Gender, Sex, and the Challenge of Feminism - 2690 Words

Gender, sex, and the challenge of feminism As with considerations of race, feminism raises issues for political philosophy not only deserve several book-length treatments (rather than the chapter section it will get here), but also arguably should infuse all aspects of political thought. Feminists have plausibly claimed that considerations of gender and gender-related inequalities play a role in the most basic dynamics of social life – in the structure of families, defining identities and opportunities for self-fulfillment, in creating roles and expectations regarding intimate relations, and the like – so that attention to such inequalities is central to the examination of social life and political institutions. What follows, then, is a very selective discussion of some of the ways that feminism raises fundamental issues which force a basic alteration and reconstruction (and some would argue wholesale rejection) of mainstream liberal political theories. There are many kinds of feminisms and the differences among them are as philosophically interesting as are their similarities. In the present discussion, feminism refers generally to a perspective on society, on social relations, and on oneself; it is a perspective that puts the viewpoint and needs of women, and in particular the inequalities and injustices that have involved and do still involve women in society, at center stage. More than a set of shared beliefs or principles, feminism is an orientation characterized byShow MoreRelatedFeminism Challenges Male Domination Of The Institutions Of Law And The State1574 Words   |  7 Pages2. Feminism challenges male domination of the institutions of law and the state. Discuss. Feminism is the firm belief in economic, social and political equality of the sexes. The controversy regarding the status of women ages back to the Ancient Greeks. 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