Feminist perspectives on the family

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Liberal feminism - methods to gain equality and beliefs about general equality

• Campaign against sex discrimination and for equal rights and opportunities

• Women’s oppression gradually overcome through changing attitudes and legislation

  • Sex Discrimination Act 1975

  • Equal Pay Act 1970

• Moving towards greater equality

• Full equality dependent on further reforms and changes in attitudes and socialisation patterns (for women and men)

Liberal feminism - theory about family

• Similar to Y&W MoP

• Full gender equality not yet achieved but gradual progress has been

  • Men doing more domestic labour

  • Sons and daughters socialised more equally now than in past

  • Parents have similar aspirations for their children (boy/girl)

CRITICISMS of liberal feminism

Marxist and rad. fem.

• Lib. fem. failed to challenge underlying causes of women’s oppression

• Belief that changes in law or attitudes will bring equality misguided

• Marxist and rad.: far-reaching changes to deep-rooted social structures needed

Marxist feminism - beliefs about cause of inequality and solutions

• Capitalism cause of women’s oppression

• Functions of women’s oppression for capitalism:

  • Reproduction of labour force

  • Absorption of anger

  • Reserve army of cheap labour

• Solution: abolish the family as well as class system (women’s exploitation linked to that of W/C) and replace with classless socialist society

Marxist feminism - women for the reproduction of the labour force

• Do this through

  • Unpaid domestic labour

  • Socialising next generation of workers

  • Maintaining and servicing current generation of workers

Marxist feminism - women for the absorption of anger - Ansley (1972)

• Women absorb anger otherwise directed at capitalism

• Women are the ‘takers of shit’ who soak up their husband’s frustration at the alientation and exploitation of work

• Explains male DV against women

Marxist feminism - women as a reserve army of cheap labour

• Can be taken on when extra workers eeded

• When no longer needed, can be let go by employers to return to primary role of unpaid domestic labour

Radical feminism - key divisions in society

• Society founded on patriarchy

• Key division between men and women

  • Men: enemy, source of women’s exploitation and oppression

• Family and mariage key institutions in patriarchal society

  • Men benefit from women’s unpaid domestic labour and sexual services

  • Men dominate women through (threat of) domestic and sexual violence

Rad. fem. - solution

• Overturn patriarchal system

• Family (root of women’s oppression) should be abolished

• Only way to achieve abolition of family is separatism (women organising selves separately of men)

Rad. fem. - political lesbianism, Greer (2000) - matrilocal households

• Political lesbianism should be used as heteorsexual relationships inevitably oppressive

  • Involve sleeping with the enemy

• Matrilocal (all female) households alternative to heterosexual family

CRITICISM of rad. fem.

Somerville (2000), lib. fem.

• Rad. fem. fail to recognise improvements in women’s position

  • Better access to divorce

  • Better job opportunities

  • Control over fertility

  • Marry/cohabit - choice

• Heterosexual attraction means separatism wouldn’t work

Difference feminism

• We cannot generalise about women’s experiences

• All women have different experiences that are shaped by other factors e.g.

  • Ethnicity

  • Class

  • Sexuality

• By regarding family purely negatively, white women neglect balck women;s experience of racial oppression

  • Black feminists view family positively as source of support and resistance against racism

CRITICISMS of diff. fem.

• Neglects face many women share experiences

• E.g. risk of DV and SA, low pay