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Feminist Theory

           By:
  Melanie Lord, Anthony
Greiter & Zuflo Tursunovic
Feminism

• Belief in the social, political,
  and economic equality of the
  sexes.
• The movement organized
  around this belief.
Feminism

• Feminist Theory is an outgrowth
  of the general movement to
  empower women worldwide.
• Feminism can be defined as a
  recognition and critique of male
  supremacy combined with
  efforts to change it.
Feminism

• The goals of feminism are:
  • To demonstrate the importance of
    women
  • To reveal that historically women
    have been subordinate to men
  • To bring about gender equity.
Feminism

• Simply put:
Feminists fight for the equality of
  women and argue that women
  should share equally in
  society’s opportunities and
  scare resources.
History

• You tube video

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?
  v=Pq_9wu-KjTk&feature=related
History

• The origins of the feminist
  movement are found in the
  abolitionist movement of the
  1830’s.
• Seneca Falls, New York is said
  to be the birthplace of American
  feminism.
History

• Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia
  Mott spearheaded the first Women’s
  Rights Convention in Seneca Falls,
  NY in 1848.
• The convention brought in more than
  300 people.
• The discussion was focused on the
  social, civil, and religious condition
  of women.
History

• The convention lead to the
  Declaration of Sentiments.
  • Modeled after the Declaration of
    Independence.
  • All men and women created equal.
  • Spoke of the supremacy of man in
    regards to divorce and education
History

• The convention marked a 22
  year battle to gain women the
  right to vote in the United
  States.
• In 1920 women won the right to
  vote.
History

• In Germany the feminists were
  fighting for the right of women
  to engage in sexual relations
  regardless of marital and legal
  consideration.
• Marianne Weber (the wife of
  Max Weber) was a feminist
History

• Weber thought that women
  should be treated equally in the
  social institution of marriage,
  along with all the other social
  institutions.
• She made it clear that marriage
  was between a man and a
  woman
History
• The contemporary feminism
  movement began in the 1960’s.
  • Free love helped escape the sexual
    double standard.
  • Divorce became commonplace
  • Women were “happy housewives” no
    more
  • Higher level employment and fulfillment
    outside the home were becoming the
    norm
Liberal Feminism

• All people are created equal and
  should not be denied equality of
  opportunity because of gender
• Liberal Feminists focus their
  efforts on social change through
  the construction of legislation
  and regulation of employment
  practices
Liberal Feminism

• Inequality stems from the denial
  of equal rights.
• The primary obstacle to equality
  is sexism.
Marxist Feminism

• Division of labor is related to
  gender role expectations.
• Females give birth. Males left to
  support family
• Bourgeoisie=Men
• Proletariat=Women
Radical Feminism

• Male power and privilege is the
  basis of social relations
• Sexism is the ultimate tool used
  by men to keep women
  oppressed
Radical Feminism

• Women are the first oppressed
  group
• Women's oppression is the most
  widespread
• Women’s oppression is the
  deepest
Radical Feminism

• Women’s oppression causes the
  most suffering
• Women’s oppression provides a
  conceptual model for
  understanding all other forms of
  oppression
Radical Feminism

• Men control the norms of
  acceptable sexual behavior
• Refusing to reproduce is the
  most effective way to escape
  the snares
• Speak out against all social
  structures because they are
  created by men
Socialist Feminism

• Views women’s oppression as
  stemming from their work in the
  family and the economy
• Women’s inferior position is the
  result of class-based capitalism
• Socialist believe that history can be
  made in the private sphere (home)
  not just the public sphere (work)
Socialist Feminism

• Arguments:
 • An increased emphasis on the
   private sphere and the role of
   women in the household
 • Equal opportunities for women in
   the public sphere
Postmodern Feminism

• Attempts to criticize the
  dominant order.
• All theory is socially
  constructed.
• Rejects claim that only rational,
  abstract thought and scientific
  methodology can lead to valid
  knowledge.
Postmodern Feminism

• The basic idea is that looking to
  the past is no longer the way to
  go. We are a global economic
  world highlighted by
  technology. Looking to the past
  no longer applies.
Dorothy E. Smith
Dorothy E. Smith
                 (1926- )

