Musings

I think that at heart, and of course to varying degrees, there are some people who are naturally 'feminists' and some who aren't. One can alter and amend one's morals and beliefs to adhere to a philosophy that you have decided makes sense to your life, but peoples' instinctual perspectives will always and inescapably veer towards one plane or another.

I guess you explain it like food: I love vegetables. Cabbage, green beans, lettuce, sundried tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, cucumber, leeks ... I’ll eat them all. Except mushrooms - these I despise above anything else. I have no valid reason for this feeling of utmost disgust towards a plant that has never done anything wrong to me and in fact adds a quite delectable flavour to stews and stroganoffs, but I cannot put them in my mouth. It is not a matter of personal choice, but of natural predisposition and no matter what anyone has tried, I am unable to like mushrooms. I can tell people I do and I can eat foods that contain them, but really. I hate mushrooms.

So I believe it is with your own personal 'philosophy'. There are some of us who, without any inclination, or even awareness, of doing so, hold in our individual set of morals and beliefs that are as much a part of our personality as which colours we prefer, values and fundamental principles that would have so called "female liberators" rushing over and hugging us for "taking control of our own minds and bodies". But 'feminists' have always existed, throughout the ages. Many women may have 'seen the light' or 'awakened their sexuality' with the help of modern social movements, and this did help a lot of women truly liberate themselves from oppressive situations. But the fact of the matter is that since the Middle Ages and before, there have always been 'feminist' females who held the same, if not stronger, ideals as their modern counterparts. You cannot change the fact that some don't believe that humans are inherently monogamous, and never have done. Or that whilst many of us consider our bodies to be 'sacred vessels', some will indulge it in activities perfectly acceptable to them which others would find abhorent. Or that some peoples' views on women and sex will never be reconciled with those on the other side of the table.