Cultural Theory: Materialist Feminism (part 1)

College course lecture on materialist feminism.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Materialist
• Feminism
• Ron
• Strickland

[bloominton]

Great lectures, prof! The distinction among these various feminisms are pretty clear to me now. But I was wondering how radical feminists intend to eradicate the existing structures (patriarchy) that impede their over all mission. Also, would you say that materialist feminist would ok gay mariages (with gender being social construct)? By a former student.

[rlstrick]

Thanks for your response. I think you're the first of my former students to post! I think radical feminists seek to build a parallel set of separatist social structures that can compete with patriarchy's sociocultural power. I'm not sure about economic power. An example of this strategy might be Mary Daly's courses at Boston College, where she denied admission to male students.

[rlstrick]

I think the most logically consistent materialist position on gay marriage is anticipated by Engels, who argued against "straight" marriage. "Marriage" as an institution is designed to protect patriarchy and patrimonial inheritance rights, and it inhibits free association. If no "marriage" of this sort was legally privileged, people could form associations for useful functions such as mutual support, child-raising, etc.

[1nceuponathyme]

Thank you so much for making this video lecture! This is a very welcome change from the blogs about feminism I have seen so far.

[rlstrick]

Thanks for your note. I'm glad you found it useful. As you probably noticed, it leaves a lot unsaid. When I get around to it, I'm going to add a "Part II" about more recent materialist feminist theory (esp. Kuhn and Wolpe, Rosemary Hennessy), 3rd-Wave feminism etc.

[Verlch]

Not too many Americans like Marxism, but dress it up as liberalism peddling the same ends, and presto, you have millions of followers.

[mothartrucker]

God I hate ism's

[7kurisu]

@Verlch liberalism is ultimately happy with capitalism, albeit with a system of government checks and balances on the free market. marxism implies that capitalist structures are inherently flawed, not an end in themselves. being a liberal seems to correlate positively with an increase in belt size.

[curiouscrutiny]

@rlstrick wow thats an amazing idea

[Haminette]

@clarkewi Why do non-poor people always have that ignorant assumption that being poor equates to being stupid, criminal, and/or unhappy? The only truth to that is when saying it to poor people causes them to think, feel, and act that way when they otherwise would have more comfortably settled into a less materialistic life. Stop spitting on poor people.

[ballatore]

@onemansrage you took the words right out of my mouth

[onemansrage]

More & more young men are opting out of marriage than ever before because there is no benefit in it. This is where men have power & will create true equality that women don’t want. Never marry, move in with or get her pregnant & she will have ZERO power over you. The courts that have supported female abuse of men & boys cant touch you if you follow these 3 simple rules. This cuts off their meal ticket & your wallet from their grasp. Now just sit back and let em bitch & scream all they want.

[clarkewi]

Feminism has created the welfare state as women breed with multiple partners for cash. The corporate state has sponsered the welfare state as a compromise with the working class but has run out of resources and finds itself in crises. This occured through dialectical materialism and its inherent contradictions. The result is a criminal class of morons ripe for recruitment into gangs, nihilism or Islamic fascism. Critical theory is itself bourguois self indulgence - a hystrionic dead end.

[amerrychristmas]

The terrible truth:

watch?v=JRVqaxk3TJ4

[tothemax01]

Having a well-developed marxist rhetoric is no substitute for a philosophy that correlates with reality, toad. Men and women are biologically different, to the extend that we are capable of perceiving the difference, which is the origin of the terms 'man and women'. To claim that the only difference is that one happens to have a penis and the other a vagina and womb, is deliberate anti-realist insanity.

But then again, that's what Marxism is all about.

[samsonlovesyou]

@rlstrick So is the distinguishing factor between radical and Marxist feminists that radical feminists believe that patriarchy can only be overcome via new superstructures, whilst Marxist feminists believe that the economic base which gives rise to those superstructures must be overcome first? (Presumably because the superstructure will only develop in the same manner once more if the economic base isn't addressed?