Feminist theories of Family

?
View mindmap
  • Feminist theories of Family
  • Radical Feminists
    • men are the enemy and the source of womens oppression and exploitation
    • family and marriage are key institutions in patriarchal society
      • men benefit from womens unpaid domestic labour and sexual services
    • Delphy & Leonard - women make the main contribution and mean recieve the main benefit
    • Purdy - advocates that women should go on baby strike, withdraw all sexual and reproductive services until equality is achieved
    • Germain Greer - creation of all matrifocal households as an alternative for heterosexual family
  • Liberal Feminnism
    • womens oppression is being gradually overcome through changing attitudes and through changes in laws such as Sex Discimination Act
    • further equality will depend on further reforms and changes in the attitudes and socialisation patterns of both sexes
    • Somerville - radical feminists fail to recognise womens positions have improved considerably
      • better access to divorce, better job opportunities, control over their own fertility
    • women are yet to achieve full equality
      • there is a need for family friendly policies such as more flexible working
  • Argue that we cannot generalise about women's experiences
    • Difference Feminism
      • Calhoun - focuses on lesbian families. modern life is characterised by choice and lesbian and gay families are chosen families.
      • Nicholson - alternative families are often better than traditional ones for the women
    • lesbian and heterosexual women, wc and mc women of different cultures and ethnicities have very different experience of he family
  • ignores positiveaspects of family life- some women may not feel oppressed in the family
  • Ignores a trend towards Gender equality
    • women have more rights in the work place and the home than ever before
    • women are not as oppressed as some of the radical feminists suggest

Comments

No comments have yet been made

Similar Sociology resources:

See all Sociology resources »See all Families and households resources »