Assess the contribution of feminist theorists and researchers to an understanding of society today Feminism comes in different forms such as liberal feminists, radical feminist, Marxist feminists, black feminists, dual-systems feminism, difference feminism and poststructuralism. Feminist theorists such as Sue Sharpe, Becky Francis, Judith Butler and so forth have contributed to giving us an understanding of society today. Gender inequality has become more aware in today’s society and has majorly changed over recent years such as girls overtaking boys at school and men and women still do not occupy equal positions in society. Without feminism people of society today wouldn’t have realised girl’s ambitions changing and how girls got treated differently and this wouldn’t have changed if feminists took a note and researched this further. So this has contributed to how we see society today, people notice girls doing better in school and genuinely how people see education.
Sharpe’s believe this could be because of the changing attitudes of society in general towards women and the impact of feminism. Mitsos and Browne (1998) say that the service sector which is traditionally seen as women’s work has expanded. Employers usually like women in this sector as they have good communication skills and the rise in the employment of women has given girls the incentive to do well at school. Mac and Ghaill claim that the decline in male employment opportunities has led to an ‘Crisis of Masculinity’ as many boys now believe they have a less chance in a getting a proper job. This undermines their motivation and self-esteem therefore they give up on trying to do well in education and have a fatalistic attitude towards it.
While Wollstonecraft talks about co-education, one can infer that women are at least educated on a basic level. Pizan lives in a society where royalty is still prevalent and societies’ thinking is very narrow. The era that Pizan lives in is very uneducated and women are looked as not having a life unless it benefits the man. Although Wollstonecraft parallels to that in a way, one can tell that women have a greater importance in her time period. Many debates have happened whether or not these women approach feminism for their time period.
Hence, the women who Hebson interviewed were more likely to give answers that were more in depth and valid. However, Hebson's research method can be criticised by positivists for being unscientific as they argue that unstructured interviews lack a number of characteristics which they see as essential in scientific research, such as reliability and objectivity. Hebson's unstructured interviews may lack reliability as each woman that she interviewed is different and it depends on the unique relationship established between the interviewer and interviewee. Her research cannot be replicated by another sociologist. Hebson's research methods may lack objectivity as she had a personal relationship with the interviewees.
Due to the limited amount of resources and the restrictions laid upon women for practicing rhetoric, it is astonishing how many women were still able to make a significant impact on the field of rhetoric which I feel has paved the way for women’s liberations rights today. Christine de Pizan portrayed the art of rhetoric through language and letter writing as she challenged the boundaries of women’s input at the time. She sought to save the reputation of women, who at the time were being slandered and shine a new spotlight for women’s advancement. It is imperative that more time and space be dedicated to Christine De Pizan in Herricks textbook of rhetoric and many more to follow. Christine De Pizan is a brave woman who stood up to the verbal assaults on women in the 14th century.
Unfortunately the recent report tells us that only by 2095 we can achieve the full gender equality on the workplace. However, of course, we could try and shorten that time. It is obviously important to have not only males in the business world, because this way we miss out on many opportunities that women could bring to the world, due to the different perception of values. When for example men are driven by mostly material success, women tend to build up relationships and friendly environment on the workplace. However, sometimes emotions and nurturing can affect the business in a negative manner.
A Closer Look Into the Middle Ages During the Middle Ages, in a time where religion dictated society, women were affected greatly. They were restricted in numerous ways having strict policies pertaining to music, ministry, education, and their role in their communities minimizing their opportunities to reach their full potential. Nevertheless, many distinguished women found ways to prosper. One women in particular, Hildegard von Bingen, had a different perspective and attempted to break this gender barrier that women in the middle ages dared to overcome. The Medieval period was a time where men were perceived as superior in comparison to women.
As such, it moves beyond the scope of one's own interests and takes into account the interests of others.” (Cavalier, 2002) With the Women’s Rights Movement, there were a lot of pros and cons that can about, mostly positives. Women are now seen in a different light after a long deliberation and fighting. Most of the country is more so scared of the fact women are rising from the wood works. They are taking charge of positions and moving on and changing this societies culture. Culture is the “particular ways of belief in society and ways of life; a way of thinking, behaving, or working
The movement for more rights for women had to begin somewhere for there could be a change in the future. Women are now able to explore more options for them. Women were not confined to become only teachers or nurses anymore. We can become whatever it is that we inspire to become. Women today are grateful for the women of the past.
Body dissatisfaction is a major impetus for surgical enhancement. The more a woman is unhappy with her physical looks the more likely she is to get an enhancement procedure. The other body image driving force is appearance investment. Many women want to do it for themselves and or for social reasons. These women feel that appearance is important to their self worth.