Feminist views of the family

Question 1

What do Liberal feminists (Oakley+Wilkinson) say about the family

Answer 1

Oakley:
origin of gender inequality is gender role socialisation.Families pass on gender codes(stereotypical ideas as to what it means to be masculine+feminine)
Manipulation:parents encourage or discourage certain behaviour of their children depending on their gender
EXAMPLE:if a little boy falls over and cried they were told to ‘man up’
Canalisation:Parents force upon children ‘gender appropriate’ toys, games, hobbies etc
EXAMPLE:encouraging boys to take up football
Wilkinson:
changes to women
1)Genderquake-women have more dominance today
2)feminisation of workforce-growth in service work which is female friendly E.G teachers,doctors etc.Women can be the breadwinner
3)legal+political-women have far more rights today
E.G- fertility rights,employment rights and right to vote
women are are much more protected and respect in society today

Question 2

Evaluation of liberal feminists

Answer 2

• nowadays parents are less likely to treat boys+girls differently. E.G boys are encouraged to show more emotions and girls encourages to pursue education
• some families don’t have two gender role models such as same sex+single parent families.So gender role socialisation is less likely to be an issue
• not all women have access to the same opportunities E.G in some countries they are expected to do domestic labour roles

Question 3

What do marxist (Ansley+Benston)feminists say about the family

Answer 3

-women are doubly oppressed in society by capitalism+patriarchy
-division between men and women is used as a tool my the bourgeoisie to divide classes, maintaining their power
Ansley:
1)marriages acts as a safety valve for capitalism:w/c women are likely to experience the stresses+frustrations by their husbands-who exploited in the capitalist workplace.
-when they get home they take their anger out on their wives e.g-domestic violence
-Women are ‘takers of shit’ from their overworked husbands
-Benefits capitalism as they can go into work the next day with a clear head and work hard benefitting m/c businesses
Benston:
-women in the nuclear family help reproduce and maintain the capitalist workforce
-once married they are pressured by family ideology to have children
-This repopulates society as they grow up to become workers
-help maintain current workforce as ensuring there husbands need are met.Required to cook, clean etc
-benefits capitalism because if they are well cared for at home they are efficient at work
Reserve army of labour:women may be asked to work in paid employment when needed, however more likely to be made redundant as cultural expectations is that the womens true place is to be at home

Question 4

evaluation of marxist feminists

Answer 4

• as a theory it ignores experiences from women in non capitalist society’s.Are there experiences better?
• Ignores women can be abused in middle class families
• outdated view-lots of women are in paid employment and act as a breadwinner today

Question 5

What do Radical feminists say about the family

Answer 5

-Men oppress women at every stage of their life
-worst opresssion for women is when married in a nuclear family
-Women get stuck in domestic roles and their independence+career becomes secondary.
-1 in 4 women are victims of domestic abuse in their lifetime.Women continue marriage because they are socialised to think that their purpose is to have children
Greer:
Women are choose to have relationships with men are ‘sleeping with the enemy’ and betraying women
Separatism:women avoid engaging with men
EXAMPLE:working in all female environments,women only households
Political lesbianism:pursue same sex relationships

Question 6

evaluation of radical feminists

Answer 6

• ignores the progress women have made in areas e.g right to vote etc
• unrealistic

Question 7

What do Difference feminists say about the family

Answer 7

-critical of all other feminist strands
-accuse them of practicing essentialism:all other feminists see women as essentially the same,ignoring unique ways women are oppressed by men
-western feminism largely focuses on the needs and progress of white women in developed society’s
-women can be oppressed differently to one another depending on factors such as their class,age,race,religion
-Other feminists are too quick to make generalised criticisms of the nuclear family.Family may not be the main source of oppression for some women
EG-Ethnic minority women find that family is a big support when dealing with racism

Question 8

Evaluation of difference feminist

Answer 8

Deviacive theory:enocourages women to compete against each other