feminism Flashcards
what does charlotte perkins gilman think about the state?
- the state needs to play a greater role in giving women equality: LEGAL EQUALITY, EDUCATIONAL EQUALITY and VOTING RIGHTS
what is charlotte gilman’s view of human nature?
- men and womenn are largely equaly, biological differences are irrelevant
what do difference feminists believe in?
- men and women have different natures/essences and by seeking equality between them, a woman’s feminity is diminished
- male domination is the result of the biological family and the inevitable dependence of women and children on men for protection and subsistence
- gender equality is based on the idea of androgyny which blurs the differences between men and women
- society is patraiachal, encouraging equality means for women to act like men, gender equality perpetuates oppression.
- the goal of feminism for some feminists is female emancipation and not equality
what does sheila rowbotham think?
- capitalism: women are forced to sell their labour to survive and support their family under capitalism
- she criticised Marx for not addressing the inequalities in the home: women are treated as domestic servants for free so that men can work
- there is little hope for women unless there is a socialist revolution which calls for abolishing the patriarchy apparent in capitalism: there needs to be a revolution within a revolution
- women are likely to be laid off, only get part-time work, and do zero-hour contracts
- family: disciplines and subjects women to capitalism.
- men take refuge from the capitalist economy in the home. Capitalist rage
- men can contribute to the feminist movement if they work with women, but they must take their lead.
- human nature: the world is shaped by men
- state: depends on capitalism and the patriarchy to survive
- society: oppressive and patriarchy
- economy: WOMEN ARE A RESERVE ARMY OF LABOUR
what does simone de beavouir think?
- sex and gender: feminity is an artifical social construct. human beings is more important than differences
- existentialist: humans have no natural essence, feminity myths are created by men to oppress women
- men’s privileged existence and financial rewards is based on the oppression of women
- otherness:
- Beavoir wrote the other sex. because men are percieved as the norm and women deviate from this. medical textbooks
- men benefit as they have a steady source of sex and domestic servitude. women are unpaid labour
- human nature: gender differnences are not natural, they are created by men
- state: the state reinforces a male dominated culture, which limits women’s autonomy and freedom, limits them from expressing their true identities
- society: societal norms restrict both men and women from reaching true self-realisation and expressing their identity
- economy: men dominate economic life which limits life choices for women
what do radical feminsts believe?
- radical feminism (mostly equality feminism, some difference feminism)
- believe that the biggest problem in society is inequality. women need to stand apart entirely from society as men dominate it
- Kate Millet (radical but equality fem)
- family: undoing the traditional structure of the family is the key to a sexual revolution.
- the family unit is the foundation for patriarchy because children are socialised into gender roles that they perceive to be normal.
- the family unit reinforces the idea that heterosexualitty is superior
- Miller wanted to dismantle the family unit for communal living and child-rearing
- portrayal of women in art and literature
MILLET WANTED STATE INTERVENTION TO PROTECT WOMEN, BY REGULATING ART AND LITERATURE, OUTLAWING PORNOGRAPHY AND HARSHER CRIME SENTENCES FOR CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN- the patriachal system writes and produces work that is degrading to women
- womens gender roles are stereotyped in art and literature
- public to domestic spehere:
- the patriacy and politics filters down into relations and the family
- it is not possible to have an equal heterosexual relationship, the man will always have power over the woman and therefore Millet advocated for political lesbianism, women should create their own relationships and therefore gain freedom
- the patriachal structure that has created the relationship between mother and father, and parents and children wouldnt exist under political lesbianism
- women are oppressed in multiple fields
- family: undoing the traditional structure of the family is the key to a sexual revolution.
what do post- modern feminists believe in?
- post-modern feminism (mostly equality, some difference feminism)
- argues that the patriarchy manifests in different ways depending on race, class etc
- bell hooks
- post/intersectional feminist
- focused on woc. believed that the feminism movement was too focused on white middle class women - it didn’t consider the experience of poverty, race, religion etc
- wanted intersectionality
- the patriarchy has taught women to hate themselves- it has been internalised and causes women to judge each other harshly, making it easier for the patriarchy to perpetuate itself
- men must consider the role they are playing in perpetuating the patriarchy- therefore they must commit themselves to tearing it down
- human nature: women have multiple identities and therefore may suffer different forms of oppression
- state: white men dominate the state at the expense of women
- society: full of complex relationships between multiple different minorities, in order to resolve this, love for all minorities must be established
- economy: women in poverty experience problems that feminists haven’t addressed. the liberation of the poor is socially and economically necessary.
