The elevation of women into the key sectors of power however is a growing attitude in feminist thought. The popularity of “Lean In”, a philosophy coined by Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, in her work “Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead”, promotes a trickle down theory of equality for women whereby women in power, by nature of having direct experience of gender inequality, particularly inequality in labour, both paid and unpaid, will naturally seek to end these inequalities when given the opportunity to do so.
There are many deeply flawed presumptions made by such a theory.
One suggests that women, upon achieving a certain position of authority, will not experience pressure from the external forces that elevated her into that position …show more content…
Much of liberal feminisms analysis on division of labour and the means to overcome the inequality faced by women relies on both the personal experience with oppression of the individual woman who seeks to attain the higher positions of power in society and also their altruism and benevolence.
Firstly, a woman at the height of the corporate ladder would not have the same experience of family, the home and the pressures that come with them. Sandberg, as a woman who can afford high quality childcare, employ people to take on the gap left in domestic chores at home and can work and “lean in” without the economic and social pressures that effect the time lower income women have is in a uniquely privileged position. Her experiences are individual, personalised and subject to her own personal circumstances. Her “Lean In” philosophy applies to a small number of women of a similar class background to Sandberg and ignores the economic, social and racial influences that dictate oppression and women’s experience of …show more content…
Patriarchy, a feminist theory which suggests that society has been structured in such a way to keep women away from the controlling positions of power in society, suggests that the only way of women achieving liberation is through the segregation of sexes and struggles, and acknowledging that the interests of men and women are inherently opposed. Patriarchy theory of the family suggests that society has always functioned with the dominance of men and the expense of women and is the origin of gender inequality.
There are many issues with patriarchy theory and its over-arching analysis on the family and women’s oppression within. It ignores the economic and class based oppression that exists in society not only for women, but for men also. Under patriarchy theory, it is suggested that men uniformly benefit and are privileged in society however while it is true that men do indeed benefit from the continuation of women taking on the burden of unpaid labour in the home, it is the capitalist system as a whole that benefits overall and therefore relies on the strengthening and perpetuation of the institution of the
There are many deeply flawed presumptions made by such a theory.
One suggests that women, upon achieving a certain position of authority, will not experience pressure from the external forces that elevated her into that position …show more content…
Much of liberal feminisms analysis on division of labour and the means to overcome the inequality faced by women relies on both the personal experience with oppression of the individual woman who seeks to attain the higher positions of power in society and also their altruism and benevolence.
Firstly, a woman at the height of the corporate ladder would not have the same experience of family, the home and the pressures that come with them. Sandberg, as a woman who can afford high quality childcare, employ people to take on the gap left in domestic chores at home and can work and “lean in” without the economic and social pressures that effect the time lower income women have is in a uniquely privileged position. Her experiences are individual, personalised and subject to her own personal circumstances. Her “Lean In” philosophy applies to a small number of women of a similar class background to Sandberg and ignores the economic, social and racial influences that dictate oppression and women’s experience of …show more content…
Patriarchy, a feminist theory which suggests that society has been structured in such a way to keep women away from the controlling positions of power in society, suggests that the only way of women achieving liberation is through the segregation of sexes and struggles, and acknowledging that the interests of men and women are inherently opposed. Patriarchy theory of the family suggests that society has always functioned with the dominance of men and the expense of women and is the origin of gender inequality.
There are many issues with patriarchy theory and its over-arching analysis on the family and women’s oppression within. It ignores the economic and class based oppression that exists in society not only for women, but for men also. Under patriarchy theory, it is suggested that men uniformly benefit and are privileged in society however while it is true that men do indeed benefit from the continuation of women taking on the burden of unpaid labour in the home, it is the capitalist system as a whole that benefits overall and therefore relies on the strengthening and perpetuation of the institution of the