Assess the usefulness of feminist contributions to our understanding of society today

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Assess the usefulness of feminist contributions to our understanding of society today (33 marks)

Feminism is a conflict theory that sees religion as an instrument of patriarchy - a set of beliefs and practices responsible for women’s subordination. There are different types of feminism and the types I will be evaluating in this essay are Liberal, Radical, Marxist and Difference/poststructuralist feminist. Feminists criticise mainstream sociology for being ‘malestream’. By contrast, feminists examine society from the viewpoint of women, they see their work as part of the struggle against women’s subordination. However, although all feminists oppose women’s subordination, there are disagreements among feminist’s theories about its causes and how to overcome them.

Liberal feminist are concerned with the human and civil rights and freedoms of the individual, they believe that all human beings should have equal rights. In liberal feminism, the concept of society changing itself to adapt to women does not occur. Liberal feminists insist that all that is needed to change the status of women is to change existing laws that are unfavourable for women and that will open up more opportunities for women to prove themselves as equal to the opposite sex. Oakley (1972) distinguishes between sex and gender. She claims sex differences are seen as fixed and gender differences vary between cultures and over time. Therefore what is considered a proper role for women in one society or at one time may be disapproved of or forbidden in another. Sexist attitudes and stereotypical beliefs about gender are culturally constructed and transmitted through socialisation, meaning in order to achieve gender equality, liberal feminists must change society’s socialisation patterns.

Liberal feminism is an optimistic theory, very much in keeping with the Enlightenment project and its faith in progress. They believe that political action to introduce anti-discriminatory laws and policies is steadily bringing about progress to a fairer society. They also believe changes in socialisation and culture are gradually leading to more rational attitudes to gender and overcoming injustice and ignorance. Liberal feminism criticises Parsons view of gender roles, arguing that men and women are equally capable of performing roles in both public and private spheres and that traditional gender roles prevent both men and women from leading fulfilling lives. However, liberal feminists are criticised for over-optimism. They ignore the possibility that there are deep-seated structures causing women’s oppression such as capitalism or patriarchy. Walby argues they offer no explanation for the overall structure of gender inequality.

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Radical feminists claim that patriarchy is a system of power that organizes society into complex relationships based on an assumption that ‘male supremacy’ oppresses women. For radical feminists, men are the enemy; they are the source of women’s oppression. Radical feminist make three claims: patriarchy is universal, patriarchy is the primary and most fundamental form of social inequality and conflict and all men oppress all women.

Radical feminists claim that patriarchal oppression is direct and personal. Not only does it occur in the public sphere of work and politics but also in the private sphere of the family, domestic ...

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This is a very detailed essay with lots of really good explanations on the variety of different Feminisms. At times the paragraphs feel a little list like rather than all linking and flowing. In particular the last two paragraphs do not really link to the rest of the essay and leave the essay feeling unfinished.