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Feminism Lesson Objectives Understand Feminist theory of the family Quote appropriate writers for this theory Understand what the theory suggests Evaluate the theory

Starter: Card sort Sort the cards out into a timeline of events to do with feminism/women’s rights.

Timeline… Emmeline Pankhurst founds the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). The word "suffragette" was first used to describe women campaigning for the right to vote. Emily Wilding Davison throws herself under the King's horse at the Epsom Derby and is killed.

Timeline… Representation of the People bill, doubles the electorate, giving the parliamentary vote to about six million women. Nancy Astor becomes the first woman to take her seat in the House of Commons. Women given the vote at the age of 21 - the same as men. By the end of the war there were 460,000 women in the military and over 6.5 million in civilian war work.

Timeline… Contraception made free to all women Abortion Act introduced. The first British conference of the Women's Liberation Movement in Oxford resolved to press for employment legislation. The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer and The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir published. Cosmopolitan magazine launched in Britain.

Timeline… The Equal Pay Act and Sex Discrimination Act come into effect and equal opportunities commission established. Rape in marriage was criminalised. Trade Union reform and Employment Rights Act guarantees every working woman the right to maternity leave for the first time. 120 women win seats in the general election.

Can women get into the top jobs Can women get into the top jobs? If so, are there any job sectors that women are more likely to succeed in?

Can women get into the top jobs Can women get into the top jobs? If so, are there any job sectors that women are more likely to succeed in?

Feminism How are women defined? Watch the background on feminism. What are your thoughts? In what ways have women been oppressed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XgPD8d3hT0 How is femininity perceived in western society? What are the miss conceptions of feminism? How are women defined?

Feminist Perspectives Conflict theory – between males and females They are interested in the structure of patriarchy (male domination, female subordination and therefore gender inequality) that characterizes the organisation of modern societies. Focus on gender inequality in education, employment, social mobility, political power and family relationships.

Patriarchy Central to the feminist approach is the idea of patriarchy or male dominance of society. Patriarchy is reinforced in the family. Feminists argue that men benefit from families at the expense of women - both in their personal experience and broadly because the family sustains patriarchy in society.

Policies are primarily in men’s interests Walby (1990) defines patriarchy as a ‘system of social structures and practices in which men dominate, oppress and exploit women’ she sees patriarchy as embedded in six structures, which combine to keep women in a position of subordination. The household Women have primary responsibility for housework and childcare, limiting access to and promotion in paid work Paid work Women have lower-paid, lower-status, and more part-time and temporary jobs The state Policies are primarily in men’s interests

Cultural institutions Walby (1990) defines patriarchy as a ‘system of social structures and practices in which men dominate, oppress and exploit women’ she sees patriarchy as embedded in six structures, which combine to keep women in a position of subordination. Sexuality Different standards of behaviour are expected of men and women Male violence Male violence against women, like domestic violence and rape, either condoned, ignored or inadequately tackled by the state Cultural institutions Religion, media, education and other institutions reinforce patriarchy

Types of Feminism There are many types of feminism; Liberal Radical Marxist Difference

Types of Feminism There are many types of feminism; Liberal – concerned with human civil rights and freedoms of the individual. Believe all humans have equal rights. Radical – key concept is patriarchy ‘rule of fathers’. They believe society is run by men Marxist – reject liberal and radical feminists they believe women's subordinated rooted in capitalism. Difference – don’t see women as a single homogenous group. MC and WC women, white and black women, lesbian and heterosexual women have very different experiences of patriarchy, capitalism, racism and homophobia etc..

Task In groups you will each be assigned a different feminist approach You will each become an expert on this type of feminism. You are going to make a story board/presentation this lesson – we will present it on Friday You must be able to explain it without reading it off your sheet.

Preparation for Learning Pictionary

Lesson Objective To be able to evaluate feminist perspectives of society.

Feminism Individually what can you remember? Liberal Marxist Radical Difference Individually what can you remember?

Feminism Liberal Marxist See society as patriarchal but suggest that women's opportunities are improving because of the feminization of the economy. Wilkinson – gender quake (recent radical changes) More demanding within society. No longer viewed as second class citizens. Optimistic view Benston sees patriarchy as an ideological (system of ideas and ideals) aspect of capitalism. Inequalities in society emphasizes the idea that women are inferior to men – capitalism makes women easier to control and exploit men and women. Women's domestic roles are important for capitalism in terms of the superstructure influencing the infrastructure. Women are seen as disposable.

Feminism Radical Difference Delphy argues that gender inequality is more important than class inequality. Modern societies exploit and oppress women in all aspects of social life. Patriarchal ideology is used to control women for the benefit of men. When this fails women are always under the threat of male violence and sexual aggression which inevitably controls them . Don’t see women as one homogenous group. Different factors such as class, ethnicity, lesbian and heterosexual women have different experiences of patriarchy, capitalism, racism ect. Argues feminist theory has claimed a false universality for itself – assuming it is about all women, its only really about white, western, heterosexual, middle-class women Criticise essentialism (all women are the same and share the same experiences of oppression)

Construct Judge whether the you think the following evaluation points are strengths or weaknesses of each feminist perspective – explain why.

Construct evaluation Liberal Marxist Their work has demonstrated that gender differences are not inborn but the result of different treatment and socialisation patters. Liberal-feminists can be seen to be over-optimistic as they ignore the fact that there are deep seated structures casing women's oppression such as capitalism, they believe that things will gradually change. This is in contrast to Radical and Marxist feminists who believe that revolutionary changes are needed. + has had important effects on social policy, on passing anti-discrimination laws like the equal pay act (1970) and the sex discrimination act (1975) this has improved women’s lives and opportunities. They show a greater understanding of the importance structural factors than liberal feminism. However it fails to explain women's subordination in non-capitalist societies. Unpaid domestic labour may benefit capitalism, but it does not explain why it is women and not men who perform it. Place too much emphasis on they way in which men (including working class men) – and not just capitalism – oppress women and benefit from unpaid labour. It is not proven that unpaid domestic labour is in fact the cheapest way of reproducing labour power. E.g. It could be through state funded nurseries.

Radical They draw attention to issues within domestic labour, domestic violence etc. It assumes all women share common interests. It fails to recognise, as Marxist and difference feminists do, that other factors like social class and ethnicity are also important sources of inequality. Radical feminists offer no explanation for why female subordination takes different forms I different societies. Also it assumes that all women are in the same position e.g. A middle class women may have more in common than a working class woman. Patriarchy may already be in decline. Liberal feminists argue that women's positions have improved greatly in recent years as a result of social reforms and changing attitudes. Better education, better jobs, gender equality

Evaluation Difference Recognises that general ‘broad brush’ feminist theories don’t take into account this diversity in nature and experience of women’s subordination, it is necessary to explore the patriarchy and women’s subordination in society Liberal and radical feminists criticise difference feminists because by emphasising the differences between women, it deflects attention away from the problems shared by all women.

Apply What do we know about each type of feminism in relation to education? You are going to use this information including the evaluation to create a newspaper article on A3 paper – you must cover all types of feminism but your stories can relate to education. You can make things up e.g. Crosswords/interviews/stories as long as it has a feminist focus.

Feminism Assess the usefulness of feminist contribution to our understanding of society today (20 marks) What information would you use?