In order to describe Marxist and feminist approaches to geography, the definition of a paradigm has to be fully understood. Therefore this essay will describe the term paradigm and discuss what they consist of. Following this, the essay will look at key underlying concepts of Marxism and feminism as individual paradigms and how they are applied to geography. After, some of the similar principles between the two paradigms will be explored, before they are compared against each other in regards to crime. Kuhn (1962) was the first to coin the term paradigm. He defined it as a body of accepted theory which can illustrate successful applications that can be compared to observations and experiments. In his work ‘The structure of scientific revolutions’, he defines a paradigm as the entire constellation of beliefs, values and techniques shared by the members of a given community. It is the universally recognized scientific achievements that for a time provide model problems and solutions to a community of practitioners (Kuhn, 1962). Paradigms inform researchers what the object of their science should be, to which questions they should try to find ‘acceptable’ answers and which methods can be considered as ‘geographical’ (Holt-Jensen, 1995). There are three elements of a paradigm; ontology, epistemology and methodology. Ontology is the set of specific assumptions about the nature of existence underlying a theory or system of ideas; beliefs about what exists and can be observed, and
Kuhn (1996) describes a paradigm as the accepted norm of a science. The standards, rules, and scientific tradition one follows in a particular area of scientific study comprise the paradigm. Research, such as the one described here, “is a cumulative enterprise, eminently successful in its aim, the steady extension of the scope and precision of scientific knowledge” (p. 52). The study provided
This essay will compare the effectiveness of social division using Karl Marx’s theory of class division and the feminist theory of patriarchy. I will also link this to ethnicity in black feminism and evaluate how relevant these theories are to society today.
Paradigms are an intellectual or theoretical view of a discipline based on universal beliefs and values shared by the practitioners. Paradigms are important in any discipline in that they help to answer questions and concerns of the discipline, shape practice, concept, and aid the formation of guidelines. Other
Socialist feminism which believes in a dual-system, indeed it focuses on both the public and private spheres and claims that woman freedom can only be achieved by working to end economic and cultural foundations of women's domination.
Marxist Feminism is focused on explaining the ways women are oppressed through the systems of capitalism and private affairs. A Marxist feminist would say that equality can only be reached through a radical reconstruction of the capitalist economy where most of women’s labor is not compensated. In regards to the wage gap, a Marxists feminist believes that there are two kinds of labor, one is a productive labor that results in getting paid in money. The second is reproductive which is not involved with the capitalist system, but it’s more private affairs that involves working to live for oneself. Cleaning, cooking, having children and simple errands are all things that fall into the private, reproductive sphere of labor. It’s said that women are basically assigned to the reproductive labor and are expected to fall into the reproductive unpaid labor instead of productive paid labor. Marxists Feminists argue that this is the root of unequal
Feminist’s perspectives of the welfare state and women’s involvements have been used to contest gender inequalities. Conversely, there are numerous feminist approaches depending on each political ideology; this essay will identify various feminist viewpoints. In order to determine Feminisms impact on the welfare system, a comparison of pre- war and post- war ideology of how society viewed women’s role as within the political system. According to Pamela Abbott and Claire Wallace (1997) pre-war concept of men and women’s roles were grounded in the notion that ‘men were considered as providers, women were naturally the dependent of the husband’, ‘Women’s contribution was as a wife and mother, there was little expectation for women to contribute
Socialist feminists associate the domination of women to socialist and Marxist theory philosophies regarding misuse, abuse and the work of women. Socialist activists think unequal statuses in both the work environment and the household circle is what suppresses women (why social feminism 2016). Socialist feminists see prostitution, housework, childcare and marriage as courses in which women are abused by a patriarchal framework that degrades women and the considerable work they do. Socialist activists center their energies on wide change throughout society, as opposed to focusing on an individual premise, in contrast to the liberal feminism theory. Socialist feminism sees the need to work close by men, not just in the work place but in different
The accumulation of research will allow for various theories to be available. When this occurs, it is up to a general coconscious by the scientific community to distinguish what theory is best with regards to the amount of information they have accumulated. When agreed upon, the theory in question becomes the normal science. This paradigm will be used to account for
A paradigm is a perception that is very unrealistic. They affect how we look at people and their work. They are also beliefs, some are good, and some are bad, and some are neutral.
