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FEMINISM, LIBERAL. Emphasizing equal individual rights and ...

FEMINISM, LIBERAL 333. "Thinking Sex: Notes for a Radical Theory of the Politics of Sexuality." In Carole S. Vance, ed., Plea- sure and Danger: Exploring Female Sexuality. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1984, 267-319. Reprinted in Henry Abelove, Michkle Aina Barale, and David Halperin, eds., The Lesbian and Gay Studies Reader. New York: Routledge, 1993, 3-44; and Peter M. Nardi and Beth E. Schneider, eds., Social Perspectives in Lesbian and Gay Studies. New York: Routledge, 1998, 100-133; Rubin, Gayle. "The Traffic in Women: Notes on the 'Political Economy' of Sex." In Rayna Reiter, ed., Toward an An- thropology of York: Monthly Review Press, 1975, 157-210. Reprinted in Linda Nichol- son, ed., The Second Wave: A Reader in Feminist Theory. New York: Routledge, 1997,27-62; Segal, Lynne, and Mary McIntosh, eds. Sex Exposed: Sexuality and the Pornography Debate. New Brunswick, : Rutgers University Press, 1993; Smith, Barbara, and Beverly Smith.

avoid the promotion of particular conceptions of the good life for either men or women, in- ... Liberal feminists reject utopian visions of an ideal society in favor of one that ... Women could enjoy a family with children but needed to get in-

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Transcription of FEMINISM, LIBERAL. Emphasizing equal individual rights and ...

1 FEMINISM, LIBERAL 333. "Thinking Sex: Notes for a Radical Theory of the Politics of Sexuality." In Carole S. Vance, ed., Plea- sure and Danger: Exploring Female Sexuality. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1984, 267-319. Reprinted in Henry Abelove, Michkle Aina Barale, and David Halperin, eds., The Lesbian and Gay Studies Reader. New York: Routledge, 1993, 3-44; and Peter M. Nardi and Beth E. Schneider, eds., Social Perspectives in Lesbian and Gay Studies. New York: Routledge, 1998, 100-133; Rubin, Gayle. "The Traffic in Women: Notes on the 'Political Economy' of Sex." In Rayna Reiter, ed., Toward an An- thropology of York: Monthly Review Press, 1975, 157-210. Reprinted in Linda Nichol- son, ed., The Second Wave: A Reader in Feminist Theory. New York: Routledge, 1997,27-62; Segal, Lynne, and Mary McIntosh, eds. Sex Exposed: Sexuality and the Pornography Debate. New Brunswick, : Rutgers University Press, 1993; Smith, Barbara, and Beverly Smith.

2 "Across the Kitchen Table: A. Sister-to-Sister Dialogue." In Gloria Anzaldfia and Cherrie Moraga, eds., This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color. New York: Kitchen Table, 1981, 113-27; Snitow, Ann, Christine Stansell, and Sharon Thompson, eds. Powers of Desire: The Politics of Sexuality. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1983; Stein, Arlene, ed. Sisters, Sexperts, and Queers: Beyond Lesbian Nation. New York: Plume, 1993; Trujillo, Carla Mari, ed. Chicana Lesbians: The Girls Our Mothers Warned Us About. Berkeley, Calif.: Third Woman Press, 1991; Wittig, Monique. The Lesbian Body. Trans. David Le Vay. Boston, Mass.: Beacon Press, 1973; Young, Iris Marion. Throwing Like a Girl and Other Es- says in Feminist Philosophy and Social Theory. Bloornington: Indiana University Press, 1990; Zim- merman, Bonnie, and Toni A. H. McNaron, eds. The New Lesbian Studies: Into the Twenty-First Century.

3 New York: Feminist Press at CUNY, 1996; Zita, Jacquelyn N. Body Talk: Philosophical Re- flections on Sex and Gender. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998. FEMINISM, LIBERAL. Emphasizing equal individual rights and liberties for women and men and downplaying sexual differences, liberal feminism is the most widely accepted social and political philosophy among feminists. Liberal feminists defend the equal ration- ality of the sexes and emphasize the importance of structuring social, familial, and sexual roles in ways that promote women's autonomous self-fulfillment. They emphasize the sim- ilarities between men and women rather than the average differences between them, attrib- ute most of the personality and character differences between the sexes to the social construction of gender, and tend to promote a single set of androgynous virtues for both women and men. While rejecting strong claims of sexual difference that might underwrite different and potentially hierarchical rights and social roles, liberal feminists otherwise avoid the promotion of particular conceptions of the good life for either men or women, in- stead defending a broad sphere of neutrality and privacy within which individuals may pursue forms of life most congenial to them.

4 While liberal feminists acknowledge that some choices made by women are questionable because conditioned by sexist social prac- tices, they also tend to avoid maternalism and any second-guessing of those choices made without coercion,or threats. Fully informed and mentally competent adult women are as- sumed to be the final judges,of their own best interests. Thus liberal feminists tend to resist legislative intervention that would gainsay the judgment of women. The preeminence of this perspective owes much to the fact that it encompasses a wide range of related but distinct views that fit comfortably within the framework of political liberalism. It does not fundamentally challenge capitalism or heterosexuality; nor does it recommend separatism, as do more radical feminists. Instead, it aims to extend the full range of freedoms in a liberal democratic society to women, criticizing practices that deny women equal protection under the law as well as laws that de facto discriminate against women.

