Feminists: Feminism and Higher Paid Jobs
Assess the contribution that feminism has to our understanding of society today (33 marks)
Feminism is a conflict theory and views society as being patriarchal. They believe that functional parts of society such as, education, family and religion are used as tools of women subordination. However, there are 3 types of feminists that have different conflicting views on this, often resulting in the weakening of the overall arguments of feminism.
In the family, feminists argue that during primary socialisation boys and girls are forced in to gender role stereotypes, for example, girls playing with toy cookers and baby dolls and boys playing with toy cars. Another way feminists argue that girls and boys are socialised in to gender roles is that typically girls are dressed in pink and boys are dressed in blue. This therefore prepares them girls for future life as a mother, who has responsibility of child care and housework while the man is the breadwinner. Feminists also argue society as being oppressive to women as childcare almost always falls on them. This is apparent in many family types and supported by the fact that almost all single parent families are run by the mother of the child and not the father, therefore restricting them to what they can do outside of the family. However functionalists would argue that feminists focus too much on the conflict within the family and not the positive functions that the family, nuclear in particular, produce. Feminists have also argued that the family is oppressive to women as it enables them to be subject to domestic violence. They argue that women are less likely to report any domestic abuse while in a marriage or cohabiting therefore enabling men to get away with it.
In education, feminists argue that subject choice encourage suppression of women, in the past it was not unusual for girls to choose subjects such as home economics sand cookery which is argued would mould them in to their position as a mother
Feminism is a conflict theory and views society as being patriarchal. They believe that functional parts of society such as, education, family and religion are used as tools of women subordination. However, there are 3 types of feminists that have different conflicting views on this, often resulting in the weakening of the overall arguments of feminism.
In the family, feminists argue that during primary socialisation boys and girls are forced in to gender role stereotypes, for example, girls playing with toy cookers and baby dolls and boys playing with toy cars. Another way feminists argue that girls and boys are socialised in to gender roles is that typically girls are dressed in pink and boys are dressed in blue. This therefore prepares them girls for future life as a mother, who has responsibility of child care and housework while the man is the breadwinner. Feminists also argue society as being oppressive to women as childcare almost always falls on them. This is apparent in many family types and supported by the fact that almost all single parent families are run by the mother of the child and not the father, therefore restricting them to what they can do outside of the family. However functionalists would argue that feminists focus too much on the conflict within the family and not the positive functions that the family, nuclear in particular, produce. Feminists have also argued that the family is oppressive to women as it enables them to be subject to domestic violence. They argue that women are less likely to report any domestic abuse while in a marriage or cohabiting therefore enabling men to get away with it.
In education, feminists argue that subject choice encourage suppression of women, in the past it was not unusual for girls to choose subjects such as home economics sand cookery which is argued would mould them in to their position as a mother