Philosophers Flashcards
-Types of feminism
First-wave feminism focused on the legal and political rights of women, most famously in the UK
through the suffragette movement, which culminated in equal suffrage with men in 1928.
* Second-wave feminism focused on the different roles that society expected of men and women.
This was where the concepts of patriarchy, sex and gender, and ‘the personal is political’ were
discussed.
* Third-wave feminism, which emerged in the 1990s, was concerned with the idea that feminism
had solely focused on white middle-class women, failing to recognise the concerns of women of
other cultures.
* Fourth-wave feminism – Some suggest that a new wave of feminists are reacting against
inequality based on media images of women, online misogyny and issues arising through the
expansion of social media.
Radical feminism - arose in the second wave - introduced new words and concepts into our language to analyse, explain and challenge society’s views of women
Sex refers to the biological differences between men and women
Gender - explain innate character
They say the biological differences cannot be changed - different cultures alo have a different opinion on gender- this shows that gender is learned behaviour imposed by society
Women are to be calm, passive, compassionate, and thoughtful.
Patriarchy
Society is dominated by men and run in the interest of men. - there are different forms of patriarchy- household, violence(domestic violence),women being misrepresented.
Personal is political
slogan associated with second wave feminism- most feminists distinguish between public sphere and the private sphere. But the personal is political - sought to convey the notion that all relationships between men and women are based on power and dominance
1960s and 70s - domestic abuse was something was largely ignored by society- it was a private matter - today we can see how flawed that thinking was
Normal daughters are brought up to be - dependent, obedient, conformity and domesticity
Boys to be dominant, competitive and self reliant
Women carry out domestic work, even when they are also doing paid work.
Equality feminism and difference feminism
Equality for men and women
Difference feminists or essentialist feminists - argue that men and women are fundamentally different from each other - came around 1980s and 1990s , is based on the belief that there are essential , biological differences between men and women
They highlight and value the differences between men and women rather than ignoring it. They celebrate women’s special and unique qualities. By making women to replicate men’s behaviour and deny their own nature, this only alienate women from themselves
Some difference feminists ay superiority of women cultures will overcome masculine qualities of selfishness
Cultural feminism - challenges the dominant cultural argument that women are inferior and subservient to men
Extension to this in the form of separatism and political lesbiansim - women should create separate societies from men.
Intersectionality
Arose in 3rd wave feminism - notion that gender wasn’t the only singular factor that determines womens fate eg black,working class
Forms of oppression experienced by white middle class women were different from those experienced by black, poor or disabled women , also religion such as muslim women.
Liberal feminism
Liberal values of individualism and foundational equality - same rights, worth and freedom as men
Women vote, voice and politicians would listen to them.
Equality in work, education and opportunities
Liberal feminism is reformist, believing gender imbalance can be overturned through democratic pressure - once all barriers to women entering the workplace have been removed - women would later enter all areas of industry.
More women would be in all types of jobs and positions of responsibility, the sooner gender stereotypes of the past will start to disappear.
Liberal feminism does not seek to challenge the private, domestic, sphere, it simply argues to give women the equal opportunity to stay or go out to work - wanting discrimination to disappear.
Socialist feminism
Gender inequality stems from economics and more specifically, capitalism
Women to be confined to the domestic, private sphere where the primary roles would be to take care of husband and children. Also socialise the children to become the next generation of the workforce - called reproducing the labour force
Women also acted as a reserve army of labour and could be used as part of the workforce when needed, then sent back home when their usefulness had ended.
Want couples living alongside , and perhaps also single people, allowing the responsibility of housework to be shared and companionship to be enjoyed by all.
Capitalism creates patriarchy so women should join with men to fight capitalism - remove patriarchy doing so
They see patriarchy a consequence of capitalism - thus believing only a revolution
Women are dependent and hidden away, rely on husband financially
Socialist feminists such as charlotte perkins gilman
Mitchell argued that family is an independent source of female oppression as it keeps women hidden away and dependent on their husbands financially
Radical feminism
There needs to be radical changes to society - sexual revolution. For them gender inequality is the foremost system of oppression and patriarchy is an independent system of oppression , separate from other ideologies.
Radical feminism is associated with second wave feminism and the slogan personal is political - patriarchy pervades every aspect of life.
Millet’s sexual politics - role of the family. She also showed how society treated women and property by their husbands. If women cheated men can take her property - divorce her and prevent her from seeing her children.
Postmodern feminism
Third wave feminism - concept of difference in feminism
There are differences in experiences of men and women - there is no such thing as a women ie it is impossible to generalise about theoretical people called women because women’s experiences of life are vastly different
It critiqued feminism for focusing on white middle class and not recognising that black and working class women had very different experiences of patriarchy.
We recognise the different guises that oppression works under a genuine sisterhood can be found
Charlotte Perkins Gilman(socialist feminism)
Charlotte Perkins Gilman(socialist feminism)
To be free, women need economic independence
Gender stereotyping in childhood is wrong
Socialist feminism
She is best known for her short story - the yellow wallpaper about women suffering from mental illness after 3 months of being closeted in a room by her husband for the sake of her health.
Her hand in argument was hat sex and domestic economics went hand in hand, for women to survive, they were reliant on sexual assets to please their husbands and we could financially support his family
She also argued that from childhood, young girls are forced to conform to a domestic role and motherhood, and are prepared for this by toys that are marketed to them and clothes designed for them. She argued that there should be no difference in the clothes that little girls and boys wear, the toys they play with or the activities they do.
