Feminism

• what is feminism

  feminism is focused on the conflict that exists between different groups in society (men and women)
• difference between sex and gender

  sex - biological differences between male and female

  gender - culturally constructed differences between masculine and feminine roles
• malestream

  male dominated focused on the concerns of men

  focused on the concerns of men

  failed to deal with concerns of women
• patriarchy

  a society dominated by men

  women are disadvantaged and oppressed
• overall feminist view on society

  • society is dominated by the exploitation of women by men
  • this exploitation begins in the home but can be seen everywhere in society
  • we must change society to make it fair for men and women
• 6 structures of patriarchy: 1-3

  1. paid work - key structure (the 'glass ceiling') for disadvantaged women in Britain, men continue to dominate the best paid jobs, women are paid less and do more part-time work
  2. household production - men benefit from women's unpaid work/labour, women are still predominately responsible for the home and childrearing (gender roles), women have dual burden and triple shift
  3. culture - key sign of femininity today is sexual attractiveness to men, increase in pornography increases freedom of men while threatening freedom of women, 'male gaze' encourages degradation
• 6 structures of patriarchy: 4-6

  1. sexuality - 'sexual double standard' in society - males condemn women as sexually active as 'slags' and those women who aren't as 'drags'
  2. domestic and sexual violence - male violence against women is a key feature of the patriarchy, nearly 99% of all domestic violence is committed by men, sexual violence is encouraged and apologised for in society
  3. the state - patriarchal, racist and capitalist, little attempt to improve women's position in the public sphere and equal opportunities legislation is rarely enforced
• feminism in history

  first wave - focused on political equality and the right to vote

  1918 - women over 30 with property got right to vote

  1929 - women got universal suffrage (i.e. equal rights to men, vote once 21)

  second wave - women's liberation movement

  began early 1960s and concentrated on equal rights for women in the law and workplace

  equal pay act 1970 was a landmark victory

  although it was calculated in 2008 that women's pay averaged 2/3 of men's and far less after she is 40 (women do different jobs and often same job but different title)

  third wave - current
• key feminists - Betty Friedan


  The Feminine Mystique (1963) criticised the idea that women could only find fulfilment through childrearing and homemaking

  in the book Friedan hypothesises that women are victims of a false belief system that requires them to find identity and meaning in their lives through their husbands and children

  such a system causes women to completely lose their identity in that of their family

  she was also the founder and first president of the National Organisation for Women (NOW)
• key feminists - Germain Greer


  regarded as one of the major voices of the second-wave feminist movement in the latter half of the 20th century

  Greer looked at the mystery and shame surrounding knowledge of women's bodies and the constrictions placed on their sexuality

  women, she argued, are conditioned to abandon their autonomy and embrace a stereotyped version of femininity - the result is helplessness, resentment, a lack of sexual pleasure, and absence of joy
• types of feminism - liberal

  closest to consensus view

  focused on achieving equality between women and men through human and civil rights in a gradual way

  ending discrimination of women and transforming attitudes and laws

  call for cultural change to tackle prejudice - believes women are less rational than men, making them homemakers

  involves laws such as equal pay act (1971) and sex discrimination act (1975)

  challenge Parson's division of instrumental and expressive roles

  work through gradual change rather than full on revolution and solving the cause of oppression

  over optimistic
• types of feminism - radical

  patriarchy is universal and the primary and more fundamental form of inequality and conflict in society

  Firestone (1971) 'biological inequality' due to childbirth causing women to become dependent on men

  all men oppress women and benefit from patriarchy

  women are objectified through the media and seen as sexual objects

  can be overcome through a radical transformation of society - abolition of family + separate living in communes seen as the solution, have matrilocal families

  political lesbianism is the only non-oppressive form of sexuality

  too extreme
• types of feminism - marxist

  capitalism makes patriarchal exploitation of women worse

  reserve army of cheap labour - treated as marginal

  source of cheap exploitable labour as they are dependent on husbands' earnings

  unpaid producers of the labour force

  objects to consume the products of capitalism

  safety valve to absorb anger - Fran Ansley describes wives as 'takers of shit'

  Barret (1980) ideology of feminism - natural and normal for nuclear family and sexual division of labour, so deeply implanted it is hard to remove

  fail to explain non capitalist countries subordination of women
• types of feminism - difference/intersectional


  doesn't see women as a single homogenous group - experience vary with different situations

  criticise previous feminists' theory for claiming a 'false universality' (personality takes over the dominant culture clash) and of being essentialist (women are fundamentally different to men)

  recognise that earlier versions of feminism focused on white, middle-class women

  approach combines class, ethnicity and gender while exploring society

  concerned with language and the relationship between power and knowledge rather than politics and opportunities
• general features of feminism

  there are inequalities between men and women based on power and status

  inequalities create conflict between men and women

  gender roles and inequalities are generally socially constructed

  the importance of the concept of patriarchy: a system of social structures and practices which men dominate, oppress and exploit women
• liberal feminism

  believes that equality should be brought about through education and policy changes

  they try to change the system from within

  challenge Parsons' instrumental and expressive roles - Equal Pay Act 1980, Sex discrimination Act 1975

  thinkers - Anne Oakley, Sue Sharpe
• liberal feminism evaluation

  overly optimistic about the amount of progress that has been made

  intersectional - ethnocentric perspective

  deals with the effects of patriarchy not the causes
• radical feminsm

  believe equality can only be achieved through gender separation and political lesbianism

  change is brought about through protest and violence

  thinkers - Gremaine Greer
• radical feminism evaluation

  gives other forms of feminism a bad reputation

  too extreme

  liberal - ignore changes

  focus too much on negative experiences of women - some may have good, happy marriages

  in this theory gender equality is never fully achieved

  portrays women as universally good and men as universally bad
• marxist feminism

  believe that capitalism is the cause of women's oppression and that this oppression helps to reinforce capitalism

  done in three ways: women as reserve work force, creation of the next gen of workers, cushioning effect (Zaretsky)

  recognises different experiences - bourgeoisie women are less subject to oppression than proletariat

  thinkers - Michele Bartlett, Fran Ansley (takers of shit, women are men's safety valve)
• marxist feminism evaluation

  revolution is required for equality and it hasn't happened yet

  patriarchy exists in non-capitalist societies

  it is men not capitalism that benefit from women's oppression
• intersectional feminism

  believes that other feminisms create a false universality of women's oppression, based on the experiences of western, middle class white women

  different groups of women will experience oppression differently and each of these experiences need to be reflected

  thinkers - Judith Butler, Kimberle Crenshaw (all inequality is not created equal)
• intersectional feminism - evaluation

  focuses on the minutia of oppression which lessens the impact and power in feminism as a whole

  dividing women into sub-groups weakens the movement for change

  Walby - women are still oppressed by objective social structures
• dual system feminism


  combines the ideas of radical and marxist feminists and suggests that women are oppressed by two different systems: capitalism and patriarchy, when these 2 combine, capitalism wins

  thinkers - Hiedi Hartman, Sylvia Walby
• dual system feminism evaluation

  patriarchy is not a system in the way as capitalism, instead it is a descriptive term for practices such as male violence and control of women's labour