feminism and the family

liberal feminism, somerville

• gender equality
• principled pragmatism

liberal feminism, somerville - gender equality

families are unequal as they are a feature of patriarchy. the inequality stems from culture, this is solved through bringing these issues in public debates - gender mainstreaming

liberal feminism, somerville - principled pragmatism

a liberal feminist approach that believes in achieving equal but workable relationships with women and men

marxist feminism, benston

• female unpaid domestic labour
• reproduction of labour
• women as a reserve army of labour

marxist feminism, benston - female unpaid domestic labour

marxist feminist description of how female domestic work is a form of exploitation

marxist feminism, benston - reproduction of labour

women are used to make children which are intended to become consumers and workers by the patriarchy

marxist feminism, benston - women as a reserve army of labour

women providing a possible source of workers for industry, to be used as/when needed

marxist feminism, ansley - female absorption of male anger

women are the takers of shit. the role of working class women to deal with the alienation/angst of their male partners

radical feminism

argues that there can NEVER be equal relations between men and women within families

radical feminism, greer

women in families as wives, mothers and daughters

radical feminism, greer - women in families as wives, mothers and daughters

women as wives are decor for men (trophy wife), as mothers they're undervalued/under-appreciated and as daughters they are valued through sexualisation

radical feminism, delphy and leonard - unequal labour relations in the family

families exploit women with more domestic work being done by women than men

difference feminism

a feminist perspective which dismisses the other approaches for assuming ALL families to be traditional and nuclear

difference feminism, nicholson - myth of the traditional nuclear family

alternative families. there are a range of different family types including single parent families and gay and lesbian families or even matrilocal families (black caribbean).

criticisms of liberal feminism and the family

• radical feminists argue that this approach fails to recognise that male domination within family/relationships can't be legislated away
• more equal rights for woman have only caused masculinist backlash. dobash and dobash study - female challenges to male power are the main reasons for domestic violence.

criticisms of radical feminism

• fails to recognise the progress women have made. e.g reproductive rights
• gender segregation and political lesbianism aren't achievable when most women CHOOSE to be heterosexual.

criticisms of marxist feminism

• focuses on working class families and capitalism while ignoring the challenges of ethnic minority women, middle class women and gay women
• focuses too much on the traditional working class family (male as breadwinner)

criticisms of difference feminism

• african-caribbean matrilocal families still often experience poverty
• regardless of class, ethnicity, age, women are more likely to be victims of domestic abuse than men and, on average, they're paid less than men