Simone De Beauvoir Flashcards
Belief with sex and gender
Believed removing gender constructs was necessary
What kind of feminist is Simone de Beauvoir?
Socialist feminist
Beauvoir claimed that men construct…….
She claimed that men construct a notion of femininity and the feminine ideal that served their own economic and physical ends.
Whilst biological experiences are of some significance, the entire notion of what a woman should be is socially rather than biologically constructed.
Simone de Beauvoir therefore claims that the social construct of women is deliberately created for the benefit of men.
Women are conditioned into accepting a passive role in life and in taking inordinate care over their appearance. This occurs via the process of socialisation. Girls (and boys) are therefore presented with a clear line of separation between the male breadwinner and the female caregiver. There is also an unmistakable emphasis upon the female’s appearance.
Beauvoir points out that masculinity is prevented in a …… way, unlike femininity.
She points out that the masculine is routinely presented in positive terms (or simply as the norm) whereas the feminine is depicted as the other and therefore inferior. Women are therefore presented with a social construct that relegates them to a secondary status.
Beauvoir advocated for the destruction of…….
She was highly critical of the…………
Her solution was……………
She advocated the destruction of patriarchal institutions. Like many feminists, she was highly critical of the traditional nuclear family. However, her solution was undoubtedly a radical one as she favoured abolishing the family unit altogether. She was also a staunch advocate of the ‘politics of sameness’ in which equality could only be achieved via an androgynous ideal.