• Earned BA from London School of
  Economics
• Earned PhD in sociology from University of
  California at Berkeley
• Husband left her with two children
• Worked at Berkeley (where most
  professors were male) and in England as a
  lecturer
Dorothy E. Smith
                  Methods

• Concept of bifurcation
  • “conceptual distinction between the world as we
    experience it and the world as we know it
    through he conceptual frameworks that science
    invents”
• Believes mainstream sociology has not
  touched on women’s experiences
Dorothy E. Smith
                   Methods

• Suggested a reorganization that is a
  sociology for, rather than about, women
  • Leads to a bifurcated consciousness or an
    actual representation
• States that a subjective reality is the only
  way to know human behavior
  • Interviewing, recollection of work experience,
    use of archives, observation, etc.
Dorothy E. Smith
                   Family

• North American family – legally married
  couple sharing a household
• Male earns the primary income and female
  cares for family and household
  • Ideals reinforced by Martha Stewart, Home and
    Gardens, etc.
• Today’s family presents many variations
• Found that many women get caught up in
  the role that society expects of them
Dorothy E. Smith
                Schooling

• Found a lack of interest in issues
  concerning girls and women in schooling
• Universities and colleges have
  incorporated successful programs, but
  public schools have not
• Would like to see a change to allow girls a
  larger say in school dynamics
Sandra Harding
Sandra Harding
                 (1935- )

• Professor of women’s studies at UCLA
• Directs Center for the Study of Women
• Author or editor of ten books
• Given over 200 lectures at universities and
  conferences
• Written in such areas as feminist theory,
  sociology of knowledge, and
  methodological issues related to
  objectivity and neutrality
Sandra Harding
            Feminist Theory

• Criticizes all sociological theories claiming
  they are all gender-biased
• Criticizes feminist theory as well
  • Western, bourgeois, heterosexual, white women
• Does not believe in a universal theory
• Theory is possible so long as “normal”
  science is not used
  • Promotes “good science” instead of that
    produced by a masculine bias – “science as
    usual”
Sandra Harding
            Feminist Theory

• Ignores empirical data
• Believes all males and whites benefit from
  ascribed status
  • Invisible knapsack
• No man can renounce gender privilege as
  no white can renounce racist privilege
• Social theory must be created by
  women and include issues central to
  women
Sandra Harding
      Sociology of Knowledge

• Knowledge was created from a male’s
  standpoint and is biased
• Sexist distortions must be rooted out if an
  accurate sociology of knowledge is to
  exist
• History should be herstory to reflect
  ignored and trivialized women’s
  contributions to science
• Lack of women in academia does not exist
  today – sign of growing power
Sandra Harding
     Neutrality and Objectivity

• Sciences confronted with demise of
  objectivism and threat of relativism
• Objectivist methods encouraged to
  eliminate social and political values
  • Academia is affected by subjectivity interfering
    with “good science”
• Encourages women to stop disagreeing
  among themselves and enter science
Patricia Hill Collins
Patricia Hill Collins
                  (1948- )

• BA from Brandeis, MA from Harvard, and
  PhD from Brandeis
• Associate professor of sociology and
  African American studies at University of
  Cincinnati
• Outsider within – one is part of a group but
  feels distant from that group
Patricia Hill Collins
Feminist Theory and Methodology

• Focus of sociological theory should be the
  “outsider” groups
  • Especially those that lack a “voice”
• Promotes using subjective analysis of the
  concrete experiences
• Agrees with Harding on white/male interest
• Believes emotional concepts are important
• Individuals have their own reality
  constructs that are linked to the groups to
  which they belong
Patricia Hill Collins
             Black Feminism

• Outside within status of black slaves
• Black feminist though consists of ideas
  produced by black women clarifying
  standpoint for and of black women
• Three key themes in black feminism:
  • The Meaning of Self-Definition and Self-Valuation
  • The Interlocking Nature of Oppression
  • The Importance of African-American Women’s
    Culture
Patricia Hill Collins
             Black Feminism

