From the Latin femĭna ("woman"), feminism is the social doctrine favorable to women. It is a movement that demands that men and women have the same rights: therefore, it grants the female gender capacities previously reserved only for men.
Feminism questions the relationships between sexuality (as gender) and social, economic and political power. When reviewing history, feminists consider that patriarchy has been negative for society and that women have been subjected to the will of man.
It is important to keep in mind that there are men who are feminists (that is, who agree and support the movement), while not all women consider themselves feminists. Some women accept the social role of gender and recognize it as a cultural reality that should not be censored.
It is interesting to note that, although it is considered that this movement appeared as such in the 20th century as such, many have been women who throughout history had already defended the rights of the female gender. Among them is, for example, the Venetian philosopher and poet Christine de Pisan, who in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries created several literary works in which she openly advocated for the aforementioned.
Among them we would highlight, for example, "Epistle to the God of Love" (1399) with which he came to end the idea of that courtly love that had been imposed as a "moral norm" in the society of the time. However, we could also underline the value of other works such as "The City of Ladies" (1405), which addresses the figure of important heroines in History and which is considered as the work carried out as a precursor of the so-called contemporary feminism.
Feminism began to be visible in the 20th century in Western societies, where it achieved important achievements. The right to vote or request divorce and equal employment conditions are some of the most notable advances, even though there is still a long way to go to achieve equal rights.
In those early stages of feminism in the 20th century, we could highlight such important figures as the Americans Lucretia Mott or Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The latter is known not only for having fought for women's suffrage in her country but also for having proclaimed the need to establish birth control, divorce laws or employment rights.
Other of the most relevant feminists in history have been the Parisian writer Simon de Beauvoir, the American activist Kate Millet or the American writer Betty Friedan, among many others.
Some issues generate controversy even within feminist groups, such as the case of abortion. Some women consider that abortion is part of their rights over their own body, but many think that this practice involves the murder of a new being. It is clear that the feminist movement is not uniform nor does it act as a bloc.