Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women Global Women’s Issues and Knowledge

Volume 1 Ability—Education: Globalization Editorial Board

General Editors

Cheris Kramarae Dale Spender University of Oregon United States Australia

Topic Editors

ARTS AND LITERATURE HEALTH, REPRODUCTION, RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY Ailbhe Smyth AND SEXUALITY Sister Mary John Mananzan University College, Dublin Dianne Forte Saint Scholastica’s College, Ireland Boston Women’s Health Book Manila Collective Liz Ferrier United States University of Queensland SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Australia HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY Leigh Star CULTURE AND COMMUNICATION OF University of California, Angharad Valdivia Maggie Humm San Diego University of Illinois University of East London United States United States England

ECOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT VIOLENCE AND PEACE HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES Ingar Palmlund Evelyne Accad Joan Mencher Linköping University University of Illinois at Urbana- City University of New York Sweden Champaign United States ECONOMY AND DEVELOPMENT United States Cora V.Baldock POLITICS AND THE STATE Murdoch University Nira Yuval-Davis WOMEN’S STUDIES Australia University of Greenwich Caryn McTighe Musil EDUCATION England American Association of Gill Kirkup Shirin M.Rai Colleges and Universities, Open University University of Warwick Washington, D.C. England England United States

Honorary Editorial Advisory Board

Nirmala Banerjee Phyllis Hall Beth Stafford Charlotte Bunch Jenny Kien Chizuko Ueno Hilda Ching Theresia Sauter-Bailliet Gaby Weiner Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women

Global Women’s Issues and Knowledge

Volume 1 Ability—Education: Globalization

Cheris Kramarae and Dale Spender General Editors

Routledge New York • London NOTICE Some articles in the Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women relate to physical and mental health; nothing in these articles, singly or collectively, is meant to replace the advice and expertise of physicians and other health professionals. Some articles relate to law and legal matters; nothing in any of these articles is meant to replace the advice and expertise of lawyers and other legal professionals.

Published in 2000 by Routledge 29 West 35 Street New York, NY 10001

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group

This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2003.

Copyright © 2000 Routledge

Published in Great Britain by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane London EC4P 4EE

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in an form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Routledge international encyclopedia of women: global women’s issues and knowledge/general editors, Cheris Kramarae, Dale Spender. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-415-92088-4 (set)—ISBN 0-415-92089-2 (v.1)— ISBN 0-415-92090-6 (v.2)—ISBN 0-415-92091-4 (v.3)— ISBN 0-415-92092-2 (v.4) 1. Women—Encyclopedias. 2. Feminism—Encyclopedias. I. Title: International encyclopedia of women. II. Kramarea, Cheris. III. Spender, Dale. HQ1115 .R69 2000 305.4′03–dc21 00–045792

ISBN 0-203-80094-X Master e-book ISBN

ISBN 0-203-80097-4 (Adobe eReader Format) ISBN 0-415-92088-4 (4-volume set) ISBN 0-415-92089-2 (volume 1) ISBN 0-415-92090-6 (volume 2) ISBN 0-415-92091-4 (volume 3) ISBN 0-415-92092-2 (volume 4) Contents

Editorial Board ii Alphabetical List of Articles vii Topical List of Articles xv Contributors xxv Project Staff liii Introduction lv The Encyclopedia 1 Index

v

Alphabetical List of Articles

Ability Armament and militarization Christianity Abortion Art practice: Feminist Christianity: Feminist Christology Abuse Assertiveness training Christianity: Status of women Activism Autobiographical criticism in the church Adolescence Autobiography Citizenship Adoption Automation Class Adoption: Mental health issues Class and feminism Adultery Battery Cloning Advertising Beauty contests and pageants Cohabitation Advertising industry Bigamy Colonialism and postcolonialism Aesthetics: Black feminist—A debate Bioethics: Feminist Commodity culture Aesthetics: Feminist Biography Communications: Overview Affirmative action Biological determinism Communications: Audience analysis Ageism Biology Communications: Content and Aging Bisexuality discourse analysis Aging: Japanese case study Blackness and whiteness Communications: Speech Agriculture Communism AIDS and HIV Body Community AIDS and HIV: Case study—Africa Bookshops Community politics Alternative energy Borders Computer science Alternative technology: Breast Computing: Overview Case study—Africa Breast feeding Computing: Participatory and Altruism Buddhism feminist design Anarchism Built environment Conflict resolution: Mediation and Anatomy Bulimia nervosa negotiation Ancient indigenous cultures: Bureaucracy Confucianism Women’s roles Butch/femme Consciousness-raising Ancient nation-states: Women’s roles Androcentrism Cancer Constitutions Androgyny Capitalism Contraception Anger Caregivers Contraceptives: Development Animal rights Cartoons and comics Conversation Anorexia nervosa Caste Cooking Anthropology Celibacy: Religious Cosmetic surgery Antidiscrimination Celibacy: Secular Cosmetics Antiracist and civil rights movements Censorship Courtship Anti-Semitism Census Crafts Apartheid, segregation, and Charity Creation stories ghettoization Chastity Creativity Archaeology Childbirth Creed Archaeology: Northern European Child care Crime and punishment case study Child development Crime and punishment: Archetype Child labor Case study—Women in prisons Architecture Children’s literature in the United States

vii ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Criminology Development: Sub-Saharan and Education: Commonwealth of Critical and cultural theory southern Africa Independent States Cultural criticism Development: Western Europe Education: Curriculum in schools Cultural studies Diaries and journals Education: Distance education Culture: Overview Difference I Education: Domestic science and Culture: Women as consumers Difference II home economics of culture Digital divide Education: East Asia Culture: Women as producers Disability and feminism Education: Eastern Europe of culture Disability: Elite body Education: Gender equity Curriculum transformation Disability: Health and sexuality Education: Gendered subject choice movement Disability: Quality of life Education: Higher education Curse Disarmament Education: Mathematics Cyberspace and virtual reality Discipline in schools Education: Middle East and North Cyborg anthropology Discrimination Africa Disease Education: Nonsexist Dance: Overview Division of labor Education: North America Dance: Choreography Divorce Education: Online Dance: Classical Domestic labor Education: Physical Dance: Modern Domestic technology Education: Political Dance: South Asia Domestic violence Education: Preschool Daughter Dowry and brideprice Education: Religious studies DAWN movement Education: Science Death Dress Education: Single-sex and Deity Drug and alcohol abuse coeducation Democracy Drumming Education: South Asia Democratization Education: Southeast Asia Demography Earth Education: Southern Africa Demonization Eating disorders Education: Special needs Depression Education: Sub-Saharan Africa Depression: Case study—Chinese Economic status: Comparative Education: Technology medicine analysis Education: Vocational Detective fiction Economics: Feminist critiques Education: Western Europe Determinism: Economic Economy: Overview Educators: Higher education Development: Overview Economy: Global restructuring Educators: Preschool Development: Australia and New Economy: History of women’s Elderly care: Case study—China Zealand participation Elderly care: Case study— Development: Central and Eastern Economy: Informal Elderly care: Western world Europe Economy: Welfare and the Emancipation and liberation Development: Central and South economy movements America and the Caribbean Ecosystem Empowerment Development: China Écriture féminine Endocrine disruption Development: Chinese case study— Education: Achievement Energy Rural women Education: Adult and continuing Engineering Development: Commonwealth of Education: Antiracist Entrepreneurship Independent States Education: Central Pacific and South Environment: Overview Development: Japan Pacific Islands Environment: Australia and New Development: Middle East and the Education: Central and South Zealand Arab region America and the Caribbean Environment: Caribbean Development: North America Education: Chilly climate in the Environment: Central and Eastern Development: South Asia classroom Europe viii ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Environment: Central and South Family: Power relations and power Feminism: First-wave North American America structures Feminism: Japan Environment: Commonwealth of Family: Property relations Feminism: Jewish Independent States Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Korea Environment: East Asia (China) Buddhist traditions Feminism: Lesbian Environment: East Asia (Japan) Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Liberal British and Environment: Middle East Catholic and Orthodox European Environment: North Africa Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Liberal North American Environment: North America East Africa Feminism: Marxist Environment: Pacific Islands Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Middle East Environment: South Asia Islamic traditions Feminism: Militant Environment: South Asian case Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Nineteenth century study—Forests in India Judaic traditions Feminism: North Africa Environment: Southeast Asia Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Postmodern Environment: Sub-Saharan and Native North America Feminism: Radical southern Africa Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Second-wave British Environment: Western Europe Protestant Feminism: Second-wave European Environmental disasters Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Second-wave North Epistemology Southern Africa American Equal opportunities Family: Religious and legal systems— Feminism: Socialist Equal opportunities: Education West Africa Feminism: South Africa Equality Family structures Feminism: South Asia Equity Family wage Feminism: Southeast Asia Erotica Fascism and Nazism Feminism: Sub-Saharan Africa Essentialism Fashion Feminism: Third-wave Estrogen Female circumcision and genital Femocrat Ethics: Feminist mutilation Fertility and fertility treatment Ethics: Medical Fetus Ethics: Scientific Feminine mystique Fiction Ethnic cleansing Film Ethnic studies I Feminism: Overview Film criticism Ethnic studies II Feminism: African-American Film: Lesbian Ethnicity Feminism: Anarchist Film theory Eugenics Feminism: Asian-American Finance Eugenics: African-American case Feminism: Australia and New Fine arts: Overview study—Eugenics and family Zealand Fine arts: Criticism and art history planning Feminism: Black British Fine arts: Painting Eurocentrism Feminism: British Asian Fine arts: Politics of representation Euthanasia Feminism: Caribbean Fine arts: Sculpture and installation Evolution Feminism: Central and South Food and culture Examinations and assessment America Food, hunger, and famine Exercise and fitness Feminism: Chicana Fostering: Case study—Oceania Experiments on women Feminism: China Friendship Feminism: Commonwealth of Fundamentalism: Religious Fairy tales Independent States Fundamentalism and public policy Faith Feminism: Cultural Furs Family law Feminism: Eastern Europe Future studies Family law: Case study—India Feminism: Eighteenth century Family life cycle and work Feminism: Existential Gaia hypothesis Family planning Feminism: First-wave British Gatekeeping

ix ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Gay pride Health challenges Households: Political economy Gaze Health education Households: Resources Gender Heresy Housework Gender constructions in the family Heroine Housing Heterophobia and homophobia Human rights Gendered play Heterosexism Humanities and social sciences: Genetics and genetic technologies Heterosexuality Feminist critiques Genetic screening Hierarchy and bureaucracy Humor Genocide Hinduism Humor: Case study—Comedy, Genres: Gendered History United States Geography Holistic health I Hunting child Holistic health II Hybridity and miscegenation Girl studies Holy Spirit Hypermasculinity ’ subcultures Homelessness Hypertension: Case study—Class, Hormones race, and gender Global health movement Hormone replacement therapy Global health movement: Resources Household workers Identity politics Globalization Households and families: Overview Images of women: Overview Globalization of education Households and families: Caribbean Images of women: Africa Goddess Households and families: Central and Images of women: Asia Government Eastern Europe Images of women: Australia and New Grandmother Households and families: Central and Zealand Green movement South America Images of women: Caribbean Grrls Households and families: Images of women: Central and South Guilt Commonwealth of Independent America Gyn/Ecology States Images of women: Europe Gynecology Households and families: East Images of women: Middle East Asia Images of women: North America Healers Households and families: Melanesia Immigration Health: Overview and Aboriginal Australia Imperialism Health care: Australia, New Zealand, Households and families: Micronesia Incest and the Pacific Islands and Polynesia Indigenous women’s rights Health care: Canada Households and families: Middle Industrialization Health care: Central and South East and North Africa America and the Caribbean Households and families: Native Infertility Health care: Commonwealth of North America Information revolution Independent States Households and families: North Information technology Health care: East Asia America Initiation rites Health care: Eastern Europe Households and families: South Asia Interests: Strategic and practical Health care: North Africa and the Households and families: Southeast Interior design and decoration Middle East Asia International organizations and Health care: South Asia Households and families: Southern agencies Health care: Southeast Asia Africa International relations Health care: Southern Africa Households and families: Sub- International Women’s Day Health care: Sub-Saharan Africa Saharan Africa Internet politics and states Health care: United States Households and families: Western Inventors Health care: Western Europe Europe Islam Health of the women of Rastafari: Households: Domestic consumption Case study Households: Female-headed and Journalism Health careers female-supported Journalists x ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Judaism Literature: Southeast Asia Earth Justice and rights Literature: Southern Africa Motherhood Literature: Sub-Saharan Africa Motherhood: Lesbian Kibbutz Literature: Ukraine Multiculturalism Kinship Literature: Western Europe Multiculturalism: Arts, literature, and Knowledge Long-term care services popular culture Multinational corporations Language Magazines Music: Anglo-American folk Law and sex Management Music: Composers Law enforcement Marriage: Overview Music: East Asia Law: Feminist critiques Marriage: Interracial and Music: Education Leadership interreligious Music: Latin America Legal systems Marriage: Lesbian Music: North Africa and Islamic Leisure Marriage: Regional traditions and Middle East Lesbianism practices Music: Opera Lesbian cultural criticism Marriage: Remarriage Music: Rock and pop Lesbian drama Martyrs Music: Soul, jazz, rap, blues, and Lesbian popular music Marxism gospel Lesbian sexuality Masculinity Music: South Asia Lesbian studies Masturbation Music: Sub-Saharan and southern Lesbian writing: Overview Maternal health and morbidity Africa Lesbian writing: Contemporary poetry Maternity leave Music: Western classical Lesbian writing: Crime fiction Mathematics Musicians Lesbians: HIV prevalence and Mysticism transmission Matrilineal systems Myth Lesbians in science Media: Overview Liberalism Media: Alternative Naming Liberation Media: Chinese case study Nation and nationalism Liberation movements Media: Grassroots Natural resources Libraries Media: Mainstream Nature Life cycle Media and politics Nature-nurture debate Life expectancy Medical control of women Nature: Philosophy and spirituality Linguistics Medicine: Internal I Nepotism Literacy Medicine: Internal II Networking Literary theory and criticism Men’s studies Networks, electronic Literature: Overview Menarche Nongovernmental organizations Literature: Arabic Menopause (NGOs) Literature: Australia, New Zealand, Menstruation Nonviolence and the Pacific Islands Mental health I Norplant Literature: Central and South America Mental health II Novel Literature: China Midwives Nuclear weapons Literature: Eastern Europe Migration Nuns Literature: Japan Military Nursing Literature: North America Nursing homes Literature: North America—Note on Mistress Nutrition I African-American, Latina, and Modernism Nutrition II Native American poets Modernization Nutrition and home economics Literature: Persian Money Literature: Russia Mormons Obstetrics Literature: South Asia Mother Occupational health and safety

xi ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Oral tradition Politics and the state: Central and Psychology: Psychometrics Organizational theory South America Psychology: Psychopathology and Other Politics and the state: psychotherapy Commonwealth of Independent Psychology: Social Pacifism and peace activism States Publishing Parenthood Politics and the state: East Asia Publishing: Feminist publishing in Part-time and casual work Politics and the state: Eastern Europe the third world : Development Politics and the state: Middle East Publishing: Feminist publishing in Patriarchy: and North Africa the western world Peace education Politics and the state: North America Peacekeeping Politics and the state: South Asia I Quakers Peace movements: Asia Politics and the state: South Asia II Queer theory Peace movements: Australia, New Politics and the state: Southeast Asia Quilting Zealand, and the Pacific Islands Politics and the state: Southern Africa Peace movements: Central and South Politics and the state: Sub-Saharan Race America Africa Racism and xenophobia Peace movements: Europe Politics and the state: Western Europe Radiation Peace movements: Israel Pollution Radio Peace movements: Middle East and Pollution: Chemical Rape the Arab world Polygyny and Reference sources Peace movements: North America Popular culture Refugees Pedagogy: Feminist I Population: Overview Religion: Overview Pedagogy: Feminist II Population: Chinese case study Representation Performance art Population control Reproduction: Overview Performance texts Pornography in art and literature Reproductive health Personal and customary laws Pornography and violence Reproductive physiology Phallocentrism Postcolonialism: Theory and criticism Pharmaceuticals Reproductive technologies Philanthropy Postmodernism and development Research: On-line Philosophy Postmodernism: Feminist critiques Revolutions Photography Postmodernism: Literary theory Romance Phototherapy Poverty Romantic fiction Physical sciences Power Romantic friendship Physical strength Prayer RU 486 Physiology Pregnancy and birth The Pill Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) Sacred texts Plagiarism in science Press: Feminist alternatives Safer sex Poetry: Overview Primatology Saints Poetry: Feminist theory and Privatization Science: Overview criticism Pro-choice movement Science: Ancient and medieval Political asylum Professional societies Science: Early modern to late Political economy Prostitution eighteenth century Political leadership Psychiatry Science: Feminism and science studies Political participation Psychoanalysis Science: Feminist critiques Political parties Psychology: Overview Science: Political representation Psychology: Cognitive Science: Nineteenth century Politics and the state: Overview Psychology: Developmental Science: Technological and scientific Politics and the state: Australia, New Psychology: Neuroscience and brain research Zealand, and the Pacific Islands research Science: Traditional and indigenous Politics and the state: Caribbean Psychology: Personality research knowledge xii ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Science: Twentieth century Stepfamilies Union movements Science fiction Stereotypes Universalism Scientific and racism Sterilization Utopianism Sects and cults Street harassment Utopian writing Settler societies Stress Sex: Beliefs and customs Suffrage Vegetarianism Sex and culture Suicide Veiling Sex education Surgery Video Sex selection Surgery: Case study—Contemporary Violence and peace: Overview Sex work issues in the United States Violence: Australia, New Zealand, Sexism Surrogacy and the Pacific Islands Sexology and sex research Suttee (Sati) Violence: Caribbean Sexual difference Violence: Central and Eastern Europe Taboo Violence: Central and South America Sexual orientation Technology Violence: Commonwealth of Sexual slavery Technology: Women and Independent States Sexual violence development Violence: East Asia (China) I Sexuality: Overview Television Violence: East Asia (China) II Sexuality: Adolescent sexuality Teleworking Violence: Media Sexuality in Africa Terrorism Violence: Middle East and the Arab Sexuality in Hindu culture Textiles world (Lebanon) Sexuality: Psychology of sexuality in Theater: Overview Violence: North America cross-cultural perspectives Theater: 1500–1900 Violence: South Asia Sexuality: Psychology of sexuality in Theater: Modern and contemporary Violence: Southeast Asia the United States Theater: Women in theater Violence: Sub-Saharan and southern Shakers Theologies: Feminist Africa Shakti Third world Violence: Western Europe Shinto Third world women: Selected Virginity Short story resources Vodou Silence Torture Volunteerism Simultaneous oppressions Tourism Single people Toxicology War Sister Traditional healing: Aboriginal Water Sisterhood Australia Weddings Slavery Traditional healing: Africa I Welfare Slogans: “The personal is the Traditional healing: Africa II Wicca political” Traditional healing: Central and Widowhood Soap operas South America and the Caribbean Wife Social movements Traditional healing: East and Witches: Asia Social sciences: Feminist methods southeast Asia Witches: Western world Socialism Traditional healing: Herbalists -centeredness Socialization for complementarity Traditional healing: India Womanculture Socialization for inequality Traditional healing: Native North Sociology America Space Trafficking Womanspirit Spinster Transgender Women’s centers Spirituality: Overview Travel writing Women’s movement: Early Spirituality: Sexuality international movement Sport Underemployment Women’s movement: Modern Sports and discrimination Unemployment international movement

xiii ALPHABETICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Women’s movement: United States Women’s studies: Middle East and Women-church Women’s studies: Overview North Africa Women: Terms for women Women’s studies: Australia Women’s studies: New Zealand Work: Equal pay and conditions Women’s studies: Backlash Women’s studies: Research centers Work: Feminist theories Women’s studies: Caribbean and institutes Work: Occupational experiences Women’s studies: Central and Women’s studies: South Asia Work: Occupational segregation Eastern Europe Women’s studies: Southeast Asia Work: Patterns Women’s studies: Central and South Women’s studies: Southern America Africa Youth culture Women’s studies: Commonwealth of Women’s studies: Sub-Saharan Independent States Africa Zen Women’s studies: East Asia Women’s studies: United States Zines Women’s studies: Funding Women’s studies: Western Europe Zionism

xiv Topical List of Articles

Note: An article may be listed in more than one topic area.

ARTS AND LITERATURE Gyn/Ecology Music: Western Classical Aesthetics: Black Feminist—A Debate Heroine Music: Composers Aesthetics: Feminist Humor Music: East Asia Architecture Humor: Case Study—Comedy, Music: Latin America Art Practice: Feminist United States Music: North Africa and Islamic Autobiographical Criticism Interior Design and Decoration Middle East Autobiography Leisure Music: Opera Biography Lesbian Drama Music: Rock and Pop Bluestockings Lesbian Popular Music Music: Soul, Jazz, Rap, Blues, and Bookshops Lesbian Writing: Overview Gospel Cartoons and Comics Lesbian Writing: Contemporary Music: South Asia Children’s Literature Poetry Music: Sub-Saharan and Southern Commodity Culture Lesbian Writing: Crime Fiction Africa Crafts Literacy Musicians Creativity Literary Theory and Criticism Myth Cultural Criticism Literature: Overview Novel Dance: Overview Literature: Arabic Oral Tradition Dance: Choreography Literature: Australia, New Zealand, Performance Art Dance: Classical and the Pacific Islands Performance Texts Dance: Modern Literature: Central and South Photography Dance: South Asia America Phototherapy Detective Fiction Literature: China Poetry: Overview Diaries and Journals Literature: Eastern Europe Poetry: Feminist Theory and Drama Literature: Japan Criticism Dress Literature: North America Popular Culture Drumming Literature: North America—Note on Pornography in Art and Literature Écriture Féminine African-American, Latina, and Postcolonialism: Theory and Erotica Native American Poets Criticism Fairy Tales Literature: Persian Postmodernism: Feminist Critiques Fashion Literature: Russia Postmodernism: Literary Theory Fiction Literature: South Asia Publishing: Feminist Publishing in Film Literature: Southeast Asia the Third World Film Criticism Literature: Southern Africa Publishing: Feminist Publishing in Film Theory Literature: Sub-Saharan Africa the West Film: Lesbian Literature: Ukraine Quilting Fine Arts: Overview Literature: Western Europe Representation Fine Arts: Criticism and Art History Magazines Romance Fine Arts: Painting Modernism Romantic Fiction Fine Arts: Politics of Representation Multiculturalism: Arts, Literature, Science Fiction Fine Arts: Sculpture and Installation and Popular Culture Short Story Genres: Gendered Music: Education Soap Operas Girls’ Subcultures Music: Anglo-American Folk Sport

xv TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Textiles Images of Women: Europe Earth Theater: Overview Images of Women: Middle East Ecofeminism Theater: 1500–1900 Images of Women: North America Ecosystem Theater: Modern and Contemporary Information Revolution Endocrine Disruption Theater: Women in Theater Information Technology Energy Travel Writing Internet Politics and States Environment: Overview Utopian Writing Journalism Environment: Australia and New Video Journalists Zealand Womanism Knowledge Environment: Caribbean Language Environment: Central and Eastern CULTURE AND Lesbian Cultural Criticism Europe COMMUNICATION Libraries Environment: Central and South Advertising Linguistics America Advertising Industry Media: Overview Environment: Commonwealth of Beauty Contests and Pageants Media: Alternative Independent States Cartoons and Comics Media: Chinese Case Study Environment: East Asia (China) Censorship Media: Grassroots Environment: East Asia (Japan) Commodity Culture Media: Mainstream Environment: Middle East Communications: Overview Media and Politics Environment: North Africa Communications: Audience Analysis Naming Environment: North America Communications: Content and Networking Environment: Pacific Islands Discourse Analysis Networks, Electronic Environment: South Asia Communications: Speech Magazines Environment: South Asian Case Conversation Popular Culture Study—Forests in India Cosmetics Press: Feminist Alternatives Environment: Southeast Asia Critical and Cultural Theory Publishing Environment: Sub-Saharan and Cultural Studies Radio Southern Africa Culture: Overview Reference Sources Environment: Western Europe Culture: Women As Consumers of Research: Online Environmental Disasters Culture Romance Estrogen Culture: Women As Producers of Silence Food, Hunger, and Famine Culture* Soap Operas Furs Demonization Sport Gaia Hypothesis Digital Divide Sports and Discrimination Geography Dress Stereotypes Green Movement Fashion Television Gyn/Ecology Food and Culture Third World Women: Selected Housing Furs Resources Hunting Gatekeeping Tourism Natural Resources Gaze Video Nature Girls’ Subcultures Women: Terms for Women Nature: Philosophy and Spirituality Grrls Youth Culture Nuclear Weapons Images of Women: Overview Zines Pharmaceuticals Images of Women: Africa Pollution Images of Women: Asia ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT Pollution: Chemical Images of Women: Australia and Agriculture Population: Overview New Zealand Alternative Energy Population: Chinese Case Study Images of Women: Caribbean Alternative Technology: Case Radiation Images of Women: Central and Study—Africa Toxicology South America Cosmetics Water xvi TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

ECONOMY AND DEVELOPMENT Modernization Education: Middle East and North Affirmative Action Money Africa Agriculture Multinational Corporations Education: Nonsexist Altruism Nepotism Education: North America Antidiscrimination Occupational Health and Safety Education: Online Assertiveness Training Organizational Theory Education: Physical Charity Part-Time and Casual Work Education: Political Child Labor Philanthropy Education: Preschool Cooking Political Economy Education: Religious Studies Determinism: Economic Postmodernism and Development Education: Science Development: Overview Poverty Education: Single-Sex and Development: Australia and New Privatization Coeducation Zealand Prostitution Education: South Asia Development: Central and Eastern Third World Education: Southeast Asia Europe Third World Women: Selected Education: Southern Africa Development: Central and South Resources Education: Special Needs America and the Caribbean Underemployment Education: Sub-Saharan Africa Development: China Unemployment Education: Technology Development: Commonwealth of Volunteerism Education: Vocational Independent States Welfare Education: Western Europe Development: Japan Work: Equal Pay and Conditions Educators: Higher Education Development: Middle East and the Work: Feminist Theories Educators: Preschool Arab Region Work: Occupational Experiences Equal Opportunities: Education Development: North America Work: Occupational Segregation Examinations and Assessment Development: South Asia Work: Patterns Gendered Play Development: Sub-Saharan and Globalization of Education Southern Africa EDUCATION Health Education Development: Western Europe Ability Literacy Discrimination Discipline in Schools Music Education Economic Status: Comparative Analysis Education: Achievement Pedagogy: Feminist I Economics: Feminist Critiques Education: Adult and Continuing Pedagogy: Feminist II Economy: Overview Education: Antiracist Sex Education Economy: Global Restructuring Education: Central Pacific and South Economy: History of Women’s Pacific Islands HEALTH, REPRODUCTION, Participation Education: Central and South AND SEXUALITY Economy: Informal America and the Caribbean Abortion Economy: Welfare and the Economy Education: Chilly Climate in the Adoption: Mental Health Issues Entrepreneurship Classroom Ageism Equal Opportunities Education: Commonwealth of Aging Equity Independent States Aging: Japanese Case Study Family Life Cycle and Work Education: Curriculum in Schools AIDS and HIV Family Wage Education: Distance Education AIDS and HIV: Case Study—Africa Finance Education: Domestic Science and Androgyny Food, Hunger, and Famine Home Economics Anorexia Nervosa Hierarchy and Bureaucracy Education: East Asia Bisexuality Industrialization Education: Eastern Europe Body Leadership Education: Gender Equity Breast Life Expectancy Education: Gendered Subject Choice Breastfeeding Management Education: Higher Education Bulimia Nervosa Maternity Leave Education: Mathematics Butch/Femme

xvii TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Cancer Health Care: Sub-Saharan Africa Reproductive Physiology Celibacy: Secular Health Care: United States Reproductive Rights Childbirth Health Care: Western Europe Reproductive Technologies Cloning Health of the Women of Rastafari: Ru 486 Contraception Case Study Safer Sex Contraceptives: Development Health Careers Sex: Beliefs and Customs Cosmetic Surgery Health Challenges Sex and Culture Depression Health Education Sex Selection Depression: Case Study—Chinese Heterophobia and Homophobia Sex Work Medicine Heterosexuality Sexology and Sex Research Disability: Health and Sexuality Holistic Health I Sexual Difference Disability: Quality of Life Holistic Health II Sexual Orientation Disease Hormone Replacement Therapy Sexual Violence Drug and Alcohol Abuse Hypertension: Case Study—Class, Sexuality: Overview Eating Disorders Race, and Gender Sexuality: Adolescent Sexuality Endocrine Disruption Infertility Sexuality in Africa Estrogen Law and Sex Sexuality in Hindu Culture Ethics: Medical Lesbianism Sexuality: Psychology of Sexuality in Eugenics: African-American Case Lesbian Sexuality Cross-Cultural Perspectives Study—Eugenics and Family Lesbians: HIV Prevalence and Sexuality: Psychology of Sexuality in Planning Transmission the United States Euthanasia Life Cycle Sterilization Exercise and Fitness Life Expectancy Stress Family Planning Long-Term Care Services Suicide Female Circumcision and Genital Masturbation Surgery Mutilation Maternal Health and Morbidity Surgery: Case Study—Contemporary Fertility and Fertility Treatment Medical Control of Women Issues in the United States Fetus Medicine: Internal I Surrogacy Genetics and Genetic Technologies Medicine: Internal II Traditional Healing: Aboriginal Genetic Screening Menarche Australia Global Health Movement Menopause Traditional Healing: Africa I Global Health Movement: Resources Menstruation Traditional Healing: Africa II Gynecology Mental Health I Traditional Healing: Central and Healers Mental Health II South America and the Caribbean Health: Overview Midwives Traditional Healing: East and Health Care: Australia, New Zealand, Norplant Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands Nursing Traditional Healing: Herbalists Health Care: Canada Nursing Homes Traditional Healing: India Health Care: Central and South Nutrition I Traditional Healing: Native North America and the Caribbean Nutrition II America Health Care: Commonwealth of Obstetrics Transgender Independent States Pharmaceuticals Vegetarianism Health Care: East Asia The Pill Health Care: Eastern Europe Population Control HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY Health Care: North Africa and the Pregnancy and Birth OF FEMINISM Middle East Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) Androcentrism Health Care: South Asia Pro-Choice Movement Anger Health Care: Southeast Asia Reproduction: Overview Bioethics: Feminist Health Care: Southern Africa Reproductive Health Bluestockings

xviii TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Class and Feminism Feminism: Militant Woman-Centeredness Consciousness-Raising Feminism: Nineteenth Century Womanculture Critical and Cultural Theory Feminism: North Africa Womanism DAWN Movement Feminism: Postmodern Difference I Feminism: Radical HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES Difference II Feminism: Second-Wave British Adolescence Disability and Feminism Feminism: Second-Wave European Adoption Disability: Elite Body Feminism: Second-Wave North Adoption: Mental Health Issues Disability: Quality of Life American Adultery Ecofeminism Feminism: Socialist Bigamy Écriture Féminine Feminism: South Africa Caregivers Empowerment Feminism: South Asia Child Care Epistemology Feminism: Southeast Asia Cohabitation : Sub-Saharan Africa Cooking Essentialism Feminism: Third-Wave Courtship Ethics: Feminist Gay Pride Daughter Feminine Mystique Gender Division of Labor Femininity Global Feminism Divorce Feminism: Overview Gyn/Ecology Domestic : African-American Heterosexism Domestic Violence Feminism: Anarchist History Dowry and Brideprice Feminism: Asian-American Humanities and Social Sciences: Elderly Care: Case Study—China Feminism: Australia and New Feminist Critiques Elderly Care: Case Study—India Zealand Knowledge Elderly Care: Western World Feminism: Black British Language Family Law Feminism: British Asian Liberation Family Law: Case Study—India Feminism: Caribbean Masculinity Family Life Cycle and Work Feminism: Central and South Misogyny Family: Power Relations and Power America Other Structures Feminism: Chicana Patriarchy: Development Family: Property Relations Feminism: China Patriarchy: Feminist Theory Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: Commonwealth of Phallocentrism Systems—Buddhist Traditions Independent States Philosophy Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: Cultural Postfeminism Systems—Catholic and Orthodox Feminism: Eastern Europe Postmodernism: Feminist Critiques Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: Eighteenth Century Queer Theory Systems—East Africa Feminism: Existential Science: Feminist Critiques Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: First-Wave British Science: Feminist Philosophy Systems—Islamic Traditions Feminism: First-Wave North Science: Feminism and Science Family: Religious and Legal American Studies Systems—Judaic Traditions Feminism: Japan Sexism Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: Jewish Sexual Violence Systems—Native North America Feminism: Korea Simultaneous Oppressions Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: Lesbian Sisterhood Systems—Protestant Feminism: Liberal British and Slogans: “The Personal Is the Family: Religious and Legal European Political” Systems—Southern Africa Feminism: Liberal North American Social Sciences: Feminist Methods Family: Religious and Legal Feminism: Marxist Suffrage Systems—West Africa Feminism: Middle East Universalism Family Structures

xix TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Fostering: Case Study—Oceania Marriage: Lesbian Community Friendship Marriage: Regional Traditions and Conservatism Gender Constructions in the Family Practices Constitutions Girl Child Marriage: Remarriage Democracy Grandmother Matriarchy Democratization Homelessness Matrilineal Systems Emancipation and Liberation Household Workers Mistress Movements Households and Families: Overview Mother Empowerment Households and Families: Caribbean Motherhood Ethnic Cleansing Households and Families: Central Motherhood: Lesbian Ethnicity and Eastern Europe Parenthood Eurocentrism Households and Families: Central Patriarchy: Development Family Law and South America Patriarchy: Feminist Theory Family Law: Case Study—India Households and Families: Polygyny and Polyandry Fascism and Nazism Commonwealth of Independent Romantic Friendship Femocrat States Single People Fundamentalism and Public Policy Households and Families: East Asia Sister Genocide Households and Families: Melanesia Socialization for Complementarity Globalization and Aboriginal Australia Socialization for Inequality Government Households and Families: Micronesia Spinster Green Movement and Polynesia Stepfamilies Hierarchy and Bureaucracy Households and Families: Middle Suttee (Sati) Human Rights East and North Africa Weddings Hybridity and Miscegenation Households and Families: Native Widowhood Hypermasculinity North America Wife Identity Politics Households and Families: North Immigration America POLITICS AND THE STATE Imperialism Households and Families: South Asia Activism Indigenous Women’s Rights Households and Families: Southeast Anarchism Interests: Strategic and Practical Asia Ancient Indigenous Cultures: International Organizations and Households and Families: Southern Women’s Roles Agencies Africa Ancient Nation-States: Women’s International Relations Households and Families: Sub- Roles Internet Politics and States Saharan Africa Anti-Semitism Justice and Rights Households and Families: Western Antiracist and Civil Rights Law and Sex Europe Movements Law: Feminist Critiques Households: Domestic Consumption Apartheid, Segregation, and Legal Systems Households: Female-Headed and Ghettoization Liberalism Female-Supported Blackness and Whiteness Liberation Movements Households: Political Economy Borders Marxism Households: Resources Bureaucracy Media and Politics Housework Capitalism Migration Housing Caste Military Incest Census Multiculturalism Initiation Rites Citizenship Nation and Nationalism Kibbutz Class Nongovernmental Organizations Kinship Class and Feminism (NGOs) Marriage: Overview Colonialism and Postcolonialism Patriarchy: Feminist Theory Marriage: Interracial and Communism Peacekeeping Interreligious Community Politics Personal and Customary Laws xx TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Political Asylum Christianity Witches: Western World Political Leadership Christianity: Feminist Christology Womanculture Political Participation Christianity: Status of Women in the Womanist Theology Political Parties Church Womanspirit Political Representation Confucianism Women-Church Politics and the State: Overview Creation Stories Zen Politics and the State: Australia, Creed New Zealand, and the Pacific Curse SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Islands Death Alternative Energy Politics and the State: Caribbean Deity Alternative Technology: Case Politics and the State: Central and Demonization Study—Africa South America Education: Religious Studies Anatomy Politics and the State: Ethics: Commonwealth of Independent Faith Archaeology States Fundamentalism: Religious Archaeology: Northern European Politics and the State: East Asia Fundamentalism and Public Policy Case Study Politics and the State: Eastern Europe Goddess Architecture Politics and the State: Middle East Guilt Automation and North Africa Heresy Bioethics: Feminist Politics and the State: North Hinduism Biological Determinism America Holy Spirit Biology Politics and the State: South Asia I Islam Built Environment Politics and the State: South Asia II Judaism Child Development Politics and the State: Southeast Asia Martyrs Computer Science Politics and the State: Southern Matriarchy Computing: Overview Africa Misogyny Computing: Participatory and Politics and the State: Sub-Saharan Mormons Feminist Design Africa Mother Earth Criminology Politics and the State: Western Mysticism Cyberspace and Virtual Reality Europe Myth Cyborg Anthropology Postmodernism and Development Nature: Philosophy and Spirituality Demography Power Nuns Depression Race Prayer Digital Divide Racism and Xenophobia Quakers Domestic Technology Revolutions Religion: Overview Education: Technology Settler Societies Sacred Texts Engineering Slavery Saints Ethics: Scientific Social Movements Sects and Cults Eugenics Socialism Shakers Eugenics: African-American Case Suffrage Shakti Study—Eugenics and Family Union Movements Shinto Planning Utopianism Spirituality: Overview Evolution Welfare Spirituality: Sexuality Experiments on Women Zionism Taboo Fetus Theologies: Feminist Genetics and Genetic Technologies RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY Veiling Genetic Screening Archetype Virginity Hierarchy and Bureaucracy Buddhism Vodou Hormones Celibacy: Religious Wicca Information Technology Chastity Witches: Asia Inventors

xxi TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Lesbians in Science Technology: Women and Develop- Sexual Violence Mathematics ment Slavery Nature-Nurture Debate Teleworking Street Harassment Networks, Electronic Suttee (Sati) Nutrition and Home Economics VIOLENCE AND PEACE Terrorism Physical Sciences Abuse Torture Physical Strength Animal Rights Trafficking Physiology Armament and Militarization Violence and Peace: Overview Plagiarism in Science Battery Violence: Australia, New Zealand, Primatology Conflict Resolution: Mediation and and the Pacific Islands Professional Societies Negotiation Violence: Caribbean Psychiatry Crime and Punishment Violence: Central and Eastern Europe Psychoanalysis Crime and Punishment: Case Violence: Central and South America Psychology: Overview Study—Women in Prisons in the and the Caribbean Psychology: Cognitive United States Violence: Commonwealth of Inde- Psychology: Developmental Disarmament pendent States Psychology: Neuroscience and Brain Domestic Violence Violence: East Asia (China) I Research Ethnic Cleansing Violence: East Asia (China) II Psychology: Personality Research Female Circumcision and Genital Violence: Media Psychology: Psychometrics Mutilation Violence: Middle East and the Arab Psychology: Psychopathology and Femicide World (Lebanon) Psychotherapy Genocide Violence: North America Psychology: Social Homelessness Violence: South Asia Reproductive Physiology Human Rights Violence: Southeast Asia Reproductive Technologies Indigenous Women’s Rights Violence: Sub-Saharan and Southern Science: Overview Infanticide Africa Science: Ancient and Medieval Law Enforcement Violence: Western Europe Science: Early Modern to Late Military War Eighteenth Century Multinational Corporations Science: Feminism and Science Nonviolence WOMEN’S STUDIES Studies Nuclear Weapons Class and Feminism Science: Feminist Critiques Pacifism and Peace Activism Community Science: Feminist Philosophy Peacekeeping Curriculum Transformation Movement Science: Nineteenth Century Peace Education Difference I Science: Technological and Scientific Peace Movements: Asia Difference II Research Peace Movements: Australia, New Ethnic Studies I Science: Traditional and Indigenous Zealand, and the Pacific Islands Ethnic Studies II Knowledge Peace Movements: Central and South Future Studies Science: Twentieth Century America Gender Studies Scientific Sexism and Racism Peace Movements: Europe Girl Studies Sexology and Sex Research Peace Movements: Israel Humanities and Social Sciences: Sexuality: Psychology of Sexuality in Peace Movements: Middle East and Feminist Critiques Cross-Cultural Perspectives the Arab World International Women’s Day Sexuality: Psychology of Sexuality in Peace Movements: North America Lesbian Cultural Criticism the United States Pornography and Violence Lesbian Studies Social Sciences: Feminist Methods Rape Men’s Studies Sociology Refugees Pedagogy Space Sexual Harassment Race Technology Sexual Slavery Science: Feminist Critiques

xxii TOPICAL LIST OF ARTICLES

Women’s Centers Women’s Studies: Central and Women’s Studies: New Zealand Women’s Movement: Early Eastern Europe Women’s Studies: Research Centers International Movement Women’s Studies: Central and South and Institutes Women’s Movement: Modern America Women’s Studies: South Asia International Movement Women’s Studies: Commonwealth of Women’s Studies: Southeast Asia Women’s Movement: United States Independent States Women’s Studies: Southern Africa Women’s Studies: Overview Women’s Studies: East Asia Women’s Studies: Sub-Saharan Women’s Studies: Australia Women’s Studies: Funding Africa Women’s Studies: Backlash Women’s Studies: Middle East and Women’s Studies: United States Women’s Studies: Caribbean North Africa Women’s Studies: Western Europe

xxiii

Contributors

Pamela Abbott Bina Agarwal Salma Al-Khudairi Glasgow Caledonian University University of Delhi Planning and development consult- Scotland India ant, Riyadh Androcentrism; Consciousness-raising; Environment: South Asia Saudi Arabia Essentialism; Feminine mystique; Development: Middle East and the Femininity; Gender; Masculinity; Amy Agigian Arab region Other; Sisterhood Suffolk University United States Priscilla Alexander Yaa Abofraa and Ibigail Reid Infertility North American Task Force on Atlanta, Georgia Prostitution United States Delia Aguilar United States Health of the women ofRastafari: Washington State University Sex work Case study United States Womanculture Beverly Allen Keshia Abraham Syracuse University Florida International University Joanne Ailwood United States United States University of Queensland Ethnic cleansing Literature: Southern Africa Australia Educators: Preschool Edith Almhofer Margaret Abraham University of Vienna Hofstra University Olabisi Aina Austria United States Obafemi Awolowo University Performance an; Photography Femicide; Infanticide Nigeria Technology: Women and development Andaiye Evelyne Accad Educator and political activist University of Illinois Eileen Aird Guyana United States Women’s Therapy Centre, London Cancer Literature: Arabic; Violence and peace: England Overview Education: Political Barbara Watson Andaya University of Hawaii Martha Ackelsberg Saminaz Akhter United States Smith College Boston Women’s Health Book Politics and the state: Southeast Asia United States Collective Community politics; Liberalism United States Sonya Andermahr Health: Overview University College Northhampton Carolina Acosta-Alzuru England University of Georgia Irina Akimushkina Science fiction United States George Washington University Images of women: Central and South United States America Women’s studies: Commonwealth of Independent States Carol Adams Writer and activist, Richardson, Texas United States Animal rights; Vegetarianism

xxv CONTRIBUTORS

Bonnie S.Anderson Elyn Aviva Asoka Bandarage Brooklyn College and Graduate Independent anthropologist and Center, City University of New writer, Boulder, Colorado United States York United States Multinational corporations United States Music: North Africa and Islamic Women’s movement: Early Middle East; Music: Sub-Saharan Sarah Banet-Weiser international movement; Women’s and southern Africa; Tourism University of Southern California movement: Modern international United States movement Pauline Ogho Aweto Beauty contests and pageants African Migrant Women Association, Adele M.Barker Linda Anderson Rome University of Arizona University of Newcastle upon Tyne Italy United States England Feminism: North Africa Literature: Russia Autobiography Yamila Azize-Vargas University of Puerto Rico, Cayey Paula C.Barnes Wendy Annecke Puerto Rico Auburn University University of Cape Town Women’s studies: Caribbean United States South Africa Peace movements: North America Alternative energy; Education: Margaret Hope Bacon Southern Africa; Energy Independent scholar, lecturer, and D.Rae Barnhisel author, Kennett Square, Antioch New England Graduate Paula Arai Pennsylvania School Vanderbilt University United States United States United States Quakers Plagiarism in science Zen Ruth Bailey Caroline Bassett Pat Armstrong Disability researcher, London Sussex University Carleton University England England Canada Disability: Quality of life Cyberspace and virtual reality Family wage; Maternity leave; Work: Equal pay and conditions Susan Baker Susan Bassnett Cardiff University University of Warwick Charon Asetoya Wales England Native American Community Board, Green movement Feminism: Second-wave European; Lake Andes, South Dakota Literature: Central and South Cora V.Baldock United States America Sterilization Murdoch University Australia Alaka Basu Cornell University Minna Aslama Altruism; Charity; Determinism: Economic; Economy: Overview; United States Finnish Broadcasting Company Third world; Volunteerism Health care: South Asia Finland Media and politics Ellen Balka Martha Bayne Simon Fraser University Founding editor, Maxine, Chicago Barbara Aswad Canada United States Wayne State University Professional societies Zines United States Polygyny and polyandry Anne Balsamo Gerlin Bean Xerox Palo Alto Research Center 3-D Projects, Saint Catherine United States Jamaica Cultural studies; Culture: Overview Politics and the state: Caribbean xxvi CONTRIBUTORS

Nasa Begum Rosalie Bertell University of East London Concern for Public Health, Toronto Centro de Estudios de la Mujer, England Canada Ministerio de Cultura y Educación Simultaneous oppressions Radiation Women’s studies: Central and South Ann Belford Ulanov Vicki Bertram America Union Theological Seminary Oxford Brookes University United States England Peg Bortner Archetype Poetry: Feminist theory and criticism Arizona State University United States Barbara Belmont Jacqueline Bhabha Crime and punishment National Organization of Gay and University of Chicago Lesbian Scientists and Technical United States Sylvia Bowerbank Professionals (NOGLSTP) Political asylum McMaster University United States Canada Lesbians in science Delys Margaret Bird Science: Early modern to late University of Western Australia eighteenth century Miriam Ben-Yoseph Australia De Paul University Detective fiction Cynthia Bowman United States Northwestern University Entrepreneurship Gene Bishop United States University of Pennsylvania School of Law: Feminist critiques Susan J.Bender Medicine Skidmore College United States Charlotte Boyle United States Medicine: Internal II British Foundation/University of Anthropology Bahrain Prudence Black England Dalida Maria Benfield University of Technology, Sydney Education: Middle East and North School of the Art Institute of Chicago Australia Africa United States Fashion Video Tone Bratteteig Maud Blair Universitetet I Oslo Joyce Berkman Open University Norway University of Massachusetts England Computing: Participatory and United States Education: Antiracist feminist design Feminism: First-wave North American Lori Blewett Virginia Lieson Brereton Elaine Bernard Pacific Lutheran University Tufts University Harvard Trade Union Program United States United States United States Blackness and whiteness; Eugenics Family: Religious and legal systems— Union movements Protestant Christine Bolt Diane Bretherton Lorraine Bernotsky University of Kent at Canterbury University of West Chester University England Australia United States Liberation movements Conservatism Peace movements: Australia, New Barbara I.Bond Zealand, and the Pacific Islands Alison Bernstein Freelance writer, Portland, Oregon Sherry Breyette Ford Foundation United States City University of New York United States Biological determinism; Lesbians in United States Women’s studies: Funding science Butch/femme

xxvii CONTRIBUTORS

Lyndie Brimstone Valerie Bryson Mary Ellen Capek University of Surrey Roehampton University of Huddersfield National Council for Research on England England Women Feminism: : Marxist United States Philanthropy; Women’s studies: Birgit Brock-Utne Chilla Bulbeck Research centers and institutes Institute for Educational Research Norway Australia Jane E.Caputi Peace education Women’s studies: Australia Florida Atlantic University United States Somer Brodribb Charlotte Bunch Pornography in art and literature University of Rutgers University Canada United States Vicki Carrington Postmodernism: Feminist critiques Empowerment; Human rights University of Tasmania Australia Barbara Brook Leone Burton Globalization of education Victoria University, St. Albans University of Birmingham Australia England Alexandra Carter Gender studies Education: Mathematics Middlesex University England Mikita Brottman Urvashi Butalia Dance: Classical Indiana University Kali for Women, New Delhi United States India April Carter Cultural criticism; Postcolonialism: Literature: South Asia; Publishing: University of Queensland Theory and criticism Feminist publishing in the third Australia world Emancipation and liberation move- Mary Ellen Brown ments; Feminism: Liberal British Mars Hill College Johnnella Butler and European United States University of Washington Culture: Women as consumers of United States Jennifer Casey culture; Culture: Women as Ethnic studies I Colombus, Ohio producers of culture; Oral tradition United States Carolyn Byerly Chastity Sam Brown College Journalist, Bangkok United States Monica Casper Thailand Press: Feminist alternatives University of California, Santa Cruz Environment: Southeast Asia United States Naomi Cahn Fetus; Space Naima Browne George Washington University Goldsmith’s College, University of United States Catherine A.Cerny London Adoption Virginia Polytechnic Institute England United States Education: Preschool Kristina Canizares Quilting Food First/Institute for Food and Lois Bryson Development Policy Uma Chakravarti University of Newcastle United States Delhi University Australia Food, hunger, and famine India Economy: Welfare and the economy; Suttee (Sati) Political economy; Privatization

xxviii CONTRIBUTORS

Mariam Chamberlain Carol Christ Sara Connell National Council for Research on Institute for the Study of University of Illinois, Urbana- Women Myth and Ritual Champaign United States United States Women’s studies: Funding; Women’s Womanspirit Journalism studies: Research centers and institutes Linda Christian-Smith Kate Connelly University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh Deakin University Elsa Chaney United States Australia University of Iowa Romantic fiction Exercise and fitness United States Patricia Connelly Household workers; Migration Loren Chuse St. Mary’s University University of California, Davis Canada Rita Charon United States Development: North America Columbia University Music: Latin America United States Maeve Conrick Medicine: Internal I M.Kathryn Cirksena University College Cork Communications Research Consult- Ireland Annie Cheng Jinglan ing, Albany Linguistics Jiangmen TV University United States China Gatekeeping Diana Coole Violence: East Asia (China) I Queen Mary and Westfield College, Adele E.Clarke University of London Phyllis Chesler University of California, San Fran- England Writer and editor; research scholar, cisco Critical and cultural theory Brandeis University United States United States Reproductive physiology Ann Cooper Mental health II Putney Inn, Vermont Sally Cline United States Fanny Mui Ching Cheung Independent research consultant, Cooking Chinese University of Hong Kong Cambridge Yvonne Corcoran-Nantes Hong Kong England Psychology: Social Celibacy: Secular of South Australia Australia Environment: Commonwealth of Julia Ching Mary T.Condren Independent States University of Toronto Institute for Feminism and Religion Canada Ireland Chris Corrin Confucianism Myth University of Glasgow Scotland Jane Cholmeley Sandra Coney Marxism; Socialism Silver Moon Women’s Bookshop, Women’s Health Action, Auckland London New Zealand Carole Counihan England Hormone replacement therapy Millersville University Bookshops United States Maryanne Confoy Food and culture Esther Ngan-ling Chow Jesuit Theological College Australia Krista Cowman United States Spirituality: Sexuality University of York Feminism: Asian-American England Suffrage

xxix CONTRIBUTORS

Sarah Cox Sr. Irene Dabalus Katy Deepwell Writer, Roanoke, Virginia Missionary Benedictine Sisters of University of Ulster, Belfast; Editor, United States Tutzing n. paradoxa, London Education: Southeast Asia Italy England and Northern Ireland Celibacy: Religious; Veiling; Virginity Art practice: Feminist Erin Ryan Croddick Black Friars Hall, St. Giles, Oxford Laura Daly Victoria DeFrancisco University Editor and writer, Maywood, New University of Northern Iowa England Jersey United States Family: Religious and legal systems— United States Domestic technology Catholic and Orthodox Nuclear weapons; Pacifism and peace activism; Peace movements: Europe Anna Lou Dehavenon Barbara Crosby Mount Sinai Medical Center, New University of Minnesota Susan Danby York United States Queensland University of Technology United States Leadership Australia Homelessness; Households and Gendered play families: North America Lisa Cuklanz Boston College Eliza Darling Amelia DeLoach United States Graduate School, City University of Mobius Group, North Carolina Communications: Content and New York United States discourse analysis United States Grrls Class Jan Currie Brenda Dervin Murdoch University Robbie Davis-Floyd Australia Ohio State University Development: North America; University of Texas at Austin United States Communications: Overview Modernization United States Cyborg anthropology; Reproductive Barbara K.Curry technologies Irene Diamond University of Delaware University of Oregon United States Gaynor Dawson United States Literature: North America—Note on Murdoch University Ecofeminism African-American, Latina, and Australia Native American Poets; Women’s Child labor; Economy: History of Rochelle Diamond centers women’s participation; California Institute of Technology Industrialization United States Ramona Curry Lesbians in science University of Illinois Jane de Gay United States Open University Amal Dibo Film theory England American University of Beirut Theater: 1500–1900 Lebanon Liane Curtis Peace movements: Middle East and the Brandeis University Erica De’Ath Arab world United States National Stepfamily Association, Music: Western classical London Beth Dingman England New Victoria Publishers, Norwich, Susan Cutter Stepfamilies Vermont University of South Carolina United States United States Publishing: Feminist publishing in the Environmental disasters western world xxx CONTRIBUTORS

