Gender and equality

Gender and equality

Axis and problematic

This topic crosses the axes Identities and exchanges, Private and public spheres and Citizenship and the virtual world. Possible problematic: To what extent has the fight for gender equality reshaped English-speaking societies?

Key historical milestones

• 1848 — Seneca Falls Convention (USA), birth of organised feminism.
• 1918 / 1928 — British women win the vote (over 30, then full suffrage).
• 1963 — Betty Friedan, The Feminine Mystique.
• 1973 — Roe v. Wade legalises abortion in the USA (overturned 2022).
• 2017 — #MeToo movement spreads after the Weinstein revelations.
• 2018 — Iceland becomes the first country to make gender pay gap illegal.

Vocabulary to master

English	French
gender gap / pay gap	écart de genre / salarial
glass ceiling	plafond de verre
empowerment	autonomisation
sexism, misogyny	sexisme, misogynie
women's rights	droits des femmes
LGBTQ+ rights	droits LGBTQ+
same-sex marriage	mariage entre personnes de même sexe
toxic masculinity	masculinité toxique

Cultural references

• Films / series: Hidden Figures (2016), Suffragette (2015), The Handmaid's Tale (Atwood / Hulu).
• Speeches: Emma Watson at the UN (HeForShe, 2014); Michelle Obama, "When they go low, we go high".
• Books: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, We Should All Be Feminists; Reni Eddo-Lodge, Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race.

Useful arguments

• Persisting pay gap (≈ 16 % in the UK, 17 % in the US, 2023).
• Under-representation in STEM fields and political leadership.
• Backlash and online harassment (incel culture, manosphere).
• Intersectionality (Kimberlé Crenshaw): race, gender, class overlap.

Sample thesis statements

Despite undeniable progress, gender equality in English-speaking societies remains an unfinished revolution challenged by economic inequalities, cultural backlash and digital violence.