Theoretical and Social Perspective of Feminism - Essay Example

? Introduction Feminism 2 Theoretical and Social Perspective 3 Women Philosophies 4 Gender, Status and Gender Discrimination 5 Conclusion 6 name Professor Course number Date Feminism Feminism is both a hypothetical perspective and a social crusade. As a speculative perspective, feminism stipulates a clarification of social behavior and occurrences, generally those that incorporate gender. (A-1) As a social crusade, feminism strives to bring about social alteration, particularly gender equity. Feminism is not a precise, unified standpoint, as a social concept. Reasonably, there are numerous feminisms, for example, socialist feminism, liberal feminism, standpoint feminism, socialist feminism and standpoint feminism. Nevertheless, there are several philosophies general to all feminist viewpoints. One philosophy is that sex is socially formed instead of being spontaneously created. This is by keeping in mind that hominids are genetic beings, where our genetic system affects who we are as men and women. Nonetheless, from a women's libber view, there exist a composite interaction between culture and biology and genetic attributes may be transformed by social or environmental settings. Feminism describes gender as arrange of social anticipations that are replicated and transmitted via an aspect of social acquiring. This paper entails an argumentative essay on feminism as social movement. (A-2) A second women's movement philosophy is that gender is a crucial organizing aspect within the social domain. Gender is entrenched in social interactions and processes of daily life along with all social establishments. At the organizational level, gender is molded by the economic and political structure of a society. In all societies, specific forms of gender norms prevail, and these norms can differ from community to community consequently more substantiation that gender is fashioned socially. Conferring to the feminist standpoint no sex is intrinsically superior to another. Conversely, the ethnicity of a civilization may instill one sex with a superior significance than another sex. For example in the Western and most other societies, masculinity (of traits and behaviors related to being male) is esteemed more hellish than feminineness (of traits and behaviors related to being female). The men, hence, are bestowed grander access to rewards and resources in these communities, solely because they stand out as (masculine) men. Therefore, discrepancy valuing produces gender bias (Curran 47). A common misunderstanding concerning feminism is that it centers only on womenfolk or "females' issues." (B-1)Feminism's chief objective, from a theoretical outlook, partakes to review and refine the status of womenfolk in community, mostly since womenfolk and the traits and behaviors related to them have been ignored or devalued in the past. However, feminism distinguishes that male folk have gender, as well, and that even though virtually all men profit in a certain way through gender privileges. Some factions of men though, are underprivileged by other societal factors (Beauvior 2008). (A-3) The third protocol of feminism entail that gender discrimination does not represent the same outcomes for all men and women. This philosophy from a feminist view point scrutinizes how sex bias interconnects with other kinds of bias such as racism, heterosexism, social class bias, ageism, and discriminations built on mental and physical abilities that affect multiple factions of men and women differently. For example, a man who acts effeminately is regarded as queer and is chastised for this peculiarity in various ways that incorporate social banishment; discrimination in occupation, housing, in addition to other areas, and at times even brutality. Correspondingly, deprived men folk of color hold less accessibility to societal rewards and resources than white respectable women do, since the undesirable consequences of social class and racism injustice around them overshadow the rewards of gender opportunity (Curran 67). (A-4) Since feminism apprehends sex to be socially fashioned, this view point maintains that any traits of contemporary creations of sex and gender norms, which are dangerous and violent, can be transformed. In addition, since gender virtues are institutionalized, this modification must occur not just at the organizational level but at the personal level too. Feminists are campaigners for social revolution that promote gender equity, besides they have marshaled to produce such change via joint deed. In this manner, feminism is further than a speculative perspective; it is correspondingly a social undertaking (Faludi 2010). (B-2) Current women's campaign has been outstandingly successful in setting off institutionalization in the community of the dog mastriggering its aggressiveness: refutation of the communal worth of obsolete homemakers and denunciation of outdated sexual ethics. The effects have been malignant and lasting. General community assent to these philosophies has overpoweringly contorted men's discernments of their relations with and responsibilities to womenfolk, women's discernments of their individual wants, and the manner in which females make verdicts concerning their lives (Millet 53). The most influential women's rights convention was convened in 1848 July 19 to 20, at Seneca Falls, New York. Nearly 300 females and several compassionate men embraced the Sentiments Declaration, molded on the Independence Declaration, together with 12 resolves that reinforced egalitarianism between the genders and contested customs and laws that victimized against women. (A-5)Nevertheless, as the feminism "first wave" advanced, its emphasis narrowed upon captivating women the freedom cast votes. This struggle took nearly half a century to achieve its aim. The 19th Amendment approval transpired in 1920 August 26(Hooks 2009). Following, the 19th Amendment ban the women's movement as a social campaign became dormant. However, small feminists groups, for instance, the Party of National Women, went on with lobbying for women's privileges, with the passage of the Amendment of Equal Rights. The second mass movement arose in 1960s. A collection of factors aided in the rebirth of feminism at this period as a social crusade.