PATTERNS AND TRENDS = FEMINISM Flashcards
1
Q
what do feminists believe?
A
- culture has been shaped by men and neglects the contribution that women have made in society
- male stream subculture
- most sociological research is focused on men and is conducted by men and assumes it can be generalised for women as well
2
Q
what’s the key aim for feminists?
A
- redress this imbalance
- role of women in society to change
- keen to empower women and want to treat them as equals
3
Q
what’s first wave feminism?
A
- emergered in mid 1800s
- aims to reform social and legal inequalities affecting women and in get right to vote
- concerned about poor educational opportunities available to girls and fought for better secondary education access to higher education
- by 1900s achieved most goals
- right to vote granted in 1928
- education system reformed to give girls more rights and employment wise women greater access to professions like medicine
- however women were still socialised to be mainly mothers and housewives
4
Q
what’s second wave feminism?
A
- grew in 1960s
- linked to social change like civil rights and gay right
- ‘the personal is political’
- aimed to raise women’s consciousness about the problems that they faced in society
- created a sense of sister hood
- lost unity and momentum in the end
5
Q
what were the demands established through second-wave feminism?
A
- equal pay for equal work
- equal education and job opportunities
- free contraception and abortion on demand
- free 24-hour nurseries
then in 1978 more demands were added on
- an end to discrimination against lesbians
- freedom for all women from intimidation by the threat or use of violence or sexual coercion regardless of marital status
- an end to all laws assumptions and institutions that perpetuate male dominance and aggression against women
6
Q
what’s third wave feminism?
A
- developed mid 1990s onwards
- more diverse and individualist form of feminism due to globalisation
- less on laws and political processes and more on individual identity
- acknowledged ethnicities, nationalists, religions and cultural backgrounds of women
- criticises second wave for expressing interests of only white middle-class women
- aims to define feminism for themselves in a way that reflects their identity
- focus on making changes to traditional ideas about sexuality and gender roles in media
7
Q
what’s forth wave feminism?
A
- movement necessary in the 21st century to action against sexism and inequalities girls face
-use the Internet to bring change - The Everyday Sexism Project 2012
- activism badges for girl guides - “Go for it!”
- Mumsnet 2013 = 59% feminists
- UK feministas campaign against supermarkets displaying lads’ mag
8
Q
what does forth wave feminist Kira Cochrane argue?
A
- its defined by technology : tools that areallowg women to build a strong popular movement online
9
Q
what are the different strands of feminism?
A
- liberal feminism
- Marxist feminism
- radical feminists
10
Q
explain liberal feminism
A
- equal rights for males and females in workplaces education and politics
- gender inequalities due to gender role socialisation and unfair laws
- changes in norms and values will bring equality
- legislation is the solution = the Equal Pay Act and sex discrimination act
11
Q
what does liberal feminist Ann Oakley argue?
A
- gender socialisation in families is an important area since inequalities root from a young age
- occurs through manipulation and canalisation which teach expected norms + values
- manipulation = encouragement of behaviour that is seen as gender appropriate
- canalisation = channelling of children towards toys and activities appropriate for their gender
- don’t see men as oppressors and are happy to work with them
12
Q
why has Oakley been prasied?
A
- endurance in still being able to explain gender differences that continue to show in society
13
Q
what are the criticism for Oakley?
A
- postmodernists = gender identities are no longer fixed and there are a range of masculinities and feminists. Oakley is outdated and lacks temporal validity
- regards children as passive recipients, there is resistance to gender role socialisation as some children actively go against gender stereotypes eg tom girls - Connell
14
Q
what does Connell say about gender role socialisation?
A
- there is resistance to gender role socialisation and some children actively go against traditional gender stereotypes
15
Q
what’s sue Sharpe’s study about?
A
- compared the attitudes of working-class girls in London schools in the early 1970s and 1990s. She found that the 1990s girls were more confident, more assertive, more ambitious and more committed to gender equality.
- education 1972 67% wanted to leave school at 16 later 67% wanted to stay
16
Q
evaluation of liberal feminism.
