Feminist sociology

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Feminist sociology is a conflict theory and theoretical perspective which observes gender in its relation to power, both at the level of face-to-face interaction and reflexivity within a social structure at large. Focuses include sexual orientation, race, economic status, and nationality.[1]

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's (1860-1935) work helped formalize feminist theory during the 1960s. Growing up she went against traditional holds that were placed on her by society by focusing on reading and learning concepts different from women who were taught to be housewives. Her main focus was on gender inequality between men and women along with gender roles placed on by society. Where men go to work secure proper income for the white ±family while women stay at home and tend to the family along with house hold chores. She "emphasized how differential socialization leads to gender inequality". Yet, she did agree that biologically there is different between those born with female and male parts kmt.

Parts of her research involves a theoretical orientation of a multidimensional approach to gender and discusses more in depth in her book Women and Economics. Due to gender roles she believes that women pretend to live a certain life to avoid achieving their full potential living the role of a housewife. This is an example of a theory neurologist, Sigmund Freud, cultivated using a psychoanalysis process called conscious and subconscious state of mind. The specific example given would be considered falling under false consciousness instead of "true" consciousness.[clarification needed] Leading the belief that women are viewed as property towards their husbands because despite their own work they may do; economically women were still dependent on husbands to provide financial support to themselves and their family. She also said that the traditional division of labour was not biologically driven, but instead pushed upon based on[clarification needed] how structure of society was established since before the nineteenth century.

In the end Gilman describes it as sociobiological tragedy because women are disregarded as being part of the ideology of "survival of the fittest". Instead females are thought to be soft and weak individuals that are only good for productive reasons. Females are depicted as emotional and frail human beings who are born to serve their husbands, children, and family without living for herself. Gilman's research was conducted during a time where women being a sociologist were unheard of; she lived during a time that women couldn't even vote. Her research helps create a ripple effect along with other female sociologists that help paved wave for feminism, feminist, and concepts to correlate with feminist theory.[2]

Historical Context of Feminist Sociology[edit]

The study of sociology had been mostly androcentric up until the 1970s, when sociological thinking began to shift to focus on women, as well. In 1963s, the Equal Pay Act, which was signed by John F. Kennedy, outlawed the wage disparity based on sex (Grady).[3] The Equal Pay Act was one of the first ways that the United States began to shift its mentality about women's rights, and how women should be treated in the workplace, and in society. While the Equal Pay Act focused solely on equal pay for equal work regardless of sex, the Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act was passed in a fight against discrimination of any kind in the workplace. A major form of discrimination many women face in the workplace is sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is a form of illegal discrimination based on an abuse of power which can range from “inappropriate jokes” to “outright sexual assault” and more (Conley 312).[4] While sexual harassment is not a form of discrimination uniquely faced by women, when it occurs in the workplace it often involves the subordination of women by a male superior or coworker.[5] The Equal Pay Act and Title VII were some of the first ways that the United States began to shift its mentality about women's rights, and how women should be treated in the workplace, and in society. In the 1970s, many women fought for the right to dictate what happens to their body, such as establishing legal abortions, as well as making forced sterilization illegal (Grady).[3] This shifted how Americans saw women, and the country began changing to allow women to have more control over their bodies.  

Starting in the early 1990s, several instances of sexual harassment and abuse became well known and started a push for women to open about their own encounters with harassment. The allegations by Anita Young that Justice Clarence Thomas had sexually harassed her was one of these instances. After Thomas was confirmed as a justice on the Supreme Court regardless of these allegations, more women began to speak out. In surveys taken after the hearings, it was reported that “between 40 and 65 percent of women claim to have experienced sexual harassment on the job”(Sapiro). This social shift led to a change in attitude over bodily autonomy, and boundaries within the workplace, and throughout life. Beginning in the mid 1990s, women began to come forward with sexual harassment complaints and sexual assault allegations against their male counterparts, which led to a movement of drastically increased numbers of women taking a stance against sexual violence, leading to society recognizing there is a fundamental problem concerning sexual harassment (Grady).[3] This, in turn, led to another movement in recent years called the “Me Too Movement” that led many women to coming forward with their own stories and encounters, showing the scope that sexual harassment affects women across the world.

