Let's chatter about feminism

Jackie May: If you think that feminism - and its causes - has died a little death then you're wrong. Anyway, it's unlikely, if you live in South Africa, that you'll think that we're free of violent men, oppressive ways and the battle against deeply entrenched patriarchal habits.

If, like me, you're cocooned in a nice, green middle-class suburb and your most pressing issue is an untidy husband, it's possible to let the sisterhood's troubles slip your mind. But then there's always the existence of the Department of Women, Youth, Children and the Disabled to remind you of our distresses.

But, in France, it's claimed that feminism did die. Simone de Beauvoir and her like-minded friends achieved all manner of great things, including getting De Beauvoir's partner, Jean-Paul Sartre, to end his wandering ways.

Once French women believed that they had beaten down the oppressive ways of their men, feminism was replaced by femininity, says Adam Sage in The Times of London. This was exemplified by Catherine Deneuve with her elegance, refinement and sexiness. And it is promoted, he says, in women's magazines.

But with the recent launch of a new women's magazine, feminism is making a comeback in France.

The inaugural editorial of Causette (meaning chatter) introduced the magazine as: "Just a bit of enriching chatter with a healthy dose of humility and quite a lot of irony (mordant)."

It apparently doesn't think that women are stupid. There is no fashion nor sex advice. It discusses the politics of bras and underarm hair. Its features are solid and interesting and - hard to believe with all the exclusions - fun. There's a lightness to the issues.

Bloggers, among others, have hailed its arrival. Lucy Wadham of The Secret Life of France said: "I'm loving it . especially if we're spared the psycho-analytic twaddle . common to most women's magazines in France ."

Refreshingly, the magazine, which I have only read online, is edited by a feminist man, Gregory Lassus-Debat.

We can't judge the authenticity of his feminism unless you sharing his bed sheets. But it seems that he is achieving great things in the land of "liberty, equality, fraternity".

In South Africa, we don't need a renaissance of feminism but perhaps its repackaging. The idea of the feminisme joyeux, represented in Causette, could achieve great things for women in our country.