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Many people use the terms sex & gender interchangeably, however, social scientists consider the two terms to have different meanings | |||
SEX | |||
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Sex is the biological categorization of male, female, "other" |
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Sex refers to the physical characteristics that make a person male or female | |||
When social scientists talk of sex differences btwn females & males, they usually refer to biological characteristics, such as hormonal, anatomical, & physiological differences that define them | |||
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Less than 1 % of the population has major physical characteristics of both male & female | ||
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Much of the population has minor physical characteristics of both males & females such as seen in the TV show "He's a Lady" | ||
GENDER | |||
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Gender is the social category of male, female, other |
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Gender socially learned traits associated w/, & expected of men or women | ||
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Gender refers to the personal traits & social positions that members of a society attach to being female & male | ||
Gender refers to a sense of being male or female or having the recognizable traits of one's sex | |||
Gender differences refer to the socially & culturally constructed definitions of what it means to be female & male | |||
The social construction of gender in a particular society or subculture shapes norms & expectations for appropriate behaviors, roles, & appearance for males & females | |||
Biologically, men & women differ in limited ways, but culture can define the two sexes in dramatically different ways | |||
Social indicators of gender have changed over time:
Long/short hair Skirts/pants What are some other social indicators? |
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Biological indicators of sex have changed as, for example, women are now over 1 inch taller than 30 yrs. ago | |||
It is important not to think of social differences btwn the sexes exclusively in biological terms | |||
The appropriate roles, behaviors, & expectations for males & females have modified considerably over time | |||
THE SOCIAL SCIENCES, GENDER, & SEX | |||
Sociology of gender is the study of socially constructed female & male roles, relations, & identities | |||
Feminist theory is the study of woman centered patterning of human experience |
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Today there is a growing sociology of gender on masculinity |
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Characteristics & behavior generally associated w/ being a male are called masculine |
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Characteristics & behavior generally associated w/ being a female are called feminine |
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The development of sexuality is influenced by two major forces related to gender: gender identity & gender role |
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Gender identity is a personal sense that "I am a male" or "I am a female" |
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Gender identity develops partly from biological influences, such as body shape & genitals, & partly from cultural influences, including clothing & hairstyle |
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Gender role refers to a society's expectations for males & females, including values, attitudes, & behavior |
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Individuals develop these expectations w/ the influence of parents, friends, & teachers, as well as television, motion pictures, & other sources |
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Men are stereotypically considered to be more aggressive & action oriented while women are thought ot be more capable of nurturing & caring behavior that makes them better able to take care of family & household needs | |||
In a now classic study Margaret mead noted that among the Arapesh, the Mindugumor, & the Tchambuli tribes in the So Pacific, masculinity & femininity were socially constructed differently in each | |||
Among the Arapesh, women as well as men displayed inaggressive, cooperative, & caring behaviors | |||
Among the Mundugumor, both sexes exhibited aggressive behavior | |||
Among the Tchambuli, the men displayed more passive & dependent behavior than women | |||
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Among the Aka, a hunting & gathering tribe in central Africa, Hewlett notes the close bond btwn infants & fathers, & the open display of affection & nurturing behavior by men is in sharp contrast to the 'rough & tumble' play characteristic of interaction btwn American fathers & infants |
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Recent studies show varied definitions of masculinity & femininity in the US, & variations in behavior among women & men | |||
When men take on the primary parenting role & share in household responsibilities, they display close emotional & nurturing ties to their children & are capable of developing 'maternal thinking' | |||
WOmen & men are now taking on roles & responsibilities that were considered quite inappropriate one or tow generations ago | |||
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SEX & THE BODY |
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Primary sex characteristics refer to the organs used for reproduction, namely the genitals | |||
Secondary sex characteristics are bodily differences, apart from the genitals, that distinguish biologically mature females & males | |||
The term inter sexual people refers to people whose bodies (including genitals) have both female & male characteristics | |||
An older term for inter sexual people is hermaphrodite | |||
Transsexuals are people who feel they are one sex even though biologically they are the other |
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- Project: Unjust Gender Stratification in Traditional Societies |
