Why Samantha from SATC is more feminist than you realised
The word 'feminist' has been thrown around a lot lately and it seems to be a hard one for us to define. Although it's now being used to mean 'anyone who believes in women's rights' (which I think is a stupid definition because anyone who doesn't believe in women's rights is not a non-feminist, they are a sexist) but stereotypically, the word 'feminist' is associated with someone who isn't overly girly, is often man-hating and turns every joke, comment or story into something political. So which of the Sex and the City characters would pop in to your head upon hearing the word feminist? Of course, it would be Miranda. The short-haired, fiery, bossy lawyer. But actually, I believe that being a feminist means to be whatever and whoever you chose, without doing anything to please the opinions of others. So actually, I think that Charlotte is more of a feminist than Miranda. Yes she's sweet and ditsy and longs for a traditional role as a wife and a mother so surely that means she can't be a feminist? Wrong - she wants those things because it's what she wants and she sticks to her guns no matter what. Being a feminist isn't about defying stereotypical gender roles - because to not do something purely because of what men say is just as submissive as to do it. Being a feminist is about being free to make your own choice. But actually, the biggest feminist of them all is Samantha. You may initially write her off as some kind of sex-crazed nymphomanic without a filter but dig a little deeper and you'll see why we can all learn a lot from her...
For starters, she knows exactly who she is. She embraces all the different parts of herself and she doesn't care what other people think. Samantha carries on with what she wants to do regardless of what men (or other women) think of her. And equally as importantly, she doesn't judge other women for what they want to do, even if she doesn't agree with it herself. Empowerment of other women is a massive part of being a feminist.
She's also not phased by wanting other things out of life than other people. She doesn't want to focus on finding Mr. Right and having children and she knows that wanting something different should be celebrated not shunned.
Being a feminist is about being empowered and empowered women aren't afraid to ask for what they want. In love, in her career and in life - Samantha always goes after what she wants instead of settling for less.
And most importantly, she's not out to pretend that men and women are equal. She knows that they're not - she just never lets that stop her. Of course we should all be entitled to equal rights and equal pay etc but men and women will never be equal. In case you forgot, equal means the same and we are not the same. One of my favourite quotes is 'women who seek to be equal to men lack ambition' and it's true - as women, we should be celebrating our differences not pretending that they don't exist. Being a feminist is not about lashing out at men, it's about loving who you are as a woman.
For starters, she knows exactly who she is. She embraces all the different parts of herself and she doesn't care what other people think. Samantha carries on with what she wants to do regardless of what men (or other women) think of her. And equally as importantly, she doesn't judge other women for what they want to do, even if she doesn't agree with it herself. Empowerment of other women is a massive part of being a feminist.
She's also not phased by wanting other things out of life than other people. She doesn't want to focus on finding Mr. Right and having children and she knows that wanting something different should be celebrated not shunned.
Being a feminist is about being empowered and empowered women aren't afraid to ask for what they want. In love, in her career and in life - Samantha always goes after what she wants instead of settling for less.
And most importantly, she's not out to pretend that men and women are equal. She knows that they're not - she just never lets that stop her. Of course we should all be entitled to equal rights and equal pay etc but men and women will never be equal. In case you forgot, equal means the same and we are not the same. One of my favourite quotes is 'women who seek to be equal to men lack ambition' and it's true - as women, we should be celebrating our differences not pretending that they don't exist. Being a feminist is not about lashing out at men, it's about loving who you are as a woman.
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