“Bad Feminist” by Roxane Gay
The author of Bad Feminist, Roxane Gay is struggling with what it means to be a Feminist. Gay is caught between two views of what a woman should be according to society and “good” Feminist. Most of society thinks of a woman as “thin, to wear makeup, to wear the right kind of clothes… charming, polite, and unobtrusive… content to earn 77 percent of what men earn… bear children and stay home to raise them without complaint… modest, chaste, pious, submissive” Gay points out that this stereotype of a woman has been around for decades and is growing and evolving as times are changing. According to Gay, “good” feminists are women who “hate pornography, unilaterally decry the objectification of women, don’t cater to the male gaze, hate men, hate sex, focus on career, don’t shave.” These are two completely different views of what a woman is, this is why people are afraid to join the feminist movement. This makes self-definition difficult as Gay explains, people fear categorization because of the punishment and criticism they might face from opposite parties. The ultimate value and goal of feminism “is to achieve equality, in all realms, between men and women.” Gay considers herself as a failing woman and feminist because “To freely accept the feminist label would not be fair to good feminists. If I am, indeed, a feminist, I am a rather bad one.” She believes in this one goal but doesn’t fully agree with all the ideals a “good” feminist has. She also doesn’t fit into the box that society has created for women. Gay is breaking the social norms and isn’t afraid to be different just because she self identifys as a “bad” feminist.
