Ecofeminism

(Proposed) Chapter Nine: Ecofeminism

Ecofeminism, as its name suggests, exists at the zone of intersection of the feminist and the environmental movements. Because some degree of environmentalist sympathy is widespread among feminists in general, it is likely that most feminists would identify themselves to some degree with some of the ideas of ecofeminism. But ecofeminism offers its own distinctive perspective, or more precisely a range of perspectives linked together by a common concern for the environment, for the place of women in the environment, and for the influence of the environment upon women.

Our language links women and the environment together in many ways. "Mother nature" is an ancient cliche, while it has become a contemporary cliche to refer to the "rape" of the environment. The link between nature and women works in the other direction as well, and an ancient pedigree exists for arguments holding that it is "woman's nature" to be knocked up and barefoot.

Yet if "nature" is not infrequently associated with the repression of women, nature has also been associated with female power and capability. The female connotation of nature thus has two faces. Ecofeminism may be likewise regarded as having two faces, one face directed toward the female element of nature itself--including perhaps one element in what may be called "Goddess" feminism--and another face directed toward the reality of the

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ld women, and draws a philosophical perspective from it. Without a healthy environment, there is no life. We can hear this affirmation of life in the words of the many women which are recounted ... simple words that express their concern for local ecological problems and a philosophy of living with nature rather than against it. (Sontheimer, 1988, Introduction). A distinctly feminist perspective upon nature is thus constructed out of the outlook and experience of women who could not be further removed from the Western academic settings in which feminist issues are most often discussed. This attention to the views and values of non-Western women serves in a sense to bring the ecofeminist movement full circle, back around to the Goddess-oriented feminist who has sought out celebrations of female nature in non-Western indigenous traditions. One following a spiritual path, the other earthily linked to the soil and everyday life, the two strands of ecofeminism meet in their common concern for the experience of non-Western women living in relatively traditional circumstances. It is impossible to fully summarize the views of a movement as diverse as ecofeminism, particularly when the diversity extends to lifestyles
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2010
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)

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