Feminism and race[edit]

Many feminist sociologists argue that the intersectionality of women, especially when it comes to race, can no longer be ignored by the growing feminist movement. Due to the increase in popularity of this outlook, there has been a rise of transnational feminists, and greater stress on the idea that feminism is not a Western-centric idea, and must be able to adapt in order to incorporate the context and complications of individual cultures, and their traditions.[6] The relationship between feminism and race was largely overlooked until the second wave of feminists produced greater literature on the topic of 'black feminism'.[7] The second wave of feminists incorporated a "new feminist theory" known as including race, gender, and class to explain the oppression women of color face.[8] This intersectionalist approach on feminist sociology allows for a type of “marriage” between the “gender/race/class dynamic,” rather than excluding individuals of different races, ethnicities, nationalities, social classes, gender, sexual orientation, or any other factors.[9] Women who suffer from oppression due to race may find themselves in a double bind. The relationship between feminism and race was largely overlooked until the second wave of feminists produced greater literature on the topic of 'black feminism'.[10]

Historically, the feminist movement, and the sociological feminist movement, has been lead by middle and upper class women from predominantly white backgrounds, causing the social trends of the movement to largely pass over the issues faced by women who do not fit into these tropes. This disregarding of the issues of intersectional women throughout the history of the feminist movement is due largely to the ignorance of the issues that these women face, and the assumption that the problems of white women within middle and upper-class homes are the problems of all women.

However, several African American women within the field of feminist theory have been crucial in revolutionizing the field in which they work. An instrumental contribution to the field was Kimberlé Crenshaw's seminal 1989 paper, "Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics" (Crenshaw 1989).[11] In it she outlines the manner in which black women have been erased from feminist pedagogy. Black women must be understood as having multiple identities that intersect and reinforce one another, the two key experiences of being black and of being women. Furthermore, black women suffer on both racist and sexist fronts, marginalized not only by larger systems of oppression but by existing feminist discourse that disregards their intersectionality. Crenshaw's work is integral to understanding feminist sociology, as it advocated for black feminist thought and set the building blocks for future feminist sociologists such as Patricia Hill Collins.

Anna Julia Cooper and Ida Bell Wells-Barnett are African American women who were instrumental in conducting much research and making valuable contributions in the field of black feminism. "Cooper and Wells-Barnett both consciously drew on their lived experiences as African American women to develop a "systematic consciousness of society and social relations." As such, these women foreshadow the development of a feminist sociological theory based in the interests of women of colour.

Feminism and Stratification[edit]

There are different models that attempt to describe the relationship between gender and stratification. One model is the sex-differences model which discusses the differences in behavior and attitude when called on the labels of male and female.[12] Further, it is attempting to locate the true difference when all "socialization is removed".[13] The inequalities that exist are due to many of the processes that are essential in normal socialization.[14] However, these processes are removed. Another model is the sex-roles model which employs socialization, rather than ignoring it, to attempt to uncover the differences in gender and how people choose to identify to discover gender roles.[13] Some sociologists do not agree with this sex-roles approach because it does not fall under the normal sociological “understanding of social roles”. This is because most express a connection between oneself and other people.[12] However, the sex-roles approach discusses two “polarized and internally persistent sets of predispositions”.[15] Most “theorists of gender do not agree on any one comprehensive theory of stratification”.[12] Also, “feminist analyses have developed gender parallels to the critiques of models of race that fail to address inequality as a function of something other than “difference”.[15] There are many different sociologists who argue that gender is organized "differently for Whites and Blacks" within race.[12] These theorists continue to argue that gender also significantly impacts race differently for men and women. Similarly, gender also impacts the organization of class and class impacts the organization of gender.[12]

Feminism and queer theory[edit]

Modern queer theory attempts to unmake the social and contextual elements reinforcing heteronormativity by challenging oppressive institutions on traditional binary distinctions between male and female, among its many other criticisms. In this regard, feminism and queer theory address the same ways social structures violently categorize and erase women and LGBTQIA+ from the social narrative. However, sociological feminism often reinforces the gender binary through the research process "as the gendered subject is made the object of the study" (McCann 2016, 229). Queer theory, by comparison, challenges the traditional ideas of gender through the deconstruction and lack of acceptance of a dichotomy of male and female traits.[6] In her recent work "Epistemology of the Subject: Queer Theory's Challenge to Feminist Sociology",[16] McCann confronts the theoretical perspective and methodology of feminist sociology:"[the subject] rarely reflects the fluid, unstable, and dynamic realities of bodies and experiences. To “settle” on a subject category, then, is to reinscribe a fixity that excludes some, often in violent ways (for example, those who are literally erased because their bodies do not conform to a discrete binary)" (McCann 2016, 231-232). There can be a refashioning of the field, where extending boundaries to include queer theory would "develop new and innovative theoretical approaches to research...[and] address inequality within society" (McCann 2016, 237).

