Feminism Case Study

1821 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Compare the liberal and radical theories of feminism

What does feminism reveal about women’s representation on company boards? What are the strengths and limitations of this theory in understanding the issue?

Feminism is a complex theory that has transformed over many centuries, and due to its complexity, it has a variety of sub-categories which further explain its workings. However, for the purpose of this essay, the two opposing categories of liberal and radical feminism will be analysed. In order to assess the strengths and limitations of the the overarching theory, liberal and radical feminism will be applied to the case study of women’s representation on boards. Liberal feminism will be used to explain how identity politics needs be lessened in order for the segregation between men and …show more content…

The reason it has become such an accepted ideal is due to its realistic goals for reform (Epure 2014). Epure (2014) highlights the advantages of liberal feminism, and states “the quantifiable improvements to women’s lives brought about by liberal feminism indicates that it is the most likely to prevail in the long run due to its capacity to be realistic and practical in its goals,”. The reason this theory is considered to be realistic and practical is due to its method of solving issues, which involves firstly identifying a problem, such as a lack of women on company boards, and then proposing ways to solve these problems without having to disassemble society and instead making small adjustments to eventually better the community as a whole (Samkange 2015). Through gradual reforms, such as educating the public on the rights of women, liberal feminist values have made a change to aspects of society, one of which being the enhancement of women on company boards. Evidence of this change can be seen in the Australian Institute of Company Directors gender diversity report, which states “how women have made up 43% of new board appointments this year, up from just 5% in 2009.” (SMH 2016). While it is apparent there is still an extensive improvement needed for the introduction of women into mining and engineering based companies (SMH 2009), as a whole it can therefore be suggested …show more content…

However, when it is broken down further, it appears that the radical aspect of feminism holds more weaknesses than the liberal side (Ben-Ner 2009). The way liberal feminism promotes the collapse of identity politics in order for men and women to be equal is a realistic goal, and this breakdown process can be seen occurring within society, as is evident by the gradual increase of women within the workforce and the acknowledgement that more women need to be present on specific company boards (Epure 2014). Radical feminism, however, states that social politics promotes the observation of how women are vastly underrepresented within society, and in order to fix this dilemma the social basis needs to be completely readjusted to allow women greater power over men (Thompson 2001). It is evident that this goal is not desired by the majority of the population, due to company boards aiming to employ the same amount of women as men, rather than focusing on entitling women over men (WGEA 2016). Overall, it can therefore be stated that radical feminism is the downfall of the overarching feminist theory, and that liberal feminism provides the most accurate analysis of women’s representation on company

Show More
Related

  • An Analysis Of Bell Hooks 'Dig Deeper: Beyond Lean In'

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hook argues that Sandberg neglects to acknowledge the influence women have on society, but rather works to change it: “The vast majority of men in our society, irrespective of a race, embrace patriarchal values; they do not embrace a vision or practice of gender equality either at work or in the domestic household” (668). In short, we are not equal if one gender controls the other. Sandberg illustrates and describes her trickle-down theory showing women being at the top of corporate ladders would make a positive impact in the workforce. She backs up her theory by claiming that “imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchal corporate worlds Sandberg want women to lean into encourages competition over corporation”

    Read More

  • The Challenges Of Feminism In The 1960's

    1606 Words  | 4 Pages

    Feminists must approach the subject with great care in order to prove to others that the feminist movement is not a matriarchy movement, but rather an equality movement, meaning that there must be an agenda for feminists in business. At the National Women’s Conference in 1977, feminists gathered in order to create a plan of action to eliminate workplace discrimination. According to the conference, women believed that they should focus on equality, economic justice, affirmative action, employee benefits, work environment, and corporate responsibility. In the subsection of corporate responsibility a point is noted to “ Adopt a comprehensive policy for the positive portrayal of women in diverse roles in corporate sponsored media, advertising, and communications” (Feminist Agenda for Women in Business). This comes to emphasize the misrepresentation of women and the negative connotation that many associate with feminism, a point made by Michelle Smith in her article “I’m not a feminist, but…”: Feminism and Identity in Australia. According to the Feminist Majority Foundation, it is necessary for women to have a plan in order to effectively establish feminism in a

