate and weak?

According to Science and medical facts it is well proven that in
comparison to men, women have different physiology and capability
power. Even though it is well established by the religions also, according
to Islam women are much delicate and weak but rather than they are strong
in another scenario. The facts provided that women are delicate and weak
but it is not being considered as the motive for their violation of rights and
cruelty. Even though the Puranas and Dharmashastras underlined the facts
that women are required to be protected and to be taken care. Manu said
that “women must be carefully guarded at all stages in their lives”.5
The significance of the concept of feminism in modern times assumed the
higher place but rather than it is just a charade adopted by the many to
deflect the society from other major social problems. According to
scholars the idea of feminism have great scope in ancient time but have
very less impact in this modern time. As of now in India, the position of

4
Article on Concept of Feminism – By Shodhganga
5
Supra Note 1Pg- 822
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women is much appreciable as compare to old times. After the 19th century
there maybe downfall of certain practises which improvised the condition
of women in society after the British Empire in India, many ill practices
such as sati system, widow marriage etc. is being eradicated from the
society. Even though, in modern times the occurrence of concept of
feminism have been less needed in modern times because of many laws
and rights established in India and mostly because of Constitution Of
India, but despite whatever has been achieved during the past more than a
century, and despite 53 years of Independence, women’s plight in India in
general is far from satisfactory even today. Child-marriages in hundreds
are performed every year, thousands of young girl are married away by
their parents again their will, hundreds of brides are burnt alive by their in-
laws because they don't bring enough dowry, and even the custom of Sati
raises its ugly head now and then, as the incident of Rupkunvar a few
years back shows.
The woman, as a member of the family, has been protected by the father
when unmarried, by the husband after marriage and by her own ill old at
Such family system makes a woman's life apparently safe and smooth, but
in reality it makes her totally dependent and slavish, Spread of education
among girls has provided an awakening and a craving for independence
and self-reliance, which has resulted in a struggle to free themselves from
the protectoral shell of men. This has given rise to feminism and
movement s like Women's Liberation. The hankering for independence has
also led to some odd consequences. A section of women, far too zealous
than others, look upon even the natural womanly instincts as undesirable,
leading to dependence on men. They forget the basic fact that men and
women are both mutually dependent on each other. Of course, a woman,
as a person, can always aspire to be a free, self-supporting, self-satisfied
being. The trouble in our society arises when men refuse to view women
as persons and insist on their being women only. The battle for equality for
women with men is long and arduous, and it seems as if it has just begun
in earnest in India. Men are bound to try every trick to ensure perpetuation
of their age-old superiority and dominance over women. That with a
sizable number of eminent women leaders striving hard, for last several
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years, to get a one-third reservation of seats in Parliament and Assemblies

in India for women, they have not yet succeeded in getting even a draft bill
introduced in Parliament, is in itself ample proof of s total unwillingness to
permit women' s progress towards equality. Women have still to face, to
contend with, to be victims of, outdated and outmoded positively anti-
women laws and customs regarding marriage, divorce, dowry, inheritance,
abortion, rape, etc. While social progress in general and enlightened
women’s efforts in particular have succeeded in bringing about some
desirable changes in such laws and customs, still much remains to be
achieved in this direction. It appears women’s rights are nowhere in sight
in their fullest fulfilment and will not be for at least a few decades more.
What they have silently suffered for centuries -the humiliation, the
dependence and the resignation to ill-fate - have penetrated the psychology
of majority of women, illiterate as well as literate, so deep as to need
tremendous spadework from all reformers, before women’s emancipation
becomes a reality6.
Many scholars study the feminism with reference to Islam and deduce the
term Islamic Feminism – in such deduction of quranic verses with respect
of females. Islam had given the respect and rights to women at that time
when other religion treated the women as a chattel of men. During
the early days of Islam in the 7th century CE, changes in women's
rights affected marriage, divorce and inheritance7. The Oxford Dictionary
of Islam argues for a general improvement of the status of women in Arab
societies, including the prohibition of female infanticide, though some
historians believe that infanticide was practiced both before and after
Islam Islamic feminists interpret the religious texts in a feminist
perspective. They can be viewed as a branch of interpreters who ground
their arguments in Islam and its teachings, seek the full equality of women
and men in the personal and public sphere, and can include non-Muslims
in the discourse and debate8

6
Ibid at 60
7
Women In Islam- Pg- 140-160
8
Ibid
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There is contemporary difference between the positions of women in

Hinduism & Islam, from very beginning Islam has provided the rights and
equality to women in comparison to other religion. In modern times Islam
is being considered as against the rights of women. The basic need of
concept of feminism is due to the condition of women in other religion, for
example in Hinduism, Manu, the law-giver, sanctified this slavery when he
ruled in Manusmruti Woman is not entitled to freedom. There are many
other example such as, Rights of daughter to inherit the property,
Considered as chattel of their husband.

 Feminism led towards the equalise the sexes?

In most of the civilised societies of the world the general belief that males
are relatively aggressive and dominant, while females are weak and
submissive, continues to prevail. Only in the socialist countries of Eastern
Europe and Asia some formal attempts have been made to equalise the
statuses of men and women. In spite of those attempts, sex roles in these
societies, however, are not very different form the rest of the societies. In
the soviet Russia, women are encouraged to take up independent careers
and they have entered many professions which were previously dominated
by men. About ¾ of Soviet Doctors are women. But their entry into this
profession has led to the decline in the status of the doctors for they earn
less than 2/3 of the salaries of skilled non-professionals. In conclusion, it
could be said that male- dominance is the norm everywhere, although
there are many societies whose sex role arrangement are unlike our own.
Societies may struggle to minimise the difference between male- female
roles but establishing absolute equality between the two is almost
impossibility.9
In modern times the feminism is not be given such significance because
almost every country and society considered equality between men and
women, it just a tool to exbhit the situation to their course. In my view
feminism is weapon which is being used by women to diverse from any
worse situation where it is used for their benefit according to their aspects.

9
Supra note 1 –Pg 822
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