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- Supplement: Median Income of Year Round, Full Time Workers, by Sex and Age, 1999 |
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- Supplement: Median Income of Year Round Full Time Workers, by Sex & Level of Education, 1999 |
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GENDER STRAT EXHIBITS REDUCED GENDER INEQUITY IN DEV NATIONS, BUT INEQUITY REMAINS STUBBORNLY PRESENT; & GENDER INEQUITY REMAINS AS HIGH OR HIGHER IN LESSOR DEV NATIONS | |||||
In the US there have been improvement in the levels of inequality based on gender, but considerable inequality remains | |||||
In less developed nations, there is a higher level of gender inequality & gender discrimination | |||||
Reductions in income inequality btwn women & men have occurred mainly because the income of men has gone down since the Reagan Admin (ie the early 1980s) | |||||
The US continues to have more inequality than most other industrialized nations, except Japan which has the highest gender inequality of the industrialized nations | |||||
The history of gender inequality shows long periods of history w/o significant change, punctuated by periods of rapid change, esp in the 1920s & 1960s | |||||
Various theories attempt to explain gender strat, & several have added understanding to the dynamics of gender strat | |||||
Functionalism examines how different sectors of society function to both enhance & eliminate gender strat & how these structures interact or lag in development | |||||
Conflict theory examines how the interests of women, men, as well as the lower, mid, & up classes manifest as social struggle revealing overlapping cleavages as well as convergences of interests | |||||
Feminist theories examine how gender inequalities today, in the industrialized world are manifested through the class structures of occupation structures, authority structures, & property structures | |||||
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THE GENDER PAY GAP IS SLOWLY CLOSING, BUT WILL PROBABLY TAKE 20 TO 30 MORE YRS. TO REACH EQUALITY |
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Women typically earn 60 to 70% of what men earn for equal work | |||||
The gender pay gap is slowly closing, but will probably take 20 to 30 more yrs. to reach equality | |||||
THERE APPEARS TO BE LITTLE PAY INEQUALITY BECAUSE ECON DISCRIM OCCURS MOSTLY IN THE MID & UPPER CLASSES | |||||
E.O. Wright found that economic discrimination against women occurs btwn, & not w/in a class or subclass: | |||||
Within a class, there is little difference in economic achievement btwn races or genders | |||||
In the working class, men & women, blacks & whites, etc. earn approximately the same level of income | |||||
For example, women earn 66% of what men earn, overall, but w/in the working class women earn equal wages to men | |||||
Blacks & females are more often in the Wright's working class & thus have an overall lower income | |||||
The proportions of blacks & females are greater in the working class | |||||
The proportions of white males are higher in the capitalist & managerial classes | |||||
MARRIAGE IMPROVES THE ECON POSITION OF BOTH SPOUSES, BUT WOMEN BENEFIT MORE / SINGLE WOMEN ARE THE POOREST | |||||
60 to 70% of women work outside the home while only 55% of men work outside the home | |||||
In general, the class of both spouses is that of the highest class spouse; i.e., the higher class spouse, pulls the other up to his or her level | |||||
Married women typically earn less than husband, & so technically are in a lower class than their husband | |||||
But the standard of living, income, property, status, etc. are distributed through the family unit | |||||
And thus, after a divorce, women usually fall in income while men's income rises | |||||
In 2002, approximately 30% of wives earn more than their husbands | |||||
In the recent past, ( i.e. as recently as the 1950s) a married women's class was determined by position of husband; i.e. she would even come down to his position if he were lower | |||||
In terms of social marital mobility, by far the most people marry w/in their class | |||||
In terms of social marital mobility, the largest group of people who marry up consists of women | |||||
In terms of social marital mobility, the smallest group of people who marry up consists of men |
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Social mobility patterns differ for men & women |
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There is a gender as well as a race bias in the occupational structure | |||||
Most strat studies did not include women | |||||
When using the five job patterns of upper non manual, lower non manual, upper manual, lower manual & farm, the mobility patterns of men & women are very similar |
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The job patterns of men & women in the five job patterns are similar because women are concentrated in occupations such as clerical worker, i.e. in the lower non manual category and the studies are not able to detect important differences in the other occupational categories | |||||
Studies w/ 18 occupational categories demonstrate differences btwn men & women |
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Tyree & Treas (1974) found that daughters of professional fathers were more likely to be in white collar occupations than were sons of professional fathers | |||||
Daughters of farm workers were more likely to be in white collar occupations & less likely to be in blue collar occupations than their fathers | |||||
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Overall, working women are less likely to be in an occupational status close to their father's | ||||
Because women are concentrated in the middle occupations, they are more likely to be both upwardly & downwardly mobile |
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While black men are often pushed down in the occupational structure, women tend to stay in the middle w/ some upward & downward mobility | |||||
Traditionally, the status of women has been assumed to follow that of their husbands |
