Feminist Theories PDF

THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES History of Women’s Movement and Feminism  SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT FEMINISM Are all feminist man- haters? Are all feminists lesbians? ❑ Are all feminists ‘women’? ❑Do I need to join a women’s group to  The “F” Word ▪ Feminism was derive...

THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES History of Women’s Movement and Feminism  SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT FEMINISM Are all feminist man- haters? Are all feminists lesbians? ❑ Are all feminists ‘women’? ❑Do I need to join a women’s group to  The “F” Word ▪ Feminism was derived from the French word ‘feminisme’ in the 19th century. The “F” Word ▪ It use to denote two things: 1) a medical term that describe the feminisation of the male body, & 2) women with masculine traits.  The “F” Word ▪ Today feminism is defined as, ‘a political stance of someone committed to changing the social position of women. The “F” Word ▪ Though the coinage of the term is fairly recent, there are significant number of people considered as ‘feminists’ in the 18th century.  Feminism as theory and movement ▪ ‘Theorizing is seen as a more open- minded activity, using… lenses by which we can more fully comprehend reality in its multiple dimensions’(Pineda- Ofreneo, Narciso-Apuan & Estrada-Claudio, 1997, p. 30). ▪ Feminism is a movement that aims to transform society.  Timeline: Feminism across different epoch Postmod ern Radical Feminis Liberal Marxis & Ecofeminis m traditi t Sociali m on: traditi st Equalit Third Femini on y with World sm men Femini sm 17th cent. Late 196 198 199 19th 0s 0s 0s cent.  Various Stands of Feminism Liberal Feminism Marxist Feminism Radical Feminism Socialist Feminism Third World Feminism  Liberal Feminism ▪ Significant events 1780s- Mary Wollstonecraft and Judith Sargent Murray pushed for the equal rights to education.  Liberal Feminism 1840 Women delegates were prohibited from speaking publicly and were separated from men during the First International Anti-Slavery Conference in London. As a reaction, Lucretia Mott & Elizabeth Cady Stanton organized a conference in the U.S. on women’s rights.  Liberal Feminism July 19-20, 1848- The Seneca Falls conference happened in New York, where 300 women participated.  Liberal Feminism Second wave of feminist movements 1963- Betty Friedan in ‘Feminine Mystique’ argued that women were not happy inside the home.  Liberal Feminism 1964- The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) dismissed issue of sexual equality and did not include the word ‘sex’ in the title VII of the Civil Rights Act. 1966- As a reaction to what transpired in 1964, the National Organization of Women was formed.  Liberal Feminism ( Philippines) ▪ The first 2 formal Women’s Organization in the country were formed in the 1900s: 1. Asosacion Feminista Filipina 2. Asosacion Feminista Ilonga (1906) ▪ In 1909, a feminist magazine entitled, ‘Filipina’ was founded with Constancia Poblete as editor. ▪ May 14, 1937- Filipina women were allowed to vote.  Liberal Feminism ▪ Basic Ideas: 1. All men and women are created equal. 2. Women’s reasoning capacity is similar to men.  Liberal Feminism ▪ Basic Ideas: 3.There should be fair MERITOCRACY. 4.Women just as well as men have the right to vote, access to education, jobs, etc.  Liberal Feminism Source of inequality: Sexist Socialization and Social Discrimination Strategies : ❑ Equal opportunities for men and women. ❑ Legal reforms. ❑ Education as a means of social Weakness change. of this strand: Oblivious to issues of racial, class and national oppression  Marxist Feminism (Philippines) ▪ Marxist feminism in the Philippines could be traced as part of the National Democratic Front. Partidong Komunista ng Pilipinas HUKBALAHAP (1930) Communist Party of the New People’s Philippines Army National MAKIBAKA Democratic Front  Marxist Feminism Basic Ideas: 1. Capitalism benefits from women’s subordination Marxist Feminism 2. Women are the second class workers and as the RESERVED labor force in a capitalist system.  Marxist Feminism 3. The private- public dichotomy is beneficial for capitalist because men were free from domestic responsibilities.  Marxist Feminism Source of Oppression: CAPITALISM Strategies : ❑ Eradicate Capitalism ❑ Shift to Socialism Weakness of this strand: There is a tendency to reduce gender oppression to class oppression  Radical Feminism ▪ 1967- radical feminists launched the women’s liberation movement which relied on ‘rap’ or consciousness-raising groups.  Radical Feminism ▪ One of the known protest of the radical feminists in the U.S. are the protests against Miss America pageants in 1968 &1969.  Radical Feminism ▪ Basic Ideas: 1. Women and men are fundamentally different. Radical Feminism 2. ‘The personal is political.’ For women to be free, they need to control their own bodies.  Radical Feminism 3. All hierarchies must be eliminated and society must be completely altered.  Radical Feminism Source of Oppression: Patriarchy, Sexism, Heterosexism Strategies : Development of Counterinstitution (e.g. crisis center) and Consciousness- raising groups) Separatism Weakness of this strand: Women’s Patriarchyculture/spaces is biologically- based; Women have different sexual orientations.  Socialist Feminism (Phils.) Different Socialist Feminist groups in the Phils:  PILIPINA (1981) ▪ KALAYAAN (1983)- formed by women with roots in the National Democratic movement. ▪ DSWP (1987)- associated with the Partido Demokratiko- Sosyalista ng Pilipinas (PDSP) ▪ SARILAYA (1994)- stands for ‘Kasarian- Kalayaan’ or Gender Socialist Feminist ▪ Basic Ideas: 1. Socialist feminism is also known as Gendered Marxism; It combined the arguments of Marxist and Radical Feminism. Socialist Feminist 2. Women’s work is devalued because it is separated from the production of surplus value. 3. Women’s oppression is caused by their economic dependence. Socialist Feminist  Socialist Feminist Source of Oppression: Patriarchy and Capitalism Strategies : Transform gender relations in both the productive and reproductive sphere (public/private) Weakness of this strand: Insufficient materialism  Third World Feminism ▪ Basic Ideas: 1. Third World Feminism is also known as TWO-THIRDS WORLD FEMINISM.  Third World Feminism 2. It focuses on the development paradigms (Rich nations- poor nations divide) that put women at a greater  Third World Feminism 3. Women are commodified in tourism, entertainme nt and even marriage.  Third World Feminism 3. Increased violence against women due to militarization in society and sexism  Third World Feminism Source of Oppression: National Oppression, Colonialism, Imperialism Strategies : ❑ Gender-fair development ❑Women’s participation in nationalist liberation. Weakness of this strand: Culture-specific  Ecofeminism ▪ Ecofeminism was launched in 1974 in Francoise d’Euabonne’s La Feminisme ou la Mort (Feminism or Death). ▪ The book provided the foundation of Ecofeminism ▪ Basic Ideas: 1. It tends to unite feminist thoughts and ecological concerns.  Ecofeminism 2. As long as oppression is culturally valued, it will continuously be imposed to anyone who does not resist.  Ecofeminism 3. It tries to bring new consciousness of humans’ interdependenc e with all other life forms.  Ecofeminism Source of inequality: Violence of men; Patriarchy; Culture-Nature divide Strategies : ❑ Voluntary simplicity and consumer liberation ❑ Sustainable livelihood ❑ Environmental preservation and conservation Weakness of this strand: Too specific; it further divides men (culture) and women (nature). ▪ The ‘women’s movement’ is a collage of many movements that span more than 150 years. ▪ Different strands have different issues and different strategies to transform gender relations in society.