modual 6 part 4-Socialist Feminism & Marxist Foundations

Distinguishing “Socialist” vs. “Social” Feminism

"Socialist feminism" ≠ "social feminism" (the latter refers to the 1st-wave “maternal” or “social”/welfare-oriented feminism).
Spell the term correctly in exams/essays to avoid confusing two distinct traditions.

Women have long participated in left-wing, labour, and class-struggle movements (e.g., strikes by garment workers).
Socialist feminism emerged during the 1st wave and continues today.
Early examples: women factory workers demanding equal wages, labour-movement alliances, etc.

Socialist feminism = critique + extension of Marxism from a feminist standpoint.
- Identifies the androcentric (male-centred) bias within traditional Marxist theory.
- Seeks to rethink Marxism so it adequately explains women’s position under capitalism.

Refers to Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels’ theoretical critique of class society.
NOT about “state socialism” (Cuba, USSR, China, former Yugoslavia, etc.).
- Many argue those states were not true expressions of Marx’s ideals.

Marx focuses on human creativity rather than the individual rationality prized by liberal theorists.
Humanity = ability to produce & reproduce both material life and mental/cultural life.

“Mode” ≈ “style/form” of organising production to meet human needs.
Multiple historical modes: communal, hunting-gathering, feudal, capitalist, etc.

Class arises when society splits production so that:
- Some engage solely in manual labour (direct producers).
- Others live off that labour and engage mainly in mental/organising work.
Humans possess both capacities; class society forcibly separates them.

Lords/Ladies (mental labour & control) vs. serfs/peasants (manual labour).
Peasants produce food, clothing, services; nobility “rule” and receive surplus.

Enslaved people (e.g., African & Indigenous slaves in U.S.) perform all physical labour for no pay.
Masters/mistresses reap all benefits; exploitation is overt and violent.

Main classes: Bourgeoisie (capitalists) vs. Proletariat (working class).
- Bourgeoisie own means of production (factories, technology, capital).
- Proletariat sell labour-power for wages.
Appears “freer” than feudalism/slavery (contracts, wage, job choice), but Marx argues:
1. Economic necessity & legal coercion (see earlier lecture on neoliberalism) force most people into wage labour.
2. Workplaces keep mental decisions at the top; workers follow instructions → alienation.

Under capitalism, human potential to combine mental & manual labour is split.
Workers often have ideas to improve work but lack authority; creativity is stifled.

Classical/Marxist economists: exploitation is central to capitalism.
Profit (what pro-capitalist economists celebrate) is renamed surplus value/exploitation by Marx.
Basic formula:
\text{Profit} = \text{Market Price of Commodity} - (\text{Wages} + \text{Capital Costs} + \text{Raw Materials})
Example: T-shirt made in Bangladesh for a few cents is sold internationally for many dollars.
Workers not compensated for full value they create.

Marx foresaw workers recognising alienation/exploitation, sparking revolution to replace capitalism.
Communism = living “in commune” (shared access to resources, no gross inequality).
- Does not imply absence of personal belongings; implies collective ownership of major productive resources.

Socialist feminists:
- Retain Marx’s focus on material conditions, labour, and class.
- Expose how classic Marxism is androcentric (ignores unpaid domestic labour, reproductive labour, patriarchal relations).
- Argue any fight against capitalism must also tackle gender oppression (and vice versa).
Connects women’s struggles (e.g., wage equality, unpaid domestic work) to broader critiques of capitalist exploitation.

Builds on earlier discussion of women garment workers in “Women in the March.”
Relates to prior exploration of neoliberal labour-market policies that coerce wage labour.
Provides theoretical tools to analyse contemporary issues: wage gaps, precarious work, global supply chains, unpaid care work.