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With more women than men working ( 50+ % of women & 50- % of men ), this assumption can no longer go untested | |||||
The status of the unworking spouse is usually determined by that of the working spouse | |||||
Women marry men w/ similar occupations as their brothers more than they entered occupations similar to their brothers |
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The marriage market more closely reproduces the intergenerational mobility patterns of men | |||||
The marriage market more closely reproduces the intergenerational mobility patterns of men because men & women marry people closer to their educational attainment than to their father's status | |||||
Mobility for women is slightly greater through marriage than is mobility for men through occupation |
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It is commonly believed that women had more upward mobility through marriage than did men through occupations |
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The old story of the poor but attractive girl marrying a rich man is still common today | |||||
In fact, women are as likely to marry down as to marry up | |||||
But still women have more mobility through marriage than men have through occupation | |||||
Wright ( 1997 ) has the most complete studies involving women & men |
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Men & women have the same patterns of mobility; w/ a few differences, the property class boundary was the most impermeable | |||||
Occupation skill level had a medium level of permeability | |||||
Authority level was the least restrictive | |||||
About the same % of men & women move across these barriers | |||||
Wright found the property class barrier was somewhat more permeable for women |
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Women do marry into the upper class more than men do | |||||
Wright found that women in the US are more able to move up the occupation ladder than in other countries |
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INTRODUCTION: Note in this historic overview that sexism & patriarchy do not develop until "civilization" begins, circa 13,000 to 4,000 BC. Thus humans have spent 99+% of existence in non-sexist society. Thus, those who say that male domination is "natural" are mistaken | |||||
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1. GEOLOGIC ERA
5 bb - 5 mm |
Socio Biology |
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2. PRE HUMAN ERA
5 mm - 1.5 mm |
"The sex contract" |
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3. HUNTER
GATHERER SOCIETY 1.5 mm - 10 K BC |
During the Hunter Gatherer Era, there was gender
equality in that there was little or no patriarchy or sexism
Gender & Racial Equality has existed for over 99 % of human existence |
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4. PRE EMPIRE ERA
10 K BC - 3 K BC |
Patriarchy & sexism began | |||
Morgan: The Origin of Patriarchy | |||||
Marx & Engels: The
Origin of the Family, Private Property
& the State |
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5. EARLY EMPIRES
3 K BC - 200 BC |
Women in the Ancient World | |||
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6. ROMAN ERA
200 BC - 500 AD |
Women in the Roman Era | |||
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7. MIDDLE AGES
500 - 1300 |
Women in the Middle Ages
( Modern form of Racism begin ) |
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8. EARLY
INDUSTRIAL AGE 1300 - 1700 |
Mutual & reward:
- marriage develops - romance develops - sexuality becomes more widespread - companionship develops ... as patriarchy recedes |
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9. INDUSTRIAL AGE
1700- present |
First Wave Feminism develops | |||
Suffragette movement develops | |||||
Depression & WW II Era Women | |||||
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10. GLOBAL
CAPITALISM 1910 - present |
Second Wave Feminism develops | |||
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11. POST
INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY 1970 - |
The New Woman:
3rd Wave Feminism develops |
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- Project: Patriarchy, Matriarchy, & Equality in H-G Society & Today |
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THERE WAS A VERY HIGH LEVEL OF GENDER DIFFERENTIATION, BUT LITTLE GENDER DISCRIMINATION / PATRIARCHY | |||
During the Hunter Gatherer Era, humanity lived in 100's of thousands of mostly isolated tribes | |||
Hunter Gatherer Societies, aka primitive communalism, have the major feature of | |||
Living by hunting & gathering
Only minimal agriculture, which developed at the end of this era Semi nomadism No accumulation of wealth Status achievement in "traditional" roles |
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Most roles in Hunter Gatherer Society are ascribed, though increased status often served as a reward for achievement | |||
There was gender based division of labor in Hunter Gatherer Society | |||
In H-G society women & men had different, but essentially equal roles | |||
The major female roles in H-G Society include gatherer, herder, mother, sometimes leader (matrilineal), homemaker, medicine woman / religious leader (shaman, etc.), home defense | |||
WOMEN RAISED BABIES TO GIRLS & BOYS, & GIRLS TO WOMEN, BUT MEN RAISED BOYS TO MEN | |||
Many tribes used a matrilineal methods of tracing descent | |||
The major male roles in H-G society include hunter, sometimes leader, explorer, warrior, medicine man / religious leader (shaman, etc.), home defense | |||
Men raised boys to men | |||
Women brought in 70 % of the food, but the 30 % that men brought in by hunting was critical | |||
Men & women had equal status, power & privileges in Hunter Gatherer Society & because 99 % of human existence has occurred in Hunter Gatherer Society, therefore patriarchy, sexism, men controlling women IS NOT "natural" | |||
The roles of leader, doctor, shaman, defender are all male roles today, but they were definitely filled by both genders in Hunter Gatherer Society |
