Rita Dove Feminism Analysis

In the past few centuries, women have taken it upon themselves to combat the misogyny they faced by speaking up through any form, and that included poetry. Feminists would speak about the objectification and commodification of women, embracing their sexuality, and acknowledging the intersectionality of other identities such as racial and sexual identity. Poetry has been used for years to make political statements, so it should not be surprising that women would use poetry as a medium to voice their opposition to gender inequality. Rita Dove, an influential contemporary feminist and poet, writes poetry that reflects the systematic oppression of women that has been going on for centuries in poems such as “Fox” and “Adolescence-II” to further …show more content…
In its simplest form, feminism can be described as the social movement fueled by women’s desire to remove men from their position of power and obtain respect as well as equality. In the beginning, the term was coined primarily for women’s suffrage in the nineteenth century but the movement has evolved to be the practice to free all women-women of color, working-class women, poor women, women with physical and/or mental disabilities, nonheteronormative women, and old women –as well as the most privileged of women: white, financially independent heterosexual women. Society works in a way that keeps men in a position of power and women oppressed and marginalized with institutions set in place to maintain that power dynamic. Women often wrote about their experiences as a woman in society and their struggle to be seen equal to men, but it was not until the 1960s that feminist poetry became a legitimate movement. Poetry has historically been seen as a feminine thing, so it was augmented to include messages that advocated gender equality. Many women rose to assert their discontent with gender inequality and that has not changed a …show more content…
The speaker has an understanding of herself and her femininity very well and considers that she is a complete person on her own. She obviously exudes confidence as seen in the first stanza. “She knew what/ she was and so/ was capable/ of anything/ anyone/ could imagine.” The title alone, "Fox", suggests she possesses is also "foxy," a term used to describe sexy, confident women. For years, women have been conditioned to be reluctant to own their bodies and be the meek, subservient woman that society expects of women. Feminists, however, have taught women to embrace their sexuality and womanhood, and that is exactly what this poem managed to