Feminist history
Encyclopedia
Feminist history refers to the re-reading of history from a female perspective
. It is not the same as the history of feminism
, which outlines the origins and evolution of the feminist movement
. It also differs from women's history
, which focuses on the role of women in historical events. The goal of feminist history is to explore and illuminate the female viewpoint of history through rediscovery of female writers, artists, philosophers, etc., in order to recover and demonstrate the significance of women's voices and choices in the past.
Two particular problems which feminist history attempts to address are the exclusion of women from the historical and philosophical tradition
, and the negative characterization of women or the feminine therein; however, feminist history is not solely concerned with issues of gender
per se, but rather with the reinterpretation of history in a more holistic and balanced manner.
The "disappearing woman" has been a focus of attention of academic feminist scholarship. Research into women's history and literature reveals a rich heritage of neglected culture.
Perspective (cognitive)
Perspective in theory of cognition is the choice of a context or a reference from which to sense, categorize, measure or codify experience, cohesively forming a coherent belief, typically for comparing with another...
. It is not the same as the history of feminism
History of feminism
The history of feminism involves the story of feminist movements and of feminist thinkers. Depending on time, culture and country, feminists around the world have sometimes had different causes and goals...
, which outlines the origins and evolution of the feminist movement
Feminist movement
The feminist movement refers to a series of campaigns for reforms on issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, women's suffrage, sexual harassment and sexual violence...
. It also differs from women's history
Women's history
Women's history is the study of the role that women have played in history, together with the methods needed to study women. It includes the study of the history of the growth of woman's rights throughout recorded history, the examination of individual women of historical significance, and the...
, which focuses on the role of women in historical events. The goal of feminist history is to explore and illuminate the female viewpoint of history through rediscovery of female writers, artists, philosophers, etc., in order to recover and demonstrate the significance of women's voices and choices in the past.
Two particular problems which feminist history attempts to address are the exclusion of women from the historical and philosophical tradition
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, and the negative characterization of women or the feminine therein; however, feminist history is not solely concerned with issues of gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
per se, but rather with the reinterpretation of history in a more holistic and balanced manner.
"If we take feminism to be that cast of mind that insists that the differences and inequalities between the sexes are the result of historical processes and are not blindly "natural," we can understand why feminist history has always had a dual mission—on the one hand to recover the lives, experiences, and mentalities of women from the condescension and obscurity in which they have been so unnaturally placed, and on the other to reexamine and rewrite the entire historical narrative to reveal the construction and workings of gender." —Susan Pedersen
The "disappearing woman" has been a focus of attention of academic feminist scholarship. Research into women's history and literature reveals a rich heritage of neglected culture.