Click to edit Master title style
FEMINIST
THEORYDISCIPLINES AND IDEAS IN SOCIAL SCIENCES
1
Click to edit Master title style
2 2
should feel free to
Click to edit Master title style
be
sensitive. Both men and
women should feel free to
be strong…it is time that we
all perceive gender on a
spectrum not as two
opposing sets of ideas.”
― Emma
Watson
3 3
Click to edit
FEMINIST Master title style
THEORY
Feminist theory is a major branch within
sociology that shifts its assumptions, analytic
lens, and topical focus away from the male
viewpoint and experience toward that of
women.
Feminist theory shines a light on social
problems, trends, and issues that are
otherwise overlooked or misidentified by the
historically dominant male perspective within
social theory. 4 4
Click to edit
FEMINIST Master title style
THEORY
Feminism is the belief that women
should have equal rights to men.
In consequence, the feminist movement
fights for equal rights and opportunities
for women.
5 5
History
Click to edit Master ofstyle
title
Feminism
THE FIRST WAVE THE SECOND WAVE
• 19th century and early 20th century UK 1960s & 1970s
& US • It won improved rights for • It extended the fight beyond political
women in marriage and property. Its rights to education, work and the home.
biggest achievement was winning some
• In ‘The Feminine Mystique’ (1963),
political power. In the UK, the
Suffragettes and Suffragists
Betty Freidan argues women were
campaigned for the women’s vote. unhappy because of the feminine
mystique. She said this was a
Suffrage – the right to vote in political damaging ideal of femininity, which she
elections. called; “The Happy Housewife” and it
restricted women to the role of
• In 1918, women over thirty who owned homemaker and mother, giving up on
property won the vote and in 1928 it was work and education.
extended to all women over twenty-one.
6 6
History
Click to edit Master ofstyle
title
Feminism
THE THIRD WAVE POST - FEMINISM
1990s – Present
Widened the feminist movement and
1980s – Present
its ideas beyond middle class, white
women, addressing the different
Includes a wide range of
disadvantages women experience reactions to the feminist
because of, for example their race, movement and is often
ethnicity and class.
critical of the feminist
Some argue that seeing the history of
feminism in just these three waves ideas. The word ‘post’
can ignore the fight for equal rights suggests that feminism is
and the end to discrimination by
women outside the large feminist
not relevant anymore
movements in the UK and US, because women have won
including working class women and equal rights. 7 7
black and ethnic minority women.
Click to editKINDS OF
Master FEMINISM
title style
THEORY
Liberal Feminism - This is the variety of feminism that works within
the structure of mainstream society to integrate women into that
structure.
Ex: abortion access, sexual harassment, voting education, fair
compensation for work, sexual and violence against women.
Marxist Feminism - Inequality on gender is based on division of
labor.
Example: Gender inequality division 8 8
Click to editKINDS OF
Master FEMINISM
title style
THEORY
Radical Feminism - Male power is always
based from social relation and interaction.
- Radical feminists believe that the cause of
gender inequality is based on men’s need or
desire to control women.
- The definition of the word ‘radical’ means
‘of or relating to the root’.
9 9
ClickKINDS
to editOF
Master title style
FEMINISM
THEORY
Socialist Feminism – Women are inferior
because of class based capitalism.
Key to socialist feminism is the idea that
patriarchy and capitalism are intertwined forms
of exploitation and oppression of women. In
addition to emphasizing gender inequality as a
cultural force that stems from patriarchy,
socialist feminists focus on how the economic
system, particularly in capitalist economies, is
a source of oppression. Social feminists aim to
dismantle these structures to achieve
liberation. 10
10
Click to editKINDS OF
Master FEMINISM
title style
THEORY
Post-modern Feminism – Women attempt to change and to criticize
the dominant order or the modern thought.
- Post-modern feminists agree with other feminists that gender is a
very important identity and that women are often subject to
discrimination. However they are interested in how people can pick
and mix their identities, including gender and are also interested in
the nature of masculinity. Rather than rejecting stereotypical
aspects of the female gender identity, they often embrace their
femininity as a positive identity (wonder-bras instead of burning
bras).