Jennifer Disney Juliette Dworzak Gillian Elinor Graduate Center, City University of University of Sierra Leone University of East London New York Sierra Leone England United States Education: Sub-Saharan Africa Crafts Democracy Susan Dyer-Bennem Jean Bethke Elshtain Molly Doane Independent scholar, Braintree, University of Chicago Graduate Center, City University of Massachusetts United States New York United States War United States Culture: Women as producers of culture Environment: Central and South Julia V.Emberley America Robin Eagle University of Northern British Community educator, writer, and Columbia Betty Dodson editor Canada Independent sex educator, New York Australia Furs City Lesbian popular music Gloria Emeagwali United States Central Connecticut State University Masturbation Maureen Ebben United States St. Mary’s University Feminism: Sub-Saharan Africa Anne Donchin United States Networks, electronic Indiana University Margorie L.Engel United States Hamilton Forbes Association, Boston Bioethics: Feminist Joanne Eicher United States University of Minnesota Divorce Wendy Dossett United States Trinity College Dress Cynthia Enloe Wales Clark University Education: Religious studies Tatiana Lvovna Eidinova United States Journalist and cultural consultant, Military Elaine Douglas-Noel Moscow Graduate Center, City University of Russia Inger V.Eriksson New York Households and families: University of Türku United States Commonwealth of Independent Finland Girl child States Computer science

Kirstin Dow Ellen A.F.Eland Philomena Essed University of South Carolina George Mason University University of Amsterdam United States United States Netherlands Environment: North America Management Political leadership

Lesley Doyal Laura Eldridge Eka Esu-Williams University of the West of England, Barnard College Population Council/Horizons, Bristol United States Washington D.C. England The Pill United States Health challenges AIDS and HIV: Case study—Africa Mona Lisbet Eliasson Judith Evans Rosemary Du Plessis Uppsala University University of Canterbury Sweden University of York England New Zealand Rape Feminism: Second-wave British Work: Feminist theories

xxxi CONTRIBUTORS

Mary Evans Albina Peczon Fernandez Anne Flintoff University of Kent University of the Philippines Leeds Metropolitan University England Philippines England Feminism: Existential Feminism: Southeast Asia Education: Physical

Lillian Faderman Myra Marx Ferree Pamela A.Foresman California State University, Fresno University of Wisconsin University of Virginia United States United States United States Romantic friendship Activism Healers

Jo Ellen Fair Lesley Ferris Dianne Forte University of Wisconsin, Madison Ohio State University Boston Women’s Health Book United States United States Collective Images of women: Africa Theater: Overview; Theater: Women in United States Karlene Faith theater Health: Overview Simon Fraser University Canada Lynne Fessenden Marie Fortune Criminology University of Oregon Center for the Prevention of Sexual United States and Domestic Violence, Seattle, Susan Faludi Water Washington Journalist, Los Angeles United States United States Terri Field Domestic violence Postfeminism University of Queensland Australia Mary Frank Fox Jennie Farley Global feminism Georgia Institute of Technology Cornell University United States United States Margaret J.Finders Science: Feminism and science studies Affirmative action Purdue University United States Mary Jo Tippeconnic Fox Elizabeth Fay Education: North America University of Arizona University of Massachusetts, Boston United States United States Byrgen Finkelman Ancient indigenous cultures: Women’s Bluestockings Freelance Writer and Editor, Tulsa, roles Linda Marie Fedigan Oklahoma United States Anne Francis-Okongwu University of Alberta Terrorism; Violence: Caribbean; Queens College, City University of Canada Primatology Violence: Southeast Asia New York United States Elizabeth Fee Berenice Fisher Households and families: Overview National Library of Medicine, New York University Baltimore United States Sarah Franklin United States Caregivers Lancaster University Experiments on women; Science: England Feminist critiques Pamela Fletcher Reproductive technologies Ohio State University Liu Fengquin United States Diane Freedman China Agricultural University Fine arts: Painting; Fine arts: Politics University of New Hampshire China of representation United States Development: Chinese case study— Autobiographical criticism Rural women xxxii CONTRIBUTORS

Marsha A.Freeman Viv Gardner Diane Gibson University of Minnesota University of Manchester Australian Institute of Health and United States England Welfare, Canberra Nongovernmental organizations Theater: Modern and contemporary Australia (NGOs) Work: Occupational experiences Jane Gaskell Karen Frojen Herrera University of British Columbia Ilsa M.Glazer Graduate Center, City University of Canada Kingsborough Community College, New York Education: Gendered subject choice City University of New York United States United States Ina Mae Gaskin Adultery; Initiation rites; Marriage: Family: Religious and legal systems— Farm Midwifery Center, Lesbian; Mistress; Motherhood: Judaic traditions Summertown, Tennessee Lesbian United States Kristina E.Gleeson Midwives Samantha Frost Sakkara Language School, Cairo University of California at Santa Cruz Rochelle Gatlin Egypt United States City College of San Francisco Trafficking Empowerment; Human rights United States Feminism: Second-wave North Ivy Glennon Adriane Fugh-Berman American Eastern Illinois University National Women’s Health Network, United States Washington, D.C. Ivone Gebara Knowledge; Naming United States Writer, feminist philosopher, and Disease theologian, Camaragibe Aruna Gnanadason Brazil World Council of Churches, Geneva Kuniko Fujita Curse; Martyrs; Nuns; Saints Switzerland Hiroshima University Christianity: Status of women in the Japan Irene Gedalof church Development: Japan University of North London England Rashmi Goel Rudo Gaidzanwa Hybridity and miscegenation University of Tulsa University of Zimbabwe United States V.Geetha Zimbabwe Indigenous women’s rights Politics and the state: Southern Africa Tara Publishing, India Suzanne Goh Women’s studies: South Asia Margaret Gallagher Harvard Medical School Media consultant Suja George United States Ireland Elderly care: Western world University of Illinois Images of women: Europe United States Violence: North America Vesna Goldsworthy Mary Gallet Birkbeck College, University of Technology, diversity, and synergy Ratna Ghosh London consultant, Oviedo, Florida McGill University England United States Canada Literature: Eastern Europe Assertiveness training Development: Overview Sharon Golub Kamala Ganesh Mai Ghoussoub College of New Rochelle University of Mumbai Al Saqi Books, London United States India England Menarche Households and families: South Asia Feminism: Middle East

xxxiii CONTRIBUTORS

Savitri Goonesekere Gabriele Griffin Sneja Gunew Open University of Sri Lanka Kingston University University of British Columbia Sri Lanka England Canada Family: Religious and legal systems— Lesbian writing: Overview; Modernism Multiculturalism Buddhist traditions Natalia Grigorieva Jayoti Gupta Tuula Gordon Moscow School of Social and Independent research scholar, New University of Tampere Economic Studies Delhi Finland Russia India Single people; Spinster Health care: Commonwealth of Dowry and brideprice Independent States Jennifer L.Gossett Solveig Hagglund University of Cincinnati Jean Grimshaw Göteborg University United States University of the West of England Sweden Education: Adult and continuing; England Gender constructions in the family Education: Single-sex and Epistemology; Philosophy coeducation; Education: Vocational Melanie Hahn Journalist and medical writer, New Isobel Grundy Laurel Graham York University of Alberta University of South Florida United States Canada United States RU 486; Traditional healing: Africa I; Feminism: Eighteenth century Nutrition and home economics Traditional healing: Central and South America and the Caribbean; Eileen Green Zoubida Guernina Traditional healing: East and Sheffield Hallam University Thames Valley University southeast Asia England England Sexuality: Adolescent sexuality; Leisure Ilse Hakvoort Sexuality: Psychology of sexuality Göteborg University Judy Green in cross-cultural perspectives Sweden Marymount University Gender construction in the family United States Ma Guihua Mathematics China Features, Beijing Laura Hanish China Lucy Green Arizona State University Elderly care: Case study—China United States University of London Child development England Leela Gulati Music: Education Centre for Development Studies, Jalna Hanmer Judy Greenway Kerala University of Sunderland India University of East London England Elderly care: Case study—India England Abuse; Violence: Western Europe Feminism: Anarchist Kirstin Gulling Gillian Hanscombe Jeanne Gregory Attorney, Johnson and Gulling, University of Exeter Middlesex University Minneapolis England England United States Lesbian writing: Contemporary Legal systems Law and sex poetry; Poetry: Overview

Mary Grey Lisa Gundry Jarice Hanson Sarum College De Paul University University of Massachusetts England United States United States Misogyny Entrepreneurship Information technology xxxiv CONTRIBUTORS

Pamela Harris Debbie Heck Phyllis Holman Weisbard Griffith University Griffith University University of Wisconsin Australia Australia United States Environment: Pacific Islands Natural resources Reference sources

Patricia Harris Frances Heidensohn Renee C.Hoogland Murdoch University Goldsmiths College, University of University of Nijmegen Australia London Netherlands Poverty England Lesbian cultural criticism Law enforcement Jane Harrison Jude Howell Murdoch University Renee Heller University of Sussex Australia Ecofys Energy and Environment England Finance Netherlands Politics and the state: East Asia Physical sciences Delia Hart Jolan Hsieh Queensland University of Technology Laura Hershey Arizona State University Australia Writer, editor, and activist, Denver, United States Discipline in schools Colorado Crime and punishment United States Julie Hucke Maria Ramona Hart Disability: Health and sexuality Graduate Center, City University of Miami University New York Kristin Herzog United States United States Independent Scholars’ Association of Girls’ subcultures; Magazines Daughter; Division of labor; the North Carolina Triangle Tori Hudson Grandmother; Mother; Sister; Wife United States Natural College of Naturopathic Peace movements: Central and South Medicine Vivien Hart America United States University of Sussex Breast England Leslie Heywood Constitutions State University of New York, Joan E.Huebl Binghamton Catalyst Consulting Group, La Betsy Hartmann United States Crescenta, California Hampshire College Girl studies United States United States Adolescence; Depression; Drug and Population control Carrie Hintz alcohol abuse; Psychology: Queen’s College, City University of Developmental; Psychology: Evelyn Hartogh New York Neuroscience and brain research; University of Queensland United States Suicide Australia Utopian writing Heterophobia and homophobia Maggie Humm Nancy J.Hirschmann University of East London Mary Hawkesworth Cornell University England Rutgers University United States Feminism: Overview United States Equality; Feminism: Liberal North Government American Mary Elizabeth Hunt Women’s Alliance for Theology, Susan Hawthorne Janet Holland Ethics, and Ritual (WATER), Victoria University of Technology Open University Silver Spring, Maryland Australia England United States Fiction Equal Opportunities: Education Women-church

xxxv CONTRIBUTORS

Geraldine Hutchinson Tamara Jacka Jane Juffer CfBT Education Services Murdoch University University of Illinois at Urbana- England Australia Champaign Education: Domestic science and Development: China United States home economics Erotica Lynnette Jackson Janet Shibley Hyde Barnard College Chatsumarn Kabilsingh University of Wisconsin United States Thammasat University United States Violence: Sub-Saharan and southern Thailand Contraception Africa Buddhism Agnieszka Kajrukszto Prue Hyman Stevi Jackson Graduate Center, City University of Victoria University of Wellington University of York New York New Zealand England United States Development: Australia and New Households: Domestic consumption; Households and families: Central Zealand Romance and eastern Europe

Lici Inge Sue Jackson Kalpana Kannabiran University of Sydney University of Surrey, Roehampton Asmita Resource Centre for Women, Australia England Secunderabad Education: Higher education Women’s studies: Western Europe India Caste Chrys Ingraham Devaki Jain Russell Sage College Development Alternatives with Musimbi R.A.Kanyoro United States Women for a New Era (DAWN) World Young Women’s Christian Weddings India Association DAWN movement Switzerland Sherrie A.Inness Matriarchy Miami University Joy James United States Brown University Rehana Kapadia Girls’ subcultures; Magazines United States London Feminism: African-American England Merete Ipsen Feminism: British Asian Women’s Museum Sue Curry Jansen Gisela Kaplan Denmark Muhlenberg College Archaeology: Northern European case United States University of New England study Censorship Australia Development: Western Europe; Lisa Isherwood Ethnicity University College of St. Mark and University of Melbourne Naina Kapur St. John Australia Sakshi Violence Intervention Centre, England Sexual slavery New Delhi Heresy India Ma Jiang Family law: Case study—India Radha Iyer Center for Science and Technology, University of Queensland Beijing Azza Karam Australia China Queens University of Belfast Education: South Asia Environment: East Asia (China) Northern Ireland Politics and the state: Middle East and North Africa xxxvi CONTRIBUTORS

Ellyn Kaschak Jean King Georgia Kornbluth San Jose State University University of Massachusetts Medical Writer and editor, New York United States Center United States Psychology: Psychopathology and United States Aesthetics: Black feminist—A debate; psychotherapy Health careers; Stress Literature: Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands; Judit Katona-Apte Ros King Literature: Sub-Saharan Africa United Nations World Food University of London Programme, Rome England Natalya Kosmarskaya Italy Drama Moscow Center for Gender Studies Refugees Russia Gill Kirkup Politics and the state: Commonwealth Gloria Kaufman Open University of Independent States Indiana University, South Bend England Cheris Kramarae United States Education: Distance education University of Oregon Humor United States Elizabeth Arveda Kissling Ability; Education: On-line; Yasuko Kawashima Eastern Washington University Information revolution; Shakers National Institute for Environmental United States Studies Sexual harassment; Street harassment Brinlee Kramer Japan Naturopathic Physician, Beaverton, Environment: East Asia (Japan) Gunilla Kleiverda Oregon Netwerk Vrouwelijke Gynaecologen, United States Govind Kelkar Amsterdam Breast feeding; Cosmetics; Holistic Asian Institute of Technology Netherlands health II; Nutrition II Thailand Gynecology Witches: Asia Nancy Krieger Mary Knighton Harvard School of Public Health Mona Khalaf University of California at Berkeley United States Lebanese American University United States Hypertension: Case Study—Class, Lebanon Literature: Japan race, and gender Women’s studies: Middle East and North Africa Fukuko Kobayashi P.Pratap Kumar Waseda University University of Durban-Westville Natalia V.Khodyreva Japan South Africa St. Petersburg State University Literature: Japan Hinduism Russia Junko Kuninobu Violence: Commonwealth of Wendy Kolmar Independent States Drew University Aichi Shukutoku University Japan United States Women’s studies: East Asia Tseen-Ling Khoo Feminism: Nineteenth century University of Queensland Insook Kwon Leslie Korn Australia Harvard University Multiculturalism: Arts, literature, and Center for World Indigenous Studies, United States popular culture Olympia, Washington Feminism: Korea United States Catherine King Science: Traditional and indigenous Michele LaBella Open University knowledge; Traditional healing. Catalyst, New York England Aboriginal Australia; Traditional United States Genres: Gendered; Representation healing: Africa II Engineering

xxxvii CONTRIBUTORS

Sue A.Lafky Judy Ledgerwood Tobe Levin University of Iowa Northern Illinois University University of Maryland, European United States United States Division Journalists Households and families: Southeast Germany Asia Feminism: Jewish Marilyn Lake La Trobe University Anru Lee Ruth Levitas Australia California State University, University of Bristol Feminism: Australia and New Sacramento England Zealand United States Utopianism Households and families: East Asia; Sheila Lewenhak Sue Lambert Patriarchy: Development University of London Murdoch University England Australia Elaine Leader Economic status: Comparative analysis Development: Australia and New Ithaca College Zealand United States Reina Lewis Anarchism University of East London Kyra Marie Landzelius England Gothenburg University Sue Lees Queer theory Sweden University of North London Medical control of women England Angela Liberatore Sexual violence European Commission DG XII Barbara Larson Belgium University of New Hampshire Beverly Leipert Environment: Western Europe United States University of Northern British Households and families: Middle Columbia Hilary Lim East and North Africa Canada University of East London Health care: Canada England Maria Lauret Justice and rights University of Sussex Winnie Lem Karin E.Limburg England Trent University College of Environmental Science Literature: North America Canada Households and families: Western and Forestry, State University of Galina Laurie Europe New York United States University of Sydney Ecosystem Australia Jennifer Lemon Pedagogy: Feminist II University of South Africa L.H.M.Ling South Africa Institute of Social Studies Jacqueline Leavitt Feminism: South Africa Netherlands University of California, Los Angeles Hypermasculinity United States Ronit Lentin Housing Trinity College Catherine Lloyd Ireland University of Oxford Ruth E.Lechte Genocide England Energy and Environment/ Antiracist and civil rights movements Appropriate Technology Debbie Lerman Fiji Coalition of Women and Peace, Ann Loades Violence: Australia, New Zealand, Tel Aviv University of Durham and the Pacific Islands Israel England Peace movements: Israel Creed xxxviii CONTRIBUTORS

Barbara Logue Rashmi Luthra Amina Mama Mississippi Institutions of Higher University of Michigan at Dearborn University of Cape Town Learning United States South Africa United States Images of women: Asia Women’s studies: Sub-Saharan Africa Ethics: Medical; Euthanasia Helma Lutz Sr. Mary John Mananzan Asphodel Long University of Münster St. Scholastica’s College University College of St. Mark and Germany Philippines St. John Eurocentrism Spirituality: Overview England Carol MacCormack Goddess Chris Mann Cambridge University United States Erica Longfellow England Nature Lincoln College, Oxford University Education: Achievement; Research: England Martha MacDonald On-line Literature: Overview Saint Mary’s University Canada Christel Manning Antoinette Sedillo Lopez Abortion; Economics: Feminist critiques Sacred Heart University University of New Mexico United States United States Mia MacDonald Fundamentalism: Religious Education: Central and South America International Women’s Health and the Caribbean; Health care: Coalition, New York Takyiwaa Manuh Central and South America and the United States University of Ghana Caribbean Reproductive health Ghana Family: Religious and legal systems— Maria Lord Martha MacIntyre West Africa Independent scholar and writer, University of Melbourne London Australia Sylvia Marcos England Health care: Australia, New Zealand, Centro de Investigaciones Music: South Asia and the Pacific Islands Psicoetnologicas Mexico Alison Mackinnon JoAnn Loulan Sex: Beliefs and customs Marriage family counselor, writer, University of South Australia Australia and political activist, Portola Carine M.Mardorossian Computing: Overview; Demography Valley, California University of Illinois at Urbana- United States Frinde Maher Champaign Lesbian sexuality Wheaton College United States Sexual difference United States Joni Lovenduski Pedagogy: Feminist I Birkbeck College, University of Miriam E.Martin London Veronique Maingi-Dozier Goshen College England United States Political parties United States Nursing Digital divide Christine Lucia Rosy Martin University, Grahamstown Helen Malson Phototherapist, artist, writer, and South Africa University of Western Sydney, lecturer, London Musicians Nepean England Australia Phototherapy Eating disorders

xxxix CONTRIBUTORS

Maria Mastronardi Patrice McMahon Andrée Michel University of Illinois at Chicago LeHigh University National Center of Scientific United States United States Research, Paris Youth culture Development: Commonwealth of France Independent States Disarmament Yelena Vladimirovna Mayakovska (Patricia J.Thompson) Pearlie McNeill Magda Michielsens Lehman College, City University of Writer, Woonona, New South Wales University of Antwerp New York Australia Belgium United States Short story Violence: Media Households and families: Commonwealth of Independent Beatrice Medicine Maria Mies States California State University, Fachschule Köln Northridge Germany Shoshanna Mayer-Young United States Economy: Global restructuring University of Haifa Family: Religious and legal systems— Angela Miles Israel Native North America; Households University of Toronto Education: Nonsexist and families: Native North Canada America; Socialisation for Feminism: Cultural Katherine McCaffrey complementarity; Traditional healing: Native North America John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Jennifer Milioto City University of New York University of Chicago United States Eileen Meehan United States Bigamy; Households: Resources University of Arizona Music: East Asia United States Mary McCullough Advertising industry Sara Mills West Chester University Sheffield Hallam University United States Joan Mencher England Friendship Lehman College, City University of Language; Travel writing New York Judith McDaniel United States Ivana Milojevic University of Arizona Households: Female-headed and University of Queensland United States female-supported Australia Lesbianism; Lesbians: HIV prevalence Future studies and transmission; Sexual orientation Cecilia Menjivar Arizona State University Barbara Mintzes Dorothea McEwan United States Health Action International, Europe University of London Immigration Netherlands England Pharmaceuticals Death Padma Menon Mudra Dance, The Hague Kalpana Misra Jane McGary Netherlands University of Tulsa Freelance editor, Estacada, Oregon Dance: South Asia United States United States Politics and the state: South Asia II Agriculture; Environment: Australia Susan V.Meschel Mori Mizue and New Zealand; Heroine; University of Chicago International Institute for the Study Interior design and decoration United States Science: Ancient and medieval of Religions Japan Shinto xl CONTRIBUTORS

Valentine M.Moghadam Jenny Morris Patricia Murphy Illinois State University Freelance researcher and writer, Open University United States London England Fundamentalism and public policy; England Examinations and assessment Revolutions Disability and feminism Caryn McTighe Musil Patricia Mohammed Joy Florence Morrison Association of American Colleges University of the West Indies University of Alaska at Fairbanks and Universities Jamaica United States United States Feminism: Caribbean Radio Women’s studies: Overview; Women’s studies: United States Isabel Molina Guzman Mairi Morrison University of Pennsylvania New College, Oxford University Meredith Nachman United States England New York University Images of women: Caribbean Family law United States Maxine Molyneux Deborah Moskowitz Anorexia nervosa University of London McGill University England Canada Vahida Nainar Interests: Strategic and practical Psychology: Personality research Women’s Caucus for Gender Justice United States Janet Henshall Momsen Gemma Moss Torture University of California University of Southampton United States England Suniti Namjoshi Environment: Caribbean Literacy University of Exeter England Kathleen Montgomery Negar Mottahedeh Lesbian writing: Contemporary Illinois Wesleyan University University of Minnesota poetry; Poetry: Overview United States United States Politics and the state: Eastern Europe Images of women: Middle East Sarah Neal Filmmaker and writer, Melbourne Lisa Jean Moore Marie Mulvey-Roberts Australia College of Staten Island, City St. Matthias University of West Film University of New York England United States England Retha R.Newbold Safer sex; Space Feminism: First-wave British National Institute of Environmental Barbara Mor Margie Mulela Munalula Health Sciences Writer and independent scholar, University of Zambia United States Toxicology Portland, Oregon Zambia United States Family: Religious and legal systems— Androgyny Southern Africa Celeste Newbrough San Francisco College Regina Markell Morantz-Sanchez Sally Munt United States University of Michigan University of Brighton Cloning United States England Surgery Lesbian writing: Crime fiction Janice Newton University of Ballarat Sandra Morgen M.Lynne Murphy Australia University of Oregon Baylor University Households and families: Melanesia United States United States and aboriginal Australia Scientific sexism and racism Race

xli CONTRIBUTORS

Irene Nørlund Gloria Feman Orenstein Zarana Papic Copenhagen University University of Southern California University of Belgrade Denmark United States Yugoslavia Economy: Informal Gyn/Ecology Violence: Central and Eastern Europe

Mary W.Norris Collette Oseen Sharon Parker Philadelphia Athabasca University Union Institute, Washington D.C. United States Canada United States Health: Overview Organizational theory Community

Lucy O’Brien Sanàa Osseiran Mary Brown Parlee Writer and journalist, London IPRA Representative to UNESCO Massachusetts Institute of England France Technology Music: Anglo-American folk; Music: Conflict resolution: Mediation and United States Rock and pop; Music: Soul, jazz, negotiation Psychology: Overview rap, blues, and gospel Norani Othman Pratibha Parmar Mary O’Brien Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Independent filmmaker, London Environmental Research Foundation Malaysia England United States Islam Feminism: British Asian Pollution: Chemical

Marjorie Och Nelly Oudshoorn Jane Parpart University Twente Dalhousie University Mary Washington College Netherlands Canada United States Fine arts: Overview Hormones Postmodernism and development

Gina Ogden Jenny Owen Reena Patel Harvard University University of Sheffield Warwick University United States England England Sexuality: Overview Automation Politics and the state: South Asia I

Miho Ogino Ingar Palmlund Vibhuti Patel Osaka University Tufts University Centre for Enquiry into Health and Japan United States Allied Themes (CEHAT) Aging: Japanese case study Endocrine disruption; Environment: India Overview; Estrogen; Population: Sex selection; Violence: South Asia Mary Okumu Overview Feed the Children, Kenya Gloria Pedroza Kenya Rajni Palriwala Calabasas, California Sexuality in Africa University of Delhi United States India Psychology: Cognitive Gerda Johanna Olafsen Family: Power relations and power Inala Uniting Church, Queensland structures; Family: Property relations Cathy Peppers Australia Idaho State University Guilt Hanna Papanek United States Harvard University Curse; Martyrs; Nuns; Saints; Vodou Gail Omvedt United States University of Pune Socialization for inequality India Households: Political economy xlii CONTRIBUTORS

Charmaine Pereira Iva Popovicova Carolyn Quadrio Center for Research and Rutgers University Caroline Quadrio Pty/Ltd, New South Documentation, Kano United States Wales Nigeria Women’s studies: Central and eastern Australia Politics and the state: Sub-Saharan Europe Psychiatry Africa Ros Posel Robyn Quin Beverley Perel University of Natal Edith Cowan University Consultant, Barden, Queensland South Africa Australia Australia Reproduction: Overview Images of women: Australia and New International Women’s Day Zealand Cheryl-Ann Potgieter Rosalind Petchesky University of the Western Cape Sarah A.Radcliffe Hunter College, City University of South Africa University of Cambridge New York Women’s studies: Southern Africa England United States Politics and the state: Central and Reproductive rights Andrea Press South America University of Illinois Jan Jindy Pettman United States Shirin M.Rai Australian National University Communications: Audience analysis University of Warwick Australia England Femocrat; International relations Rosemary Pringle Colonialism and postcolonialism; Griffith University Communism; Politics and the state: Ann Phoenix Australia Overview Open University Power England Caroline Ramazanoglu Identity politics Priscilla Qolisaya Puamau Goldsmiths College, University of Fiji College of Advanced Education London Jane Pincus Fiji England Boston Women’s Health Book Education: Central Pacific and South Liberation Collective Pacific Islands Annette B.Ramirez de Arellano United States Marilyn Pukkila Childbirth National Medical Fellowships Colby College United States Renee Pittin United States Ageism; Aging Institute of Social Studies Wicca Vicky Randall Netherlands Jasjit Purewal University of Bergen Households and families: Sub-Saharan Sakshi Violence Intervention Centre, Norway Africa New Delhi Politics and the state: Western Europe Sara Poggio India Viviana Rangil University of Maryland, Baltimore Family law: Case study—India Skidmore College County June Purvis United States United States University of Portsmouth Feminism: : Central and South England America Feminism: Militant Matshediso Rankoe Teresa L.Polowy Trauma Centre for Survivors of Kathryn Pyne Addelson University of Arizona Violence and Torture, Cape Town Smith College South Africa United States United States Health care: Southern Africa Literature: Ukraine Ethics: Scientific

xliii CONTRIBUTORS

Elayne Rapping Jo Reger Sheila Riddell State University of New York, Buffalo Skidmore College University of Glasgow United States United States Scotland Media: Mainstream Women’s movement: United States Education: Special needs

Nora Rathzel Shulamit Reinharz Eva Rieger University of Umea Brandeis University University of Bremen Sweden United States Germany Racism and xenophobia Social sciences: Feminist methods Music: Opera

Sundari Ravindran Barbara Reskin Carla Risseeuw Achutha Menon Centre for Health Harvard University University of Leiden Science Studies United States Netherlands India Stereotypes Kinship Family planning Mary Judith Ress Hilary Robinson Colectivo Con-spirando, Santiago Nancy Reame University of Ulster Chile University of Michigan Northern Ireland Witches: Western world United States Fine arts: Criticism and an history; Life cycle; Menstruation; Premenstrual Fine arts: Sculpture and installation Kimberly Reynolds syndrome (PMS) University of Surrey Victoria Robinson England Audrey Rebera Children’s literature University of Sheffield SCM Office England Sri Lanka Pilar Riano Men’s studies Taboo University of British Columbia Canada Belinda Robson Rhoda Reddock Media: Grassroots University of Melbourne University of the West Indies Australia Trinidad and Tobago Esther Mary Rice Biography Households and families: Caribbean University of Sydney Australia Esther Rome Layne Redmond Education: Higher education Boston Women’s Health Book Independent scholar and musician, Collective Chiefland, Florida Evelleen Richards United States United States University of Sydney Cosmetic surgery Drumming Australia Evolution Birgit Rommelspacher Lori Reed Alice-Salomon-Fachhochschule für University of Rhode Island Darlene S.Richardson Sozialarbeit und Sozialpädagogi United States Indiana University of Pennsylvania Germany Silence United States Anti-Semitism; Fascism and Nazism Science: Nineteenth century; Science: Gail Reekie Twentieth century Melody Rose Australian National University Portland State University Judith Richter Australia United States Commodity culture Health professional, sociologist, and Pro-choice movement activist, Tübingen Germany Contraceptives: Development xliv CONTRIBUTORS

Loretta Ross Rosemary Ruether Khadiga M.Safwat National Center for Human Rights Garrett Evangelical Theological Middle Eastern and African Research Education, Atlanta, Georgia Seminary Centre/Wales United States United States Wales Eugenics: African-American case Creation stories; Deity Environment: North Africa study—Eugenics and family planning Karen Ruhleder Diane Sainsbury University of Illinois University of Stockholm Sue V.Rosser United States Sweden Georgia Institute of Technology Networks, electronic Welfare United States Sara Salih Science: Feminist philosophy Ramona Rush Wadham College, Oxford University University of Kentucky England Margot Roth United States Postmodernism: Literary theory Wellington Networking New Zealand JoAn A.Saltzen Women’s studies: New Zealand Letty Russell Writer and researcher, Pollock Pines, Yale Divinity School California Alice Rothchild United States United States Harvard Vanguard Medical Theologies: Feminist Armament and militarization Association United States Ann Russo Rhian Samuel Obstetrics De Paul University University of Reading United States England Paula Rothenberg Pornography and violence Music: Composers William Paterson College of New Jersey Susan Rutherford Nelia Sancho United States University of Manchester Asian Women’s Human Rights Curriculum transformation movement England Council, Manila Office Theater. Modern and contemporary Philippines Joyce Rothschild Peace movements: Asia Virginia Tech Vickie Rutledge Shields Bernice R.Sandler United States Bowling Green State University National Association for Women in Hierarchy and bureaucracy United States Advertising Education Robin Rowland United States Education: Chilly climate in the Deakin University Sheryl Burt Ruzek classroom Australia Temple University Surrogacy United States Lisa Sanmiguel Health care: United States University of Illinois at Urbana- Erica Royston Champaign World Health Organization Katherine Ryan United States Switzerland University of Illinois Communications: Speech; Images of Maternal health and morbidity United States women: North America Psychology: Psychometrics Jill Rubery Jo Sanson University of Manchester Institute of Marilyn P.Safir Graduate Center, City University of Science and Technology University of Haifa New York England Israel United States Underemployment; Unemployment Kibbutz Citizenship; Heterosexuality

xlv CONTRIBUTORS

N.B.Sarojini Debra Schultz Thalatha Seneviratne Jagori Women’s Documentation, Open Society Institute Australian Agency for International Training, and Communication United States Development Centre, New Delhi Women’s studies: Backlash Australia India Development: South Asia Traditional healing: India Muriel Schulz California State University at Aysan Sev’er Irma Saucedo Gonzalez Fullerton University of Toronto Colegio de Mexico United States Canada Mexico Women: Terms for women Incest Body Karla D.Scott A.M.Shah Mira Savara Saint Louis University University of Delhi SHAKTI, Mumbai United States India India Womanism Family structures Sexuality in Hindu culture Sheila Scraton Sr. Margaret Shanthi Stephens Marian Sawer Leeds Metropolitan University St. Joseph Hospital Community, Australian National University England Tamilnadu Australia Education: Physical India Antidiscrimination; Discrimination; Holy Spirit; Shakti Equal opportunities; Equity; Joni Seager Nepotism; Politics and the state: University of Vermont Renuka Sharma Australia, New Zealand, and the United States University of Melbourne Pacific Islands Census; Geography; Pollution Australia Elizabeth Schafer Karen Seago Feminism: South Asia Independent scholar, Loachapoka, University of North London Alabama England Simona Sharoni United States Literature: Western Europe American University Ethnic studies II United States Barbara Seaman Zionism Londa Schiebinger National Women’s Health Network; Penn State University contributing editor, MS. Magazine Rose Shayo United States United States University of Dar es Salaam Nature-nurture debate Norplant; The Pill Tanzania Alternative technology: Case study— Ana Maria Schluter Rodes Lynne Segal Africa Zen master, Community of Bethany Feminist Review Spain England Joanne Sheehan Mysticism Feminism: Socialist War Resisters League, Norwich, Connecticut Frauke Schnell Ellen Seiter United States West Chester University University of California, San Diego Nonviolence United States United States Conservatism Television Susan Sheridan Flinders University Rosa Schnyer Susan Sellers Australia University of Arizona University of St. Andrews Popular culture United States Scotland Depression: Case study—Chinese Difference I; Écriture féminine medicine xlvi CONTRIBUTORS

Joyce Sherlock Katherine Snyder Judith Squires De Montfort University Bedford Queens College, City University of University of Bristol England New York England Sport United States Political participation; Political Family: Religious and legal systems— representation Vandana Shiva East Africa Research Foundation for Science, Annabelle Sreberny Technology, and Ecology, New Zoann Snyder University of Leicester Delhi Western Michigan University England India United States Globalization Environment: South Asian case study— Crime and punishment: Case study— Forests in India; Nature: Philosophy Women in prisons in the United Beth Stafford and spirituality States University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign Izabel Soliman Diana Laskin Siegal United States University of New England Massachusetts Department of Public Libraries; Third world women: Selected Australia Health resources Educators: Higher education United States Long-term care services Carron Somerset Patricia Stamp End Child Prostitution, Pornography, York University Cathy Silber and Trafficking (ECPAT, UK) Canada Williams College England Sexism United States Slavery Literature: China Mary Zeiss Stange Tamsin Spargo Skidmore College Felly Nkweto Simmonds Liverpool John Moores University United States University of Northumbria England Christianity; Hunting; Mormons England Literary theory and criticism Film criticism Autumn Stanley Dale Spender Independent scholar, Portola Valley, Jen Skattebol Australian Interactive Multimedia California University of Western Sydney Industry Association, Sydney United States Australia Australia Inventors Pedagogy: Feminist Ability; Diaries and journals; Novel Liz Stanley Lynne Spender Jirina Smejkalova University of Manchester Australian Interactive Multimedia Central European University England Industry Association, Sydney Hungary Anger; Feminism: Radical; Gay pride; Feminism: Eastern Europe Australia Heterosexism; Phallocentrism; Money Slogans: “The personal is the Laurajane Smith political”; Sociology; Universalism; Wendy A.Spinks University of York Woman-centeredness Science University of Tokyo England Japan Archaeology Susan Leigh Star Teleworking University of California, San Diego Beatrice Smulders Charlene Spretnak United States Birth Center, Amsterdam California Institute of Integral Science: Overview; Technology Netherlands Studies in San Francisco Pregnancy and birth United States Gaia hypothesis

xlvii CONTRIBUTORS

Anna Starzewska-Sikorska Maila Stivens Yifat Susskind Institute for Ecology of Industrial University of Melbourne MADRE, New York Areas Australia United States Poland Women’s studies: Southeast Asia Violence: Central and South America Environment: Central and eastern Europe Sandy Stone Mina Swaminathan University of Texas at Austin M. S. Swaminathan Research Daiva Stasiulis United States Foundation, Chennai Carleton University Transgender India Canada Child care Settler societies Merl Storr University of East London Marja-Liisa Swantz Kathleen Staudt England University of Helsinki University of Texas at El Paso Bisexuality Finland United States Development: Sub-Saharan and Doris Strahm Borders southern Africa Feminist theologian, Basel Jennifer Steinberg Switzerland Catherine Swender National Geographic Magazine Christianity: Feminist Christology Alma College United States United States Environment: Sub-Saharan and Jean A.S.Strauss Soap operas southern Africa Writer, Silver Spring, Maryland United States Norma Swenson Linda Steiner Adoption: Mental health issues Boston Women’s Health Book Rutgers University United States Nelly Stromquist Collective Media: Alternative University of Southern California United States United States Global health movement; Global Jeanne Mager Stellman Development: Central and South health movement: Resources Columbia University America and the Caribbean United States Koh Tai Ann Occupational health and safety Banu Subramaniam Nanyang Technological University University of Arizona Singapore Ann Stewart United States Literature: Southeast Asia University of Warwick Biology England Peta Tait Personal and customary laws Mangala La Trobe University University of Connecticut Australia Fiona Stewart United States Lesbian drama; Performance texts Real World Research and Communi- Activism cations, Melbourne Ghada Talhami Australia Julia Sudbury Lake Forest College Feminism: Third-wave; Humanities Mills College United States and social sciences: Feminist United States Peace movements: Middle East and critiques; Life expectancy; Research: Feminism: Black British the Arab world Online Shehnaaz Suliman Elizabeth Tapia Medical doctor Deborah Stienstra Union Theological Seminary University of Winnipeg South Africa and United States Philippines Households and families: Southern Canada Prayer Social movements Africa xlviii CONTRIBUTORS

Ann Gill Taylor Rosemarie Tong Elaine Unterhalter University of Virginia University of North Carolina University of London United States United States England Healers; Holistic health I Ethics: Feminist Apartheid, segregation, and ghettoization Lee Taylor Nahid Toubia Open University RAINBO, New York Kimberley Updegraff England United States Arizona State University Equal opportunities: Education Female circumcision and genital United States mutilation Child development Sandra Taylor Queensland University of Technology Patricia Tovar Jane Ussher Australia Institute Colombiano de University of Western Sydney, Nepean Education: Gender equity Antropología Australia Colombia Mental health I; Physical strength Vana Tentokali Marriage: Overview; Marriage: Angharad N.Valdivia University of Thessalonik Interracial and interreligious; Greece Marriage: Regional traditions and University of Illinois Built environment practices; Marriage: Remarriage; United States Images of women: Overview; Media: Widowhood Tove Thagaard Overview University of Oslo Reinhild Traitler-Espiritu Norway European Women’s College Irma van der Ploeg Science: Technological and scientific Switzerland Erasmus University Rotterdam research Mother Earth Netherlands Anatomy Beverly Thiele Thanh-Dam Truong Murdoch University Institute of Social Studies Jan van Dyke Australia Netherlands University of North Carolina Family life cycle and work; Part-time Prostitution United States and casual work; Work: Patterns Dance: Choreography Azumi Tsuge Helen Thomas Shouleh Vatanabadi Health Science University Hokkaido Goldsmiths College Japan New York University England Fertility and fertility treatment United States Dance: Overview; Dance: Modern Literature: Persian Nancy Tuana Linda Thomas Bella Vivante University of Oregon Lutheran School of Theology at University of Arizona United States Chicago United States Physiology United States Ancient nation-states: Women’s roles Womanist theology Vappu Tyyskä Olga Voronina Ryerson Polytechnic University Rachel Thomson Institute of Philosophy Canada South Bank University Russia Cohabitation; Courtship; Housework; England Feminism: Commonwealth of Motherhood; Parenthood Sex education Independent States Valerie Ubbes Leonore Tiefer Ariella Vraneski Miami University, Oxford Ohio New York University Technion-Israel Institute of Technology United States United States Israel Health education Sexology and sex research Environment: Middle East

xlix CONTRIBUTORS

Amina Wadud Maria-Barbara Watson-Franke Giselle Weiss Virginia Commonwealth University San Diego State University Writer, Basel United States United States Switzerland Faith Matrilineal systems Health care: Eastern Europe; Health care: North Africa and the Middle Jennifer Waelti-Walters Patricia Waugh East; Health care: Southeast Asia; University of Victoria University of Durham Health care: Sub-Saharan Africa; Canada England Health care: Western Europe Fairy tales Feminism: Postmodern Catherine Wessinger Val Walsh Georgina Waylen Loyola University, New Orleans University of Central Lancashire University of Sheffield United States England England Sects and cults Creativity; Disability: Elite body Democratization; Imperialism Jackie West Carol Warren Susun S.Weed University of Bristol Murdoch University Wise Women Center/Ash Tree England Australia Publishing, Woodstock, New York Work: Occupational segregation Economy: History of women’s United States participation Menopause; Nutrition I; Traditional Louise Westling healing: Herbalists University of Oregon Roz Warren United States Humorist, Bala Cynwyd, Judith Romney Wegner Earth Pennsylvania Brown University United States United States Melissa White Cartoons and comics; Humor: Case Judaism University of Sydney study—Comedy, United States Australia Zhang Wei Class and feminism; Difference II Eva Warth Peking University Universiteit Utrecht China Elizabeth L.Whitelegg Netherlands Education: East Asia Open University Gaze England Lynne Weikart Education: Science Kazuko Watanabe Baruch College, City University of Kyoto Sangyo University New York Margaret Whitford Japan United States Queen Mary and Westfield College, Feminism: Japan Politics and the state: North America University of London England Mary Ann Watson Gaby Weiner Psychoanalysis Metropolitan State College of Denver Umea University United States Sweden Sandra Whitworth Sexuality: Psychology of sexuality in Education: Curriculum in schools York University the United States Canada Leslie Kanes Weisman International organizations and Peggy Watson New Jersey Institute of Technology agencies; Peacekeeping University of Cambridge United States England Architecture Saskia Wieringa Education: Commonwealth of Institute of Social Studies Independent States; Education: Netherlands Eastern Europe Sex and culture l CONTRIBUTORS

Anne Wigglesworth Sarah Worth Heather Young Leslie Medical doctor and writer, Lawrence, Furman University University of Alberta Kansas United States Canada United States Aesthetics: Feminist Fostering: Case study—Oceania Surgery: Case study—Contemporary issues in the United States Katharine Wright Gillian Youngs Liverpool University University of Leicester Lynette Willoughby England England Women’s Engineering Society, Leeds Households and families: Central and Internet politics and states England South America Education: Technology Nira Yuval-Davis Lee Wright University of Greenwich Ara Wilson University of Ulster, Belfast England Ohio State University Northern Ireland Citizenship; Nation and nationalism United States Textiles Patriarchy: Feminist theory Susan J.Wurtzburg Weisi Zhao Maggie Wilson Lincoln University International College at Beijing of Oxford Brookes University New Zealand China Agricultural University England Battery; Households and families: China Education: Western Europe Micronesia and Polynesia Population: Chinese case study

Tamsin Wilton Xiong Lei Wang Zheng University of the West of England China Features and Information Stanford University England Services, Beijing United States Film: Lesbian China Feminism: China Media: Chinese case study Jan Windebank Shahla Zia Ryoko Yanagibori University of Sheffield Aurat Publication and Information Aichi Prefectural College of Nursing England Service Foundation, Islamabad Japan Domestic labor Pakistan Health care: East Asia Family: Religious and legal systems— Sue Wise Nazik Yared Islamic traditions University of Lancaster Lebanese American University England Lebanon Bonnie Zimmerman Sexism Violence: Middle East and the Arab San Diego State University Sharon L.Wolchik world (Lebanon) United States Lesbian studies George Washington University Anna Yeatman United States Macquarie University Faye Zucker Development: Central and Eastern Australia Europe Faye Zucker Editorial Services, New Bureaucracy York Carol Wolkowitz United States Barbara Yost University of Warwick AIDS and HIV; Bulimia nervosa; Arizona Republic, Phoenix Demonization; Genetic screening; England United States Capitalism Genetics and genetic technologies; History; Sports and discrimination Nursing homes; Publishing Julia T.Wood Serinity Young University of North Carolina Columbia University United States United States Conversation Religion: Overview; Sacred texts

li

Project Staff

PROJECT EDITORS EDITING AND PROOFREADING INDEX Susan Gamer Susan Albury Cynthia Crippen Tara Montgomery Charles Carey

Laura Daly DESIGN Mary Flower EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS Parlour, New York Gretchen Gordon Jillian Cristofalo Suzanne Guiod Mark Georgiev Carol Hartland PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Jo Sanson Susan Kan Laura-Ann Robb Virginia Williams Deborah Klenotic Daniel Yacavone Laura Lawrie DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT Alia Levine Richard Steins EDITING AND COMPOSITION Tom Lansford SERVICES Susan Llewellyn Impressions Thomas McCarthy ACQUISTIONS EDITOR Stratford Publishing Services Jane McGary Kevin Ohe Judy Ashkenaz, Nancy Joseph Murphy Crompton, Hilary Farquhar Frank Salamone PUBLISHING DIRECTOR, Faye Zucker Editorial Services Cathy Sanguinetti REFERENCE Ron Kaehler, Faye Zucker Ingrid Sterner Sylvia K.Miller

liii

Introduction

The preservation of women’s knowledge and experience— agreed not to have overall entries on specific countries, but in terms of the body, the community, work, the environ- rather to cover certain topic areas region by region. ment, and history—is vital to women’s visibility and Determining the categories of topics was a considerable empowerment in the future. This international encyclope- challenge, since any such division is difficult and to some dia of women began when Phyllis Hall at Pergamon Press, extent arbitrary. We realized that, whatever scheme we our original publisher, recognized the importance of re- chose, we would need to watch for ideas and issues that cording such knowledge and experience. might fall into the cracks—we needed to ensure that sub- When Phyllis invited us to serve as general editors of the jects such as psychology, psychoanalysis, sociology, encyclopedia, we knew that we were being offered a sig- sports, and anthropology, along with new and expanding nificant opportunity. We shared her vision of an encyclope- areas of study, would be adequately presented. Eventually, dia that would address the concerns of women and the we decided on thirteen thematic categories; they are not theory and practice of feminism around the world, and we exhaustive, and some overlapping has been inevitable, but decided to develop a reference work that would be an ac- we feel that they represent the broad coverage we wanted: cessible, trustworthy resource not only for scholars, profes- 1. Arts and literature sionals, and activists but for the general reader everywhere. 2. Culture and communication The Development Process 3. Ecology and the environment 4. Economy and development To understand what the Routledge International Encyclo- 5. Education pedia of Women is, and how it works, our readers may find 6. Health, reproduction, and sexuality it helpful to know something about how it was planned and 7. History and philosophy of feminism put together. 8. Households and families In preparing a women’s encyclopedia, we did not have 9. Politics and the state many guides or precedents. We began to plan the frame- 10. Religion and spirituality work in February 1990, with a small meeting of academics 11. Science and technology and activists at the University of Oregon, where Cheris 12. Violence and peace Kramarae was acting director of the Center for the Study 13. Women’s studies of Women in Society. These initial planners—from Eng- land, the Philippines, India, Canada, Australia, and the These topic areas were created only for developmental pur- United States—had an abundance of ideas, and Charlotte poses; in the final encyclopedia, the articles would be in Bunch of our editorial board helped us schematize them so alphabetical order across topics. that we could visualize various possibilities for content We then found our specialist topic editors to oversee and organization. each category. The topic editors were invited to a second Of course, there were limits to the scope of the project. meeting, in November 1990, at the University of Illinois, The encyclopedia would be published in English in four where Cheris was teaching in the Speech Communication volumes. In addition to the two general editors, it would Department and Women’s Studies Program. They brought have about a dozen topic editors who would consider what outlines for their sections, which were discussed and re- specific articles to include. At the outset, we decided— vised through collective efforts. As early as this meeting, though not without regrets—that a work of this size could we began to consider the relationships between specific not include essays on individual women: such entries topics—an important aspect of a truly integrated would have required something combining the features of multidisciplinary reference work. Throughout the produc- an encyclopedia and a dictionary of biography, and would tion of the encyclopedia, special care has been taken to have filled many more volumes. Accordingly, we agreed to highlight the links between topics through cross-references focus on ideas and actions, a format that still allowed us to that will lead users to comparative articles, such as entries include information about numerous individuals. We also about different regions and related topics of interest.

