ideas and principles of feminism Flashcards
what is meant by ‘sex’
biological differences between men and women
what is difference feminism?
they perceive women as biologically and culturally different to men, and they argue that these differences need to be celebrated , women need to value their distinct gender characteristics.
they believe in essentialism
what is equality feminism?
they believe that there should be an elimination of cultural differences to ensure complete equality. liberal, radical, socialist and post modern feminists all have different visions of how this can be done in practice
transfeminism vs sceptics
transfeminists believe that sex is socially constructed, but sceptics like Germaine Greer state that transgender women are ‘not women’.
Andrea Dworkin disagrees, supporting transfeminists saying the state should finance sex-change operations
what is meant by ‘gender’
roles that society gives to men and women
what did Beauvoir believe in terms of gender?
that men had successfully characterised themselves as the norm whereas women were the ‘otherness’, the concept that men are the first sex and women are the second sex
what did Gilman believe in terms of gender?
gender roles are socially constructed from a young age, subordinating women to the will of men. women are socialised into thinking themselves being naturally frail and weaker than men
what did Millet and bell hooks believe in terms of gender?
they both perceive social construction beginning in childhood within the family unit, therefore gender roles are neither natural nor inevitable
what did liberal feminists believe in terms of patriarchy?
patriarchy should be reformed by the state, e.g workplace equality, legislation of abortion and divorce
what did radical feminists believe in terms of patriarchy?
patriarchy is too persuasive to be reformed, instead, change must be revolutionary
what did socialist feminists believe in terms of patriarchy?
female consciousness is created by men as part of the capitalist machine, Rowbotham adopted a maxist theory that women have always been oppressed and a revolution was needed to destroy capitalism and patriarchy
personal is political
the idea that all relationships, both in society and private relationships between men and women, are based on power and dominance
liberal feminists focus on the public sphere, whereas radical feminists focus on the private sphere
what is the public sphere?
the visible area of society like the workplace
what is the private sphere?
the area of society where relationships are seen as private, like home and domestic life
what is intersectionality?
the idea that women have multiple different identities as well as gender, like class, age, sexuality and religion
bell hooks heavily believed in this
