Abstract:
Feminism is the collection of movements aimed at defining, defending and establishing equal social, political and economic rights and opportunities for women. Feminism is focused mainly on issues of women even though some men are also victims of feminism such as gender and sexism roles. Feminist theory also emerged from feminist movements which include general theories about origins of inequality and about social constructions of gender and sex. Campaigns are going on for women’s rights by the feminist activists. The activists have opposed sexual harassment, sexual assault and domestic violence (McDonald, P. 2008).
Joseph suggests that in economics, feminist activists have for the rights of women in workplace which include equal payment and opportunities for choosing careers and to start businesses. The theoretical developments and movements were historically led by middle class women from North America and Western Europe but since then, a number of women have increasingly proposed additional feminisms. This paper analyzes the feminists’ point of view and their rights in their work places. It also reflects the situation of feminist writers and their positions in defending their rights through their articles. Most hospitals have policies of dealing with sexual harassment of which the culture admits (Joseph, J. 2009)
Noah reiterates that feminists and scholars are divided into three waves, namely; the first wave which refers to women’s suffrage movements of 19th and 20th C mainly concerned with the rights of women to vote, second phase refers to ideas and actions which are associated with women’s liberation movement which occurred in 1960’s concerned with social and legal equality for women, the third wave refers to a reaction and continuation of the perceived failures beginning in the 1990’s. Feminist theory is an extension of feminism into philosophical discourse or theoretical which aims to understand nature of gender inequality. This examines social roles of women and lived experience in variety of fields like sociology and anthropology, economics, psychoanalysis, philosophy and literally criticism. Feminist theory also focuses on analyzing sexual harassment to women, gender inequality and rights of women, issues and interests. Post-feminism describes how view points react to feminism. Post-feminists believe in one way or another that women have achieved 2rd wave goals while they are being critical of 3rd wave feminist goals. The term post-feminism was first used in 1980s describing a backlash against 2rd wave feminism. Female employees have been sexually harassed when they are at workplace. Sexual harassment is unwanted sexual attention (Noah, Y. 2008)
The aims and attitudes that have propelled and informed feminist philosophy have been consequential for studying disability in philosophy. Women have been excluded from philosophical tradition which has made feminist thinkers to remedy indifference to how the world is experienced by most women including disabilities. Some theoretical feminists have argued that men cannot embrace women without harassing them. Some have questioned important textures and dimensions of women’s lives and disregarded their standard discerns. Several overlapping feminist ideologies have developed for many years. Such ideologies include; liberal feminism, socialist feminism, conservative feminism and womanism. Feminists agree that rape is wrong, too often ignored, legitimized and mischaracterized (Whisnant, R. 2009)
Hearn weighs the contributions of various feminist writers. For instance, the book “Rethinking Organization and Managerial Communications from Feminist Perspectives” reflects managerial and organization theories practice and research from multiple feminisms. In the first part, the Author reflects the theoretical analyses that extend and reconceptualizes in the people’s thinking concerning organization and work processes. The initial chapters alternatively propose public-private discourse views, socialization processes, stake holder ethics and negotiation through contrasting, the traditional approaches with values of feminism. The second part represents the voices of women through poems, interview excerpts, diary entries and the use of stories by exploring ways through which the ordinary lives portray the missing facets and at the same time nuances managerial and organizational communication work. The third part reflects the chapters reconstructing managerial and organizational constructs. The authors in this book not only give the alternative reconceptualizations, but, they also propose specific long-term strategies and tactics that are devised from feminism for revising managerial and organizational communication practices as well as processes. The final section draws the book’s themes together but at the same time encouraging an uncontinued dialogue on critical issues (Hearn, J. 2006)
Also, in “Gender in Applied Communication Contexts” the book explores the integrations and intersections and intersections concerning the feminist theories as applied to four important sections:
Organizational communications,
Instructional communication and
Family communication.
From these collections of readings, there are links of theoretical insights as well as the contributions of pragmatic means of reforming the many lives of women and men in a variety of personal and professional situations.
Some of the features in the text include:
The extensive use of narratives. The situations which are described in these chapters by the authors are the ones which have been occasionally confronted by family members, students, friends and scholars in daily life: They encompass sexual harassment, cancer, disability, and application of non-verbal and verbal communication in learning, Aids, cancer, work/life balance and telecommuting.
Strong framing pedagogy. The top scholars discuss in each part of the introduction what is pragmatically and theoretically. The more significant thing is how the ideas can be extended.
Applied communication approach. The text here applies the feminist theories to construction analyses of realistic interventions by achieving a lot of work place equity health outcome for women.
