2. Feminism challenges male domination of the institutions of law and the state. Discuss.
Feminism is the firm belief in economic, social and political equality of the sexes. The controversy regarding the status of women ages back to the Ancient Greeks. Plato believed that "If women are to have the same duties as men, they must have the same nurture and education?’. Plato sought to evaluate the true and unquestionable duty that women play in society and to abolish the perception that one sex is weaker than the other. Feminists tend to be of the opinion that, historically, the law was written from a male’s perspective and does not represent a women’s role in the regulation of society. Women have since played a key and crucial role in the development of the state and the restructuring of the law.
The structure, philosophy and terminology of the law were created by the male gender and in turn, support male beliefs. According to Margaret Davies, the Feminist Legal Theory was ‘usually taken to mean a critique of law generated internally to legal scholarship by feminist layers’. Feminism arose due to the fact that the male gender dominated the public and private spaces with regards to employment, government and education. There was a power inequality between the two genders. In other words, the world was known as a man’s world. Through this, the Feminist Legal Theory was developed in which the main objective was to achieve gender consistency, uniformity and justice through
Feminism is a theory which begs to understand the nature of gender equality in theoretical or philosophical situations. It would be examined on how the genders work in society, social systems and structures
The modern definition of feminism: “an ideology that, in its most basic form, directly opposes sexism by supporting gender equality and portraying women and men as equal.” (Finsterbusch 59). This definition was the early direction towards treating women like human beings rather than a housebound body, and this is why feminism should not be viewed as a harmful ideology. By exemplifying the importance of the ideology of feminism, by refuting those who claim that women have used feminism to exploit their personal wants and desires, and by presenting women’s first hand encounters of inequality, case studies, sound arguments and documented research one will be persuaded that the ideology of feminism is not discrimination towards men, but rather an encouragement for a woman’s rights and equality.
Feminism is a very popular and controversial concept in today’s world. Feminism is a range of ideologies as well as social and political movement all aiming for a common goal to define, establish and achieve equal rights and position to women legally as well as socially. The people with these ideologies are commonly known as FEMINIST. Feminism theory is not only about understanding but also to take action. Naturally people expect women to be related to the idea of feminism and be a feminist rather than men. Men have taken part as significant cultural and political responses within each wave of feminism movements.Feminist men have also argued alongside scholars that liberation of men from the socio cultural constraints of gender roles and sexism is a significant part of feminist activism and scholarship.
According to dictionary.com, feminism is the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men. Throughout history and even in present time, women have been subject to unequal treatment by their male counterparts. For example, in the biblical story of Adam and Eve, Eve is born from Adam’s rib, showing that Adam is the dominant figure in the narrative. Even today, there exists in certain professions a gender pay gap. Similarly, the way in which women are depicted in Beloved by Toni Morrison and the short story The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Stetson indicates that women are able to thrive independently and take on masculine roles, while men are able to experience feminine attributes.
Feminism is the advocacy of the rights of women based on the theory of equality of the sexes (Oxford English Dictionary). It is built on the principle that women have innate worth, inalienable rights, and valuable ideas and talents to contribute to society. Feminists fight for equality in every dimension of society, for both equal rights with men and equal respect.
In society, men and women serve different task. Usually men do the heavier work, while women do smoother work. Women have a difficult time due to the fact that most men think that women are property, rather than a person. Therefore, women came to the conclusion that they do not want to follow the norm anymore because they know what they are capable of. The term feminism can be defined as women who want to be in the same level of equality in political, economic, and social as men are. Although many people misunderstood the definition, different strategies such as exemplification, comparison and contrast, and negotiation will be shown to help those who are not familiar with this word.
For the record, feminism by definition is: ‘the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.’ It is the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes. (Watson 1)
Feminism can be defined as “the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.” It is something that is debated all throughout society today. However, the problem of whether or not women should be equal to men has been around for much longer than any of us.
As defined by Dictionary.com, patriarchy is, “a social system in which power is held by men, through cultural norms and customs that favor men and withhold opportunity from women.” This has been the foundation of many feminist jurisprudence theories as they attempt to rectify the ramifications of the patriarchy. Issues that have been often cited by feminist jurisprudence theorists range from the gender wage gap, lack of educational and employment opportunities for women, and the need to protect women from rape and domestic
Maya Angelou once said, “Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.” Feminism is the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men (“Feminism”). It is the belief that women should be allowed the same rights, power and opportunities as men throughout society. Within a male dominated society, it comes as no surprise that women are often seen in second place. A problem that seemingly led to the emergence of the feminist movement in order to reach gender equality.
In book five of Plato’s Republic, Socrates argues that in the ideal city of Kallipolis, both men and women will serve as guardians and auxiliaries. Consequently, Plato appears to endorse feminist ideologies. Firs,t I will define proto-traditional feminism, and modern feminism. I will then argue that Plato presents Socrates, and thereby himself, as an advocate for feminism. However, I will show that Plato is only a feminist under the proto-traditional definition of feminism. He fails to fit the modern definition of feminism, as this definition is contingent on equality and equity. Furthermore, I will consider the objection that Plato cannot be a feminist due to his motivation for equality. Although Plato endorses some feminist ideologies,
In the ancient world, little efforts were made to protect the rights of women in the society. In most societies, the nature and capabilities of women were disregarded. Women were not accorded the right to own property, right to vote, access to higher education and suffrage. These are some of the fundamental rights enjoyed by men in the society. In a bid to advocate and campaign for these rights, feminism was born. By definition, feminism is social and political movements which unified women around a number of issues which affected them. Spearheaded by feminists, these movements campaigned for women’s rights highlighted above among others. They have worked towards promoting historical changes for women’s rights and their autonomy as well
Feminist jurisprudence is a growing school of legal though in which embraces various theories in reference to laws and legal issues. Every aspect of feminist jurisprudence takes a close look at and analyses the law through the examination of issues such as gender, sexuality, power, individual rights, and the judicial system. Feminist jurisprudence has come a long way since its beginnings in the 1960s. This school of thought has made its mark since the 1990s and has evolved into a vital part of the law over the years. Feminist jurisprudence has paved a new way of thinking in issues such as sexual and Domestic Violence, inequality in the workplace, and gender-based discrimination in various levels of US society.
Feminism is an umbrella term for people who think there is something wrong with the idea that gender has the capability to limit an individual’s social and political right. Even if there is inequality between men and women, feminism has never been the main reason to give women their civil rights. Feminism started among European activists in the 19th century, when women were not treated equally and were not elected to high positions of power. Indeed, it sought to eliminate sexism in all forms. While feminism has made advances for women to compete with men and narrow gender differences, feminism is still not a way for creating equality due to opposition and to the existence of different types of feminism, such
According to Wade and Ferree (2015) feminism “is the belief that all men and women should have equal rights and opportunities (p. 157). However, this definition is simple and does not explain what feminism means today. Feminism still deals with gender inequality, but it has become more than that over the years. Feminists today are also concerned about “differences among men and among women – intersectionality” (p. 157). Females are disadvantaged compared to males, but both males and females have to overcome harmful gender stereotypes. If gender equality is going to exist, the focus cannot entirely be on females. Also, if feminism was only about women it would exclude everyone else, and they would be perpetuating inequality as well. It is important