liberal feminism Flashcards
liberal feminism
This approach takes the ideas of liberalism (foundational equality, individualism) and applies it to women. If all individuals are of equal worth, then women should be entitled to the same rights as men. Women should have all the freedom they need to be autonomous, rational individuals in society.
what 4 points do liberal feminists argue for
· Liberty – women should be free to determine the nature of their own lives
· Women’s suffrage – once women had the vote, they could reform society. This is political equality.
· Equality before the law – legal equality. There should be no discrimination against women.
· They wanted equal access to the public sphere – therefore they were arguing for the liberal idea of equality of opportunity.
Betty Friedan as a liberal thinker (not key thinker)
In her book ‘The Feminine Mystique’ (1963) she described the ‘problem that has no name’ and vividly created an account on the middle class housewife trapped in the drudgery of domestic life. Friedan argued that women were equally as capable as men and campaigned for the reform of the laws that restricted women. Also argued men were equally victims to the patriarchy as women, since they were so widely conditioned to think of themselves as superior –> toxic masculinity. Known for being a reformist meaning she believed significant progress was possible via legal equality bought about via a liberal state, difference with radical feminists who claim the state is inherently patriarchal in nature
Mary Wollstonecraft as a liberal feminist (not a key thinker)
Before her book A Vindication of the Rights of Women (1792) women’s rights were not on the agenda. She argued that women needed education in order have the same equality as men.
is liberal feminism reform or revolution regarding the state
reformist –> once the laws have changed in society then the gender imbalance will be removed via democracy
gender stereotypes will be broken down gradually as girls see women doing traditional “male” roles
what did Charlotte Perkins Gilman argue for
- the lack of opportunities females had
- equality feminist –> biological differences between men and women were irrelevant, especially after the Industrial Revolution so women could compete equally to men
- liberation of women lay in equality of opportunity, especially in the workplace
- child rearing and housework amounted to domestic slavery, campaigned for the destruction of the traditional nuclear family, argued for communal living
what was Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s concept of socialisation
- link to SDB
- girls are socialised from an early age and at school to take on the role of motherhood
- confinement to roles in the home is culturally not biologically determined
- position of women in modern society is equivalent to free labour, women are unpaid but they do so much work, since men are paid they are seen as more dominant and in charge of the house
- child rearing and housework amounts to domestic slavery
- Women and Economics –> horse metaphor
role of state to liberal feminists
- neutral force and can be used to help women
- reformist
- state has a role to provide foundational equality
Simone De Beauvoir
- men are responsible from imposing their will on women
- feeling of otherness
- girls are not born with any nurturing instinct, they learn this from society around them
- solution = give women the same opportunities as men; education, work, state funded childcare, legalised abortion and access to contraception
- women need to liberate themselves sexually from the confines of he oppressive nuclear family
- “one is not born but becomes a woman”
it is men who define women and it is always as inferior
liberal feminism and the economy
- want equal pay for men and women
- women’s economic output and unrecognised commitments to the public sphere needs to be acknowledged and paid for –> CPG horse metaphor
- SDB –> no biological, psychological or economic fate determines the figure that human female presents in society; it is civilisation as a whole
liberal feminism on the state
- want constitutional representation –> ERA in the US
- want to use the state to achieve equality as they have a duty to provide foundational equality so think the state is a neutral tool which is necessary to help women
- want equal legal, political and social rights
liberal feminist views on society
- patriarchy
- structure of society favours men and is created by men, they define women and it is always as inferior
- want to see abolition of the nuclear family
liberal feminism on human nature
- girls are conditioned into family roles and pursuing motherhood from their surroundings –> socialisation for CPG
- SDB “one is not born but becomes a woman” –> The 2nd Sex