DeGraffenreid v. GENERAL MOTORS
eradicating the ideology of domination that permeates
all western culture in terms of sex, race, and class. In this sense it was a revolutionary
approach to tackling this dominator culture in all aspects of life.
to what extent is there more disagreement within feminism than agreement ?
AGREEMENT THAT THERE IS SOME DEGREE OF INEQUALITY OR DISCRIMINATION AND THIS SHOULD BE RESOLVED.
- socialist feminists believe that the capitalist structure exploits women. sheila rowbotham believes that capitalism is more oppressive towards women than men, as women are forced to sell their labour to survive and their cheap labour is exploited.
- Liberal feminists believe that women’s sexuality is exploited as they depend on it to survive. Charlotte perkins gilman believes this should be reformed by giving women equal educational opportunities so that they don’t have to depend on women.
there is agreement to a limited extent. liberal feminists believe that there is inequality only in the public sphere and this should be resolved, whilst socialist feminists believe that inequality exists in the economy and this affects the private sphere. There is also limited agreement to the means of reform. liberal feminists believe that giving women legal and political representation would resolve this issue, whilst socialist feminists believe that there needs to be a complete capitalist revolution which would result in a sexual revolution.
- DISAGREEMENT OVER ORIGIN AND HOW OF OPPRESSION.
liberal fems believe that oppression and discrimination stems from the public sphere. for example, charlotte perkins gilman believes that the absence of legal, educational and voting rights for women is the foundation of discrimination and inequality
radical feminists would disagree, and argue that the private sphere is the origin of oppression and patriarchy. for example, kate millet would argue that undoing the traditional family is the key to sexual revolution because the traditional family perpetuates patriarchy between the man and the woman, this filters down to reinforcing it on their children - DISAGREEMENT OVER HUMAN NATURE, REJECT THE VIEW THAT MEN AND WOMEN ARE INNATELY DIFFERENT.
Socialist feminists believe that sex and gender are social constructs created to oppress women. Simone de behaviour believed that people have no natural essence, feminity myths are created by men in order to oppress women by telling them that their role i sto provide domestic labour and produce children for capitalism to thrive
Radical feminists/ difference feminists would argue that gender differences shouldn’t be ignored. For example, shulamith firestone argued that the essence of men and women is so different they should live apart in separate societies
in conclusion, there is mostly disagreement in feminism over agreement. Whilst there is some agreement between socialist and liberal feminists (and all feminists) that inequality for women exists, this is limited because they differ greatly on how this should be resolved. Futhermore, Liberal feminists and socialist feminists would disagree over origin of oppression of women, whether it comes from the private or public sphere. Socialist and difference feminits disagree over human nature, and the essence of men and women.
to what extent do feminists think the state plays a key role in securing feminist goals?
feminist goals refer to the common goal of feminists to eliminate the patriarchy and reduce inequality for women.
AGREEMENT
- AGREEMENT THAT THE STATE CAN PLAY A ROLE IN PROMOTING FEMALE EMANCIPATION
- liberal feminits believe that women are oppressed as they cpg
- bell hookes wanted state to provide greater protection of women as seen in DeGRAFFENREID V GENERAL MOTORS
- AGREEMENT THAT THE STATE CAN PLAY A ROLE IN OPPRESSIONG WOMEN, AND DOESNT PROTECT THEM radical feminists believe that the state doesn’t have the interests of women at heart. kate millet believes that the state is not structured to eradicate patriarchy from society, for example by providing minimal protection for women and therefore allowing discrimination against them to continue. and socialist feminists
DIFFERENCES IN TO WHAT EXTENT THE STATE SHOULD INTERFERE TO PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN
- liberal feminists believe that state intervention to grant women rights should only be limited to the public sphere. for example simone de behaviour advocated for the abotion pill so that women could be able to make choices for themselves.
- radical feminists believe that the state should interfere much further and regulate art, literature and media to protect women. for example, simone de behaviour believed that the state should protect women by outlawing pornography
to what extent do feminists agree on the best ways to achieve social change?