lv INTRODUCTION

The Publishing Process topic area. Networks of women scholars and activists In the years since those first two meetings, our encyclope- around the globe have enabled us to find expert writers dia project has had a long publishing history. Before it ar- from as many as 70 countries; in particular, international rived at Routledge in New York, not only its publishing conferences such as the International Interdisciplinary house but also its in-house editorial staff had changed more Congress on Women were excellent settings for finding than once, with the files moving from the United States to extraordinary writers, many of whom had never before the United Kingdom and back again. Throughout the been published in English. Second, as noted above, we project, however, we have always been fortunate in work- cover many subjects region by region, encompassing di- ing with staff members who had a passion for the encyclo- verse cultural traditions. Third, we have included numerous pedia and were determined to see it through to publication. “case studies,” articles that focus on a specific aspect of a We have also—not surprisingly, considering the long- larger topic; and typically, this specific focus is regional. term nature of the project—seen some changes in topic edi- We would have liked to work with even more interna- tors, and among the individual contributors. Yet the initial tional writers and to include even more international topics, plan, devised in our early conferences and meetings, has but there were, understandably, practical constraints: we remained basically intact. The perseverance and dedication encountered some problems related to communication of the topic editors and contributors have been amazing—a channels, political conflicts, migration, censorship, or eco- testament, we hope, to the worth of the project. nomics. For some topics, data and expert writers seemed to be unavailable; occasionally, too, we simply lost touch with The Articles and Contributors a writer. We believe, however, that the international cover- The articles in the Routledge International Encyclopedia of age here is more far-reaching than in any other single refer- Women were written by authors from many disciplines, lan- ence work focusing on women’s issues. guages, and cultures. All the contributors were asked to keep in mind the needs of users. Most readers, we assumed, would The Updating Process look for an introduction to the issues involved in any topic, a Because any encyclopedia takes a long time to publish, up- basic understanding as well as directions to further and more dating becomes an important issue. In our case, social and specialized sources of information. In general, each author political developments have affected women around the was asked to survey the topic rather than adopt a specialist’s world; women’s movements have evolved, becoming position, although some exceptions were made when a brief stronger in some places and being threatened in others; on- article could not, as a practical matter, discuss a multiplicity going scholarship and research have cast new light on some of views, and when, occasionally, a specific view was the ideas; new debates have taken center stage; new trends point of an article. Overall, the articles are designed to be have emerged. To take just two examples, accessible and useful for a wide range of readers, including has, for many women, given way to advanced high school students, undergraduate and graduate and beyond; and women’s studies as a discipline has seen students, scholars from many disciplines (such as women’s significant changes (in some ways, the development of the studies and related fields), and professionals working on encyclopedia has mirrored the development of women’s women’s issues at the local or international level. studies). As a result, many of the original articles in the en- While our goal was to focus on real issues and ideas rather cyclopedia have been revised or rewritten, and many new than on academic theories, we have included some theoreti- articles have been added. Throughout the production proc- cal articles. Some of these, necessarily, are written at a higher ess, we have tried to ensure that topics of current interest level, but we believe that they will still be of interest, and use, were represented. In this effort, we drew on the expertise of to most if not all readers. Our authors were also reminded younger feminists, scholars in emerging fields, and librar- that the readers would come from many different countries ians—particularly those from the Women’s Studies Section and cultural backgrounds, and that the language and exam- of the American Library Associations Association of Col- ples in each article should therefore be broadly accessible. lege and Research Libraries. We invited authors to write new articles about technology, cyberculture, sexuality, les- The International Focus bian studies, transgender, queer theory, postmodernism, We offer an international perspective in at least three ways. post-colonialism, girl studies, and ethics, to name a few First, the authors themselves are international—writers subjects; and we have integrated older and newer material from around the world have contributed articles in every through cross-referencing. The encyclopedia now represents

lvi INTRODUCTION more than three decades of worldwide scholarship—espe- and literature. Robert Sloane and Diane Tipps worked with cially, though not exclusively, feminist scholarship—in nu- Angharad Valdiva on culture and communications— merous fields of knowledge. Robert as editorial assisant and Diane as secretary. Sharon McDuell of London, England, was an acting topic editor The Representation of Values for ecology and the environment. Cora Baldock, the topic As we worked on this encyclopedia, we have been very editor for economy and development, worked continually much aware of what has been called the politics of legiti- and closely with the Murdoch Encyclopedia Collective. macy. At any time, in a given society or culture, certain Susie O’Brien was the second topic editor for education. Jo groups are privileged, and it is such groups that often de- Sanson was an assistant to Joan Mencher, the topic editor cide what is valid and what knowledge counts. Systems of for households and families. values change over time, but in the last few centuries, at We have also received help from hundreds of others— least, women have seldom been included among the including people in universities, women’s organizations, “knowledge makers.” This exclusion of women has been and libraries—in many countries. Here, we mention a few increasingly challenged in recent decades: we have wit- of those who contributed time and knowledge to the proc- nessed the emergence of a plurality of truths, partly as a ess of creating this encyclopedia. result of feminist interventions. Traditionally, encyclopedia During the earlier stages of the project, several people articles have tended to be—or to be presented as—“value- were involved in planning and editorial work, including free”; but feminist scholarship often acknowledges the Joan Burks, Clair Chaventré, Caroline Cornish, Bonnie “politics of the personal,” or the political importance of Thornton Dill, Clare Grist, Elise Hansen, Sue Henley, women’s personal experience, and takes an interest in Jackie Jones, Candida Lacey, Robert Miranda, Cathy Pep- transforming the theory, practice, and purpose of social in- pers, Marilyn Plowman, Wei Chi Poon, Susan Richards, stitutions. Many of the entries in this encyclopedia of Ann Russo, Carolyn Royston, Sari Schnitzlein, Lynne women offer “values” in this sense, and we believe the Spender, and Mary Walstrom. reader will enjoy and learn from the cultural exchange that Cheris Kramarae acknowledges particularly the help re- they represent. ceived from the Center for the Study of Women in Society We realize that the Routledge International Encyclope- at the University of Oregon, the Speech Communication dia of Women does not, and could not, contain everything Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana- that might have been included, but we also believe that the Champaign, and the Women’s Studies Program at the Uni- encyclopedia contains much more about women’s scholar- versity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. ship—and a wider exploration of its variety, richness, and The Boston Women’s Health Book Collective range—than can be found in any other international refer- (BWHBC) reviewed nearly every article related to health, ence work. We wish our readers well, and we hope that reproduction, and sexuality and provided much valuable what we have accomplished here may inspire some to make advice about this topic area. In particular, our thanks to their own contributions to the field of global women’s is- Claudine Mussuto and Judy Norsigian at BWHBC. sues and knowledge. When we were seeking writers, many people very kindly recommended colleagues and helped in other ways. Acknowledgments We would especially like to thank Madeleine Wing Adler, The Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women has Douglas Anderson, Joan Jacobs Brumberg, Sheila ffoliot, been a major task involving more than a thousand people: Ada Finifter, Paul Finkelman, Vernon M.Goetcheus, authors, editors, advisers, and others. We thank everyone Sondra Hale, Ellen Herman, Bruce Itule, Natalie involved, beginning with the members of our editorial B.Kampen, Robert P.Lamm, Frederick Lane, Laura board (listed on page ii), our contributors (pages xxv-li), Macdonald, Anthony Marcus, Thomas McCarthy, Jean and the project staff (page liii). O’Barr, Elsa Peterson, Judith Raiskin, Sheila M.Rothman, A number of people worked with the editorial board in Scott Slovic, David Vintinner, and Delese Wear. important supporting roles. Our special thanks to Cheris There are also our own personal acknowledgments. Kramarae’s project assistants, Elizabeth A.Kissling and Cheris Kramarae would like to give special thanks for long- Aki Uchida; and to Dale Spender’s project assistant, term friendly advice and support from Mary Ellen Capek, Georgina Hampson. Anna Hodson and Robin Mann of Victoria DeFrancisco, Irene Diamond, Sonja Foss, Nancy Wisbech, England, served as acting topic editors for arts Henley, Lorraine Ironplow, Sandra Morgan, Mary Ellen

lvii INTRODUCTION

O’Shaughnessey, Barbara Reskin, Diana Sheridan, Verna support; Kirsten Lees for research, and for her insights; Smith, Leslie Steeves, Jeanie Taylor, and Barrie Thorne; to Sheryle Moon; Sarah Neal for research; Janine Schmdt, the many feminist friends in several countries who offered university librarian, University of Queensland, particularly their homes for meetings as well as advice, assistance, and for her help with on-line strategies; Joni Seegar; Fiona encouragment; and to her family—Jana, Brinlee, and Dale Stewart for dealing with emergencies; and Leslie Weisman. Kramer—who shared space and time with this complex Both general editors are grateful to the publishers who project. have participated in this project, providing resources and Dale Spender would especially like to thank the follow- expertise; and, finally and fully, to Phyllis Hall, who initi- ing people for their advice, help, and support: Quentin ated and guided it. Bryce, principal, Women’s College, University of Syndey; David Doughan, librarian, Fawcett Library, for invaluable Cheris Kramarae assistance in finding people; Rick Ernst for ongoing IT Dale Spender

lviii Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women Global Women’s Issues and Knowledge

Volume 1 Ability—Education: Globalization

A

ABILITY health. Arguments that women had less ability because their brains were smaller were soon discredited when it was Ability is a broad concept but has been associated mainly established that, in relation to body size, the female brain is with intellectual ability in the western world. (As disability, bigger than that of the male (Kern, 1996; Schiebinger, it has been linked with physical as well as intellectual 1989). But theories about reproductive influences, brain handicap.) According to a feminist analysis, because of the size, and hormones are still sometimes used. traditional need for males to be seen as leaders—and for In western societies where the campaign for equal rights their achievement to be justified, or based on merit—the has been under way for more than a century, girls are now management of intellectual ability has played a critical role better able to demonstrate their ability; they are generally in the relationship between the sexes. staying on longer at school, and more girls than boys are In most societies, it has been necessary for men to be entering colleges and universities. However, this comes at a seen as smarter than women, and this has required specific time when the credentials of formal education are increas- forms of social organization. Assertions that women should ingly being challenged, and women remain under-repre- not be as able as men have led to the construction of sys- sented at the higher levels as students, school principals, tems and beliefs implying that women could not be as com- and academics. petent as their male counterparts. This has been particularly Where girls have been able to enter educational institu- the case for women of color (Robinson, 1998). tions, their performance often has been systematically dis- For example, by denying females access to education, it torted so that it would not pose a challenge to males. This has been possible to portray women as silly and thereby to has been the case where girls have been restricted to a spe- explain the supposedly superior ability of males cific sphere, such as domestic training. Mary (Mackinnon, 1997). Basically all societies have at some Wollstonecraft (1759–1797), one of the early champions of stage restricted women’s education (women account for equal educational opportunity, criticized the system that two-thirds of the world’s illiterate, according to the United educated boys for the world, and girls to please men Nations’ statistics for the year 2000), but the Taliban in Af- (1978). ghanistan appear to be the only current regime that ex- Other examples include particularly prestigious aca- pressly forbids both education and occupations to women. demic areas in which the ability of girls is held to be infe- Throughout history, various explanations have been put rior, such as mathematics, engineering, or computer forward for women’s supposed inability: some had a reli- science. Although women were considered numerically gious basis; others have been associated with physical at- able in the eighteenth century (Schiebinger, 1989), when tributes, such as reproductive issues or brain size. In the mathematics was not held to be centrally important, the nineteenth century, there were those who insisted that belief that women were unable to do mathematics took women should not be allowed to exercise their intellectual hold in many minds during the twentieth century. In some ability because it would interfere with their reproductive societies(Singapore, Malaysia, and India), women are seen

1 ABORTION as able in relation to computer science and information See Also technology, whereas in the western world the number of DISABILITY AND FEMINISM; DISABILITY: ELITE BODY; women in these fields is decreasing. EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT; EDUCATION: GENDER EQUITY; Tests, too, have been weighted in favor of males. IQ EXAMINATIONS AND ASSESSMENT tests, Scholastic Aptitude Tests in the United States, the English “Eleven Plus” exams, and other forms of public References and Further Reading examination have been exposed as biased (Castro and Castro, R., and Garcia, J. 1975. Admissions: Who shall occupy the Garcia, 1975; Mensh and Mensh, 1991). seats of privilege? Aztlan 6(3):363–377. Outside the educational sphere, social organization also Kern, K. 1996. Gray matters: Brains, identities, and natural rights. has decreed—across many cultures—that “strong-minded In T.R.Schatzki and W.Natter, eds., The social and political women” are unattractive to males. For this reason, women body, 103–121. New York: Guilford. themselves have been urged to “hide their brains” and to Jeffrey, R., and Basu, A. 1996. Girls schooling, women’s au- disguise their ability. In more subtle ways, women’s codes tonomy and fertility change in South Asia. Thousand Oaks, of behavior and conversation often construct men as being Calif.: Sage. smarter and better informed. Women may be advised to ask Mackinnon, A. 1997. Love and freedom: Professional women and questions (so that males will look knowledgeable), to defer the reshaping of personal life. Cambridge: Cambridge Uni- to men’s opinions, and to refrain from criticizing men in versity Press. public (Spender, 1980). Mensh, Elaine, and Harry Mensh. 1991. The IQ mythology. It was this phenomenon that the English writer Virginia Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press. Woolf was describing when she wrote of women serving Robinson, C. 1998. Blaxploitation and the misrepresentation of “all these centuries as looking glasses, possessing the liberation. Race-and-Class 40(1):1–12. magic and delicious power of reflecting the figure of men Schiebinger, Londa. 1989. The mind has no sex. Cambridge, at twice their natural size” (Woolf, 1928). This practice has Mass.: Harvard University Press. sometimes been regarded as collusion by those who insist Spender, Dale. 2001. Brains and beauty. Transworld. on the right of women to exercise their full ability and to be ——. 1980. Man made language. London: Routledge and Kegan given credit for their achievements (Jeffrey and Basu, Paul. 1996). Wollstonecraft, Mary. 1978. A vindication of the rights of women. With the advent of the information revolution, there are Penguin. signs in some countries that women might be freer to real- Woolf, Virginia. 1928. A room of one’s own. Penguin. ize their full potential, as creative and intellectual ability is increasingly valued because it is a source of wealth Dale Spender (Spender, 2001). Cheris Kramarae

Disability The term disability has been used to indicate physical as well as intellectual handicaps. It is often considered a limit- ABORTION ing term that needs to be challenged. Disability can suggest deficiency and can be used to justify many forms of dis- Globally, an estimated forty to fifty million induced abor- crimination. To counter the negative meanings of disability, tions are performed each year. Additionally, unknown the term “ableism” has been suggested, with the term “dif- numbers of women attempt to abort but are unsuccessful. ferently abled” indicating that there is a wide range of abili- Although most abortions are performed under safe condi- ties among human beings. tions, about fifteen million clandestine abortions take place An equitable social policy would encourage the full de- annually in countries where the procedure is highly re- velopment of the ability of every individual, including the stricted or prohibited; this adds greatly to the physical dan- use of practices and devices ranging from large-print books gers to women, and to the social costs (Alan Guttmacher and voice-activated software to physical facilities that al- Institute, 1994). low access for all to the built environment. Throughout history, women have resorted to abortion to The information revolution also continues to provide terminate unwanted or mistimed pregnancies. Anthropolo- new opportunities for the differently abled to engage in gists have documented a variety of abortion methods, in- learning and working on computers. cluding heavy massage of the uterus, insertion of a stick or

2 ABORTION another object into the vagina, and ingestion of herbs which the cervix is dilated and the product of conception (Devereux, 1975). These methods are still practiced in both (the conceptus), along with the material lining the uterus, is developed (or “northern”) countries and developing extracted by suction. During the 1970s and 1980s, methods (“southern” or third world) countries, most often where of nonsurgical medical abortion were developed, among safe abortions performed by health professionals are either them RU 486 (mifepristone, followed by one dose of a illegal or inaccessible. prostaglandin) and quinacrine (a more controversial method, the safety of which has not been fully established, World Abortion Politics despite its use in some developing countries). Administered All governments place some legal restrictions on access to orally, vaginally, or intramuscularly, these drugs cause the abortions. In 1994, abortion was outlawed in sixteen coun- uterus to contract and expel its contents, in a manner simi- tries, including Chile, Ireland, the Philippines, Egypt, Mau- lar to miscarriage. ritius, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic. (Of these Abortions after the first trimester often require dilation sixteen, however, only Chile forbade abortion under all cir- and evacuation of the uterus with the use of a sharp instru- cumstances. In the other fifteen, in theory a woman could ment (a curette) for scraping the uterine lining. Late-term be granted permission to have an abortion to save her own abortions often involve inducing labor. The amniotic fluid life.) Most countries—173 in 1994—permit abortions at is removed from the uterus through a needle, after which a least in cases where the woman’s life is in danger. Forty- medication (prostaglandin, urea, saline solution, or a com- one countries, representing 38 percent of the world’s popu- bination) is injected into the uterus to induce contractions; lation, permit abortion “on request,” although all still place a few hours later, labor occurs and the fetus is expelled. some restrictions on the procedure, such as length of preg- For early procedures—pregnancies up to six or eight nancy or ability to pay (United Nations, 1994). weeks—manual vacuum aspirations (MVA) can be used In the 1950s, abortion was severely restricted in most safely in health clinics and in primary health centers, when regions of the world, except for some European countries, administered by trained health workers such as nurses with the Soviet Union, and Japan. After independence, many obstetric-gynecological training, midwives, paramedics, or former colonies retained strict antiabortion laws that had physicians. MVA can also be provided on an outpatient ba- been imposed by their colonizers. Laws permitting abor- sis at very low cost (Rosenfield, 1992). tion only to save a woman’s life still prevail in most of Many women turn to abortion as a method of family Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Arab world planning because they do not have access to reliable meth- (Cook, 1989; Dixon-Mueller, 1990). ods of contraception; they find the available methods in- In the 1980s and 1990s, abortion laws in both developed convenient or suffer from side effects or contraceptive and developing nations were liberalized, in recognition of failure; or they feel powerless to use a contraceptive the impact on women’s health of abortions carried out un- method in their sexual relationships. For a variety of rea- der unsafe conditions. Since 1988, five European countries, sons, abortion also may be the method that best meets a six countries of the former Eastern bloc, and five develop- woman’s needs at a particular time in her life. Many wom- ing countries have made their abortion laws less restrictive en’s health advocates suggest that the ideological division (Henshaw, 1994). Countries with the least restrictive abor- between “family planning” and “abortion” no longer tion laws include Cuba, Canada, the United States, many makes sense. Seeking to build holistic systems for repro- republics of the former Soviet Union, Russia, Singapore, ductive health care, women’s health advocates call for safe South Korea, Tunisia, and Turkey. abortion to be a part of a comprehensive program of sexual Concurrent with the trend toward legalization, however, and reproductive health services accessible to all women a number of powerful religious groups, together with an (Dixon-Mueller, 1993). increasingly vocal right-to-life movement, originating in the United States and spreading to the former Soviet Union The Toll of Unsafe Abortions and eastern bloc, Australia, and many developing coun- Unsafe abortion is recognized as a global problem with tries, seeks to outlaw all abortions. Some are also opposed enormous impact on women’s health and lives, particularly to the use of contraception. in poorer, less developed countries where abortion is also the most legally restricted. Mortality rates for unsafe abor- Abortion Procedures tions—those that are self-induced or clandestine because First-trimester abortions are typically carried out through laws and politics restrict women’s access to safe, legal vacuum aspiration, a five- to ten-minute procedure in services—are far higher than for legal abortions carried

3 ABORTION outby trained health professionals in sanitary conditions. most populous nations, have fairly liberal abortion laws. The Under unsafe conditions, mortality rates range between 15 cultural preference for sons is so great in these countries, and 300 deaths per 100,000 abortions performed (Royston however, that many women seek abortions following amnio- and Armstrong, 1989), as opposed to the mortality rate of centesis if they learn that the fetus is female. 1.4 deaths per 100,000 abortions carried out under safe Feminists and the international women’s health move- conditions. The World Health Organization (WHO) esti- ment have, since the 1970s, made access to safe abortion mates that more than 100,000 women die each year from services a central issue of rights, equity, and reproductive unsafe abortions. Because these deaths are generally health, and support a woman’s right to choose an abortion underreported, the true figure may be much higher. on medical, moral, or ethical grounds. As a result of unsafe abortions, even higher numbers of women experience chronic or severe health problems, in- See Also fections of the reproductive tract, infertility, and severe CONTRACEPTION; FAMILY PLANNING; FETUS; MATERNAL physical or emotional trauma. Women also may feel de- HEALTH AND MORBIDITY; THE PILL; PRO-CHOICE pressed, powerless, and alone after the procedure, espe- MOVEMENT; REPRODUCTION: OVERVIEW; REPRODUCTIVE cially if denied compassionate counseling, legal sanction, HEALTH; REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS; REPRODUCTIVE and—in most cases—any form of postprocedure pain man- TECHNOLOGIES agement. Poor, young, and less-educated women suffer the most from restrictive abortion laws, and they suffer the References and Further Reading most in poor countries. Alan Guttmacher Institute. 1994. Clandestine abortion: A Latin The United Nations International Conference on Popu- American reality. New York: Alan Guttmacher Institute. lation and Development, held in Cairo in September 1994, Cook, Rebecca J. 1989. Abortion laws and politics: Challenges defined unsafe abortion as “a major public health concern” and opportunities . International Journal of Gynecology and in an agreement signed by 184 nations. Although no spe- Obstetrics 3 (Supplement): 61–87. cific recommendations were made for removing legal re- Devereux, George. 1975. Study of abortion in primitive culture. strictions against abortion, the Programme of Action urged Madison, Conn.: International Universities Press. governments and nongovernmental organizations to Dixon-Mueller, Ruth. 1990. Abortion policy and women’s health “strengthen their commitment to women’s health” and “to in developing countries. International Journal of Health deal with the health impact of unsafe abortion.” Services 20:297–314. Of additional concern to health officials are the costs of ——. 1993. Abortion is a method of family planning. In Four es- treating women who have incomplete or botched abortions. says on birth control needs and risks. New York: Interna- Such treatment is an overwhelming and often unsuccessful tional Women’s Health Coalition. task, as well as a significant drain on the medical resources Germain, Adrienne. 1989. The Christopher Tietze International of already overburdened health systems (Germain, 1989). Symposium: An overview. International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics 3 (Supplement): 1–8. Women’s Health in the Balance ——, and Jane Ordway. 1989. Population control and women’s Despite the increasing legality of abortion, women’s health health: Balancing the scales. New York: International Wom- and lives are still threatened. Many governments install, as en’s Health Coalition (in cooperation with the Overseas De- gatekeeping mechanisms, requirements that impede women velopment Council). seeking abortions, such as a mandatory waiting period; filing Henshaw, Stanley K. 1994. Recent trends in the legal status of of police reports or other legal documents; proof of rape, in- induced abortions. Journal of Public Health Policy 15(2): cest, physical disability, or mental distress; or evidence of 165–172. fetal impairment. Disparities exist in access to abortion, with McLaurin, Kate E., Charlotte E.Hord, and Merrill Wolf. 1991. poor and rural populations having greatly reduced access to Health systems’ role in abortion care: The need for a services. In the United States, for example, 83 percent of proactive approach. Issues in Abortion Care 1. IPAS: Inter- counties have no abortion provider (National Abortion Fed- national Projects Assistance Services 1:1–34. eration, 1991), and the federal government does not pay for National Abortion Federation. 1991. The truth about abortion. abortion for poor women. In India and Zambia, abortion is Washington, D.C.: National Abortion Federation. legal, but millions of women each year still resort to clandes- Rosenfield, Allan. 1992. Maternal mortality: Community-based tine abortions when and where services are not available interventions. International Journal of Gynecology and Ob- (McLaurin et al., 1991). China and India, the world’s two stetrics 38 (Supplement): 17–22.

4 ABUSE

Royston, Erica, and Sue Armstrong. 1989. Preventing maternal against women from men known to them, usually husbands, deaths. Geneva: World Health Organization. cohabitees, or boyfriends. It defines the location of a call for United Nations. 1994. Programme of Action of the International assistance and implies a lesser response than would result Conference on Population and Development. from public violence. In policing, the term domestic violence United Nations, Department for Economic and Social Information can be used to distinguish between criminal (that is, violent) and Policy Analysis. 1994. World Abortion Policies. and noncriminal behavior. Another term used to describe the World Health Organization. 1997. Maternal mortality, ratios and location of a type of abuse is harassment, which began as a rates: A tabulation of available information. Geneva: World descriptor for workplace abuse encompassing both violent Health Organization. crime and noncriminal acts. However defined, abusive experiences challenge theory, Martha MacDonald policy, and practice in relation to the family and social life more generally. The recognition of abuse calls into ques- tion the view of the heterosexual family as a haven of warmth and caring and as invariably a social good. Abuse ABSTINENCE, SEXUAL also raises issues about the separation between public and See CELIBACY: RELIGIOUS; CELIBACY: SECULAR; and private life and, most important, about gender and gender VIRGINITY. relations. Gender differences are a factor not only in who does what to whom, but also in how abusive acts are inter- preted and understood by women, men, and children of both sexes. ABUSE In this article, in keeping with much of the literature, abuse, violence, battering, and harassment will be used in- Abuse—a term often linked with terchangeably in relation to a wide range of behaviors. or children—is one of several terms, along with violence These varying forms of abuse take place in families con- and battering, that gained widespread use in the latter half sisting of adult partners with and without dependent chil- of the twentieth century. These terms can be used inter- dren and between acquaintances, friends, workplace changeably. They may be linked with other words, such as colleagues, and strangers. This discussion will include the syndrome, family, and marital, to develop conceptual issues of the abuse of men and of women as abusers. meaning, or they may be defined differently. Rediscovering Child Abuse Recognizing an Issue The rediscovery of the extent of violence against children The term abuse may be restricted to children and violence began in the early 1960s, when unexplained injury to chil- to adults in order to make theoretical distinctions useful to dren was identified through radiology (Kempe et al., 1962). professional responses (Stark and Flitcraft, 1996). Using Although forms of harm to infants and children, such as different terms can be helpful in differentiating the rel- serious physical neglect and infanticide, were part of the evance of coercion and control; for children, these are an knowledge of professional practice, X rays found multiple aspect of childhood development, whereas for adults they fractures, both old and new, in children from birth onward are the antithesis of independence and autonomy. These that could not be explained away as accidental. The recog- differences are reflected in interventions for adults and nition of extreme physical violence, initially called batter- those for children—protective services for children, con- ing, deliberately inflicted by adults responsible for the care trasted with support, advocacy, and empowerment for inde- of infants and older children spread quickly and began to pendent adults. Battering can be seen as a process, the have an influence on medical and other services. Because “dynamics of partner assaults as a pattern of coercive con- this abuse was taking place primarily within families, new trol” encompassing a range of behaviors to “hurt, intimi- ways of understanding family dynamics and life had to be date, coerce, isolate, control, or humiliate a partner” (Stark developed. But the recognition of physical abuse was only and Flitcraft, 1996:161). the beginning. Using different terms can also be a way of confirming Sexual abuse of children, along with physical abuse and differential responses based on a distinction between appro- neglect, was understood to be a social problem in the nine- priate interventions in the private and the public domain. For teenth century, but this knowledge was contested, particu- example, domestic violence is a policing term for violence larly by theoretical developments in psychoanalysis.

5 ABUSE

Overthe early years of the twentieth century, knowledge of Children are also abused in residential and other institu- child sexual abuse as a major social problem became so tions, such as day schools and youth groups, in which restricted that, as with physical abuse, we can speak of its adults occupy a position of leadership and trust. Abuse by subsequent rediscovery. In 1980 the publication of The strangers is comparatively rare. Best Kept Secret by Florence Rush launched an attack on Sexual abuse can happen at any age from birth onward Freud for his belief that claims by women in therapy that but is likely to begin before and cease at adolescence. Re- they had been sexually abused as children were fantasies, search with sex offenders has increased understanding of not reality. At the same time, women began to publish ex- the ways in which men approach and use children and how periential accounts challenging this view (for example, they keep children from telling others about the abuse. Armstrong, 1978) along with exposures of the sexual abuse Some children may be physically injured through adult of women patients by male therapists. male penetration, but a child may be required to engage in Initially Freud thought that childhood experiences of activities that leave no physical damage, such as masturba- rape and other sexual acts by fathers were reality, but his tion and oral sex. Children are silenced through various medical colleagues disagreed. Male therapists, comfort- strategies, such as threats of harm and even death, or warn- able with the belief that women fantasize sexual experi- ings that no one will believe them, that they will be severely ences with their fathers, developed a theory that such punished, or that their will die if they are told. fantasies were merely an aspect of child development. This Women also may abuse children, but sexual abuse is al- type of theoretical battle continues today through the de- most entirely undertaken by men. In the United Kingdom, bate over “false memory syndrome,” the view that women for example, 98 percent of the prosecutions for sexual falsely recall experiences of abuse by their fathers. Further, abuse are of men. Although criminal prosecution, given its false memories are said to be encouraged by the therapeutic rarity, is not a complete measure of the proportion of male process, a view that challenges psychoanalysis and related or female abusers of children, it is a major indicator. There therapies in a new way. These views serve to deny not only are also qualitative differences. Women who sexually abuse the reality of sexual abuse of girls by adult males but also may do so alone, or they may be in a couple or part of a the long-term detrimental emotional harm that can follow group with male members and may be abused themselves children of both sexes into adulthood. by these men. Because the number of women who sexually abuse children is so small relative to men, these women are Prevalence of Child Abuse truly deviant. With men, deviance is a more difficult argu- Both professionals and society in general resisted the rec- ment to make. ognition of sexual abuse of girls by fathers and other male The term pedophile could be applied to any man who relatives more strongly than that of the extreme physical seeks sexual encounters with children, but it is used prima- abuse of boys and girls. Once such abuse could no longer rily to refer to strangers—that is, to men who operate in be denied, the sexual abuse of boys was raised as an issue. same-sex groups to abuse children, particularly boys, or (Similarly, when resistance to recognition of the abuse of who operate alone seeking out single mothers with children women by their male partners ceased to be tenable, men of the “right” age. Abusive rings can be established through were said to be physically victimized as well.) The scale of the Internet, can involve men from different nations, and the problems, the gender of abusers and victims, and other can include child pornography. On rare occasions a very characteristics increasingly came to be recognized as areas limited number of these may be apprehended and pros- for study. ecuted and the images seized, but the children whose bod- As with all forms of violence, the precise number of ies were used to make them are unlikely to be found. An abusers and victims cannot be known with absolute cer- extreme case of police, judicial, and governmental incom- tainty, but surveys and studies of varying sizes have estab- petence and corruption took place in the 1990s in Belgium, lished that both physical abuse and sexual abuse of girls when four abducted and sexually abused young girls died and boys are substantial problems. Even adjusting for of starvation in locked cellars. Public outrage is not suffi- methodologies, the general finding is that girls are more cient to curtail widespread child abuse within or around or likely to be sexually abused than boys. Men in and around outside the family; abusers are often socially well con- the family, such as uncles or grandfathers, may abuse only nected and highly manipulative men rather than loners or girls, although in some families men sexually abuse chil- similar outsiders. dren of both sexes. Studies suggest that approximately With physical and emotional abuse, the proportion of three times as many girls as boys are sexually abused. male abusers decreases to approximately 50 percent of all

6 ABUSE cases. This percentage increases, however, when the pro- that the suspicions of a classroom teacher are reported to portion of men who abuse is compared only with women the appropriate supervisor and thence to other agencies as abusers living with men. Men are more likely to commit required. (An example of how agencies collaborate on major assaults and homicide. As with sexual abuse, wom- child protection cases is provided by the U.K. Department en’s abuse of both boy and girl children may be undertaken of Health and Social Service document Working Together.) alone or in conjunction with a male partner and, more Compliance with mandatory reporting systems may vary, rarely, with other relatives or people. Here too, the abuser as may the quality of the work that flows from it. may be abused herself. Only in the 1990s did the connections between abuse of children and abuse of women begin to be widely recog- How Agencies Respond to Child Abuse nized. It is estimated that when mothers are abused, at least Definitions of child abuse change over time. Is physical 50 percent of the children may be as well. This abuse can be chastisement with whips and other instruments necessary both physical and sexual. If witnessing and knowing about to achieve an obedient, well-brought-up child? Does sexual the abuse of one’s mother is understood as psychologically abuse harm girls? The answers to these questions deter- abusive, then almost all children in these families are being mine how society responds. Since the turn of the twentieth adversely affected. However, translating this recognition century, a growing social consensus that extreme physical into professional practice in civil law, criminal justice, and abuse is unacceptable has emerged, and the forensic evi- social and welfare work is just beginning. For example, dence produced by radiology began to give child abuse a civil court proceedings to decide on custody or residence of greater profile in policing and the criminal justice system as children or access to them often present a major problem well as with regard to health. The acknowledgment of for abused mothers and children. Access to children by sexual abuse of children as social problem came later and is abusive male partners can be granted not only when women now an integral part of police work in the western world. deem it to be unsafe for themselves and the children, but Police forces may have specialist units to investigate even when the children express the wish not to see their child abuse, including taking video statements from chil- father again. These decisions have led to repeated abuse dren old enough to speak about their experiences. Court and even homicide. procedures may be altered so that children can give evi- dence behind a screen or by video or be located in another Rediscovering the Abuse of Women room while giving evidence and during cross-examination. The rediscovery of violence against women by men known These strategies are adopted to ensure that children do not to them was separate from the recognition of child abuse. It have to see their abuser and receive nonverbal messages was initiated independently in the United Kingdom and in from an intimately known abuser or experience the terror the Netherlands by politically active women and led to the of their abusers being in such close proximity. However, setting up of the first shelters for abused women and their even with these protective measures, successful prosecu- children in 1971. The experiences of women, though var- tions are far from easy to obtain. Another strategy adopted ied, had commonalities (Dobash and Dobash, 1979). by women and men is to seek the prosecution of their abus- Women described physical, sexual, emotional, and finan- ers once they are adults. In some cases police will interview cial abuses and social isolation from family and friends. accused men, and if they admit guilt, they will be pros- The major focus continues to be on physical violence, ecuted. If they do not, it is likely that collaborative evidence while the least visible form of harm is sexual abuse. Marital will no longer be available; the exception is when the abuse rape is recognized as a crime in some countries, but pros- took place in a residential establishment, where hundreds ecutions are very rare and usually involve some additional of former pupils or children’s home residents may be inter- form of abuse. Controlling behavior and the exercise of viewed and successful prosecutions ensue. power characterize the experiences of women with abusive Other agencies also are involved. Social work, with its male partners. statutory responsibility for child protection, may maintain As with child abuse, these behaviors were well known child-abuse registers. Because this area of work is in the nineteenth century, but by the mid-twentieth cen- multidisciplinary, formal procedures for working together tury they were no longer common knowledge. The nine- may be in place. Many agencies may be involved, but key teenth- and early-twentieth-century advocates of civil players are the police and the health and social service sys- rights for women—including the right to property and tems. Schools, too, may have an information-gathering and earnings; the right to divorce; the right to access, care, -reporting system, which may be formally organized so control,and guardianship of their children; and the right

7 ABUSE to vote—argued that these rights would ensure better (incidence) always exceeds the number of those who are treatment of women by their husbands, as the latter would victimized (prevalence). In terms of abuse or assault, the have more respect for their wives. Although the extension home is the least safe place for women. For both women of civil rights has not eliminated the abuse of wives or and children the conclusion is this: the closer the relation- even reduced it to an insignificant problem, it has broad- ship, the greater the danger. Family-based violence or ened the legal protection offered to women, even if this abuse is characterized by repetition, and over time it may protection is not always enforced. increase in severity and frequency. Studies in western All forms of violence can be devastating, but many countries show that one-quarter to one-third of women will women say that emotional or psychological abuse— experience domestic violence at some time in their lives, which can reduce and destroy self-esteem and a sense of and some women will be abused over many years (for ex- self-worth, thereby restricting personal independence ample, see Haskell and Randall, 1993). In the United States and autonomy—is the worst. Abused women are often each year, 1.5 million women seek medical attention for severely depressed, overwhelmed by feelings of hope- injuries related to abuse, but only 27 out of every 1,000 lessness that greatly reduce their ability to cope with women are new cases previously unknown to the medical everyday tasks. They may begin to believe that they are facility (Stark and Flitcraft, 1996). In approximately 50 totally incompetent and even feel grateful to have an percent of homicides of women, the perpetrators are hus- abusive partner. Extreme abuse over a long period of bands or cohabitees. Men, too, suffer injury from women, time can be described as a form of torture or brainwash- even death, but death is relatively rare and often occurs as ing that reduces the individual to full compliance with male violence escalates. Men are more likely to experience her torturer. violent abuse from male strangers and acquaintances. Abusive men are likely to minimize and deny the The group of women who suffer the most domestic harm caused by their behavior. Men often deny that they abuse are those in prostitution. Studies suggest that prosti- are violent, even when they have killed. They also ex- tution, at a minimum, doubles the risk of domestic vio- cuse and justify their abuse, partly because their social lence. A prostitute’s boyfriend or partner is often a pimp position is superior and the exercise of power and con- who may use coercion to ensure that women and girls con- trol over women and children is a “right” emanating tinue to bring in the money he wants. Increases in heroin from being a man. As Jeff Hearn explains, violence both and crack addiction have made it even harder for women to demonstrates that one is a man and symbolically shows abandon prostitution and hence even more difficult for that one is a man (1998). Not all men are equally violent, them to end the violence by leaving abusive men. Other or even violent at all, but the connection between vio- forms of violence, from acquaintances and strangers, are lence and masculinity is everywhere. When interviewed, also greatly increased for women in prostitution. men usually describe their violence in terms of specific Prostitution also entails abuse of children, as both girls incidents, mirroring the approach taken by the criminal and boys frequently enter prostitution before the age of 18. justice system. Children may flee sexual abuse at home or at group care These responses suggest a complex relationship be- facilities only to be quickly picked up by men who, in ex- tween heterosexuality as a system of social relations and change for sex, offer accommodation, food, and sometimes abusive behavior by men. Heterosexuality is the major so- money. Pimps not only are able to recognize vulnerable cial context in which gender-differentiated and sexually children but are on the lookout for them, and they also can violent relationships involving women and children occur. be successful in recruiting girls from stable homes. Pros- The dominance of men can be eroticized both in behavior ecution of pimps is infrequent, although an awareness of and in representations, such as pornography, but in men’s the need to prosecute is increasing. accounts of their violence, sexual abuse is rarely men- This form of sexual exploitation of vulnerable girls and tioned. Individual negotiation and resistance to eroticized women is greatly extended with war, civil unrest, and eco- violence are possible but difficult for both men and women, nomic disintegration, when criminal gangs of men move given the connections between violence, , and women, children, and anything that sellers and buyers masculine and feminine ideals and expectations. want—such as illegal weapons, nuclear materials, and drugs—between one country and another. Women who ar- Prevalence rive as illegal immigrants may be forced to surrender their Abusive behavior by men known to them is a common fea- passports and other documents, their earnings, and their ture of family life for many women. The number of attacks personal freedom. Women and girls who do not speak the

8 ABUSE language of the receiving country find it even more difficult From National to International Responses to escape conditions of bondage. Women have been seized Recognition of the problem includes activities undertaken from refugee camps and exported against their will. Europe by multinational groups, such as the European Union and has many examples of such abuse of women and children the Council of Europe, the Commonwealth Secretariat, and since the economic collapse of the Soviet Union and the the United Nations. For example, the UN Convention on wars in the former Yugoslavia. Other parts of the world ex- the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against perience similar forms of sexual exploitation and violations Women, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and of human rights. the Beijing Platform of Action, as well as the appointment of a UN Rapporteur on Violence, have the potential to in- How Agencies Respond to the Abuse of Women crease visibility and interventions in nation-states where Recognition of and initial responses to the abuse of women the abuse of women and children continues to have a low came from nongovernmental agencies, through services profile. The aim is to establish policy and practice to pro- organized by women for women. The aim was to offer tect and empower women and children. women and their children a safe place to live with other These international responses are the result of an under- women who shared similar experiences. In these safe ha- standing of violence and abuse as a violation of human vens, women were empowered by a decrease in self-blame rights. Abuse of women and children now incorporates through new knowledge that came from living with other war; the sexual exploitation, trafficking, and forced migra- women with similar experiences. Volunteers and paid staffs tion of refugees; rape as a militarized political policy; assisted women with legal, housing, income maintenance, forced pregnancy; slavery; and cultural and literal genocide and other problems, and, as funds increased, so did play through the use of mass weapons of destruction such as groups and other services for children. nuclear testing, as well as through famine and disease that Statutory agencies, such as criminal justice, health, so- are consequences of war (Lentin, 1997). These human cial, and welfare services, have been slow to respond to rights abuses occur throughout the world, often aided and violence against women; as a result, men have continued to abetted by the actions of the West in supplying weapons, receive social and institutional support for their violent, military training, and active support for military dictators. abusive behaviors. But actions at a local level have focused Women and children are always the losers; in a war, the on the development of agency policy to provide guidelines safest place to be is usually in the armed forces, even when for intervention. In the United Kingdom, for example, cen- they are engaged in combat. tral government policy statements and good-practice In conclusion, abuse can be seen as an overworked term guidelines promoted the extension of these developments. or as a word to open a door to a new understanding of gen- Proactive responses that assist women and convey to men der dynamics and, beyond that, to a new understanding of the message that their abusive behavior toward women is what needs to change to render the widespread use of abuse unacceptable are beginning to develop in an uneven way obsolete. within and between agencies. For example, an operational model of policing that responds to repeat victimization See Also with increasing interventions is a new crime-prevention approach that could be adapted by other statutory agencies BATTERY; DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; INCEST; PORNOGRAPHY (Hanmer, Griffiths, and Jerwood, 1999). AND VIOLENCE; PROSTITUTION; RAPE; SEXUAL VIOLENCE; Multiagency or partnership work in response to the abuse TRAFFICKING; VIOLENCE, all entries of women is at an earlier stage of development than that adopted for child abuse. Domestic violence forums offer a References and Further Reading meeting point for all agencies and the possibility of joint Armstrong, Louise. 1978. Kiss Daddy goodnight: A speak-out on work. Internationally recognized approaches combine pros- incest. New York: Pocket Books. ecutions of other mandated outcomes for the perpetrators. Dobash, Rebecca Emerson, and Russell Dobash. 1979. Violence Although the response from government varies in dif- against wives: The case against the patriarchy. New York: ferent western countries, funding for refuges or shelters is Free Press. increasingly seen as a state responsibility, whether organ- Hanmer, Jalna, Sue Griffiths, and Dave Jerwood. 1999. Arresting ized at local or higher levels. Within nation-states, statutory evidence: Domestic violence and repeat victimisation. Paper agencies differ in the extent of their proactive responses, no. 104, Policing and Reducing Crime Unit. London: Home but progress is gathering pace. Office.

9 ACHIEVEMENT

Haskell, Lori, and Melanie Randall. 1993. Women’s safety women’s needs (see, for example, Booth, 1998; project: A summary of key statistical findings. Ottawa: Panel Moghadam, 2000). on Violence against Women. Within activism, we differentiate between women’s Hearn, Jeff. 1998. The violences of men. London: Sage. movements and feminism (see also Ferree et al., 1999). By Kempe, C.H., F.Silverman, W.Droegmueller, and H.Silver. 1962. women’s movements we mean the work of women who are The battered child syndrome. Journal of the American Medi- motivated as women to work on issues that they view as cal Association, 181:17–24. particularly important, such as environmental protection, Lentin, Ronit, ed. 1997. Gender and catastrophe. London and health, deindustrialization, poverty, , or New York: Zed. peace. By definition, women’s movements involve a col- Mullender, Audrey. 1996. rethinking domestic violence: The so- lective mobilization of women as social and political ac- cial work and probation response. London and New York: tors. These movements address women as women or Routledge. sometimes as mothers, and organizations are typically by Rush, Florence. 1980. The best kept secret: Sexual abuse of chil- and for women alone. dren. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. We define feminism by its focus on changes in women’s Stark, Evan, and Anne Flitcraft. 1996. Women at risk: Domestic social status in three critical dimensions: access to eco- violence and women’s health. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. nomic resources, power to affect decisions in the commu- nity as a whole, and autonomy in relation to personal life Jalna Hanmer choices. Feminist movements have changing gender rela- tionships as their goal; they specifically aim to empower women and to change social arrangements that unequally ACHIEVEMENT benefit men. Feminist groups—that is, those that are con- See ABILITY and EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT. cerned with gender relations as a target of social and politi- cal change—are but one part of the women’s movement. Women’s activism encompasses both women’s ACQUIRED IMMUNE DEFICIENCY movements and feminism but also can be found in other SYNDROME mobilizations for political change that neither specifically See AIDS AND HIV. appeal to gender as a basis for mobilization nor set out to challenge gender relations as a goal. Labor movements, movements of national liberation, and environmental movements are examples of such other contexts. ACTIVISM Within women’s movements there are multiple types of activist organizations. We classify these into three broad Activism is a broad concept. Whereas activism refers prima- categories. First, autonomous women’s organizations are rily to political actions, the boundaries of what counts as po- groups that exist independent of state support and play no litical cannot be narrowly drawn, because, in a feminist view, official role in state decision making. These may or may the personal is also political. Thus, activism as we define it not be feminist. Many autonomous activist groups are encompasses all collective efforts to change power relations small, local, informal, and nonhierarchical in structure, but at all levels, from the interpersonal to the international. this is not necessarily the case (Miles, 1996). Among the Women’s activism is not new. The Greek play Lysistrata autonomous feminist organizations active at the turn of the portrayed women collectively attempting to change the twenty-first century are an increasing number that are inter- balance of power in their relationships with men several national in scope—that is, nongovernmental organizations millennia ago. At the beginning of the twentieth century, (NGOs) that draw their membership and define their goals there was already a strongly developed international wom- beyond the boundaries of individual nation-states. Autono- en’s movement challenging the subordination of women mous women’s NGOs such as Developmental Alternatives (Rupp, 1998). Women’s current activism takes place within for Women in a New Era (DAWN) and the International a context of struggles for gender equality and other politi- Women’s Tribune Center focus on developing and support- cal and economic goals, across a range of international and ing grassroots activism. nationally based organizations, and includes ongoing ef- Second, refers to mobilization within and forts to establish constructive discussions between privi- through formal government organizations charged with at- leged and disadvantaged women about the nature of tending to women’s interests, such as the Women’s Bureau

10 ACTIVISM of the U.S. Department of Labor (Stetson and Mazur, activists become unobtrusively mobilized in a variety of 1995). State feminism includes mobilization within inter- associations and movements, feminist perspectives and national quasi-governmental organizations such as the gender interests come to be seen as relevant to more and United Nations and the European Union. State feminists more issues. This diffused activism has the potential to also are sometimes called “femocrats,” a term coined to challenge gender relations very broadly, but activists on describe the Australian experience but widely picked up specific issues run the risk of losing sight of the connec- because it so appropriately describes the situation around tions between specific issues. Building and maintaining the world (Eisenstein, 1996). Femocrats are women in offi- cross-issue networks in their particular countries and re- cial positions within the state whose formal responsibilities gions is one strategy that women activists have used to inte- include representing women as a distinctive constituency grate diverse concerns. The development of issue-specific and responding to women’s particular needs. They often activist groups in a variety of countries and regions has head women’s ministries in parliamentary systems, such as been accompanied by efforts to link them into interna- in Germany or France, and administer a variety of pro- tional issue advocacy networks (Keck and Sikkink, 1998). grams specifically designed for women. Second, the expansion of networking and diffusion into Third, unobtrusive mobilization within institutions re- state institutions has contributed to making activism more fers to the process through which women have come to- professionalized. Women’s activism often takes the form of gether inside other associations, organizations, and social building or working in formal NGOs rather than in informal, movements. Katzenstein (1998) describes how activists fact-to-face groups. As they have become more professional working with the U.S. military and within the Catholic in form, activist organizations also have acquired more re- church challenged the practices and discourses of these sources and expertise and are more likely to be consulted by powerful hierarchical institutions, using a variety of strate- authorities and officials. Activists with specialized expertise gies from lawsuits to conferences. Unobtrusive mobiliza- also have built up alternative institutions for providing serv- tion also can happen in less well institutionalized groups, ices, from rape counseling to job training. The risk of co- such as social movements. Activists challenge gender rela- optation into the welfare state, however, is not trivial when tions within the movement’s organizations and struggle to activists affiliated with women’s organizations lobby to in- put gender equality on the agenda of the movements con- fluence state polity making and compete for resources. cerns. In nationalist movements, unobtrusive mobilization Third, the expansion and professionalization of activist by feminists can lead to activists’ becoming state feminists networks has increased feminist influence on where and if the movement succeeds in coming to power. how resources are channeled. In postcolonial nations, inter- national aid has particularly gone under the rubric of “ca- Organizational Issues for Activists pacity building” (Grindle, 1997). Capacity-building Although social movements are more than the organizations initiatives have brought substantial new funding for wom- to which they give rise, organizations are among the most en’s activism, but there are also costs associated with such enduring and powerful resources that activists have to pro- sponsored growth. Rivalries over who will be funded, im- duce long-term change. Organizations allow the transmis- plicit pressure to accept western priorities, and a tendency sion of information and material resources across to favor organizations that are more formalized and can be generations, and allow the movement to institutionalize its held more accountable to the donors are all likely results. ideas in practices that can financed and taught in larger num- Feminists worry that these developments may change bers than could be done by individuals working separately. grassroots women into recipients of services from the Organizational structure has long been a concern for activ- movement rather than active participants in its ongoing de- ists, who debate the merits of more bureaucratic or velopment. This transformation of grassroots women into collectivist forms, consider the risks of co-optation that come mere beneficiaries of services is sometimes called from working inside larger groups, and deal with problems clientelism, because it defines the service providers rather of authority and hierarchy (Ferree and Martin, 1995). New than the recipients as those who best understand the clients’ issues for women activists are emerging as women’s move- needs and interests. By contrast, feminists generally be- ments generally, and feminist organizations in particular, lieve that grassroots women should be defining their own grow in number and scope around the world (Alvarez, 1997). needs and speaking out in their own cause. Such empower- First, the wide networks of women activists that are be- ment means much more than access to the formal institu- ing built are bringing feminist perspectives to a great vari- tions of politics, because self-determination is significant ety of issues, hence diffusing the movement. As women in many aspects of civil society (Kabeer, 1999; Karl, 1995).