Cutting edge, original academic work. The entire text and its chapters are absolutely original. The theoretical contributions which have not yet been published at all, therefore providing students access to the utmost contemporary research and thinking in the field (Levenson, S. 2006)
According to Anderson, clear and accessible writing styles unlock feminist theory’s power. Some academic feminists are of the idea that clearly articulated ideas reforms the world. These feminist feel that the theory should be measured against its own ability towards the contribution to social change. Less than their work anything would merely look academic. The accessible language politics has been severely criticized by some feminists exactly because their desires to appeal into intramural potential readers as appeared to be overshadowing the extramural change commitment. Lather’s application in his article “Troubling Clarity” of dense prose denies categorically the equal access to interesting ideas that their complicated style of writing encompasses. Lather responds to a call for clarity and defends her complex writing skills and styles as she writes an article of “In the Halls of High Theory”. She defends her position by saying that academic feminists cannot do everything and the women struggle on every point demands contestation. The call for clarity makes sense if someone is willing to assume that theoretic feminist practices should have real social consequences for practices outside academia. One has to believe that feminist theory should be more stable than mere believes. The academic theory has an ideal foundation which lies at the work of Lather which seems strange at odds with poststructuralist. Our goal is to persuade these ideas out of hiding places by differing with connections between extramural social change and academic feminists. We should focus on academic and theory and conclude that the extramural theoretical effect is rare whereas other feminists’ effects are more widespread (Anderson, H. 2010)
Clegg suggests that the idea that feminist theory unlocks practice is a belief for those women who play in field of education. In academia there is a greater pressure for theorists and researchers to turn their beliefs into rules and methods to be allowed by others. Narrative of transformation which is associated with theoretical conversions has been found to be intensely productive and powerful for most educational theorists. Feminists have challenged gate keeping activities and have stretched the membership rules, common academic adages, bent and stretched bent. Feminist work is governed by normative principles, constraints and preferences which make academia to be acceptable. Feminists can do extramural work and they can protest against build community alliance, social injustices or they can help the weak women against the strong. When they engage in those works, they can simply exchange the horizon-bound condition for other horizon-bound condition of academia. This does not mean that there are no common exchanges between extramural and intramural practices and also no re-describing and metaphorical re-tropings but it means that the academia is being stable. Some feminists suggest that the instability can be a source of academic identity. Feminists’ theory talk may also gain interest when it is rhetorically powerful to the extent of being persuasive. Feminists’ vocabularies in education are becoming increasingly normative. It is becoming difficult through the forces of feminist theory and it has gradually chipped away from older masculinist. Feminists should abandon vocabulary of high-wire theory which is accessible for more women. According to Weiner’s point of view, Lather has failed the tests of women’s common way of reading but she dismisses Weiner’s rule of belonging. Her hope is to expand the meaning of this rule and allow different ways of writing to the world (Clegg, S. 2005)
According Australian Human Rights Commission Work showed how sexual harassment is practiced. The Commission promotes law reforms which provide better protection from the sexual harassment. Sexual harassment remains a threat in workplaces. A national survey that was conducted by Australian Human Rights Commission found out that twenty two percent of females and five percent of males experienced sexual harassment in workplace in 2008 compared to twenty eight percent of females and seven percent of males in 2008 (hereoc.gov. 2008).
The following chart shows a Working Women’s EEO related Claims to the Preferential Governments in Australia in 2008)
Conclusion:
Women are the most beautiful creatures in this world and we appreciate that. Women are our mothers, and our sisters and they deserve to be accorded all the respect. In our modern world, women have advanced to higher levels where many men have failed to reach. Feminist writers have all the rights to express themselves and they also deserve to be promoted in terms of finance and the articles which they publish. Despite all these, women should not forget the fact that man is the most superior creature as compared to a woman and he also deserves his respect. The truth of the matter remains very clear that there is no single day a man can be equal to a woman. By so saying, I o not mean that men should treat women with contempt but respect. It is also of paramount importance for feminist writers to consider spreading positive messages rather than hate speech against men and through that, they will earn the respect they deserve. Feminist writers have done a lot and they deserve to be awarded but we cannot run away from the fact that there are a few who are sullying the good name of feminists (Noah, Y. 2008)
Works Cited
Anderson, H. (2010): Harvard Education Review. Retrieved 23rd March 23, 2011 from http://www.hepg.org/her/abstract/218
Clegg, S. (2005): Studying Organization Theory and Method. California: Sage Publications.
Hearn, J. (2006): Organizational Studies. UK: Sage Pub.
Hughes, M. (1992): Rethinking Organization. New Delhi: Sage Publications.
Joseph, J. (2009): Call It What It Is: Sexual Harassment. Association of American Medical Colleges Publishers.
Noah, Y. (2008): Experience of sexual harassment at work by female
Employees in a Nigerian work environment. Academic journals.
Levenson, S. (2006): Sexual Harassment or Consensual Sexual Relations? Implications for Social Work Education. White Hat communications.
Whisnant, R. (2009): Feminist Perspectives on Rape.
Hereoc.gov. (2008): Sexual harassment in Australia. Australian Human Rights Commission.