A
- radical and Marxist fem would argue that they fail to explain how males and females come to hold different levels of power in the family and in society. radical = patriarchal, Marxists = capitalism
- focus on reforming existing structure in society and more revolutionary change is needed
- overly optimistic and positive = despite equal pay act 2010 there’s still a pay gap 2014 stood at 10%
- its a middle class movement fails to address wider rang of women
17
Q
explain Marxist feminism (6)
A
- social class affects life chances for women, capitalism leads to oppression
- The family is a patriarchal institution and women’s position as wives/ mothers results in exploitation by capitalism.
- women are encouraged to accept the dominant ideology that the nuclear family is natural
- women play a central role through labour + reproduce next capitalist workers
- boys brainwashed into breadwinners and girls into housewives
- women’s domestic work is unpaid
- women soothe the stresses of proletariat men
18
Q
what does Feeley argue about family?
A
- family teaches children to submit to a form of parental authority that is patriarchal, emerge from family life preconditioned to accept their place in society
- it’s natural and family teaches passively not rebellious
19
Q
what kind of feminist is Feeley?
A
Marxist feminist
20
Q
what does Benston argue about wives?
A
- wives keep husbands in the good running for capitalism.
- men must provide for family = less likely to challenge capitalism.
- unpaid domestic labour supports the capitalist system
- highly critical of the nuclear family and sees it as a stabilising force in capitalist society
21
Q
what does Ansley argue about women and family?
A
- safety valve and takers of shit,
- maintains capitalist society because proletariat men who are exploited by their bosses will come and take it out on the wives like a sponge
22
Q
what kind of feminist is Ansley
A
Marxist feminist
23
Q
what does Bruegel argue about women and work?
A
- family is central to women’s oppression
- The ruling class use women to their benefit and sends them back to full-time housewives when not needed
- women most affected by low pay and job insecurity
24
Q
what kind of feminist is Bruegel?
A
Marxist feminist
25
what is the evaluation of Marxist feminists?
- too much emphasis on social class and not other factors
- postmodernists = social class is no longer a significant social division
- radical feminists critical of the emphasis on capitalist exploitation, forget patriarchy
- relies on revolution to bring about change which isn't happening
26
who are the Marxist feminists?
- Ansley = takers of shit
- Bruegel = ruling class benefit from women's work
- Benston = wives keep husbands running in capitalist society
- Feeley = family teaches children to submit to capitalist society
27
what is Radical feminism?
- patriarchy is the main oppression, not capitalism - a society run by men on their interests
- only revolutionary change can offer women liberation
- family as central to oppression
- men define ideas about women's natural role
- biological differences contributed to position in society (birth giver) - dont accept it
- men defend their power at all costs and will use violence to control them
- men use patriarchal ideology to enforce compulsory heterosexuality to maintain control
28
what does feminist Millett argue about men and women?
- men acquired power over women because of biological factors but modern technology has produced developments like contraceptive pills, so men can no longer legitimate their power and domination
29
what kind of feminists is Millett
Radical Feminist
30
what do feminist Johnsons argue about men and women?
- patriarchal terrorism = patriarchal tradition to control their women through violence, threats and isolation.
31
what did the WHO find in 2013 about the abuse of women?
- women who had experienced physical or sexual abuse from intimate partners in their lifetime was 30% globally and 25.4% in Europe
32
what did Ti-Grace Atkinson state during the second wave of feminism?
- "Feminism is the theory, lesbianism is the practice"
33
who said "Feminism is the theory, lesbianism is the practice"
Ti-Grace Atkinson
34
what do Delphy and Leonard argue about marriage and family?
The Family is an institution that plays a major part in the oppression of women The family is an economic system from which men benefit and exploit women
- wives contribute more work to family life than their husbands but get fewer benefits
35
what type of feminists are Delphy and Leonard?
- Radical Feminists
36
evaluation of radical feminists
- talk about family without acknowledging variation in the family life between classes and ethnic groups
- assume all women share common interests
- liberal feminists argue the position of women in society has changed which is ignored
- overemphasis that separates women from men but not always = improvements
37
who are radical feminists?
- Delphy and Leonard = family major oppression of women + contributes more to fam
- Ti-Grace Atkinson = Lesbianism is the practice
- Johnsons = Patriarchal Terrorism
- Millett = biological factors cause divide but modern tech is developing