11 ADDICTION

In sum, activist organizations have grown in number and Ferree, Myra Marx, Barbara Risman, Valerie Sperling, Tatiana scope, and feminists have unobtrusively mobilized in Gurikova, and Katherine Hyde. 1999. The Russian women’s governments, foundations, and community organizations movement: Activists’ strategies and identities. Women and worldwide. More diverse in activities, more Politics 20(3):83–109. professionalized in form, and more targeted to Grindle, Merilee. 1997. The good government imperative: Hu- international decision-making bodies, women activists man resources, organizations, and institutions . In Merilee have had a discernible influence on the discourses used and S.Grindle, ed., Getting good government: Capacity build- policies adopted regarding gender issues around the world. ing in the public sectors of developing countries. Cam- Activists strive to channel resources from non-gender- bridge, Mass.: Harvard Institute for International specific sources to women, and they insist on Development. empowerment through local initiative and grassroots Kabeer, Naila. 1999. Resources, agency, achievement: Reflections consciousness raising to avoid reducing women to mere on the measurement of women’s empowerment. Develop- recipients of benefits. ment and Change 30:435–464. For all these successes, there are still multiple Karl, Marilee. 1995. Women and empowerment: Participation and challenges ahead. Informal networks are less easily decision-making. London: Zed. institutionalized, less permanent, and lacking in any Katzenstein, Mary F. 1990. Feminism within American institu- structure for ensuring democratic accountability to those tions: Unobtrusive mobilizations in the 1980s. Signs 16(1): whom they claim to represent. In addition, the “NGO-ized” 27–54. form of organization, directed at lobbying a national or ——. 1998. Faithful and fearless: Moving feminist protest inside international decision makers, tends to marginalize the less the church and military. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University skilled and less affluent. Women’s activism is not only Press. about gaining access and influence in political structures Keck, Margaret E., and Sikkink, Kathryn. 1998. Activists beyond (that is, femocracy). It is also about reenvisioning civil border: Advocacy networks in international politics. Ithaca, society and changing gender relations in ways that will N.Y.: Cornell University Press. challenge the division between state and society, public and Miles, Angela. 1996. Integrative : Building global vi- private, politics and personal life. sions, 1960s–1990s. New York: Routledge. Moghadam, Valentine M. 2000. Transnational feminist networks: See Also Collective action in an era of globalization. International So- FEMINISM: OVERVIEW; FEMOCRAT; NONGOVERNMENTAL ciology 15(1):57–85. ORGANIZATIONS (NGOS); POLITICAL PARTICIPATION; POLITICS Rupp, Leila J. 1998. Worlds of women: The making of an interna- AND THE STATE: OVERVIEW; WOMEN’S MOVEMENT: MODERN tional women’s movement. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Uni- INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT versity Press. Stetson, Dorothy McBride, and Amy G.Mazur. 1995. Compara- References and Further Reading tive state feminism. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. Alvarez, Sonia. 1997. Dilemmas of gendered citizenship in post Myra Marx Ferree authoritarian Latin America. Paper presented at the Confer- Mangala Subramaniam ence on Gendered Citizenships: European and Latin Ameri- can Perspectives, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University, 14–17 March. Booth, Karen M. 1998. National mother, global whore, and transnational femocrats: The politics of AIDS and the con- ADDICTION struction of women at the World Health Organization. Femi- See DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE. nist Studies 24(1):115–139. Connelly, Patricia M. 1996. Gender matters: Global restructuring and adjustment. Social Politics 3(1):12–31. Eisenstein, Hester. 1996. Inside agitators: Australian femocrats ADOLESCENCE and the state. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Ferree, Myra Marx, and Martin, Patricia Yancey. 1995. Feminist Adolescence—which is largely a twentieth-century west- organizations: Harvest of the new women’s movement. Phila- ern “invention” that originated mainly in the United delphia: Temple University Press. States and the United Kingdom—is now considered a

12 ADOLESCENCE chronological period of accelerated cognitive, emotional, problems with others for adolescents who harbor a belief and physical growth. The outcome of these changes is that “no one”—certainly not a parent—could understand sexual and psychological maturity. This period is thought them. This tendency is often referred to as adolescent ego- to begin around age 12 and end when the individual gains centrism. Some theorists attribute many of the reckless independence, usually between ages 18 and 20. The ac- behaviors of adolescents, including drug and alcohol use, tual end of this period depends on many factors, including excessive speed while driving, and in some cases suicidal cultural expectations, individual physical maturation, and thoughts, to their egocentrism (Elkind, 1978). Unfortu- emotional development. The changes that occur during nately, adolescents often act on their own feelings in harm- adolescence can be difficult and confusing for the adoles- ful ways. Suicide accounts for about 12 percent of the cent as well as the family and society. mortality rate among adolescents and young adults, and in The most visible change for the adolescent is puberty. the United States the incidence of suicide in this age group This is the period during which there is rapid physical tripled between 1952 and 1992 (Center for Disease Con- growth as well as sexual maturation. Young women will trol, 1995). The changes in adolescent cognition also ne- experience menarche—first menstruation—during early cessitate changes in the manner in which adolescents are puberty. In the United States the average age of menarche is educated. Young women, at this time, may respond better to about 12.45 years; in Europe it is about 13 years. The onset more abstract than to concrete methods of instruction. of menses may occur as early as 10 years or as late as 15.5 Conflict, conformity, and changes in identity can mark years and still be considered normal. Menarche, however, the social and emotional development of adolescence, and is only part of the gradual process of puberty. Both boys the young person addresses two critical questions: what one and girls experience a powerful rush of hormones from the does in the face of conflict and how one can live with others. endocrine glands—testosterone for boys and estradiol for The conflict between a young woman and her family girls. Estradiol is necessary for breast, uterine, and skeletal that often occurs in early adolescence may play an impor- development. The concentration of this hormone increases tant role in her continuing individual development, as well eightfold during puberty (Lerner and Foch, 1987). as in her understanding of who she is in relation to others. This is the period during which young people see their These conflicts and their resolutions allow the young bodies change virtually overnight. Many young women de- woman to separate her unfolding sense of self from her velop a new and heightened awareness of their bodies dur- sense of herself in relation to her family. Sometimes the ing adolescence. Many also may begin to experience conflict is particularly intense and stressful. This type of problems such as eating disorders, depression, alcohol and prolonged conflict has been shown to be associated with a drug use, and sexual experimentation during this time number of problems of adolescence, such as juvenile delin- (Santrock, 1997). These issues have been thought to be quency, dropping out of school, drug abuse, running away, more common among earlier-maturing girls. However, and cult membership (Brook et al., 1990). Peer group con- early maturation is thought to benefit girls in some ways, in formity (peer pressure) also occurs during the early stages that they demonstrate more independence and greater of adolescence. For young women, “being in relationship popularity. Young women experience the rapid physical to others” is a crucial part of their development. This inter- changes and growth spurts of puberty, on average, two est in identifying with others allows for the development of years before young men; in fact, many young women have social consciousness, social skills, and feelings of inclusion. completed this portion of puberty before their male peers The developmental theorist Erik Erikson has noted that ado- have even begun. lescence is in the fifth stage of the life cycle, “identity ver- Cognitive changes also occur during adolescence. Ado- sus identity confusion.” Together with the development of lescents begin to display “formal operational” thought, a formal operational thinking, this period is marked by ex- developmental phase suggested by Jean Piaget, which oc- perimentation with a number of roles and identities from curs around age 12. This type of thinking is more logical, adolescents’ own imagination or the world around them. organized, abstract, and idealistic than younger children’s As the adolescent girl successfully integrates these identi- thinking. Adolescents also become more interested in and ties and manages the stress surrounding conflicting identi- capable of introspection and social cognition. Given these ties, she is able to develop a new and unique core sense of changes, many adolescents appear to become self-ab- self, involving awareness of such things as career direction, sorbed as they begin to engage in hypothetical and abstract basic values, and sexual orientation. Although this sense of reasoning about themselves and their lives. They may per- self will change over the life span, at this stage it allows the ceive the world around them subjectively, which can cause adolescent to begin her movement toward adult maturity.

13 ADOPTION

See Also in the United States, adoption in its modern form dates EATING DISORDERS; GIRL STUDIES; GIRLS’ SUBCULTURES; back only to the mid-nineteenth century (Hollinger, INITIATION RITES; MENARCHE; MENSTRUATION; SEXUALITY: 1999). Nineteenth-century adoption statutes often speci- ADOLESCENT SEXUALITY; SUICIDE fied that courts must consider the suitability of the adop- tive parents as well as whether the adoption was suitable References and Further Reading for the child; they were also designed to ensure that the Brook, J.S., D.W.Brook, A.S.Gordon, M.Whiteman, and P. biological parents would be involved in the adoption Cohen. 1990. The psychological etiology of adolescent drug process. Although these early statutes provided that the use: A family interactional approach. Genetic, Social and adoptive family would substitute for the biological fam- General Psychology Monographs 116:110–267. ily, they still frequently expressed a preference for blood Center for Disease Control. 1995. Suicide among children, adoles- relationships. For example, a child was allowed to inherit cents, and young adults—United States, 1980–1992. Mor- from the biological parents but was precluded from inher- bidity Mortality Weekly Report 44:289–291. iting from relatives of the adoptive parents because they Elkind, D. 1978. Understanding the young adolescent. Adoles- were “strangers to the adoption.” cence 13:127–134. Today, adoption laws vary somewhat between countries. Lerner, R.M., and T.T.Foch, eds. 1987. Biological—psychological In the United States, for instance, contemporary law em- interactions in early adolescence. Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum. phasizes the complete substitution of the adoptive family Santrock, J.W. 1997. Life-span development. Madison, Wis.: for the biological family. A child becomes available for Brown and Benchmark. adoption when the biological parents voluntarily decide to give up their parental rights or when those rights are termi- Joan E.Huebl nated involuntarily. The adoption may occur through an agency, or it may be a private adoption arranged directly between the biological and adoptive parents, frequently with the help of a lawyer. The adoptive parents must re- ADOPTION ceive a court order that confers on them the status of parent- hood. In the United States, the adoptee receives a new birth Adoption establishes a permanent legal relationship be- certificate that lists the adoptive parents as the parents and tween a parent and a non-biologically related child. The also lists the child’s new name. In other countries, adoption adoptive parent or parents assume all the responsibilities does not necessarily lead to a new birth certificate. associated with parenthood, and the child has no remain- Traditionally, adoption has meant that the adoptee and ing legal link with the biological mother or father. Adop- the biological parents have no further contact, but under tion may occur between a child and a family member some contemporary adoption laws—as in the United (such as a grand-mother or a stepfather) or between a States—the biological parents may continue to see their child and a completely unrelated adult. In the United child pursuant to an open adoption, or adoption-with-con- States, for example, adoption is more likely to occur be- tact, arrangement. This change in adoption practice is a re- tween a child and a family member than between a child sponse both to the needs of adopted children and to and a stranger (Hollinger, 1999). Although typically there requests by birth mothers (Appell, 1998; Carp, 1999). are age limits on who can be adopted, these age limits are Moreover, although adoption records have typically been not universal. sealed and unavailable for review, this too is changing. In Adoption has a long history. It is mentioned in the Code New South Wales (Australia), England, Wales, and some of Hammurabi and in Hindu Sanskrit texts, and it was parts of the United States, adoptees now have access to practiced in ancient Rome, where it was generally used to their original birth certificates. perpetuate a male familial line. Adoption was also tradi- In addition to legally recognized adoption, numerous tional in many societies in Africa and Oceania, and in in- informal adoptions occur outside the legal system, without digenous American Indian societies. The Muslim personal formal recognition of the new relationship. In the African- law Shariyat does not mention adoption, although it occurs American community, for instance, informal adoption has among Muslims in many countries. a long history (Perry, 1998). The practice of fostering in Adoption of an unrelated child is of fairly recent origin Oceania is another example. In the United States, foster under common law (legal systems based on English law). care refers to the temporary placement of children in a sub- England did not enact a general adoption law until 1926; stitute family; although the foster family may ultimately

14 ADOPTION seek to adopt the child, the child also may be returned to the past private, the overwhelming majority of birth mothers biological family. have welcomed the opportunity to have contact with their Given that the adoptive family was supposed to look children. like a typical family, it has been difficult for single Adoptees have become increasingly vocal about their women or lesbian couples to adopt children. The tradi- need to know about their biological origins (Lifton, 1994). tionally preferred adoptive placement has been with a Adoptees’ desire to search for their biological relatives de- married heterosexual couple (Hollinger, 1999). This is velops from many different sources and may include both beginning to change. Single parents are becoming eligi- physical and psychological motives. ble for adoption, and practices that prevented lesbians Public attitudes toward adoption vary. In a recent study from becoming adoptive parents are changing as well. in the United States, most of the participants were ex- Even the partners of lesbian women are becoming in- tremely accepting of adoption. On the other hand, only creasingly able to adopt through several different strate- two-thirds of the respondents believed that it was highly gies. Where one partner has adopted a child, the other likely that an adoptee would love the adoptive parents as partner may seek a “second-parent” adoption to enable much as the biological parents (Princeton Survey Research her to exercise parental rights (Goldenberg, 2000). Such Associates, 1997). adoptions have been recognized in several countries, in- Ultimately, adoption is one of several methods for creat- cluding the United States and Israel. Another alternative ing a new family. Adoption practices have changed signifi- is available to relatively few couples: where one partner cantly over the past several decades as we gain improved is pregnant with an egg from the other parent, the other understanding of how adoption affects birth parents, adop- partner can seek a prebirth ruling that she will also be tive parents, and adoptees. the child’s legal parent. Some parents adopt children from other countries, lead- See Also ing to adoptive relationships that are interracial, inter-cul- tural, and interreligious. A number of international treaties ADOPTION: MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES; FOSTERING: CASE and conventions, such as the Hague Convention on STUDY—OCEANIA; STEPFAMILIES Intercountry Adoption, govern various substantive and pro- cedural aspects of international adoptions. Nonetheless, References and Further Reading each country develops its own adoption policies. Some feminists have claimed that international adoption Appell, Annette R. 1998. Increasing options to improve perma- allows more privileged adopting women to exploit less ad- nency: Considerations in drafting an adoption with contact vantaged birth mothers from other countries by removing statute. Children’s Legal Rights Journal 18:24. the children without giving the mothers any help (Perry, Bartholet, Elizabeth. 1992. Family bonds. Boston: Beacon. 1998). On the other hand, adoptive mothers are providing a Cahn, Naomi, and Jana Singer. 1999. Adoption, identity, and the home for children who might otherwise grow up under Constitution. University of Pennsylvania Journal of Consti- marginal conditions in an institution. Adoptive mothers tutional Law 2:150. have also spoken of their overwhelming love for their Carp, E.Wayne. 1999. Family matters: Secrecy and disclosure in adopted children and their construction as mothers the history of adoption. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univer- (Bartholet, 1992; Lacey, 1998). Moreover, adoptive par- sity Press. ents have stressed that they will attempt to respect their Goldenberg, Suzanne. 2000. Israel grants rights to lesbian moth- children’s original backgrounds. ers. Guardian (London), 30 May:14. During the mid-twentieth century in the United States, Hollinger, Joan Heifetz. 1999. Adoption law and practice. New a birth mother was frequently told that adoption would be York: Matthew Bender. best for the child and that she herself would be able to Lacey, Linda. 1998. O wind, remind him that I have no child: In- forget the child completely and go on with her life (Cahn fertility and feminist jurisprudence. Michigan Journal of and Singer, 1999; Solinger, 1992). Increasingly, however, Gender and Law 5:163. birth mothers have begun to speak out about their pain in Lifton, Betty Jean. 1994. Journey of the adopted self. Boston: not knowing their children and about the connection that Beacon. they continue to feel to these children (Cahn and Singer, Perry, Twila. 1998. Transracial and international adoption: Moth- 1999). Although a few birth mothers, particularly victims ers, hierarchy, race, and feminist theory. Yale Journal of Law of rape, have spoken about the significance of keeping the and Feminism 10:101.

15 ADOPTION: MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

Princeton Survey Research Associates. 1997. Benchmark adop- dual heritage can flourish and a healthy sense of identity is tion study. maximized. Solinger, Ricki. 1992. Wake up little Susie: Single pregnancy and In regions of the world where legal adoption is rare, the race before Roe v. Wade. New York: Routledge. role of the adopting family is often filled by siblings, cous- ins, aunts, uncles, or grandparents of the birth mother. Naomi Cahn When possible, adoption is a family and community re- sponsibility. In countries where adoption is considered pri- marily a legal bond between parent and child, the adopting family usually does not know the birth mother. The psycho- ADOPTION: Mental Health Issues logical effects of legal adoption can be serious and are of- ten overlooked. When close kinship adoptions are not As a legal process confirming an adult as the parent of a possible, many complex issues arise. child, adoption is routine in western nations. It provides As Brodzinsky, Schechter, and Henig (1990) state, homes for children who might otherwise be raised in foster “Professionals and lay people have had trouble accepting care or in group homes. It is seen as a way of handling un- the possibility that the solution itself could at times be a wanted pregnancy and as a way of creating a family for oth- problem.” This may explain the dearth of research on the ers: both infertile and fertile couples, including gay and psychological ramifications of formal adoption for the lesbian couples, as well as individuals who opt to become adoption triad. Little empirical work has been done to single parents. In developing countries, adoption may be a evaluate the impact of adoption on the development of formal legal process, though this is rare. It is more com- adopted children, the effect of relinquishment on birth monly an informal obligation, often assumed by a relative or mothers, or the difficult issues faced by adoptive parents. community member, to care for a child whose parents have However, those studies that have been done, based on case- died or are unable or unwilling to raise the child themselves. work and clinical observations, suggest that the severance Defining adoption by these parameters alone, however, inherent in adoption can create long-term complications trivializes and ignores the psychological impact that sepa- and difficulties for the triad. rating a child from his or her birth mother will have on all Much is at stake. There is a birth mother who may have members of the “adoption triad”—a term used to refer to opted to relinquish a child; there is an adoptive mother who adoptees, birth parents, and adoptive parents. Adoption can may be childless; and there is an adoptee who has lost a have a profound effect on all three members of the triad: the connection to his or her roots and birth mother. adopted child, the adoptive mother, and the birth mother. The psychological effect is perhaps most easily identifi- Adoption is not merely a social and legal reaction to a able, and most profound, on adoptees cut off from their problem that then disappears when papers are signed and original family and relatives. With little knowledge of their the adoption is finalized. It raises issues of mental health origins, adoptees are encouraged to deny a significant as- that have particularly strong consequences for the women pect of themselves and to resign themselves to a sense of of the adoption triad. It is not only a formal procedure but a permanent loss. This can ultimately lead to low self-es- delicate, long-term process that will have lifelong effects teem, academic difficulties, and a range of rebellious ac- on the well-being of the child, the birth mother, and the tivities known as “acting-out” behaviors, such as adopting family. aggression, stealing, lying, hyperactivity, oppositional Many factors positively influence the integration of an behavior, and truancy. Where legal adoption is common, adopted child into a family: early adoption, a stable adopt- studies suggest that these behaviors account for the high ing family, the readiness of parent and child to create an ratio of adoptees in counseling as teenagers—which, for enduring and trusting attachment, a sense of a “good fit” instance, some professionals say is as much as 40 percent between parent and child, and an openness in the family in the United States, although adoptees represent only 2 toward the issue of adoption itself. When adopted children percent of the American population. Only recently has le- have special needs, the families often require additional gal adoption been seriously considered a causal agent for support. Financial and medical assistance may be critical to the difficulties these adolescents experience. ensuring a stable family environment, and supportive To consider legal adoption itself as a contributor to the group networks may also help adopting parents work with behavioral problems of an adopted child is difficult, be- the needs of their child. Interracial and international adop- cause pointing an accusatory finger at legal adoption would tions require creating an environment in which a child’s seem to blame the adoptive mother. This places her in an

16 ADULTERY especially difficult position because, as a mother, she is ex- See Also pected to be a parent to her child in a supportive and re- ADOPTION; FAMILY PLANNING; FAMILY STRUCTURES; sponsive home, yet she is blamed for the child’s behavior. MOTHERHOOD; PARENTHOOD; STEPFAMILIES One study suggests that adoptive parents may create rela- tionships and expectations that can affect adopted children References and Selected Reading and increase their likelihood of exhibiting problem Baran, Annette, Reuben Pannor, and Arthur Sorosky. 1978, 1984. behavior (Verhulst, 1992). Yet questions remain whether The adoption triangle. San Antonio, Tex.: Corona. adoptive parents can truly be at fault for the myriad Brodzinsky, David M. 1990. The psychology of adoption. New behavioral problems that seem prevalent among some ado- York: Oxford University Press. lescent adoptees. One must still ask whether the original ——, Marshall Schechter, and Robin Marantz Henig. 1992. Being severance and subsequent avoidance of adoption issues adopted: The lifelong search for self. New York: Doubleday. may be powerful enough in themselves to generate mental Kirk, David. 1984. Shared fate. New York: Free Press. health problems for adoptees. Also, in many parts of the Shannon, Thomas. 1988. Surrogate motherhood. New York: world girls, being less valued, are more likely than boys to Crossroad. be relinquished for adoption—a unique and formidable re- Verhulst, Frank C. 1992. Damaging backgrounds: Later adjust- jection whose ramifications will continue into adulthood. ment of international adoptees. Journal of the American Certainly, numerous contributing factors may exist in any Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 31(3 May): given case. To ignore the effect of relinquishment on the 518–524. adoptee, however, is to exclude examination of the most profound event of adoptees’ lives: their mothers’ having Jean A.S.Strauss given them away. This severance of a child from the birth mother affects ADULT EDUCATION the adoptive mother as well. Frequently, adoption laws al- low for little or no information to be shared with the adop- See EDUCATION: ADULT AND CONTINUING. tive family other than vague physical descriptions. Hence, an adoptive mother is often parenting “blind.” Cut off from any contact with the biological family, and uninformed about her adoptive child’s background, including the ADULTERY health of the birth mother and her condition during preg- nancy, the adoptive mother can face enormous uncertainty Adultery refers to sexual relations outside a union of mar- and confusion. Responsible yet uninformed, she often riage, although legal and cultural definitions of what con- blames herself for issues beyond her control. stitutes an act of adultery are as varied as legal and cultural The birth mother is, in many ways, the most vulnerable definitions of marriage itself. Any definition of adultery member of the adoption triad. The psychological conse- must be sensitive to cross-cultural variation in rights of ac- quences of relinquishing her child may not be evident for cess to sexual reproduction, including rights to children, as many years. The vast majority of birth mothers are encour- well as to variation in rights of access to sexuality. Theories aged to “bury” forever the events of pregnancy and birth and of adultery contend with the fact of its common practice the subsequent loss of their children, to ignore their grief, even in the face of widespread cultural norms and social and to keep these events secret from others, even spouses and sanctions against it. children. In many cases, birth mothers put a child up for Fisher (1992) argues that although cross-cultural rates adoption under stressful circumstances or because they are of adultery are high for both sexes, the evolutionary ben- told to do so. Only decades later may the effects of the denial efits of adultery differ for men and women. For men, adul- and avoidance of this loss begin to surface. Again, little em- tery increases the likelihood of passing on their genetic pirical research has been performed on the psychological material to future generations. For women, adultery is less impact of adoption on birth mothers. What data do exist are a reproductive than an economic strategy for guaranteeing anecdotal, from clinical observation and casework. multiple sources of aid and protection for themselves and Adoption is an important institution and will always be their children. But for both sexes, she claims, “it is the mil- necessary and often desirable. Equally necessary, however, lennia of sneaking off with lovers—and the genetic pay- to allow healthier lives for all, is evaluation of the circum- offs these dalliances accrued—that have produced the stances in which adoption takes place. propensity for adultery around the world today” (1992:97).

17 ADOPTION: MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

Fisher also claims that intense feelings of guilt and jealousy countries where civil legal codes rely on Islamic law, concerning extramarital affairs are another universal expe- women who commit adultery are subject to public beatings rience related to genetic inheritance, although Leacock’s or stoning, whereas sanctions against men are serious only quotations from the Montagnais-Naskapi seem to refute if a man has “violated” another man’s wife (see Sahebjam, this (see her contribution in Etienne and Leacock, 1994, for a recent case study in Iran). 1980:28). Atkinson and Errington’s discussion of adultery Cross-culturally, the degree of differentiation in sanc- among the Wana shows how discourse on jealousy can vary tions against acts of adultery for men and women is an indi- considerably cross-culturally: cator of the degree of sexual inequality in a particular society. Where women have access to political decision In explaining why a wife would be jealous of her hus- making and control important economic resources, wom- band’s lover, one woman explained that to seduce an en’s status is higher, divorce is easier for women to obtain, unmarried woman, a married man disparages his own and sanctions against women’s adultery are relatively mild. wife. He tells his lover that his wife is lazy, weak, and The studies in Etienne and Leacock (1980) collectively ar- will not work for his mother. He proceeds to praise his gue that a concomitant of western imperialism and coloni- would-be lover for her strength and industry…. Simi- zation has been a global decline in women’s status in most larly, women will divorce men who are shiftless work- societies, including increased regulation of women’s sexu- ers. Wana talk about marriage brings out the point that ality and increased sanctions against women’s adultery. both spouses are expected to be hard-working contribu- Perhaps ironically, the adulterous affair as symbolic of tors to their productive unit. (Atkinson and Errington, autonomy and freedom from harsh societal mores is an im- 1990:68) portant trope in western literature. An early example is a novel by Kate Chopin (1851–1904), The Awakening, which Although adultery may be a human universal, it has often explores the notion of adultery for a married woman as a been stigmatized and subject to legal sanctions, but the de- path to freedom and self-discovery. But her heroine’s ulti- gree of stigmatization and sanctions varies historically and mately self-destructive fate reminds us of Foucault’s point cross-culturally. Suzanne Frayser’s (1985) cross-cultural (1978:41) about western psychological interpretations of survey found that 74 percent of 58 cultures punished adul- social sanctions against adultery beginning in the nine- tery to some degree: teenth century. In the West, the act of adultery may now more often be viewed as pathological rather than illegal or In 83 percent of 48 societies, both partners receive pen- sinful, but it is still heavily stigmatized, especially for alties for adultery; in 40 percent of them men and women. women get the same degree of chastisement; in 31 per- cent of them the man’s punishment is more severe than See Also that of his female lover. No society tolerates a female’s DIVORCE; FAMILY: RELIGIOUS AND LEGAL SYSTEMS, Specific dalliances while punishing males; and significantly regions; MARRIAGE: REGIONAL TRADITIONS AND PRACTICES; more cultures have restrictions on women than on men. MISTRESS; SEX AND CULTURE; SPIRITUALITY: SEXUALITY (Cited in Fisher, 1992:321) References and Further Reading Strong sanctions against adultery, where they occur, tend to Atkinson, Jane Monnig, and Shelly Errington, eds. 1990. Power be more dire for women than for men and extend to differ- and difference: Gender in island Southeast Asia. Stanford, ing definitions of adultery for men and women. A married Calif.: Stanford University Press. woman’s pursuit of sexual relations outside her marriage is Chopin, Kate. 1994. The awakening: An authoritative text, bio- automatically considered adultery, whereas a married man graphical and historical contexts, and criticism, 2nd ed. is defined as adulterous only if he has sex with another Margo Culley, ed. New York: Norton. man’s wife. Vogel’s study (1992) of European legislation Etienne, Mona, and Eleanor Leacock, eds. 1980. Women and colo- against adultery in the nineteenth century locates the nization: Anthropological perspectives. New York: Bergin source of this double standard in notions of wives and chil- and Garvey. dren as the property of males—notions that underlie legal Fisher, Helen E. 1992. Anatomy of love: The natural history of and religious codes regarding marriage. Islamic law is an monogamy, adultery, and divorce. New York: Norton. extreme example of a legal code with such a double stand- Foucault, Michel. 1978. The history of sexuality. Vol. 1, An intro- ard based on patriarchal notions of family and property. In duction. New York: Vintage.

18 ADVERTISING

Frayser, Suzanne. 1985. Varieties of sexual experience: An Perspectives anthropological perspective. New Haven, Conn.: HRAF. An interdisciplinary interest in gender and advertising has Sahebjam, Freidoune. 1994. The stoning of Soraya M. Trans. Ri- emerged rapidly over the past 25 to 30 years. Academic chard Seaver. New York: Arcade. fields such as communication, journalism, sociology, an- Vogel, Ursula. 1992. Whose property? The double standard of thropology, literature, film studies, and women’s studies adultery in nineteenth-century law. In Carol Smart, ed., have offered analyses of the relationship between gender Regulating womanhood: Historical essays on marriage, and advertising in various cultural contexts. This body of motherhood, and sexuality, 147–165. London: research includes a wide variety of perspectives, theoretical Routledge. assumptions, and methodologies from both the humanities and the social sciences. Karen Frojen Herrera Serious scholarship on gender and advertising flour- ished in the 1970s—though some influential work, such as ’s (1963) came ear- lier—as a response to the women’s movement and to the ADVERTISING increased numbers of female researchers in higher educa- tion. Scholars in departments of journalism, mass commu- Advertising, a ubiquitous feature of the mass media, is a nication, and marketing produced content analyses of key institution of socialization in advanced and emerging sex-role stereotyping found in print advertising and on tel- industrialized societies. Fueled by the perennial struggle to evision. “Sex-roles research,” which remains popular to- market goods and services in a multimedia environment, day, uncovered major inequalities in the representations of advertising images increasingly pervade everyday life in males and females in advertising. Often, women’s roles are these societies, bombarding individuals with snapshots of stereotyped in ads—either women’s place is in the home or what they supposedly lack and what they need to acquire to women are decorative sex objects; women do not make fill the void. This “lack” typically has more to do with life- “important” decisions or do important things; women are styles, looks, and aspirations associated with products by dependent on men’s protection; advertising gives a false advertisers than with the inherent qualities of the products picture of women’s real lives. More recent sex-roles re- themselves. The ability of advertising not only to reflect but search has found that the status of women, especially in the also to mold social meanings is central to the study of gen- workforce, has increased dramatically in ads, although it is der and advertising. still lower than men’s. But as images of working women According to this study, almost from its inception mass have become more prevalent, so too have images of women advertising has played a role in perpetuating particular in decorative capacities. definitions—often stereotypes—of gender roles and gen- The early flourishing of sex-roles research coincided der relationships. Throughout the history of advertising, with the publication of Erving Goffman’s influential work detailed definitions of the perfect female—her beauty, her Gender Advertisements (1976). Guided by his symbolic societal roles, and her sexuality—have occupied a central interactionist orientation toward human communication, place. These messages, selling everything from cosmetics Goffman’s approach differed from sex-roles research pri- to cars to beverages, prescribe how women should look marily in the questions asked. Goffman was less concerned and be looked at, how they should feel, and how they with the accuracy of the representation of larger society in should act. In short, these messages prescribe particular advertising than with its function in society, its social ef- gender identities for women. They also prescribe how fects, and its ability to communicate to people. Goffman men should relate to women. Advertising has been criti- found that advertising presents us with consistent and fa- cized for appropriating hard-fought gains of the women’s miliar “gender displays” such as male and female adults in movement (and of other marginalized groups) and assign- parent-child interaction patterns; women positioned spa- ing them to products. In the process of appropriation, the tially lower than males in advertising photographs; men political gains are depoliticalized and divorced from the executing or overseeing action or giving instruction; women contexts within which they were produced. An often-cited as the passive objects of action by males; and women in example is the ad campaign for Virginia Slims cigarettes, positions of body canting (the bending of body parts). which associated women’s liberation with addiction and Since Gender Advertisements, many scholars have ex- ideals of thinness. panded on the concept of gender display, examining how

19 ADVERTISING and what these rituals communicate to viewers when seen the object of the “.” Although gazing on naked- repeatedly. Two additional gender displays have been iden- ness was taboo, gazing on “the nude” became a respectable tified and are central to this body of work. The first is “body practice, belonging to high-art aesthetics. The painters and cropping,” the photographic technique of the “dismember- spectators of nudes were almost always men, and the per- ment” of the female body in ads. Women’s bodies are often sons treated as the objects of the gaze were almost always dismembered and treated as separate parts, perpetuating women. The acceptable way of viewing women today has the notion that a woman’s body is not connected to her its roots in this historical arrangement. Women and men are mind or emotions. Feminist scholars suggest that this type depicted differently in advertising and across media. The of objectification dehumanizes women for the viewer. “ideal spectator” is assumed to be male, and the image of When body parts are presented as objects among the other the woman is designed to flatter him. Women as well as products being advertised, women viewers are positioned men are trained in this cultural way of seeing. This perspec- to see the female body as a collection of individual parts in tive contends that women grow up watching themselves need of change or improvement. Male viewers are encour- being looked at. A woman assesses her appearance, and aged to focus on female body parts as fetishes, assessing a consequently her worth, through prescriptions defined by woman’s worth by breast size, hip curvature, thigh firm- men as the producers of art, ads, television programs, films, ness, and so on. Feminist scholars have linked this type of music, videos, and so on. Advertising encourages women objectification to a general climate of violence against to view themselves as objects to be improved on for the women. They argue that seeing a person as an object helps male “other,” rather than viewing themselves as the sub- legitimize committing violence against her. jects of their own femaleness. The second gender display relates to a dichotomy be- Many feminist writers have expressed a growing dis- tween “male as society” and “female as nature.” In ads, comfort with the limiting nature of the male gaze and con- men are presented as the active participants in the public cepts of split consciousness, especially when examining domain of work and culture, while women occupy a pres- female “pleasures” in looking. These scholars contend that ence outside the public sphere, in either the domestic world although the conventions of the male gaze in visual images of home and children or the sphere of leisure. Men are of- are dominant ways of seeing, it is wrong to theorize that ten positioned in culturally specific and purposive poses female viewing is an activity dictated solely by the male and attire—working, conversing on the telephone, or con- gaze. Instead, women have developed their own ways of veying a commanding stare. Men are shown as the consum- looking that should not always be reduced to these strict ers of the objects being advertised. Women are often categories. positioned in decorative poses lacking any sense of action Theories about the conspiratorial partnership of “beauty or purpose. In ads, women are shown not as the consumer culture,” promoted through advertising, and the codes of but as the passive object of consumption. the male gaze are under scrutiny as closed theoretical sys- Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, research on gender tems. Recent scholarship has brought into question femi- and advertising grew in volume and in sophistication. Key nism’s ongoing attack on “beauty culture” as a major to this process has been the application of more critical source of women’s oppression. This critique is based on the theoretical approaches. Drawing on semiotics, structural- following assertions. First, advertising images, especially ism, poststructuralism, and psychoanalysis, many feminist viewed in a global context, do not present one standard of scholars examine advertisements as texts, inscribed with beauty at any one time. Second, women are active, not pas- the dominant codes and ideologies shared by viewers in the sive, audience members, who produce meaning when larger culture. The concern here is less with analyzing the viewing advertising images. Therefore, they bring their content of advertising than it is with the meanings people own experiences of age, class, ethnicity, social status, make of advertising as a “system of cultural messages.” sexual preference, and so on to every reading. A primary focus of this work has been to “deconstruct” Also brought into question is the traditional feminist the seemingly natural attachment of female sexuality to stance that women should be allowed the freedom to expe- commodities in advertising. John Berger (1972) suggests rience their “natural” selves as beautiful without artificial that this naturalized relationship between female sexuality beauty products or adornments. This begs the question, and commodities has become a “cultural way of seeing,” at What is natural? In many different cultures and at all times least in western societies. He explains that the rise to (most of them preceding the age of advertising), women prominence of the female nude in European oil painting have decorated and groomed themselves. This type of depicts a turning point whereby women’s bodies became decoration and adornment historically has signaled the

20 ADVERTISING sociability of human beings and the placement of individu- outside societal parameters of health or even beauty. In the als in a social hierarchy. This critique suggests that adver- United States, among particular segments of the popula- tising and beauty culture should not be blamed for tion, these pressures are considered prominent contributors women’s oppression but should instead be seen as one to the onset of eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa ground where the issues of what is beautiful, natural, and (self-starvation) and bulimia (bingeing and purging). Re- appropriate are played out—through either adherence, ne- ports by anorexics have revealed that, for many, their ill- gotiation, or opposition/subversion by women. ness is the logical conclusion of the unreasonable expectation suggested by the fashion, cosmetics, and fit- Societal Influences ness industries that one can never be too thin and that fat Feminist scholars in particular have addressed how the equals failure. consistent objectification of the female body in advertising The preceding points deal directly with women’s en- and across media produces harmful effects in the everyday counters with messages that prescribe an often oppressive lives of women and in female—male relationships. Ac- ideal female beauty, as well as women’s attempts to emu- cording to Rosalind Coward (1985), females’ obsession late that ideal. Women of color and members of other with outward appearance and body shape has traditionally “marginalized” groups face more complex issues. In ad- been attributed to innate female narcissism. However, vanced and emerging industrialized societies, the cultural Coward contends it is not a sense of “self-love” that drives “gaze” is not only male but also white. Most women of women to obsess over their appearance but a kind of “self- color grow up not seeing themselves reflected in main- hate,” continually perpetuated by images of idealized femi- stream advertising, which has deemed them unworthy of ninity produced by advertisers. This self-hate manifests representation. In media theory, this type of itself in a sense of anxiety and urgency stemming from the underrepresentation has been called “symbolic annihila- knowledge that appearance is probably the most crucial tion.” Until recently, women of color appeared in advertis- way in which men form opinions about the worth of ing only if they were “fine-featured” and light-skinned, women. Therefore, feelings about appearance and self-im- resembling the European standard of beauty. For women of age easily mingle with feelings about security and comfort. color who are viewers, striving to achieve idealized femi- Absorption into the world of one’s own image can be seen ninity entails not only adjusting or refining one’s body but as a means of cultural survival, a bid for acceptance. also rejecting one’s identity and certain physical character- Conforming to ideal femininity in this culture involves istics altogether. To resist this artificial standard is always constantly focusing on the body as a site of improvement to “stand apart” from beauty as defined by society. and as an object of judgment—preparing it, painting it, Therefore, although women of color are sometimes rep- trimming it, exercising it, feeding it, and even starving it. resented in advertising, there is still little diversity within All this can be seen as self-imposed “discipline.” The femi- the “acceptable” stereotypes of women of color in main- nist communication scholar Carole Spitzack (1990) ex- stream ads. However, in the United States, at least, some plored the roots of this willingness to impose discipline on innovators are improving the representation of black the body. As long as women are the objects of the inspect- women in advertising. These include Essence magazine ing gaze of male power, men are imbued with the power to and the Burrell advertising agency. Essence, now consid- gather information about a woman through inspection (as ered a standard newsstand publication, has broadened the in the assessing stare or whistle) without any obligation to spectrum of beauty prescriptions for its readers, depicting communicate with her. Further, in many western cultures, many skin colors, body shapes, and ethnic fashions and discourses of “women’s health” are directly associated hairstyles, and offering articles and editorials that address with a thin body, and discourses of “disease” are often as- black women’s experiences. The Burrell advertising sociated with “weight” or fat. These complementary dis- agency is credited with bringing positive minority images courses work with other institutions and practices to to mainstream commercial advertising for products such as encourage self-correction and therefore “liberation” for Crest toothpaste and McDonald’s. women—liberation from the “disease” of fat and “control” On the other hand, the same kinds of breakthroughs in over one’s health and beauty. representation have not occurred for Hispanics, Native The anxiety that women feel over the difference be- Americans, or other minority groups, especially in advertis- tween the body they see promoted in advertising (and ing originating in the United States. Moreover, although gay throughout media) and the body they live in can often lead men and lesbians are prominent in the fashion and entertain- to types of self-surveillance and extreme discipline that fall ment industries, representation of homosexual relationships

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is rarely made explicit in mainstream advertising, where Coward, Rosalind. 1985. Female desires: How they are sought, these minorities suffer from “symbolic invisibility.” bought and packaged. New York: Grove. Empirical research has found that two groups—children Friedan, Betty. 1963. The feminine mystique. New York: Norton. and adolescents—are particularly vulnerable to the mes- Frith, K., ed. 1997. Undressing the ad: Reading culture in adver- sages in advertising, including sex-role stereotyping, sym- tising. New York: Peter Lang. bolic invisibility, and cultural ways of seeing. Research on Goffman, Erving. 1976. Gender advertisements. New York: children and television shows that children under age 6 are Harper and Row. less likely than older children to be able to distinguish com- Goldman, Robert. 1992. Reading ads socially. London: mercials from programs or to distinguish fantasy from real- Routledge. ity. This is also the age at which some of the most Jhally, Sut. 1990. Codes of advertising. London: Frances Pinter. fundamental learning of social roles and rules takes place. Kilbourne, Jean. 1978. Still killing us softly: Advertising images of Advertising presents children with conventionalized and of- women. Cambridge Documentary Films. ten stereotyped views of gender roles and relationships. The Lazier, L., and Kendrick, A.G. 1993. Women in advertisements: effects these messages have on children depend on their ex- Sizing up the images, roles, and functions. In P.J.Creedon, posure to other institutions of socialization (for example, the ed., Women in mass communication, 2nd ed., 199–219. family, preschool, or books). Adolescents are vulnerable to Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage. advertising messages for several reasons: they are prime tar- McCracken, E. 1993. Decoding women’s magazines: From Mad- gets of many advertisements in magazines and on television; emoiselle to Ms. London: Macmillan. they are new and inexperienced consumers; and they are de- Pribram, E.Diedre, ed. 1988. Female spectators: Looking at film veloping their self-concept and self-esteem. and television. London: Verso. Adolescence is a time when individuals try to gain inde- Spitzack, Carole. 1990. Confessing excess: Women and the poli- pendence from the institutions that have guided their tics of body reduction. Albany: State University of New York behavior up to that point, such as family, teachers, and reli- Press. gious leaders. Peer pressure is heightened during this time Williamson, Judith. 1978. Decoding advertisements. London: as teens take their cues on fashion, language, and Methuen. behaviors, including purchasing behaviors, from same- Vickie Rutledge Shields aged opinion leaders and from the media. Advertising pro- duces a type of mass-mediated peer pressure, giving teens prescriptions for what to buy and how to behave. Advertising mediates the relationship between people ADVERTISING INDUSTRY and goods in advanced and emerging industrialized socie- ties. For women, this process of mediation involves a com- In Adam Smith’s market model, advertising played a minor plex set of issues, often pitting women against ideal images and strictly informational role in capitalist economies, of themselves. Advertising is fertile ground for the study of whether within the economy of the nation-state or the global gender relationships in these cultures because it is the precise economy, integrating nations and guaranteeing their wealth. point where patriarchy, capitalism, and consumerism con- Smith’s focus on buyers and sellers elided power differen- verge. It is also the point where women are confronted daily tials based on gender, class, and imperialism. Whereas male with idealized images of who and what they should be. capitalists paid low wages to workers in England, capitalists structured wages so that English men made more than See Also women, women more than children, and children more than ADVERTISING INDUSTRY; IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; male workers in India. For Karl Marx, the power differential MEDIA: OVERVIEW. was crucial; for Smith, the power of buyers was such that their demands would drive markets to create so much wealth References and Further Readings that everyone would eventually benefit. Modern appropria- Berger, John. 1972. Ways of seeing. London: British Film Insti- tions of Smith’s model prefer to examine consumer-based tute. markets, avoiding the power differential between capitalist Cortese, A.J. 1999. Provocateur: Images of women and minorities and consumer and erasing the domestic division of labor that in advertising. Lanham, Md.: Rowman and Littlefield. makes women into household purchasing agents. When Courtney, Alice E. 1983. Sex stereotyping in advertising. modern advertisers buy consumers—that is, audiences— Lexington, Mass.: Lexington. from commercial media, the highest price is paid for young

22 ADVERTISING INDUSTRY males regardless of the woman’s role as her household’s pri- market. International advertising repeats this process mary buyer. through the “new” global economy, in which the collapse Smith assumed that advertising was insignificant, in the of the so-called second world (including the nations of the belief that buyers’ demands drove markets; therefore, buy- former Soviet bloc, the former Yugoslavia, and Albania) ers needed no images to create desires for products they has been interpreted by commercial media as the triumph demanded. Historically, the volatility of demand-driven of consumer-based capitalism. markets encouraged capitalists to rebuild them as more In that global economy, the corporate division of inter- controllable supply-driven markets. In those markets, a few national labor sharpens class divisions within the develop- sellers (oligopolists) set the range of products to be offered ing, westernizing, and western economies. For advertisers, to buyers. Because products were substantively similar, this has meant intensifying the circulation of emotionally each oligopolist needed to differentiate its product from its loaded ads, expanding operations, and aiming those opera- rivals’ and to motivate buyers to purchase its product. tions at households whose disposable income, consumerist Noninformational advertising solved both problems by outlook, and proximity to global retailing make them part creating an image that differentiated the product and asso- of a global consumerist caste. ciated it with powerful emotions. The emergence of that subpopulation internationalized Particularly interesting are associations with love or but also narrowed the focus of advertisers, retailers, and lust—emotions that capitalism treats as irrational, irresist- media conglomerates. The narrowing is reflected by adver- ible, and heterosexual. By evoking such themess, advertis- tisers’ willingness to pay more for “upscale” than ing symbolizes a dominant ideology regarding gender and “downscale” consumers, even when class status and in- sexuality. When ads rely on nonsexual love, they tap a come are irrelevant to affording the product. As advertisers yearning for social harmony and make products the key to pay more for upscale audiences, the media shift their focus bringing us together. Togetherness ranges from the dyadic from mass audiences to “class” audiences. Although the (AT&T’s “reach out and touch someone”) to the universal raison d’être of commercial media remains the delivery of (Coca-Cola’s “I’d like to teach the world to sing in perfect millions of potential buyers to advertisers, media outlets harmony”), but the associative logic remains: buy this and now target households that are above a nation’s average in- belong. Such advertising locates social problems in indi- come, and they target those households around the globe. vidual failures and then resolves those problems through This shift results from economic and social changes begin- consumption. Loneliness is eradicated by AT&T; world ning in the 1970s and continuing today. peace means Coca-Cola. This overlooks economic struc- One significant source of change was a conjunction of tures that foster sociopolitical conflicts—including west- second-wave feminism and economic recessions in the ernized economies’ overconsumption of raw materials and 1970s. In western economies, feminists struggled for and manufactured goods—and reinforce inequities between secured greater access to education and professional em- developing, westernizing, and westernized nations. Such ployment. Recessions in those economies, starting in 1975, ads present consumption and capitalism as solutions for pushed more middle-class women into the workforce, even global problems fostered by capitalism. as feminists won legal battles for greater opportunities. In Other ads trade on lust, offering the product as a means the 1980s, monetarism stabilized the recessionary cycle by to sexual fulfillment and desirability. Advertisements’ rep- refocusing industrial economies on international finance, resentations of lust typically objectify women in two ways. transferring revenues from working people to financial To male viewers, the ads associate the acquisition of the elites, and exporting industrial operations to developing product with acquisition of a woman. To female viewers, nations, particularly those in southeast Asia. The upsurge the ads identify a specific body type and associate it with of neo-conservative ideology in western nations further the product as the key to desirability. Although this symbol- sharpened internal class divisions by dissolving welfare ism may seem to exploit females and males equally, adver- states and also concentrating economic control in tisers’ willingness to pay more for male audiences than transnational corporations. female audiences means that such ads are primarily aimed By the 1990s, advertisers no longer assumed that the at men. Because advertisers pay more for male audiences, consumerist caste resided primarily in western nations or commercial media define the audience as male. While that impoverished populations lived mainly in developing women constitute 52 percent of the population and pur- nations. Advertisers focused on global subpopulations able chase most goods regardless of ultimate user, advertisers to sustain ritualized brand loyalty, and made impulse buy- and commercial media treat the female audience as a niche ing routine. This shifted their interest to media charging

23 AESTHETICS: FEMINIST

access fees (cable, film, Internet, and so on). Advertisers Ewen, Stuart. 1976. Captains of consciousness: Advertising and still differentiated consumers by gender and class—paying the social roots of the consumer culture. New York: McGraw- more for “upscale” men than “upscale” women—but now Hill. hunted for them globally. With capitalist power differen- ——, and Elizabeth Ewen. 1982. Channels of desire: Mass im- tials based on sex, class, and imperialism entrenched across ages and the shaping of American consciousness. New York: the entire world, advertisers perpetuated the associative McGraw-Hill. logic that naturalizes capitalism and objectifies women on Jhally, Sut. 1989. Advertising as religion: The dialectic of technol- a truly global basis. Dependent on advertisers for revenue, ogy and magic. In Ian Angus and Sut Jhally, eds., Cultural media distributed advertisers’ symbolism internationally, politics in contemporary America. New York: Routledge. defining women as second-class consumers. McAlister, Matthew P. 1996. The commoditization of American At the turn of the twenty-first century, advertising agen- culture. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. cies, media corporations, and advertisers undertook an- Schudson, Michael. 1984. Advertising, the uneasy persuasion. other round of conglomeration and acquisition. This has New York: Basic Books. concentrated industrial control in a steadily diminishing Williamson, Judith. 1978. Decoding advertisements. London: number of increasingly powerful companies. Conglomer- Marion Boyars. ates like AOL-Time Warner and Disney integrate Internet, Eileen Meehan film, television, print, and other media to provide advertis- ers with “one-stop shopping.” For advertising agencies, this has left global and national markets dominated by three “mega-agencies”: Omnicom Group (U.S.), Interpublic Group (U.S.), and WPP Group (U.K.). As media conglom- AESTHETICS: Feminist erations and vertically integrated advertising agencies buy and sell audiences, they remain focused on middle-class The making of art and the experience of art are often held to men as the global audience for media. be gendered in a significant way. This must be taken into In first-world nations, twenty-first-century economic account, it is argued, if we are to understand art fully. Femi- conditions continue to make paid employment necessary nist aesthetics is not a way of evaluating art or our experi- for most middle-class women and crucial for most work- ence of art; rather, it examines and questions aesthetic ing-class women. As a result, more college-educated theory and attitudes concerning gender. women work in media corporations and advertising agen- Although feminist work in literary criticism, film cies than in the past. Institutional sexism nevertheless per- theory, and art history is well established, feminist aes- sists in these companies, where few women rise above the thetics is a relatively young discipline, dating from the “glass ceiling” and those few who do rarely shed the corpo- early 1990s. Because of its relatively recent beginnings, rate socialization that makes them exceptions to the rule of is still a discipline without a canon. In second-class status for women as employees, audiences, fact, several writers resist the idea that feminist aesthetics and buyers. Where cable channels and Web sites for men should have a canon at all, since they believe that work in are characterized as targeting “the audience,” similar serv- this field necessarily needs to develop as ices for women are treated as niche media cable channels. and theorists do themselves. Moreover, since it draws All this suggests that objectified representations of women upon several brands of feminism and feminist work in in advertisements, news, and entertainment will remain the other disciplines, feminist aesthetics is rarely concerned norm. to respect disciplinary boundaries. Further, one of its pri- mary tasks is to broaden our concept of what counts as See Also art—and enable the discipline to include more varied per- ADVERTISING; CAPITALISM; COMMUNICATIONS: OVERVIEW; spectives of artists, art appreciators, and the wider con- CULTURE: WOMEN AS CONSUMERS OF CULTURE; FASHION; texts in which art develops. GLOBALIZATION; HOUSEHOLDS: DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION; It is important to keep in mind, however, that feminist MEDIA: OVERVIEW aesthetics does not claim that women necessarily produce different kinds of art from men, or that women necessarily References and Further Reading have different experiences of art from men. Not only is Andersen, Robin. 1995. Consumer culture and TV programming. there no clear distinction between women’s art and men’s Boulder, Col.: Westview. art; there is also no clear similarity among all women’s art.

