Assessing The Feminist View That Conventional Malestream Theories Are Inadequate For An Understanding Of Women In Society
Feminism is divided into several different versions. However, they all
share several common assumptions. They view society as patriarchal,
that is, dominated by men. They see men as the most important source
of women's oppression in society. For example, feminists see men as
having the most power in the family. They have higher paid jobs and
they monopolize the media and politics.
The ultimate aim of all branches of feminism is to end male
domination. To awaken society to the oppression of women and to
eventually rid society of the exploitation of women.
Furthermore, feminists' agree that until the late 1970's sociology has
neglected to study women's issues and roles in society. Until recently
men dominated sociology. The studies were conducted on men by men. The
results were then generalised to the whole of society. Feminist felt
this generalisation was inadequate in the representation of women.
They called this male dominated sociology "malestream", a detrimental
term, as opposed to mainstream. Inadequate representations include the
role of gender in crime, inadequate research methods and a patriarchal
view that biology determines the division of labour. This essay will
focus on the analysis of these areas.
According to Durkheim (1938) and the functionalist perspective crime
is an inevitable by-product of a healthy society. He argued that crime
and punishment serves a function to society. Social change stems from
deviance therefore it is necessary for the advancement of society.
Albert Cohen (1966) and Rob...
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of labour is inadequate to explain the role of women in society.
Feminists have accused Murdock, Parson's and Bowlby of ignoring the
fact that culture and socialisation determines a women's position in
society. In Oakley's scathing attack on Parsons she accuses him of
basing his theory on the myth of male superiority therefore,
perpetuating the oppression of women.
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‘Women and men are different. Equal treatment of men and women does not result in equal outcomes.’ (Corsten Report, 16: 2007) According to Covington and Bloom (2003) numerous feminist writers have demonstrated and documented the patriarchal nature of our society and the variety of ways in which the patriarchal values serve masculine needs. ‘Despite claims to the contrary, masculinist epistemologies are built upon values that promote masculine needs and desires, making all others invisible’ (Kaschak, 11: 1992).
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As one looks through society, one starts to see many cracks and loopholes where one set of standards does not apply the same way for men as it does to women, and vice versa.
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The female gender role in society has created a torturous fate for those who have failed in their role as a woman, whether as a mother, a daughter, or a wife. The restrictive nature of the role that society imposes on women causes extreme repercussions for those women who cannot fulfill their purpose as designated by society. These repercussions can be as common as being reprimanded or as severe as being berated or beaten by a husband or father. The role that women were given by society entails being a submissive homemaker who dotes on her husband and many children. The wife keeps the home impeccably neat, tends to the children and ensures their education and well-being, and acts obsequiously to do everything possible to please her husband. She must be cheerful and sweet and pretty, like a dainty little doll. The perfect woman in the eyes of society is exactly like a doll: she always smiles, always looks her best and has no feelings or opinions that she can truly call her own. She responds only to the demands of her husband and does not act or speak out of turn. A woman who speaks her mind or challenges the word of any man, especially her husband, is undesirable because she is not the obedient little doll that men cherish. Women who do not conform to the rules that society has set for them are downgraded to the only feature that differentiates them from men; their sex. Society’s women do not speak or think of sex unless their husband requires it of them. But when a woman fails to be the doll that a man desires, she is worth nothing more than a cheap sex object and she is disposed of by society.
A great place to begin is by investigating when and where or even how did our society, the United States, become socialized to the point where roles and expectations are defined by gender. How have theorists or researchers expla...
Women – beautiful, strong matriarchal forces that drive and define a portion of the society in which we live – are poised and confident individuals who embody the essence of determination, ambition, beauty, and character. Incomprehensible and extraordinary, women are persons who possess an immense amount of depth, culture, and sophistication. Society’s incapability of understanding the frame of mind and diversity that exists within the female population has created a need to condemn the method in which women think and feel, therefore causing the rise of “male-over-female” domination – sexism. Sexism is society’s most common form of discrimination; the need to have gender based separation reveals our culture’s reluctance to embrace new ideas, people, and concepts. This is common in various aspects of human life – jobs, households, sports, and the most widespread – the media. In the media, sexism is revealed through the various submissive, sometimes foolish, and powerless roles played by female models; because of these roles women have become overlooked, ignored, disregarded – easy to look at, but so hard to see.
Human beings have been, and always will be, dichotomized into either male or female. When determining a person’s sex we often look for differences in facial features, body shape or mannerism’s, but another promising way to determine a persons sex and one that is most often used today, is through gender roles. Gender roles are behaviors that portray masculinity or femininity. The theory behind gender roles through multidisciplinary viewpoints is the focus of this paper. Throughout history and in every culture these roles have shifted and transformed into what society says is expectable. In this analysis, gender roles will be examined through a sociological, biological and evolutionary scope.
Minas, A. (2000). Gender basics: Feminist perspective on women and men.Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Thomson Learning.
Society has stamped an image into the minds of people of how the role of each gender should be played out. There are two recognized types of gender, a man and a woman, however there are many types of gender roles a man or a woman may assume or be placed into by society. The ideas of how one should act and behave are often times ascribed by their gender by society, but these ascribed statuses and roles are sometimes un-welcomed, and people will assume who they want to be as individuals by going against the stereotypes set forth by society. This paper will examine these roles in terms of how society sees men and women stereotypically, and how men and women view themselves and each other in terms of stereotypes that are typically ascribed, as well as their own opinions with a survey administered to ten individuals. What I hope to prove is that despite stereotypes playing a predominant role within our society, and thus influencing what people believe about each other in terms of their same and opposite genders, people within our society are able to go against these ascribed stereotypes and be who they want and it be okay. Through use of the survey and my own personal history dealing with gender stereotyping I think I can give a clear idea as to how stereotypes envelope our society, and how people and breaking free from those stereotypes to be more individualistic.
Outline and assess the view that patriarchy is the main cause of gender inequality (40 marks)