feminist perspectives on the family Flashcards
what do all feminists argue about gender?
- it’s socially constructed
- gender roles are learnt rather than determined by biology
- family is primary institution that teachers gender roles
- breeding ground where patriarchal values are learned, which leads to patriarchal society
what two functions do feminists believe the nuclear family has performed which oppressed women?
1) girls are socialised to accept lower roles and boys to see themselves as superior by observing and copying their parents’ relationship
2) women are socialised to see the “housewife” role as normal, keeping them in the home and financially dependent on men
what do Marxist feminists argue the main cause of women’s oppression is?
- capitalism
what functions do Marxist feminists believe women’s oppression perform for capitalism?
1) women reproduce labour force: women do most of the childcare in the nuclear family, teaching children to accept parental authority, which prepares them to obey future employers - this unpaid domestic work helps socialise the next generation of workers
2) women absorb anger: according to Marxist-Feminists, Parson’s warm bath theory shows how women absorb the anger of working men, stopping it from being aimed at the Bourgeoisie and helping to maintain capitalism
3) they are ’reserve army of cheap labour’: they can be taken on when extra workers are needed. when no longer needed, employers can ’let them go’ to return to their primary role as unpaid domestic labour
what does ansley argue? (Marxist feminist)
- women absorb anger that would be directed at capitalism
- argues that the male partners are inevitably frustrated by exploitation experienced at work and women are victims of this, including domestic violence
- women are ’takers of shit’ within nuclear family under capitalism
what does penny argue? (Marxist feminist)
- neoliberal capitalism has encouraged women to seek self-empowerment and freedom through consumerism (eg buying high heels and overt expressions of sexuality)
- CA: only few women earn enough to be ’consuming their way’ to liberation so this isn’t a solution for many women
- in reality many women work long hours in unpaid domestic roles/low paid unskilled jobs, and it’s mainly exploitation of women sustaining both patriarchy and capitalism
what should feminists be campaigning for according to penny? (Marxist feminist)
- better working conditions for women
- if women realised their power and just stopped working they’d bring capitalism down
- CA: this kind of activism isn’t exciting and women remain ’distracted’ with consuming their way to liberation
what are the solutions for Marxist feminists to gender inequalities?
- solutions are economic: need to tackle capitalism to tackle patriarchy
1) campaigning for better pay and conditions where mostly women work, eg cleaning and caring jobs
2) paying women for housework and childcare, thus putting economic value on what’s largely women’s domestic work
what are criticisms of Marxist feminists?
- that women’s oppression existed before capitalism, and they were likely more oppressed in pre-capitalist, tribal societies than in capitalist ones
- the United Nations Gender Equality Index shows a correlation between capitalist development and women’s liberation, suggesting capitalism may have the opposite effect of what Marxist Feminists argue. while not perfect, it’s clear that wealthier European countries like Finland rank high, while poorer sub-Saharan African nations are lower
- the idea of women as a reserve army of labour is becoming less relevant, as the employment rate gap between men and women in the UK in December 2022 was only 7% - 79% for men and 72% for women
- CA: if we look at part time employment rates there is still more potential for women to do more work as women are more likely to employed than men: 38% of women worked part-time, compared to only 18% of men
what do radical feminists argue?
- relationships between men and women are patriarchal
- men are the cause of women’s oppression and exploitation
- nuclear family is where this oppression starts (foundation of patriarchy) - should be abolished
who are radical feminists against?
- liberal feminists
- believe that paid work hasn’t been ’liberating’
- women’s lives within family haven’t become better because they have improved job opportunities and pay equal to men’s
radical feminists believe women have acquired…
- ’dual burden’ of paid work and unpaid housework
- family remains patriarchal: men benefit from women’s paid earnings and domestic labour
- some go further arguing women suffer from ’triple shift’: they do paid work, domestic work and ’emotion work’:
- expected to take on emotional burden of taking care of children
‘dark side of family life’ (radical feminists)
-
crime survey for England and wales:
- domestic violence accounts for sixth of all violent crimes
- 1 in 5 adults experience domestic violence at one point in life, women being twice as likely
what does millet argue about family? (radical feminist)
- family is patriarchy’s core institution, enforcing conformity and male dominance
- fathers historically had full control; kinship traced through men
- modern changes give women some rights, but subordination remains (name loss, home relocation, service-for-support marriage)
- families socialise children into gender roles, reinforced by society
- patriarchy is deeply rooted; attempts to remove family’s role often fail
what is greer’s solution? (radical feminist)
- the creation of all female or ’matrilocal’ households as an alternative
solutions of radical feminists
- radical feminists call for the abolition of the traditional nuclear family and support new, non-patriarchal forms of family and sexual relationships
- propose alternatives like separatism (women-only communes) and matrifocal households. some embrace political lesbianism/celibacy, seeing heterosexuality as “sleeping with the enemy”
strengths of radical feminism
- women still face the dual burden and triple shift - they do twice the childcare and 64% more housework than men
- the #MeToo movement and Harvey Weinstein scandal highlight how harassment and sexual abuse of women remain widespread
weaknesses of radical feminism
- ignores progress women have made in areas eg work, divorce
- too unrealistic - due to heterosexual attraction, separatism is unlikely
- ignores domestic/emotional abuse suffered by men who often don’t report
what do liberal feminists argue?
- gender inequality stems mainly from the public sphere (work, education, politics), not the home
what was the problem before 1972 and what are the modern problems today? (liberal feminists)
- before 1972, the main issue was unequal pay
- today’s issues include:
- gendered subject choices leading to lower-paid jobs
- unequal parental leave pushing women to stay home longer
- lack of free childcare limits women’s return to work
solutions of liberal feminists
- liberal feminists aim for equality of opportunity in the public sphere - through equal education, pay, and career choice, mainly via legal reforms
- equal opportunities for women to pursue careers outside the family means they can choose not to be housewives and mothers
- significant progress has been made toward equality in the public sphere, but gender inequality persists in senior executive roles, with very few women in top positions
- liberal feminists would support:
- 2015 Shared Parental Leave Act (allows parents to share maternity leave)
- 2024 Free Childcare Act (provides free childcare for children as young as 9 months)
what does Somerville argue? (liberal feminist)
- young women may feel disconnected from feminism but still have grievances
- many feminists overlook progress like increased freedom for paid work, marriage/cohabitation choices, and parental/career decisions
- dual-earner households promote equality in relationships, but men often don’t share full responsibility
- high relationship breakdown rates and complex family dynamics are due to men not pulling their weight
- Somerville advocates for policies to support working parents and family-friendly work hours
strengths of liberal feminism
- sommerville recognises that significant progress made in both public and private life for women
- more appealing to wider range of women than radical ideas
- more practical: system is more likely to accelt small policy changes, while it would resist revolutionary change
weaknesses of liberal feminism
- difference feminists argue that they are ethnocentric view - reflects experiences of mainly white, mc women
- Somerville’s work is based on secondary analysis of previous works and is thus not backed up by empirical evidence
- radical feminists eg Delphy, Leonard, and Greer argue that Somerville fails to deal with patriarchal structures and culture in contemporary family life
- despite policy changes which have made work more equal, slight gender inequalities remain in UK
