FEMINISM IN POPULAR CULTURE

This article presents a series of possible conceptual frames for engaging with what has come to
be known as post-feminism. It understands post-feminism to refer to an active process by which
feminist gains of the 1970s and 80s come to be undermined. It proposes that through an array of
machinations, elements of contemporary popular culture are perniciously effective in regard to this
undoing of feminism, while simultaneously appearing to be engaging in a well-informed and even well-
intended response to feminism. It then proposes that this undoing which can be perceived in the broad
cultural field is compounded by some dynamics in sociological theory which appear to be most relevant
to aspects of gender and social change. Finally it suggests that by means of the tropes of freedom and
choice which are now inextricably connected with the category of “young women,” feminism is
decisively aged and made to seem redundant. Feminism is cast into the shadows, where at best it can
expect to have some afterlife, where it might be regarded ambivalently by those young women who
must in more public venues stake a distance from it, for the sake of social and sexual recognition. I
propose a complexification then of the backlash thesis which gained currency within forms of journalism
associated with popular feminism (Susan Faludi 1992).

The backlash for Faludi was a concerted, conservative response to the achievements of
feminism. My argument is that post-feminism positively draws on and invokes feminism as that which
can be taken into account, to suggest that equality is achieved, in order to install a whole repertoire of
new meanings which emphasise that it is no longer needed, it is a spent force. This was most vivid in The
Independent (UK) newspaper column Bridget Jones’s Diary, then in the enormously successful book and
film which followed.1 For my purposes here, post-feminism permits the close examination of a number
of intersecting but also conflicting currents. It allows us to examine shifts of direction in the feminist
academy, while also taking into account the seeming repudiation of feminism within this very same
academic context by those young women who are its unruly (student) subjects. Broadly I am arguing
that for feminism to be “taken into account” it has to be understood as having already passed away. This
is a movement detectable across popular culture, a site where “power … is remade at various junctures
within everyday life, (constituting) our tenuous sense of common sense” (Judith Butler,Ernesto Laclau &
Slavoj Zizek 2000, p. 14).

Some fleeting comments in Judith Butler’s short book Antigone’s Claim (2000) suggests to me
that post-feminism can be explored through what I would describe as a “double entanglement”. This
comprises the co-existence of neo-conservative values in relation to gender, sexuality and family life (for
example, George Bush supporting the campaign to encourage chastity among young people, and in
March 2004 declaring that civilization itself depends on traditional marriage), with processes of
liberalization in regard to choice and diversity in domestic, sexual and kinship relations (for example, gay
couples now able to adopt, foster or have their own children by whatever means, and in the UK at least,
full rights to civil partnerships). It also encompasses the co-existence of feminism as at some level
transformed into a form of Gramscian common sense, while also fiercely repudiated, indeed almost
hated. The taken into accountness permits all the more thorough dismantling of feminist politics and the
discrediting of the occasionally voiced need for its renewal.

I suggest that aspects of modern mass culture are perniciously successful in undoing feminism
through a variety of machinations, while claiming to be engaged in a well-informed and perhaps well-
intended reaction to feminism. Then suggest that this undoing, which can be seen in the broader
cultural field, is exacerbated, perhaps surprisingly, in sociological ideas about gender and social
transition, such as Giddens and Beck's work, but as if feminist theory and years of women's struggles
had little role to play in these transformations. In the pages that follow, it is often suggested that
feminism is decisively aged and rendered obsolete by the tropes of equality and choice that have been
inextricably linked with the group of young people (McRobbie).

Women have come a long way in civilization, without a doubt. Women also served as inspiring
figures for the new generation, from winning the freedom to vote in 1920 to occupying honorable roles
in politics and the media. Any achievement, though, is met with criticism; the concept of feminism and
the feminist movement have long been a hot subject in popular culture. With the regression of
traditional gender stereotypes in American households, it seems that women are taking a huge step
forward for mankind. However, the question of whether women should really go against the grain of
what was once considered natural remains to be debated. Feminism is also a touchy topic, whether it's
in music, film, or campaigning.

Beyonce, a well-known feminist in the music industry, has used her track Run the World (Girls)
from her album 4 to shine a strong light on women and feminism. The album is a feminist anthem that
defies what women used to stand for in society. The remainder of the album is made up of a refrain of
"who run the world?" (Girls) echoed several times, but the song's main concept is to dwell on how far
women have progressed in society. From being ordinary housewives with insufficient qualifications and
rights to being powerful women with college degrees Ms. Knowles is providing women with the
resources they need to accept themselves and their success, in the hopes of inspiring more women to
speak out about the still-existing injustice. “Strong enough to carry the twins, then get back to business,”
says the verse. Beyonce is demonstrating to both men and women that women are capable of enduring
the pains of pregnancy and childbirth, but they are much more capable of returning to their professions
and earning a living thereafter, rather than being confined to the home (Brandbergh).

Feminism is thrown into the shadows, where, at best, it may hope for a future, where it might
be seen ambivalently by young people who may maintain a detachment from it in more mainstream
settings for the sake of social and sexual acceptance. In order to install a whole repertoire of new
definitions that emphasize that feminism is no longer required, it is a spent power, post-feminism
positively builds on and invokes feminism as that which can be taken into account, to say that equality
has been accomplished. In this sense, post-feminism seems to imply gently chastising the feminist
tradition but simultaneously retrieving and reinstating certain palatable features, such as personal
liberation, the right to drink, smoke, have fun in the community, and be economically self-sufficient.
 To conclude Feminism has affected culture in many ways, and has famously been theorized in
relation to culture, do women still have the choice of leading a "old fashioned" lifestyle with outdated
gender norms, or are the new trends and songs we hear today giving women the ability to make a
difference, with feminism still being an unanswered issue in the media and society? Many well-known
feminists, like Katy Perry, Kelly Clarkson, and Carrie Underwood, have avoided using the word
"feminist."They think it comes off as "too heavy" or has a "bad connotation." When did campaigning for
gender equity become a negative thing? Many people have been brainwashed into believing that
feminism is something to avoid. Unfortunately, feminists are also stereotyped as people who despise
men or people who dress a certain way. In certain ways, the reverse is true; one example is HeForShe, a
feminist movement that urges men to advocate for gender equality as well.

References:

FALUDI, SUSAN (1992) Backlash: The Undeclared War Against Women, Vintage, London

BUTLER, JUDITH (2000) Antigone’s Claim: Kinship Between Life and Death, Columbia University

Press, New York

McRobbie, Angela. “Post Feminism and Popular Culture: Bridget Jones and the New Gender Regime.”
uk.sagepub.com, SAGE Publications Ltd, 2007,

http://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/14581/.

Brandbergh, Samantha. “Feminism in Pop Culture: the Good, the Bad, and the Topless.” The Artifice, 10
January 2015,

https://the-artifice.com/feminism-in-pop-culture/.