How My Project Relates to Themes Studied in Class

One way my project on the different waves of feminism relates to the Women and
Gender Studies 200 course is specifically because of the reading that we had called
Second and Third Wave Feminists Clash over the Future by Jennifer Friedlin. In this
reading there were many comparisons between the second and third waves of
feminists, but I decided to talk about the first, second, and third. Not only does my
project discuss the waves of feminism, but it also discusses the term feminism itself.
Due to this term being so difficult to define, I decided to use one of the definitions from
the book Threshold Concepts in Womens and Gender Studies. Although most of my
project consisted of brief historical descriptions and images, it also contained a timeline
of each wave showing the improvements and accomplishments the feminists made. In
Topic 3 of our class we focused on the history of the Womens Movements and how
gender inequality persisted throughout all waves of feminism. The theme for my topic is
that also from Topic 3 which is: American Feminism as a social movement.
Another theme that my project relates to is the problem of privilege and
oppression. In todays modern society there are still many conflicts of privileges and
oppression between different races, genders, and sexes. Throughout my discussion of
the different waves of feminism, it is easy to observe the differences of privileges and
oppression from the first wave to the third wave. Although many rights were gained
throughout, it is evident that there is plenty of work left to do before equality is reached.
One of my favorite quotes from my project was said by Jennifer Baumgardner in the
class reading Second and Third Wave Feminists Clash Over the Future in which she
was defending herself from critical second wave feminists in which she said, Im

surprised by the amount of people who were really innovative in their youth and refuse
to see innovation in the youth. This really relates to the theme of privilege and
oppression because one must understand both sides and how each communicates to
others on a daily basis. This is because there will always be people who are unaware of
their privileges but that does not change anything because as Launius and Hassel said,
for every type of oppression, a corresponding set of privileges exist. Which also
relates to the theme that there is unpreventable analysis towards women that we
learned about when reading about domestic abuse and body integrity.
I also mentioned Audre Lorde and her article that we read in class; I included her
information under the third wave feminism because of her stance and how it related to
my topic. Her work adds to the theme of Intersectionality and plays a role in my project
because of the ideas and beliefs that are incorporated from her texts. Additionally, I
included a timeline of the waves of feminism that have had an important impact on our
society. While progressing through my presentation youd see that during the second
wave of feminism, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is enacted, also that the first African
American woman was elected to the US House of Representatives. Continuing to the
third wave of feminism timeline Dr. Condoleezza Rice makes an appearance for
becoming the first African American female US Secretary of State. The other women
that I did not mention also support the theme of intersectionality because they all
represent difference classes, sexuality, gender, and race.
Overall, I believe that my project covered a wide range of themes that we had
throughout the course.