The Major themes in women writers: women’s rights (Feminism)

The Role of Women and Female Authors in Society

The role of women and female authors in society has shifted dramatically over the last few decades. Sojourner Truth, Harriet Jacobs, Angelina Grimke Weld, Sarah More Grimke, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were among the writers who helped to shed light on the sensitive topics that needed to be discussed within the women's rights movements. Angelina Grimke Wels noted in her appeal to other women that truth is primarily spread by speaking, publishing, and press reporting (Nagar & Amanda, 2010 p 45). Female authors banded together to advocate for women's liberation and to get their struggles to the center of the nation's consciousness through writing about feminism and women's rights. The ordinary woman of the 19the century was tasked with multiple roles. Most of them were housekeepers, caregivers, mothers, and wives. Consequently, due to their restricted roles, most women started to feel cheated. It is against this background that a voice began to arise among female writers bringing to the limelight the discontent felt by Women. Hence, the central themes in women writers focus on feminism and women’s rights.

The Influence of Feminism on Female Writing

Since the widespread of feminism, which started during the nineteenth century followed with its popularity within the twentieth century decades, an explosion of literature has been witnessed by women in every genre. An observation of female writings has indicated that theme of feminism is common in female writing. The numerous social reform organizations led by women in the nineteenth century, such as suffrage, temperance, abolition, and religious revivalism, provided female writers a forum, an audience, and background on which they air their opinions (Nagar & Amanda, 2010 p 51). While it seems that most women writers tacitly or expressly accepted the different field which was assumed of them by age, the progress of century witnessed many women start to convey their discontent in writing about relations of gender and women’s plight. Throughout the era of Victorian, the question of the right place of a woman in society and art became the topic that was hotly discussed, spurred mainly by the quick, widespread writings by women. Female writers progressively expressed their ideas and demanded more equality within in marriage, politics, law and public life.

Feminist Writing and Women's Liberation

By articulating issues of feminism, the female writers aimed to improve the quality of lives among women by defying the society’s norms based on dominance by male and subsequent women that implied the liberation of the female from the customs, rules, restrictions, and shackles of the nation. They demanded that women ought to be addressed as autonomous subjects, rather than as passive objects. Their work seeks to achieve equality between both genders in social, moral, political and economic fields. Their themes enlightened women on their rights and giving them a new identity.

Diverse Approaches to Feminist Writing

Majority of women writers were driven by the fact that the society glorified men as being physically and mentally stronger than women. Consequently, female writers attempted to offer a different opinion on these views. The feminist writers could be categorized into post-modernist, existentialism, social, psychoanalytic, radical, Marxist and liberal (Nagar & Amanda, 2010 p 65). None of these writers managed to provide a comprehensive answer to the question of feminism. However, their understanding coordination observed in their work can cause feminists to meet their objective, and assist in eradicating women suffering concretely.

Works Cited

Nagar, Richa, and Amanda Lock Swarr. Critical Transnational Feminist Praxis. Albany, State University Of New York Press, 2010,.