24 AESTHETICS: FEMINIST

Again, the experience is what feminist aesthetics is con- objects in their contexts but also of performances (perform- cerned with. That is, the different kinds of art men and ance art), environments (gardens or architecture), and other women produce are less significant than the recognition interactive productions viewed within their contexts. that they will have fundamentally different kinds of experi- Although feminist aesthetics begins with the recogni- ences in response to art because of the way society influ- tion that gender matters in art, the study of feminist aesthet- ences gender. By starting with the assumption that art and ics should not be confused with the study of the way we experience it are fundamentally gendered, history or , each of which also begins feminist aesthetics acknowledges the different kinds of ex- with the same assumption. The fact that women are op- periences art can produce, and hence can take more varied pressed as subjects of art does play a part in the acknowl- kinds of experiences into account. There is no assumption edgment that gender is influential, but it is not necessarily that the differences are necessarily essential; but because of all that matters. There is a bias in painting (and print media) the way in which society influences gender and our result- toward female subjects (often nude women perceived as ing experiences seen through gender, the experience of art, passive and wanting to be looked at) and male artists (al- be it made by males or by females, is likely to influence ways in control, always doing the looking). What this femi- men and women in different ways. nist view of art history produces is our recognition of the Almost all feminist scholarship challenges the view “male gaze,” which is a significant part of feminist aesthet- that there can be a generic perceiver. Awareness of gender ics. In this case, feminist aesthetics has contributed some- informs the content of perception itself so that what is thing that traditional aesthetics has not so much gotten perceived and how it is perceived depend on whether the wrong as over-looked entirely. perceiver occupies a more or less privileged social and Both feminist aesthetics and feminist an criticism have political position. Feminist aesthetics assumes that art is focused on the unbalanced relationship between the subject not and should not be gender-neutral, and it begins by rec- and object of aesthetic contemplation—and both want to ognizing how art and artists are privileged and affected by initiate an important blurring of distinctions between them. gender. Since art and art history are gendered, there is no Further, there is an emphasis on the aesthetic dimensions of universal, ideal, disinterested spectator. Standard aes- everyday life and the importance of seeing art as a process thetic theory oppresses women by assuming a gender- or activity rather than a product. Feminist analyses attempt neutral, disinterested ideal spectator who in fact embodies to link aesthetic judgment and the resultant implied mean- a privileged, white male perspective. Understanding that ing and value of works of art to beliefs and desires in every- gender influences the viewer and accounting for the var- day life. That is, we need to consider art and the aesthetic ied spectators that we do have are not the same. Under- within their own context. It is only here, in this complicated standing the varied perspectives and experiences is one of nexus of circumstances, that we can fully understand the the main objectives of feminist aesthetics. Thus it goes significance of art. beyond the acknowledgment that gender matters to show how it matters and to show how different women create See Also and experience art. AESTHETICS: BLACK FEMINIST; ART PRACTICE: FEMINIST; Feminist aesthetics offers not merely a critique of tradi- CREATIVITY; FINE ARTS: CRITICISM AND ART HISTORY; GAZE; tional aesthetics but alternatives to the critique as well. PHILOSOPHY First, traditional formalist theory defines art in terms of for- mal characteristics and formal principles. It strives to be References and Further Readings able to define art exclusively in these terms. According to Battersby, C. 1989. Gender and genius: Towards a feminist aes- this view, aesthetics is always moving toward a definition thetics. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. that will ultimately, always, come up short. Feminist Berger, J. 1972. Ways of seeing. London: Penguin. theory, on the other hand, seeks to describe rather than de- Brand, P. 1998. Disinterestedness and political art. In C. fine art and thus is able to take account of its changing na- Korsmeyer, ed., Aesthetics: The big questions. Oxford: ture and can incorporate different contexts and meanings. Black-well. Second, formalism gives priority to products of artistic ——,. and C.Korsmeyer, eds. 1995. Feminism and tradition in endeavors that are viewed disinterestedly—and gives priority aesthetics. University Park: Pennsylvania State University to the view that art objects should be viewed disinterestedly. Press. Conversely, feminist aesthetics emphasizes the connection be- Felski, R. 1989. Beyond feminist aesthetics: and tween art and life. Feminist aesthetics consists not only of social change. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.

25 AESTHETICS: BLACK FEMINIST—A DEBATE

Hein, H., and C.Korsmeyer, eds. 1993. Aesthetics in feminist per- that is not of high quality. She has a reputation for writing spective. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. scathing reviews of her contemporaries’ work (“bell hooks Korsmeyer, C. 1998. Perceptions, pleasures, arts: Considering Reads between the Lines,” 1999). Her colleague bell aesthetics. In Janet Kourany, ed., Philosophy in a feminist hooks, who uses lowercase for her pen name to indicate an voice: Critiques and reconstructions. Princeton: Princeton absence of authorial ego and is one of the best-known black University Press. feminists in the United States, is concerned about the divi- Mulvey, L. 1989. Visual and other pleasures. Bloomington: Indi- siveness she believes Wallace causes. In addition, hooks ana University Press. argues, Wallace’s unfavorable reviews downgrade black Nochlin, L. 1971. Why are there no great women artists? In V. feminist writers in the eyes of the mainstream, making it Gornick and B.K.Moran, eds., Woman in sexist society. New more difficult for these writers to publish and to achieve the York: Basic Books. respect they deserve (“bell hooks Reads between the Lines,” 1999). Wallace’s motives for publicly expressing Sarah Worth harsh opinions about the works of hooks and other contem- poraries may sometimes be misunderstood. Her goal is to inspire black feminist writers to adhere to the highest AESTHETICS: Black Feminist—A Debate standards, and she has never shrunk from controversy but, rather, has been outspoken on controversial matters. The black feminist in the United States may exist in a state bell hooks writes in a poetic and persuasive style. She of heightened aesthetic awareness, living daily not only and her work have become popular in white as well as with the black person’s double consciousness of being both black feminist circles, but some critics see her work as object and subject in a racist society but also with the femi- marred by a casual approach to documentation (see, for nist awareness of woman as both object and subject in a instance, Farris, 1999:91). hooks’s goals are to spur de- gendered world. It is precisely the sense of doubleness that velopment of criticism, and of a feminist aesthetic, that differentiates feminist aesthetics from standard aesthetic will transcend boundaries of gender, race, and class, and theory, and it is the duplication of this sense, as experienced to persuade the literary world that African-American by black feminists, that further differentiates black feminist women aestheticians and critics are serious thinkers and aesthetics from white feminist aesthetics. writers. Some African-American feminists further distance One cause of the differences between Wallace and themselves from , and, thus, from white hooks may be that they do not use the same definition of feminist aesthetics, by claiming that white feminism deals quality. Perhaps Wallace considers use of standard English with middle-class white women’s issues, and with those is- and accurate documentation a requisite for high quality, sues alone, offering nothing to poor and black women. whereas for hooks the presentation of ideas in an imagina- Other black women refuse the label “feminist” altogether, tive and accomplished literary style may simply be high pointing out that, whereas white women may want to be quality. Another cause may be their opposed personal equal to white men, black women have no similar incentive styles: whereas Wallace sparks controversy and seeks to to resemble black men. Many black women prefer spur change through her confrontational style, hooks uses “womanist,” a folk term used by Alice Walker. The her persuasive and harmonizing style to create mutual ben- Afrocentric scholar Clenora Hudson Weems has proposed efit and acceptance. still another term, “.” Despite, or perhaps in part because of, these controver- Besides its differences with white feminist aesthetics in sies, black feminist aesthetics in the United States exists in the United States, black feminist aesthetics is beset with a state of lively ferment. Debate is fueled by the aesthetic internal controversies. In such a climate, black critics have and critical writings of Wallace and hooks as well as many no stable, agreed-on guidelines for their work, and each others. Some questions at the heart of black feminist aes- feminist writer propounds her own theory. At worst, this thetics may remain to be formulated, and some answers do state of uncertainty can lead to polarization and recrimina- not yet seem to be in sight. Possibly, one topic of general tion, even as the protagonists attempt on higher levels to agreement is the need for African-American women create a workable consensus on issues important to all aestheticians to take their work even more seriously and to black feminist aestheticians. gain the increased respect of other critics and writers, both The writer and professor Michelle Wallace, for instance, in the so-called white feminist world and in the main- contends that black women writers present critical work stream culture.

26 AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

See Also color, religion, sex, or national origin, but they also re- AESTHETICS; CREATIVITY; FEMINISM: AFRICAN-AMERICAN; quire that employers take affirmative action or positive LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM; LITERATURE: NORTH steps to ensure equal opportunity. Furthermore, employ- AMERICA ers must state in all advertising that they are indeed af- firmative action—equal opportunity employers. References and Further Reading According to Revised Order 4, employers with over $50, “bell hooks reads between the lines in new book” (book review). 000 in federal contracts and 50 or more workers had to New York Amsterdam News, 27 January 1999, p. 20. file affirmative action plans, including goals and timeta- Bordo, Susan. 1998. Twilight zones: Feminism and Film; Femi- bles, with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance. nism, media and the law (book review). Contemporary Wom- In March 1972, the Equal Employment Opportunity en’s Issues Database, 10 (1 June):148–153. Commission (EEOC) issued a report (“Guidelines on Dis- Bordo, Susan. 1997. Twilight zones: The hidden life of cultural crimination Because of Sex”), which set forth general prin- images from Plato to O.J. Berkeley: University of California ciples to assist employers in complying with Title VII of the Press . Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended in 1972. Employers Farris, Phoebe. 1999. English is broken here: Notes on cultural could not refuse to hire a woman because they believed fusion in theAmericas (book review), Art Journal 55(3):91. women in general have a higher turnover rate than men do. Gentile, Mary C. 1985. Film feminisms: Theory and practice. Nor could they refuse to hire a woman because of the as- Westport, Conn.: Greenwood. sumption that women as a group are less capable of per- hooks, bell. 1981. Ain’t I a woman: Black women and feminism. forming certain tasks than men are. Nor could employers Boston: South End. cite the preferences of coworkers or customers in excluding Humm, Maggie. 1995. The dictionary of feminist theory. Ohio women (or men) from consideration for employment. The State University. guidelines also provided the useful information that title Lorde, Audrey. 1984. Sister outsider: Essays and speeches. VII supersedes state laws which treat women differently Trumansburg, N.Y.: Crossing. from men. And the guidelines provide clarification as to the McCluskey, Audrey Thomas. 1994. Am I not a woman and a sis- illegality of separate seniority systems by sex, discrimina- ter? Reflections on the role of black women’s studies in the tion against married women, sex-separated advertising, academy. Contemporary Women’s Issues Database 8: 105– discriminatory practices by employment agencies, pre-em- 111. ployment inquiries by sex, provision of unequal fringe ben- Morrison, Toni. 1992. Playing in the dark: Whiteness and the lit- efits, and provision of discriminatory benefits for erary imagination. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University temporary disabilities such as those related to pregnancy Press. and childbirth. Wallace, Michele. 1999. Black macho and the myth of the super- The requirements for “acting affirmatively” stipulated woman. London: Verso. not only that employers cease taking the discriminatory ac- Weems, Clenora Hudson. 1995. Africana womanism: tions described above but that they take positive steps to en- ourselves. Bedford. sure the provision of equal opportunity to women of all races and minority men. In other words, employers cannot simply Georgia Kornbluth say that they would welcome applicants of underrepresented groups; they must take affirmative action in three areas: (1) recruitment, (2) selection, and (3) training. In the area of recruitment, for example, the employer AFFIRMATIVE ACTION could show good faith by making certain that advertise- ments for job openings were sent not only to traditional “Affirmative action” did not become part of the general outlets but also to agencies and publications that might vocabulary in the United States until President John F. reach groups unreached before. If the employer was fair in Kennedy issued an executive order that required federal using only job-related criteria in selecting among the appli- contractors to take “affirmative action to recruit, hire, and cants, then he or she would be deemed to have satisfied the promote minorities.” In an executive order of 1967, Presi- standards for fair selection. And in the area of training, dent Lyndon Johnson added women to the protected employees who are women of any race (or minority men) group (Stewart, 1998). These orders ban discrimination must be offered opportunities for training on the same basis against applicants and employees on the basis of race, as majority employees.

27 AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

These requirements—indeed, the whole concept of af- earlier educational advantages. Unless pre-existing firmative action—had critics in the decades that followed. inequities are corrected or otherwise taken into ac- In 1976, researchers compared the sex and race composi- count, colorblind policies do not eliminate racial tion of companies that were visited by compliance officers injustice—they reinforce it. (Plous, 2000) with companies that were not. Their study suggested strongly that affirmative action programs were helping At Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, the Office of men—especially white men—but having an adverse effect Affirmative Action changed its name in the 1980s to the on women (Goldstein and Smith, 1976). Office of Equal Opportunity. In 2000, the name was A review of the status of women and minorities in ad- changed once again, this time to Workforce Diversity, Eq- ministrative posts in institutions of higher education uity, and Life Quality. In the spring 2000 issue of the uni- showed that, despite professed commitment, little progress versity publication on benefits, the change was explained had been made (Van Alstyne et al., 1977). as follows: Other researchers have suggested that the excess of gov- ernment regulations applying to academic institutions Diversity is related to equal opportunity and affirmative acted as a damper to change rather than encouraging it action in that those who promote diversity recognize (Spriestersbach and Farrell, 1977). that there are differences among us that do not affect Members of protected groups sometimes argued, in the the quality of our work, teaching, or research. But, in 1980s, that antibias laws in general and affirmative action addition to those differences covered by affirmative ac- in particular were not working. They pointed to the paucity tion or local equal employment law and regulations— of women leaders in corporations and in the professions as race, gender, disability status, veteran status, age, evidence that majority men were not practicing affirmative marital status, national origin, religion, and sexual ori- action. Others argued that, while affirmative action was entation—diversity includes differences that are not helping elite managerial women to some extent, it was not specifically protected by law, such as educational back- helping large numbers of low-paid women (Blum, 1997). ground, socioeconomic class, job title/responsibilities, Many felt that it was inherently unfair to make special ef- or a person’s status (whether a person is faculty or staff, forts to ensure fairness in recruitment, selection, and train- supervisor or non-supervisor, exempt or nonexempt, ing. Many seemed to believe that affirmative action was for instance.) To recognize the importance of diversity equal to preferential hiring, to hiring and promoting un- is to recognize that having a diverse population in an qualified women and minorities, and to granting special organization is good both for the organization as a privileges to protected groups. Proponents of affirmative whole and the people within it. (Chappell-Williams, action defended the concept by pointing out that it is illegal 2000) under Title VII to hire an unqualified person because he or she is a member of an underrepresented group. In some Concern with affirmative action has mutated into a focus other countries, it is legal to specify that one seeks a woman on equal opportunity, which has in turn given way to a or a member of a minority group for a specified job: “No larger concern with diversity. Whether this moves the soci- white males need apply.” This is illegal in the United ety as a whole toward a merit-based ideal or a continuation States. of current injustice is a matter on which good people differ. In the 1980s, there was considerable pressure to declare The news of Microsoft Chairman Bill Gate’s $1 billion that hiring and admissions would be best left color-blind. Millennium Scholarship Program was no sooner an- Proponents of race-conscious hiring countered by ac- nounced than criticized: knowledging that places at universities, in industrial or- ganizations, and in the professions should ideally be Bill Gates’s $1 billion Millennium Scholarship Pro- awarded on merit and merit only. Ideally: gram may do more harm than good unless its criteria for awarding college scholarships are altered. Based …colorblind policies often put racial minorities at strictly on “minority” preference rather than need, it is a disadvantage. For instance, all else being equal, bound to exacerbate racial resentment. (LeFever, colorblind seniority systems tend to protect white 2000) workers against job layoffs, because senior employ- Critics of Gates’s aid to the United Negro Col- ees are usually white. Likewise, colorblind college lege Fund are more than a little off base in assuming admissions favor white students because of their that any type of educational aid to minority groups

28 AGEISM

is about some form of affirmative action. Many mi- AGEISM nority students, myself included, who are accepted into. Ivy League schools (which typically serve as Ageism is prejudice against the elderly. Coined by Robert springboards to a brighter future) simply cannot af- Butler in 1968, the word ageism is more precisely defined ford to go. There are few scholarships that cover as “a process of systematic stereotyping of and discrimina- four-year tuitions in excess of $25,000 [per year]. tion against people because they are old, just as racism and (Clark, 2000) sexism accomplish this with skin color and gender” (But- ler, 1975). This tendency to homogenize the old and clas- Some criticized affirmative action because it did not work; sify them as “the other” in turn leads to their being others, because they felt it was working too well. A merit- marginalized as a discrete population, separate from the based hiring and promotion system is one most Americans mainstream. want. How to achieve a diverse, fair one is the point of disa- At the individual level, ageism is rooted in a personal greement. revulsion toward growing old and experiencing disease and disability, and to a fear of uselessness and death (Butler, See Also 1969). Collectively, at the social level, ageism stems from the apprehension that the needs of the aged may burden a ANTIDISCRIMINATION; DISCRIMINATION; EDUCATION: nation’s resources and siphon off resources from younger GENDER EQUITY; WORK: EQUAL PAY AND CONDITIONS; WORK: segments of the population. OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION Probably the most blatant form of ageism occurs in the job market in western industrial societies, where chrono- References and Further Reading logical age has served as a marker for retirement. Although there is no rationale for specifying a given retirement age, Blum, Linda M. 1997. Possibilities and limitations of the compa- many bureaucracies, both public and private, have estab- rable worth movement. In Dana Dunn, ed., Work-place, wom- lished a certain age (usually between 65 and 70) as the age en’s place: An anthology. Los Angeles: Roxbury. of pension eligibility and retirement. Ageism also plays a Chappell-Williams, Lynne, Director, Office of Workforce Diver- role in hiring; for instance, employers may be biased sity, Equity, and Life Quality, interviewed in For your ben- against older workers, who are perceived as less adaptable efit: Official information on Cornell’s benefits, policies, and and less willing to learn. Moreover, an employer may be work-related developments. Spring 2000, Special Edition on reluctant to invest in the training of workers whose tenure Diversity, A. with the company is uncertain. Economic recession, auto- Clarke, T.A. 2000. Letter to the editor. The New York Times Maga- mation, and corporate restructuring also result in the re- zine (Sunday, May 14):14. placement of company “veterans,” or long-standing Goldstein, Morris, and Robert S.Smith. 1976. The estimated im- employees, by younger, lower-paid workers. Although the pact of the antidiscrimination program aimed at federal con- United States and other countries have enacted legislation tractors. Industrial and Labor Relations Review 29.(4): banning the arbitrary dismissal of workers on the basis of 523–543. age, corporate mergers and the accelerating pace of tech- LeFever, Ernest W. 2000. Letter to the editor. New York Times nology have led companies to streamline their staffs. In the Magazine (Sunday, May 14):14. process, long-tenured and higher paid employees are often Plous, Sarah. 2000. Journal of social issues, excerpted in Some targeted and older workers are disproportionately affected. myths about affirmative action: Why too many “con” cases In youth-oriented cultures, where beauty and physical are weak. Ithaca (N.Y.) Journal (Thursday, May 4): II A. prowess are held in great esteem, individual and institu- Spriestersbach, D.C., and William J.Farrell. 1977. Impact of fed- tional ageism may take more subtle forms. There is, for ex- eral regulations at a university. Science (4312):27–30. ample, an entire vocabulary that describes and stigmatizes Stewart, Karn. 1998. : The experiences of persons on the basis of age. The elderly are also depicted as women in the U.S. workforce. In Donna M.Ashcraft, ed., comical figures, the butt of jokes. In addition, the aged are Women’s work: A survey of scholarship by and about women, excluded from public images, as if this segment of the 205. New York: Harrington Park. population did not count. Some of these stereotypes are Van Alstyne, Carol, et al. 1977. Affirmative inaction: The bottom self-reinforcing: the elderly may tend to adopt negative line tells the tale. Change 39–41. views of themselves and thus either conform to these stere- Jennie Farley otypes or make special efforts to counteract them.

29 AGING

Ageism often represents a more formidable barrier for Holmes, Ellen Rhoads, and Lowell D.Holmes. 1995. Other cul- women than for men. Because many cultures regard child- tures, elder years. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. bearing and childrearing as women’s central, if not exclu- Williamson, John B., Linda Evans, and Anne Munley. 1980. Aging sive, mission, menopause represents the beginning of and society. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. women’s loss of status. Thus as women age and are no Annette B.Ramírez de Arellano longer considered indispensable to the family, they may feel increasingly useless—and this effect, too, reinforces negative ageist stereotypes. The premium placed on good looks may also have a greater negative impact on women, many of whom have internalized the prevailing social value AGING placed on beauty, and particularly the association of beauty with a youthful appearance. Aging is a lifelong process, but the term aging itself usually In the workplace, women also are differentially affected. refers to “patterns of late-life changes which are eventually In rural societies, where women have traditionally partici- seen in all persons but which vary in rate and degree” (But- pated in agricultural labor, loss of physical strength may ler, 1975) from one individual to another. signal loss of a woman’s income-producing capacity. In industrial and service societies, where women often enter Aging As a Time of Biological Change the labor market only after their child-rearing obligations Biological aging, called senescence, involves cellular have decreased or ended, women may find themselves at a changes that may affect physical appearance and functional disadvantage in competing against younger workers of both capacities. This process is associated with a decline in the genders. And because women leave and enter the labor immunological system and with a reduction in the effec- market with greater frequency than men, they are less likely tiveness of the hormonal system leading, in turn, to a dete- to have attained seniority and are therefore more vulner- rioration in the ability to adapt and a gradual increase in able to employment shifts than males of the same age group. vulnerability to disease. Physiological changes include the Laws as well as the roles that society decrees for the eld- decline or atrophy of certain systems and a decrease in sen- erly determine the extent to which ageism is allowed to pre- sory functions. Some of the more overt signs of aging in- vail. Where age is equated with wisdom, the elderly are clude wrinkled skin, graying hair, and stiffened joints. The seen as a repository of tradition and as nurturers of family pace at which aging occurs varies not only among individu- unity. The status of the aged is also enhanced in societies in als, but also from one organ to another. Faculties peak at which older people command resources (including skills, different ages, and their loss occurs at different rates. Thus, money, and time), which give them power over others. By for example, hearing peaks at infancy, while muscular contrast, societies that prize youth and perceive old age as strength peaks in the twenties (Williamson et al., 1980). obsolescence rather than experience—and as the approach Many biological changes associated with aging, how- of death rather than as the culmination of life—will find ever, are effects more of disease than of aging per se. that ageism persists regardless of laws to protect the rights Moreover, biology may be tempered or offset by social, of the aged. emotional, economic, and environmental factors. Certain cultures have been more successful than others in ensuring See Also that the losses of old age are cushioned by adequate in- AGING; AGING: JAPANESE CASE STUDY; ANTIDISCRIMINATION; come, supportive networks, access to care, and the recogni- BODY; DISCRIMINATION; ELDERLY CARE, specific topics; tion that the aged have a valuable role in society. FAMILY STRUCTURES; LONG-TERM CARE SERVICES; NURSING In women, menopause is often seen as a biological mile- HOMES; YOUTH CULTURE stone that marks the onset of middle age, with loss of the capacity for childbearing seen as the end of a biological References and Further Reading stage. Although twentieth-century health practitioners Butler, Robert N. 1969. Age-ism: Another form of bigotry. Geron- tended to consider menopause a pathological condition re- tologist 9(4):243–246. quiring medical treatment, by the end of the century there ——. 1975. Why survive? Being old in America. New York: was increased recognition that it is neither an illness nor a Harper and Row. deficiency (Porcino, 1991). Furthermore, the prolongation Bytheway, Bill. 1995. Ageism. Buckingham, U.K.: Open Univer- of postmenopausal fertility made possible by medical tech- sity Press. nology is making this stage less of a clear-cut transition.

30 AGING: JAPANESE CASE STUDY

Aging As a Time of Psychological Change 65 and 70 have been selected for determining retirement At the time of menopause, however, women may be experi- and eligibility for financial entitlements. This social defini- encing other changes that affect their self-image and rela- tion of old age, while essentially arbitrary, has nonetheless tionships. These changes may include children’s departure shaped the images and expectations of the elderly, and soci- from the home (a process termed the “empty nest syn- ety’s attitudes toward the aged. drome”), new responsibilities involving caring for elderly As the population pyramid in many countries becomes parents, and entry or reentry into the workforce. Women more top-heavy, with the aged constituting a larger propor- may thus be confronted with the need to make numerous tion of the population, the political power of the elderly and adaptations at this time in their lives. hence the importance given to the biological, psychologi- For most women, therefore, aging is associated with cal, and social aspects of aging are likely to increase. This role changes and the probability of coping with loss. Be- shift has been recognized by the United Nations Action cause women tend to outlive men in nearly all countries Program on Aging, which culminated in 1999 with the In- and age groups, the proportion of women who are heads of ternational Year of Older Persons. households tends to increase with age. As a result, many of See Also the health, social, and economic problems of the aging population are largely the problems of women. AGEISM, AGING: JAPANESE CASE STUDY; DISEASE; ELDERLY Old age may involve separation from relatives, friends, CARE, Specific topics; FAMILY STRUCTURES; GRANDMOTHER; and familiar surroundings; loss of work; a reduction in in- HORMONES; LIFE EXPECTANCY; MENOPAUSE; WIDOWHOOD come; and the death of a spouse and peers. For women, the References and Further Reading situation may be exacerbated by financial insecurity. Be- cause women’s work is often unpaid, unreported, unrecog- Butler, Robert N. 1975. Why survive? Being old in America. New nized, and unstable, women tend to lack pensions and other York: Harper and Row. benefits that would allow them a measure of financial inde- Holmes, Ellen Rhoads, and Lowell D.Holmes. 1995. Other cul- pendence. tures, elder years (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. Some of these changes may produce feelings of Porcino, Jane. 1991. Growing older, getting better. New York: isolation, dependence, and powerlessness, which in turn Continuum. produce depression. The psychological effects of aging are Shenk, Dena, and W.Andrew Achenbaum, eds. 1994. Changing therefore receiving increasing attention. In the elderly, perceptions of aging and the aged. New York: Springer. mental and physical problems often go together, with Williamson, John B., Linda Evans, and Anne Munley. 1980. Aging symptoms in one sphere masking those in another. and society. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Annette B.Ramírez de Arellano Rethinking Images of Old Age Various studies have attempted to disentangle the effects of aging from those of disease. These have tended to find that, despite the prevailing myths, both serious memory loss and AGING: Japanese Case Study intellectual decline are quite gradual in healthy individuals as they age. In addition, aging women tend to maintain a In the half century after the end of World War II, women in higher level of intellectual functioning than their male Japan experienced drastic changes in their life cycle. While counterparts, who show earlier and faster declines the average life span reached 83.82 years by 1997, the total (Williamson et al., 1980). fertility rate declined from 4.32 in 1949 to 1.39 in 1997 as a The available evidence also indicates that learning con- result of changes in the state’s population policy, which tinues into old age and that those who continue to exercise shifted from pronatalist to antinatalist in the postwar era. The their learning skills throughout their lives are better able to legalization of abortion in 1948 played an important role in adapt and learn new things. “Use it or lose it” has therefore this process. By the end of the twentieth century, however, become a popular slogan for successful aging and the main- Japan’s declining birthrate and its rapidly aging society were tenance of both physical and intellectual abilities. Resiliency causing anxiety among political and economic leaders, who and optimism are also associated with a fulfilling old age. began encouraging women to bear more children in order to The social aspects of aging have been encoded in em- rejuvenate the population. Many women retorted that they ployment practices and legislation. The ages between 60 or could not and did not want to have bigger families because

31 AGRICULTURE modern Japanese society does not provide them with a See Also favorable environment for bearing and raising many children. AGEISM; AGING; CAREGIVERS; ELDERLY CARE: CASE One of the major problems of the aging society, espe- STUDY—CHINA; ELDERLY CARE: WESTERN WORLD; FAMILY cially for women, is the care of bedridden or senile people STRUCTURES; LONG-TERM CARE SERVICES; NURSING at home. In Japan, more than 50 percent of the aged live HOMES; POPULATION CONTROL with their adult children. Although the eldest son is tradi- tionally expected to live with his parents, in fact it is his References and Further Reading wife who is responsible for care of parents-in-law when Amano, Masako. 1999. Oino kindai (Aging in the modern period). they become bedridden or senile. Also, with the decrease in Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten. number of children per family, the rate of parents living Lock, Margaret. 1993. Encounters with aging: Mythologies of with a single or married daughter is increasing rapidly. The mid-life and menopause in Japan and North America. Japanese assume, in general, that it is natural for family Berkeley: University of California Press. members to take care of the aged at home, and public and ——. 1999. The cultural politics of female aging in Japan and private services to help old people or caregivers are far North America. In Wakita Haruko, Anne Bouchy, and Ueno from adequate. Chizuko, eds., Gender and Japanese history, Vol. 1. Osaka: Accordingly, the burden of caregiving rests heavily on Osaka University Press. women. In 1995 more than 2 million old people were esti- Takeda, Kyoko. 1994. Rojowa naze kaxokuni korosarerunoka. mated to be in need of care, of which about 860,000 were (Why are old women killed by their families?) Kyoto: cared for at home. Most of the caregivers at home were Minerva. women, including wives (31.6 percent), wives of eldest Tanaka, Kazuko. 1989. Women, work and family in Japan: A life sons (27.6 percent), eldest daughters (15.5 percent), and cycle perspective. Iowa City: University of Iowa. other daughters (4.5 percent). It is not uncommon for a woman to spend many years taking care of one or both par- Miho Ogino ents of parents-in-law, and later her husband. Working women are frequently forced to quit their jobs because of this highly demanding caregiving labor. The situation is also critical for women who are them- AGRICULTURE selves in need of care. Because women, on average, live longer than men, the rate of bedridden or senile women in- Women around the world contribute a significant propor- creases with age. It is reported that old women are twice as tion of the labor and expertise required to feed human liable as old men to be abused by caregivers, and the number populations. Their roles have varied through times and re- of old women killed by exhausted caregivers is six times gions, but even in modern industrialized societies, there are greater than that of old men. Although sons and husbands are many opportunities for women in food production. “Agri- a minority among caregivers, the incidence of abuse and culture” is narrowly defined as the cultivation of domesti- murder increases when the caregiver is a man, sometimes cated plants (“cultigens”) for food and fiber; more broadly, taking the ultimate form of double suicide in which a desper- “farming” also includes the management of domestic ani- ate male caregiver kills both the old woman and himself. mals for meat, milk, eggs, and other uses such as fiber. The There have been recent efforts to remedy such gender term “horticulture” is used to distinguish the production of imbalance in the care of the old. For example, newspapers edible and ornamental plants, usually for eventual trans- and television programs have included positive coverage of planting. men who willingly resigned from high-status jobs, such as Agriculture arose independently in different parts of the bank president or mayor, in order to care for their elderly ancient world at different times. The wheat-based system and ill wives. Books written by sons and husbands about that characterizes Europe, western Asia, and the Middle their caregiving experiences are published and received East probably began in present-day Turkey between 9,000 favorably. Also, in April 2000, a new national insurance and 10,000 years ago; rice was farmed in China as early as system for the care of the aged was implemented with the 8,500 years ago, sorghum in western and central Africa purpose of facilitating social support for caregiving labor. 5,000 years ago, and maize (corn) in Mesoamerica by However, it is unclear whether such new phenomena signal 4,000 years ago. Before these innovations, people sub- any substantive change in the conditions surrounding Japa- sisted by hunting game and gathering wild plant foods. In nese women and aging. recent hunting-and-gathering societies, men specialize in

32 AGRICULTURE hunting large game, while women forage for plants and Physiological differences affect women’s role in agri- small game, an activity that can be combined with the culture in several ways. Worldwide, they reduce their farm physical restrictions of pregnancy and child care. Possibly, activity while pregnant and lactating. Caring for small chil- therefore, it was women who learned the life cycles of dren limits the time a woman can devote to field labor, al- plants and their response to environmental conditions. though older children can help with the work. There is When they observed food plants growing from discarded rising concern about women’s exposure to agricultural seeds near dwelling sites, they probably encouraged plant chemicals, which—especially in developing countries— growth by manipulating soil disturbance and irrigation, and are often applied without adequate safeguards; some of selected particularly productive individual plants. Thus, these substances are especially dangerous to pregnant they created the first farms. women and children. The increased food security granted by agriculture The economic constraints on women’s successful par- brought fundamental changes to human society. Women, ticipation in agriculture fall under two broad headings: land no longer required to travel so much, could bear, nourish, tenure and access to credit. In many parts of the world, le- and tend more children—who were needed to labor in the gal ownership of land is still restricted by law or custom to fields and defend the territory. In their permanent dwell- males; thus, it is difficult for women to secure land for their ings, they could keep nonportable tools and store heavy own use or to use it as collateral for loans in their own foods. Early agricultural societies exploited these advan- names. Land and other agricultural resources tend to be in- tages to move their increasing populations into new territo- herited by male rather than female children, and a widow or ries, where they eventually displaced hunter-gatherer groups. divorced woman may lose the use of her family’s land. The spread of Indo-Europeans in Eurasia and that of Bantu- There are several kinds of land tenure among rural house- speaking peoples in sub-Saharan Africa, for example, are holds, ranging in level of security from landless squatters attributed in large part to their management of agriculture. through various lease and sharecropping arrangements to Despite women’s fundamental role in the creation and actual ownership. Landless women tend to work for wages maintenance of agriculture, they are often said to be “invis- as unskilled agricultural laborers, but men are more in de- ible farmers.” In most parts of the world—especially in mand for this kind of work, which is often migratory; as a western cultures—the stereotypical farmer is male. Many result, these women are more likely to head households (at factors combine to make rural women less visible than least periodically), to be poor, and to have a high birthrate. men, including male ownership of land, male domination Women in landowning households, by contrast, devote less of the credit system, and the submersion of women’s farm time to cultivation (though sometimes more time to animal labor in the sphere of domestic work. Even in Africa, where husbandry) and enjoy more leisure and economic independ- women dominate farm production, they tend to work on ence. They may be able to hire domestic help, and they of- land owned by their husbands or other male relatives. They ten manage small nonfarm businesses. usually concentrate on producing food for domestic or lo- Poor rural people, especially those who own no land, cal market consumption, whereas men are more likely to have little access to the credit that would enable them to raise crops for external sale. Throughout the world, large invest in income-producing ventures. Unequal access to agricultural enterprises tend to be male-operated. The ac- credit has restricted women’s success and autonomy in all tual extent of women’s contribution to farm production can regions and economic spheres, and nowhere more than on be difficult for researchers to determine because govern- the farm. Legislation is now making farm credit more ac- ment databases tend not to identify it separately; however, cessible to women in western nations, although entrenched there is increasing recognition of the need for “gender attitudes may still impede their equal participation. In de- disaggregated” data for use in development planning. veloping nations, women farmers may depend on loans Women’s work on farms is likely to be considered a from government and international aid programs to fund natural extension of their work in the home, and both are their ventures. They tend to have a better record of repay- often undervalued in economic treatments and more gen- ment in rural small loan programs than do male borrowers; eral views. In fact, farm women in developed countries in India in the 1980s, for example, the Working Women’s have been found to work longer hours, on average, than Forum’s rural credit society reported a repayment rate of women in other types of employment. Moreover, most 90 to 95 percent, compared with a national average of 30 to farm women contribute agricultural labor at peak periods, 40 percent for similar loans from commercial banks. An but farm men typically contribute little domestic labor exciting development is the Grameen Bank, started in Bang- (housework, cooking, or child care). ladesh, which lends small amounts to help poor people start

33 AGRICULTURE businesses. In 1990, 80 percent of Grameen’s borrowers Sub-Saharan Africa is the focus of many studies and de- were women. These loans do not support the purchase of velopment programs in the field of women’s agriculture, land, but they are often extended to help women buy small women here have been estimated to constitute between 60 livestock, poultry, or fish for pisciculture, or to develop and 80 percent of the agricultural labor force; there are business that utilize local agricultural products to make more females than males engaged in the subsectors of processed foodstuffs, textiles, and other craft items. homestead production (small farms), urban agriculture, Grameen Bank programs now exist in many countries, in- pisciculture (raising food fish), small animal production cluding the United states. (including poultry), and tree culture. Household economy Women farmers tend to concentrate on certain types of in this region tends to be dual: women are responsible for production. In developing countries, they produce food for obtaining food, while men perform outside wage labor for their own households and sell the surplus in local markets. other needs; men’s and women’s earnings are not typically Among low- to moderate-income groups, female-special- pooled; and budgets are separate. ized cultivation often supports expenditures for women’s Food production by African smallholders has declined and children’s needs: the African vegetable grower may in recent decades for several reasons. National govern- pay her daughter’s school fees by selling extra squash, and ments, often at the urging of international lenders, encour- many pioneer American farm women bought pianos and aged increased production of export crops, which are books with the “egg money.” Other typically female agri- owned and worked mostly by men. Collapsing prices for cultural specialties include culinary and medicinal herbs, these commodities have thrown many men back into food dye plants, cut flowers, and ornamental potted plants. production, where they may displace women from their tra- Small livestock (for example, goats) and poultry are often ditional source of income. Moreover, export crops are typi- managed by women, whereas men tend cattle and other cally grown on large holdings constituted by combining large animals. This division of labor reflects women’s need former small farms; this disappearance of smallholdings to remain close to home to care for children and elders, as increases the gap between economically secure landowners well as differential physical strength and cultural restric- and the landless poor, and exacerbates malnutrition. As tions on mobility. land for food production becomes scarcer, the remaining A little-recognized dimension of women’s agriculture is available land is overexploited and soil fertility drops; only urban farming. Especially in developing countries, people additional labor—from exhausted farmers and their in- living in cities often have small plots where they produce creasingly numerous children—and the fertilizer and tech- vegetables, fruits, and small livestock for home consump- nology they cannot afford can wring more food from the tion, market sale, or barter. Especially where cultural pat- land. Warfare adds to the woes of rural Africans; as men die terns limit women’s employment outside the home (for or become disabled, the burden of providing food falls ever example, in some Islamic societies), they often can make more heavily on women. more money market gardening than in any other work. Aid organizations in Africa, especially those associated Women’s urban farming, however, is rarely reflected in offi- with the United Nations, have made special efforts in the cial statistics or made the object of development programs. past two decades to assist African rural women, but many An exception is Peru Mujer, a Peruvian nongovernmental obstacles persist. In most areas, men have ultimate control organization, which established a community gardening over land tenure, and inheritance is patrilineal (although project that eventually reached 5,000 households in Lima; matrilineal systems also exist). National authority struc- women received training and extension visits as well as sup- tures tend to reinforce the subordinate status of women in port in marketing and food processing ventures. In the the interest of conserving male dominance. Credit associa- United States, women are likely to participate in community tions and export marketing groups may restrict member- garden programs in low-income urban neighborhoods. ship to heads of households, who are rarely female (at least In the early 1990s, according to a World Bank report, officially), even though pilot projects have demonstrated approximately 40 percent of agricultural holdings in devel- that women borrowers tend to have higher repayment rates. oping countries were managed by women. Women’s direct Infrastructure improvements are concentrated on serving involvement in farm production is highest in sub-Saharan the industrial sector rather than the rural areas, where wom- Africa, eastern Asia, and the Indian subcontinent, and low- en’s food production is known to increase with road access est in highly industrialized nations and Latin America. to markets. Complex interactions of historical, religious, and economic Women are also prominent in Asian agriculture—espe- factors have created the differing regional patterns. cially in less developed nations—but here the sexes tend to

34 AGRICULTURE cooperate in a single cultivation process, performing com- ornamental horticulture. They are more likely than rural plementary tasks. In rice farming, for example, men do the women in less developed areas to take part-time or seasonal heavier work, while women perform repetitive tasks such wage employment. as planting and weeding. Men, however, usually control Professions ancillary to farming attract many women, land tenure and make decisions about crops. In a pattern especially in the West. In 1997, women received 46.8 per- similar to early European peasant farming, women contrib- cent of agriculture-related baccalaureate degrees granted ute field labor at peak times and otherwise specialize in by U.S. universities, but only about 10 percent of these raising small livestock and poultry. As in Africa, men are graduates are likely to become farmers. Instead, they find more likely to migrate for wage labor, while women as- employment as farm credit managers, laboratory research- sume an increasing share of farmwork; for example, the ers, extension agents, or development specialists, and in 1990 Chinese census found that women constituted 48 per- other professions. Historically, women have been espe- cent of farmworkers nationally, but more than 50 percent in cially numerous in animal science, horticulture, food sci- industrially developed areas of the country. By 1997, a sur- ence and technology, nutrition, plant pathology, and vey by the Chinese Women’s Federation reported that entomology. Agricultural colleges actively recruit women women constituted more than half the nation’s agricultural students, and a few, such as Wageningen Agricultural Uni- workforce; at the same time, the proportion of women versity in the Netherlands have specialized programs fo- managing or owning farm enterprises fell from 26 percent cusing on gender issues. In most African countries, in 1988 to only 8 percent in 1995, indicating that men have however, national committees on crop resources and bio- been more successful in taking advantage of Chinese eco- technology are largely or even exclusively staffed by men, nomic reforms (Riskin, 2000). In difficult economic condi- and none of these bodies include women farmers. tions in Malawi, young male entrepreneurs have taken over Since 1950, world agriculture has been transformed by the formerly female niche of operating vegetable market three related movements: cash or export cropping has in- stalls; in addition to depriving market women of employ- creased at the expense of varied domestic food production; ment, they are reported to steal crops from the farms of landholdings have become larger, on average, eating up women, especially single women. small farms; and the so-called green revolution, while in- Two cultural areas in which women are less prominent creasing productivity through the introduction of industrial in agriculture are the Islamic world and Latin America. In chemicals, improved plant varieties, and mechanization, the former, religious restrictions on the activities of women has also increased reliance on capital-intensive activities. of reproductive age tend to keep them near home, where All these changes have altered the position of women in they often engage in domestic food gardening and espe- agriculture in fundamental ways. Large cash-crop opera- cially in food processing; young girls and old women, how- tions are primarily male enterprises, so women’s food-pro- ever, may work more in the fields. In colonial Latin ducing property may be marginalized as the best land is America, men were withdrawn from subsistence farming to taken up for export production. When men migrate for provide labor on cash crops, and women took up the re- wage labor, women assume added burdens at home—and sponsibility of feeding the family; but recent consolidation they often have to support temporarily unemployed, sick, of landholdings, industrialization, and emphasis on export and elderly men. Differential access to credit may make crops have reduced the presence of women in the farm technological improvements less available to women workforce. Land available for leasing by subsistence farm- small-holders, who thus cannot compete effectively. Over- ers has greatly diminished, further excluding women. all improvements in total farm production, average income, Many rural women here migrate to cities for domestic or and world food supply can thus mask a deteriorating situa- industrial jobs, in the reverse of the pattern in other parts of tion for women farmers. the developing world. To ameliorate this problem, international development In western Europe and North America, social, religious, agencies and national support organizations are increas- and legal constraints on women’s farming are less salient, ingly offering programs aimed at women food farmers. but women are a minority presence among farmers. In Most prominent among these are the Food and Agricul- Canada, for example, they constitute about one-third of the ture Organization and UNICEF, branches of the United half million people who derive their income from agricul- Nations, and the U.S. Agency for International Develop- ture. Married farm women often manage the financial side ment and Peace Corps. Most developed countries have of the enterprise, contribute labor to main crops at peak farm women’s organizations that now address such issues periods, and engage in specialized production such as as access to credit. There is hope that the drive for gender

35 AIDS AND HIV equality will extend to the women who work the land, as important roles in the replication process. HIV replicates women have for millennia. each time the lymphocyte replicates. A nonsymptomatic la- tency period usually follows, often lasting for years. Eventu- See Also ally, however, HIV destroys its host lymphocytes, releasing ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES; new viral particles into the body. As the immune system DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW; DEVELOPMENT: CHINESE CASE loses its CD4 lymphocytes, it loses its ability to protect the STUDY—RURAL WOMEN; ECOSYSTEM; ENVIRONMENT: body against other infectious viruses, bacteria, and fungi. OVERVIEW; FOOD, HUNGER, AND FAMINE; WORK: EQUAL PAY Sero-conversion from HIV-negative (HIV-) status to HIV- AND CONDITIONS; WORK: OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION pos-itive (HIV+) status occurs when an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA test) detects measurable lev- References and Further Reading els of antibodies to HIV in the bloodstream. The ongoing Folbre, Nancy, Barbara Bergmann, Bina Agarwal, and Maria impact of HIV on the immune system is commonly meas- Floro, eds. 1992. Women’s work in the world economy. New ured by CD4 cell counts, which decline as the disease York: New York University Press. progresses and improve when medications work effectively. Henderson, Helen Kreider. 1995. Gender and agricultural devel- Medications to control and treat HIV infection usually opment: Surveying the field. Tucson: University of Arizona target the replication enzymes reverse transcriptase and Press. protease. Drug “cocktails” that combine multiple reverse Joekes, Susan P. 1987. Women in the world economy: An transcriptase and protease inhibitors have been the most INSTRAW study. New York and Oxford: Oxford University effective treatment to date and are classified as “highly ac- Press. tive antiretroviral therapy” (HAART). Important medica- Riskin, Jerome. 2000. Poverty and nequality in China. New York: tions approved for treatment of AIDS in women in the Oxford University Press. United States include the reverse transcriptase inhibitors Sachs, Carolyn E. 1995. Gendered fields: Rural women, agricul- zidovu-dine (AZT or Retrovir), stavudine (d4T or Zerit), ture, and environment. Boulder, Colo.: Westview. 1999. lamivu-dine (3TC or Epivir), zalcitibine (ddC or Hivid), Shortall, Sally. 1999. Women and farming: Property and power. and didanosine (ddI or Videx), and the protease inhibitors New York: St. Martin’s. saquinavir (Invirase), ritonavir (Norvir), indinavi (Crixi- Young, Kate. 1993. Planning development with women: Making a van), and efavirenz (Sustiva) (US Food and Drug Adminis- world of difference. New York: St. Martin’s. tration, 1997). During the 1980s and early 1990s, AIDS was consid- Jane McGary ered a terminal illness (except for a few anomalous cases) and HIV+ status was considered a death sentence. Current treatments have changed AIDS to a chronic condition ame- AIDS AND HIV nable to long-term management if (an important qualifica- tion) people with AIDS have access to early diagnosis, if Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a serious they can pay for treatment, and if they can adhere to the disease resulting from infection by the human immunode- complexities of treatment and tolerate its side effects. As of ficiency virus (HIV). AIDS and HIV infections have this writing, a vaccine to immunize people against HIV in- reached pandemic levels in many parts of the world (Mann fection had not yet been developed. and Tarantola, 1996; World Health Organization). The AIDS Epidemic Retroviruses, Infections, and the Immune System There are multiple strains of human immunodeficiency vi- HIV is a retrovirus that can be transmitted through infected rus (HIV). The earliest strain is believed to have developed blood, semen, or other body fluids and tissues; and from from a simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) that crossed mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, or the species barrier in Africa from chimpanzees to people breastfeeding. After HIV enters the body, it targets CD4 during the early years of the twentieth century, HIV-1 is the lymphocytes (also called T-helper cells), which are white viral strain that has spread worldwide; HIV-2 has been blood cells that function as an essential part of the body’s mostly localized in west Africa. immune system. By penetrating the nucleus of a CD4 cells, In 1980, the scholarly journal of Homosexuality (vol- HIV can use the cell’s genetic machinery to replicate itself, ume 5) published reports from several physicians in San Fr- with the enzymes reverse transcriptase and protease playing ancisco, New York, and Chicago whose medical practices

36 AIDS AND HIV included sexually active homosexual men with sexually and treatment. Several gay organizations (including Project transmitted diseases (STDs). These physicians were seeing Inform in San Francisco and Gay Men’s Health Crisis in an unusual form of pneumonia (Pneumocystis carinii) and New York) helped to set the original public health agendas an unusual cancer (Kaposi’s sarcoma) in that patient popu- (an unusual pattern, given the homophobia of most cul- lation. On 5 June 1981, the U.S. Centers for Disease Con- tures). Those agendas still have not shifted their primary trol and Prevention (CDC) issued the first in a series of focus from sexually active men in developed countries to similar alerts as part of the epidemiologic Morbidity and young women of color and mother-to-child transmission Mortality Weekly Report. In 1983, the virus itself was iden- among poorer populations (Center for AIDS Prevention tified, allowing the field of AIDS medicine to expand Studies). The research agenda continues to be androcentric (Merigan, 1999). as well. In addition to Pneumocystis pneumonia and Kaposi’s sarcoma, researchers designated a list of infections that Special Problems for Women with HIV and AIDS “opportunistically” targeted the HIV+ population: cytome- Although women are no longer invisible in the AIDS pa- galovirus, toxoplasmosis, thrush (oral candidiasis), tient population, problems continue for HIV+ women as a cryptosporidiosis, amoebiasis, giardiasis, histoplasmosis, result of women’s subordination to men, their exploitation Mycobacterium avium infections, and others. These infec- by men, and their disadvantaged socioeconomic and legal tions were considered indicators of HIV+ status and their status (UNAIDS, 1996): presence became part of the diagnostic protocol for AIDS that determined eligibility for treatment. • Women are no longer explicitly excluded from research Conspicuously missing from the diagnostic lists of and clinical trials of new medications, but barriers to AIDS indicators until 1993 were gynecologic disorders: women’s equitable participation in clinical trials still vaginal yeast infections (candidiasis), pelvic inflammatory exist (Lucey and Zangeneh, 1999). disease, genital warts (human papillomavirus infection), • Women receive HIV screening tests less often than men, cervical dysplasia, and cervical cancer. Women, particu- even when HIV tests are supposed to be mandatory larly women of childbearing age, were explicitly excluded (Link, 1999). from participation in research and clinical trials of medica- • Women must negotiate with men for safe sexual tions. The results of those early failures to diagnose and behaviors (use of condoms and caution regarding multi- treat women are still evident. ple partners). Rates of male-to-female transmission con- During the the first decade of the epidemic (the 1980s), tinue to rise, however, indicating that women are the patient population was primarily male and usually unlikely ever to achieve parity in heterosexual dyads. white: sexually active homosexual and bisexual men, users • Prostitution and pornography put sex workers (prima- of heroin and other injectable street drugs who shared nee- rily women and children) at greater risk of HIV infec- dles; prison inmates; surgical patients and people with tion, and this population is less likely to have access to hemophilia who received blood transfusions; and trans- health care. plant patients who received donor organs, immun- • AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) osuppresant medications, or both. Women who were carry considerable social stigma along with their diagnosed with AIDS had to meet the diagnostic criteria physiological complications. Women who report established for men, and most HIV+ women were linked to STDs or HIV+ status to male sexual partners are at the at-risk male population: women whose husbands were greater risk of domestic violence and of discrimina- bisexual men or users of injected drugs, women who in- tion (Roth and Fuller, 1998; UNAIDS, 1996). There jected drugs themselves, women who were sex workers or is also some evidence that this stigma interfered with prison inmates, and women who gave birth to children with how energetically feminist media and feminist activ- HIV. However, by the second decade of the epidemic (the ists have reacted to the AIDS epidemic (Treichler and 1990s) the patient population had shifted toward people of Warren, 1998). color, with young pregnant women at particularly high risk • Mother-to-child transmission of HIV usually occurs (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1999). during late pregnancy, during childbirth, or during Public health efforts during these first two decades were breast-feeding. Unless pregnant women can improve aimed at educating at-risk populations never to share nee- their access to HIV testing, counseling, treatment, and dles, always to use condoms during sex (“safer sex”) so as safe substitutes for breast milk, this problem cannot be to reduce viral transmission, and to seek early diagnosis solved (UNAIDS, undated).

