Understanding Contemporary Society
Lecture and Seminar Programme
Lecture 16 Feminism & Feminist Social Theory
The lecture will introduce students to some of the major traditions within
contemporary feminism (radical, Marxist, socialist) and how these have criticized
traditional sociological theory to account for women’s subordination. It will use as
its starting point the debate that dominated feminists of the ‘second wave’
between the ‘dual systems’ of patriarchy and capitalism as sources of women’s
oppression. Marxists feminists sought to counteract the gender-blindness of
Marxism by extending theories of social class to incorporate gender differences
while radical feminists argued towards a concept of patriarchy or male power.
Heidi Hartmann’s classic essay and the contentions that it produced shall form the
basis of analyzing how feminists attempted to reconcile systems of patriarchy and
capitalism into a progressive gender struggle, thereby extending malestream
sociological theories and concepts.
Key reading:
Hartmann, H. (1981) ‘The Unhappy Marriage of Marxism and Feminism: Towards
a More Progressive Union’ in L. Sargent (ed.), Women and Revolution: A
discussion of the unhappy marriage of Marxism and feminism, Boston: South
End Press.
Seminar Preparation
Consider the following questions:
- What does feminism mean to you?
- What is patriarchy?
- What is ‘dual systems’ theory? How useful is it for explaining women’s
subordination and what are its limitations?
- On what grounds have feminists critiqued Marxism? What are the tensions
between Marxism and feminism?
Further reading
For a critique of Hartmann see the work of Iris Marion Young:
Young, I. (1981) “Beyond the Unhappy Marriage: a critique of dual systems
theory”, in L. Sargent (Ed.) Women and Revolution, London: Pluto Press
Young, I. (1990) Justice and the Politics of Difference, Princeton: Princeton
University Press
Andermahr, S., Lovell, T. and Wolkowitz, C. (2000) A Glossary of Feminist
Theory, London: Edward Arnold. Entries on ‘Marxist feminism, ‘radical
feminism’, ‘socialist feminism’, ‘materialist feminism’, ‘patriarchy’.
Barrett, M. (1980) Women's oppression today: problems in Marxist feminist
analysis, London: NLB.
Barrett, M. & McIntosh, M. (1985) ‘Ethnocentrism and socialist-feminist theory’,
Feminist Review, No. 20, pp. 23-47.
Barrett, M. and Philips, A. (eds.) (1992) Destabilizing Theory: Contemporary
Feminist Debates, Cambridge: Polity.
Bradley, H. (2007) Gender, Cambridge: Polity.
Bryson, V. (2004) ‘Marxism and feminism: can the 'unhappy marriage' be
saved?’, Journal of Political Ideologies, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 13-30.
Delphy, C. (1984) Close to Home: A Materialist Analysis of Women's Oppression,
London: Hutchinson.
Genz, S. and Brabon, B. (2009) Postfeminism: Cultural Texts and Theories,
Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press
Gunew, S. (1990) (ed.) Feminist Knowledge; Critique and Construct, London:
Routledge.
Hennessy, R. (2003) ‘Class’ in M. Eagleton (ed.) A Concise companion to feminist
theory, Oxford: Blackwell.
Holmes, M. (2007) What is Gender? London: Sage.
Hughes, C. (2002) Key Concepts in Feminist Theory and Research, London: Sage
(available as E-book via Library online catalogue)
Jackson, S. (2001) ‘Why a Materialist Feminism is (still) Possible – and
Necessary’, Women’s Studies International Forum, Vol. 24, Nos. 3/4, pp. 28393.
Jackson, S. and S. Scott (eds.) (2002) Gender: a sociological reader, London:
Routledge.
McKinnon, C. (1983) ‘Feminism, Marxism, Method, and the State: An Agenda for
Theory’, Signs, Vol. 7, No. 3, pp. 515-44.
McRobbie, A. (2009) The Aftermath of Feminism, London: Sage
Nicholson, L (ed.) (1997) The second wave: a reader in feminist theory, New
York, N.Y.; London: Routledge.
Tong, R (1998) Feminist Thought: A More Comprehensive Introduction, Boulder:
Westview Press.
Walby, S. (1990) Theorizing Patriarchy, Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
Walby, S. (1997) Gender Transformations, London: Routledge.