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Theory on gender inequality
Theory on gender inequality
Theory on gender inequality
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Women have never been equal to men. In the developing world, 200 million women have less Internet access than men. In the United States, men named John hold more CEO titles than all women combined. Women around the world spend more hours a day working without pay than men do. Women in the United States make just seventy-seven cents to the dollar of what men make. These are reasons why there is feminism. These are the reasons why we need feminism. Feminism is a collection of movements and beliefs that share a mutual goal. The goal which many women and men strive for is to define, establish, and achieve equal political, economic, cultural, personal, and social rights for women. This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women …show more content…
He explains that “the legal subordination of one sex to the other is wrong in itself, and one of the chief hindrances to human improvement,” and the systematic subordination of women by men “ought to be replaced by a principle of perfect equality, admitting no power or privilege on the one side, nor disability on the other” (Mill 819). Women today face inequalities and therefore, Mill’s role of women is invalid, in this sense. Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, declared women unequal to men and said that being a mother is a woman’s primary role in society. At an international meeting focused on justice and women, Erdogan said, “You cannot bring women and men into equal positions; that is against nature because their nature is different.” Erdogan and other members of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) have long been viewed with dismay by women’s rights activists in Turkey, who say the AKP politicians are enabling a climate in which laws are not equally applied to protect women. In 2013, Erdogan’s government lifted a head-scarf ban for women working in government offices. Turkey ranked 120 out of 136 on the World Economic Forum’s 2013 gender gap index, which includes economic, political and educational measures. Last November, Erdogan dismissed the idea of gender equality: “Equality is turning the victim into an oppressor by force or vice versa,” he said. “What women need …show more content…
Historically, feminism has evolved from the serious examination of inequality between the genders to a more distinct focus on the social constructions of genders. John Stuart Mill was one of the earliest feminist of his time, and has promoted gender equality through The Subjection of Women. Whether his ideas are valid, or not, Mill broke down the walls of his time by rebelling against tradition and enforcing change. This change allowed society to be enriched and be used to its full potential. Mill believed that the women of his time (and even today) should be liberated and conquer any stereotypes that they had or will
There has always been inequality in society. Whether it is between genders or races it has always been a major problem and played important roles in everyday lives. As time has gone on, groups have been created in hope of ending these inequalities and creating a more peaceful society. In some ways feminism has done amazing things in creating more equal rights for women. Though there are still major problems that need to be worked on and feminism seems to not be working as well anymore. Due to the extreme gender inequality that exists we must create a feminist mindset where in society ignores labels, embrace more than just the “essential feminist”, and relieves people of societal pressures.
Most men and women today believe that we do not need feminism, that the world is fine. Sorrowfully they are far from being accurate. We don’t need feminism because it is about genders, we need it because it is about our society’s humanity. Women all around the world are denied basic human rights simply by the fact they are women which is absurd. For instance,
“Feminism is both an intellectual commitment and a political movement that seeks justice for women and the end of sexism in all forms” (Baptiste). Just as in the past, feminism continues to act as a controversial issue among men and women. In the 1960’s, women finally addressed workplace inequity and created woman organizations to achieve equality. In the early 1960’s, the Equal Pay Act and the Civil Rights Act set a milestone for women’s progression towards work equality. Though women have made great leaps towards true equality, women still face many challenges and continue to be categorized as the subservient gender.
For thousands of years, women have struggled under the domination of men. In a great many societies around the world, men hold the power and women have to fight for their roles as equals in these patriarchal societies. Florence Nightingale wrote about such a society in her piece, Cassandra, and John Stuart Mill wrote further on the subject in his essay The Subjection of Women. These two pieces explore the same basic idea, but there are differences as well. While they both recognize its presence, Mill blames the subjection of women on custom, and Nightingale blames it on society. These appear to be different arguments, but they may be more similar than they seem.