5 Liberal feminists reject utopian visions of an ideal society in favor of one that eliminates coercion and promotes autonomous choices among all its citizens. 334 FEMINISM, LIBERAL. With regard to sexuality, liberal feminism maintains the tradition of liberalism, valuing some B. personal privacy and autonomy in ways that appear, to some, to conflict with the goal of nism ex eradicating sexist norms. For example, liberal feminists tend to adopt a libertarian or pub- works c lic health approach regarding commercial sexual many liberal feminists re- Women ject calls to criminalize or even condemn prostitution and pornography when those who journali participate in their manufacture and consumption do so without coercion. They defend this had a p position by citing privacy but also by invoking the inherent value of autonomous choice. vote ant Liberal feminists defend the liberty to decide on one's sexual orientation, partners, and law.

6 Hc practices as beyond the reach of law. They s~. Liberal feminism has its roots in the writings of, among others, Mary Wollstonecraft encing (1759-1797), John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), and Harriet Taylor Mill (1807-1858). Many tending writers prior to Wollstonecraft, such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau (17 12-1778), had explic- person2. itly argued that men and women were by nature not merely different in kind but different volved in "natural rank,'' with women being weaker physically, intellectually, and emotionally life anc (358-61). Men were said to be more rational, women more emotional; their respective educa- Friec tions should reflect these differences. A few philosophers, such as John Locke (1632-1704), that als had argued that the sexes should receive the same education and that they shared equal not abc rights and responsibilities with respect to their children (see Some Thoughts, 14; Two Trea- erosexi tises, 303).

7 Nonetheless, these writers stopped short of defending complete sexual equality mistak~. (either for social roles or legal rights ), and putative sex differences have been, and in some later c;. parts of the world continue to be, the basis of laws denying women the right to retain prop- ceptin~. erty in marriage and the right to vote. a femi In Vindication of the rights of Woman,Wollstonecraft wrote that many of the supposed Folll differences between the sexes were either fabricated or exaggerated and therefore could particil not be used as the basis for differential rights and roles. Imposing different educational ex- were v pectations on men and women was not only unjust but also counterproductive, tending to based create less productive female citizens with "artificial, weak characters" (103). Both sexes, (1964). Wollstonecraft argued, have the capacity to reason; hence both should be educated as to ply for enhance their rationality, which she defined as the ability to act as fully responsible moral blende agents.

8 The realization of this ability would provide self-fulfillment for the moral agent sexual and benefit society. On this account, women needed to become more rational, but there was the id<. no reason for men to cultivate their emotions. ceived John Stuart Mill echoed Wollstonecraft's sentiments in The Subjection of Women led no (1869). He described sex roles as a kind of caste system in which women were assigned creasi~. lower status and restricted in what they were permitted to do simply because of their sex, liberal even though there were no categorical differences between the sexes that could justify it. wome This not only stunted the moral development of women but also denied them the self- suborc fulfillment that comes only with the freedom to pursue one's own good. Mill thought that of wo when provided with the same educational and civic opportunities that men had, most clear j women would choose to remain wives and mothers, improving domestic life for the family ity to ("The Essay by John Stuart Mill" [on marriage and divorce; 18321, Essays, 76-77; see and n James Fitzjames Stephen's [1829-18941 reply to Mill, 180-98).]]

9 Mill's future wife, Harriet moth Taylor [Mill], disagreed, arguing that women would choose to participate more fully in Un public life , going beyond simply voting and performing charity work. Women would wome choose to become the partners of men in productive industry and would have fewer chil- unlike dren ("The Essay by Harriet Taylor" [on marriage and divorce; 18321, Essays, 84-86). struct Feminists of all kinds continued to press for greater equality for women throughout the whick United States and Europe, culminating in the right to vote for Russian women in 1918, whic'r FEMINISM, LIBERAL 335. some British women in 1918, and all adult women in 1920. American liberal femi- nism experienced a resurgence in the middle of the twentieth century with the popular works of Betty Friedan, who was the first president of the National Organization for Women (NOW, 1966) and co-founder in 1971 of Ms.]

10 Magazine with feminist activist and journalist Gloria Steinem. In The Feminine Mystique (1963), Friedan argued that women had a problem that "had no name" (15-32). Women in the United States had the right to vote and hold property and had achieved a significant degree of equal protection under the law. However, Friedan argued, they often led lives that were unfulfilling, if not stifling. They spent too much time polishing and organizing already clean and tidy homes, experi- encing boredom and anxiety as a result. Friedan urged women, once their children were at- tending school, to seek employment that would challenge their capacities and provide personal satisfaction. Women could enjoy a family with children but needed to get in- volved in pursuits outside the domestic sphere as soon as possible by entering into public life and paid employment. Friedan's early approach to the role of women in society is vulnerable to an objection that also plagues the views of Wollstonecraft and J.