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WOMEN BECAME CRITICAL PARTICIPANTS IN THE 'WAR MACHINE,' IE THE MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX OF WW 2 | |||||
Women move into the industrial economic sphere of society |
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During the depression era, the need to put food on table overrides patriarchy |
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During WW2, the marketing concept of Rosie the Riveter is used to popularize the concept of women factory workers |
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Women played a vital part in this country's success in WW 2 | |||||
WW 2 took place during the industrial era so since so many men were sent off to fight in the war, many women took on the jobs that were left behind | |||||
The women worked in all manners of production in the factories | |||||
Skilled women could earn $2.15 a week, & while to them this must have seemed a lot, men doing the same wk were paid more | |||||
In some factories the women went on strike, & were finally able to be rewarded w/ better pay | |||||
Many women also joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service where they would act as drivers, work in mess halls, clean, & work on anti aircraft guns | |||||
As the war went on the women in the ATS were able to become electricians, carpenters, & welders which were not traditional jobs that women held during that period | |||||
A few women became secret agents & their work was exceptionally dangerous as just one slip could lead to capture, torture & death. | |||||
Women were also extremely important in entertainment. | |||||
During the war the Waves & Wacs supplement the traditional nursing roles of women | |||||
WHEN WW 2 ENDED, MOST WOMEN WERE FORCED TO LEAVE THE JOBS THEY HAD; THEY WERE REPLACED BY RETURING SOLDIERS & RELEGATED BACK TO THE INSTITUTION OF MARRIAGE OR 'WOMEN'S WORK' | |||||
The war ended in 1945 & at this time there were 400 K women in the military & over 6.5 million in civilian war work | |||||
Without their contribution, our war effort would have been severely weakened & it is probable that we would not have prevailed as we did w/ their work | |||||
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Several million women took factory jobs, but after the war, they had to leave the wk force |
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Even though the women made such an impact on the work force during the war, after the war ended many of them lost their jobs due to the returning soldiers |
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The returning soldiers had to have jobs & many wanted society to return to normal, ie men at work & women at home | |||||
During this time women found employment in the Civil Service, in teaching & in medicine but they usually had to leave when they got married | |||||
Many women received a taste of the amount of pride that went in to holding down a job & wanted to reach the goal where they would be able to have jobs the same as men | |||||
WOMEN, WOMEN LEADERS, & WOMEN'S GRPS INCREASED THE STRUGGLE FOR MORE EQUALITY, & WON SOME IMPORTAT RIGHTS | |||||
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NAWSA became the League of Women voters |
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Francis Perkins served as Secretary of Labor for FDR |
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Elanor Roosevelt was very influential |
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During the mid 1900s, women gained increased protection against job discrimination |
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In the 1940s, the U.S. govt established a policy of equal pay for equal work |
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Under the policy of equal pay for equal work, the govt forbade businesses w/ federal contracts to pay a woman less than a man for the same job |
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FIRST WAVE FEMINISTS WERE ACTIVE BEFORE & DURING THE ENLIGHTENMENT ERA ESTBING SOME OF THE FIRST RATIONALE FOR WOMEN'S RIGHTS |
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First wave feminism began during the Enlightenment | |||
The women of the Enlightenment created a theoretical & practical basis for equal rights for women | |||
First wave feminists repudiated sexist notions about women | |||
First wave feminists advocated equal education & laid the foundation for the women's movement for the next few centuries | |||
The Enlightenment, circa 1689 - 1789, was the awakening of modern ideas on freedom, science, religion, and early feminist thought, etc., aka the Age of Reason, & was one factor in the Fr Revolution of 1789 | |||
See Also: The Enlightenment: | |||
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LEADING FIRST WAVE FEMINISTS, E.G. WOLLSTONECRAFT, MARTINEAU, ET AL, ESTBED A STRONG SOC MVMT & RATIONAL FOR SUFFRAGE & EQUAL ED |
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Leading thinkers of first wave feminism include Wollstonecraft, Macauley, Martineau, Taylor, Tubman, Rousseau, et al | |||
Mary Wollstonecraft, 1759 - 1797, in The Vindication of the Rights of Women, which was a response to Edmund Burke, held that women should have equal education | |||
The Vindication of the Rights of Women an important book in the Enlightenment & for US Constitution | |||
Catherine Macauley | |||
Harriet Martineau, 1802 - 1876, fought for women's education | |||
Harriet Taylor Mill, 1807 - 1858, was forced to live behind her husband, John Stuart Mill, but was the intellectual leader | |||
John Stuart Mill, 1807 - 1873, was an important utilitarian philosopher | |||
Harriet Tubman, 1820 - 1913, was a fugitive slave, underground railroad conductor, Union scout, & an entrepreneur who founded two hospitals | |||
Other Enlightenment ideas on women: | |||
Rousseau wrote Emile & Sophy, in which he advocated sexist ideas though he is considered to be a progressive political philosopher |
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THE DREAM OF EQUALITY IN THE WORKPLACE, THROUGHOUT SOCIETY, IS MOVING TOWARD REALITY |
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Before the 1940s, the WW II era, college & hi level jobs were only available to white, upper class males | |||||
