(you can purchase this poster on evolvefish.com - look for the "poster" link)

WHAT IS EVOLUTIONARY FEMINISM?
"Jesus was the original feminist."
from the novel, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, p. 248

Well, that is a good question. Nothing yet is written in stone, but there are some of us who are trying to define this sub-discipline because we know it does exist, and we know it should have its own separate "location" to grow. Just consider this location as fertile ground in which this meme can grow.

At its core, evolutionary feminism is the belief that since the "meaning of life" is seeking solutions to "how to pass one's genes into the next generation," it is the female, and not the male, that is ultimately responsible for the direction that that our species follows. Since the responsibility of reproduction flows through her body, the "female choices" that she takes determines our species course.

This is good news and bad news.

This confirms that the female must be, not only free to make her own choices determining her progency's future fate, but those choices include the female of the past picking agressive and destructive males as "helpers" in raising children.

As a sort of preview, let us give you some guiding principles; we have yet to flesh out the details, so be patient, and let these four items serve merely as guideposts.

1st principle: Females do not form coalitions that attack their own species; only males. Overwhelming empirical and historical evidence teaches us that of the 4,000 mammal species on the planet, only two form coalitions to attack their own species. Those two are the (Pan troglodytes) chimpanzees, and (Homo sapiens) humans; in both species, it is only the males that organize and attack. Not once, in recorded history, has the female been noted in this organized activity.

2nd principle: Female choice. Females are the path of our species regeneration. Rejecting the biblical past, evolutionary feminists do not believe that their bodies are receptacles for the male sperm, but are equally important in the dual role of passing genes to the future. It is paramount that the female always, always has freedom to chose her mate of choice and has control of her body. Thus, if the female has only a limited choice of males, (i.e., fundamentalist Muslins or Evangelical Christians) she will evaluate mate selection based mainly on resource assessments surrounding those males at the time and location of her selection.
3rd principle: The female is equally competitive in the reproductive process alongside the human male. In an important moment in evolutionary feminism comes from the pen of Anne Campbell in her 2002 book, A Mind of Her Own: the evolutionary psychology of women

"Women have been parodied as the gentle sex in convenient opposition to the belligerent male. Men compete, women do not. Men must compete for sex but what is there for women to compete for?...women must compete for all those requirements that ensure their reproductive success. Competitive reproductive success. When push comes to shove and there is not enough to go around, I am afraid that it must be my progeny, not yours in the next generation. But I will avoid outright violence if I can. Why? Because without me, the chances of my children surviving drop disastrously and offspring survival is the prize that is at stake. Female competition may look different from that of males, but that does not mean that it does not exist. We are competitors - and good ones." P. 310.

This raises an intriguing question: If the female is equally competitive, why is it only now known? Why has it taken humankind its' entire history to reach this finding? That intriguing question leads us to the fourth principle:

4th principle: Genes and Culture interact with each other, with culture contributing the greater influence. Although we are biological creatures, and the goal is to pass our genes, before we mate physically, we must find a way to solve that biological problem by first learning the social norm rules that surround us. As a species, we have determined that living in groups is best for our survival and that means that we must conform to a consensus that forms around us concerning those behaviors. Those behaviors are controlled by ruling elites who also form and transmit social norms of behavior. Those who follow those elites must be acceptable to those who dominate and control those memes. If we fail to follow those rules, it might mean that we could be banished from the dominate inner circle in which we live. In most cases, if the female choices to live freely outside that circle, (if she can) that means limited resources available for the female to raise her progeny. In most cases, all of us, including the fertile female of reproductive age, chooses to follow the social norms, even if it appears to be against her best interests.

To answer the intriguing question as to why it took this long for humanity to discover this truth of equal competitiveness? Because the female majority, up till now, has concluded that the present "institutions" established, and the lessons learned within those institutions (marriage, social groups that one identifies with, friends, family, racial, ethnic, etc.), were the best possible way to pass their genes into the next generation; there has been no need in the past to change the evolutionary process. Now, with the planet on the verge of destroying itself, dominated by males with support of their female supporters, perhaps the sex that controls the reproductive process is having second thoughts.

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Notable quote: James Watson, co-discoverer of DNA, when asked how we as a society are going to react to issues raised by genetics -- stem cells, bioengineering, and the like: "Just let all genetic decisions be made by women."
Discover Magazine, July 2003, p. 19
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FAQs-Frequently Asked Questions About Evolutionary Feminism

IN PRAISE OF DR. HELEN FISHER

 

Are you ready to begin studying the subject of feminism from an evolutionary perspective as presented by several writers?

Women, Power, and the Biology of Peace
By
Judith L. Hand, Ph.D.