(A-6)This included the President John F. Kennedy nomination of a Presidential Directive on Women’s Status that recorded prevalent and severe work force discrimination centered on sex. The other factor is the 1963 bestselling publication by Betty Friedan ‘The Feminine Mystique'. Feminism correspondingly petitioned to women aboard in the human rights campaign along with the anti-Vietnam War effort, who were inspired by their individual experiences of gender injustice within these social crusades along with the bigger society (Betty 56). This second movement of women's liberation was not standardized. It contained, for instance, lesbians along with heterosexual womenfolk together with pro-feminist males. (B-3) Nevertheless, one critical criticism of modern feminism, a reproach that was similarly aimed towards the first movement of women's liberation was racialism. Criticizers uphold that women's liberation as a social undertaking constituted generally white, economically advantaged, sophisticated women. These women overlooked or intentionally omitted the trepidations of womenfolk of color along with under privileged and waged-class womenfolk of all ethnicities and races, simultaneously, by concentrating predominantly on acquisition of official legal privileges for womenfolk and habitually thriving the second movement feminism moreover disregarded the apprehensions of young generations of women, who hailed after them (Curran 67). While it has been contended that the majority young women nowadays repudiate feminism, research authenticates the progress of a third movement of feminist crusading, which is rebelling against conservative gender norms and which holds all-inclusiveness. Findings of third upsurge feminism highlight its salutation of sexuality, multiculturalism, and women's sovereignty and influence. (A-7) Third upsurge feminists have embraced interracial prominence and tackle problems ensuing from racialism, social class discrimination, homophobia, and any other inequities, as well as, gender inequity. Indeed, the all-inclusiveness of third movement women’s liberation is apt to be the resolution to the constant sustainability of women's liberation as a social undertaking into the 21st era (Kerber 46). (B-4) Feminists have deceptively portrayed women's past existences, both at home and at profession level. Moreover, they misleadingly asserted that the concentrated commitment at home by a woman could not meaningfully gain her children and marriage. Nevertheless, feminists are meticulous when they refute that women ought not to be insisted on becoming moms. The refutation seems redundant; nevertheless, meanwhile it has hardly been proclaimed that maternity should be each woman's calling. Nunneries and monasteries, for example, have been amid the social associations identifying that propagation is not required of everybody. Evidently, some females are not fitted to maternity and some mothers prefer to entrust child nurturing to others to take up an occupation or other welfares (Baumgardner 2011). Conclusively, (B-5), the feminist philosophy that was then noticeably established in the community was demonstrated by the extensive validation of Justice Ginsburg's notion that, anything that can appropriately be deemed as proficiency befalls only inside the marketplace. Ginsburg contemptuously defines a woman who pursues a substitute attainment inside the family sector in terms mirroring the same rational expectations as those of DeCrow— as being relegated to reliance on a man. Feminism's philosophical victory has been a striking feature in yielding the conditions mentioned by public school overseers, when endorsing full-day community school tutoring for very young children, since government establishments must demand culpability for progenies at younger ages. (B-6) One proprietor, for instance, indicated at a communal convention that kids are not being nurtured in their family unit because the family as it is known has ruined. He said that the family has vanished, and something else needed to be done. Forget the family part; however, not every mother whose occupation has promoted the creation of this state celebrates it as a social advancement it ensues to feminists. Several of these moms, in its place, admit to a strong desire of being at home with kids and contrition due to the preferences, they have rendered (Anazaldua 2010). (B-7) If this motherly longing is yet to change behavior, it ought to be prevailing more to overwhelm the feminist achievement that has ingrained within our community assessments of privileged opinion-makers similar to those articulated by Karen DeCrow. That, the out-of-date family unit that the feminism embattled as its rival is, like the quarts and pints of 1984, upon its way to extermination. Whereas not yet deceased and vanished, as the school supervisor appealed it will be if not for those who trust in the value of the family unit try to inverse women’s movement triumph. Such an endeavor will not thrive until the community begins yet again to support and respect instead of patronize, disfavor and degrade the wife who assumes a traditional responsibility and the husband who renders it plausible for that woman to serve so (Decrow 54). Works Cited Anzaldua,Gloria. This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color. New York: M.E. Sharpe, Inc, 2010. Print. Baumgardner,Jennifer. Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future. . New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print. Beauvoir,Simone de. The Second Sex.Missouri: Prentice Hall, 2008. Print. Betty, Friedan. The Feminine Mystic. Open University Press, 2007. Print. Curran, Daniel. Women, Men and Society: The Sociology of Gender. 6th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2007. Print. Decrow, Karen. Sexist Justice. Random House, 2005. Print. Faludi, Susan.Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women.  Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2010. Print Hooks,Bell.Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics.Prentice Hall, 2009. Print. Kerber, Linda K.  Women of the Republic:  Intellec4t & Ideology in Revolutionary America.  New York:  W.W. Norton & Company, 2010. Print. Lorber, Judith. Gender Inequality: Feminist Theories and Politics. Los Angeles: Roxbury, 2008. Print. Millet, Kate. Sexual Politics. University of Illinois Press, 2004. Print. Murray, Charles. Losing Ground.Basic Books; Anniversary, 2009. Print. Read More