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3 Cards in this Set
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Hence, liberal feminists seek to promoteappropriate role models in education and the family – for example, femaleteachers in traditional male subjects, or fathers taking responsibility fordomestic tasks.
They challenge gender stereotyping in the media Over time they such actions will producecultural change and gender equality willbecome the norm |
Liberal feminism is an optimistic theory, very much inkeeping with the enlightenment project and its faith in progress. Liberalfeminists believe that: Politicalaction to introduce anti-discriminatory laws and polices is steadilybringing about progress to a fairersociety in which a person’s gender is no longer important. |
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Liberal feminism can be seen as critique of thefunctionalist view of gender roles. Functionalists suchas Parsons distinguish between instrumental and expressive roles |
Expressive - For Parsons’ women’s role inthe family is an ‘expressive role’. What he meant by this is a woman’s familialrole is to provide care, love, affection, security and all the necessaryemotional support a family member might need. In contrast for Parsons’ men have an‘instrumental role’ as the bread winner. Such a role is very arduous and issuch a stressful, anxious challenge that it can cause men to breakdown.Therefore a woman’s function is to relieve this burden or tension from themen’s shoulders by providing love and understanding as well as continuing to bethe primary carer irrespective of their own circumstances. |
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Obvsioulyliberal feminism argues agaisnt this and states men and women are equallycapable of performing roles in both spheres and aims to break down this divisonHoweverdespite its critique of the functionalist view of gender divisions, liberalfeminism is the feminsit theory closet to a consenus view of society. Althoughit recognises conflicts between and women and men, these are not seen asinevitable but merely a product of outdated attitudes. |
Evaluationof Liberal Feminism: +Their work helped to demonstrate that gender differencesare not inborn, but are cultural- Over-optimistic? - Ignores the deep-seated structures causingwomen’s oppression (capitalism & patriarchy) - Fails to recognise the underlying causes ofwomen’s subordination |