37 AIDS AND HIV: CASE STUDY—AFRICA

Researchers hope that, in the future, HIV and AIDS can and Katie Hogan, eds., Gendered epidemic: Representations be limited to occasional outbreaks in isolated areas (as of women in the age of AIDS. New York: Routledge. happened with the Yersinia pestis bacterium that caused UNAIDS (Joint United Nations Programs on HIV/AIDS) (un- bubonic plague in Europe during the “black death” of the dated). HIV and infant feeding. 1300s) or to a research vault (as happened with the variola UNAIDS (Joint United Nations Programs on HIV/AIDS). 1996. virus that caused smallpox), or that HIV/AIDS will be Discrimination in the context of human immunodeficiency added to the list of diseases that can be prevented through virus (HIV) or acquired immune deficiency syndrome childhood immunization. Until any of these things hap- (AIDS). pen, however, the Joint United Nations Programs on HIV/ U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National AIDS (UNAIDS) have identified public health goals for Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention. 1999. HIV/AIDS 1999–2004 as: (1) to reduce incidence of HIV in people among U.S. women: Minority and young women at continu- 15 to 24 years old by 25 percent in the 25 most affected ing risk. countries; (2) to give at least 50 percent of all HIV+ preg- U.S. Food and Drug Administration (1997). Women and AIDS. nant women access to HIV-related health services; (3) to World Health Organization. WHO Initiative on HIV/AIDS give at least 75 percent of all HIV+ people access to medi- and Sexually Transmitted Infections (HIS). Global surveil- cations for AIDS-related infections; and (4) to give all lance on HIV/AIDS/STI. AIDS orphans in Africa access to food and education on Faye Zucker an equal basis with their nonorphan peers. Although these public health goals for children and pregnant women are ambitious, one might suspect that if wealthy white men in developed nations were the primary patient population, prevention and treatment goals would be 100 percent and AIDS AND HIV: Case Study—Africa immediate. In the year 2000, about 70 percent of all those infected with See Also AIDS lived in sub-Saharan and southern Africa. World- AIDS AND HIV: CASE STUDY—AFRICA; BIOETHICS: FEMINIST, wide, about 34 million people carried HIV, and 23 million BISEXUALITY; DISEASE; HEALTH: OVERVIEW; of these were in Africa. Of the 5.6 million people who were HETEROPHOBIA AND HOMOPHOBIA; LESBIANS: HIV newly infected, 3.8 million were in Africa. PREVALENCE AND TRANSMISSION; MEDICINE: INTERNAL, I AND II; PHARMACEUTICALS Background The AIDS/HIV epidemic in the developing world—as of References and Further Reading the year 2000—is a complex problem, medically and so- Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, AIDS Research Institute, cially. AIDS/HIV is often seen as a gay disease, and this has University of California, San Francisco. HIV Prevention Fact been a potent reason for denial. Also, the biological charac- Sheets. teristics of the virus, and the mechanisms of infection, Link, Derek. 1999. HIV treatment and diagnosis in the United which took many years to elucidate, remain difficult to un- States. GMHC treatment issues: Newsletter of experimental derstand. Moreover, the long incubation period makes AIDS therapies 13 (5/6 May-June). AIDS/HIV hard to describe in practical terms to people ac- Lucey, Mary, and Tardad Zangeneh. 1999. Gender agenda: Sci- customed to infections like malaria, which have more im- ence not psychology; biology not behavior. Women Alive mediate manifestations. And although drug therapy has (Summer). continued to evolve, it is inaccessible in regions where the Mann, Jonathan, and Daniel Tarantola, eds. 1996. AIDS in the epidemic is most prevalent. Strategies for prevention have world II. New York: Oxford University Press. relied on motivating people to make changes in their sexual Merigan, Thomas C., ed. 1999. Textbook of AIDS medicine (2nd behavior: abstinence, monogamy, fewer sexual partners, ed.). Baltimore, Md.: Williams and Wilkins. and the use of condoms. Roth, Nancy L., and Linda K.Fuller, eds. 1998. Women and AIDS: The challenges of this epidemic have become most evi- Negotiating safer practices, care, and representation. dent in sub-Saharan and southern Africa, especially in Binghamton, N.Y.: Harrington Park. women. There, AIDS/HIV is primarily transmitted sexu- Treichler, Paula, and Catherine Warren. 1998. Maybe next year: ally between men and women, or transmitted from mother Feminist silence and the AIDS epidemic. In Nancy L. Roth to child; to a lesser extent it is transmitted through

38 AIDS AND HIV: CASE STUDY—AFRICA contaminated blood. Women are implicated in each mode antiretroviral drug, nevirapine (NVP), given to mother of transmission and become diseased as a result of their and infant, reduced HIV transmission by 47 percent; thus, own infection or that of their children, spouses, families, or annually, NVP could prevent infection in about 300,000 to communities. They suffer enormously and variously: they 400,000 newborns. However, successful use of NVP— are predisposed to infection because of biological and so- and of the earlier drug AZT—requires not only access to cial factors, blamed and stigmatized for the spread of the the drug but also testing, counseling, and community sup- virus, perceived as responsible for infecting their children, port. Another strategy involves preventing transmission of burdened with caring for the sick and orphans, and denied HIV through breast milk; a study in Kenya compared their rights or violated as a consequence of their perceived breastfed and formula-fed babies and found that an addi- guilt or complicity. tional 16.2 percent of breastfed babies, uninfected at birth, In 1999 UNAIDS reported that in Africa 2 million more became HIV-positive during the first six months of life women than men were infected, and that girls were most (Nduati, 2000). vulnerable: girls aged 15 to 19 were five to six times more There are two forms of HIV in Africa. The more viru- likely to be infected with HIV than boys of the same age. At lent, HIV-1, has perhaps ten subtypes. Subtype B predomi- that time, 12.2 million African women and 10.1 million nates in the developed world, but many subtypes are men carried HIV, a ratio of 6 women to 5 men. common in Africa (and in Asia). The major cause of death Factors such as poverty and foreign debt prevent coun- is disease induced by subtypes A, C, D, and E. The Harvard tries in this region from responding adequately to the crisis: AIDS Institute believes that of the subtypes, C is most of the worldís 50 poorest countries, 33 are African. In Af- transmissible through sexual intercourse, and this is rica, AIDS was expected to reduce life expectancy to 45 thought to have contributed to the spread of HIV in Africa, years by 2005. More than 7 million children in Africa have especially southern Africa. HIV-2, a weaker virus, was first already been orphaned by AIDS/HIV, and often the people described in the mid-1980s in west Africa and has re- who should care for children are themselves dead, ill, old, mained mostly confined to this area, and to sex workers. or desperately poor. The rate of increase in HIV is greatest in southern Af- Women’s Risk of HIV rica, as compared with east and central Africa; the highest For African women, the risk of HIV is determined more by rates of infection are in Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, cultural, social, and economic context than by individual Zambia, and South Africa, where as many as 1 in 7 people behavior. Women are valued for marrying and remaining are infected. The spread of HIV in Africa is affected by cul- married, bearing children, caring for their families, placing tural and socioeconomic factors such as sexual behavior, men’s and children’s interests above their own, and defer- stigma, tradition, access to services, women’s social status, ring to men’s authority. Thus women have little say in deci- and migration. Some occupations are associated with sions regarding sex and reproductive health—for example, higher risk, including long-distance driving, migrant labor, whether or not to have children or whether to breastfeed or and military service. Another factor is male circumcision: bottle-feed a child. Women in situations where it is difficult in one study, the two cities with the highest rates of HIV to claim any rights—refugee camps, prisons, and forced and ulcerative sexually transmitted diseases (Kisumu, prostitution—are especially at risk of sexual abuse and Kenya; and Ndola, Zambia) also had the lowest percentage rape, and therefore also of HIV. of circumcised males. Studies in Kenya have found that nearly one girl in four Transmission of HIV from mother to child has become between ages 15 and 19 is HIV-infected. Among females, a significant problem, in part because most infected the peak age for infection is between 15 and 24 (compared women have contracted the virus at an early age, before with 25 to 34 for males). Even women in stable relation- marrying or bearing children. (In the University Teaching ships are highly vulnerable. For young women, societal Hospital in Lusaka, Zambia, for example, many pediatric norms increase the risk of infection: they are not expected AIDS cases are firstborn children of young, recently mar- to learn about sex, and others decide when and whom a ried couples.) About 570,000 African children are infected, woman will marry. Reproductive health services, preven- 90 percent by their mothers, and according to estimates, 1 tive or curative, are often inaccessible to young people. million more HIV-positive infants will be born to infected Child marriages, often between teenage girls and much mothers by 2003. older men, and female circumcision are still common; both A joint study by Uganda and the United States practices increase the risk of HIV. Poverty also has an ef- (HIVNET 012) found that a single dose of an inexpensive fect: poor parents are unable to meet their children’s basic

39 AIDS AND HIV: CASE STUDY—AFRICA needs, and many young girls turn to commercial sex to sup- In fact, women in Africa are the chief caregivers for vic- port themselves—often with men who refuse to use con- tims of AIDS, often without support and despite their other doms. responsibilities. When a woman herself has AIDS, she is commonly her own caregiver. Further, women are disad- Addressing AIDS/HIV vantaged regarding access to paid care and treatment such Strategies for combating AIDS/HIV in Africa have tended as drugs and hospitals; they tend to lack money, and in not to confront men’s sexual behavior directly but rather to some cultures they need their husband’s permission to go focus on women. The message has been that women should to a hospital. In many African countries, the health care empower themselves to prevent infection by changing their system thinks of women’s health in terms of fetal health own behavior or negotiating with their male partners for during pregnancy and infants’ health after delivery. safer sex. Given women’s lack of power and their eco- Changes are needed so that African women will value their nomic dependence on men, this approach has been largely health and seek care. ineffective. Moreover, prevention has stressed individual actions, Responding to the Challenges of AIDS/HIV whereas traditionally African women’s strength has been in Interventions to reduce women’s risk and to enable them to working together, teaching and supporting one another, cope with AIDS/HIV should span the life cycle. Many and sharing experiences. More effective strategies would groups have mobilized African women to address this chal- build on this strength by identifying and overcoming gen- lenge. The Society for Women and AIDS in Africa der-based and sociocultural problems: women would de- (SWAA), founded in the 1980s, is a grassroots organization velop solidarity to eliminate risky behaviors by men, and to working with women in more than twenty-five countries. impart new values to their sons and daughters. Realisti- The International Community of Women Living with HIV/ cally, however, this would require a social revolution. AIDS in Africa (ICW), working closely with SWAA, has As of the year 2000, the most important preventive promoted women’s rights. In Senegal, women’s associa- measure remains the condom. But although condoms are tions such as Dimba (which offers advice about reproduc- used effectively in the western world, this is not true in Af- tive health) and Laobe (which offers erotic products) have rica, where the condom is considered appropriate only for used traditional methods of communication and social mo- promiscuous people and for sex workers. Condoms (male bilization (Cheikh Niang, 1995). and female) could be used more successfully in Africa if greater efforts were directed toward building skills, im- See Also proving access, and making condoms respectable. A prom- AIDS AND HIV; HEALTH CARE: SOUTHERN AFRICA; HEALTH ising development for the future is microbicides, chemical CARE: SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA agents that would improve women’s ability to protect themselves. References and Further Reading A simple, basic strategy is improving communication Chiekh Niang. 1995. Sociocultural factors favoring HIV infection within couples. To enhance communication about sex, gen- and integration of traditional women’s association in AIDS eral communication skills, such as problem solving, should prevention in Kolda, Senegal. be promoted. This would make couples better able to deal International Center for Research on Women. Women and AIDS with sensitive issues such as HIV testing, disclosing test research report , Series No. 8. Washington, D.C.: Interna- results, monogamy, condoms, treatment of sexually trans- tional Center for Research on Women. mitted diseases (STDs), childbearing, and breastfeeding. Elias, C., and C.Coggins. 2000. Female-controlled methods Testing has been a problematic strategy. Many women to prevent sexual transmission of HIV. Unpublished pa- who are offered an HIV test in order to participate in per presented by ACT-UP, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, programs providing antiretroviral drugs and free formula April. refuse because of the difficulties they would face if they Foreman, Martin, ed. 1999. AIDS and men: Taking risks or taking tested positive: rejection by their partners, loss of rights and responsibility? London: Panos/Zed. social support, stigma, and psychological stress. Widows of Ndauti, Ruth. 2000. In Journal of the American Medical Associa- men who died of AIDS are not an encouraging example: tion, March. they have been dispossessed of their farms, household Piot, Peter, Executive Director, UNAIDS. 1999. AIDS and vio- property, and money, although they are still held lence against women. Panel on Women and Health, Commis- responsible for caring for their children. sion on the Status of Women, 43rd session, March.

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Rethinking the African AIDS epidemic. 2000. Population and limited success over the past thirty years in improving the Development Report Review 26(1; March):117–135. lives of women through low-key technology such as im- UNICEF. 1999. Children orphaned by AIDS: Frontline responses proved woodstoves, biogas digesters, and solar cookers. from Eastern and Southern Africa. UNICEF Publication, PV systems are limited because they do not supply suffi- December. cient electricity to cook by and thus do not address the pri- World Health Organization. 2000. Women and AIDS fact sheet. mary energy-consuming task. March. Some critics of alternative electricity supplies argue fur- ther that affordable, safe, and secure supplies of multiple Eka Esu-Williams energy sources are a more important consideration than computer networks or on-line credit systems, although these are not necessarily mutually exclusive. They also ALCOHOLISM point out that large users of coal-fired or nuclear-generated See DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE. electricity are generally found among the wealthy classes in cities, and this is where alternative energy should be most used and mainstreamed. Instead it is often poor and rural people, especially women, who are small consumers ALTERNATIVE ENERGY of energy that are expected to use energy efficiently. With- out the benefit of technical expertise and support available From time immemorial the power of the sun, forests, wind, in cities, they are expected to experiment with alternative tides, and water has been harnessed for such diverse activi- systems. Attempts to reduce energy consumption in ties as lighting fires, drying clothes, sailing ships, and turning wealthy countries and introduce more sustainable systems windmills. Only since the industrial revolution have the en- such as using PV systems in new buildings, harvesting ergy-hungry nations of the world used large quantities of methane from land fill sites, and developing electric cars coal and oil in their raw states to generate the quintessential are underway. However, a great deal remains to be done. modern fuel: electricity. Electricity is transmitted through Concerned research and development activists are working power lines and grid systems that traverse countries. Coal on these challenges. and oil are now considered the mainstream sources of energy and are used to power the economies of the industrialized See Also world, often male-initiated and which marginalize women. ENERGY; TECHNOLOGY: WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT A broad definition of alternative energy refers to sys- tems such as mini-hydro power plants, wind generators, References and Further Reading solar heating panels, and photo voltaic (PV) systems, wa- ENERGIA: Women and Energy Newsletter. ETC Energy, P.O. Box ter, wind, and the sun’s energy (respectively) to generate 64, 3830 AB Leusden, Netherlands. and store electricity away from the major grid networks. The Challenge of rural energy poverty in developing countries. Apart from off-grid systems, other renewables such as 1999. World Energy Council (Conseil Mondial de biogas and, arguably, biomass (in the form of wood fuel, l’Energie) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the crop waste, and dung), may be included in the definition of United Nations. alternative energy. In developing countries wood fuel re- World energy assessment. 2000. New York: United Nations Devel- sources are being depleted, and supplies of fossil fuels (oil, opment Program and World Energy Council. gas, and coal) and grid-electricity are either erratic or be- Wendy Annecke yond the reach of the poor, particularly poor women. Under these circumstances, renewable resources and alternative forms of energy are consistently suggested as the solution ALTERNATIVE MEDIA to energy scarcity. See MEDIA: ALTERNATIVE and PRESS: FEMINIST Proponents of alternative energy use suggest that poor ALTERNATIVES. and rural people, in particular rural women, could have bet- ter lighting and communications through solar-powered telephones, computers, and online microcredit systems. ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE Access to global communication systems would also raise See HOLISTIC HEALTH I; HOLISTIC HEALTH II; and the profiles of these communities. Skeptics point out the TRADITIONAL HEALING.

41 ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY: CASE STUDY—AFRICA

industrialization. Thus Africa is in an advantageous posi- ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY: tion: it has an opportunity to avoid repeating the mistake of Case Study—Africa adopting environmentally unfriendly technologies. On the other hand, it has problems that must be resolved if it is to Technology may be defined as the totality of knowledge benefit from the experience of developed countries. applied to improve productivity. Some technology— Cost: First is the problem of costs. Although alternative though of course not all—causes environmental problems technologies, like many other technologies imported to Af- such as pollution. Alternative technology is any technology rica from developed coutries, may be useful in settings that is environmentally friendly and differs from an envi- such as hospitals, hotels, schools, large businesses, and af- ronmentally hostile conventional technology. Examples of fluent homes, they are often prohibitively expensive in con- alternative technologies are: texts where most African women would use them.

• Harnessing solar energy or wind energy to generate elec- Even in the developed world, the large-scale use of alter- tricity or heat for domestic uses such as heating water. native technologies has been hampered by the cost of in- • Practicing sustainable agriculture (such as organic farm- stallation. Solar energy is a clear example. In rural Africa, ing and avoiding chemicals and pesticides) that pre- as elsewhere, the sun has always been a direct source of serves soil fertility without endangering life or polluting energy—laundry and agricultural harvests, such as maize the environment. and millet, are dried in the sun—but solar energy as a mod- • Using biogas technology to supply domestic heating ern technology can be very costly. and lighting energy by converting biomass into gas. Solar energy is harnessed by three methods: passive, • Developing fuel-efficient engines. thermal, and photovoltaic. Passive methodology involves • Recycling industrial and agricultural wastes to produce deliberate building design: up to 70 percent of a building’s economically usable products. energy needs can be provided by sensible design and solar orientation. Today, this is the most commercially mature of Agrochemicals are one area in which alternative technol- all the solar technologies, competing very well with con- ogy may be needed, especially in developing countries ventional energy sources. However, the building design re- where poor education and poverty make them a dangerous quirements are far beyond the reach of poor families such undertaking: there is a risk of overdosing the soil, and there as those in most of rural Africa. are also issues of the availability and affordability of the Thermal methodology uses solar energy to heat water. It appropriate agrochemicals. In many developing countries, is quite basic—a solar water heater is simply water pipes small-scale farming has become economically unreliable painted black to improve heat absorption. But here too, the because of the rising cost of agrochemicals. technology is not yet in significant use by the majority of Much alternative technology has to do with alternative poor communities in rural Africa, because these communi- energy sources, because conventional fossil fuels—on the ties have yet to be provided with clean pipe water. In some scale on which they are used today—are dangerous to the places people, especially women, must still walk more than environment. Burning fossil fuels creates carbon dioxide, 5 miles to fetch water, and in such a setting it is unrealistic which has accumulated in the atmosphere and is contribut- to talk about solar water heaters. Moreover, despite its sim- ing to problems such as global warming and depletion of plicity, this alternative technology is not cheap, even by the the ozone layer. Gasoline is an an obvious example, but the economic standards prevailing in most urban areas in Af- indiscriminate use of wood as a source of energy is also a rica. Around the year 2000, typical installation costs (in serious environmental problem that has led (directly and United States dollars) varied from perhaps $1,000 to indirectly) to deforestation and thus has reduced biodiversity. $1,500 for a “do it yourself” home system to $5,000 for a The need for global action on alternative technologies commercial system. These figures are by far too high for an was set forth in 1992 by the United Nations Earth Summit average African family or small business; in Tanzania, for in Rio de Janeiro. Agenda 21, signed by all the countries instance, per capita income at that time was less than $200. that were represented, is a program of sustainable develop- Photovoltaic methodology, which is the most expensive, ment at the international, national, and local level. involves generating electricity from sunlight. A photovoltaic power supply system capable of meeting the demands of a Problems of Alternative Technology in Africa typical energy-efficient house costs the equivalent of Many African countries have yet to industrialize and there- $30,000 to $35,000. Even in the developed world, grid- fore can choose between several alternatives with regard to linked photovoltaic electricity is appealing because it is

42 ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY: CASE STUDY—AFRICA clean, not because it is cheap; it is far more expensive than and manufacturers have cooperated to develop solar en- conventional electricity. This form of photovoltaic electricity ergy; Great Britain has a legislative program called the is obviously of little practical use for poor communities. Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO). However, photovoltaic generators—solar panels in the de- Better legislative policy is also needed to increase public sign of roofs of buildings—are becoming cost-effective. concern for the environment. In countries such as Tanza- These generators operate with no moving parts and create no nia—probably because educational levels are low—the noise or pollution; they are the most appropriate renewable majority if people seem unaware of industrial pollution and energy source for domestic and public settings. In a few other environmental threats. countries in sub-Saharan and southern Africa, solar pumps are widespread in rural areas. Mali, for instance, had more African Women and Alternative Technology than 100 solar pumps as of about the year 2000. In Africa, urban and rural communities differ in their need Foreign influences: A second problem confronting Africa for energy and their capability for capturing it. The energy is foreign influence. This problem is related to costs because needs and the “capture potential” of urban African women it often takes the form of demands that are beyond Africa’s are not significantly different from those of their counter- economic means. What technology to acquire and what prod- parts in the developed world. Thus alternative technologies ucts of technology to import are often dictated by the interests such as biogas, solar panels, and passive solar heating of a minute affluent part of the population with foreign con- (building design) are all within the reach of many urban sumption values. In Tanzania, for example, the number and African households. However, the use of such technologies types of motor vehicles imported annually are characteristic is limited by the availability of cheaper energy. In most of an affluent society in the developed world—not a poor so- cases, for instance, hydroelectric power is available; but ciety (which Tanzania is) or a society conscious of the envi- when it is deemed expensive, charcoal, firewood, and kero- ronment (which Tanzania, like every other nation, should be). sene are used instead, in complete disregard of any envi- Although some well-off families in the developed world ronmental hazards. Three-quarters of the energy in choose smaller fuel-efficient cars, wealthy Tanzanians sub-Saharan and southern Africa is still derived from choose cars that are large, luxurious, and fuel-inefficient. biomass in the form of wood, charcoal, crop and wood Foreign influence also has an effect on technological re- residues, and cow dung (Hall, 1991). search, most of which is foreign-funded. Given the poverty In rural areas, where there are no industrial sources of of Africa, this might seem to be a benefit—and so it could energy, life is very traditional. The main problems con- be, if the researchers were left alone to choose their studies. fronting rural African woman are the fundamental ones: On the contrary, most research is done collaboratively with producing, preserving, and cooking food with primitive peers in the developed world who are often ignorant of the technologies; walking long distances to get water; procur- needs of developing regions. As a result, to take just one ing clothing; constructing shelter (family houses); and example, most of the research on alternative energy con- gathering firewood. The hand hoe is the main technology in ducted by the only university department of physics in Tan- agriculture; since modern agrochemicals are not afford- zania—at the University of Dar es Salaam—is high-level able, animal manure is the only fertilizer. “Alternative tech- research remote from the realities of the country. nology” may have no meaning for a rural society that has Lack of researchers: The problem of foreign influence is been exposed to little if any conventional technology. made worse because there is often no critical mass of Afri- There are alternative technologies appropriate for rural can researchers. In the whole of Tanzania, for instance, Africa—environmentally friendly technologies that are af- there was only one professor of solar energy as of about the fordable and sustainable and address the problems and year 2000, and there were no woman in this field—a sig- needs of both rural and urban communities. The develop- nificant lack, since women researchers could be more sym- ment and marketing of fuel-efficient stoves have received pathetic to the needs and interests of African women. considerable attention from researchers in universities and Lack of policy: Another problem confronting Africa is a other institutions in Africa, as a response to political calls to lack of legislative policies to promote the development and address the energy problem. Other technologies that have use of alternative technologies. African nations that are se- received attention include solar energy, windmills (espe- rious about alternative technology need the kind of legisla- cially for pumping underground water), animal manure, tion that exists in the developed world. In the Netherlands, and biogas (Sadhu and Sandler, 1986). However, progress for instance, the government, power companies, architects, in these areas has been impeded by several factors, includ- planners, financial institutions, local authorities, scientists, ing costs, conservative attitudes, and cultural taboos.

43 ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY: CASE STUDY—AFRICA

In addition to the costs noted above, prototypes of en- animal manure instead of agrochemicals; reviving ergy-efficient utilities are expensive because they cannot healthful traditional methods of preserving and storing achieve economies of scale. Too many families cannot af- food, especially in rural areas; constructing houses that ford to become customers, and governments have not cre- use renewable energy sources, such as sunlight and rain- ated the necessary links between researchers, industrialists, water; using windmills to harvest ground-water, and us- and entrepreneurs. ing biomass to provide biogas for domestic heating and Conservatism is characteristic of many African socie- lighting to reduce overdependence on firewood and char- ties: people are suspicious of new technologies and reluc- coal and diminish deforestation. tant to discard methods they have been using for centuries. African governments should also raise the general level New marketing techniques and strategies are needed to of education. Primary school education is inadequate in the educate the end user about the advantages of innovations. modern world; a secondary school education (at least) In Europe, the Center for Alternative Technology (CAT) should be provided for the majority of the population. explores and demonstrates a wide range of practical alter- Finally, African nations should modernize agriculture; native technologies regarding land use, shelter, energy, in particular, they should say good-bye to the hand hoe. diet, health, and waste management. African researchers Food shortages have persisted in almost all African coun- have nothing analogous, and they also confront low stand- tries for several decades despite the existence of numerous ards of education and sparsely populated regions in which technologies that could solve this problem once and for all. the communication infrastructure is so poor that many vil- Even the ox-drawn plow in place of the hand hoe would lages are not easily reachable. constitute an alternative technology. Cultural taboos are also a hindrance. For instance, in the Masai culture (Kenya and Tanzania), housing construction Conclusion is a woman’s occupation. It may be difficult for such a cul- African women are still struggling with poverty charac- ture to adopt the construction and design methods needed terized by primitive agriculture and shortages of food and for solar energy or biogas technology. water. In some cases, alternative technology is meaning- Nevertheless, some methods that are usually not thought less because there is really no technology in use that can of as “alternative technologies” in the developed world are be said to require an alternative. What is often required is very important in terms of liberating rural African women. to relieve African woman of some primitive technology Examples include weaving and food preparation. In areas and provide environmentally friendly technology—while where cotton is grown, household weaving can provide all avoiding, as far as possible, the mistakes made by devel- of a family’s clothing, so that the family income can be oped nations. Agrochemicals, for example, should be dis- used for other needs. Rural women could also be taught couraged in favor of more natural and sustainable about nutrition; too often, lack of knowledge about alternatives. healthful food combinations has resulted in malnutrition Many African women—particularly rural women— existing along with an abundant variety of foods. There is want access to better education. They may need to learn no reason why these simple technologies should not be about the dangers of some traditional technologies of food spread widely in African rural communities. production, preparation, preservation, and storage, and about alternative sources of energy; and whatever alterna- The Way Ahead tives are adapted must be less troublesome than the old Several avenues could improve the situation in Africa. First methods. The communication infrastructure must be im- and foremost is the need to train a critical mass of African proved; it is crucial for survival. Research is needed to men and women who can adequately address issues of al- clarify the status quo in a given community, identify the ternative technology. best alternatives available and affordable, and only then Second, African governments should translate their po- design the mechanisms for bringing about change. Oppor- litical pronouncements into action, such as setting aside tunities for technological training must be provided to Afri- funds specifically for research on alternative technology can women, so that they can participate more fully in the and for training, especially of women. development and promotion of alternative technology. Third, African governments should pass legislation to preserve the environment, discouraging utilities that References and Further Reading waste enegy or create pollution and encouraging environ- Bhagavan, M.R., and S.Karekazi. 1992. Energy management in mentally friendly technology. Examples include using Africa. London: Zed.

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Bradley, P.N. 1991. Wood-fuel, women, and woodlots, Vol. 1, The services without receiving anything in return. Land and foundation of a wood-fuel development strategy for East Af- Rose (1985) coined the term compulsory altruism to de- rica. Hong Kong: Macmillan. scribe this situation. Bryceson, D.F. 1993. Liberalizing Tanzania food trader. London: James Curry Books, Heinemann, Zed. See Also Foley, G. 1987. Exaggerating the Sahelian wood-fuel problem. VOLUNTEERISM Ambi 16(6). Hall, D.O. 1991. Biomass energy. Energy Policy 19(8):711–737. References and Further Reading ——, and Y.S.Mao. 1980. African Energy Policy Research Net- Blum, L., M.Homiak, J.Housman and N.Scheman. 1976. work (AFRE PREN). London: Zed. Altruism and women’s oppression. In Carol C.Gould Leach, G., and R.Mearns. 1988. Beyond the wood-fuel crisis: Peo- and M.W.Wartofsky, eds., Women and philosophy, ple, land, and trees in Africa. London: Earth Scan. 222–247. Mackintosh, M. 1987. Gender, class, and rural transition: Land, Hilary, and Hilary Rose. 1985. Compulsory altruism for Agribusiness and the food crises in Senegal. London: Zed. some or an altruistic society for all? In P.Bean, J.Ferris, and O’Keefe, P., and B.Musislow. 1984. Energy and development in D.Whynes, eds., In defense of welfare, 74–99. London: southern Africa. Upssala, Sweden: SADCC Countries Stud- Tavistock. ies, part by SIAS. Cora V.Baldock Pohjonein, V. 1989. Establishment of fuel-wood plantations in Ethiopia. Silva Carfelica (14). Ranganathan, V. 1992. Rural electrification in Africa. London: Zed. AMENORRHEA Sadhu, R., and J.Sandler. 1986. The technology and tools book: A See MENSTRUATION. guide to technologies women are using worldwide. Nairobi: Report of the Third International Conference on Women. Soussan, J. 1990. Formulating Africa energy policy: A discussion document. E.T.C. Foundation. Rose Shayo ANARCHISM

The term anarchism has, unfortunately, long been associ- ated with violence and mayhem. Its connotation is often chaos and complete destruction of the social order. In fact, ALTRUISM however, the literal definition of anarchism, “without gov- ernment,” actually means a social, political, and economic It has been common in the literature for connections to be system in which there is no hierarchy and no domination made between volunteerism and altruism. In other words, from above. It is a structure in which no one person or writers attempting to understand why people give their group of people has any power over other. Those who es- time freely, without expecting to be paid, have assumed pouse this ideology believe that individuals can best decide that this is due to altruism. Altruism in this context is de- how to live their own lives, without the intervention of gov- fined as an act that is not directed at gain, is given voluntar- ernment. Anarchists are opposed to domination in any ily, and is for the benefit of others. Feminists have pointed form—governmental, religious, economic, societal, or in- out that in the tradition of liberal economic thought, altru- terpersonal. ism tends to be seen as part of the private sphere, the family Anarchism is similar to other socialist ideologies in its and the world of women. Thus although altruism is cher- analysis and critique of economic domination, but it goes ished as a human trait, it has no place in the public sphere— further than Marxism in its thinking about the state, hierar- the competitive world of men. It is women who are seen to chy, and all authority relations. Anarchists want to abolish be the embodiment of the altruistic spirit and of the caring all structured relations of dominance and powerlessness in and helping mentality needed for the charitable activities of society. They aim to create a society based on equality, the voluntary sector (Blum et al., 1976). The central argu- mutuality, and reciprocity, in which each person is valued ment of feminist writers, then, is the existence of an “ideol- and respected as an individual (Ackelsberg, 1991). Anar- ogy of altruism” that compels women to provide their chists believe that “the means are the ends” and that people

45 ANARCHISM must create the new society themselves, in a leaderless and owned, separated, or put into categories. But Tiamat’s son self-directed manner. grew in power, overthrew his mother, cut her into pieces, created his own world, and was called creator. She be- Ideology came the goddess of destruction, of chaos, and was Anarchists believe in the use of direct action, such as feared. This concept—the overthrow of woman as crea- general strikes and boycotts, as well as the use of politi- tor—also provides insight into the evolution of the idea of cal propaganda. Generally, anarchists believe that the anarchism from a feminist perspective. poor and powerless will bring about dramatic social Politically, anarchism has been a useful ideology in un- transformation by revolutionary means rather than re- derstanding women in the context of domination and op- formist measures such as the ballot. For the most part, pression. Anarchists believe that all people have the right to anarchists are atheists and believe that the idea of God is complete liberty as long as one person’s actions do not in- used by the church to maintain its own authority. Reli- terfere with the rights of other individuals. Although it is gion is seen as a tool for containing social change. Some not an explicitly feminist doctrine, the seeds of women’s anarchists believe that revolution will come through the liberation exist within this school of thought. For that rea- establishment of small, leaderless communes and work son, the anarchist movement has long attracted and has had groups that have the power to determine for themselves at its center noteworthy women who have influenced the how they will operate. This is called anarchist-commu- development of the movement worldwide. These women nism. Others, more individualist in their thinking, be- have challenged male assumptions and have transcended lieve that a person is best left alone and unencumbered conventional moral dictates on personal and political lev- by forced social arrangements. This is called anarcho- els. They urged economic and psychological independence individualism. People who believe in this ideology are from men in the belief that personal autonomy was an es- more interested in social contracts between people as the sential component of sexual equality. It was their belief that basis for an economic system (Leeder, 1993). Another sexual and personal liberation was a political goal and led important thread in anarchist history is the anarcho- to ultimate freedom for women, which also would be good syndicalist movement, which was primarily based in for the greater society. Europe—particularly Spain—but also spread to Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina. This movement believed that History revolution would come through labor activities and that As early as the 1870s in the United States and Europe, anar- the basis of the new society would be found in the chist writings declared that women ought to be fully the workplace and through unions. In some countries, anar- equals of men in the home and the workplace (Ackelsberg, chists also have been involved in violent attacks on peo- 1991). A number of noted anarchist theoreticians, however, ple in positions of power and authority. Additionally, maintained fairly traditional ideas about the roles of there have always been anarchists involved in terrorism women. Kropotkin (Russia), Bakunin (Russia), and and attempts to overthrow governments. Proudhon (France) all espoused a belief in certain “natural” The origins of the concept go far back, to the writings behavior patterns for each sex and all maintained fairly of Lao-Tse, Zeno, the apostles of Jesus Christ, Diderot, conventional families. These same women, however, often William Godwin, Sir Thomas More, and the Anabaptists, challenged the dominant assumptions and sexism of anar- to name a few. The ideology seems to have evolved into a chist men. full-blown articulation in the works of Pierre Proudhon, Mikael Bakunin, and Peter Kropotkin, who developed the Anarchist and Asia ideas of federalism, mutual aid, and inevitability of revo- In Europe, the anarchist impulse has long been alive and lution by peasants, not just workers. Out of a long evolu- well, manifesting itself in Russia, Ukraine, Spain, France, tion of the ideology came the organizations in which Germany, England, and Italy, to name but a few countries. women played an important role. It also might be postu- Women have long been influenced by anarchist ideology lated that anarchist-feminist ideology, particularly the be- and activism in those places. lief in the harmony of humankind working together, has In France during the Paris Commune (March-May its roots in the Babylonian myth of Tiamat. In this myth, 1871) a significantly important anarchist woman emerged. Tiamat created the world whole and without division so Louise Michel was a teacher whose devotion to the anar- that life flowed spontaneously between light and dark, chist cause led her to be called the “anarchist saint” season and season, birth and death. Humans were not (March, 1981). In fact, because of her love of humankind,

46 ANARCHISM when she was almost assassinated she refused to press with unions as its base, in which each union would send a charges against her assailant. During the Commune, she delegate to coordinate local and industrial federations to run served as an ambulance nurse and soldier. When the Com- the social and economic order. This left out many women, mune was over and her mother had been arrested, Michel children, and other nonworkers, however, and did not in- cajoled the military into arresting her instead and freeing clude an analysis of the subordination of women. her mother. She was charged with trying to overthrow the Mujeres Libres provided such an analysis and estab- government, inciting civil war, having borne arms and lished storefront cultural centers, schools based on an anar- worn a uniform in an insurrectional movement, and being chist model of education, and other community-based complicit in assassinations (Thomas, 1980). As a result, she organizations offering theater, recreation, and education was banished to New Caledonia near Australia from 1873 for women and young people. The movement was based on to 1880, when complete amnesty was granted to all Com- the concept of direct action and “propaganda by the dead,” munard deportees. which consists of engaging in activities that are exemplary On her return to France, Michel became a charismatic and that attract adherents by the power of the positive ex- and magical figure in politics. She spoke on the rights of ample they set (Ackelsberg, 1991:33). In this way, self- women and took an anarchist perspective. She urged totally generated, spontaneous organizations were encouraged, in free education for women, and free marriages in which which people who participate eventually learn how to gain men held no proprietary rights over women. Her speeches and use power. These organizations were then federated drew thousands to the streets to hear her. Being imprisoned and net-worked, rather than dictated from above, following became a way of life for Michel because of her radical ac- the basic tenets of anarchist theory. Groups were organized tivities and her challenges to the French authorities. When to publish, to provide jobs and apprenticeships, and to dis- she died, at the age of 75, as many as 100,000 people cuss and challenge assumptions about the role of women as marched in her funeral procession. All were there to honor mothers and other traditional expectations. Their dual goals the memory of this valiant poet and revolutionary. were education and activism. Anarchist women have long been important characters A number of important women emerged from Mujeres in Russian revolutionary activities. Many of these women Libres, including Frederica Montseny, Mercedes later emigrated to the United States, and their influence was Comaposada, Lucia Sanchez Saornil, and Amparo Poch y felt by contemporary radical women. During the Russian Gascon. These women influenced others through their Revolution, anarchist women played important roles in the writing, and insisted on women’s separate and autonomous early stages of the rebellion and were instrumental in estab- status. They argued that women were oppressed as a group lishing anarchist federations in Petrograd (now St. and that women’s grievances could be addressed only Petersburg) and Moscow. Women played important roles as through collective action. They challenged the dominant propagandists, theorists, and agitators. Vera Figner, Sophia society and their anarchist comrades to recognize and re- Perovskaya, and Sophia Bardina were particularly known spect their presence. For three important years, Mujeres for their revolutionary zeal and contribution to the Russian Libres made a difference and a statement about the role of revolution through the group V Narod (“to the populace”). women in Spanish society. Later, the Krontstadt rebellion—in which sailors fought In Asia, anarchism had a presence for quite a while as against the authoritarian practices of the Bolsheviks—was well. In China in the early 1900s, the thinkers Liu Khipei put down and the anarchist impulse was thwarted by re- and Wu Zhihu began articulating anarchist ideas and pression that became the norm of the Bolshevik govern- tapped the indigenous sources of the anarchist vision. In ment’s political policies. Many women were arrested, the 1930s, a labor college (Laoda in Shanghai) was estab- imprisoned, and tortured as anarchist leaders. lished, in which a number of women were recruited to par- In Spain, an equally important anarchist female presence, ticipate in this showpiece of higher education for manual the Free Women of Spain (Mujeres Libres), was founded in labor. Later Chinese anarchists studied in Paris and Tokyo 1936. This was a movement of over 20,000 women from and brought the concepts home to influence aspects of the Madrid and Barcelona, mobilized to develop a network of Chinese revolution. Anarchism, though not a prime ideol- activities designed to empower individual women while ogy in China, has served as a counterpoint to the authoritar- building a sense of community (Ackelsberg, 1991). It grew ian aspects of that revolution and serves as a critical out of the activities of antifascists who were active in the perspective on the course of Chinese history. first months of the Spanish Civil War. The movement was In India, anarchism also played an important role in rooted in anarcho-syndicalism, which envisioned a society the thinking of Gandhi, who called himself a “kind of

47 ANARCHISM anarchist.” He planned a decentralized society based on action—is noteworthy for organizing women’s groups autonomous village communes. This did not come about for education and consciousness raising. She was a because the political vagaries led to the formation of an Catholic anarchist intellectual from Michigan, who es- Indian state modeled on the British system. poused women’s taking their own liberty, “being what we teach,” and expecting nothing from men, and gener- Anarchist Women in the United States ally advocating a leaderless general strike against mar- and Latin America riage and motherhood (Marsh, 1981). She became Anarchist women have questioned the subjugation of somewhat of a myth in anarchist circles because of her women and have urged economic, psychological inde- passion and revolutionary zeal. She was called the pendence from men, often believing that personal au- “revolutionary vestal” and the “priestess of pity and tonomy is an essential component of sexual equality vengance.” (Marsh, 1981). They were very important in influencing Neither Goldman nor deCleyre believed that women anarchist thought by their challenges to men and by their should participate in the “women’s suffrage question,” be- contributions to public awareness. Anarchist women who cause neither had respect for the political arena of legisla- were active from 1870 to 1920 in the United States argued tion and voting. Both argued, as did other anarchists, that for the abolition of the institution of marriage and the nu- freedom would mainly come through self-assertion, by re- clear family. They advocated “sexual varietism,” that is, fusing to be a sexual commodity, by refusing to be a servant nonexclusive sexual relationships. They also wanted to God or the state or any domination. Goldman argued that women to be self-supporting and often urged communal women needed internal emancipation to know their own child rearing and large cooperative houses. Some believed value, respect themselves, and refuse to become psychic or that heterosexual lovers should never live together because economic slaves to their husbands. of the treatment of females by males. Some women of this Other anarchist women, such as Kelly, Steimer, and era even argued that homosexuality was part of the fight to Pesotta, chose to be involved in progressive political causes free sexuality and saw it as a legitimate sexual alternative. of their times. Florence Finch Kelly, for example, was a Emma Goldman, Voltairine deCleyre, Florence Finch well-educated, middle-class woman who defied traditional Kelly, Lucy Parsons, Mollie Steimer, and Rose Pesotta are roles by becoming a journalist and novelist. She never among the famous—and obscure—who were part of the chose conventional solutions to problems and held a early development of anarchism in the United States. healthy skepticism regarding tradition. Emma Goldman, long known in radical feminist circles as Another important thread in anarchist women’s history “Red Emma,” is probably the best-known anarchist woman is the Modern School. This educational movement, which of that era. Goldman, a Russian Jewish immigrant, became was founded by Francisco Ferrer in Spain, held that chil- known for her early advocacy of birth control, her propa- dren needed a healthy physical environment in which to ganda activities against World War I, her famous lectures learn as well as short and interesting instructional periods. around the United States on theater and literature, and her Through nonimposition of ideas and lack of restraints on a long association with her anarchist comrade, Alexander child’s natural inclination to learn, educators in the Modern Berkman. Gold-man’s activities, in her public espousal of School emphasized the process of learning and learning by free speech, led to the development of the American Civil example, rather than learning by rote. Children were taught Liberties Union (ACLU). Her refusal to adhere to conven- to be self-reliant and were not viewed as their parents’ tional expectations for women in social and sexual property (Avrich, 1980). Anarchist women participated in behavior led to her being adored by many and reviled by the Modern School movement from the outset. They under- the government. She was incarcerated for her activities stood that politics occurred in the home and private arena and, eventually, deported in 1919 as a result of the “Red as well as in the public domain. As a result, women empha- scare,” in which hundreds of anarchists were sent back to sized the need for egalitarian relationships with one’s chil- Russia because of their politics. To this day, Emma dren and saw the importance of education in attaining that Goldman’s name is used to evoke the image of the revolu- equality. Many women took their children to live in rural tionary woman. Her ideology was rooted in an anarchist areas where Modern School programs were established. analysis of the world, and she lived her ideology fully, even Some of those settings—Stelton in New Jersey and unto her death. Mohegan in New York—thrived well into the 1960s. The Voltairine deCleyre—less well known but equally threads of libertarian education can be found even today in important in the development of anarchist theory and “free schools” and in writings about open classrooms and

48 ANARCHISM the active involvement of students in decision making and chism and anarchist women remain active, demanding in their own learning. equal rights for women but insisting that change will not Anarchism has thrived in lands of the sun, and Spanish come through reformist means such as the ballot. Instead, immigrants brought the ideology to Argentina, Mexico, the emphasis remains on direct action, propaganda by Cuba, Uruguay, and Brazil in the 1800s. Anarchists were deed, and involvement in voluntary, nonhierarchical or- active in setting up anarcho-syndicalist organizations; and ganizations. Anarchist women continue to influence the in Mexico an anarchist, Ricardo Flores Magnon, is consid- thinking of the contemporary anarchist movement. This in- ered a father of the Mexican revolution. Women were inte- cludes informing the ecological orientation of current anar- grated early into the Mexican labor movement as a result of chist thinking with a feminist analysis and demanding a anarchist advocacy. Carmen Huerta became the president “politics of diversity” (Ackelsberg, 1991), in which a gen- of the labor congress as early as 1879, and labor policies der perspective is valued equally to that of race, class, and always reflected women’s concerns as a result of anarchist ethnicity. Anarchism, although now old in its traditions and demands. analysis, is surprisingly relevant to today’s issues and the The anarchist impulse remains alive in many of the concerns of modern women. countries discussed around the world. Invariably, wher- ever one travels, one finds anarchists and anarchist femi- See Also nists active in grassroots and decentralized activities, ACTIVISM; COMMUNISM; COMMUNITY POLITICS; FEMINISM: espousing the ideology that has been around for hundreds ANARCHIST of years. References and Further Reading Contemporary Anarchist Feminism Ackelsberg, Martha. 1991. Free women of Spain: Anarchism and The legacy of the anarchist foremothers has not been lost the struggle for the emancipation of women. Bloomington: on a new generation of women. Since the 1960s, anarchist Indiana University Press. feminism has seen a resurgence of interest. With the emer- Avrich, Paul. 1978. An American anarchist: The life of gence of third-wave feminism, there is an anarchist impulse Voltairine deCleyre. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University alive and well in the women’s movement. Often these Press. women might not even call themselves anarchists; more ——. 1980. The modern school movement: Anarchism and educa- often, they identify themselves as radical feminists. Emma tion in the United States. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Univer- Goldman became an early role model for radical feminists, sity Press. and her name is conjured up when one thinks of strong- Chan, Ming, and Arif Dirlik. 1991. Schools into fields and facto- minded and revolutionary women who will not kowtow to ries: Anarchists, the Guomindang, and National Labor Uni- domination and oppression by men. Radical feminists— versity in Shanghai, 1927–1932. Durham, N.C.: Duke some of whom have the anarchist ideology but not the anar- University Press. chist name—believe that “the personal is political” and that Dirlik, Arif. 1991. China and Inner Asia: Anarchism in the it is necessary to “build the new society in the vacant lots of Chinese Revolution. Berkeley: University of California the old.” The writings of Carol Ehrlich, Peggy Komegger, Press. Elaine Leeder, and Martha Ackelsberg were early manifes- Doctor, Adi. 1964. Anarchist thought in India. Bombay: Asia Pub- tations of the anarchist presence in the contemporary femi- lishing House. nist movement. Ehrlich, Howard J., ed. 1995. Reinventing anarchy, again. Edin- Anarchist feminism and other forms of radical feminism burgh: AK. exist worldwide in new, contemporary forms of direct ac- Hart, John. 1978. Anarchism and the Mexican working class, tion. Food co-ops, self-help collectives, squats, equity 1860–1931 . Austin: University of Texas Press. housing programs, rape crisis centers, and battered wom- Leeder, Elaine. 1993. The gentle general: Rose Pesotta, anarchist en’s shelters are all examples of decentralized, and labor organizer. Albany: State University of New York nonhierarchical structures that reflect the anarchist im- Press. pulse. Women’s peace encampments in the United States, Marsh, Margaret. 1981. Anarchist women: 1870–1920. Philadel- Scandinavia, and England were all anarchistic in orienta- phia, Pa.: Temple University Press. tion. These groups are run in ways that empower the Polenberg, Richard. 1987. Fighting faiths: The Abrams case, the women who participate and present daily direct challenges Supreme Court and free speech. New York: Viking. to the local and national authorities they confront. Anar- Thomas, Edith. 1980. Louise Michel. Montreal: Black Rose.

