2c

Question 1

Gender intro

Answer 1

The broad picture of Gender inequality is that women are disadvantaged compared to men. It was the emergence of the women’s movement in the 1960s and 1970s which demonstrated the importance of gender divisions in society and it highlighted certain conflicts of interests between men and women. For example, some activists argued that Britain was a patriarchal society in which men dominated and exploited women.

Question 2

Weber - Dual labour market theory eval

Answer 2

• It stresses that the social organisation of work in Western societies is essentially patriarchal with men in the positions of power-making discrimination against women and their lower status appear ‘natural’.
• It undermines the popular assumption that better qualifications and increased ambition for women would automatically dismantle gender divisions in employment. Women with the same qualifications as men will continue to be disadvantaged as long as these two sectors are allowed to exist and are underpinned with patriarchal assumptions about the role of women.

Question 3

Postmodern feminists

Answer 3

Postmodern feminists are much more interested in differences between women. For example, postmodern feminists deny that there is a common ‘essence’ to women – the individual differences between women are just as striking as the differences between men and women. Postmodernists argue that people have been released from stereotyped gender roles and this gives them greater freedom to choose their own personal lifestyles and identities.

Question 4

Postmodern feminists - living doll

Answer 4

Walter’s book ‘Living Doll’ argues that the rise of internet porn, the surge in cosmetic surgery and the hyper sexualisation of women has led to an unprecedented rise in the way in which women are objectified. Walter believes that women are judged on their looks and this has led to inequalities where women are not taken seriously. She sees feminism as more necessary than ever as women face a resurgence of discrimination.

Question 5

Postmodern feminists eval

Answer 5

• There is little political engagement from women towards feminism which suggests that there is no consensus on the further need for a third wave. Also, these feminists are diverse within themselves and offer little in terms of a unified set of solutions to any gender inequality which does exist.
• Oakley and Mitchell question whether there really has been a systematic backlash against women’s rights in Britain

Question 6

Triple system feminism 1

Answer 6

In a later work, Walby identifies three interacting systems: racism, capitalism and patriarchy. But the main difference is that she now places the major emphasis on patriarchy, which she defines as ‘a system of social structures and practices in which men dominate, oppress and exploit women’.

Question 7

Triple system feminism 2

Answer 7

Walby describes patriarchal relations as existing in six interacting ‘structures’: domestic life, employment, state policies, male violence against women, sexuality and cultural institutions (eg. media, education, religion). She insists it can take account of class and race variations and she recognises that it changes over time.It has also changed in form: the main site of women’s oppression has shifted from the ‘private’ household to the more ‘public’ spheres of employment, culture and the state.

Question 8

Triple system feminism eval

Answer 8

According to Freedman, the ‘triple’ systems approach has the advantage that it does not seek one simple overarching explanation of women’s subordination. Rather, it treats capitalism, patriarchy and racism as linked but interacting systems, each making a difference. This recognition of complexity is to be welcomed. Nevertheless, Freedman points out that the triple approach actually widens rather than narrow the search for the basis of women’s disadvantage. It raises as many questions as it solves