Feminism

V

Recent Developments

Feminism has often been criticized as Eurocentric—focused on European and North American culture—by black women and by women in the developing world. For example, Indian critic Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak has accused Anglo-American feminist theorists of making women of the developing world “the Other” by imposing Western perspectives on them. However, women from non-Western cultures have taken up feminist ideas and accommodated them to their own situations. For example, some black feminists have developed a perspective which takes account of the fact that they are doubly marginalized, by race and by sex.

By contrast, some Asian, Caribbean, and African American feminists have developed politics which draw on their ethnic origins as a source of strength. Feminism in Latin America has looked at oppression across gender, class, and racial lines, although it has recently begun to focus more closely on women’s issues. In Islamic countries a secular, liberal feminism has developed that seeks to eliminate discrimination against women and to outlaw practices such as polygyny (multiple wives), purdah (seclusion in the home), and limitation of the right of divorce to the husband. In India, feminists have organized opposition to the dowry system and subsequent “dowry deaths,” where continuing demands of the groom’s family are not met and result in the murder of the bride.

Lesbian writers have argued that feminism has not paid attention to their specific needs. American poet Adrienne Rich has been influential in developing lesbian feminist theory by arguing that heterosexuality is a construct imposed upon women through which men control women’s role in reproduction and render lesbians invisible. Like some black feminists, Rich has argued for the political importance of asserting one’s own identity.

Another variety of feminist thought, particularly strong in the United Kingdom, is Marxist-feminist theory. This extends the theories of production expounded by German social theorists Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels to an examination of the economic and material exploitation of women, the sexual division of labor, especially in domestic work and childcare, and women’s inequality within the workplace. In the United States a similar position is taken up by materialist feminists, who argue that women as a class are oppressed by material conditions and social relations.

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In recent years, feminist thinking has had to react against the concept of post-feminism, which argues that women have achieved full equality and that there is no need for further activism. It has also had to tackle the phenomenon of backlash, as identified by feminists such as American writer Susan Faludi. This backlash is seen as an attempt by men (and women) in American and British political life and other arenas to reverse the achievements of feminism, for example, by launching renewed moral crusades against abortion and the single-parent family.

VI

Impact of Feminist Thought

Feminist thinking has succeeded in drawing public attention to inequality between women and men and to the structures within society that belittle and work against women. It has led to a reconsideration of women’s role in the workplace, resulting in policies that promote equal pay and equal opportunities. And it has identified and tackled the problem of sexual harassment at work. Feminism has also succeeded in challenging perceptions of women’s skills, with the result that some women are entering nontraditional areas of female employment such as the construction industry.

Feminism has influenced culture, resulting in greater coverage of women’s interests and concerns, particularly by the mass media. Feminist thinking has adapted and diversified to tackle new issues, including AIDS (see Acquired Immunodeficiency Disease Syndrome), homophobia (prejudice against homosexuals), technology, and warfare. Some feminists have combined feminist ideas with pacifist and environmental ideologies to condemn nuclear weapons and criticize new technologies. These include reproductive technologies (see In vitro fertilization) and surrogate motherhood, which are regarded as means by which men exert control over women’s bodies.

Feminist thinking has had a powerful influence upon many academic disciplines, including anthropology, sociology, psychology, literary criticism, history, theology, and the sciences. Feminist scholars are undertaking research that draws attention to neglected female concerns, and they are exposing the patriarchal assumptions that underlie traditional approaches to scholarship.

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