Theories of the family Flashcards
feminism
-feminists believe that the family helps to maintain the exist social order. feminists call the existing social order patriarchy
-patriarchy is the combination of systems ideologies and cultural practices which make sure men have power
-feminists argue that the family supports and reproduced inequalities between men and women
-they believe that women are oppressed because they are socialised to be dependent on men and to put themselves in second place to men
liberal feminists
-liberal feminists look at the cultural norms and values which are reinforced by the family and other institutions in society
-the family is only sexist because it supports mainstream culture which is sexist
-liberal feminists believe that social change is possible and they try to put pressure on government to change laws and policies that discriminate against women
marxist feminism
-marxist feminists see the exploitation of women as essential to the success of capitalism
-in modern society women work both outside and inside the home, but are only paid for outside the home
-BESTON said that if housework were paid even at a minimum wage, it would damage capitalist profits
radical feminists
-radical feminists also highlights as an area of exploitation for women, but they don’t see it as being down to the capitalist system
-they see the exploitation of women as being down to the domination of men in society
-they believe that men will always oppress women
-DELPHY AND LEONARD are radical feminists who believe women do most of the work but men get the benefit
feminism strength
-feminism highlights the inequalities that exist between men and women in the family and society leading to social change
feminism weaknesses
-all strands of feminism have been criticised for being too passive
-doesn’t acknowledge that power can be shared in the family
-doesn’t recognise women from different ethnic backgrounds
marxism
-marxists argue that the family benefits the minority in power (the bourgeoisie) and the economy, but disadvantages the working class majority (the proletariat)
-the family is a unit of consumption
strengths of marxism
-recognises the role of class inequality in society
-recognises the exploitation of the working class in society by capitalism (eg 0 hours contact)
weaknesses of marxism
-traditional marxists believe that the man is the worker and the woman is the housewife
-marxist focuses on the benefit of the bourgeoisie and the economy, and ignored the benefit of the family to the individual and to society
zaretsky - marxism
-focused on how the family helped the capitalist system. the family is the one place where the proletariat have power
engles - marxism
-family has the economic function -monogamous marriages
althusser - marxism
-the family was part of the ideological apparatus
-hierarchy within the family
the new right
-1980s
-traditional nuclear family
-against benefits
-against single parents families
charles murray - the new right
-believes that the traditional nuclear family is under threat
-welfare rights are too high and create a ‘culture of dependency’
the new right strengths
-they value the nuclear family
-recognise the importance of primary socialistion
