Stevie Jackson, "Feminist Social Theory" (Summary)

• Feminist social theory examines societal differences between men and women, arguing they stem from factors like money, politics, and societal structures.
• Initially based on social sciences, feminists now focus on literature and culture, examining how women are depicted in media.
• Feminism and Marxism have been intertwined since the 1970s and early 1980s, with Marxism focusing on how rich people exploit poor people in capitalism.
• Debates on whether capitalism or male dominance (patriarchy) is the main reason for women's unfair treatment led to debates on the origin of patriarchy.
• Feminists have long debated the history of patriarchy, with some believing it is a constant issue, while others believe it has evolved over time.
• In the 1980s, feminist ideas began moving away from material things like money and work, focusing on how women's work and jobs differ from men's, and how capitalism and male dominance are connected.
• French feminist Christine Delphy suggested that housework occurs because families are set up with men controlling women's work, leading to some Marxist feminists angry.
• Heidi Hartmann and Sylvia Walby explored the idea that patriarchy is a separate system of inequality alongside capitalism, with men controlling women's work.
• Despite some Marxist feminists arguing that class relations are the most important factor in understanding women's situation, others see patriarchy and male dominance as tangled up with modern capitalist societies.

Marxist Feminism and Reproduction
• Marxist feminists have emphasized women's subordination in terms of reproduction, a topic of debate since the debate about housework.
• Critics argue that this idea can be reduced to biology, ignoring the complex nature of society.
• Some feminists, like Rosin McDonough and Rachel Harrison, argue that patriarchy comes from men controlling women's sexuality and ability to have kids, dividing women into two groups: those who had kids to pass down property and those who had kids to make future workers.
• Some feminists are cautious about focusing solely on reproduction and leaving out the importance of work and class relations.

Influence of Catharine MacKinnon, Catharine MacKinnon, and Monica Wittig
• MacKinnon, MacKinnon, and Wittig have contributed to feminist theories and politics, shaping discussions on women's bodily experiences, feminist Queer theories, and radical feminist theories of sexuality.

Shift in Ideology and Culture towards Language, Discourse, and Representation
• The shift in ideology and culture towards language, discourse, and representation has been influenced by Marxist feminists.
• The addition of Michel Foucault's ideas led to a view of power as diffuse and discourse-driven, challenging essentialist notions of gender.

Critiques of Postmodern Theorizing
• Critics from black women, Third World women, and women of color highlighted the limitations of feminist analyses framed predominantly from a white Western perspective.
• Some feminists have reasserted the importance of structural inequalities, with the term "materialist feminism" revitalized by American theorists like Rosemary Hennessy and Donna Landry.

Feminist Research and Postmodernism
• Feminist research continues to explore gendered labor markets, power dynamics within families, and the intersections of sexuality and work.
• Materialist analyses remain relevant for grappling with systematic inequalities in today's world marked by globalization and post-colonial legacies.