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Wexler, Alice. 1984. Emma Goldman: An intimate life. New York: and the “biological” to diminish anatomy as an explanation Pantheon. of existing sex differences. In its most powerful form, this Zarrow, Peter. 1990. Anarchism and Chinese political culture. strategy generated the distinction between sex and gender, New York: Columbia University Press. which separates the biological (including the anatomical) realm from a cultural and historical realm of “gender.” Elaine Leeder Feminists have tried to expand the domain of gender to leave as little as possible accounted for by biology and anatomy. Useful as this strategy has been in countering biologi- ANATOMY cal determinism, it left essentially untouched the status of anatomy as the ahistorical limit to any argument for change. Because it still equated “anatomy” as a set of rep- Anatomy—(From Greek ana-temnein, to cut open.) (1) resentations produced by historically located human Science of the build, shape, and composition of the practices with anatomy as “the body itself,” it remained body, in terms of internal organs and glandular, skel- an Achilles’ heel for biological determinism. For in- etal, muscular, arterial, and neural structures. Study of stance, if feminists, in arguing against an appeal to “ma- these structures by cutting up the body. (2) The build, ternal instincts” in explaining why women (should) take shape, and composition of the body. care of children more than men do, pointed to sociocul- tural ideas about femininity and mothering, to tradition, or to psychodynamics within families, then any newly Introduction found correspondence between women’s postpartum The significance of “anatomy” for feminism and women’s emotions toward newborns and hormonal levels seemed studies stems from a historical blurring of the difference to pose a “problem.” between these two meanings. This was made possible by Two connotations of the biological, and consequently seventeenth- and eighteenth-century developments under- the anatomical, body that motivated the feminist gender lying the rise of the empirical sciences, among which strategy to a great extent have been effectively criticized: anatomy was prominent. Anatomy came into being as a (1) that biology and anatomy are outside culture and his- practice in the historical period in which the separation of tory and (2) that with regard to the duality of “the social” “nature” from “politics” and “culture” originates. This and “the natural,” it is (only) in the sphere of the social that separation was designed and invoked to argue the possibil- political change can be achieved. ity and necessity of the objective scientific study of nature and to endow its results with the status of universal truth Anatomy As Historical Cultural Practice outside the scope of human authority, politics, or prejudice. A rapidly growing body of historical research suggests that In the definition here, the first meaning, “anatomy” as a the science of anatomy has been intrinsically guided by science, refers to a human practice, but the second refers to agendas reflecting contemporary political struggles. Thus, the product of that practice, anatomical knowledge. In this at the time of the Enlightenment, when formulations of second meaning, anatomy has acquired a material referent “equality among all men” generated claims for political outside human history, culture, and practices and has come equality from women and from people of color, anatomists to stand for the body itself. set out to investigate and locate sexual and racial differ- In this latter guise, anatomy has long been perceived ences in the body in unprecedented ways. Until then, the within feminism as a problem to get around rather than to male body and the female body were seen as essentially the confront (as has “biology” in general). As “the body itself,” same, with female reproductive organs an inverse version anatomy stood for the eternal, natural, and therefore unal- of the male organs. Sexual differences, in this model, were terable and apolitical differences between the sexes, setting differential positionings of women and men on one scale of the limits for all arguments for social equality. In this way, metaphysical being, with the male as the perfect form. anatomy figured in many biological-deterministic argu- Women were a less perfect version of men; this imperfec- ments about “women’s role,” as epitomized in the Freudian tion was caused by women’s lack of “heat,” a characteristic dictum, “Anatomy is destiny.” Consequently, feminists that, among other things, prevented their reproductive or- contested the relevance of the “facts about the body” for gans from extruding as male organs extrude. Thus, women social order and shifted the boundary between the “social” were seen as producing seed, as men do, in their internal

50 ANATOMY

“testes,” with their vagina, cervix, and uterus pictured as “race” became conceptualized as relative proximity to ani- inverse versions of the penis and scrotum. This account, mals, most notably apes. White women, because their especially in its formulation by Galen (second century after skulls were relatively larger than men’s, were described as Christ), was passed on to the medieval West through the being less developed in the sense of being closer to chil- writings of the Arab Ibn Sina (Avicenna) and remained au- dren. The anatomical racial and gender characteristics pro- thoritative and influential all through the Renaissance, as is duced were without exception conceptualized as still discernible in the first anatomical drawings (by differences from the white, male body, the norm against Leonardo Da Vinci and Vesalius) of dissected corpses. It which all difference became essential otherness. Then, af- was then gradually replaced by a fundamentally new ac- ter their transformation into “scientific fact,” such natural- count that saw the sexes as essentially and incompatibly ized differences were reintroduced into political debates to different, instead of as a perfect and imperfect version of contest claims to political equality and representation, ac- the same ideal. At the moment in history when human in- cess to scientific education, and so forth. This type of his- equality was contested by an appeal to “universal man,” torical work has provided a basis for reversing the anatomical, natural differences were produced that pre- biological-deterministic premise: “Destiny is anatomy,” sented women not as “less” than men but as altogether in- rather than the other way around. comparable: the naturalists’ complementarity model of the The fact that the model of antiquity, with women’s bod- sexes came into being. ies as inverse, imperfect versions of men’s bodies, remained Significantly, the shift from “a lesser version of the same” in place for a long time, even after the first anatomists set to “not less but essentially different” did not coincide with out to dissect and study corpses, not only points to the role the turn toward empirical study of the human body by actual of preconceived ideas and political agendas in the making dissection and graphical description. Corpses had been dis- of the modern anatomical body but also challenges the no- sected occasionally for centuries, and the graphic renderings tion of objectivity—unmediated vision and pure observa- of female and male organs by Leonardo da Vinci and tion—as the distinguishing methodological novelty of Vesalius show how they actually saw what they dissected as modern empirical anatomy. Besides the broader political inverse versions. This implies that it took “something else” changes mentioned here, and their role in defining research besides just opening the body and merely “looking at how questions and conceptualizing difference, there are other things really were,” as the standard story about the “discov- factors determining what the eye can see at any particular ery” of the modern anatomical body goes. historical moment. The “anatomical gaze” was shaped to a The complementarity model of sex differences gained large extent by the development of specific tools and tech- ground when women’s claim to equality and access to the niques as well. One cannot “see” the anatomical body as it public sphere could no longer be countered by an appeal to developed from the seventeenth century onward, in messy a metaphysically grounded cosmology, in which everyone and bloody bowels lying on a dissection table, with a na- had his or her ordained place in accordance with a natural ked, untrained, and unaided eye; it took the later develop- hierarchical order of being that did not distinguish between ment of techniques of preservation for the corpses, and the natural and the social. That very distinction, in fact, was specifically drawings and etchings of the body, to guide and produced in the process of overthrowing this old cosmol- train the hand how to cut and the eye what to see. In this ogy and its claim to “natural,” God-given authority for sense, even the anatomical body was never the product of some over everyone else, and in the creation of a separate enlightened and pure empirical observation but very much domain called “nature” over which neither church nor king a body crafted by a broad variety of factors. would have any authority. The newly articulated basis from which to proclaim equality among all men, however, pro- Changeable Anatomy vided no reason to exclude groups that were never meant to The second connotation of the anatomical (biological) body, be included in the brotherhood of men, such as women and underlying feminist strategies of explaining existing sex dif- people of color. Therefore, it became important, in a way it ferences as much as possible in terms of the social, is that had not been before, to ground empirically essential differ- “anatomy” stands for the unchangeable, and therefore the ences between white males and everybody else. apolitical. Connected to this was the idea that whenever one Within this project, the anatomical search for sexual dif- could prove a particular inequality “social” in origin, this in ference concentrated on female reproductive organs and itself would render it amenable to change. Neither idea is still skeletons (in particular, pelvises and skulls). With the rise considered self-evident. Twentieth-century western bio- of evolutionary models of human origins, difference as medical sciences and technologies created unprecedented

51 ANATOMY and seemingly infinite possibilities of manipulation and re- or scope to gynecology. Men’s reproductive parts have shaping of the body, while at the same time belief in the mal- never been studied or manipulated with respect to as wide a leability of social structures has been diminished by their variety of hypotheses concerning physical and mental unforeseen persistence in the face of emancipatory social pathologies. As a consequence, great asymmetries in the policies. medical treatment of males and females as reproducers per- For instance, the latter decades of the twentieth century sist in ways not attributable to nature or necessity. For in- proved that the manipulation of women’s reproductive stance, in the domain of contraception, large asymmetries anatomy and physiology—with hormonal treatments, in between women and men with respect to contraceptive vitro fertilization (IVF), gamete intrafallopian transfer methods, in terms of availability, invasiveness, effective- (GIFT), and so on—was far easier to accomplish than ness, risk, side effects, and necessity for medical surveil- changing attitudes toward the necessity of genetically re- lance, still leave the female body as the primary site of birth lated children for a fulfilled life. Similarly, the statistics on control. Similar asymmetries in the area of infertility treat- cosmetic surgery show that psychosocial pressures to con- ment are so large that today both female and male fertility form to ideals of beauty, despite many analyses and criti- problems are increasingly solved by medical interventions cisms of the female role in heterosexual relationships, are such as in vitro fertilization and gamete intrafallopian still far stronger for many women than the fear of pain and transfer; these take the female body as their object of inter- health hazards. Far from being outside history and politics, vention. the body in general, and the female body in particular, has Where “difference” was also practically equated with been a site of “materialized politics” and remains so in an inferiority and imperfection, it has historically proved to be relentlessly intense way. easily translatable into “prone to pathology,” thus produc- Consequently, anatomy, like biology and the biomedical ing anatomical and physiological accounts of female repro- sciences in general, is no longer considered a realm closed ductive bodies as “naturally” in need of intervention. to feminist scrutiny but is regarded instead as a domain Today, pregnancy, childbirth, menstruation, and meno- where critical analysis is urgent. This urgency is produced pause have come to be perceived as diseaselike, high-risk by a growing awareness that current medical practices, events requiring medical surveillance and, more often than combined with the growing transformative powers gener- not, pharmaceutical, hormonal, surgical, or other types of ated by rapidly proliferating biomedical technologies, may intervention. affect women’s lives profoundly. Since these practices and The mirror image of this is that the male body often func- technologies are building on scientific traditions, such as tioned (and still sometimes does function) as the model for anatomy, that are increasingly proved to carry historically the human body in areas related to parts less deeply in- and culturally determined accounts of femininity, it has be- scribed by struggles over cultural definitions of masculin- come a prime task for women’s studies to investigate how ity and femininity than the reproductive organs, the skull, these accounts are currently shaping our medical sciences, the brain, and so on. This overexposure of the genital-re- practices, and technologies. Many areas within medicine productive female body is reflected, for instance, in con- are currently being investigated, providing new insights temporary cancer research, where the percentage of women into the relationships between cultural and historical defi- studied for genital and breast cancers is larger than the rela- nitions and structures of gender inscribed in the “natural tive incidence of these types of cancer in women, whereas, body” and current reproductions of gender assymmetries conversely, the same types of cancer in men are studied less within medical practices. in relation to incidence. Mirroring this is the fact that when women and men share a certain body part—for example, Traces of History in Contemporary Medical Practices the lung—researchers tend to study the related form of can- The focus on female sexual and reproductive organs in the cer in the male. Thus, nonsexual parts are studied in males search for sexual difference, the fascination with the as the model for women and men alike. Women were often secreta mulierum, has found historical continuity in a per- excluded from clinical trials (as were female animals in sistent relative overexposure of women’s reproductive bi- animal models) because the particularities of female bodies ology compared with men’s. This overexposure has were thought to interfere with the results—results that, once produced a female reproductive body that is known and established, were nevertheless thought generalizable to subject to medical interventions to a much greater extent women. This practice results in therapies that are designed than its male counterpart. There is no medical specialty for on the basis of male bodies but may work differently in men’s reproductive functions comparable in history, scale, women in terms of effectiveness or side effects.

52 ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES

See Also ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM; BIOLOGY; BODY; CANCER; Women’s Roles CHILDBIRTH; CONTRACEPTION; COSMETIC SURGERY; DIFFERENCE; FEMINISM: EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY; FERTILITY The original inhabitants of a geographic region are often AND FERTILITY TREATMENT; GENDER; MEDICAL CONTROL OF referred to as indigenous cultures. The indigenous peo- WOMEN; PHYSIOLOGY; PREGNANCY AND BIRTH; ples who originated and lived in specific territories have a PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS); PRIMATOLOGY; historical continuity with preinvasion and precolonial so- REPRESENTATION; REPRODUCTION: OVERVIEW; cieties, which consider themselves distinct from those REPRODUCTIVE PHYSIOLOGY; REPRODUCTIVE that now prevail on the land. Most continents in the world TECHNOLOGIES; SCIENTIFIC SEXISM AND RACISM; SEXUAL had indigenous populations and cultures—for example, DIFFERENCE the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Landers of Australia, the Igbo-Ukwu and Nok of Africa; the Maori of New Zea- References and Further Reading land; the Aztec, Mayan, Ojibway, and Iroquois of the Balsamo, Anne. 1992. On the cutting edge: Cosmetic surgery and Americas; and the peoples of ancient Mesopotamia, Le- the technological production of the gendered body. Camera vant, China, India, Japan, the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Obscura 28:207–38. and South Pacific. These are all peoples, communities, Bordo, Susan. 1993. Unbearable weight: Feminism, Western cul- and nations with their own culture and society based on ture and the body. Berkeley: University of California Press. their own values and traditions. Today many indigenous Duden, Barbara. 1991. The woman beneath the skin: A doctor’s peoples and nations are nondominant sectors of society, patients in eighteenth-century Germany. Cambridge, Mass.: but they are determined to preserve and maintain their Harvard University Press. identity, culture, and ancestral territories for future gen- Gallagher, Catherine, and Thomas Lacqueur, eds. 1987. The erations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commis- making of the modern body: Sexuality and society in the sion, 1999:61). nineteenth century. Berkeley: University of California Colonization had a destructive effect on the gender rela- Press. tionships of indigenous people and an impact on all spheres Hubbard, Ruth, Mary Sue Henifin, and Barbara Fried, eds. 1979. of the society, including family organization, childbearing, Biological woman—The convenient myth: A collection of es- child rearing, politics, spiritual life, work, and social activi- says and a comprehensive bibliography. Cambridge, Mass.: ties (Smith, 1999). Ancient indigenous women’s roles were Schenkman. unique to their specific society. Although commonalities Jacobus, Mary, Evelyn Fox Keller, and Sally Shuttleworth, eds. existed, there was no universal role other than bearing chil- 1990. Body politics: Women and the discourses of science. dren. No “universal ancient indigenous woman” exists. It is New York: Routledge. important not to generalize and to be as specific as possible Kammen, Jessika van. 2000. Conceiving contraceptives: The in- when speaking of indigenous women. Their specific physi- volvement of users in anti-fertility vaccines development. cal environment, culture (values and traditions), subsist- Thesis, University of Amsterdam. ence patterns, and resources influenced their roles, identity, Lacqueur, Thomas. 1991. Making sex: Gender and body from the and lifestyle. Some were nomadic hunters and gatherers, to Freud. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University others agrarian, more sedentary, and more socially com- Press. plex. Many were matrilineal, others male-centered or a Martin, Emily. 1987. The woman in the body: A cultural analysis combination. of reproduction. Boston: Beacon. Ancient indigenous women had many roles, including van der Ploeg, Irma. 2000. Prosthetic bodies: Female embodi- but not limited to roles in religion, the economy, leadership, ment in reproductive technologies. Dordrecht: Kluwer and domestic life. Selected roles and cultures will be high- Academic. lighted to illustrate the diversity of the indigenous women Schiebinger, Londa. 1994. Nature’s body: Gender in the making around the world (Vivante, 1999). of modern science. Boston: Beacon. ——. 1999. Has feminism changed science? Cambridge, Mass.: Domestic Roles Harvard University Press. Many ancient indigenous cultures embraced women as Sloane, Ethel. 1980. Biology of women. New York: Wiley. nurturers: care providers as well as leaders. A key role for Irma van der Ploeg most indigenous women was motherhood, and childbearing

53 ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES was highly valued and honored. This was true for most in- responsible for planting, cultivating, harvesting, storing, digenous women, including those of Native North America and trading crops and foodstuffs, and they also managed and Mesoamerica. Women’s work was recognized as being the distribution and trading of agricultural and hunting re- as essential as men’s for tribal survival. Men’s and women’s sources. In Japan, Jomon women were the principal con- roles were complementary, with neither more important than tributors to a domestic economy based on household goods the other. In Aztec and Mayan cultures, the home was the gathered from their coastlines and forest environments and domain of the woman, where most of her work was per- were instrumental in bartering the goods. In Mayan society, formed, and the women were responsible for childbearing, the men did most of the agricultural work, although women child rearing, and processing of maize. This was also true for tended gardens and orchards and raised animals. Mayan women in indigenous west African societies. Although the and Aztec women were both involved in commerce and in man was the formal head, the woman controlled the family trading foodstuffs and woven goods. Textiles were essen- and domestic issues and was responsible for the education of tial for daily and ritual use in Mesoamerica; in ancient Ja- the children. Transmission of culture, values, and traditions pan, the women processed food and excelled in basketry, to their children was also the responsibility of Iroquois pottery, and weaving, producing many items for ceremo- women of North America. In the Jomon society of Japan, nial use. women enjoyed freedom and high status in matrilineal households, where they often continued to live after mar- Property Rights riage. Women’s primary responsibility was childbearing. Ancient indigenous women owned or used property in their Ancient Mesopotamia is an example of a patriarchal family societies to various degrees. In fact, a man’s association system in which the women were not independent of male with a woman often brought benefits to the husband. In influence throughout their lives. The father was head of the Aztec society, a man could not acquire land without being family and had this authority until his death. The women married. Women were also free to divorce and remarry, and were to bear children, especially sons, to ensure continuation the property a woman brought into a marriage remained of the male line, and they were generally subordinate to men. with her. In indigenous North America, Iroquois women owned houses and stores, and the use of property was Leadership Roles passed through the matrilineal line without actual owner- The degree of involvement of ancient indigenous women in ship; property was owned by those who used it. The leadership of their societies varied greatly. For instance, the longhouse and the village were women’s domains. Men Iroquois women of North America were the heads of their owned their own personal property, and other property re- clans and villages, and it was their responsibility to fill mained separate during the marriage. In Japan, Jomon leadership positions. The women not only selected the men property (usually land) jointly owned by households was who represented the village but could depose or “dehorn” a inherited matrilineally and entrusted to a matriarch. In chief who did not do the will of the people. In ancient Mesopotamia, inheritance generally was divided among Egypt, kingship was essentially a male institution; the sons or survivors in the male line. Hatshepsut was one of the few women ever to hold this po- sition. Women’s influence on government was indirect, Religious and Spiritual Roles through their husbands, but they did exercise authority over Women in ancient indigenous cultures had an influence on their households and children. In west Africa, women in- religious and spiritual practices. Many creation stories in- fluenced the building and maintenance of their nations in volved women, and there were female deities. Aztec cul- matters of governance and structure, and succession to ture had female deities, and women participated leadership positions was often based on matrilineal de- extensively in the cycle of religious activities and festivi- scent. The ancient tribal group of Yamato in Japan was ties. They danced, impersonated goddesses, and were sacri- jointly ruled. A male was responsible for military and civil ficed in ritual human sacrifices. Women’s role was not affairs, and a woman priestess was in charge of spiritual straightforward but penetrated many levels of symbolism, matters. including male activities. In ancient Japan, women (usually the daughters of a male or female chieftain) were priest- Economics esses of their tribes or kinship groups and acted as protec- Most ancient indigenous women contributed to the tors and healers. They were sought to cure injuries and economy of their societies. Indigenous Iroquois women illnesses and to make predictions with their magic and had a significant impact on the tribal economy. They were prayers.

54 ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES

Conclusion activities; and—not infrequently—political and even mili- Ancient indigenous women’s roles were as diverse as the tary leadership. The values accorded to these roles differ environments in which they lived and the cultures they rep- markedly: generally the roles were highly valued in indig- resented. To get a complete picture, one must research a enous and developing state societies, but value eroded as specific culture thoroughly. Commonalities do exist, but nation-states evolved. generalizing is problematic, and information on indigenous The Development of Nation-States women is often lacking and inadequate. Directly or indirecdy, indigenous women influenced the daily life of The development of nation-states also displays similarities. their societies, and their roles were essential to me survival Shifting from family- or clan-based social organizations, and continuance of their people. which value all members for their contributions, state soci- eties develop to administer larger population groups. They See Also show increasing centralization of governing and religious ANCIENT NATION STATES, WOMEN’S ROLES; FAMILY: functions, with increasingly structured and hierarchical ad- PROPERTY RELATIONS; FAMILY: RELIGIOUS AND LEGAL ministrative systems, frequently accompanied by shifts to SYSTEMS; GODDESS; HOUSEHOLDS: FEMALE-HEADED AND male domination. Although many indigenous societies FEMALE-SUPPORTED; INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS; highly value women’s roles, often calling themselves ma- MATRIARCHY; MATRILINEAL SYSTEMS; TRADITIONAL triarchal (not, however, in the sense of being simply a re- HEALING, various topics versal of modern concepts of patriarchy), many nation-states show increasing male domination in realms References and Further Reading deemed authoritative: political, legal, economic, and, ulti- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission. 1999. As a mately, religious and artistic. Realms deemed characteristi- matter of fact: answering the myths and misconceptions cally female, notably the home and domestic occupations, about indigenous Australians (2nd ed.). then become undervalued. Archaeological and historical Berndt, Catherine H. 1983. Mythical women, past and present. In evidence from civilizations worldwide documents this pro- Fay Gale, ed., We are bosses ourselves: The status and role of gressive devaluing of women’s activities as nation-states aboriginal women today, 13–23. Canberra: Australian Insti- developed. Some state societies, however, still valued tute of Aboriginal Studies. women’s roles: Minoan , , and the various Smith, Linda Tuhiwai. 1991. Decolorizing methodologies re- states of Mesoamerica and pre-Islamic west Africa. search and indigenous peoples. Dunedin, Scotland: Univer- The criterion for a nation-state, then, is not size but sity of Otago Press. rather this shift to a centralized, hierarchical social organi- Vivante, Bella, ed. 1999. Women’s roles in ancient civilizations: A zation. Hence, this article considers women’s roles from reference guide. Westport, Conn: Greenwood. See articles by: the relatively small “city-states” of , Japan, Michiko Y.Aoki (on ancient Japan), Mary Jo Tippeconnic Fox and Mesoamerica to the larger empires of Mesopotamia (on Ojibway and Iroquois women in ancient North America), (Sumer and Babylon), China, Egypt, India, Rome, and Karen Rhea Nemet-Nejat (on Mesopotamia), Tolagbe west Africa. In the time periods considered here—mostly Ogunleye (on ancient west Africa), Gay Robins (on ancient the third to the first millennium B.C.E., but the third to the Egypt), and Andrea J. Stone (on ancient Mesoamerica). seventeenth centuries C.E. for Japan, Mesoamerica, and Mary Jo Tippeconnic Fox west Africa—patriarchal customs were developing but were hardly uniform or fixed. Most evidence refers to the lives of elite women; women of lower classes were gener- ally acknowledged only through their various roles of sup- port and work for the elite. ANCIENT NATION-STATES: Women’s Roles Principal Roles for Women Women’s principal roles in all these nation-states centered Women’s roles in ancient nation-states display numerous on the home on activities of childbearing and child rear- similarities, beginning with childbearing and child rearing, ing. Women’s rights in marriage, divorce, and controlling and including the harvesting, gathering, and preparation of their own sexuality suggest the power and status women food; weaving and textile manufacture; midwifery; nursing held. Although the husband might nominally be head of and healing; various creative, economic, and ritual the household, women often were recognized to be in

55 ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES charge of domestic affairs—this was explicitly so in domestic role, and mothers were highly honored. Al- Egypt, India, Sparta, Mesoamerica, and west Africa. Texts though Confucianism led to women’s devaluation in from India, Sparta, and west Africa indicate that women’s China, its emphasis on filial piety resulted in great defer- control of household affairs included—to a greater or ence to the elder matriarch of the household, even by the lesser degree—control over their husbands’ activities as emperor to his mother. well. Many societies favored monogamous marriages. In one type of Indian marriage, women could freely choose Economic Roles for Women their partners, and, although this was not a frequent option, Much of women’s economic activities, primarily gather- Indian women could choose the life of a religious as- ing, harvesting, and preparing food and textile production, cetic—affording greater individual independence—in- also centered on the home. Women were not always eco- stead of marriage. In Sumer, Egypt, and west Africa, nomically rewarded for these essential activities, although married women had legal parity with men. A Chinese they might gain status and esteem for excelling in them. In woman’s right to defy her husband in the Qin dynasty China, women’s textile production released their male (221–207 B.C.E.) suggests her autonomy in the home and relatives from labor conscription. In Japan, women sup- equal status with her husband. In many cultures, women ported their households and the government from their could divorce without stigma or penalty and had the right cloth and food surpluses. Greek and Mayan women’s to remarry; widows often gained greater independence weavings were important items in trade, gifts, dowries, than they had while married. In Mesopotamia, a man could bride wealth, tribute, and rituals—weavings were prized be heavily penalized for divorcing his wife, especially if offerings made to Greek deities, as in the annual rites to she had borne sons. In and Rome, women required , portrayed in the central part of the frieze of the legal guardians their entire lives and could not independ- Parthenon, the temple to Athena in Athens. The attention to ently choose marriage partners or decide to divorce or re- intricate detail of clothing design in the art of both cultures marry. Nevertheless, elite Roman women often illustrates the cultural importance of Greek and Mayan circumvented their legal restrictions. women’s weavings and the esteem accorded to this charac- Hierarchical polygyny—ranking first and subsequent teristically women’s art. legal wives and concubines—was practiced in China and Women also participated in the larger economy of their sometimes India, but multiple wives in Japan were not societies, including business, trade, owning and managing ranked; the Dravids in southern India practiced polyandry. property, and manufacturing; and as doctors, midwives, In Japan and west Africa, women could choose their hus- nurses, and prostitutes. Some women’s work was under- bands, residence was matrilocal, households were regis- paid and undervalued, but where women controlled their tered under the mother’s name, inheritance was economic activities, they had greater independence, status, matrilineal, and children were not marked as legitimate or and power. Women could often sell the surplus and control illegitimate. Laws in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and India the income from household agricultural, textile, or craft stressed the husband’s role in providing for his wife’s se- production. Some women’s activities were central to the curity and sexual pleasure; art and literature portrayed the economy, for example, in Japan, deep-sea diving and mak- loving couples. A recognized benefit of marriage was ing salt (from sea water); in Mesopotamia, perfume manu- sexual pleasure. In India, Japan, and Sparta, female facture, and brewing and selling beer; in west Africa, salt adulteCmen. trade, soap manufacture, and gold mining and trade. In In Athens, China, India, and Mesoamerica, a man had Sumer, Egypt, Sparta, Rome, and Japan, women owned, to be married in order to fulfill his public and ritual obliga- could bequeath, and could inherit large tracts of land, and tions—these dual-gender obligations were incorporated they controlled the wealth from its production. In Mesopo- into Chinese marriage vows—and in Mesoamerica men tamia, Egypt, Rome, and west Africa, women actively en- had to be married in order to own land as well. Chinese gaged in business. Prostitutes were generally not highly and Greek female philosophers and Mesoamerican art and paid or esteemed, but courtesans were educated and gained hieroglyphics make explicit the concept of great wealth: in India and Rome many were noted for their complementarity underlying women’s and men’s spheres business acumen; in India some became wealthy patrons of in the home and public life, respectively. This comple- religious orders; in Greece some achieved political promi- mentarity, a key to gender relations in indigenous socie- nence. In India, Rome, and imperial Greece, wealthy ties, suggests that, despite women’s frequent legal and women underwrote public, religious, and artistic activities marital restrictions, early state societies valued women’s independent of their husbands.

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Women and Positions of Authority transitions; entry into adulthood, marriage, birth, mother- hood; and annual cycles of women’s fertility and sexual- Rulers were frequently male, but royal women had sev- ity. These cycles often were celebrated in “sacred eral means of access to ruling power. In political mar- marriage” rites known throughout the ancient world. riages, women exercised influence on behalf of their natal Many women’s rites were for women only and were con- families, thereby acquiring esteem. Queen mothers of mi- sidered fundamental for promoting and maintaining the nor sons too young to rule wielded significant power. well-being of the society. Women gained crucial support Royal courts everywhere were notorious for political in- for their identity, sense of self-worth, and esteem from trigues and murders by royal wives and mothers on behalf these recurrent ritual practices. Moreover, because reli- of their sons. In Japan, Palenque (sixth- to seventh-cen- gious practices often were fundamental to much societal tury classic Maya), and west Africa, many women ruled in activity, the central and important roles women held in their own right as queen, a role that often included mili- religious life, both as priestesses and often as ordinary fe- tary leadership. Japan, west African states, and, possibly, male practitioners, gave them respected, public roles Sparta had traditions of dual rulership. In other countries, within their community. women occasionally ruled in extraordinary circum- In Greece, a woman’s entire life from the age of 6 or 7 stances, such as the Egyptian “female-king” Hatshepsut through adulthood was marked by frequent rituals. The nu- (fifteenth century B.C.E.). Nonroyal women had varying merous religious festivals in which women engaged af- access to authoritative decision making in their communi- forded women opportunities to move about independently ties, depending on their class, legal, and economic stand- and, apparently, without restriction in the community. For ing; on cultural appreciation of women’s authority; and 2,000 years (until their sanctuaries and rites were deliber- frequently on their ritual roles. Such access tended to be ately destroyed by Christian zealots in the fourth and fifth considerable in Sumer, Crete, Sparta, Japan, Maya, and centuries), the Eleusinian mysteries for the two goddesses west Africa. Demeter and Persephone were the most important form of In most cultures, women held significant ritual roles, religious expression for both women and men in Greece. A and many important deities were female. Goddesses were comparable centrality of worship of female deities and of worshiped as deities associated with, for example, creation women’s ritual roles can be found in Mesopotamia, Japan, (Nü Wa—China, Aditi—India, Gaia—Greece, Mesoamerica, and west Africa; however, they were later Amaterasu—Japan, Atoapoma [Akan], Idemili [Igbo], eclipsed by male-dominated religious and philosophical Nana-Daho [Fon]—west Africa); the earth (Demeter— beliefs. Greece, Bona Dea—Rome, Asase Ya [Asante], Oto [Binis], Although in many nation-states women’s lives were Tenga [Mossi]—west Africa); sky (Nut—Egypt); fertility, restricted politically and legally, the importance of other sexuality, erotic desire (Inanna/Ishtar—Sumer/Babylon, spheres of activity indicates that political or legal status Hathor—Egypt, Aphrodite—Greece, Yemoja—Yoruba); does not adequately convey the full picture of women’s marriage, motherhood (Isis—Egypt, Hera—Greece, roles. Frequently, women’s importance in domestic, reli- Juno—Rome); childbirth (Hathor, Isis—Egypt, Aditi—In- gious, economic, and creative activities substantially off- dia, Toci—Maya); crafts (Athena—Greece); learning sets legal and political restrictions. The esteem—and (Saraswati—India); power and rulership (Queen mother of often direct economic and status rewards—women re- the West—China, Inanna/Ishtar—Sumer/Babylon, ceived for their activities testifies to the value accorded to Athena—Greece, Shakti—India); and wealth (Lakshami— women even in patriarchal societies where gender inequi- India). Goddesses also were associated with the sun, the ties were developing. Moreover, many state societies still moon, planets, stars, water, natural forces, weaving, justice, maintained considerable respect for women ideologically death (often in the sense of the earth or mother taking the as well as politically, legally, and economically. These dead back into her care), destruction, and numerous other various sources of esteem in ancient nation-states deterio- qualities. Many of these roles overlapped, and in India, in rated in the face of increasing male supremacy advocated west Africa, and among the Maya, these goddesses con- by religious and philosophical ideologies with their con- tinue to be worshiped today. Worship of female deities re- comitant increasing male domination in the political, le- inforced on a divine level the respect accorded actual gal, economic, religious, and—ultimately—domestic women. Women often held important roles as priestesses. spheres. Many cultures held important rites marking significant Awareness of the numerous ways women were fully stages in a woman’s life: rites for puberty and adolescent participatory agents, or enjoyed arenas of esteem even in

57 ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES

predominantly patriarchal systems, provides an important Lefkowitz, Mary R., and Maureen B.Fant, eds. 1992. Women’s life corrective to previous historical views of women as being in Greece and Rome: A source book in translation. 2nd ed. completely subjected and subordinate in ancient cultures. It Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press. also challenges the commonly held notion that the position Lerner, Gerda. 1986. The creation of patriarchy. New York and of women in modern, democratic, industrialized nations Oxford: Oxford University Press. represents an advance over women’s position in earlier so- Lesko, Barbara, ed. 1989. Women’s earliest records from ancient cieties—a linear view of social and historical development. Egypt and western Asia. Atlanta, Ga.: Scholars. Although this “advance” may be valid when compared Murcott, Susan. 1991. The first Buddhist women. Berkeley, Calif.: with the position of women in recent histories of patriar- Parallax. chal nation-states, it does not hold up in the longer histori- Nemet-Nejat, Karen Rhea. 1998. Daily life in the ancient Near cal perspective when set against women’s roles in most East. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood. ancient societies. In contrast, there are great complexities Oppong, Christine, ed. 1983. Female and male in west Africa. in gender relations and in the roles women have held his- London: George Allen and Unwin. torically in civilizations around the world, which often Paul, Diana. 1979. : Images of the femi- have been roles of power and strength. nine in Mahayana tradition. Berkeley, Calif.: Asian Hu- manities. See Also Pintchman, Tracy. 1994. The rise of the goddess in tra- dition. Albany: State University of New York Press. ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES; Pomeroy, Sarah B. 1975. Goddesses, whores, wives, and slaves: GODDESS; HISTORY; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: Women in classical antiquity. New York: Schocken. OVERVIEW; POLITICS AND THE STATE: OVERVIEW Rabinowitz, Nancy Sorkin, and Amy Richlin, eds. 1993. Femi- nist theory and the classics. New York and London: References and Further Reading Routledge. Bhattacharji, Sukumari. 1994. Women and society in ancient In- Raphals, Lisa. 1998. Sharing the light: Representations of women dia. Calcutta: Basumati. and virtue in early China. Albany: State University of New Bingham, Marjorie W., and Susan H.Gross. 1987. Women in Ja- York. pan: From ancient times to the present. St. Louis Park, Robins, Gay. 1993. Women in Ancient Egypt. Cambridge, Mass.: Minn.: Women’s History Curriculum Central Community Harvard University. Center. ——. 1995. Reflections of women in the New Kingdom: Ancient Gero, Joan M., and Margaret W.Conkey, eds. 1991. Engen- Egyptian art from the . San Antonio, Tex.: dering archaeology: Women and prehistory. Oxford: Van Siclen. Black-well. Sertima, Ivan Van, ed. 1988. Black women of antiquity. New Gruber, Mayer I. 1995. Women in the biblical world. American Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction. Theological Library Association Bibliography Series, no. 38. Sherer, Robert. 1996. Daily life in Maya civilization. Westport, Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow. Conn.: Greenwood. Hallett, Judith P. 1984. Fathers and daughters in Roman society: Snyder, Jane McIntosh. 1989. The woman and the : Women Women and the elite family. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Uni- writers in and Rome. Carbondale: Southern versity Press. Illinois University. Henshaw, Richard A. 1994. Female and male: The cultic person- Swann, Nancy Lee. 1968 (1932 reprint). Pan Chao: Foremost nel: The Bible and the rest of the ancient Near East. Allison woman scholar of China, first century A.D. New York: Park, Pa.: Pickwick. Russell and Russell. Jackson, Guida M. 1999. Women rulers throughout the ages: An Sweetman, David. 1984. Women leaders in African history. Lon- illustrated guide. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. don: Heinemann. Jamison, Stephanie W. 1996. Sacrificed wife/sacrificer’s wife: Tharu, Susie, and K.Lalita, eds. 1993. Women writing in India: Women, ritual and hospitality in ancient India. New York: 600 B.C. to the present. Delhi: Oxford University Press. Oxford University Press. Toorn, Karel Van Der. 1994. From her cradle to her grave: The Kraemer, Ross S. 1992. Her share of the blessings: Women’s re- role of religion in the life of the Israelite and the Babylonian ligions among pagans, Jews, and Christians in the Greco- woman. Sheffield: JSOT. Roman world. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Tsurumi, E.Patricia. 1981. Japan’s early female emperors. His- Press. torical Reflections 8(1):

58 ANDROGYNY

Vivante, Bella, ed. 1999. Women’s roles in ancient civilizations: A in which androcentric rhetoric is used in sociobiology. reference guide. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood. Forenza (1983) demonstrates that theological texts present Watson, Rubie S., and Patricia Buckley Ebrey, eds. 1991. Mar- women as absent or silent or in their traditional roles. In riage and inequality in Chinese society. Berkeley: University this way women have been “hidden from history.” of California Press. Watterson, Barbara. 1991. Women in ancient Egypt. New York: St. See Also Martin’s. HISTORY; OTHER; SEXISM; WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES White, E.Frances. 1988. Women of western and western central Africa. In Restoring women to history, 57–113. References and Further Readings Bloomington, Ind.: Organization of American Historians. Fiorenza, Elizabeth. 1983. In memory of her: A feminist theologi- Zweig, Bella. 1993. The only women who give birth to men: A cal reconstruction of Christian origins. New York: gynocentric, cross-cultural view of women in ancient Sparta. Crossroad. In Mary Deforest, ed., Woman’s power, man’s game: Essays Hartmann, Heidi. 1978. The unhappy marriage of Marxism and on classical antiquity in honor of Joy King, 32–53. feminism: Towards a more progressive union. Capital and Wauconda, Ill.: Bolchazy-Carducci. Class 8:1–33. ——. 1993. The primal mind: Using Native American models Hoagland, Sarah. 1980. Androcentric rhetoric in sociobiology. to approach the study of women in ancient Greece. In Women’s Studies International Forum, 3(2–3):285–294. Nancy Sorkin Rabinowitz and Amy Richlin, eds., Femi- Pamela Abbott nist theory and the classics, 145–180. New York: Routledge. Bella Vivante ANDROGYNY

Androgyny, or gynandry, is the presence, within one body, ANDROCENTRISM of both female and male sex characteristics. The human spe- cies is gynandrous in several ways. The fetus is female up Androcentrism is the view that male behavior and charac- to six weeks; then, if sperm is present, the clitoris enlarges teristics are central—are the norm. This view so permeates to become a penis, vaginal skin folds over to become the society that female behavior is understood and seen as de- scrotum, and a male grows. Also, estrogen and testosterone viant, that is, deviating from the male norm. are varyingly present in both sexes. Thus human genders Androcentric society values characteristics associated branch from a female root, and from earlier kinds of repro- with men and maleness. Thus, competitiveness and aggres- duction—for billions of years on Earth, reproduction oc- siveness are highly valued and rewarded, whereas character- curred by asexual, bisexual, or parthenogenic cloning. istics associated with women—caring and cooperation—are Early human cultures often envisioned deities as female. devalued. Paleolithic cave art and icons, Megalithic and Neolithic Androcentric societies are organized on the assump- archaeologic sites, and many rituals and myths worldwide tion that the male is the norm. This is clearly illustrated by indicate worship of a “great mother” who, as Earth, gave the ways in which paid employment is organized in ad- birth, sustained life, and after death recycled all life forms. vanced industrial societies: full-time work with a lifelong Everything created, in both its “female” and its “male” as- and uninterrupted commitment to the labor market is as- pects, expressed this gynandrous process of a living, sacred sumed to be the norm. Women who have domestic re- planet. Hunting-and-gathering peoples did not strictly differ- sponsibilities and cannot conform to this expectation are entiate sex roles. Among animistic cultures, to become “the disadvantaged both in the jobs for which they are seen as other”—that is, to experience otherness in oneself—is a psy- eligible in the labor market and in their promotion pros- chic moment of both integration and release. Tribal shamans, pects in employment. medicine women and men, the berdache, and the wiccan all Androcentric texts and scholarship present women as enacted this participatory fusion, becoming not only other absent or silent or treat them in stereotyped ways. animals but the other sex: shamanic males wore ornamental Hartmann (1978), for example, points out the inherent sex- breasts and acted as spirit mothers; shamanic females wres- ism in Marxist theory. Hoagland (1980) points to the way tled and hunted and, in later Neolithic depictions, wore

59 ANGER

beards. The androgynous “both-in-one” activated pragmatic Juno, Andrea, and V.Vale, eds. 1991. Angry women. San Fran- and sacred powers of magic, healing, tribal integrity, and cisco: Re/Search. prophecy. Mor, Barbara, and Monica Sjoo. 1987. The great cosmic mother: In historic eras, patriarchal cultures, which value fixed Rediscovering the religion of the earth. San Francisco: sex roles, have superseded most of the primal animistic be- Harper (reprint with added Forewords and color plates, liefs. Yet androgyny as symbol of human balance and fu- 1991). sion, or psychic holism, is still found worldwide, for Weise, Elizabeth Reba, ed. 1992. Closer to home: Bisexuality and example in the Taoist yin and yang, tantra, the gnostic and feminism. Seattle: Seal. alchemic hermaphrodite, African and Caribbean Voudoun, Barbara Mor and Hindu devas. Catalytic powers of the androgyne are also popularly embodied in the artist: the poet, the dancer, the actor, and the rock star bear witness to the constant other who lives within us. In reaction to the commercial ANGER bombardment of global culture, with its extreme, sensa- tional sexual stereotypes, many young people have adopted In A Room of One’s Own (1929), Virginia Woolf argued more androgynous or unisex styles and attitudes, both as a that women should not dwell on their anger at male treat- fashion statement and as a mode of conscious behavior. ment of womankind, because anger consumes women’s In a sense, then, androgyny activates and celebrates the productive energies by “reflecting men at twice their natu- full spectrum of human possibilities. Few people fit a com- ral size,” in Woolf’s own phrase. Her argument is that such pletely male or completely female norm—most range anger “centers” men. More recent feminist analysis has along a continuum of body types, talents, and concerns. taken an apparently very different stance, seeing anger as Restriction of human work and human dreams to stringent women’s legitimate response to injustice and oppression sex roles could entail a real loss of evolutionary capacity. and also, more important, as the dynamics of change, both Twenty-first-century technology—such as space travel, individual and societal, because it motivates and propels computer networks, biospheres, and microsurgery—re- feminist action. Slogans like “angry women,” “take back quires patient precision and bold decision making, that is, the night,” and more recently “zero tolerance” are public androgynous skills. The astronaut is not “male” or “fe- expressions of feminist anger at male violence that are de- male” but a heroic, though fragile, human being floating in signed to bring to public consciousness both male violence space. The globe will be—in fact, it already is—crowded and women’s knowledge of and active and organized oppo- and beset by problems of scarce, polluted resources con- sition to this violence. Woolf’s comments were directed to- fronting burgeoning populations. Such a planet cannot sus- ward anger experienced and understood as an tain the continuous aggression, repression, forced uncontrollable and directionless force, one turned inward breeding, and warfare that characterize, as Margaret Mead toward the self rather than outward toward the delineation and other anthropologists have documented, those cultures of the sources and substance of power and evil; by contrast, that depend on fixed sex roles (that is, the denial of an- Woolf had no reservations about writing in the white heat drogyny) as their rationale. Our species’ survival might of rage against fascism in Three Guineas (1938). Woolf’s well require universal retraining in the ancient gynandrous position actually has much in common with feminist theo- art of experiencing the other as oneself. rizing about emotions (for example, Jaggar, 1989; Lorde, 1981), which sees emotions as culturally proscribed in con- See Also tent and definition and as capable of rational expression, ANDROCENTRISM; BUTCH/FEMME; GODDESS; redirection, and use. HETEROSEXUALITY; HYPERMASCULINITY; LESBIANISM; MOTHER EARTH; OTHER; SEX AND CULTURE; SEXUAL See Also ORIENTATION PSYCHOLOGY: OVERVIEW; SOCIALIZATION

References and Further Reading References and Further Reading Deren, Maya. 1953. Divine horsemen: The living gods of Haiti. Jaggar, Alison. 1989. Love and knowledge: Emotion in feminist Kingston, N.Y.: McPherson, Documentext (reprint 1970). epistemology. In Alison Jaggar and Susan Bordo, eds., Gen- Feinberg, Leslie. 1998. Transliberation: Beyond pink or blue. der/body/knowledge: Feminist reconstructions of being and Boston: Beacon. knowing. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press.

60 ANIMAL RIGHTS

Lorde, Audre. 1981. The uses of anger. Women’s Studies Quar- with the body—which was devalued, if not repudiated terly 9(7–10). Reprinted in Sister/outsider, 124–133. New (see Adams, 1994). York: Crossing. Historically, animal rights arguments appeared as part Woolf, Virginia. 1929. A Room of One’s Own. London: Hogarth. of the revolutionary fervor in the United Kingdom during ——. 1938. Three guineas. London: Hogarth. the 1790s, when support of the French Revolution, anti- slavery activism, and animal rights were seen to be inter- Liz Stanley connected. Again, in the 1890s and the following decade, in both Great Britain and the United States, connections were made among pacifist, temperance, suffragist, veg- etarian, antivivisection, and trade union activists (see ANIMAL RIGHTS Adams, 2000; Lansbury, 1985). Contemporary feminists consider animal activism part of a progressive agenda. Animal rights is a specific philosophical argument—that Feminist theoreticians are developing a cross-cultural animals possess rights, including the right not to be ethics that identifies how sexism, racism, and specisim harmed—as a well as the general term for the movement interact. They challenge the hyper-rationalistic philo- to end the exploitation of animals by people. The animal sophical language of rights, arguing that it arises from a rights movement targets the main forms of animal exploi- male-identified concept of an autonomous, separate indi- tation—eating, wearing, exhibiting, and experimenting vidual. on animals. Women have been prominent in this move- Many women in the western tradition have an ethical ment; there is a long tradition of women evidencing con- history that is rooted in culturally prescribed practices of cern for the treatment of animals (see Donovan in caring. Part of this history is an active concern about ani- Donovan and Adams, 1995), and attention to the issue mals. suggests that the eighteenth-cen- continues to grow. However, animal rights has not been tury emphasis on sentiment, associated with the central to contemporary feminism, nor has the animal appearance of numerous women writers, paved the intel- rights movement necessarily reflected feminist commit- lectual ground for the appearance of animal rights, in the ments. nineteenth century (Donovan in Donovan and Adams, 1995). Historical Background Women have composed the majority in many animal Several feminist theorists associate women’s oppression welfare groups. Animal advocacy has often been belittled with animal exploitation. A few argue that matriarchy because of this association with women: Spin-oza argued preceded patriarchy and that its overthrow—due in part that opposing animal exploitation was “wom-anish” (see to a change in humans’ relationships with the other ani- Adams, 1994). During the nineteenth century, when most mals—enabled both women’s and animals’ oppression. antivivisectionists were women, the movement was called Peggy Sanday correlates male domination with animal- “illogical” and “emotional.” Meanwhile, women’s claims based economies and concludes that gatherer societies on behalf of themselves were ridiculed by equating women were egalitarian. The feminist theologian Rosemary with animals. For instance, the philosopher Mary Radford Ruether establishes a connection between the Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman was domestication of animals, the development of urban dismissively parodied in Vindication of the Rights of centers, the creation of slavery, and the creation of the Brutes. inequality of the sexes. One ecofeminist has speculated Historically, the ideological justification for women’s that patriarchal religion itself resulted from the guilt of alleged inferiority was made by associating them with ani- killing animals for food. Others proposed that after the mals: women’s bodies supposedly impaired their rational- domestication of animals, it was the breeding of animals ity. Since most western theorists construed rationality as that suggested the idea of controlling women’s the defining requirement for membership in the moral reproductivity (see Mason, 1993). Feminists have noted community, women—along with men of color and ani- that the first reproductive technologies, such as embryo mals—who were seen as less able to transcend their bodies, transfer, were developed as part of the cattle industry were long excluded. and then transferred to women (see Corea, 1986). Theo- At least three responses to the historical alignment of retically, western cultures have equated women, chil- women and animals have appeared in feminist theory. The dren, animals, and “the natural” with one another and first argues against identifying women with animals, asserting

61 ANIMAL RIGHTS that women are rational—like men and unlike animals; the harassment bills have not faced such scrutiny. Maria second argues that feminist theory has nothing to do with Comninou argues that “those in power make and interpret animals; and the third affirms the identification of women the laws to suit their purposes” (Adams and Donovan, with animals, insisting that feminist theory must engage it- 1995:128), and that this can be seen when we analyze such self with the status and treatment of the other animals. laws with the interests of both animals and women in mind. Those who take this third position argue, for instance, that Animal ecofeminists argue that falsely generic words activism by women on behalf of animals arises: (1) from (such as man and mankind) that give men full human status identification with victimized animals (see, for instance, must be analyzed in tandem with animal pejoratives for the discussion by Lansbury, 1985, for early twentieth-cen- women (catty, bitch, sow, shrew, dog, chick, cow). Joan tury women’s activism); (2) from empathy for the suffering Dunayer observes that “Applying images of denigrated of another being; and (3) as a part of an understanding of non-human species to women labels women inferior and the interlocking systems of oppression that organize the available for abuse; attaching images of the aggrandized world (and the oppressed) by gender, race, class, and spe- human species to men designates them superior and enti- cies. Thus, some feminists argue that animal advocacy is a tled to exploit” (Adams and Donovan, 1995:11). necessary extension of feminist insights, while simultane- Feminist philosophers raise feminist questions in sci- ously refusing to adopt the terminology of “rights.” ence; animal ecofeminist scholars raise questions about animals in feminism. Lynda Birke and Barbara Noske spe- The Feminist Animal Rights Argument cifically argue that while feminist analyses of patriarchal Since the 1970s feminists in the United States and the science reject biological determinism for women, they do United Kingdom have articulated several central premises so by relying on overgeneralized and inaccurate ideas— regarding the position of animals, (1) The oppression of fostered by patriarchal science—of “animals” as well as women and animals is interconnected; women will not “humans,” thus tacitly accepting biological determinism be free unless animals are free as well. (2) Violence against and female and male stereotypes for animals (see Birke, animals is one aspect of patriarchal culture—arising 1994; Noske, 1997). within and receiving legitimation from the way male Violence toward animals is a central aspect of much sexual identity is constituted. For instance, eating ani- sexual violence against women and children, including in- mals enacts and symbolizes male dominance. (3) Femi- cest, woman battering, and marital rape. Carol Adams ex- nism is a transformative philosophy that embraces the plains that antiviolence interventions and theories will be amelioration of life on Earth for all life-forms and chal- inadequate if they ignore the control perpetrators gain by lenges all forms of oppression; thus feminists must refuse violence toward animals loved by the victims (see Adams, to participate in or benefit from violence against animals. 1994:144–61; and Adams and Donovan, 1995:55–84). (4) Species, like gender, race, and class, is socially con- structed and should not be the basis on which ethical Feminist Insights into the Status of Animals decisions rest. These arguments constitute one aspect of Just as incorporating the status of animals into feminist ecofeminist thought, sometimes called “animal analyses enhances these analyses, so, animal ecofeminist ecofeminism” (Gaard, 1998). argue, a feminist analysis is required to understand the cur- rent treatment and maltreatment of animals. Basically, vari- Insights into Feminist Issues from Animal Ecofeminism ous analyses hold that a patriarchal culture feminizes Animal ecofeminism joins a variety of discussions in femi- animal victims. For instance, Karen Davis argues that the nist theory, offering its own distinctive interpretation. For reason farm animals have been neglected by the environ- instance, while antipornography feminists in the United mental movement is that they are “creatures whose lives States must contend with the question of the encroachment appear too slavishly, too boringly, too stupidly female, too on freedom of speech from legislation that addresses the ‘cowlike’” (Adams and Donovan, 1995:196). Marti Kheel, harms of pornography, animal rights activists have had founder of Feminists for Animal Rights, argues that the rea- their speech curbed by “hunter harassment” laws passed by son hunting has been defended in some environmental Congress and various states. (Thus pornography remains writings is that it is associated with male self-identity protected speech, but talking to hunters while they hunt or (Adams and Donovan, 1995:85–125). Carol Adams (2000) warning the animals is not protected speech.) Meanwhile, proposes that vegetarianism is opposed in patriarchal cul- although sexual harassment has been a contested area, in tures because of the of meat, in which meat part because of the question of defining harassment, hunter eating is associated with virility and seen as symbolic of

62 ANOREXIA NERVOSA masculinity; vegetarianism, on the contrary, is seen as providing a conceptual foundation for other forms of feminine. oppression.

