Feminism
Sociology: AQA A Level, topic 1.1.2
Liberal Feminism
Liberal feminists believe that there are 2 barriers to gender equality today.
Liberal feminists
- Liberal feminists are the most optimistic and progressive with regards to their outlook in the quest for equality.
- They don’t blame men for inequality however they do believe that gender inequality does still exist although we are moving towards a more egalitarian society.
- Liberal feminists believe that there are 2 barriers to gender equality today.
1. Gender role socialisation
- Gender role socialisation :
- This is the process in which we learn the core elements of our gender.
- This occurs in the family where we are taught to be either male or female due to the way in which our parents raise us.
- Gender stereotypes are maintained and reproduced through generations which lead boys to believe they are dominant over women.
2. Social policy
- Social policy:
- Liberal feminists suggest that although some progress has been made through legislation, there are still some laws that discriminate against women such as being expected to take maternity leave as this can have an impact on their career prospects.
Marxist Feminism
Marxist feminists focus on the additional exploitation women experience in capitalist systems in comparison to men.
Women and capitalism
- Marxist feminists are inspired by the work of traditional Marxists however they would criticise Marx for overlooking the exploitation of women in capitalism.
Exploitation
- Marxist feminists specifically focus on the way in which women are exploited within the family unit and therefore benefit capitalism.
Status
- They believe that due to the nature of capitalism, the only way in which status can be gained is to generate wealth through paid employment.
- The problem for many women is that much of their days are dominated by unpaid domestic labour that provides them with no status.
Radical Feminism
Radical feminists believe that men are the main enemy of all women and patriarchy is the main form of social inequality.
Patriarchy
- Their key focus is on ‘patriarchy’ which means ‘rule by fathers’ but has become the term commonly used to describe a male dominated society.
Female oppression
- They believe that all societies are patriarchal and therefore all men oppress women through ‘sexual politics’.
- Men are the main enemy of all women and therefore patriarchy is the main form of social inequality according to radical feminists.
Sexuality
- Along with these beliefs, radical feminists discuss the nature of sexuality which is a central theme of their theory.
- Rich argues that men push women into ‘compulsory heterosexuality’ which she believes is narrow and unsatisfying to women but beneficial to men as it fulfils only their desires.