Question:
What do you understand by Post Modernism? Elucidate recent trends of Postmodernism in the area of Feminist geography. ( UPPSC, 2020)
Answer.
The idea of postmodernism originated in the 1980s which was against the ideas of modernism like logic, objectivity, rationality, and model development and it also developed to address social problems.
Postmodernism:
- Postmodernism is an idea that is a vague and loosely defined term.
- The idea of postmodernism is a convergence of many perspectives and theories. It is primarily a theoretical approach to geography.
- The idea of interdisciplinary [humanities, philosophy, social sciences, arts, etc.] and postmodernism emphasized subjective truth rather than objectivity.
- Subjective truth means that everything is right in its place and each people is true from their own point of view.
Recent Trends in Postmodernism in Feminist Geography:
- Feminist geography is part of Radical and Postmodernism Geography, where the main focus was to remove inequality against women in society and geography.
- It is an advocacy of women's rights on the basis of gender equality.
- Postmodernism is against racial remarks, and ethnic and gender discrimination in all forms.
Feminist geography has the following three trends
The first wave of feminism
- The first wave of feminists began with various disciplines such as the humanities, sociology, and geography. The geographical aspect of feminism as well as the social, political, and economic aspects were discussed.
- Attempts were made to make the presence of women in geography.
- Liberal feminism developed which emphasized the removal of all barriers that subject women to men.
The second wave of feminism:
- In the late 1960s, Marxist and radical feminism began, which emphasized the end of all gender differences.
- Radical feminism also developed which calls for equal wages for homework.
- The major work "Geography and Gender: An Introduction to Feminist Geography" was published by the British Geography Institute in 1984 and a series of sessions were also organized by them.
Third Wave of Feminism:
- The concept of ecological feminism developed which explains the human-environment relationship. Ecological feminism attempts to correlate the oppression of women by the family and the oppression of nature by humans.
Warren (1987) describes ecological feminism as follows:
- Women are closer to nature while men are closer to culture.
- Both men and women are the creators of life.
- There is a strong link between the oppression of women and the exploitation of nature.
Statements of some famous feminist geographers:
According to Johnson (1989) about feminist geography:
- Feminist geography is the study of women's general experience and resistance to oppression by men's actions and commitment to its end.
Judith Butler in the book "Gender Trouble" (1990):
- He criticized the division of human beings into two distinct categories such as men and women. Subordination of women is not a single cause or solution, and postmodernism is not providing a clear solution to feminist problems.
According to Rose (1993):
- Geography was mainly dominated by men and the concern of women has been ignored. From this point of men, the basic assumption is made on spaces, places, and landforms. Women were harassed and marginalized.
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