To what extent is feminism a single doctrine?

Until the 1960s feminism was viewed as a sub-set of liberalism and socialism rather than an ideology. It is certain that feminism is a cross-cutting ideology, encompassing the three broad traditions of liberal traditions, socialist feminism and radical feminism, but whether it is today a single doctrine or still simply a sub-set of others can be greatly debated.

The core traditions of feminism each contain rival tendencies and have spawned ‘dual-system’ feminism and new feminist traditions have emerged, particularly since the 1980s such as Black feminism, cultural feminism and psychoanalytical feminism. It is easy, therefore, to dismiss feminism as too fragmented to form a single doctrine. Also the fact that these traditions are characterised more by disagreement than agreement suggests that they cannot form a unified ideology and are sub-sections of opposing ideologies that are likely to disagree. Nevertheless a range of common ground themes can be identified such as patriarchy, the public/private divide, equality and difference and sex and gender, so feminism is unified to a certain extent.

It can also be argued that there are rival traditions within all conventional ideologues. Classic and modern liberalism have contrasting ideas in economic versus social liberalism and positive versus negative freedom while socialists are at odds over the goal of socialism and the road to achieve that goal. In this sense feminism is completely typical of conventional ideologies.

The first wave of feminism was deeply influenced by the ideas and values of liberalism. The philosophical basis of liberal feminism lies in the principle of individualism. Individuals are entitled to equal treatment regardless of sex and so any form of discrimination against women should be prohibited. Liberal feminists also do not wish to abolish the distinction between the public and private spheres and accept that women’s leaning towards family and domestic life is influenced by natural impulses and so reflects a willing choice. The focus in liberal feminism therefore seems to be more on the liberal aspect than the feminist as they see no need to push for the sexless personhood goal of feminism but prefer the equality principle of liberalism. This means that liberal feminism can easily be argued to be only a sub-set of liberalism not a tradition within a feminist ideology.

Socialist feminists argue that the relationship between the sexes is rooted in the social and economic structure itself and only profound social change or a social revolution can offer genuine emancipation. Modern socialist feminists have found it difficult to accept the primacy of class politics over sexual politics. Again it appears that more emphasis is placed on the socialist aspect than the feminist as the main goal of feminism, to liberate women, is placed second to liberating the proletariat. Therefore social feminism can also be argued to be only a sub-set of socialism.

On the other hand one of the distinctive features of second wave feminism is that many feminists moved beyond the perspectives of existing political ideologies. They believed that gender differences were regarded as important in themselves and needed to be understood in their own terms. During the 1960s and 1970s the feminist movement sought to uncover the influence of patriarchy in all aspects of social, personal and sexual existence. Through radical feminism, feminism has therefore gone beyond other conventional ideologies which were viewed as inadequate vehicles for advancing the social role of women and criticised for harbouring patriarchal attitudes and assumptions. Radical feminism signifies an advancement in feminism as it moves from building on the ideas of other ideologies to defining its own ideas that oppose those of other ideologies. Radical feminism is therefore the one tradition within feminism that comes from and is purely dedicated to the ideas of feminism.

Before the 1960s, particularly with the first wave feminism was a set of separate doctrines that took ideas from other ideologies and moulded them for their own purpose. However during the 1960s and 1970s when the radical feminism formed, feminism changed from being a combination of different doctrines to a single ideology. This is because traditions were able to form solely out of the ideas of feminism, making it strong enough to stand out of the ideas of feminism, making it strong enough to stand as an ideology in its own right. Indeed the number of new feminist movements that arose in the 1980s such as cultural feminism and black feminism emphasize this point further as they are tradition which build on the ideas of feminism, just like feminism previously built on the ideas of liberalism and socialism. Therefore, though in its early days it was a set of different doctrines, feminism has now grown and defined itself as not just a single doctrine, but a single ideology encompassing a number of doctrines.

Distinguish sex and gender and explain its implications for feminist theory

Feminists draw a sharp distinction between sex and gender. ‘Sex’ refers to biological differences between females and males which are natural and unalterable. ‘Gender’ is a cultural term which refers to the different roles that society ascribes to men and women. Gender differences are imposed through contrasting stereotypes of ‘masculinity’ and ‘femininity’. Simone de Beauvoir summarised this with the line “women are made, not born”. This belief has had many implications for feminist theory.

Firstly they believe sex differences between men and women are minor and don’t justify gender distinctions. They therefore believe that human nature is androgynous so women shouldn’t be judged by their sex but as ‘persons’. The goal of feminism is therefore of genderless ‘personhood’.

Secondly, it has affected the ideas of liberal feminists. The first major feminist text by Wollstonecraft argued that women should be entitled to the same rights and privileges as men and the ‘distinction of sex’ would become unimportant in political and social life when the rights were attained.

