Feminism and the Sociology Theories behind It

Since the beginning of time women have been considered inferior to men, which seem to proceed to affect everyday lives of all social beings in this world. Women have a disease, a disease that will prevent them for ever having the political drive to achieve political, social or economic opportunities men have. This "disease" is the need for independency and self-respect or the lack there of. This is what we have come to know as feminism. Feminism refers to the body of thought on the cause and nature of women's disadvantaged and subordinate position in society, and efforts to minimize and eliminate the subordination (Hughes, 2002:160). Understanding that the need for independency and self-respect is not a real disease,

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

In this essay I will explore the different schools of feminism such as Marxist, liberal and radical feminism, who share the view that women are oppressed in a patriarchal society but differ in opinion on who benefits from the inequalities. Each school of feminism has their own understanding of family roles and relationships which I will assess through this essay.

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.

Feminist concentrate primarily on ‘gender inequality’. The feminist theory is strongly influenced by the Marx theory.

Women are humans, humans with emotions and the need for self expression. The men, throughout history, have degraded the female sex, they have always seen women as objects and a machine that helps reproduce and carry on their blood. Society formed the ‘perfect’ role for women and it was expected that they follow it. They were expected to be the loving, responsible, obedient, stay at home wives. Due to such an inequitable lifestyle given to women, they decided to fight for equality and defend their gender. They will later be known as feminists. According to Literary and Cultural Theory by Donald Hall, feminists focal point is to investigate the various ways women have been limited to social power and the liberty to self

By evaluating the situation and lives of women in society, the feminist perspective is defined as a source of social inequality, group conflict and social problems. For feminist, patriarchal society is the foundation of social problems. The patriarchal male dominated society where women are meant to justify the rule through devaluation; however, the definition of patriarchy has dominated the powerful group expanded to include the social devaluation of the power rating (Leon-Guerrero, Anna, 2015).

Gender inequality has been a dominant and consistent struggle of human culture since its existence. To this day, women constantly face oppression, unjust treatment, and less opportunities. For centuries, women have played inferior roles compared to men, especially in marriage. When a man and a woman would wed, it was understood that the woman would serve her husband’s needs and demands. Over the centuries of human existence, however, many feminists and progressive revolutionaries demanded change in the treatment of females.

From the beginning of time, men and women have always had this slight inequality between them. Men were always looked upon as the “bread winners” and women were seen as the “housewives”. Women were also frowned upon if they did anything that seemed fit for a man only. As a whole, women had no rights and no voice at all. The fascinating book by Zora Neale Hurston called “Their eyes were watching God”, relates to this very feeling of women not having a say so and being ruled by their husband, this is called feminism associated with the feminist theory. Feminist theory is the extension of feminism into theoretical or philosophical discourse. In other words, it aims to understand the nature of gender inequality while examining women’s roles in social life, experience,

The idea of “Feminism” is seen in the eyes of many as “women who want to be more masculine” whenever its true meaning is just women who want equality and the same respect and opportunities that men have. This belief has been built up over time through many different perspectives which is why it had turned into the negative idea of what it is. This idea of “Feminism” affected the social hierarchy and system where people were categorized based upon their sex and the social impact it made created and resolved multiple social issues. The idea of “Feminism” impacted the interactions between men and women and the morals of society and through this created power in women as well introduce a long needed new peace amongst the sexes.

Feminism and feminist social theory unlike other theoretical perspectives is woman-centered and inter-disciplinary, hence promotes methods of achieving social justice. The feminism and feminist social theory takes into consideration three questions, what of the women? Why is the present social world as it is today? Additionally, how can the social world be changed to make it more just for the women and all people alike? In recent developments, feminist theorists have begun questioning the differences between women. The areas under question include race, ethnicity, class, age intersect, and gender. In summation, the feminist theory involves the concern with giving women world over voice, and highlighting how they have contributed to the

How can we effect change in the world when only half of it is invited to feel welcome to participate in the conversation ( Watson, 2014). In the feminist perspective, which is an extension of feminism, there is support of equality for both women and men. Feminism is a belief that women and men have equal rights and opportunities. There are many different branches in the feminist perspective, one of the most interesting one is intersectional feminism. Intersectional feminism believes that experiences of class, gender, and race can not be adequately understood unless we understand that women of different races have different experiences.

Feminism are generalized concepts that idealize social life and human experience developed from a women-centered perspective. Feminism seeks to observe all situations and women in society. Second, it seeks to describe and critically evaluate the world from the distinctive points of women ( Lengermann and Niebrugge 195). Most feminist sociological theorists analyzes both a sociological understanding and contributing factors of the feminist theory by shaping the concept of gender

Today’s society is rich with inequality, there exists struggles in the workplace, in politics, at home, nearly anywhere you look you can find instances of inequality manifesting. Inequality takes shape in many different forms, gender, sexual orientation, race are all commons forms of discrimination present in the world, Feminism has emerged as a proposed solution to the problem of inequality, aiming to bridge the gap between the genders.

Feminist theory analyzes the gender inequality that women have faced throughout the years due to a patriarchal society. Women were expected to fit the traditional female and conform to the gender norms that society has constructed. According to A Brief Introduction to Critical Theory, “Feminism embodies a way of reading that investigates the text’s investment in or reaction to the patriarchal power structures that have dominated Western culture” (227). Patriarchal power has oppressed women economically, socially, and politically. Women were associated more with domesticity than with politics and financial situations. They were not provided the same educational opportunities as men. These issues have been addressed by people, such as Mary