Feminist Theory

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Feminist Theory

Common Goals

Encourage sexual and personal freedom

Make sure both men and women can express themselves freely and follow their interests, even if it goes against societal expectations

Fight the stigma around women being sexually active and ensure access to safe abortion services

Ensure women have the right to control their own sexuality and reproductive choices

End sexual violence

Work to prevent sexual violence against women and support those who have been affected

End gender and systemic oppression

Challenge the systems like capitalism and patriarchy that keep men in power and create gender inequality

Fight the the ways women are not just treated unfairly but are also controlled, exploited, and sometimes abused by men

Work towards gender equality

Fight against laws and norms that result in women earning less and having fewer opportunities in education and careers

Understand that women's experiences are different from men's and often unfair

Show the social issues and problems women face

The Basics

Key facts

Different types of feminist theory focus on different ideas and experiences

Feminism doesn’t have one single definition; it changes with different experiences

Patriarchy is a system where men dominate and oppress women

Gender roles and inequalities are created by society

Inequalities can lead to conflicts between genders

Awareness that women are often held back due to the power/status system

Key focus areas

Power differences

Gender roles and differences

Economic equality

Treating women as objects

Sex and gender discrimination

Focuses on economic, civil, and ideological disparities between genders.

Social, academic, and cultural movement

Marxist and Socialist Feminism

Adds economic and social justice to fighting for women's rights

Challenges capitalism that makes gender unfair

Pushes for economic systems that value women's labour

Supports a socialist revolution to make a fairer government that helps families and respects women's ideas and contributions

Achieving gender equality requires ending capitalist exploitation of women's labour

Believes capitalism benefits from keeping women in lower roles and reinforces patriarchal hierarchies

Socialism is seen as necessary to replace traditional family structures and create equitable social systems

Marxist feminists believe women are exploited for unpaid labour like housework and childcare

Evolved from Karl Marx’s ideas of linking capitalism with patriarchy

Sees women's oppression as reinforcing and supporting capitalism

Argues that women face oppression due to capitalism and private property systems and that these systems must be overthrown to get true equality

Radical Feminism

Influence and spread many feminist ideas, even if not all the otherbranches agree with them

Challenge and change how society is built to get rid of strong gender roles

Push for big revolutionary changes in society

Patriarchy can be defeated if women recognize their own values and strengths

Gender separation and political lesbianism is needed to achieve equality

Real equality requires completely overhauling/changing the current system

Gender roles are deeply rooted in all parts of modern life

Society prioritizes men's experiences and views

Known for being more extreme and less universally accepted today

Was a leading feminist theory from 1967-1975

Emerged from the civil rights and peace movements in 1967-1968

Aims for major social changes to achieve equality

Focuses on the idea that women's oppression is the most basic and widespread form of oppression

Liberal Feminism

Goals and methods

Important laws include the Equal Rights Amendment of 1972, which aimed to ensure equality based on sex

Focus on making laws that protect equal opportunities for women.

Achieve equality through education and policy changes

Core features/beliefs

Gender inequality comes from societal and cultural attitudes

Patriarchy has kept women at home and out of public life

Women can reason and make decisions just as well as men

Historical background

Often makes slow progress, helped by more radical feminist movements

Early supporters like Abigail Adams and Mary Wollstonecraft wanted equality for women

Started with ideas from the American Revolution

Definition

Aims to change things from the inside

Works within the existing system to help women get equal treatment

Based on classic liberal ideas