- "Feminist literary criticism is literary criticism informed by feminist theory, or more broadly, by the politics of feminism."
A form of deconstruction that focuses on the ways in which gender roles are constructed in language and representation, revealing how patriarchal assumptions and presumptions about gender are inculcated in various cultural artefacts.
Feminism: The belief that men and women should have equal political, social, and economic rights and opportunities. Feminism is the root of the feminist deconstruction theory.
Patriarchy: A social system in which men hold primary power and predominance in roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege and control of property.
Gender: The social and cultural understanding and expression of sex. Gender is what determines how society expects men and women to behave.
Intersectionality: The idea that multiple social constructs like race, gender, class, and sexuality come together to form a unique individual experience of oppression or privilege.
Queer Theory: The theory that challenges traditional beliefs about sexuality and gender, and instead views gender and sexuality as fluid and variable.
Poststructuralism: The theory that challenges the notion of objective truth and the idea that language can accurately represent reality.
Postmodernism: The theory that challenges the idea of absolute truth and encourages diverse perspectives and knowledge sources.
Theory of Difference: The theory that highlights the differences between individuals and groups who are marginalized or oppressed, and the dominant group or individuals in society.
Essentialism: The theory that holds that there is an underlying essence or nature that defines gender, race, or other social categories.
Deconstruction: The theory that aims to reveal and undermine the hidden assumptions and beliefs in language and culture through close analysis of texts, discourses, and cultural artifacts.
Subjectivity: The concept that our individual experiences, emotions, and perspectives influence how we perceive the world and understand ourselves.
Power: The concept of power, who has it, and how it is distributed is a central concern to feminist deconstruction.
Masculinity: The complex set of characteristics, behaviors, and roles associated with men.
Femininity: The complex set of characteristics, behaviors, and roles associated with women.
Sexuality: The social and cultural understanding, expression, and practice of sexual desire and behavior.
Race: The social and cultural construct that distinguishes some groups of people from others based on physical characteristics, history, and culture.
Class: The socio-economic stratification of society into different groups based on wealth, education, occupation, and social status.
Disability: The experience of living with a physical, mental or cognitive impairment that may limit a person’s mobility, capability, or opportunity.
Heteronormativity: The belief that heterosexuality is normative or dominant, and that other forms of sexual expression are deviant or abnormal.
Representation: The ways in which marginalized groups are represented in language, media and culture, and how those representations reinforce or challenge existing power structures.
Post-Structuralist Feminism: Challenges the binary oppositions that inform structure and meaning of particular social indicators; its major figures include Judith Butler and Donna Haraway.
Marxist Feminism: Focuses on the connections between capitalism and women's oppression, and on the liberatory potential of the working-class struggle; its major figures include Angela Davis and Silvia Federici.
Radical Feminism: Focuses on the oppression of women and the ways in which gender roles and norms shape the lived experiences of women; its major figures include Kate Millett and Shulamith Firestone.
Intersectional Feminism: Emphasizes the intersection of different social identifiers to understand experiences of oppression and privilege experienced by individuals; its major figures include Kimberlé Crenshaw and Patricia Hill Collins.
Ecological Feminism: Highlights the connections between women's oppression and environmental destruction; its major figures include Vandana Shiva and Carolyn Merchant.
- "It uses the principles and ideology of feminism to critique the language of literature."
- "It seeks to analyze and describe the ways in which literature portrays the narrative of male domination by exploring the economic, social, political, and psychological forces embedded within literature."
- "It has changed the way literary texts are viewed and studied, as well as changing and expanding the canon of what is commonly taught."
- "It is used a lot in Greek myths."
- "It sought to examine old texts within the literary canon through a new lens."
- "Examining both the development and discovery of female tradition of writing, and rediscovering of old texts." - "Interpreting symbolism of women's writing so that it will not be lost or ignored by the male point of view." - "Resisting sexism inherent in the majority of mainstream literature."
- "These goals were developed by Lisa Tuttle in the 1980s."
- "It has sought to analyze women writers and their writings from a female perspective, increasing awareness of the sexual politics of language and style."
- "It is extensive, from classic works of nineteenth-century female authors such as George Eliot and Margaret Fuller to cutting-edge theoretical work in women's studies and gender studies by 'third-wave' authors."
- "Feminist literary criticism was concerned with women's authorship and the representation of women's condition within the literature, particularly the depiction of fictional female characters."
- "The views of women authors are often not considered to be universal."
- "Feminist criticism has been closely associated with the birth and growth of queer studies."
- "It seeks to understand both the literary portrayals and representation of both women and people in the queer community."
- "It expands the role of a variety of identities and analysis within feminist literary criticism."