Feminism and the Contradictions of Oppression


Book Description

"Feminism has been enormously successful since the 1960s in revealing the ways in which exercise over woman. But as feminism has grown, it has become increasingly divided: white from black, first world from third world, working class from middle class, lesbian from heterosexuals. In this thought-provoking book, Caroline Ramazanoglu presents a scholarly but sympathetic evaluation of the problems inherent in feminist theory and politics. She examines the theoretical divisions in feminism with great sensitivity and insight, and concludes that the divisions between women have arisen for good reason: women do have contradictory interests. Ramazanoglu argues clearly and powerfully that an escape from this impasse is possible if feminism can work positively with the contradiction in feminist politics, and focus on liberation rather than oppression." -- Back cover.




Marxism and the Oppression of Women


Book Description

Nearly thirty years after its initial publication, Marxism and the Oppression of Women remains an essential contribution to the development of an integrative theory of gender oppression under capitalism. Lise Vogel revisits classical Marxian texts, tracking analyses of “the woman question” in socialist theory and drawing on central theoretical categories of Marx's Capital to open up an original theorisation of gender and the social production and reproduction of material life. Included in this edition are Vogel's article, “Domestic Labor Revisited” (originally published in Science & Society in 2000) which extends and clarifies her main theoretical innovations, and a new Introduction by Susan Ferguson and David McNally situating Vogel's work in the trajectory of Marxist-feminist thought over the past forty years.




Social Reproduction Theory


Book Description

Crystallizing the essential principles of social reproductive theory, this anthology provides long-overdue analysis of everyday life under capitalism. It focuses on issues such as childcare, healthcare, education, family life, and the roles of gender, race, and sexuality--all of which are central to understanding the relationship between exploitation and social oppression. Tithi Bhattacharya brings together some of the leading writers and theorists, including Lise Vogel, Nancy Fraser, and Susan Ferguson, in order for us to better understand social relations and how to improve them in the fight against structural oppression.




Black Feminist Thought


Book Description

In spite of the double burden of racial and gender discrimination, African-American women have developed a rich intellectual tradition that is not widely known. In Black Feminist Thought, Patricia Hill Collins explores the words and ideas of Black feminist intellectuals as well as those African-American women outside academe. She provides an interpretive framework for the work of such prominent Black feminist thinkers as Angela Davis, bell hooks, Alice Walker, and Audre Lorde. The result is a superbly crafted book that provides the first synthetic overview of Black feminist thought.




Feminism and the Contradictions of Oppression


Book Description

Feminism and the Contradictions of Oppression is a penetrating and comprehensive study of the development of feminism over the last thirty years. The first part of this major new textbook examines feminist theory and feminist political strategy. The second section examines how contradictions of class, race, subculture and sexuality divide women. The final part explores ways out of the impasse. This level-headed and challenging book is one of the most notable contributions to feminism in recent years.




Living With Contradictions


Book Description

This book explores some of the moral and public policy issues that divide Western, especially North American, feminists as the twentieth century ends and the twenty-first century begins. It represents an in-house discussion among feminists and their social ethics.




Marx, Women, and Capitalist Social Reproduction


Book Description

In Marx, Women and Capitalist Social Reproduction, Martha E. Gimenez offers a distinctive perspective on social reproduction which posits that the relations of production determine the relations of social reproduction, and links the effects of class exploitation and location to forms of oppression predominantly theorised in terms of identity. Grounding her analysis on Marx’s theory and methodology, Gimenez examines the relationship between class, reproduction and the oppression of women in different contexts such as the reproduction of labour power, domestic labour, feminisation of poverty, and reproductive technologies. Because most women and men, whether members of dominant or oppressed groups, are working class, she argues that the future of feminist politics is inextricably tied to class politics and the fate of capitalism.




The Feminism of Uncertainty


Book Description

The Feminism of Uncertainty brings together Ann Snitow’s passionate, provocative dispatches from forty years on the front lines of feminist activism and thought. In such celebrated pieces as "A Gender Diary"—which confronts feminism’s need to embrace, while dismantling, the category of "woman"—Snitow is a virtuoso of paradox. Freely mixing genres in vibrant prose, she considers Angela Carter, Doris Lessing, and Dorothy Dinnerstein and offers self-reflexive accounts of her own organizing, writing, and teaching. Her pieces on international activism, sexuality, motherhood, and the waywardness of political memory all engage feminism’s impossible contradictions—and its utopian hopes.




Feminist Methodology


Book Description

`An accessible, clearly explained review of difficult concepts within this arena as well as relevant debates. Its strengths are in outlining possible considerations that need to be taken into account when making methodological choices. It also clearly explains how these choices impact knowledge production. This book would undoubtedly be of considerable use to anyone seeking to understand and get to grips with feminist methodological issues′ - Feminism and Psychology Who would be a feminist now? Contemporary ′political realism′ suggests that the essentials of the battle have already been won, and the current generation of women entering University is used to seeing feminism presented as ′old fashioned′, ′extreme′ and ′unrealistic′. Challenging such assumptions, this important new book argues for the value of empirical investigations of gendered life, and brings together the theoretical, political and practical aspects of feminist methodology. Feminist Methodology - demonstrates how feminist approaches to methodology engage with debates in western philosophy to raise critical questions about knowledge production - shows that feminist methodology has a distinctive place in social research - guides the reader through the terrain of feminist methodology and clarifies how feminists can claim knowledge of gendered social existence - connects abstract issues of theory with issues in fieldwork practice. This timely and accessible book will be an essential resource for students in women′s studies, gender studies, sociology, cultural studies, social anthropology and feminist psychology.




Feminist Theory


Book Description

When Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center was first published in 1984, it was welcomed and praised by feminist thinkers who wanted a new vision. Even so, individual readers frequently found the theory "unsettling" or "provocative." Today, the blueprint for feminist movement presented in the book remains as provocative and relevant as ever. Written in hooks's characteristic direct style, Feminist Theory embodies the hope that feminists can find a common language to spread the word and create a mass, global feminist movement.