Book review by William A. Spriggs, January 28th, 2008

Redefining Seduction: Women Initiating Sex, Courtship, Partnership, and Peace
By
Donna Sheehan & Paul Reffell

Book Review by William A. Spriggs, December 31, 2007

Female Intrasexual Competition: Toward an Evolutionary Feminist Theory
by K.M. Ingo, Colorado State University - Pueblo, K. D. Mize, Florida Atlantic University, M. E. Pratarelli, Colorado State University - Pueblo,
ISSN: 1527-5558 2007. Placed on web site, C: Dec 9th, 2007

Menstrual Odors, Dirty Diapers, and the Male Dominated Religious Quest for Purity: Giving Birth to Misogyny, Racial, and Ethnic Discriminations Originating in the Human Biological Emotion of Disgust. Essay by William A. Spriggs, Origin June 20th 2007
Bare Branches: The Security Implications of Asia's Surplus Male Population By Valerie M. Hudson & Andrea M. den Boer
Latest book review by William A. Spriggs, Origin: October 2006 "The masculinization of Asia's sex ratios is one of the overlooked stories of the century…This phenomenon may be only one example of the linkage between the status of women in society and the society's possibilities for democracy and peace." P. 264.
The Da Vinci Code Yes, its the novel by Dan Brown that you most likely have read. Now re-read it with the eyes of an evolutionary feminist. "Jesus was the original feminist." P. 248. Review by William A. Spriggs, August 28th, 2006
Educating Girls,
A New York Times editoral, June 25, 2005, with permission from The New York Times,
Fearing Future, China Starts to Give Girls Their Due
by Jim Yardley, January 31, 2005, (With permission from The New York Times, Feb. 2005)
Book review: The Wimp Factor: Gender Gaps, Holy Wars, & the Politics of Anxious Masculinity
By Stephen J. Ducat. A review by William A. Spriggs, October 28, 2004
Book Review: The Rules: Time-tested Secrets for Capturing the Heart of Mr. Right by Ellen Fein and Sherrie Schneider. Review by William A. Spriggs, October 3, 2004
Book Review: The Curse: Confronting the Last Unmentionable Taboo: Menstruation By Karen Houppert. Review by William A. Spriggs, August 21, 2004
Book Review:.A Mind of Her Own: Evolutionary Psychology of Women by Ann Campbell. Review by William A. Spriggs, July 22, 2004
Sexual Selection: A Tale of Male Bias and Feminist Denial, by Griet Vandermassen, Jan. 2004
Book Review: Women's Roots: The History of Women in Western Civilization, by William A. Spriggs, October 2003.
Evaluating Some Feminist Accounts of Gender, by Griet Vandermassen, June 2003.
Cherly and Leona: An Almost Typical American Couple A Short Piece That Understands That Political Power is Used as an Instrument of Subordinate Control in the Quise of "Morality." By William A. Spriggs, Feb. 2003
Feminism and Evolutionary Psychology, by Sophia Elliott Connell, Circa., 2000. A blistering attack on Evolutionary Psychology in particular, and the resulting fallout in perspectives concerning feminism in general. OK, boys and girls, Ms. Connell has raised some important questions concerning the wide-reaching effect of the evolutionary perspective that need to be answered before we move forward.
Feminism and Evolutionary Psychology: Can They be Reconciled? by S.L Hurley, Circa., 1999. Although written before the blistering attack on evolutionary psychology by Ms. Connell, it seems like Ms. Hurley has a better grasp on the science because she takes the road combining nature vs. nuture; it is neither one or the other, but once again, it's about 60% nuture, 40% nature (very rough estimates).
Do You Know the Ten Variations of Feminism? A list complied from the book, A Mind of Her Own: Evolutionary Psychology of Women,
Book Review: Woman: An Intimate Geography by Natalie Angier. Review by Jennifer Goehring, Nov. 1999.
Further Notes on Marriage, Monogamy, and Sexual Modesty by Jennifer Goehring, June 1999.
The Evolutionary Perspective of Women, Sex, and Monogamy: Setting the Record Straight by Jennifer Goehring, April 1999.
Men, Women, Sex and Darwin by Natalie Angier, (With permission from The New York Times)Feb. 1999.
Modern Standards of Beauty: Nature or Nurture: An Evolutionary Perspective? by Jennifer Goehring, Jan. 1999.
Fukuyama's Follies: So What if Women Ruled the World? A response to Frances Fukuyama by Barbara Ehrenreich, Katha Pollitt, et al. Jan/Feb., 1999. (With permission from Foreign Affairs).
Chivalry is not Dead by Jennifer Goehring, Dec. 1998.
Women and Evolution by Jennifer Goehring, Sept. 1998.
Women and the Evolution of World Politics by Francis Fukuyama, (With permission from Foreign Affairs, Sept/Oct 1998)

 

FEMINIST READINGS WITH EMPHASIS ON BIOLOGY, EVOLUTION, AND CUTURAL PERSPECTIVES

VARIOUS FEMINIST LINKS OF IMPORTANCE

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