An interdisciplinary study of gender and power in society is known as feminist sociology. Here, it observes gender in relation to power at the level of face-to-face interaction as well as reflexivity within broader social structures, using conflict theory and theoretical views. Race, nationality, economic status, and sexual orientation are among the topics covered.(Source: )
History of Feminist Sociology
The work of Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860–1935) contributed to the 1960s formalization of feminist thought. As a child, she defied social conventions by putting more of an emphasis on reading and acquiring subjects unrelated to those taught to housewives. Her primary concerns were the gender norms that society imposes on women and the gender gap that exists between men and women.
Men go to work to provide a stable income for the family, and women stay at home to care for the family and take care of the housework. She acknowledged that there is a biological difference between those who are born with female and male parts, but she “emphasized how differential socialization leads to gender inequality.”[/2]
Her research included some theoretical work using a multifaceted approach.
This is an illustration of a neurological theory that Sigmund Freud devised. It is developed through a psychoanalytic procedure known as the conscious and subconscious state of mind. The particular example provided would be categorized as belonging to false consciousness rather than the awareness that guides our day-to-day activities.
Economically, women were still reliant on their husbands to sustain their families and themselves financially, perpetuating the idea that women are their husbands’ property. Gilman also contended that women were compelled to do the customary division of labor because of societal structures that predate the nineteenth century, rather than because of biological considerations. Women’s everyday activities were greatly influenced by society.
Prior to the 1970s, sociological thought was predominantly androcentric; nevertheless, at that time, women started to receive more attention. John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law in the 1963s, making sex-based wage discrimination illegal (Grady).*[4]
One of the earliest ways that the United States started to change its perspective on women’s rights and how they should be treated in the workplace and in society at large was through the Equal Pay Act. Although the Equal Pay Act was only concerned with equal compensation for equal labor, regardless of gender, Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act was created to combat employment discrimination of all kinds.
The early 1990s saw a rise in the number of well-publicized cases of sexual harassment and abuse, which in turn encouraged more women to come out with their own experiences of harassment. Among these were the claims made by Anita Young that Justice Clarence Thomas had harassed her sexually.(7)
More women started to speak up when Thomas was confirmed as a justice on the Supreme Court in spite of these accusations. It was shown that “between 40 and 65 percent of women claim to have experienced sexual harassment on the job” (Sapiro) in surveys conducted following the hearings. This social revolution brought about a transformation in the way people felt about boundaries and bodily autonomy in the workplace and in general. Around the middle of the 1990s, women started to speak up.
Feminism and race
Numerous feminist sociologists contend that the expanding feminist movement can no longer ignore the intersectionality of women, particularly in relation to race. As a result of this perspective becoming more and more popular, transnational feminists have emerged to emphasize that feminism should not be viewed as a purely Western concept, but rather that it must be flexible enough to take into account the unique circumstances and complexities of various cultures and traditions.
In [9][10] Up until the second generation of feminists produced more writing on the subject of “black feminism,” the relationship between feminism and race was generally ignored.11] In order to explain the oppression of women of color, the second wave of feminists adopted a “new feminist theory” known as integrating race, gender, and class.
Due to the historical leadership of middle-class and upper-class women from mostly white backgrounds in the feminist and sociological movements, the social tendencies of these movements have largely ignored the problems encountered by women who do not fall into these stereotypes. Due in large part to ignorance of the concerns these women experience and the belief that the problems faced by white women in middle-class and upper-class homes are the problems of all women, intersectional women have had their issues ignored throughout the history of the feminist movement.
The concept of “solidarity” in relation to the overall representation of women in the Global South is a topic of continuous discussion in some circles of transnational feminism.In [15] There is a movement that has raised the subject.
Nonetheless, a number of African American women who work in the field of feminist theory have played a significant role in changing their respective fields. The groundbreaking 1989 paper “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory, and Antiracist Politics” (Crenshaw 1989) by Kimberlé Crenshaw made a significant addition to the area.(17)
She describes how black women have been left out of feminist pedagogy in it. It is important to recognize that black women possess numerous identities that cross and reinforce one other, encompassing the essential experiences of being both black and female. Moreover, black women face discrimination on two fronts: they are excluded by larger oppressive structures as well as by feminist language that ignores their intersectionality.
