Feminism and Socialism

Paper Summary:

This paper examines feminism in its historical context and then analyzes certain feminist critiques of socialism including Marx's theory that women's oppression stems from her inability to work and Engel's theory of the role of family in Marxist thought. It attempts to show how the two concepts are central to the question of whether feminist critiques render socialism redundant.

From the Paper:

"Second wave feminism coincided with revisionism, which attempted to question established theories by re evaluating them 'from below'. Up to this point history, social sciences and politics had been viewed 'from above', i.e. by looking at and from the middle class male perspective. Revisionists re interpreted the Russian Revolution from the point of view of the peasants and exposed the myth of the Blitz. Feminists demanded the same: analysis of those activities that were formerly seen as outside the realm of politics - including sexuality, motherhood and childrearing - by taking these apparently domestic issues into the public arena. Fairly early in the movement, feminism divided into two main groups: radical and liberal. "

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