The only arrangement that Mill uses between a man and a woman is marriage. Although marriage is popular and was popular so at this time, he regrets to include other scenarios advocating for women outside of marriage. In contemporary day, there are all sorts of lives that women lead, whether that is choosing to not get married, being a widow, a single mother, or even having a life partner. Mill does not address any of these other situations, that are equally likely, and by not doing so, doesn’t seem to really advocate for women’s own independence outside of marriage, nor fully pushes for women’s complete independence. This excludes women in these scenarios from what he is rallying for because Mill is trying to keep women from being seen as “slaves”
Focusing on gender as a construct that perpetuates inequality between men and women in society, the ideology of Feminism is based on the fundamental principles of Liberalism. While Feminism summarily promotes social, political, and economic equality between men and women, historically it’s fulcrum was and remains to a significant extent the fight for women’s rights and interests.
John Stuart Mill, in his essay The Subjection of Women, makes a daring exclamation about the position of women in society. He wrote this piece with the hope of opening other's eyes to the same conclusion he felt all of his life, in regards to equality.
Feminism is a perspective that views gender as one of the most important bases of the structure and organization of the social world. Feminists argue that in most known societies this structure has granted women lower status and value, more limited access to valuable resources, and less autonomy and opportunity to make choices over their lives than it has granted men. (Sapiro 441)
The only way Mill said that women living in the mid-nineteenth century in Europe could get their opinions known was through written works. The main argument women were trying to make was to be as educated and given the same opportunities that men received. Women wanted to obtain jobs in high positions; jobs that required men to listen to women and follow the orders that women gave to men. According to Mill, men wanted women to tend to their needs without forcing them. A wife who seemed to be forced to serve their husband was an undesirable one.
Feminism can simply be defined as a range of movements and ideologies in which share a common ground in terms of defining, establishing and achieving equal opportunities to that of males, in regards to economic, cultural and social rights. It is a critique of male supremacy with efforts in changing this to end the social oppression of women. (Hooks, 2000)
Throughout history, women have remained subordinate to men. Subjected to the patriarchal system that favored male perspectives, women struggled against having considerably less freedom, rights, and having the burdens society placed on them that had been so ingrained the culture. This is the standpoint the feminists took, and for almost 160 years they have been challenging the “unjust distribution of power in all human relations” starting with the struggle for equality between men and women, and linking that to “struggles for social, racial, political, environmental, and economic justice”(Besel 530 and 531). Feminism, as a complex movement with many different branches, has and will continue to be incredibly influential in changing lives.
The word feminism is sometimes misinterpreted and associated with female superiority and hatred of men, although most people probably agree that feminism can mean the desire for social and economic parity. There is so much baggage surrounding this term that clarification of what feminism is and is not, is essential. Indeed, the way feminism has developed has not been pretty. “Feminism over the years have [sic] evolved away from its noble purpose of creating awareness and defending women rights to creating new ridiculous ‘belief systems.’...feminism has become more like a medium for angry women to vent their hatred and frustration towards man”(“Feminism is Chauvinism”). This definition goes completely against the true meaning of what feminism entails. Feminism can be defined as a fundamental respect for others and the desire for equality between men and women.
Feminism is defined as the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. It began as an organized activity on behalf of women?s rights and interests. This concept was developed to help women earn a place in a predominantly male society. Unfortunately over the years, the intentions of feminism have become distorted, not only by anti-feminists, but also by the feminists themselves. The principle of equality for women and men has turned into a fight in which feminists wish to be better than men. Feminism has been twisted and misunderstood so much that it has become a harmful idea.
Why does our world need feminism? Most people aren’t even encountered with the topic; they are almost oblivion to it! There are so many things wrong with the world and getting a lower wage because you are a woman and not a man is one of them-do I need to mention that the work involves the same duties? There is a lack of notice that women find the wage gap as a problem. Gender inequalities are a huge factor in the workplace; we think that it is unfair. Feminism is needed to resolve this conflict because women have fallen behind compared to men, due to unequal pay. On top of the discussed information above, women are also being overworked. Not only do we get paid less than men, but we are also presents with an infinite amount of duties that our society doesn’t give us enough credit for nor do we get paid for it. Thanks to gender roles the child care and the house work falls in her hands. Has anyone ever though, “Hey! She must be tired”? A woman’s work falls from one end of the infinity
The role women play in today’s society is a drastic change from the previous role. Women used to be confined to the superiority of the man. Physically, mentally, and emotionally abused, belittled, embarrassed, and silenced. These are just a few examples of the emotion from the isolated treatment of the past. A woman’s role in today’s society is more valued than ever before.