• The Meaning of Self-Definition and Self-
  Valuation
  • Self-Definition – Challenging the political
    knowledge validation process bringing
    stereotypical images of Afro-American
    womanhood
  • Self-Valuation – stresses the content of Black
    women’s self-definitions
Patricia Hill Collins
             Black Feminism

• The Interlocking Nature of Oppression
  • Gender, race, and class are interconnected
  • Society has attempted to teach black women
    that racism, sexism, and poverty are inevitable
     • Keep black women oppressed
  • Awareness will help black women unite their
    fight against oppression and discrimination
Patricia Hill Collins
             Black Feminism

• The Importance of African-American
  Women’s Culture
  • Efforts to redefine and explain importance of
    Black women’s culture
     • Uncovered new Black female experience
     • Identified social relations where Afro-American
       women pass on essentials to coping with
       oppression
Patricia Hill Collins
            Black Feminism

• Sociological significance in two areas:
  • Content of ideas has been influenced by on-going
    dialogue in many sociological societies
  • Process by which these ideas were produced
• Women are gaining more of a “voice”
  • Black women are still more accepted as authors
    in the classroom, than as teachers
Carol Gilligan
Carol Gilligan
                 (1936- )

• Psychologist and feminist thinker
• Influenced by Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget,
  and Lawrence Kohlberg
• AB in English Lit from Swarthmore College
• AM in Clinical Psych from Radcliffe College
• PhD from Harvard University
• Taught at University of Chicago, and
  Harvard University
Carol Gilligan
        Developmental Theory

• Masculine bias is prevalent
• Human moral development comes in
  stages directly influenced by Piaget:
  • Sensorimotor Stage (birth to 2yrs) – physical
    contact, out of sight, out of mind
  • Preoperational Stage (2 to 7) – object
    permanence, egocentrism
  • Concrete Operational Stage (7-12) – intellectual
    development, lacks skills of abstractness
  • Formal Operation Stage (12+) – think abstractly
    and perceive analogies, uses complex language
Carol Gilligan
        Developmental Theory

• Work with Kohlberg
  • Noticed males were reluctant to discuss feelings
     • Assessed as morally undeveloped
• Men and women do have differences in
  moral reasoning
• Justice v. Care orientation
  • Justice – attention to problems of inequality and
    holds equal respect
  • Care – attention to problems of detachment and
    holds response to need
  • Moral injustices – do not treat others unfairly or
    turn on those in need
Carol Gilligan
Stages of Moral Development for
            Women
• Orientation to Individual Survival
  (Preconventional Morality)
  • Individual survival – no feeling of should
• Goodness as Self-Sacrifice (Conventional
  Morality)
  • Defined by ability to care for others
• Responsibility for Consequences of Choice
  (Postconventional Morality)
  • Choice and willingness to take responsibility for
    that choice = moral decision
Carol Gilligan
       Giving Voice to Women

• Freud and Piaget’s theories treat women
  like men
  • Different voice needs to be heard
• Adolescent girls’ voices
  • When quiet in relationships, depression and
    eating disorders enter
  • When outspoken in relationships, others find it
    difficult to remain in the relationship
Joan Jacobs Brumberg
Joan Jacob Brumberg

• Brumberg was born and raised
  in Ithaca, New York, where she
  continued to live and work as a
  professor at Cornell University.
• Brumberg teaches in the areas
  of history, human development,
  and women’s studies.
Joan Jacob Brumberg
• One of the major influences on
  Brumbergs life is Margaret Mead’s
  research in Somoa.
• Brumberg decided to trace female
  plight of self consciousness in
  American and European societies,
  where women have experienced a
  great deal of concern about their
  body image and physical changes
  that occur during the natural
  development
Females Bodies and
       Self-image
• In contemporary Western society there is
  an obsession with female body.
• The mass media, as an agent of culture,
  has reinforced an ideal image that girls are
  to strive for and attain; therefore placing
  more emphasis on good looks than on good
  works.
• Women today enjoy greater freedom and
  more opportunities than their counterparts
  of the past, they are under more cultural
  pressure to look good.
Gender Differences
• Girls begin to suffer bouts of clinical
  depression form the frustration they
  experience when their bodies changes.
  Beyond depression and thoughts of
  suicide, girls are more vulnerable to eating
  disorders, substance abuse, and dropping
  out of school.
• Body is at heart of the crisis of confidence
  for adolescent girls.
• By the age thirteen, 53 percent of
  American girls are unhappy with their
  bodies; by the age of seventeen, 78
  percent are dissatisfied.
Society’s Influence

