Marx

Can a Marxist theory of class successfully explain gender inequality?

Social Class Inequalities

The main reason for social class inequalities in the private ownership is because of the means of production. Gender oppression is class oppression and women's subordination is seen as a form of class oppression which is maintained because it serves the interests of capital and the ruling class. The means of production include the key resources such as land, property and factories which are necessary to produce goods within society. So because of this an individual’s social class is defined by whether or not he or she owes the means of production. Marx outlined two basic social classes in the capitalist industrial society which he called the bourgeoisie which was the class of owners of the means of production. The other social class was the proletariat which is the working class who didn’t own anything. This resulted in the working class having no alternative means of livelihood but to work for the bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie made profits out of the working class by keeping the wages low which exploited them. The bourgeoisie were allowed to decide were factories should be located and whether they should be opened or closed.

Marx Feminism

The whole idea of Marxist feminism is a theory that looks at the decrease of capitalism as a way to liberate women. Capitalism is the cause of women’s oppression in society today. The reason being is that capitalism promotes unhealthy social relations between men and women as well as economic inequality because men for example earn more money than women in certain jobs today.

Marx on gender inequality

The conceptualisations of Marx are relevant to the view that the development of capitalism has included certain structures that help explain various forms of gender inequality. Marx didn’t address the specific issues of gender inequality in the same way as he did on class because of the issue of time and the issues that were seen as secondary. The reason being is that the issue of gender inequality was seen as secondary to broader class issues. The experience of gender is varies by the constant changing nature of gender relations. There is no theoretical link between gender and class so they can be analysed separately.

Gender inequality

Gender inequality involves the understanding not only of the power differences between men and women but of how these power relations result in gender stratification within the larger institutions