# Neofeminism

Part of a series on :
Feminism :
History
Feminist history
History of feminism
Women's history
American
British
Canadian
German
Waves
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Timelines
Women's suffrage
Muslim countries
US
Other women's rights
Women's suffrage by country
Austria
Australia
Canada
Colombia
India
Japan
Kuwait
Liechtenstein
New Zealand
Spain
Second Republic
Francoist
Switzerland
United Kingdom
Cayman Islands
Wales
United States
states :
Intersectional variants
Fat
Lesbian
Lesbian of color
Radical lesbianism
Separatist
Sex-positive
Transfeminism
Postgenderism
Vegetarian ecofeminism
Socialist
Anarchist
Queer
Jineology
Marxist
Critical theory
Standpoint
Materialist
Ecofeminist
Postcolonial
Global
Transnational
Xenofeminism
Multicultural
Africana womanism
Black
Hip hop
Lesbian
Ratchet
Chicana
Lesbian
Indigenous
Native American
Multiracial
Romani
Womanism :
Other variants
Anti-abortion
Equity
Femonationalism
Maternal
Postfeminism
Neofeminism
Reactionary
State
Carceral
Imperial
Embedded
Gender-critical or trans-exclusionary
Victim
White :
Religious variants
Atheist
Buddhist
Christian
Mormon
New
Womanist
Asian
Neopagan
Dianic Wicca
Reclaiming
Ecofeminist
Hindu
Islamic
Jewish
Orthodox
Sikh :
Movements and ideologies
4B movement
Analytical
Anti-fascist
Anti-pornography
Cyberfeminism
HCI
Networked
Difference
Ecofeminism
Eugenic
Individualist
Lipstick
Stiletto
Liberal
Equality
Social
Labor
Libertarian
Post-structural
Postmodern
Radical
Cultural
Political lesbianism
Separatist
Technofeminism
Women's liberation :
Concepts
Antinaturalism
Choice feminism
Cognitive labor
Complementarianism
Literature
Children's literature
Diversity (politics)
Diversity, equity, and inclusion
Effects on society
Equality
Female education
Female genital mutilation
Femicide
Femonationalism
Feminism in culture
Feminist movement
African-American women's suffrage movement
Art movement
In hip hop
Feminist stripper
Formal equality
Gender equality
Gender quota
Girl power
Honor killing
Ideal womanhood
Invisible labor
Internalized sexism
International Girl's Day and Women's Day
Language reform
Feminist capitalism
Gender-blind
Likeability trap
Male privilege
Matriarchal religion
Media
Men in feminism
Misogyny
Trans
Oedipus complex
Opposition to feminism
Pro-feminism
Protofeminism
Purplewashing
Racism
Reproductive justice
Sex workers' rights
Sexual harassment
Sexual objectification
Substantive equality
Toxic masculinity
Transmisogyny
Triple oppression
Violence against women
War on women
Women's empowerment
Women-only space
Women's health
Women's rights
Women in the workforce :
Outlooks
Bicycling and feminism
Criticism of marriage
Views on BDSM
Views on pornography
Views on prostitution
Views on sexual orientation
Views on sexuality
Views on transgender topics
SCUM Manifesto :
Theory
Feminist method
Gender studies
Gender mainstreaming
Gynocentrism
Kyriarchy
Male gaze
Matriarchy
Women's studies
Men's studies
Patriarchy
Écriture féminine
Areas of study
Anthropology
Archaeology
Architecture
Art
Art criticism
Literary criticism
Film theory
Science fiction
Biology
Composition studies
Criminology
Pathways perspective
Economics
FDPA
Geography
International relations
Constructivism
Legal theory
Pedagogy
Philosophy
Aesthetics
Empiricism
Epistemology
Ethics
Justice ethics
Existentialism
Metaphysics
science
Political ecology
Political theory
Pornography
Psychology
Therapy
Revisionist mythology
Sex wars
Sexology
Sociology
Technoscience
Theology
womanist theology :
By continent/country
Africa
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Egypt
Ethiopia
Ghana
Mali
Nigeria
Senegal
South Africa
Albania
Australia
Bangladesh
Canada
China
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Republic of Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Argentina
Brazil
Chile
Haiti
Honduras
Mexico
Paraguay
Trinidad and Tobago
Lebanon
Malaysia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Northern Cyprus
Norway
Pakistan
Philippines
Poland
Russia
Saudi Arabia
South Korea
Sweden
Syria
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
Vietnam
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States
History of women :
Lists and categories
Lists
Articles
Feminists
by nationality
Literature
American feminist literature
Feminist comic books
Feminist songs
Conservative feminisms
Ecofeminist authors
Feminist art critics
Feminist economists
Feminist philosophers
Feminist poets
Feminist rhetoricians
Jewish feminists
Muslim feminists
Feminist parties
Suffragists and suffragettes
Women's rights activists
Women's studies journals
Women's suffrage organizations
Categories
Women's rights by country
Feminists by nationality :
Feminism portal :
vte :
Neofeminism describes an emerging view of women as becoming empowered through the celebration of attributes perceived to be conventionally feminine, that is, it glorifies a womanly essence over claims to equality with men. It is a term that has come into use in the early 21st century to refer to a popular culture trend, what critics see as a type of "lipstick feminism" that confines women to stereotypical roles, while it erodes cultural freedoms women gained through the second-wave feminism of the 1960s and 1970s in particular.

