5 Must-know Feminist Icons Who Fought for an Equitable Future

Simone de Beauvoir - Second-Wave Feminism Movement Icon

Simone de Beauvoir, a most impactful figure, was a French intellectual, writer, and philosopher. She was the most impactful figure in the second wave feminism movement in the 20th century. Her writing is based on the social, cultural and psychological system under which gender inequality is formed.

The second sex her most influential book, which discusses the treatment of women in the patriarchal society. According to her, gender roles were neither natural nor recognized, but which are created by society, with barriers, traditions and expectations. A famous quotation that she emphasizes in the book is that “one is not born, but becomes, a woman, and that the society contributes significantly to defining gender and expectation.”

In 1960 and 1970 Beauvoir’s thoughts influenced feminist movements. She contributed the established feminist ideas and gender equality concept by confronting the old gender roles and breaking the social stereotypes.