• Women found in their body image a
  sense of self definition and a way to
  announce who they are to the world.
• Today many young girls worry about
  the contours of the bodies especially
  shape, size, and muscle tone
  because they believe that the body
  is the ultimate expression of the
  self.
Society’s Influence

• Fashion and the film industry
  are two huge influences on
  societal expectations that
  women display their bodies
  sexually.
• The sexual revolution liberated
  women from the Victorian of
  modesty but also demanded a
  commitment to diet and beauty.
Barbara Risman
Barbara Risman

• Risman was born in 1956 in Lynn,
  Massachusetts. She was raised in an
  extended family.
• Risman attended college at
  Northwestern University during the
  height of the feminist movement.
• She earned her B.A. in sociology in
  1976 and her Ph.D. in 1986 from the
  University of Washington.
Barbara Risman
• Risman eventually became a professor of
  sociology at North Carolina State
  University and currently holds the
  administrative position of Director of
  Graduate Studies at NCSU.
• She has conducted a great deal of her own
  research in the area of single parenthood.
• She believes that men are capable of being
  single parents and that parent-child
  attachment, households organization, and
  child development can all occur
  successfully in both single-mother and
  single-father homes.
Doing Gender

• Many feminist theorists believe
  that an individual is labeled at
  birth as a member of a sex
  category, either male of female,
  and from that point on, is held
  to acting accordingly.
• Gender is not something that
  one has or something that one
  is; rather, it is something that
  one does.
Gender as Social
        Structure
• Risman does not accept the
  criteria of nature as a way to
  distinguish behavior
  expectations.
• She is especially upset by the
  field of sociobiology.
Gender as Social
         Structure
• By assigning people to one or two
  categories- male or female- society
  has created difference between
  them.
• Risman feels that genders strongest
  influence is found at the
  interactional level, and therein lies
  the deepest liability for the
  continuation of inequality in
  American family life
Gender Vertigo

• Gender vertigo is a term coined by
  Robert Connell.
• Risman asked, and was granted
  permission, by Connell to use the
  term for the title of her book.
• Risman chose the term gender
  vertigo because It is indicative of
  the profound effect the elimination
  of gender would have on every
  persons psyche.
Gender Vertigo

• Doing gender determines how one
  walks, talks, dresses, eats, and
  socializes and nearly all other
  aspects of everyday life.
• Gender often plays a significant role
  in the definition of the self.
• Risman concluded that in order to
  move fully toward justice for women
  and men, we must dare a moment of
  gender vertigo.
Feminist Theory
                  Philosophy

• Realism v. Idealism – Idealism – not one
  reality, but possibly multiples to be discovered


• Realism v. Nominalism – Realist – feminist
  movements and actions to reform are real in their
  consequences of change


• Idealism v. Materialism – Idealism –
  gaining power and voice through movements
Relevancy

• Feminism can be defined as a social
  movement and an ideology in
  support of the idea that a larger
  share of scarce resources should be
  allocated to women.
• Feminist believe that women should
  enjoy the same rights in society as
  men and that should share equity in
  society’s opportunities.
Relevancy
• Feminist sociological theory
  represents an attempt to give a
  voice to women and female
  perspective.
• Feminist sociological theory is
  generally critical of the traditional
  scientific sociological approach that
  stresses a commitment to neutrality,
  objectivity, and empirical research.
• There are many criticisms of
  feminists.
Relevancy
• One is that they leave themselves
  wide open to attack because they
  themselves are very biased in their
  approach.
• Second, although a commitment to
  empirical research is not a must in
  designs of social theory; relying on
  such techniques as oral testimony
  and the analysis of such content a
  diaries risk a lack of objectivity and
  bias. When an individual is asked for
  his or her story, it is always biased
  from his or her perspective.
Relevancy

