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Hi skumar, 

I know we've talked about this before, but I wanted to respond to this post because this is something I feel strongly about.  

I think I might attempt to tackle Anne to the ground if she started to "explain what it is to be a feminist". The whole process you've been going through this semester, between thinking you have a definition, then totally contradicting that definition, then finding new ones and questioning definitions themselves... is totally awesome, and I would hate to see that ruined or invalidated by someone "EXPLAINING" to you what feminism is.

I don't think Anne can, or should, explain to us what feminism is. And I think looking at the way that Mcintosh approaches Phase 5 curriculums, she would agree. It's not a topdown, authority from the professor, kind of situation.

I do agree that we should not assume that everyone is a feminist, and should wait to hear how they describe themselves. And part of being able to describe yourself, in a meaningful way, is arriving at that understanding through your own reflection, not because someone gave you the answers. 

Would you let Anne "explain" to you what it meant to be a woman? or patriotic? or liberal? These things all used to seem easily defined to me too, but I think part of education is coming to question those very foundational aspects of our lives - of examining our previously unexamined assumptions.