- The goal of postmodern feminism is to destabilize the patriarchal
norms entrenched in society that have led to gender inequality. 11
11
Click to edit Master title style
“Feminism is not about women
alone, it’s not something that
feeds the ego of women and
it’s not synonymous to man
hating, it’s more of recognizing
the importance of both gender
in the society.” 12
12
Click to edit Master title style
Gender ideology
Refers to attitudes regarding the
appropriate roles, rights and
responsibilities of men and women
in society. Traditional gender
ideologies emphasizes the value of
distinctive roles for women and men
where men fulfill their family roles
through breadwinning activities and
women fulfill their roles being a
homemaker and through parenting.
13
13
Click to edit Master title style
Gender
refers to the roles and
responsibilities of men and women Gender Inequality
that are created in our families, our
societies and our cultures. refers to disparity between
individuals due to gender. Gender is
Gender role constructed both socially through
social interactions as well as
is a set of behavioral norms biologically through chromosomes,
associated particularly with males brain structure, and hormonal
or females in a given social group or differences.
system, which includes division of
labor between men and women,
child rearing and socialization, 14
processes.
14
Click to edit Master title style
Some of the Factors Responsible for Gender Inequality:
Illiteracy: Illiteracy is one of the factors responsible for gender inequality.
Child Marriage: Children specially the girls are married at a very young
age. This proves fatal for their overall development and have a negative
impact on their health, too.
Social evils: Social evils like dowry system, sati system, are also
responsible for the low status of women.
Discrimination against the girl child: The girl child is not treated
properly in the family. People still prefer the birth of a boy rather than a girl.
The girl child is trained for household work only. Even today, female
infanticide is a common social evil.
15
15
Click to edit Master title style
Types of Gender Inequality:
Inequality in the Family: Gender roles develop through internalization and
identification during childhood. From birth, parents interact differently with
children depending on their sex, and through this interaction, parents infuse
different values or traits in their children based on what is normative for
their sex. Examples are polygamy, traditions favoring men in terms of
inheritance.
Natality inequality: a preference is given for boys over girls that many
male-dominated societies have, gender inequality can manifest itself in the
form of the parents wanting the newborn to be a boy rather than a girl.
16
16
Click to edit Master title style
Types of Gender Inequality:
Professional or Employment inequality: In terms of
employment as well as promotion in work and
occupation, women often face greater handicap than
men do.
Ownership inequality: In many societies, the
ownership of property can also be very unequal. Even
basic assets such as homes and land may be very
asymmetrically shared. 17
17
Click to edit Master title style
Types of Gender Inequality:
Household inequality: There are often enough, basic inequalities in
gender relations within the family or the household, which can take many
different forms. Even in cases in which there are no overt signs of anti-
female bias in, say, survival or son-preference or education, or even in
promotion to higher executive positions, the family arrangements can be
quite unequal in terms of sharing the burden of housework and child care.
Special opportunity inequality: Even when there is relatively little
difference in basic, facilities including schooling, the opportunities of higher
education may be far fewer for young women than for young men.
18
18
Click to edit Master title style
Just like the old saying that education starts from home, a person’s
view or awareness about gender is a reflection of what kind of
environment he has. Our vision, understanding, and acceptance
about the gender roles and how we deal with other people outside
home is something that we first learned from home, a good example
is when we are young, A boy will be always get a toy robot while
girls will get Barbie dolls, there’s really nothing wrong with that,
but if you are going to think of it, as early as childhood there’s
already a way on how our parents trained us on how we need to
behave and act according to our gender. Because our culture
dictates higher value of men over women this gives birth to gender
inequality. Gender ideology and gender inequality has cause and
effect relationship. A person’s gender ideology affect his action
towards the same/opposite gender. 19
19
Click to edit Master title style
Assignment:
Make a research of Filipino women who made a great contribution in the
Filipino society. Write a brief Bio and their contribution to feminism/gender
equality on your notebook.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
20
20