Modern queer theory attempts to unmake the social and contextual elements reinforcing heteronormativity by challenging oppressive institutions on traditional binary distinctions between male and female, among its many other criticisms. In this regard, feminism and queer theory address the same ways social structures violently categorize and erase women and LGBTQIA+ from the social narrative. However, sociological feminism often reinforces the gender binary through the research process "as the gendered subject is made the object of the study" (McCann 2016, 229). In her recent work "Epistemology of the Subject: Queer Theory's Challenge to Feminist Sociology",[17] McCann confronts the theoretical perspective and methodology of feminist sociology:"[the subject] rarely reflects the fluid, unstable, and dynamic realities of bodies and experiences. To “settle” on a subject category, then, is to reinscribe a fixity that excludes some, often in violent ways (for example, those who are literally erased because their bodies do not conform to a discrete binary)" (McCann 2016, 231-232). There can be a refashioning of the field, where extending boundaries to include queer theory would "develop new and innovative theoretical approaches to research...[and] address inequality within society" (McCann 2016, 237).

Feminist critiques of multiculturalism[edit]

Debates within ethnic relations, particularly regarding the opposing perspectives of assimilationism and multiculturalism, have led to the accusation that feminism is incompatible with multiculturalist policy.

Feminists have many critics who are in favor of the idea of multiculturalism. These critics believe that feminists should not push their views on other cultures because it forces western ideas on others. Feminists around the world argue that men are mistreating women in other countries, but the male elites around that world would justify their infringement on women's rights by passing it off as part of their culture (Moller Okin).[18]  People with feminist ideals do not care about the backlash they get from world leaders and other countries. They believe that violations of women's rights should be prohibited all around the world, and their mission is to rid all cultural excuses for women's oppression (Moller Okin).[19]

The remit of multiculturalism is to allow distinct cultures to reside in Western societies, or separate societies in general, and one possible consequence is that certain religious or traditional practices may negate Western feminist ideals. Central debates include the topics of arranged marriage and female genital mutilation. Others have argued that these debates stem from Western orientalism and general political reluctance to accept foreign migrants.

Types of feminism[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Crossman, Ashley (December 2018). "Feminist Theory in Sociology". ThoughtCo. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  2. ^ Edles, Laura; Appelrouth (2010). Sociological Theory in the Classical Era. Pine Forge Press. pp. 9, 222–255. ISBN 978-1-4129-7564-3.
  3. ^ a b c Grady, Constance (2018-03-20). "The waves of feminism, and why people keep fighting over them, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2019-05-02.
  4. ^ Conley, Dalton (2017). You May Ask Yourself: An Introduction to Thinking Like a Sociologist (5th Edition). New York, NY: W.W. Norton. p. 312. ISBN 978-0-393-60238-8.
  5. ^ Sapiro, Virginia (2018-11-23). "Sexual Harassment: Performances of Gender, Sexuality, and Power". Perspectives on Politics. 16 (4): 1053–1066. doi:10.1017/s1537592718002815. ISSN 1537-5927.
  6. ^ a b Gillis, Melissa (2017). Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies: An Interdisciplinary Approach. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-931546-8.
  7. ^ Mahony, Pat, and Christine Zmroczek. Class matters: 'working-class' women's perspectives on social class. London: Taylor & Francis, 1997. Print.
  8. ^ Brewer, Rose (Spring 1989). "Black Women and Feminist Sociology: The Emerging Perspective". American Sociologist. 20: 57–70. doi:10.1007/BF02697787.
  9. ^ Sokoloff, Natalie (1999). "Women's Work". Women's Studies Encyclopedia: Revised and Expanded Edition: 1499–1501 – via ABC-BLIO eBook Collection.
  10. ^ Citation error. See inline comment how to fix.[verification needed]
  11. ^ Citation error. See inline comment how to fix.[verification needed]
  12. ^ a b c d e Ferree, Myra Marx; Hall, Elaine J. (December 1996). "Rethinking Stratification from a Feminist Perspective: Gender, Race, and Class in Mainstream Textbooks". American Sociological Review. 61 (6): 929. doi:10.2307/2096301. ISSN 0003-1224. JSTOR 2096301.
  13. ^ a b "American Economic Review". American Economic Review. 105 (5): 698–710. May 2015. doi:10.1257/aer.15000011. ISSN 0002-8282.
  14. ^ Dwyer, Carol Anne (November 1975). "Book Reviews: Maccoby, E. E., and Jacklin, C. N. The Psychology of Sex Differences Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1974. 634 pp. $18.95". American Educational Research Journal. 12 (4): 513–516. doi:10.3102/00028312012004513. ISSN 0002-8312.
  15. ^ a b Baker, Therese L.; Andersen, Margaret L.; Collins, Patricia Hill (April 1995). "Race, Class, and Gender: An Anthology". Teaching Sociology. 23 (2): 190. doi:10.2307/1319359. ISSN 0092-055X. JSTOR 1319359.
  16. ^ McCann, H. 2016. "Epistemology of the Subject: Queer Theory's Challenge to Feminist Sociology". WSQ: Women's Studies Quarterly, Volume 44, Numbers 3 & 4, Fall/Winter 2016, pp. 224-243.
  17. ^ Citation error. See inline comment how to fix.[verification needed]
  18. ^ Susan Moller Okin, ‘‘Feminism, Women’s Human Rights, and Cultural Differences,’’ Hypatia, vol. 3 (1998), in press.  
  19. ^ Okin, Susan Moller. “Feminism and Multiculturalism: Some Tensions.” Ethics, vol. 108, no. 4, 1998, pp. 661–684. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/233846.