During the 1940s, after WW II, college opened up to middle & lower class white males, resulting in the econ boom of the 40s, 50s, & early 60s | |||||
Some white women attended college during the 1940s, after WW II, to become teachers, secretaries, nurses, & wives | |||||
Black universities grew significantly during the 1940s, after WW II | |||||
As a result of the Civil Rights Mvmt & other cultural changes, educational opportunities & occupational opportunities began to open up in the 60s, & have continued this 'opening' through today, resulting in the dream of equality moving toward reality, thus creating a middle class & reducing levels of strat | |||||
The growth of the middle class & the decrease in hi levels of strat occurred as the the first world nations of today shifted from an agricultural, 3rd tier nations, to indl, leading nations where bias & the resulting strat declined | |||||
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THERE ARE NOW MORE WOMEN IN THE WKFORCE THAN MEN, BUT THEY STILL HAVE LOWER PAYING JOBS BECAUSE SEX ROLE SOCIALIZATION CREATES 'MEN'S JOBS' & 'WOMEN'S JOBS' |
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The three most popular occupations for women are still nurse, teacher, & secretary; all which are relatively low paid |
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Today women earn about 60 - 75 % of what men earn, & there has been little change in the last decade |
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Women's wages have, compared to men, equalized the greatest at the lower levels, thus they appear more equal in more transparent, lower level jobs | |||||
Wages, salaries, benefits, etc. are 'more private' the higher one's career, & thus it is easier to disguise pay inequity at the higher levels of occupations | |||||
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THE GLASS CEILING DENOTES THAT DISCRIMINATION INCREASES DRAMATICALLY AT OR ABOVE THE MID MGT LEVEL |
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The concept of the glass ceiling denotes that the "old boy network" is the most powerful at the top |
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Women will break the glass ceiling as they get more education, training, & experience |
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THE EFFECTS OF RACE & GENDER DISCRIMINATION IS MAGNIFIED BY CLASS STRAT IN THAT THE HI AMT OF DISCRIM IN THE UPPER CLASS BRINGS UP THE OVERALL AVERAGE OF DISCRIM |
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Wealth is more unequally stratified than income w/ the upper fifth of the pop earning about half the income & owning about 80% of the wealth | |||||
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In the 1990s, whites on average had 10 times the wealth of blacks or hispanics |
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The 10 times disparity of wealth among whites, blacks, or hispanics is distorted by the fact that the upper fifth of the pop is mostly white & the upper 5 % of the pop is nearly all white | |||||
Middle & lower class income & wealth strat is much less than the overall average | |||||
Thus, class distinctions distort racial distinctions, ie they magnify them | |||||
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The wages of Black college grads have risen faster than those of White college grads, but are still behind |
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The wages of Black high school grads have fallen even further behind White high school grads |
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Affirmative Action has helped created a Black middle class, but has done little to help the large Black underclass, & has barely broken "the glass ceiling" of upper level jobs |
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Inequality in wages by race has been exasperated by the concentration of Blacks & Hispanics in regions & urban areas w/ high unemployment |
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OVERT RACIAL DISCRIMINATION HAS TRANSFORMED INTO INSTITUTIONAL, & OTHER SUBTLE FORMS, WHICH LIMIT EQUAL OPPORTUNITY |
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While some violent, oppressive discrim does still exist, today most of it occurs subtly in orgs, w/o acknowledgment, & it attempts to remain hidden |
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The legislatures & judicial systems are attempting to eliminate these forms of subtle discrim, but like conflicts of the past, powerful interests align on both sides each arguing that 'progress' can only be achieved by embracing their policies | |||||
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DUAL LABOR MKTS, CAREER LADDERS, ETC. ARE MORE ACCURATELY DESCRIBED AS ADVANCEMENT MAZES IN WHICH INSTITL BIASES OF THE PAST MAY LIMIT EQUAL OPPORTUNITY |
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Dual labor mkts, career ladders, & other normal process of rationalization of occupations, i.e. ensuring that the most qualified candidate succeeds & is rewarded, make it difficult to tell when discrimination occurs |
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Normal processes of rationalization of occupations allocate rewards according to skill, but histl practices may distort this allocation |
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THE CULTURAL DIVISION OF LABOR DENOTES THAT PEOPLE CHOOSE OCCUPATIONAL ROLES BASED ON CULTURAL IDENTITY, WHICH IN SOCIETY TODAY IS A FUNCTION OF GENDER, RACE, CLASS, & OTHER FACTORS |
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In the 'post racial world' of today, many people still live & work in cultural enclaves, & thus occupation, & thus strat, are all still conditioned by the opportunities & rewards of these cultural enclaves |
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Society today is trying to eliminate some differences of culture, gender, race, class, etc. esp as related to histl discrim practices of the past, which simultaneously embracing those unique, positive aspects of each one of our differences |