In particular, the feminist ideas on sex and gender have affected the beliefs of radical feminists who believe gender differences are important in themselves and need to be understood in their own terms. Radical feminists believe the different roles of men and women have their origin or a process of ‘conditioning’ with boys and girls encouraged to conform to very specific gender identities. The oppression of women therefore originates in the family and female liberation thus requires a sexual revolution. This is also based on the assumption that human nature is androgynous.

The largest implication of sex and gender for feminist theory is arguably that they are the only ideology to place sex and gender as a supreme political idea. It therefore distinguishes feminism and makes it an ideology in its own right with its own set of individual ideas.

Analyse similarities and differences between liberal feminism and radical feminism

Feminism is a cross-cutting ideology, encompassing three broad traditions: liberal feminism, socialist feminism and radical feminism. The first wave of feminism was deeply influenced by the ideas and values of liberalism while radical feminism is one of the distinctive features of second wave feminism during the 1960s and 1970s.

While liberal feminism is deeply influenced by liberalism, radical feminism view conventional ideologies as inadequate vehicles for advancing the social role of women and criticised for harbouring patriarchal attitudes and assumptions.

The first major feminist text by Mary Wollstonecraft argued that women should be entitled to the same rights and privileges as men on the ground that they are human beings. She claimed that the distinction of sex would become unimportant in political and social life if women gained access to education and were regarded as rational creatures in their own right. However some radical feminist emphasize the differences between women and men. If sex differences are natural then the roots of patriarchy lie within the male sex itself: men are the enemy. This has led for radical feminist to believe in separatism.

This has also led radical feminists to believe that sexual equality and harmony is impossible because all relationships between men and women must involve oppression. This has led to the development of political lesbianism. Other feminists however, including liberal feminists, believe that it is possible to establish harmony between men and women in a non-sexist society. Hence they believe sexual preferences are strictly a matter of personal choice and not a question of political commitment. This also reflects their opposing beliefs on the public and private divide. Radical feminists proclaim the personal is the political and analyse the politics of everyday life. Although liberal feminists object to women’s access to the public sphere, they also warn against the dangers of politicizing the private sphere, which in liberal theory is a realm of personal choice and individual freedom. While radical feminists wish to abolish the public/private divide, liberal feminists merely wish to reform it.

This is also reflected in their rivalling ideas of equality. Liberal feminists champion legal and political equality with men. Equality thus means equal access to the public realm. Radical feminists however are primarily concerned about equality in family and personal life. This shows that while liberal feminists focus on women in the public sphere, radical feminists focus on women in the private sphere.

Nevertheless both seek equality with men and to end patriarchy in society. On the other hand, they use the term patriarchy in different ways. Liberal feminists use the term to draw attention to the unequal distribution of rights and entitlements in society. They highlight the under-representation of women in senior positions. Radical feminists see patriarchy as a systematic, institutionalised and pervasive form of male power that is rooted in the family. The pattern of male dominance and female subordination that characterises society is a reflection of the power structures that operate within domestic life. Once again, the differences between liberal and radical feminists boil down to the priority of the public or private sphere.

Although radical feminism formed the distinctive feature of second wave feminism, liberal feminism also formed a significant components, particularly within the women’s movement in the USA. Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique highlighted the problem with no name, the deep unhappiness and despair many women experience because they are confined to a domestic existence and unable to gain fulfilment in a career or through political life. Liberal feminists have also assumed that men and women have different natures and inclinations and accepts that women’s leaning towards family and domestic life is influenced by natural impulses and so reflects a willing choice. Friedan discussed the problem of reconciling the achievement of personhood with the need for love. Friedan’s emphasis on the continuing and central importance of the family in women’s life has been criticised by radical feminists as contributing to a mystique of motherhood.

Radical feminists disagree that men and women are different, but see this not as a lean towards the family but as a lean away from men. Their acceptance of unalterable differences has led towards cultural feminism, a retreat from the corrupt, aggressive male world of political activism into an apolitical, women-centered culture and life-style.

As the first feminists text was by the liberal feminist. Many Wollstonecraft and the first wave of feminism was heavily influenced by liberal feminism, it can be argued that liberal feminism is the mother of feminism and its ideas. As radical feminism began in the 1960s, it can be seen as the child of liberal feminism began in the 1960s it can be seen as the child of liberal feminism, building it on its predecessor’s ideas. In this sense the similarities between the two come from the common goals at the heart of feminism and their differences are part of the growth of feminism as it built and strengthened its ideas beyond that of other ideologies. Radical feminism symbolises the development of feminism and its ability to stand on its own as an ideology rather than draw from other ideologies as it had done with liberal feminism.