• Third, most feminists claim that
  all sociological theories are
  gender-biased but fail to provide
  any proof of this claim.
• Fourth, gender is just one
  variable in human interaction.
  Many feminist believe that
  interactions are based solely on
  gender distinction.
Relevancy

• Fifth criticism of the feminism
  comes from within feminist
  sociological theory itself. The
  fact that there is such a great
  variety of sociological feminist
  theories represents a clear lack
  of consensus among feminists
  as to the best means to go
  about fighting sexism,
  discrimination, and oppression.
Relevancy
• Sexism and discrimination exists in
  nearly all social institutions.
• Religion is a long time perpetuator of
  gender inequality- like Catholic
  Church forbids females from being
  priests.
• Giving a voice to women remains
  feminist sociological theory’s
  greatest contribution to the field of
  sociology specifically and society in
  general.

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Feminist

  • 1. Feminist Theory By: Melanie Lord, Anthony Greiter & Zuflo Tursunovic
  • 2. Feminism • Belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes. • The movement organized around this belief.
  • 3. Feminism • Feminist Theory is an outgrowth of the general movement to empower women worldwide. • Feminism can be defined as a recognition and critique of male supremacy combined with efforts to change it.
  • 4. Feminism • The goals of feminism are: • To demonstrate the importance of women • To reveal that historically women have been subordinate to men • To bring about gender equity.
  • 5. Feminism • Simply put: Feminists fight for the equality of women and argue that women should share equally in society’s opportunities and scare resources.
  • 6. History • You tube video • http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=Pq_9wu-KjTk&feature=related
  • 7. History • The origins of the feminist movement are found in the abolitionist movement of the 1830’s. • Seneca Falls, New York is said to be the birthplace of American feminism.
  • 8. History • Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott spearheaded the first Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, NY in 1848. • The convention brought in more than 300 people. • The discussion was focused on the social, civil, and religious condition of women.
  • 9. History • The convention lead to the Declaration of Sentiments. • Modeled after the Declaration of Independence. • All men and women created equal. • Spoke of the supremacy of man in regards to divorce and education
  • 10. History • The convention marked a 22 year battle to gain women the right to vote in the United States. • In 1920 women won the right to vote.
  • 11. History • In Germany the feminists were fighting for the right of women to engage in sexual relations regardless of marital and legal consideration. • Marianne Weber (the wife of Max Weber) was a feminist
  • 12. History • Weber thought that women should be treated equally in the social institution of marriage, along with all the other social institutions. • She made it clear that marriage was between a man and a woman
  • 13. History • The contemporary feminism movement began in the 1960’s. • Free love helped escape the sexual double standard. • Divorce became commonplace • Women were “happy housewives” no more • Higher level employment and fulfillment outside the home were becoming the norm
  • 14. Liberal Feminism • All people are created equal and should not be denied equality of opportunity because of gender • Liberal Feminists focus their efforts on social change through the construction of legislation and regulation of employment practices
  • 15. Liberal Feminism • Inequality stems from the denial of equal rights. • The primary obstacle to equality is sexism.
  • 16. Marxist Feminism • Division of labor is related to gender role expectations. • Females give birth. Males left to support family • Bourgeoisie=Men • Proletariat=Women
  • 17. Radical Feminism • Male power and privilege is the basis of social relations • Sexism is the ultimate tool used by men to keep women oppressed
  • 18. Radical Feminism • Women are the first oppressed group • Women's oppression is the most widespread • Women’s oppression is the deepest
  • 19. Radical Feminism • Women’s oppression causes the most suffering • Women’s oppression provides a conceptual model for understanding all other forms of oppression
  • 20. Radical Feminism • Men control the norms of acceptable sexual behavior • Refusing to reproduce is the most effective way to escape the snares • Speak out against all social structures because they are created by men
  • 21. Socialist Feminism • Views women’s oppression as stemming from their work in the family and the economy • Women’s inferior position is the result of class-based capitalism • Socialist believe that history can be made in the private sphere (home) not just the public sphere (work)
