This option will examine aspects of the theory, practice, political activism and cultural production of the so-called ‘second wave’ of feminism which began in the late 1960s in the USA. (There’s disagreement on when it ended: some historians put this as early as 1975, while others make the mid-80s their cut-off point. The term ‘third wave’ was first used in print by feminists in 1987, though its inauguration as a real political phenomenon is most often dated to the early 1990s. This course will cover 1968-c.1987.) A range of materials will be used to examine second wave feminism and interrogate today’s received wisdom—both feminist and non-feminist—about it. As well as looking at its origins, its development over time and the different political currents within it, we will ask what was distinctive about it and what it has contributed to today’s feminist thought and activism. We will also consider the strengths and limitations of the ‘wave’ model itself.