There has been and continues to be a considerable amount of disagreement as to the precise nature of “femininity” in contemporary America. While there is a general consensus as to the stereotypical meaning of “femininity” (passive, emotional, delicate, irrational, mysterious, nurturing, maternal, submissive, heterosexual and strongly linked to nature—qualities that have been largely devalued in favor of their stereotypical masculine counterparts), the origin of this “femininity” is not as clear.

In general, the contemporary American mainstream believes that “femininity” is biologically determined. This ideology which has dominated for centuries, conceives of “femininity” as a biological imperative inherently embedded in being “female.” In other words, “femininity” is not socially constructed; it is hard-wired into female bodies.

Certain feminists support this position, seeing traditionally feminine qualities as indicative of the power women may wield over men. This largely heterosexual model posits that women, with their mysterious sexuality and deep ties to the Earth mother, inherently control men, who crave the elusive emotionality and feminine eroticism that is missing from their own biologically determined masculinity.

On the other hand, most feminists agree that “femininity” and other gender categories are socially constructed. According to this position, “femininity” is a gender category that society has assigned to female individuals. In other words, gender corresponds to the social constructs “woman,” “womanliness” and “femininity;” and to “man,” “manliness” and “masculinity” Biology is reserved for sex, which is defined in terms of the biological categories “male” and “female.” Social constructivists counter the claims of biological determinists by stating that “femininity” cannot be biological because not all women are feminine. Indeed, some feminist theorists state that there is no such thing as a “woman,” since there is no single, unified experience which brings all females together. “Women” are just people, these theorists assert, and gender categories have been imposed upon individuals as a means of social control. Feminists also point to the mutability of “femininity” in order to argue in favor of social constructivism.

In its current practical application, “femininity” has become increasingly difficult to pinpoint. With the gradual relaxation of dress codes for women since the beginning of the twentieth century, women’s entrance en masse into the paid workforce in the 1960s, and the second mobilization of the feminist movement, traditional “femininity” has lost hold as a meaningful descriptor of modern womanhood. Today, an American woman may deviate from the conventional definition of femininity and still be considered a “feminine” woman. Unlike in the past, a “feminine” woman of the 1990s may wear pants and other traditionally “masculine” attire, have her own career and embrace an active sexuality.

However, the stereotypes of the past still persist. Across the United States, certain parts of traditional “femininity” are still upheld as the ideal standard for women. Mainstream America also continues to believe that females are inherently “feminine” due to their biology. The idea of a unified feminine essence still pervades our culture.