  • 22. Socialist Feminism • Arguments: • An increased emphasis on the private sphere and the role of women in the household • Equal opportunities for women in the public sphere
  • 23. Postmodern Feminism • Attempts to criticize the dominant order. • All theory is socially constructed. • Rejects claim that only rational, abstract thought and scientific methodology can lead to valid knowledge.
  • 24. Postmodern Feminism • The basic idea is that looking to the past is no longer the way to go. We are a global economic world highlighted by technology. Looking to the past no longer applies.
  • 26. Dorothy E. Smith (1926- ) • Earned BA from London School of Economics • Earned PhD in sociology from University of California at Berkeley • Husband left her with two children • Worked at Berkeley (where most professors were male) and in England as a lecturer
  • 27. Dorothy E. Smith Methods • Concept of bifurcation • “conceptual distinction between the world as we experience it and the world as we know it through he conceptual frameworks that science invents” • Believes mainstream sociology has not touched on women’s experiences
  • 28. Dorothy E. Smith Methods • Suggested a reorganization that is a sociology for, rather than about, women • Leads to a bifurcated consciousness or an actual representation • States that a subjective reality is the only way to know human behavior • Interviewing, recollection of work experience, use of archives, observation, etc.
  • 29. Dorothy E. Smith Family • North American family – legally married couple sharing a household • Male earns the primary income and female cares for family and household • Ideals reinforced by Martha Stewart, Home and Gardens, etc. • Today’s family presents many variations • Found that many women get caught up in the role that society expects of them
  • 30. Dorothy E. Smith Schooling • Found a lack of interest in issues concerning girls and women in schooling • Universities and colleges have incorporated successful programs, but public schools have not • Would like to see a change to allow girls a larger say in school dynamics
  • 32. Sandra Harding (1935- ) • Professor of women’s studies at UCLA • Directs Center for the Study of Women • Author or editor of ten books • Given over 200 lectures at universities and conferences • Written in such areas as feminist theory, sociology of knowledge, and methodological issues related to objectivity and neutrality
  • 33. Sandra Harding Feminist Theory • Criticizes all sociological theories claiming they are all gender-biased • Criticizes feminist theory as well • Western, bourgeois, heterosexual, white women • Does not believe in a universal theory • Theory is possible so long as “normal” science is not used • Promotes “good science” instead of that produced by a masculine bias – “science as usual”
  • 34. Sandra Harding Feminist Theory • Ignores empirical data • Believes all males and whites benefit from ascribed status • Invisible knapsack • No man can renounce gender privilege as no white can renounce racist privilege • Social theory must be created by women and include issues central to women
  • 35. Sandra Harding Sociology of Knowledge • Knowledge was created from a male’s standpoint and is biased • Sexist distortions must be rooted out if an accurate sociology of knowledge is to exist • History should be herstory to reflect ignored and trivialized women’s contributions to science • Lack of women in academia does not exist today – sign of growing power
  • 36. Sandra Harding Neutrality and Objectivity • Sciences confronted with demise of objectivism and threat of relativism • Objectivist methods encouraged to eliminate social and political values • Academia is affected by subjectivity interfering with “good science” • Encourages women to stop disagreeing among themselves and enter science
  • 38. Patricia Hill Collins (1948- ) • BA from Brandeis, MA from Harvard, and PhD from Brandeis • Associate professor of sociology and African American studies at University of Cincinnati • Outsider within – one is part of a group but feels distant from that group
  • 39. Patricia Hill Collins Feminist Theory and Methodology • Focus of sociological theory should be the “outsider” groups • Especially those that lack a “voice” • Promotes using subjective analysis of the concrete experiences • Agrees with Harding on white/male interest • Believes emotional concepts are important • Individuals have their own reality constructs that are linked to the groups to which they belong
  • 40. Patricia Hill Collins Black Feminism • Outside within status of black slaves • Black feminist though consists of ideas produced by black women clarifying standpoint for and of black women • Three key themes in black feminism: • The Meaning of Self-Definition and Self-Valuation • The Interlocking Nature of Oppression • The Importance of African-American Women’s Culture