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The ultimate challenge for society is to sort difference from discrimination wherein the former is a justification for the stratification of society's rewards & the latter is not |
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Conflict analysis explains contemporary sex roles in terms of dominance, subordination, & sexism |
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CONFLICT THEORY ON GENDER & OTHER CONTEMPORARY ISSUES | |||||
While conflict analysis has it's roots in Marxism & thus class conflict based on economic exploitation, it has been usefully applied by many social theorists to gender, race & many other social problems |
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Thus conflict theory has been generalized so that it may be usefully applied to any social conflict |
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Some social scientists question which conflict is the conflict, i.e. is at base the most fundamental conflict: economic, race, gender, religion, etc. |
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While the debate over the most fundamental conflict is important in some decisions, for most people & social change orgs, more important questions lie w/in the social problem / change they are dealing w/ |
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MORGAN, ENGELS & MARX ON GENDER |
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See Also: The Origin of the Family, Private Property & the State by Friederich Engels & Karl Marx, 1884 | |||||
See Also: Morgan on the Development of the Patriarchal Family | |||||
Morgan, Engels & Marx believed that capitalism intensified male domination because it allowed the concentration of wealth in the hands of males, esp upper class males |
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Patriarchy & the monogamous family began when civilization began, which began when agriculture was well established |
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Patriarchy & the monogamous family created the first surplus of goods which could be bequeathed |
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Men established monogamy & patriarchy so that they could control their wealth, who their heirs were, & what they would receive |
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Before the production of a surplus, bequeathal followed female lines (matriarchy) while after the production of a surplus, bequeathal followed male lines (patriarchy) |
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Men gained power over women by controlling agriculture, war, husbandry, & bequeathal |
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These new relationships of patriarchy & strict monogamy created what Marx & Engels called "The historic defeat of women" |
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CRITIQUE OF CONFLICT THEORY ON GENDER |
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The conflict view of gender has been criticized for casting conventional families as morally evil & for minimizing the extent to which people live happily in families | |||||
The conflict view of gender has been criticized for arguing, perhaps falsely, that capitalism stands at the root of gender stratification | |||||
However, there is little doubt among social scientists that family structure does play an important role in patriarchy as well as other forms of social exploitation |
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THE SOCIAL STRUCTURES INCLUDE PF REG M CEML | |||||
Traditional social theorists generally accept a number of social structures: peers, family, religion, economy, government, military, charity, education, media, leisure ( PF REG M CEML ) | |||||
A Marxist analysis of social structure holds that the economic structure determines the relationships in the other nine social structures & of culture, which includes belief systems & ideology | |||||
For Marxists, the base determines the superstructure | |||||
Neo Marxists & functionalists believe that culture determines the nature of the social structures | |||||
THE SOC RELATIONSHIPS STRUCTURED IN THE SOC STRUCTURES ALSO STRUCTURE PATRIARCHY, FAMILY FORMS, GENDER RELATIONS, WOMEN'S LIB, ETC. | |||||
Feminist theorists emphasizes that the social relationships inherent
in
- social structure (marco objective productions) & - ideology (macro subjective productions) - on micro relations is powerful, i.e. determinant of gender relations |
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For feminists, the base includes the social relations of production & reproduction | |||||
Feminists call the base social production, which includes the social relations of production & reproduction | |||||
For feminist Marxists, the concept of social structure denotes that all roles & spheres & power relationships merge | |||||
For feminist Marxists, a group's power is based on arrangements where some actors control resources & act as masters | |||||
Thus life is a balancing act for people w/ a given level of power to exert that power in different spheres | |||||
Within the merging of roles, spheres & power relationships, women often experience the double bind | |||||
One example of a gendered double bind is that women are expected to be mothers & yet not bring outside concerns to workplace | |||||
One example of a gendered double bind is that if women are aggressive in the workplace or in general, they are bitches; if they are not aggressive, they are submissive | |||||
One example of a gendered double bind is that if women are aggressive in sexuality, they are sluts, etc.; if they are not aggressive, they are a lady, etc. | |||||
One example of a gendered double bind is that if men are aggressive in the workplace or in general, they are sharks or go getters; if they are not aggressive, they are a drudge | |||||
One example of a gendered double bind is that if men are aggressive in the sexuality or in general, they are a stud, a man about town, a ladies man, etc.; if they are not they are a confirmed bachelor, etc. | |||||
Note that there are no negative terms for overaggressive maleness | |||||
IN ADDITION TO SOC STRUC, IDEOLOGY STRUCTURES GENDER BY, FOR EXAMPLE TRIVIALIZING WOMEN'S WORK, IDEALIZING MOTHERING, MYSTIFYING WOMEN'S WORK, STRUCTURING WOMEN'S WK OUTSIDE THE ECON | |||||
