Shiela Rowbotham

Book

Woman’s consciousness, Man’s World

On Marx

• adapting Marxist historical materialism, Rowbotham concluded that women have always been oppressed

On Marriage

• Marriage is like feudalism, with a woman akin to a serf paying feudal dues to her husband

Quote on Men and Oppression

• “Men will often admit other women are oppressed but not you”

Beliefs on men and understanding oppression

• Men do not fully understand the nature of oppression of women

• a lived experience is needed to understand

Duel functions of the family

• to subject and discipline women to the demands of capitalism

• a place of refugee for men from the alienation of capitalism

Views on the state

• state is a servant of capitalism

• the state is a tool of oppression controlled by the bourgeoise

what type of socialist is she

• revolutionary

• socialist feminists

Double oppression

• Capitalism means that women are doubly oppressed

• they are forced to sell their labour to survive in the workplace

• forced to do labour in the family home

Quote on revolution

“a revolution within a revolution” is required to restructure both sources of oppression

Beliefs on women and their pay/ role in the economy

Women are a low-paid reserve army of Labour

what strand is she

socialist