Gilman believed economic independence was the only thing that could bring freedom for women and make them equal to men. She argued that motherhood should not stop a woman from working outside the home.
She suggested that communal housing should be constructed that was open to men and women, which would allow individuals to live singly and still have companionship and the comforts of a home. Both men and women would be economically independent, with women taking their place in the workforce alongside men and being freed from their role as domestic slaves. This would allow for marriage without either the male or the female’s economic status having to change.
Simone de Beauvoir(liberal)
Simone de Beauvoir(liberal)
Women are taught and socialized into becoming women
Otherness - men are the norm;women are other
Simone de Beauvoir was initially reluctant to call herself a feminist. She believed that socialist development and class struggle were needed to solve society’s problems, not a women’s movement.
She publicly stated that she no longer believed a socialist revolution to be sufficient to bring about women’s liberation.
Simone de Beauvoir famously stated, ‘One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.’ She was arguing that women are taught and socialized to do and be what is perceived to be a ‘woman’. She called motherhood a way of turning women into slaves as they were forced to focus on motherhood and femininity instead of politics, technology or anything beyond home and family.
De Beauvoir also discussed the issue of ‘otherness’, which referred to the fact that women were considered to be fundamentally different from men in every sense. Men were thus the ‘norm’, while women were ‘deviants’ from the norm.
De Beauvoir argued that women have accepted and internalized their otherness – not only had it been imposed on them by men, but women had also come to accept it for themselves. Thus, women were not just inferior in the eyes of men, but inferior in their own eyes too. Women needed to first become conscious of their domination before they could struggle against it.
However, de Beauvoir was dismayed by the idea of a separate, mystical ‘feminine nature’.She argued that the idea of ‘a woman’s nature’ was an example of the further oppression of women. She did not think it was beneficial for women to refuse to do anything ‘a man’s way’ or refuse to take on qualities deemed masculine.
Kate millet(radical)
The family is a key tool of patriarchy
Socialisation gives men power, and denies women power
Millett argued that female oppression was both political and cultural, and suggested that undoing the traditional family was the key to true sexual revolution. She argued that the family was ‘patriarchy’s key institution’; it was a mirror of the larger society, a patriarchal unit within a patriarchal whole. It was where very young girls were taught ‘their place’ in relation to their brothers, and where they learned about the role of women by observing the hierarchical relationship between their mother and father.
Traditionally, patriarchy granted the father nearly total ownership over his wife and children. Her status as his property continued in her loss of name and the legal assumption that marriage involved an exchange of women’s domestic service and sexual consent in return for financial support.
The chief contribution of the family to patriarchy was the socialisation of the young into patriarchal attitudes. Although there were slight cultural variations, this was achieved and reinforced through friends, schools, media and other aspects of society. This culture supported masculine authority in all areas of life, and permitted the female none at all.
Millett also explored the treatment of women in art and literature. She showed how patriarchal culture had produced writers and literary works that were degrading to women. Millett demonstrated how the language used in describing sex demonstrated the subjugation of women. Millett suggested that in literature, women were never their own agents; they were commodities silenced by the freedom of men to sexually possess them.
Millett also attacked romantic love and called for an end to monogamous marriage and the family, which she referred to as patriarchy’s chief institution. She proposed a sexual revolution that would bring the institution of patriarchy to an end.
Sheila Row Botham (socialism)
Women are oppressed economically and culturally
Capitalism and sexism are closely linked
Rowbotham argued that women’s oppression was a result of both economic and cultural forces, so a dual response examining both the public and private spheres was required to work towards liberation. Rowbotham is most closely associated with socialist feminism, which combines a Marxist analysis with feminism.
She argued that achieving women’s liberation required a ‘revolution within the revolution’. She maintained that capitalism and sexism are so closely linked that the only way to destroy both was a radical change in the ‘cultural conditioning’ of humanity regarding child-rearing, homes, laws and the workplace.
Rowbotham argued that capitalism oppressed not only the proletariat, but also women. Women are thus doubly oppressed as they are forced to sell their labour to survive, but also forced to use their labour to support their husbands and children.
Rowbotham maintained that the domestic work done by women allowed the reproduction of men’s labour. However, she claimed that the family was not just an instrument for disciplining and subjecting women to capitalism, but was a place where men took refuge from alienation under capitalism.
Bell hooks(post modern)
Mainstream feminism excludes the concerns of women of colour
Solidarity is important, between genders, races and classes
hooks argued that, from a very young age, boys and girls are constantly being knocked down and told to fit into the boxes of characteristics that are expected of them. hooks pointed out that the boy was denied his right to show or even have any true feelings, while the girl was taught that the most important thing she could do was change herself and her own feelings in the hope of attracting and pleasing everyone else.
She is mainly known for her efforts to bring the cultural concerns of women of colour into the mainstream feminist movement. hooks found the mainstream feminist movement had focused mostly on the plight of white, college-educated middle- and upper-class women who had no stake in the concerns of women of colour.
Historically, women of colour often found themselves in a double bind. By supporting the women’s movement, they had to ignore the racial aspect of womanhood, but if they supported the civil-rights movement they were subjected to the same patriarchal order that all women faced.
hooks wrote about the need to articulate and recognise a feminist theory of empowerment that was accessible to people of colour. She argued that feminists have not succeeded in creating political solidarity with women of different ethnicities or socio-economic classes. hooks always argued for solidarity: between genders, between races and between classes.