Feminism and Stratification
Various models are proposed to explain the connection between stratification and gender. One model that addresses the variations in behavior and attitude when referred to as male and female is the sex-differences model.18] Additionally, it is looking for the real difference that occurs when “socialization is removed” in its entirety.19] Many of the procedures that are necessary for regular socialization are the cause of the existing inequities.20] These procedures are eliminated, nevertheless.
Another paradigm is the sex-roles model, which uses socialization to try and understand gender differences and how individuals choose to identify in order to learn about gender roles, as opposed to ignoring it.19] Since it deviates from the accepted sociological “understanding of social dynamics,” some sociologists disagree with this sex-roles approach.
Feminism and queer theory
Among its many other critiques, contemporary queer theory aims to undermine the social and contextual factors that uphold heteronormativity by opposing coercive institutions and the conventional binary divisions between male and female. Feminism and queer theory, in this sense, tackle the same ways that women and LGBTQIA+ people are violently classified and removed from the social narrative by societal structures.
But during the research process, sociological feminism frequently perpetuates the gender binary “as the gendered subject is made the object of the study” (Martin 2016, 229). Comparatively, queer theory subverts conventional notions of gender by rejecting the concept that there is a binary distinction between male and female characteristics.In [9] Recently, McCann tackles the theoretical viewpoint and feminist sociology in “Epistemology of the Subject: Queer Theory’s Challenge to Feminist Sociology” [22].
Feminist critiques of multiculturalism
The claim that feminism is incompatible with multiculturalist policy has arisen from discussions within the field of ethnic relations, specifically pertaining to the conflicting viewpoints of assimilationism and multiculturalism.
Multiculturalism proponents are among the feminists’ numerous detractors. Some detractors contend that feminists should refrain from imposing their opinions on non-Western cultures, as doing so imposes Western concepts on them.
Although feminists worldwide claim that men abuse women in other nations, male leaders in those nations would defend their violation of women’s rights by claiming that it is a part of their culture (Moller Okin).23] Feminists don’t give a damn about the criticism they receive from foreign leaders and other nations. They think that it should be illegal for anyone to violate the rights of women.
Criticism of Feminist Sociology
Both men and women have voiced their dislike of feminism on several occasions. Support for feminist concepts is greater than the categorical definition of feminism. Feminists are often portrayed poorly in the media. feminists “are less often associated with day-to-day work/leisure activities of regular women.”Reference [25] Because men and women think feminists are attempting to put women at the top of everything, feminists are portrayed negatively.
Certain facets of feminism are opposed by feminists like Camille Paglia, Daphne Patai, and Jean Bethke Elshtain. Since it goes against all that feminism stands for, they are all against the prioritization of women’s interests over men’s.(26] Additionally, they think that radical feminism is bad for both men and women .
Anti-feminism
Opposition to feminism in any or all of its forms is known as anti-feminism.(28)
Since the 19th century, anti-feminism has existed, with its main focus being opposition to women’s suffrage. Women were encouraged to be given appropriate roles in the public domain and to stay completely out of other areas, such the political sphere.
Antifeminists later explored the idea that women had no place in higher education because the physical demands placed on them were too great for them to bear.29] Arguments were also made against women’s access to birth control, control over their sexuality, ability to serve on juries, ability to join labor unions, and ability to enter the workforce. The Supreme Court did not rule that women had the right to be chosen until 1975.
Feminism and Gender
Being a feminist has historically been associated with being a traditionally feminine role in America, at least since the First Wave of feminism began in 1848. Feminist women have faced labels such as “ugly,” “men haters,” and “always angry.”[/30] These prejudices are exclusively linked to women because it is uncommon for men to identify as feminists in the United States.
Although it began as a means of granting women gender equality, the feminist movement is not just for women. If men think that women should have the same rights as women, they might also be feminists.(31 )
Gender is a social construct that originates from societal conventions that are based on how people think a man or a woman should express themselves.33] The idea of linking gender, sexual, and racial identities originated with the third wave of feminism.33]
Most people can identify differently with their gender, and it is not always related to their sex. For the most part, gender is a matter of interpretation; thus, feminism and the manner in which a person chooses to identify as a feminist are also open to interpretation. When gender tried to explain why women held less authority than men, it was shown that women had feminine manners. This led to misogynistic beliefs that labeled women as “weak”.