The notion of distinct spheres of life represents a male view of society | |||||
For feminists, the practice of role merging should be generalized throughout society, w/ an emphasis on molding society's ideology to accept it | |||||
We must be aware that there is a "patriarchal consensus" in society | |||||
“Public knowledge of social reality” is not a consensus culture, but rather is a reflection of dominant groups interests | |||||
Ideological control is the basic process in domination & knowledge & discourse is the key element [ Habermas ] | |||||
Gender is reproduced via ideology, an ideology which | |||||
a. trivializes women's work | |||||
b. idealizes mothering | |||||
c. makes women's work invisible, | |||||
d. categorizes women's work as non marketplace work |
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A functional analysis of gender suggests that traditional sex roles emerged in hunting & gathering societies where they promoted the efficient functioning of the family |
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Each sex plays a role that complements the role played by the other, w/ men taking the instrumental part & women the expressive |
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DURKHEIM ON GENDER | |||||
With roots in anthropology, Durkheim was well aware that women take on very many different roles in different societies & that women's roles have changed over time | |||||
In relation to functionalism on gender, w/ roots in anthropology, Durkheim was well aware that women's roles have changed over time | |||||
Applying the concepts of modernization & the development of mechanical solidarity, Durkheim's theory supports feminist goals to the extent that fostering the interdependence of members & parts of society regardless of organic / traditional constraints mandates that women function to the full extent of their true capacities | |||||
PARSONS & GENDER COMPLEMENTARITY |
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Parsons argued that: |
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a. gender role complementarity helps to integrate society | |||||
b. girls & boys are socialized into expressive & instrumental roles, respectively |
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c. social control reinforces gender linked behavior |
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d. gender roles, like all functional imperatives, are interdependent, i.e. defines the other | |||||
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The functionalist analysis of gender is criticized for ignoring the fact that many women have had to work outside the home out of necessity |
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The functionalist analysis of gender ignores the personal strains & social costs produced by rigid gender roles |
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Functionalism is often criticized for supporting the status quo, but this is more the result of the individuals such as Parsons who applied the theory w/ their own predilections, & not necessarily inherent in the theory itself |
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Stratification based on the ascribed characteristics of race & gender remain important, influential factors even in modern societies whose primary method of stratification is achievement, i.e. the merit system |
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Women & racial or ethnic minorities receive lower pay & work at lower status jobs than white males |
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In 1994, median incomes of year round, full time workers for both black males & white females were about three quarters of white males |
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In 1994, median incomes of year round, full time workers for both black females & Hispanic males were about two thirds of white males & other groups had even lower incomes |
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Race & gender bias compounds inequality in modern societies |
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While wealth is more unequally distributed than income, the ownership of major wealth is even more stratified by race & gender than income |
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The overwhelming majority of income producing wealth remains in the hands of a small proportion of the white, male population |
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Median wealth of whites is six to ten times that of blacks & Latinos and the disparity is even greater for income producing assets |
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Relative to the rest of the population, during the 1980’s, poor blacks have become poorer | |||||
The average black life expectancy is lower than that of whites | |||||
Mexican Americans & Puerto Ricans have experienced severe discrimination & disproportionate poverty | |||||
Among Asian Am's, the level of educational attainment is the highest of any racial or ethnic group in Am society | |||||
Edl levels among Jewish Am's are above the national average |
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There are EIGHT common principals of radical feminism | |||||
1. WOMEN HAVE AN ABSOLUTE POSITIVE VALUE | |||||
We must celebrate the absolute positive value of women to combat the negativism, violence against, objectification of women that is rampant in society | |||||
2. PATRIARCHY IS FULLY INTEGRATED INTO THE CULTURE, STRUCTURE, IDEOLOGIES, INTERACTIONS, ETC. OF SOCIETY | |||||
The effects of patriarchy are wide-spread, in every class, race, society, religion, etc. | |||||
3. PATRIARCHY IS AT THE CENTER OF OPPRESSION, CONTRA SOCIALIST FEM WHICH HOLDS THAT ECON DOMINATION IS PRIMARY | |||||
All other systems of oppression are secondary & are structured by patriarchy | |||||
Patriarchy was the first structure of oppression ( Pre Empire Era: 10 to 3 K BC ) | |||||
The effects of patriarchy are stronger today than any other oppression; i.e. less women are in power positions than any other oppressed group | |||||
4. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IS A METHOD OF DIRECT OPPRESSION | |||||
Women everywhere are violently oppressed regardless of age, class, race, etc. | |||||
Radical feminists focus on violence against women & the crimes against women including rape, sex abuse, sex slavery, prostitution, porno, sadism, spouse abuse, incest, molestation, forced hysterectomies, cosmetic surgery, and more | |||||
Patriarchy exists because men have physical force | |||||
5. MEN CAN MAINTAIN PATRIARCHY BECAUSE THEY HAVE RESOURCES | |||||
Men muster resources from many social systems to sustain patriarchy | |||||
The radical feminists are in essential agreement w/ Marxist feminists on the sustainability of patriarchy being based in men's control of resources, but unlike the Marxist feminists, the radical feminists do not believe that socialism is the solution | |||||
See Also: The Marxist Feminists | |||||
6. THE EFFECTS OF PATRIARCHY ACCRUE TO ALL MEN | |||||
Patriarchy allows for the satisfaction male sexual desire | |||||
Patriarchy allows men to control reproduction | |||||
Patriarchy maintains women as ornaments | |||||
7. MOST OTHER FORMS OF FEMINISM ARE INSUFFICIENT TO ACHIEVE EQUALITY FOR WOMEN | |||||
Social science has been around for two centuries, & it is the work of women like the suffragettes & feminists who have made progress for women, & not the social sciences | |||||
8. SOME RADICAL FEMINISTS ADVOCATE SEPARATISM, LESBIANISM, THE DEV OF WOMEN'S IDEOLOGY, SISTERHOOD, CONFRONTING PATRIARCHY, & A SEPARATE WOMEN'S ECON | |||||
Radical feminist solutions for patriarchy include | |||||
a. separatism & for some, total separatism is the only solution | |||||
b. separatism in sexuality; i.e. lesbianism | |||||
c. reworking women's consciousness so that women value themselves | |||||
d. building sisterhood & confronting patriarchy | |||||
e. developing separate women's businesses, homes, communities, etc. |
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LIBERAL FEMINISM EMBRACES THE IDEALS & POSITIONS OF EVERYDAY WOMEN TODAY, INCLUDING PAY EQUITY, ENDING SEXUAL HARASSMENT, SHARING HOUSEWORK, ENDING PORNOGRAPHY & SIMILAR EXPLOITATION, REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS, ETC. | |||||
"Mainstream" liberal feminism: In academe, etc., liberal feminism is a minority position, aka second wave feminism | |||||
But liberal feminism is the most important approach w/in the contemporary women's movement including NOW, AAUW, etc. | |||||
Less than 10% of women will claim to be a feminist, but over 80% subscribe
to its tenants. Why?
Because many of the schools of feminism are more radical than liberal feminism, & many women do not subscribe to radical forms of feminism but do support much of mainstream / liberal feminism |
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There is a sexual division of labor in public & private spheres in that men dominate the public sphere, while women the private sphere | |||||
The sexual division of labor in the public & private spheres is a major cause of the oppression of women | |||||
Different values are accorded to the public & private spheres w/ the public sphere being, generally, more valued & rewarded | |||||
According to liberal feminists, society sees private work, i.e., the tasks of housework, child care, & the emotional, practical, & sexual servicing of men, as demanding, mindless, & unpaid | |||||
According to liberal feminists, society sees the true rewards of life lie in money, power, status, freedom, opportunities, & self worth | |||||
Liberal feminists do not agree w/ society's gender based values; they only note that these gendered, biased values are pervasive in society | |||||
The liberal feminists view of sexism is one that most people can relate to | |||||
The prejudices & discriminatory practices against women are based on taken for granted beliefs about "natural" differences | |||||
Sexism is similar to racism in that prejudices & discriminatory practices against women are based on taken for granted beliefs about “natural” differences btwn W & M | |||||
MARRIAGE HAS MORE BENEFITS & LESS COSTS FOR MEN & MORE COSTS & LESS BENEFITS FOR WOMEN | |||||
Bernard, in The Future of Marriage (1982), documents that marriage is good for men, & bad for women as measured by stress & life span; i.e. married men live longer & are healthier than single men, while single women live longer & are healthier than married women | |||||
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Divorce is good for men economically & bad for women, but single women live longer | ||||
Marriage is a cultural system, an institutional arrangement of roles & norms, & an interactional experience & as currently constituted, marriage is patriarchially oriented | |||||
Liberal feminists note demographic social facts such as
- never married women live the longest amount of time - never married men live the shortest amount of time - after divorce, women live longer than men - marriage shortens life span of women & lengthens it for men to demonstrate that patriarchal relations benefit men & harm women |
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There are two marriage experiences in any marriage
For liberal feminists, in marriage, women lose power & men gain power |
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Under current patriarchal marriage, the female experience affirms the cultural belief of marriage, seeing women as losing independence, becoming powerless, dependent, & obligated to the male | |||||
Under current patriarchal marriage, the male experience affirms cultural belief of marriage, seeing men as gaining authority, independence, the right to domestic, emotional and sexual service by the Female | |||||
Sexism & racism force people into rigid molds, deny community talents, diminish people, deny values of worth & freedom | |||||
The most important issues for women, that should be directly addressed by the women's movement include pay equity, equity in housework, reproductive rights, the abuse of women, etc. | |||||
Liberal feminists believe that the ideal lifestyle is where each person, man or woman, can choose the lifestyle most suitable to them |
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