feminist standpoint theor

To explain the social consequences of feminist standpoint theory, I must first explain what feminist standpoint theory is. As an epistemological theory, feminist standpoint theory focuses on how one’s gender shapes her knowledge. “A feminist standpoint grows out of (that is, it is shaped by, rather than essentially given) the social location of women’s lives. Feminist standpoint can, but does not necessarily arise from being female,” (Wood, 2012, p. 62). The feminist standpoint theory was developed by Dorothy Smith (1987), Hillary Rose (1983), Patricia Hill Collins (1986), Donna Haraway (1988, 1997), Sandra Harding (1991, 1993) and Nancy Hartsock (1983) (Wood, 2009). This theory identifies the cultural values and power dynamics that continue to subordinate women. The theory also highlights the conditions and experiences that are common to women, which are experienced through typical female activities, such as domestic work and caregiving (Wood, 2012).

Feminism is divided into segments, including, but not limited to: liberal feminism against gender in equality, radical feminism against women’s oppression by men, socialist feminism against the exploitation of women’s and men’s labor postmodernist feminism against the mystification of gender narratives and postcolonial feminism, which is against the colonization of the third-world woman (Rakow and Nastasia, 2009, p. 254). Liberal feminism is the predominant feminist viewpoint of the Western world. Both women and men can derive value from understanding feminist standpoint theory and patriarchal hierarchies. The feminist standpoint theory aims to promote understanding that a “woman” is not just a body, but also is an unheard voice in a “man’s world” (p. 267). The overall problem is that historically, scholars have focused on how women can speak in “fathertounge” rather than finding a way to ensure there is value in “mothertounge” (p. 268). This is referred to as the bifurcated consciousness. This discourse has created a patriarchal point-of-view, in which women speak from unknowingly. The bottom line is that this theory believes it’s a man’s world, in which men’s language is preferred (Rakow and Nastasia, 2009).

The social consequences of feminist standpoint theory have the potential to be tremendous, as this theory questions the idea of an essential truth and hegemonic reality. While I believe feminist standpoint theory offers many benefits to society, some forms of feminism can be harmful if they’ve been built on an ideological foundation that is anti-male. Men and women should be equal and radical feminism can be dangerous if it promotes benefits to women at the detriment of men. Additionally, I get concerned with over-rotation on the #metoo movement. As I mention in another post about #metoo, this movement serves to discontinue sexual harassment in the workplace, which is needed. However, I’ve heard of a few cases in which an accuser has taken the accusations too far, seeking retribution for seemingly innocuous acts. One example that comes to mind is the accusation against Aziz Ansari, in which a woman whom he went on a date with accused him of sexual assault. The woman says that Aziz ignored her signals that she didn’t want to have sex, but he still asked her to have sex, ignoring her silent signals. Aziz says that he was under the impression that everything was consensual, and they both concur that they didn’t have sex. In this instance I question, was this a normal date in which a male wanted to have sex, the female didn’t and then the date ended? It seems as if this wasn’t sexual assault, but rather a date gone wrong. I don’t want to dismiss her experience, but I worry that society will over rotate and move into a position in which an inadvertent wrong move or advance could be misinterpreted. I am a feminist female, and I strongly believe that sexual assault and harassment is a serious issue. I am the mother of teenage girl and a teenage boy. I don’t want either of them to experience sexual harassment on either end of the spectrum, from the perspective of conducting a inappropriate act or being the recipient of one. I also am concerned that as they navigate the murky waters of dating, that an innocuous advance could be misinterpreted as harassment. Balance is necessary in feminism to ensure equality for all.