secondwave

Second wave refers to a historical phase of a social, cultural, or technological movement that follows an initial period of development and precedes later evolutions. The term is most commonly associated with second‑wave feminism, a feminist movement that emerged in the early 1960s and continued into the 1980s, building on the suffrage achievements of the first wave. While first‑wave feminism focused primarily on legal issues such as voting rights, second‑wave feminism expanded its agenda to address a broader range of gender inequalities, including workplace discrimination, reproductive rights, sexuality, and the critique of patriarchal structures. Key texts such as Betty Friedan’s *The Feminine Mystique* (1963) and Simone de Beauvoir’s earlier work *The Second Sex* helped shape the discourse, and organizations like the National Organization for Women (founded 1966) played central roles in advocacy and policy change.

The concept of a “second wave” has also been applied to other domains. In music, the term describes a resurgence of a genre after an initial period of popularity, exemplified by the second wave of punk in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which introduced new stylistic elements and subcultures. In technology, the second wave of a product category, such as smartphones, denotes a generation that refines earlier designs, adds capabilities, and achieves broader market penetration.

Across contexts, the designation “second wave” implies a phase of consolidation, expansion, and diversification, where the foundational ideas of the first wave are reassessed and extended. The term underscores the iterative nature of social and cultural change, highlighting how movements evolve in response to emerging challenges and opportunities.