## Origins

The term has been used since the beginning of second-wave feminism to refer broadly to any recent manifestation of feminist activism, mainly to distinguish it from the first-wave feminism of the suffragettes. It was used in the title of a best-selling 1982 book by Jacques J. Zephire about French feminist Simone de Beauvoir, Le Neo-Feminisme de Simone de Beauvoir (Paris: Denoel/Gonthier 9782282202945). Zephir used the term to differentiate de Beauvoir's views from writers described as "Neofeminist", such as literary theorist Luce Irigaray, who indicated in her own writing that women had an essentialist femininity that could express itself in écriture féminine (feminine writing/language), among other ways. Céline T. Léon has written, "one can only identify the existentialist's [de Beauvoir's] glorification of transcendence with the type of feminism that Luce Irigaray denounces in Ce sexe qui n'en est pas un: "Woman simply equal to men would be like them and therefore not women"."
De Beauvoir's views were quite the opposite:
   Over and against the neofeminists' attempts at getting rid of phallogocentrism and creating a new [feminine] writing style, she denounces as a contradiction this imprisonment of women in a ghetto of difference/singularity: "I consider it almost antifeminist to say that there is a feminine nature which expresses itself differently, that a woman speaks her body more than a man."
Later writers and popular culture commentators appear to have continued this use of the term to describe essentialist feminism. It has been used by sociologists to describe a new popular culture movement that "celebrates both the feminine body and women's political achievements":
   Women do and should realize their autonomy through their femininity in its "Elle magazine form" (Chollet 2004). Neofeminism champions the free choice of women in appearance, lifestyle, and sexuality. This consumerist orientation retains the advances of legal equality in political space but urges women to celebrate their femininity in their personal lives, a category that includes careers, clothing, and sexuality.
Some have accused this thought current as being female chauvinism, trying to manipulate people's behaviours and attitudes towards life

## Other uses

The term has also been equated with the new feminism described by Pope John Paul II. The feminist film scholar Hilary Radner has used the term neofeminism to characterize the iteration of feminism advocated by Hollywood's spate of romantic comedies inaugurated by Pretty Woman (Gary Marshall, 1990) often described as postfeminist. Radner argues that the origins of neofeminism can be traced back to figures such as Helen Gurley Brown writing in the 1960s, meaning that the term postfeminism (suggesting that these ideas emerged after second-wave feminism) is potentially misleading .