Notes[edit]


Further reading[edit]

  • Chambers, Clare (2008). Sex, Culture, and Justice: The Limits of Choice. University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 978-0-271-03301-3. OCLC 153772741.
  • Cudworth, Erika (2005). Developing Ecofeminist Theory: The Complexity of Difference. Basingstoke, England; New York, New York: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 1-4039-4115-7. OCLC 59098859.
  • Enns, Carolyn Zerbe and Ada L. Sinacore (2005). Teaching and Social Justice: Integrating Multicultural and Feminist Theories in the Classroom. Washington, District of Columbia: American Psychological Association. ISBN 1-59147-167-2. OCLC 55625673.
  • Hackett, Elizabeth and Sally Anne Haslanger (2006). Theorizing Feminisms: A Reader. New York, New York; Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-515009-0. OCLC 61703851.
  • Hekman, Susan J. (1996). Feminist Interpretations of Michel Foucault. University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 978-0-271-01584-2. OCLC 33665193.
  • Hekman, Susan J. (1995). Moral Voices, Moral Selves: Carol Gilligan and Feminist Moral Theory. University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 0-271-01483-0. OCLC 32167823.
  • hooks, bell (2001). "Black Women: Shaping Feminist Theory". In Kum-Kum Bhavnani (ed.). Feminism and "Race". Oxford, England; New York, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-878236-5. OCLC 45136543.
  • Kafer, Alison (2005). "Hiking Boots and Wheelchairs: Ecofeminism, the Body, and Physical Disability". In Barbara S. Andrew; Jean Keller; Lisa H. Schwartzman (eds.). Feminist Interventions in Ethics and Politics: Feminist Ethics and Social Theory. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 0-7425-4268-8. OCLC 56840300.
  • Laslett, Barbara and Barrie Thorne (1997). Feminist Sociology: Life Histories of a Movement. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0-8135-2428-8. OCLC 42329296.
  • Lengermann, Patricia Madoo and Jill Niebrugge (1996). Ritzer, George (ed.). Sociological Theory (See Chapter 12: Contemporary Feminist Theory). New York, New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-114660-1. OCLC 9536204.
  • Marshall, Barbara L. and Anne Witz (2004). Engendering the Social: Feminist Encounters with Sociological Theory. Maidenhead, England; New York, New York: Open University Press. ISBN 0-335-21270-0. OCLC 56527256.
  • Meagher, Sharon M. and Patrice DiQuinzio (2005). Women and Children First: Feminism, Rhetoric, and Public Policy. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-6539-X. OCLC 56903738.
  • Nason-Clark, Nancy and Mary Jo Neitz (2001). Feminist Narratives and the Sociology of Religion. Walnut Creek, California: AltaMira Press. ISBN 0-7591-0198-1. OCLC 47718005.
  • Rege, Sharmila (2003). Sociology of Gender: The Challenge of Feminist Sociological Knowledge. New Delhi, India; Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications. ISBN 0-7619-9704-0. OCLC 51203874.
  • Scales, Ann (2006). Legal Feminism: Activism, Lawyering, and Legal Theory. New York, New York: New York University Press. ISBN 0-8147-9845-4. OCLC 62766074.
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