    Read More

  • Traditional Gender Roles in the United States

    1491 Words  | 3 Pages

    Although many women have achieved a college education, many will nit be able to share the same values as there male peers. Many women will have certain messages conveyed about them which will be used to profile them in their selective fields. These factors will contribute to the controversial issues facing women today in the workplace. The gender roles that have challenge women today will not allow the equal status of women who are trying to advance there job careers. Only with enough support from activist groups of women’s rights will break these stereotypes and, allow women to have a fair and equal role in society.

    Read More

  • The Feminist Movement: The Waves Of The Feminist Movement

    1688 Words  | 4 Pages

    Throughout the waves of liberal feminism, there is a new characteristic to be associated with the feminist group. In the first waves, it’s white, married, wealthy women who fit the criteria to be a feminist. The first wave begins in 1900 and ends around 1920, during the times of the Suffragettes. This wave began to introduce the inequalities between men and women, especially relating to voting and education. The second wave began to rise in 1950 which introduced reproductive rights, entitlement to sex, marriage, jobs, social lives, and politics. This wave continued to the 1970’s. It’s not until the third wave, which hits in the 1990’s, when inequalities among women are introduced to the feminist movement (FYS Class Notes).

    Read More

  • Feminist Theory

    1197 Words  | 3 Pages

    Feminist Theory is an aspect of considering feminism as having been based on socio-phenomenon issues rather than biological or scientific. It appreciates gender inequality, analyzes the societal roles played by feminists in a bid to promote the interests, issues and rights of women in the society. It is also based on the assumption that women play subsidiary roles in the society. The whole idea of feminism has however experienced hurdles in the form of stereotyping by the wider society. This paper tries to examine some of the effects of stereotypes that feminism goes through, what other philosophers say and the way forward towards ending stereotyping.

    Read More

  • Feminism In Allende's The House Of The Spirits

    881 Words  | 2 Pages

    Feminism is the movement for removing inequalities from society. Women imbued with a spirit of radicalism understand that a liberal feminist attitude, despite the seeming slowness of change that accompanies it, may transform a community more rapidly than a revolutionary approach that alienates those to be convinced and, thus, extinguishes the possibility of improvement. (Weaver 49) Feminists confront the problems of their society in hopes of altering society to be equal.

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality In Society

    2320 Words  | 5 Pages

    Reaching equality in the business world is the main idea feminism was built around several centuries ago. Women have fought for equality since the creation of America under the idea of feminism, or true equality between the sexes. In the 18th century, women had little to no rights; they could not vote, serve on a jury, or work in many professions. The jobs that women were allowed into were small and menial tasks, for which they were paid nearly half of what a man was paid for the same work. The initial feminist movement is often overlooked since it was tied to the abolition movement, or the fight against slavery. The first women’s rights convention was held in 1848 by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, an ...

    Read More

  • Radical Feminism and Hip Hop

    1536 Words  | 4 Pages

    Patriarchy creates a social division. It is often used to describe the power between a male and a woman. This idea is important in Radical Feminism. Seen as the root of female oppression, Radical Feminists recognize that patriarchy is everywhere. Radical feminist came about because they were not happy with the course of action taken by the first wave of feminists. Radical feminists wanted a revolution, not just reform; they wanted to do things their way as opposed to following “the system”. So they came up with their own theories that fit their way of thinking and often were at odds with the reformer feminists...