  • 41. Patricia Hill Collins Black Feminism • The Meaning of Self-Definition and Self- Valuation • Self-Definition – Challenging the political knowledge validation process bringing stereotypical images of Afro-American womanhood • Self-Valuation – stresses the content of Black women’s self-definitions
  • 42. Patricia Hill Collins Black Feminism • The Interlocking Nature of Oppression • Gender, race, and class are interconnected • Society has attempted to teach black women that racism, sexism, and poverty are inevitable • Keep black women oppressed • Awareness will help black women unite their fight against oppression and discrimination
  • 43. Patricia Hill Collins Black Feminism • The Importance of African-American Women’s Culture • Efforts to redefine and explain importance of Black women’s culture • Uncovered new Black female experience • Identified social relations where Afro-American women pass on essentials to coping with oppression
  • 44. Patricia Hill Collins Black Feminism • Sociological significance in two areas: • Content of ideas has been influenced by on-going dialogue in many sociological societies • Process by which these ideas were produced • Women are gaining more of a “voice” • Black women are still more accepted as authors in the classroom, than as teachers
  • 46. Carol Gilligan (1936- ) • Psychologist and feminist thinker • Influenced by Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget, and Lawrence Kohlberg • AB in English Lit from Swarthmore College • AM in Clinical Psych from Radcliffe College • PhD from Harvard University • Taught at University of Chicago, and Harvard University
  • 47. Carol Gilligan Developmental Theory • Masculine bias is prevalent • Human moral development comes in stages directly influenced by Piaget: • Sensorimotor Stage (birth to 2yrs) – physical contact, out of sight, out of mind • Preoperational Stage (2 to 7) – object permanence, egocentrism • Concrete Operational Stage (7-12) – intellectual development, lacks skills of abstractness • Formal Operation Stage (12+) – think abstractly and perceive analogies, uses complex language
  • 48. Carol Gilligan Developmental Theory • Work with Kohlberg • Noticed males were reluctant to discuss feelings • Assessed as morally undeveloped • Men and women do have differences in moral reasoning • Justice v. Care orientation • Justice – attention to problems of inequality and holds equal respect • Care – attention to problems of detachment and holds response to need • Moral injustices – do not treat others unfairly or turn on those in need
  • 49. Carol Gilligan Stages of Moral Development for Women • Orientation to Individual Survival (Preconventional Morality) • Individual survival – no feeling of should • Goodness as Self-Sacrifice (Conventional Morality) • Defined by ability to care for others • Responsibility for Consequences of Choice (Postconventional Morality) • Choice and willingness to take responsibility for that choice = moral decision
  • 50. Carol Gilligan Giving Voice to Women • Freud and Piaget’s theories treat women like men • Different voice needs to be heard • Adolescent girls’ voices • When quiet in relationships, depression and eating disorders enter • When outspoken in relationships, others find it difficult to remain in the relationship
  • 52. Joan Jacob Brumberg • Brumberg was born and raised in Ithaca, New York, where she continued to live and work as a professor at Cornell University. • Brumberg teaches in the areas of history, human development, and women’s studies.
  • 53. Joan Jacob Brumberg • One of the major influences on Brumbergs life is Margaret Mead’s research in Somoa. • Brumberg decided to trace female plight of self consciousness in American and European societies, where women have experienced a great deal of concern about their body image and physical changes that occur during the natural development
  • 54. Females Bodies and Self-image • In contemporary Western society there is an obsession with female body. • The mass media, as an agent of culture, has reinforced an ideal image that girls are to strive for and attain; therefore placing more emphasis on good looks than on good works. • Women today enjoy greater freedom and more opportunities than their counterparts of the past, they are under more cultural pressure to look good.
  • 55. Gender Differences • Girls begin to suffer bouts of clinical depression form the frustration they experience when their bodies changes. Beyond depression and thoughts of suicide, girls are more vulnerable to eating disorders, substance abuse, and dropping out of school. • Body is at heart of the crisis of confidence for adolescent girls. • By the age thirteen, 53 percent of American girls are unhappy with their bodies; by the age of seventeen, 78 percent are dissatisfied.
  • 56. Society’s Influence • Women found in their body image a sense of self definition and a way to announce who they are to the world. • Today many young girls worry about the contours of the bodies especially shape, size, and muscle tone because they believe that the body is the ultimate expression of the self.