You know when you discover a new word and all of a sudden you notice everyone using it in their vocabulary? Paradigm shift was something I learnt the first time when my anthropology professor used it, and then three days later I heard my chemistry teacher use it to explain the development in chemistry; specifically, about how famous German chemists would build off of each other’s’ ideas and cause paradigm shifts in the world of science.
In this paper, we will analyze Catharine MacKinnon’s work Feminism, Marxism, Method, and the State: An Agenda for Theory, and the unique way in which she tries to form a metaphorical parallel between Marxist theory and relate this to her stance on feminism. She uses this distinctive technique to develop her feminist theory of law. While most would agree that she is very innovative in her approach, we will try to examine the problems with looking at feminism and feminist theory in this manner. While not completely discrediting MacKinnon, the purpose of this paper will be to shed light on the dangers of trying to hijack Marxist theory, stifle it into a corner, and cover it in feminist theory, much like An Agenda for Theory does. We will then look at ways in which we can liberate Marxist theories form MacKinnon’s tight associations and give ideas to help them guide modern feminism as a helpful resource, instead of making it a clear cut metaphorical dictator to truthfully understanding Feminism and feminist theory.
The marxist and feminist perspectives are both are utilized to gain a deeper understanding of literature. The feminist lens deals with the role of gender within literature, and the marxist lens focuses on the context of culture and society within literature. Each perspective plays off the other to create a cohesive approach to analyzing Brave New World. Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World highlights the issues associated with a society with a disproportional basis in manufactured social structures. These dysfunctional social structures are created through a fundamental irony: knowledge both unities and destroys humanity. Huxley shows mankind, for the first time in history, united; however, the knowledge and intellect that created this ever lasting peace is also the same factor that stripped mankind of everything that makes it human. Aldous Huxley’s dystopian society, within Brave New World, shows that knowledge is the unifying and destroying thread of humanity through the fabricated social hierarchy and preconditioned gender roles.
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels are known as the originators of the revolutionary, social philosophy called Marxism. Marxism settled an understanding about humanity and human liberation as the center of his ideology. Not only does their understanding give us a worldwide idea of the socio-economic problems, but their method provides us with a theory on women’s oppression root. From a Marxist standpoint, their ideology offers a strong background to understand that the notion of women’s oppression is a social phenomenon, assembled and spread by an economic system which profits from free labor at home and subjugated labor at work. Eventually, they established a theory to clarify and criticize woman oppression and gender inequality through the emergence of private property and social class.
Marxism is an idea developed by Karl Marx, a nineteenth-century German philosopher. It explains the political, economic, and social relationship between the working class and those holding the means of production. In literature, Marxist criticism is used to find fault in a story 's social hierarchy. Shakespeare’s King Lear takes place in England, presumably sometime in the eighth century. At this point in time, traditional absolute monarchies are present. Monarchs are given all of the ruling power, without question and without having to earn it. Below monarchs, in rank, are other lowery nobles and obviously the working class. It is needless to say that women in this setting are undoubtedly suppressed by males who have nearly all of the power. In King Lear, there are numerous incidents in which characters of lower class and status challenge the traditional monarchy to better their own placement in their community. However, every time an incident like this occurs, chaos always ensues and the character who stepped out of place is shamed. It is easy for the reader of King Lear to quickly judge such characters as impulsive, selfish, or evil. However, given the circumstances they are born into, their intentions are actually not very unreasonable when given some thought. Jane Smiley read King Lear and took a different view to the characters than most readers do. In response, she wrote A Thousand Acres and provided a
Intro – Karl Marx, born 1818, a founder of sociology and famous for writings such as The Communist Manifesto, was an influential ideologist during the 1800’s whose ideas focused on historical materialism and whose philosophy tended to focus on the understanding of a capitalist society, he aimed to create a materialist analysis, being a historical account, which examines the means in which humans collectively produce the necessities for life.