Feminist Manifesto

Mina Loy


I had many thoughts go through my mind as I read this piece on feminism. I have been both, a stay at home mother (for 3 years to 2 daughters) as well as the working single mom. I don’t want to make this all about my personal experience, but I do want to share some of the similarities I saw in her writing compared to my views with my life.

I understand the importance of being able to stay home and raise your own children, yet at the same time a lot of mothers who do this, lose themselves. We get caught up in being “mom/wife” that we don’t remember to take care of us.
On page 1502 it reads, “Cease to place your confidence in economic legislation, vice-crusades and uniform education- you are glossing over REALITY”. The education in this sentence is the part that stuck out to me. I was a teen mom and did not finish high school due to decisions I made. I wanted to get my GED and continue on to college, but I was told by my ex-husband that I didn’t need to do any of this because he would always take care of me. Being young and only knowing the example of my mom, who was also a stay at home mom all of my growing up years and “taken care of” by my dad, I didn’t pursue what I felt I should have done at that time. (Years later I did get my GED and went on to do what I wanted/needed to do.) Education and growth is very important and we should strive for intelligence, married or not married. I like how in different parts of Mina’s writings she will say things like, “every well-balanced and developed woman knows …” (p.1503) I also like that she is encouraging women who think it’s okay to be pushed around by the men to open their eyes.

I could relate to this next section that I read, because after my divorce I felt that I was not important without a husband. “The value of man is assessed entirely according to his use or interest to the community, the value of woman, depends entirely on chance, her success or insuccess in maneuvering a man into taking the life-long responsibility of her” (p.1504) I got the impression that women need to “trick” a man into wanting to be with them and if she does this then she will be important. I thought EVERY woman needs to know that she is of value and important. It is NOT based on any man!

I agree with a lot of Mina’s opinions. Especially when she was talking about how women need to retain their appearance, to be strong, always look perfect, be brave, and do right at all times (p.1505). If I were living back in the days when feminism first started, I wonder if I would have been like Mina Loy.