    Read More

  • Feminist Theory

    1180 Words  | 3 Pages

    Feminist sociology focuses on examining and understanding gender in its relation to power within society as well as individuals. The fundamental principle of feminist sociology is the idea that in most societies, women have been oppressed and that men have been more dominant throughout history. Feminist theory directly relates to feminist sociology. According to the Introduction to Sociology 2e textbook, “feminist theory is a type of conflict theory that examines inequalities in gender-related issues. It uses the conflict approach to examine the maintenance of gender roles and inequalities” (Openstax 261). This paper aims to analyze feminist theory, discuss its history, as well as emphasizing a current social

    Read More

  • Feminist Political Ideology

    1237 Words  | 3 Pages

    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 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. Feminist political ideology focuses on understanding and changing political philosophies for the betterment of women.

    Read More

  • A Woman’s Role in a Patriarchal Society

    1041 Words  | 3 Pages

    At the end of the 19th and start of the 20th centuries, a series of events occurred that would be known as the feminist movement. During this time, many women were starting to change the way they thought of themselves and wanted to change their social roles. In his views on feminist analysis Donald Hall says, “Feminist methodologies focus on gender.and explore the complex ways in which women have been denied social power and the right to various forms of self-expression. In this context the many perspectives that fall under the heading ‘feminism’ vary wildly”(Hall 199). Since women were denied social power and self-expression, they went against what society saw as acceptable, a patriarchal world.

    Read More

  • Feminism Vs Liberal Feminism

    739 Words  | 2 Pages

    Feminism is defined as “the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of the equality of the sexes.” (Oxford English Dictionary) Politics has generally been seen as a mainly male dominated area, feminists have challenged this in recent years as women are stepping out of the stigmatic domestic roles and assuming roles in areas such as politics. Since the end of the 19th century, feminists have represented collective movement; liberal feminism on the other hand gears more towards the individual “rather than advocating wholesale revolutionary change.” (Browning, Gary K. 1997) Liberal feminism suggests that women should have same legal and political rights as men and participate fully in public political life. Their achievements include a reformation

    Read More

  • The Harmful Effect of Feminism

    1409 Words  | 3 Pages

    Even though society has distorted the ideals feminism was founded upon, some of the remaining true roots still hold true. While women are gaining equal opportunities in society, they need to not diminish the importance of working together with men to form a functional society. The widespread idea of quotas needs to be analyzed. People should be accepted into college or hired for a job because they are the most qualified, not because of their sex. Society has demented feminism as a harmful dogma because it has been an excuse, almost a cop-out by women who do not want to work for their acceptance. Both men and women need to realize the necessity that exists for each other to make society work.

    Read More

  • Liberal Feminism Essay

    2063 Words  | 5 Pages

    “A feminist is one who believes in the social, political and economic equality of the sexes” (Adichie, 2013). Feminism is not the belief that one’s sexual orientation or one’s power is superior over another. The very meaning of feminism demonstrates a complete resistance to this belief. Throughout the years, a range of categories of feminism philosophy have developed. They consist of goals in objectives, methodologies, and affiliations. Many feminists distinguish themselves with many branches of women 's activist thought. The three forms of feminism that this essay will consider are liberal feminism, socialist feminism, and radical feminism. This essay will argue that liberal feminism is the most valid theory of feminism as liberal feminist’s

    Read More

  • Feminist Methodologies

    2401 Words  | 5 Pages

    Feminism is a perspective not a research method, meaning there are multiple ways to approach the study of women (Reinharz, 1992). However, a central goal of feminist empiricism, standpoint epistemology, and post-modernism methodologies is that women's lives are important and must understand women from their perspective and in context (O’Donnell, 1985, in Reinharz, 1992). Feminist methodologies all share a dedication to move the focus from the masculine perspective to incorporating both men and women to advance knowledge (DeVault, 1996). Therefore, it is research about women but also for women. It aims to identify various intelligences, the different ways of knowing, and to give a say to the silent voices (DeVault, 1996). Feminist methodologies have opened society’s eyes to a new and innovative way of carrying out research, and have influenced other fields and the way research is formulated. It has also challenged societal norms by questioning patriarchy and traditional notions.

    Read More

More about Feminism Case Study

Open Document