A Feminine Change of Times

A Feminine Change of Times

When an individual looks upon a woman in today’s society, how is she perceived? Does she have feministic ideals, feminine grace, or feminine beauty? All seem to pertain to how a woman is perceived in the eyes of society today. That stereotype sparks many emotions, because there is such a wide variety of women who are and consider themselves feminine yet do not fall under the specific classification of a feminine woman or as others are calling it, an “old fashion lady”. Our society and culture has changed and with it, so have our women.

The American Heritage dictionary defines feminine as qualities generally attributed to women, such as graceful, beautiful, submissive, weak, domestic, and nurturing. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines feminine as a characteristic of or appropriate or unique to women, graceful and unstressed about the worries of life. Many of the definitions of feminine are derived from older cultures that had women unequal and submissive to men. To certain women, to be described as feminine, can be an insult if she know the true definition, whereas with other women they strive to be that graceful, submissive women of the past.

Many believe if a woman practices other exercises or activities that women generally never did before the 21st century, they can not be considered feminine. Some examples are; playing sports in school, being physically fit, being a leader in your community, joining the military, or having a job that puts a woman on par, or equal with a man. It seems that it’s not the just the definition of the word feminine that seems to be out of date, it’s also the perspective of the people. In one century women acquired equality, the right to vote, we can wear pants, join our nation’s military, run for senate. With our acquisition of power and equality it seems that we had to give up the title of being feminine. When a group of male army soldiers where asked if they considered their fellow female soldiers as feminine, they remarked no. The women in the military voluntarily joined and are expected to “keep up” with the men, and in turn are treated as equals, both the same.

Our society has trouble determining which females are actually feminine and which are not. There is a white and black in the definition of feminine, but there is also this obscure gray area that majority of women fall into. People tend to ignore this area and sometimes are completely ignorant of its existence. Masculinity on the other hand has a clearer line between the black and white. Men have not had the significant changes in society like women have