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Detailed, thorough notes on Feminism based on the suggested Edexcel A-Level textbook
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FeminismDefinitions:
Public sphere: the area in society were relationships are public, specifically life outside home,
particularly society and work
Private sphere: the area in society where relationships are seen as private, specifically home and
domestic life
Equality feminism: feminism that seeks equality for men and women in society and believes that
the biological difference between men and women are inconsequential
Difference feminism: feminism that argues that men and women are fundamentally different
from one another
Essentialism: for difference feminism this is the belief that biological factors are significant in the
different behaviour of men and women
Cultural feminism: a form of difference feminism that seeks to challenge the dominance of male
culture in society by promoting 'women's value'
Intersectionality: an idea that challenged the notion that 'gender' was the singular factor in
determining a woman's fate, arguing that black and working-class women's experiences of
patriarchy are different from that of white, middle-class women
Gender equality: the belief that men and women are of equal value in society and should be
treated the same
Legal equality: no one is above the law and the law applies equally to all
Political equality: equal right to vote and protest
Equality of opportunity: all individuals have equal chances in life to rise and fall
Reformist: seeking to change society gradually and peacefully
Gender stereotypes: the dominant and usually negative views in society of the different ways
men and women should behave
Discrimination: less favourable treatment of one group of people compared to other groups
Reserve army of labour: the idea that women constitute a spare workforce that can be called
upon as and when needed
Otherness: the idea that women were considered to be fundamentally different from men, who
were seen as the 'norm'; women were deviants from this norm
First wave feminism focused on the legal and political rights of women (e.g. the suffragette
movement in the UK)
Second wave feminism focused on the different roles that society expected of men and women
(patriarchy, sex and gender, and the personal is political were discussed)
Third wave feminism was concerned with the idea that feminism had solely focused on while
middle-class women
Fourth-wave feminism is seen by some as a reaction against inequality through the expansion of
social media (e.g. media images of women, online misogyny)
, Core ideas and principles:
Sex and gender
many feminists believe that there has been blurring of the concepts of 'sex' and 'gender'
sex refers to the biological differences between men and women, and gender is used to
explain the 'innate character' of men and women
feminists argue that there is no evidence or justification for gender roles being ascribed to
people
different cultures have very different ideas as to what constitutes masculinity and femininity,
showing gender is earned behaviour imposed by society
the terms masculine and feminine are used to describe an 'ideal' gender type for men and
women to aspire to; feminists argue that this is a key part of the way society seeks to keep
women in a subordinate position
Patriarchy
patriarchy is described as a society that is dominated by men and run in the interests of men,
and is identified as a systematic oppression of women by men, suggesting that patriarchy is
pervasive throughout society
Sylvie Walby in Theorizing Patriarchy (1990) say patriarchy as a system of interrelated social
structures which allow men to exploit women, and identified six overlapping structures:
state: women have been denied representation as well as being under-represented
in formal position of power in the state. Working hours are found to be anti-family
and culture may be sexist
household: women have been conditioned into believing that domesticity is destiny
and have been discouraged from pursuing occupations that taken them out of the
home. Many agree with Millett's view that the family is patriarchy's chief institution
violence: domestic abuse has only recently been taken seriously; 2 women are killed
every week in England and Wales by a current or former partner, 1/4 will experience
domestic violence in their lifetimes and 8% will suffer domestic violence in any year
paid work: women are pushed towards lower-paid or part-time roles, or jobs that
put them in an assistant position to men or ones that focus their attention on
nurturing children
Sexuality: Germaine Greer in the Female Eunuch argues that society forces women
to repress their natural desires and consider them dirt and 'unladylike' whilst it
encourages men to explore the full extent of their sexuality, as symbol of masculine
virility
culture: society has sought to reinforce its message to women through culture (e.g.
advertising, catwalks)
many adverts from 1950s-21st century clearly show women are oppressed by the pervading
values of patriarchy
images of unattainable beauty seek to oppress women by making them feel inadequate
about the natural, normal shape of their body
patriarchal culture uses the media to tell women what is expected of them and make them
feel inadequate
The personal is political
associated with the rise of second-wave feminism and Carol Hanisch (and her essay)
traditionally, discussion about the subjugation of women had been limited to the public
sphere
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