  • 57. Society’s Influence • Fashion and the film industry are two huge influences on societal expectations that women display their bodies sexually. • The sexual revolution liberated women from the Victorian of modesty but also demanded a commitment to diet and beauty.
  • 59. Barbara Risman • Risman was born in 1956 in Lynn, Massachusetts. She was raised in an extended family. • Risman attended college at Northwestern University during the height of the feminist movement. • She earned her B.A. in sociology in 1976 and her Ph.D. in 1986 from the University of Washington.
  • 60. Barbara Risman • Risman eventually became a professor of sociology at North Carolina State University and currently holds the administrative position of Director of Graduate Studies at NCSU. • She has conducted a great deal of her own research in the area of single parenthood. • She believes that men are capable of being single parents and that parent-child attachment, households organization, and child development can all occur successfully in both single-mother and single-father homes.
  • 61. Doing Gender • Many feminist theorists believe that an individual is labeled at birth as a member of a sex category, either male of female, and from that point on, is held to acting accordingly. • Gender is not something that one has or something that one is; rather, it is something that one does.
  • 62. Gender as Social Structure • Risman does not accept the criteria of nature as a way to distinguish behavior expectations. • She is especially upset by the field of sociobiology.
  • 63. Gender as Social Structure • By assigning people to one or two categories- male or female- society has created difference between them. • Risman feels that genders strongest influence is found at the interactional level, and therein lies the deepest liability for the continuation of inequality in American family life
  • 64. Gender Vertigo • Gender vertigo is a term coined by Robert Connell. • Risman asked, and was granted permission, by Connell to use the term for the title of her book. • Risman chose the term gender vertigo because It is indicative of the profound effect the elimination of gender would have on every persons psyche.
  • 65. Gender Vertigo • Doing gender determines how one walks, talks, dresses, eats, and socializes and nearly all other aspects of everyday life. • Gender often plays a significant role in the definition of the self. • Risman concluded that in order to move fully toward justice for women and men, we must dare a moment of gender vertigo.
  • 66. Feminist Theory Philosophy • Realism v. Idealism – Idealism – not one reality, but possibly multiples to be discovered • Realism v. Nominalism – Realist – feminist movements and actions to reform are real in their consequences of change • Idealism v. Materialism – Idealism – gaining power and voice through movements
  • 67. Relevancy • Feminism can be defined as a social movement and an ideology in support of the idea that a larger share of scarce resources should be allocated to women. • Feminist believe that women should enjoy the same rights in society as men and that should share equity in society’s opportunities.
  • 68. Relevancy • Feminist sociological theory represents an attempt to give a voice to women and female perspective. • Feminist sociological theory is generally critical of the traditional scientific sociological approach that stresses a commitment to neutrality, objectivity, and empirical research. • There are many criticisms of feminists.
  • 69. Relevancy • One is that they leave themselves wide open to attack because they themselves are very biased in their approach. • Second, although a commitment to empirical research is not a must in designs of social theory; relying on such techniques as oral testimony and the analysis of such content a diaries risk a lack of objectivity and bias. When an individual is asked for his or her story, it is always biased from his or her perspective.
  • 70. Relevancy • Third, most feminists claim that all sociological theories are gender-biased but fail to provide any proof of this claim. • Fourth, gender is just one variable in human interaction. Many feminist believe that interactions are based solely on gender distinction.
  • 71. Relevancy • Fifth criticism of the feminism comes from within feminist sociological theory itself. The fact that there is such a great variety of sociological feminist theories represents a clear lack of consensus among feminists as to the best means to go about fighting sexism, discrimination, and oppression.
  • 72. Relevancy • Sexism and discrimination exists in nearly all social institutions. • Religion is a long time perpetuator of gender inequality- like Catholic Church forbids females from being priests. • Giving a voice to women remains feminist sociological theory’s greatest contribution to the field of sociology specifically and society in general.