Simone de Beauvoir

• oppresses women in same way it oppresses proletariat in marxist theory
• religion is used by men to oppress women and compensate for their second class status
• it is men who control religious beliefs and they use god to justify their control over society
• modern societies: religion is more a tool of deception than a tool of direct control, it deceives women into thinking they are equal to men
• the role of mother is given divine status in most religions and thus encourages women to accept this role in society. Religion presents psychological rewards to women that content themselves with being good mothers
• women who accept their religiously sanctioned role of mother benefit religious institutions because they socialise their children into religious belief and reproduce power inequalities