feminism

Question 1

what are the three types of feminist?

Answer 1

-liberal (seek legal changes and changes in attitudes)
-radical (see patriarchy as the main reason for conflict, and see separatism as the only solution)
-marxist (say capitalism is the reason for women’s exploitation, not just men)

Question 2

what was oakly’s view?

Answer 2

-liberal
-sex and gender (sex-biological makeup, gender-what you socially regard yourself as)
-the enlightenment project (recognise successive progress towards gender equality):
-changes in socialisation and culture (more rational attitudes towards gender)
-political action to introduce anti-discriminatory laws and policies (bring progress to society where gender is no longer important)

Question 3

what were the three features of firestone’s beliefs?

Answer 3

(radical)
-patriarchy
-the personal is the political
-achieving women’s liberation

Question 4

what is meant by ‘patriarchy’ as a radical feminist view

Answer 4

-origins of women’s patriarchy lie in their biological capacity to look after infants, as this makes them dependant on males
-patriarchy is the sole cause of conflict
-men are women’s enemy
-all men oppress women and all men benefit from patriarchy

Question 5

what is meant by ;the personal is the political’ as a radical belief?

Answer 5

-all relationships involve power, and are political when one is dominant
-patriarchal power is exercised through relationships, often thru physical and sexual violence
-brownmiller- fear of rap is a powerful deterrent against women going out alone
-sexual politics - personal relationships are political because men dominate women

Question 6

what is meant by ‘achieving women’s liberation’ as a radical belief?

Answer 6

-separatism - living apart from men, creating a new culture of female independence
-consciousness raising - women-only consciousness may lead to collective action against men
-political lesbianism - heterosexual relationships are ‘sleeping with the enemy’ so lesbianism is the only non-oppressive form

Question 7

what is the marxist feminist view?

Answer 7

-believe capitalism is the cause of female oppression and benefit the most from it
-believe women provide cheap and exploitable labour, are a reserve labour army, reproduce the labour force and absorb anger
-ideology of familism
-achieving women’s liberation

Question 8

what is meant by ideology of familism as a marxist view

Answer 8

barrett - ideology form brith brainwashes women to believe the sexual division of labour and their position is natural and normal
-nuclear family is portrayed as the only place where women can be fulfilled

Question 9

how do marxist feminists argue we can achieve women’s liberation?

Answer 9

-overthrow capitalism
-overthrow the ideology of familism

Question 10

what are the views of difference feminists?

Answer 10

-butler
-dont see women as a single homogenous group (differences in class, ethnicity etc lead to different experiences of patriarchy)
-argue previous feminist theory claim ‘false universality’, where it only applies to white, western, heterosexual, MC women
-essentialism (see women as all the same)

Question 11

what is the poststructuralist feminist view?

Answer 11

-butler
-discourses (ways of thinking, seeing and speaking) are what cause oppression
-butler is highly critical of the enlightenment in the way white western MC women have taken over feminism and express a ‘universal’ image of womanhood
-anti-essentialism - no fixed essence of what it is to be a women, as identities are constructed differently between times and cultures