Media Representations of Women

There are a number of historical events and periods that ultimately led to the second wave of feminism. These began, as discussed in Miss Representation, as early as the 1940s, when women who had found employment during World War ll were forced to leave their jobs when the war ended and the men who usually held them returned. Many women were extremely frustrated at the loss of this ability to provide for the family, and their resistance spurred additional restrictive measures through the media; an influx of television shows during that time period emphasized the importance of the role of women in the home in an attempt to encourage disgruntled women to accept what was seen as their “rightful place”. She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry touched on this time period as well; this film also mentioned the support this idea received even from women back then. Many women interviewed did not understand the rising ideals of feminism, the need to reach outside the home or the discontent of women in general; some were even frustrated by the early women’s liberation movements.

While early feminist efforts were followed by much confusion and resistance from the general public, feminism became and increasingly popular idea as time moved on, and an increasingly publicized one as well. In the early 1960s, the first forms of birth control were approved, Betty Friedan’s famous The Feminine Mystique was published, the Equal Pay Act was passed, sex discrimination in the workplace was banned, and more, and the advances for women continued throughout the decade with the National Organization for Women and a notable increase of women in higher education and leadership positions, such as Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress. Title IX and the Roe v. Wade abortion case, as well as other gains, followed in the 1970s.

It was none too surprising that women faced large amounts of resistance, confusion and even hatred as women’s liberation became a national movement. As discussed earlier, the beginnings of the movement were met with a bafflement even among some women, as they saw the feminists as challenging what was simply a way of life. Additionally, a conservative period in the 1980s brought numerous attacks on feminism and the ideals it supported, and progress slowed. Some leaders, such as Herbert Hoover, even saw the women involved in the feminist movement as a “potential threat” to the country. Despite this, however, the second wave of feminism saw advances in women’s rights and legislation unlike any that had been seen before, as well as brought new issues to light that had not yet been in the public attention, and provided the stepping stones to the improvement of women’s rights as we see them today.

-Lindsey