- agreement more autonomy in the economy: sheila rowbotham and cpg
- disagreement: socialist fems want a capitalist and sexual revolution
- post modern feminists want the fact that black women face different levels of struggle to be acknowledged and advocate for some evolutionary means such as achieving legal equality through degraffenreid v general motors
- RADICAL, SOCILAIST AND SOME POST MODERN FEMINISTS WANT REVOLUTIONARY CHANGE
to what extent do feminists believe that the patriarchy is based on human nature?
this is a question about HUMAN NATURE
- AGREEMENT THAT THE PATRIACHY IS A SOCIAL STRUCTURE. liberal feminists believe that gender is a social construct. simone de beavoiur believes that feminity myths and
to what extent do feminists disagree over their views on patriarchy?
the patriachy, as defined by kate millet, refers to men have importance or power over women, and an older man is more important than a younger one.
- DISAGREEMENT OVER THE EXTENT OF THE PATRIACHY
liberal feminists believe that the patriarchy is evident in the public sphere are this should be changed by taking legal action - radical feminists believe that the patriarchy oppresses women in the private sphere too. kate millet believes that the family structure upholds it
AGREEMENT: THE PATRIACHY ALLOWS MEN TO DOMINATE AND EXPOLIT WOMEN IN THE ECONOMY
interesectional feminists belive that the patriarchy exploits women in different ways. bell hooks would argue that degraffenreid v general motors is an example of this
- socialist feminists believe that the patriarchy allows women to be exploited by men for their cheap labour and used to further capitalism. for example, simone de behaviour advocated for the pill to give women autonomy over their body and avoid being exploited to reproduce workers for the workforce
- AGREEMENT: PATRIACHY SHOULD BE OVERTHROWN
- socialist feminists believe that in order for women to be liberated they need to smash the patriarchy. Sheila rowbotham believes that this should happen through a sexual revolution within a capitalist revolution
- radical difference feminists believe that the patriarchy means that women are exploited through heterosexual relationships. therefore, shulamith firestone believed that the patriarchy should be overthrown by advocated for political lesbianism - that way women wouldn’t be exploited through the patriarchy
to what extent do feminists agree about the nature of the economy in a future society?
- AGREEEMENT, WANT A FUTURE ECONOMY WHERE WOMEN ARE NOT BEING EXPLOITED
- liberal feminists believe that women are taken advanatge of in marriage. for example, charlotte perkins gilman believed that marriage is prostitution. Therefore she wanted women to be given educational equality so that they could get jobs and not have to depend on men.
- intersectional feminists argue that women with different identities are more susecptible of being taken advantage of. for example bell hookes argued that women are further discriminated against and taken advantage of in the economy - as seen in degraffenreid v general motors. and this should be rectified.
- DISAGREEMENT ABOUT FUTURE OF NATURE OF WOMANS INVOLVEMENT IN THE ECONOMY. - liberal feminists argue that women should be integrated into the economy by giving them equality, but ultimately they have the right to choose . - cpg
- socilaist feminists believe that cheap female labour is needed for the economy to work, therefore if men are asking women to stay at home and supply their labour without being paid for it, women are being taken advantage of
DISAGREEMENT ON THE NATURE OF THE FUTURE ECONOMY
- socialist: believe that a socialist revolution would remove the patriarchy from the economy which would mean that women are given equal opportunities in the economy
- kate millet: state intervention is needed in the economy, separate societies and economies in order for women to be treated as equals in the economy
to what extent is there more agreement than disagreement between feminists on the economy?
agreement: WOMEN ARE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST IN THE ECONOMY IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS.
- liberals believe that women face discrimination in the economy today, through the gender pay gap. this shouldn’t exist and there should be more legislation to protect women in the workplace
- post modern feminists believe that women with different identities are discriminated against in the economy in different ways. bell hooks would argue that this is evident through cases like degraffenreid vs general motors and so women of different ideas need to be protected more
DISAGREEMENT: disagreement of the root cause of discrimination against women in the workplace
- socialist feminists would argue that capitalism is the reason women are oppressed. shelia rowotham believes that capitalism is dependent on the exploitation of women - they need their cheap labour
on the other hand, radical feminists would argue that the cause of discrimination in the economy is the patriarchy, the patriarchy needs to be overthrown in order to emancipate women
Agreement: GENDER STEROTYPES SET A ROLE OF WOMEN
simone de behaviour: feminity myths are created to oppress women
cpg: women are conformed bby society for motherhood from a young age
To what extent do feminists agree on human nature ?
AGREEMENT: women don’t have a natural nature due to their gender