Debates about the Status of Animals See Also in the ECOFEMINISM; ETHICS: FEMINIST; FURS; HUMAN RIGHTS; Feminist perspectives on the condition of animals are just HUNTING; VEGETARIANISM beginning to emerge around the world. Until very recently, animal ecofeminists wrote mainly in the United States or References and Further Reading the United Kingdom and clearly represented a western ap- Adams, Carol J. 1994. Neither man nor beast; Feminism and the proach. International dialogue on the subject is beginning defense of animals. New York: Continuum. and includes, in part, German, Italian, and Japanese trans- ——. 2000. The sexual politics of meat: A feminist-vegetarian lations of some American works. In addition, with the pro- critical theory. Tenth Anniversary Edition. New York: Con- liferation of U.S.-based transnational corporations in other tinuum; Oxford: Polity. parts of the world (especially fast-food restaurants that spe- ——, and Josephine Donovan, eds. 1995. Animals and women: cialize in hamburgers), many of the issues raised by west- Feminist theoretical explorations. Durham, N.C.: Duke Uni- ern animal ecofeminists, especially issues concerning the versity Press. health and environmental consequences of animal agricul- Birke, Lynda. 1994. Feminism, animals and science. Buckingham, ture, increasingly apply to more cultures. England and Philadelphia: Open University Press. Animal ecofeminism is far from being a settled issue Collard, Andree, with Joyce Construcci. 1988. Rape of the wild: within feminist theory and activism; indeed it often pro- Man’s violence against animals and the earth. London: vokes contention. This is due in part to the apparent sex- Women’s Press; Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ism of the animal rights movement in both its leadership Corea, Gena. 1986. The mother machine. New York: Harper and and its attitudes toward women. For instance, the antifur Row. campaign, in its targeting of women as consumers, may Donovan, Josephine, and Carol J.Adams, eds. 1995. Beyond ani- be thought of as countenancing harassment of women on mal rights: A feminist caring ethic for the treatment of ani- the street. Feminists may fear that successes with animal mals. New York: Continuum. rights pave the way for human fetal rights. Some femi- Gaard, Greta, ed. 1993. Ecofeminism: Women, animals, nature. nists worry about whether a pluralistic feminism should Philadelphia: Temple University Press. hold what appear to be absolute positions on animal-re- ——. 1998. Ecological politics: Ecofeminists and the greens. lated issues. Arguments for vegetarianism, for instance, Philadelphia: Temple University Press. are sometimes viewed as restrictive or legislative. Animal Lansbury, Coral. 1985. The old brown dog: Women, workers and ecofeminists, on the other hand, argue for a pluralistic vivisection in Edwardian England. Madison: University of feminism that includes concern for other animals and Wisconsin Press. contend that animal advocacy, by exposing the Luke, Brian. 1998. Violent love: Hunting, heterosexuality, and the anthropocentrism of the antiabortion movement, actually erotics of men’s predation. Feminist Studies 24.3 (Fall): 627– bolsters the arguments for reproductive choice (Adams, 655. 1994:55–70). Mason, Jim. 1993. An unnatural order. New York: Continuum. The unique perspective animal ecofeminism brings to Noske, Barbara. 1997. London: Pluto. Beyond Boundaries: Hu- the issue of environmental concerns and feminism is its mans and Animals. Montreal: Black Rose. focus on the contested idea of “animals.” For instance, Carol J.Adams this article has followed conventional English usage in its discussion of animals; that is, accepting the idea that the word animal applies to all creatures except human beings. But animal ecofeminists argue that this language masks people’s own animal status. They argue that until ANOREXIA NERVOSA people confront their own animality, their “membership in animalkind” (Adams and Donovan, 1995:23), they There are well-documented instances of religious ascetics will endorse a strict—but false—boundary between ani- suffering from anorexia nervosa in the mid-thirteenth cen- mals and humans that upholds institutionalized and indi- tury, and the first medical description was written as early vidual maltreatment of the other animals while as 1694 by Richard Morton, a doctor in London. Morton

63 ANOREXIA NERVOSA had observed patients with symptoms of an unfamiliar dis- known. The greatest risk factor is being female: 90 percent order: they felt no hunger and had lost a great deal of weight of anorectics are girls and women. The second-largest fac- but seemed unconcerned about this. Today, it is generally tor is being young: the average age of onset is 17. Studies believed that anorexies do experience hunger but resist it; have found that women in careers that emphasize thin- however, Morton made several astute observations that are ness—such as dancing and modeling—are also at a high still used to diagnose anorexia nervosa: emaciation, risk of anorexia nervosa. Female athletes in general are at amenorrhea (cessation of menstruation), preoccupation with risk, and those in sports where leanness is considered es- food, and observance of many rituals related to eating and sential, such as gymnastics and figure skating, are particu- food. Other fundamental characteristics of anorexies include larly vulnerable. (In fact, a female athlete triad of three a strong drive to be thin, with self-esteem being closely tied related disorders—anorexia and, as a result, amenorrhea to weight and shape; preoccupation with weight, body im- and osteoporosis—has been identified.) Some studies have age, and eating; severe weight loss or, in young girls, fail- found evidence of a genetic predisposition to anorexia ner- ure to gain weight at critical developmental stages; and, vosa. It has also been found that there is a disproportion- often, a skewed or unrealistic perception of one’s own body, ately high incidence of eating disorders in girls whose usually referred to as “distorted body image.” mothers are obese. Before the 1960s there was not a great deal of interest in In western societies, a distorted body image is typically studying or writing about eating disorders, and until the associated with anorexia nervosa: anorectics see them- 1980s the sociocultural analysis of these disorders—which selves as fat even when they are alarmingly thin and is now the prevailing approach—hardly existed. During wasted. However, anorexies in certain cultures may not the 1980s, awareness of eating disorders heightened and have a distorted perception of their body shape and may researchers and others began to think of them more in report different reasons for not wishing to eat, such as terms of the societal milieu. Anorexia nervosa is now rec- stomachaches, indigestion, or dislike of food. ognized as a significant problem and is the subject of much Treatment of anorexia nervosa usually combines medi- research and literature; this entry can provide only a brief cal, pscyhological, and nutritional interventions; these vary introduction to what has become a vast, complex, and mul- according to the seriousness of the patient’s condition and tifaceted topic. range up to hospitalization and tube-feeding for those in Diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa have been imminent danger of death. At present, the outcome of treat- specified by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) ment is by no means certain: probably only about half of in its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disor- those treated can be expected to recover fully; among the ders, indicating that this disorder is considered to be psy- others there may be some or very little improvement, and chological. The criteria include percentage of body weight relapse is common. Moreover, many anorectics never re- lost. It is interesting to note that between 1980, when the ceive treatment at all, because denial is typical and help is third edition of the manual (DSM-III) was published, and not sought. Many people consider prevention a better ap- 1987, when it was revised as DSM-III-R, the weight loss proach, but there are as yet few systematic preventive pro- necessary to make a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa was grams—and many societies, meanwhile, continue to lowered from 25 percent to 15 percent of total body weight. equate thinness with beauty, attractiveness, and even A fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual health, making preventive efforts very difficult. was published in 1994. According to DSM-IV, anorexia nervosa is most prevalent in western and developed nations See Also where food abounds and women feel pressure to be thin. ADVERTISING; BODY; BULIMIA NERVOSA; EATING Anorexia nervosa was once seen as a white, upper- DISORDERS; EXERCISE AND FITNESS; FOOD AND CULTURE; middle-class disorder, but today it appears to be on the rise IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; PSYCHOLOGY: SOCIAL in all racial groups and all social classes. A typical sequence begins with dieting and reasonable weight loss, References and Further Reading which in the short run boosts self-esteem but then develops Alexander-Mott, LeeAnn, and D.Barry Lumsden, eds. 1994. Un- into more and more stringent dieting, eventually derstanding eating disorders: Anorexia nervosa, bulimia ner- progressing to self-starvation, emaciation, and in some vosa, and obesity. Washington, D.C.: Taylor and Francis. cases death. American Psychiatric Association (APA). 1980, 1987, 1994. Di- Although the risk factors for anorexia nervosa are agnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 3rd ed., highly individualized, certain important factors are well 3rd ed. rev., 4th ed. Washington, D.C.: APA.

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Brown, Catrina, and Karin Jasper, eds. 1993. Consuming pas- of gender relations in primate societies (used as models for sions: Feminist approaches to weight preoccupation and eat- early hominids’ social life) through reconstruction of ing disorders. New York: Second Story. women’s activities and roles in now extinct societies to the Bruch, Hilde. 1974. Eating disorders: Obesity and anorexia ner- study of women as active agents in the construction of so- vosa and the person within. London: Routledge. cial relations of power within a specific cultural setting. Fallon, Patricia, Melanie A.Katzman, and Susan C.Wooley, eds. Although there has been a good deal of cross-fertilization 1994. Feminist perspectives on eating disorders. New York: among feminist researchers working in the various Guilford. subfields of anthropology, the timing and historical devel- Garfinkel, Paul E., and David M.Garner, eds. 1997. Handbook of opment of their work have been quite different. treatment for eating disorders. 2nd ed. New York: Guilford. In its aspiration to represent and explain the range of MacSween, Morag. 1996. Anorexic bodies: A feminist and socio- variation in human cultural behavior, anthropology has logical perspective on anorexia nervosa. New York: always made a place for accounts of women’s activities. Routledge. Indeed, the intellectual framework of anthropology’s Zeman, Ellen J.Female athletes. In John Zumerchik, ed., Encyclo- founding traditions as practiced through the 1950s required pedia of sports science. Vol. 2. New York: Simon and that descriptions of women’s activities and roles be Schuster Macmillan. included in ethnographies. In the tradition of the British structural-functional school, which emphasized the Meredith Nachman complementary functioning of the structural components of a stable social whole, women’s roles were consistently described in accounts of the kinship and marriage structures understood to be the primary structures of social integration ANTHROPOLOGY in nonwestern societies. Women’s work, however, was less uniformly considered in functionalist descriptions of Anthropology is the discipline that seeks to explain cross- subsistence or economic activity, and women were almost cultural variation in human behavior, and it takes as its sub- never incorporated into accounts of ritual and politics. ject matter the span of human cultural behavior across time Similarly, the culture historical approach espoused by and space, focusing traditionally—although not exclu- Boasian anthropologists in the United States required sively—on social groups that do not or did not maintain documentation of women’s roles within cultural wholes that written records. Variation among contemporary cultural were the object of description and reconstruction. Boas forms is studied through methods and theory of sociocul- encouraged and sponsored a number of women tural anthropology, while archaeology is used to recon- fieldworkers among the native cultures of the southwestern struct the prehistories of these traditions. In addition, United States, where their charge was to gather information biological anthropologists investigate the synergistic rela- on “women’s affairs,” a task for which Boas assumed they tionship between human cultural behavior and biology were uniquely suited. Margaret Mead—undoubtedly the through the lens of evolutionary biology. Hence the tempo- most famous of Boas’s students—set out to study “sex ral scope of anthropology ranges over at least 4 million roles” specifically, and through her fieldwork in Samoa in years of evolutionary history, the time period in which the the 1930s was the first scholar to document the role of first direct human ancestors appear in the fossil record and culture in determining gender roles and personalities. the first evidence of cultural behavior is recorded in the sys- Mead’s work added weight to the early feminist argument tematic manufacture of stone tools (ca. 2.5 million years that gender is culturally constructed rather than innate. ago). Conforming to the challenges posed by its diverse Anthropological theory of the 1960s grew out of and subject matter, anthropology’s methods and theories em- sought to deepen insights gained in these formative years. brace modes of analysis that range freely among the hu- Three major schools of thought came to dominate investi- manistic, social scientific, and scientific. Feminist studies gation in this era, and these tended to split the explanation within anthropology similarly assume this wide range of of human behavioral variability between either intellectual positions, rendering anthropological work on mentalistidealist or materialist causality. The structuralism gender relations unique in its ability to access and synthe- of Levi-Strauss and the symbolic anthropology of Clifford size or juxtapose diverse intellectual standpoints. Under the Geertz constituted the former approach. Structuralists heading of this one discipline is an array of subjects, meth- centered their efforts on understanding variability in hu- ods, and explanations—including everything from analysis man behavior through the apprehension of underlying

65 ANTHROPOLOGY structuring cultural principles expressed as dualisms en- Eleanor Leacock, who proposed that women in foraging coded in myth and ritual; symbolic anthropologists sought and early horticultural societies enjoyed egalitarian rela- to penetrate the cultural meaning embodied in public sym- tionships with men, based primarily on their relatively bols. Opposed to these two schools of thought was cultural equal contribution to subsistence. Structures of male domi- ecology, representing the materialist school of thought that nance, in turn, came into play with the social stratification sought to explain variation in culture as a result of human and privatization of kinship associated with the rise of the cultural adaptation to specific environmental settings. Al- state and the spread of capitalism through colonialism. though strikingly different in method and underlying as- Hence the universal subordination of women is more an sumptions, all of these theoretical structures shared in the artifact of world economic structures than a “natural” con- perspective that social actors were passively shaped by cul- dition. Another formative position was mapped out at this tural forms. In this context the contributions of early time by Michelle Rosaldo, who argued that women’s roles “prefeminist” women anthropologists were overshadowed in childbearing and child rearing associated them with the by theoretical positions that either ignored or made unwar- domestic and private spheres in all societies. To the degree ranted assumptions about gender. That is, gender could be that the public and private may be separate spheres of influ- ignored because it was irrelevant to understanding either ence in any given society, this separation provides the basis the public myth and ritual assumed to be the domain of men for hierarchical valuing and dominance of men over wom- or the process of adaptation, again dominated by male sub- en’s affairs in the public arena. While Rosaldo’s formula- sistence activity. Alternatively, where gender demanded tion incorporated both symbolic and institutional factors, treatment, explanations were underwritten by assumptions Sherry Ortner offered another key to understanding wom- about gender structures mirroring middle- and upper-class en’s status that followed from the structuralist paradigm, western culture that were supposedly based on “natural” suggesting that women are conceptualized worldwide as differences between women and men and therefore com- natural, while men are associated with culture. This di- mon to all cultures. This context confronted emergent chotomous categorization then accounts for women’s de- feminist anthropology of the 1970s. valued position relative to men, who are the possessors and Feminist anthropologists of the 1970s, drawing inspira- creators of the cultural phenomena that dominate and tran- tion from the widespread intellectual and social ferment of scend nature. Here again the variability in arguments the period, cast the male-biased assumptions underlying should not obscure a basic similarity in all of these ap- this knowledge structure into relief and began the process proaches to the study of women; they search for key struc- of challenging and replacing them. Resurrecting the work tures that allow systematic cross-cultural comparison and of Mead, these scholars first began documenting variability explain women’s status within that framework. in women’s experiences across cultures. Questioning ear- Related issues were engaged within biological anthro- lier theoretical models that assumed a peripheral position pology during this period, and these debates both crosscut for women in social relations, new ethnographies were and drew inspiration from work going on in sociocultural written that put the female subject at the center of examina- anthropology. Like their colleagues in sociocultural an- tion or action. At the same time that these data on women’s thropology, feminists in biological anthropology began lives in traditional societies began to accumulate, a coher- their critique with direct challenges to models of primate ent picture of gender asymmetry across cultures began to society and, by extension, reconstructions of early hominid emerge, and this became the dominant issue for the femi- society that rested on androcentric assumptions. Central to nist discourse of the 1970s: how to account for the nearly this critique was the issue of the accuracy of Sherwood universal or historically developed subordination of Washburn and Irven DeVore’s model of baboon behavior women, even as it was apparent that women’s roles and that featured the organizing axis of baboon society as a sta- their individual power or autonomy varied considerably in ble male dominance hierarchy. According to this model, different cultures. baboon social groups consisted of a few powerful, central Several lines of thought were developed to address this males that aggressively controlled the behavior (especially issue, and this body of work came to be identified as the mating patterns) of a set of physically weaker females and “anthropology of women.” One school of thought, taking their dependent offspring. From this form of organization, its inspiration from newly revived Marxist thinking in an- females were thought to gain protection for themselves and thropology, sought to explain women’s status on the basis their young in a dangerous savannah environment, while of transformations of the material conditions of life. Here the dominant males gained exclusive mating rights. Since the central arguments were mounted by Karen Sacks and human ancestors evolved in the savannah environment and

66 ANTHROPOLOGY this particular form of social organization was interpreted activities and the tools associated with them, coupled with as an adaptation to this environment, it was a short step to food sharing among related females and their offspring, conclude that early hominids were likely to have been or- formed the basis for human social life. Various selective ganized on similar principles. Thus emerged the “man the forces acting upon this set of hominid behaviors were then hunter” model of early hominid social organization in keys to determining the human evolutionary path. Far from which a core group of male hunters who provided meat leaving women on the fringes of the human evolutionary and physical protection to a their female mates and de- process, the “woman the gatherer” model placed women at pendent young were cast as the central and distinctive fea- the center. ture of hominid social life. All other features of hominid The body of work produced by feminist anthropologists social life and indeed biology were then considered to be up through the 1970s thus successfully integrated women the result of various selective forces acting on this male- into the study of human culture and demonstrated the ne- dominated base. cessity of documenting women’s experiences in coming to Feminist challenges to these models took two related a more accurate depiction of human cultural and biological forms. Within primatology, Washburn and Devore’s model variability. But it did so by simply inserting women or of baboon social organization was first called into question women’s perspectives into anthropology’s then-reigning by the work of Thelma Rowell throughout the late 1960s theoretical constructs. It was soon discovered that this ap- and into the 1970s. Through her painstaking longitudinal proach to studying women had two major drawbacks. First, studies that paid equal attention to the activities of females it resulted in an anthropology where one simply did tradi- and males, Rowell was able to demonstrate that a stable tional anthropology but added women into the mix. This male hierarchy was an artifact of short-term observation of has been called the “add women and stir” approach to the more noticeable male behavior patterns. Her observations study of gender, and it fostered the ghettoization of wom- uncovered instead a primate society in which baboon en’s studies within anthropology. Second, by failing to mothers and their offspring (particularly daughters) con- question the constructs that we use to study gender, this stituted the stable core of a social group resident within a approach ended up seeing the male-female matrix as the particular range, while adult males moved among these most important domain for understanding women’s lives. groups. By 1980, Jeanne Altman—following a similar Single or “key” variables were sought that might explain field observation strategy—was able to demonstrate that differences in, for example, women’s status. This approach the knowledge of range and social history possessed by masked the variability among women, and it is the redress females residing in a troop over relatively long periods of of these shortcomings that has absorbed the most recent time could be translated into social power. Finally, Barbara feminist anthropology. Smuts, working into the 1980s, enhanced this alternative As sociocultural anthropology as moved into a self-re- model by demonstrating a lack of correspondence be- flective, postmodern critique of its underlying assump- tween reproductive success and dominance among male tions and operating principles, feminists moved in a baboons. She postulated instead that male “friends” (in parallel direction and, some would argue, even led the dia- other words, those individuals with learned social skills logue. Central to this movement has been the understand- and maturity) were most frequently solicited as mates by ing that categories we use to describe other cultures are in females. In these alternative models of baboon society fe- themselves constructs of our own culture and knowledge males were moved from subordination to being key social system that enforce a potentially misleading categoriza- actors. tion on cultural others. Thus when a scholar studying the Even as these studies were being conducted, Adrienne anthropology of women makes an assertion about “wom- Zihlman and Nancy Tanner offered their “woman the gath- en’s status among the X,” he or she assumes the unchang- erer” challenge to the “man the hunter” model of human ing reality of three variables: women, status, and evolution. Specifically rejecting the traditional model of population X. The feminist anthropology of the 1980s baboon social organization, Zihlman and Tanner turned to sought to address such categorization by emphasizing the the then available data on chimpanzees that suggested the historical contingency of all three variables. Thus gender centrality of the mother-offspring relationship and female was emphasized as an embedded construct sensitive to the mate choice in the social organization of our closest pri- historical trajectory of social, political, and economic con- mate relatives. Using this alternative primate model and texts in any given society. So also did concepts like “sta- data from the fossil record and contemporary foraging peo- tus” and a historically unchanging and definable ples, Zihlman and Tanner proposed that women’s gathering population come into question as each social group under

67 ANTHROPOLOGY study came to be understood as the momentary product of Borrowing perspectives from colleagues in sociocultural its own unique history. Within this reformulated structure, anthropology, feminist archaeologists moved quickly be- the meaning and implications of gender must be explored yond this type of work and sought to redefine how we rather than presumed, and this exploration must take place write and think about the past so as to make gender part of in relation to other key cultural variables. Hence gender an overall interpretive shift. Contextual archaeology, in- becomes intimately linked to other analytical concepts, troduced in European archaeology of the 1980s, became such as the social relations of production, and constitutes a an initial attractive home for feminist perspectives, em- critical analytical concept for all cultural studies. It then phasizing the necessity of tracking and describing the de- becomes just as important to understand differences velopment of particular past cultural contexts and the among women in their relation to other cultural features as worldview that informed them. Here gendered constructs it is to understand differences between males and females, could be construed as one of the key attributes of cultural and understanding gender constructs is another key for traditions. The Americanist tradition experimented with apprehending cultural difference. alternative narrative form that eschewed the supposedly Parallel understandings percolated through biological neutral voice of the male scientist and introduced the ex- anthropology over the same time period. In primatology, plicitly female voice of past cultural participants. Concep- the construct of dominance hierarchy has been increasingly tual categories were also called into question, as feminist eschewed for an understanding (derived primarily from the archaeologists have attempted to move beyond the gender baboon work discussed above) that primates live in a com- essentialism inherent in reconstructions of origins of par- plex web of social interactions in which varying contexts ticular cultural practices or institutions such as plant do- will lead to differential expressions of dominance as indi- mestication, female subordination, or the state. Thus, viduals predict and manipulate interactions to attain spe- though late to the debate, archaeology has quickly cific and shifting goals. So also has it become clear from adopted contemporary understandings of gender con- rapidly accumulating primate studies of female activity structs from feminist research and stands to reshape the patterns that there is a great deal of variability in behavior discipline in significant ways. that cannot be neatly subsumed under simplistic gendered As feminist anthropology develops, it is likely that the dichotomies. Hence among primates as well, a new call has pattern of increased dialogue across the subdisciplines been issued to study variability across individual life spans will continue, and a disciplinary understanding may and troop histories. The field of evolutionary biology has emerge so that it will no longer be possible to study the also responded to such insights, and beginning from the category of “woman” in isolation. Rather, gender con- proposition that human females should have evolved a re- structs will be understood as a basic organizing principle productive biology attuned to protecting offspring, has be- of human experience that must be accommodated in any gun to study specialized and varying female patterns of adequate account of human biological and cultural vari- growth, development, and psychological and behavioral ability. adjustment across the life span in response to reproductive status. In short, the category of “female” is no longer in- See Also variant and essential in biological anthropology, just as the construction of gender has been substituted for “women” in ARCHAEOLOGY; CULTURE: OVERVIEW; EVOLUTION sociocultural anthropology. Despite these advances in allied subdiciplines, it was References and Further Reading not until the mid-1980s that archaeologists finally sought Barnard, Allen, and Jonathan Spencer, eds. 1996. Encyclope- to incorporate systematically understandings of gender dia of social and cultural anthropology. New York: into their reconstructions of past human societies. As early Routledge. work in this area pointed out, archaeology has not been Ingold, Tim, ed. 1994. Companion encyclopedia of anthropology. silent on the gender issue in its traditional reconstructions; London and New York: Routledge. rather, unexamined androcentric models stemming from Levinson, David, and Melvin Ember. 1996. Encyclopedia of cul- contemporary western ideals sneaked into the description tural anthropology. New York: Holt. of past human society. Thus there was a brief flurry of “re- Moore, Henrietta L. A passion for difference: Essays in anthropol- medial” work in which feminist archaeologists identified ogy and gender. Cambridge: Polity. the ways in which male bias has colored our readings of the past and the female perspective might be inserted. Susan J.Bender

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ments may be defended as a business necessity and there- ANTIDISCRIMINATION fore as reasonable in the circumstances.) The concept of indirect discrimination involves recognition that relevant Discrimination may be defined as a denial of equal enjoy- “differences” such as women’s reproductive role or their ment of rights. From the 1960s the resurgent women’s role as primary carers must be accommodated if equal op- movement focused attention on the prevalence of discrimi- portunity is to be achieved—that is, women’s full enjoy- nation based on sex and marital status. The women’s move- ment of the right to paid work. ment demanded antidiscrimination measures similar to The concept of indirect discrimination has also been ac- those already being introduced around the world as a result cepted in the interpretation of the guarantees of equality in of the 1965 United Nations (UN) Convention on the Elimi- the Canadian constitution. In 1989, in the pathbreaking nation of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Andrews case, the Supreme Court of Canada adopted a dis- Legislation forbidding sex discrimination was passed advantage test to establish whether discrimination had by many countries in the 1970s, particularly as a result of taken place. The test requires examining whether the claim- the momentum created by International Women’s Year ant is a member of a group that has experienced persistent (IWY) in 1975 and the UN Decade for Women (1976– disadvantage on the basis of personal characteristics, and, 1985). The World Plan of Action adopted at the IWY if so, whether the measure in question continues or worsens Conference in Mexico City placed special emphasis both that disadvantage. The Supreme Court of Canada was the on government machinery to advance the status of women first court in the world to use the test of social disadvantage and on antidiscrimination legislation. Such legislation when interpreting constitutional guarantees of equality usually prohibited both direct discrimination (less (Mahoney, 1994). favorable treatment or unfavorable treatment because of A narrower test but one with a similar effect was ap- sex or marital status) and indirect discrimination (em- plied by the High Court of Australia in 1989 in the Aus- ployment requirements such as continuity of service, tralian Iron and Steel (AIS) case. AIS had for many which, although apparently neutral, have a disparate im- years discriminated against women, but thanks to an ear- pact because women are more likely to have interrupted lier case had started recruiting them. Soon after, during a work histories). recession, AIS began dismissing workers, according to As can be seen from the above description of indirect the traditional “last on, first off” rule. The High Court discrimination, sameness of treatment or “facial” neutrality found that the application of this rule, while facially does not necessarily mean the absence of discrimination. neutral, had the effect of compounding and perpetuating Nor is it necessary for discrimination to be intentional (this the discrimination the women had experienced in the applies to direct as well as indirect discrimination). The past at AIS. concept of indirect discrimination as incorporated in much In addition to prohibiting direct and indirect discrimina- recent antidiscrimination legislation has its origin in a U.S. tion, antidiscrimination legislation characteristically has a Supreme Court case of 1971, Griggs v.Duke Power Co. “special measures” exemption, which excludes measures The Court found in this case that requiring a high school designed to promote equality or to overcome disadvantages education or a certain minimum score on an intelligence arising from characteristics such as sex or marital status. quotient (IQ) test as a criterion for recruitment or promo- Unfortunately, special measures exemptions have often tion was discriminatory in effect against the black com- been very narrowly interpreted by the courts when men plainant and could not be defended as directly job-related. have brought complaints of being discriminated against by The court determined that the legal proscription of dis- “women-only” programs. Another exemption that rou- crimination in the Civil Rights Act extended to “practices tinely forms part of such legislation covers special meas- that are fair in form but discriminatory in operation.” ures for the protection of maternity. Other characteristic Similarly, it is now widely recognized that apparently exemptions are for situations where sex is a “bona fide oc- gender-neutral requirements may discriminate in effect cupational qualification.” against women. In 1984, in Holmes v. the Home Office, it Later legislation often prohibited unwelcome sexual was found under the U.K. Sex Discrimination Act that the conduct, particularly in the workplace or in educational in- refusal to make part-time work available to the complain- stitutions, where the victim might reasonably feel of- ant after return from maternity leave constituted indirect fended, humiliated, or intimidated. The American feminist discrimination, and the Home Office had failed to justify its Catharine MacKinnon argued in The Sexual Harassment of requirement for full-time hours. (Discriminatory require- Working Women (1979) that sexual harassment was a form

69 ANTIDISCRIMINATION of sex discrimination, an argument subsequently accepted funding of public interest advocacy are two ways in which by courts. She was largely responsible for “naming” this the disadvantages of complaint-based legislation can be phenomenon, which earlier generations of women had mitigated. Class actions have been most common in the thought was just called life. She later commented (1987) United States, where contingent fees are available as an in- that the experience of providing legal remedies for sexual centive for lawyers to take on such litigation. The Canadian harassment suggested that legal initiatives designed from Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) was established women’s real experience of violations could make a differ- by feminist lawyers in 1985 to help women exercise their ence. Her attempt (together with Andrea Dworkin) to con- constitutional equality rights. LEAF has received substan- strue pornography as a form of sex discrimination proved tial public as well as private funding and has been involved more controversial, both with civil libertarians and with in more than 100 test cases. many feminists. Nonetheless, complaint-based approaches have definite Discrimination based on sexual orientation is not explic- limitations as a means of achieving social reform. Recogni- itly included in the international instruments relating to sex tion of these limitations led to increased emphasis on af- discrimination (or in domestic legislation closely tied to firmative action—known as “positive action” in Europe such international instruments), and same-sex relations are and “employment equity” in Canada. Affirmative action not protected by marital status provisions. Discrimination places the onus on employers to identify sources of direct, on the grounds of sexual orientation or sex of partner may, indirect, or systemic discrimination within their organiza- however, be proscribed in omnibus antidiscrimination or tions and to develop programs involving a series of steps to equal opportunity legislation. A considerable amount of remove barriers and achieve measurable improvement. antidiscrimination legislation is of this omnibus charac- Typically such programs involve allocation of management ter—for example, prohibiting discrimination on a range of responsibility; appointment of an action officer; consulta- grounds such as sex, race, disability, age, and sexual prefer- tion; the production of relevant statistics, strategies, timeta- ence. Complaints of discrimination on more than one bles and targets; and monitoring, evaluation, and reporting ground (for example, sex and race or age and sex) may be mechanisms. handled under such legislation. The term equal employment opportunity (EEO) is also There has been debate over the relative merits of omni- used, as here, for such voluntary or legislated programs, bus and specialized legislation regarding sex discrimina- although EEO is the hoped-for outcome rather than the tion, but in both cases prohibition of sex-related forms of means of achieving it. The term affirmative action has been discrimination such as sexual harassment became more de- associated with pioneering measures in the United States tailed and specific in the 1980s as a result of both accumu- and, to a lesser extent, in Canada, and with the remedial lated case law and legislative amendments. One area that imposition of numerical quotas by their courts—seen by became important was discrimination based on critics as “reverse discrimination.” Controversy over the “demeanor”—that is, discrimination resulting from stere- nature and effectiveness of the EEO approach is examined otyped expectations of gender-appropriate behavior and later in this article. double standards. EEO programs tackle issues such as the distribution of As we shall see below, discrimination on the grounds of women in organizations and the training, staff develop- family responsibilities (or parental or career status) was ment, and promotional opportunities available to them. Re- frequently added to antidiscrimination legislation. Other cruitment practices and promotion criteria as well as the grounds made explicit in different Australian jurisdictions criteria used in job classification and performance ap- in the 1990s included potential pregnancy (in addition to praisal are examined for gender bias. EEO programs also pregnancy, breast feeding, the identity of a spouse, and oc- try to tackle broader issues of organizational culture, in- cupation (the last to protect sex workers). cluding the accommodation of family responsibilities and Antidiscrimination legislation is usually complaint- forms of work-based harassment or exclusion. Mentoring based and oriented toward providing remedies for discrimi- systems are sometimes developed for women or members nation that has already occurred. Critics have pointed out of other disadvantaged groups so that they can become fa- that the onus for reform is thus placed on the victims of miliar with the unwritten rules of the organization. discrimination, and little impact is made on forms of sys- The need for affirmative action was confirmed by the temic discrimination such as the sex segregation of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Dis- labor market and the undervaluing of women’s work (for crimination against Women, adopted in 1979 after more example, Thornton, 1990). Class actions and government than a decade’s work by the Commission on the Status of

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Women. The Convention does not prohibit differential cousin of the international human rights treaty bodies treatment on the basis of sex, but only differential treatment (Byrnes, 1989). It is the only such body with a limitation adverse to women’s equal enjoyment of human rights. In (two weeks) placed on its annual meeting time, causing a 1988 the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination substantial backlog in consideration of reports. Moreover, against Women (CEDAW), the body responsible for moni- the Convention does not provide for CEDAW to receive toring implementation of the Convention, recommended complaints from individuals, unlike the Racial Discrimina- that “States Parties make more use of temporary special tion Convention or the International Covenant on Civil and measures such as positive action, preferential treatment or Political Rights. quota systems to advance women’s integration into educa- CEDAW has had fewer resources than the other (male- tion, the economy, politics and employment.” dominated) treaty bodies that have been serviced by the The Convention builds on the guarantees of equality and Human Rights Center in Geneva. CEDAW has been serv- nondiscrimination in the UN Charter, the Universal Decla- iced by the UN Division for the Advancement of Women, ration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on based in Vienna, and now in New York, which may have civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant contributed to its marginalization. The 1993 World Confer- on Social, Economic, and Cultural Rights. It extends the ence on Human Rights in Vienna called for the greater inte- principle of equality into the private as well as the public gration of women’s rights into the international human sphere and deals with sexist attitudes as well as discrimina- rights system. tory actions. Topics covered include the elimination of For a time there was one nongovernmental organization stereotyped concepts of the roles of men and women from (NGO) focusing on CEDAW—International Women’s the education system; recognition of the common responsi- Rights Action Watch, based at the University of Minnesota. bility of men and women in the upbringing and develop- Justice Elizabeth Evatt (1990), when Chair of CEDAW, ment of their children; the inalienable right of all human called for greater involvement by NGOs in supporting the beings to paid work; the right to equal remuneration for committee’s work, in providing independent information work of equal value; and equality of treatment in work to supplement government reports, and in querying gov- evaluation (later spelled out as gender-neutral criteria for ernment reservations. It is accepted wisdom that the effec- job evaluation). The Convention requires that the principle tiveness of human rights-monitoring bodies depends on of the equality of men and women and their equal enjoy- such independent sources of information. Ideally, NGO ment of rights and freedoms be embodied in national con- representatives should be present when their country’s re- stitutions as well as in antidiscrimination legislation. port is being reviewed and ensure publicity at home for the The Convention was signed in 1980 by 53 countries at issues raised. the opening ceremony of the Mid-Decade UN Women’s One development during the 1980s was increased inter- Conference in Copenhagen, and by February 1994, 131 national recognition that violence against women under- countries had ratified the Convention. Ratification signals pins women’s subordination, preventing equal acceptance of an obligation to eliminate discrimination participation in public and private life. In 1989 CEDAW against women by all appropriate means, from issued a recommendation that gender-based violence be antidiscrimination legislation and affirmative action to covered by the Convention (although not explicitly men- community education. Reports on implementation of the tioned in it) and that governments should report on meas- Convention must be submitted on a four-year cycle. ures taken to prevent it: “Discrimination is most Despite the apparent readiness to ratify the Convention, dramatically illustrated by toleration of violence and ac- there has been controversy over sweeping reservations en- ceptance of it as a cultural norm.” A UN Declaration on the tered by some countries and debate over whether they are Elimination of Violence against Women, instigated by Aus- compatible with its object and purpose. The Convention tralia and Canada, was adopted by the General Assembly in has been subject to more substantive reservations than any 1993 and reiterated that “violence against women is one of other major human rights treaty. Islamic countries have en- the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced tered reservations over even the general principle of non- into a subordinate position.” discrimination, on the basis of incompatibility with the Another important development in the 1980s was a fo- Shari’a. Conversely, some countries have not entered reser- cus on the links between paid and unpaid work and the im- vations but continue to allow violations of women’s rights. pact of the latter on equal opportunity. The International Despite the important role of CEDAW in setting interna- Labor Organization (ILO) in Geneva has a history of pio- tional standards for women’s rights, it has been the poor neering antidiscrimination measures, including ILO

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Convention 100 on Equal Remuneration (1951) and ILO the EEC, required equal pay for men and women; subse- Convention III on Discrimination in Employment and Oc- quent Council Directives and judgments by the European cupation (1958). The ILO claims that the global trend to- Court of Justice have strengthened this requirement. Direc- ward enactment of measures to prohibit sex discrimination tives have covered areas such as equal treatment in employ- may be attributed directly to the impact of these conven- ment, self-employment, and social security, and a minimum tions (International Labor Conference, 1993). standard for paid maternity leave. Community members The ILO has also led the way on the need for the rede- such as the United Kingdom have had to amend their legis- sign of paid work to enable men to take up a more equal lation to conform to community standards. The EEC has share of family responsibilities. Convention 156 on Work- also provided financial support to increase access by ers with Family Responsibilities was adopted in 1981 and women to nontraditional jobs, to assist women in setting up together with its accompanying Recommendation super- small businesses, and to increase the provision of child care seded the 1965 Recommendation on Women with Family facilities and vocational training for child care workers. Responsibilities. The preamble refers to the statement in There have been a series of Community Action Program the UN Women’s Convention that “a change in the tradi- to promote equal opportunities for men and women work- tional role of men as well as the role of women in society is ers and a considerable amount of comparative research and needed to achieve full equality between men and women.” dissemination of best-practice models, including models of It stressed the need for changes in the terms and conditions positive action in public and private sectors. Current of paid work and of social security as well as the provision themes include discrimination in job assessment and classi- of community services such as child care to ensure equal fication, the concept of indirect discrimination, and the rec- opportunity for workers with family responsibilities. The onciliation of work and family responsibilities (see also the Convention aimed to minimize the conflict between paid Community Charter of 1989). Community legislation and work and family responsibilities to exercise their right to programs promoting equal opportunity for women have paid employment. flowed (with a little help from European feminists) from Relatively few countries have ratified ILO 156 (20 by the economic aim enshrined in the Treaty of Rome of pre- December 1993), perhaps because it requires policies ena- venting any distortion of competition stemming from a bling men as well as women to combine family responsi- lower-paid female workforce. bilities with paid work. However, a number of countries, There has been considerable debate over the introduc- including Canada, have adopted policies consonant with tion of affirmative action EEO programs, particularly in the ratification (International Labor Conference, 1993). Coun- private sector. These programs have been introduced at a tries ratifying the Convention, such as most of the Nordic time when the political climate in western countries has countries and France, the Netherlands, and Australia, have been increasingly unfavorable to regulation and govern- passed legislation prohibiting discrimination in employ- ment intervention in the economy. This may mean a reluc- ment on the grounds of family or carer responsibilities and tance on the part of governments to provide adequate have encouraged employers to adopt “family friendly” sanctions for noncompliance or incentives for compliance. policies, such as flexible working hours, reduced hours for It may also mean depriving EEO agencies of resources, so parents of young children, career breaks, 48-week years, they are unable to perform their role of ensuring that legis- and help with child care, vacation care, and care for aged lation is implemented. family members. Research has indicated that political will on the part of Educational programs undertaken by countries that governments is an important element in the effectiveness of have ratified ILO 156 have been directed toward raising EEO programs, as is the existence of a political base for employers’ consciousness of the impact of family responsi- EEO personnel, whether provided by trade unions, wom- bilities on employees. They have also been directed toward en’s caucuses, EEO practitioner organizations, or strong raising community awareness of the disproportionate share EEO agencies. Without a base that provides political sup- of unpaid work carried by women (in part through time-use port and social validation of equity principles, isolated studies) and the need for a more equal sharing of the load if EEO officers are likely to become assimilated to prevailing equal opportunities are to be achieved. organizational values. This is in any case believed by some Another international pressure point for the adoption of critics to be inevitable, given the management focus of antidiscrimination measures has been the European Eco- EEO programs, and the need for organizations to “own” nomic Community (EEC)—now known as the European their programs and to be convinced that they will contribute Union (ECI). Article 119 of the Treaty of Rome, establishing to greater productivity or profitability.

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EEO programs have also been criticized from other di- has a disparate impact on women and adds to their burdens. rections. Some equate affirmative action for women with So although there is increased sophistication regarding the violation of the merit principle. This assumes that the exist- nature of discrimination and in the provision of legal rem- ing skewed distribution of the sexes in occupational hierar- edies, there is at the same time an adoption of economic chies reflects greater merit on the part of men—or greater policies that undermine the ability of governments to pro- commitment to paid work, greater competitiveness, greater vide equal opportunity. capacity for leadership, and so on. The way in which merit is constructed is indeed central to EEO, as is the removal of See Also those elements that are more related to homosocial repro- AFFIRMATIVE ACTION; DISCRIMINATION; ECONOMIC STATUS: duction (like recruiting like) than to job performance COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS; EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES; EQUITY; (Burton, 1988). NEPOTISM; SEXUAL HARASSMENT; VIOLENCE; WORK: Conservative elements have viewed EEO legislation as a OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION threat to traditional gender roles and to the role of the male as the provider. Women who have chosen to be full-time References and Further Reading homemakers have been described as disadvantaged by pro- Burton, Clare. 1988. Redefining merit. Canberra: Australian Gov- grams under which their breadwinner is exposed to greater ernment Publishing Service. competition from other women. Conservative parties have Byrnes, Andrew. 1989. The “other” human rights treaty body: also fanned resentment at the level of taxation needed to The work of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimi- provide community services, which they believe could be nation against Women. Yale Journal of International Law provided by women “for nothing” if they were not being 14(F1):1–67. encouraged to pursue careers in the paid workforce. Eisenstein, Hester. 1991. Gender shock: Practicing feminism on On the other hand, equal opportunity programs have two continents. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. also been criticized for their failure to grapple with issues Evatt, Elizabeth. 1990. The next ten years. In Ten years of the Con- of class and economic disadvantage and their complicity in vention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination maintaining structures of inequality. EEO programs seek against Women. Occasional paper no. 4 from the Sex Dis- not to narrow the gap between top and bottom but rather to crimination Commission. Sydney. Human Rights and Equal remove forms of group closure that prevent individuals Opportunity Commission. from entering nontraditional jobs or rising up the job hier- Hunter, Rosemary. 1992. Indirect discrimination in the archy. Such programs do not tackle broader issues of social workplace. Annandale, New South Wales, Australia: Federa- inequality and may indeed help to legitimize inequality by tion. ensuring that ascriptive criteria such as sex and race do not International Labor Conference. 1993. Workers with family re- preclude some individuals from rising to the top, even at sponsibilities. Geneva: International Labor Office. the expense of solidarity. Hester Eisenstein (1991) has International Women’s Rights Action Watch. 1986–. CEDAW. commented that letting women in has been found more pal- University of Minnesota, Hubert H.Humphrey Institute of atable than letting women’s values in. Public Affairs. In general, EEO programs are seen as directed more to- MacKinnon, Catharine. 1979. The sexual harassment of working ward ensuring that women can compete for male jobs than women. New Haven, Conn.: Press. toward improving the conditions and remuneration of fe- ——. 1987. Feminism unmodifid. Cambridge: Harvard University male jobs. It is difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of EEO Press. programs because of the number of other changes simulta- Mahoney, Kathleen. 1994. A charter of rights: The Cana- neously occurring in the labor market. Greater equity in dian experience. In Papers on Parliament, No. 23, Can- employment is described by advocates of EEO as contrib- berra, Australia: Department of the Senate, Parliament uting to greater productivity, but there is also a fear that House. employers will switch production—for example, in female Thornton, Margaret. 1990. The liberal promise: Anti-discrimina- process work—to unregulated free-trade zones in the third tion legislation in Australia. Melbourne: Oxford University world. Press. The adverse impact of economic restructuring on Tomasevski, Katarina. 1993. Women and human rights. Lon- women in both rich and poor countries has been an insist- don: Zed. ent theme of recent reports to CEDAW. The cutting of so- cial budgets in the interest of more “productive investment” Marian Sawer

73 ANTIQUITY

ANTIQUITY arm! I could work as much and eat as much as a man— See ANCIENT INDIGENOUS CULTURES: WOMEN’S ROLES; and when I could get it—and bear the lash as well! And ANCIENT NATION-STATES: WOMEN’S ROLES. ain’t I a woman? I have borne thirteen children and seen them most all sold off into slavery, and when I cried out with my mother’s grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain’t I a woman! (Stanton et al., 1889). ANTIRACIST AND CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS Many of the European and North American organizations for slave emancipation were motivated by evangelical be- Antiracist and civil rights movements are significant driv- liefs. The Quakers were an important element, working ing forces in contemporary civil society and are central within an international framework. There was an important components of the history of worldwide democratic ac- link between antislavery and the development of first-wave tions. They are often the springboard for other humanitar- feminism. When they began to engage in public campaign- ian movements, connected by ideas, personnel, structures, ing, address public meetings, and boycott sugar, women and forms of activity. found that men opposed their participation in public life. One of the earliest uses of the term antiracism follows a In Blues Legacies and , Angela Davis world conference in France in the 1930s, which included shows how in the Reconstruction period that followed the anticolonial and antifascist mobilizing (Lloyd, 1998). ending of slavery in the United States, black women blues Antiracist movements vary according to national political and jazz singers suggested new ways in which women cultures. British antiracist organizations tend to identify could live. In their songs and lives they struggled to be free with the responses to the discrimination faced by postwar from racism and abusive marriages, to travel independ- migrants or with some of the solidarity organizations set up ently, to earn their own living, and to choose their sexual during the period of decolonization. The publications of partners freely (Davis, 1999). Billie Holiday’s song the Mouvement Contre le Racisme (MRAP), one of the “Strange Fruit,” a protest against lynching, was, argues longest-established organizations in France, refer to the Davis, one of the first of many antiracist songs. “antiracists” of the Enlightenment, such as the Abbé Civil Rights and Anticolonialism Grégoire. This poses the problem of how to understand an eighteenth-century mind-set in terms of a twentieth-cen- The civil rights movement in the United States and tury concept. anticolonial movements overlap in a number of ways. Ac- Today we would not see Grégoire as an antiracist. He tivists in the United States frequently referred to their situ- helped establish the Société des Amis des Noirs in the ation as an “internal colony.” The civil rights movement 1790s, which argued that slaves were unprepared for eman- coincided with worldwide protests against the war in Viet- cipation. They planned a gradual transition based on a pa- nam, as well as other anticolonial movements. Mass media ternalistic, European idea of civilization and progress, and rapid communications helped to produce a conscious- which the peoples of the rest of the world would have to ness of a global movement. learn. They distinguished between the present situation and Earlier gender dynamics continued in both movements. the potential of human populations. In the United States women played an important part in the The actions of the African American—Caribbean anti- mobilizations for black Americans to register to vote and to slavery campaigners were distinct from those of the white challenge racial segregation and discrimination. Rosa Parks, sympathizers. The black antislavery organizations were tired at the end of her day’s work, refused to sit in the “blacks widespread, helping to provide refuge for runaway slaves. only” section of a bus, initiating a transit boycott in Ala- Sojourner Truth, who had spoken at the Women’s Rights , the heart of the early civil rights movement. Although Convention in 1850, also insisted that black women should women played a significant part, many were relegated to be allowed to address the convention in 1851: supporting roles: typing, making tea, assisting their male colleagues, and sometimes being sexually exploited. That man over there say that women needs to be helped Similar dynamics operated in anticolonialism and na- into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the tional liberation. Many national liberation movements re- best place everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into car- vived stories of heroic women who resisted colonialism: riages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best for example, the Asante queen mother Yaa Asante Waa, place! And ain’t I a woman? Look at me! Look at my who led troops against the British in Ghana in the 1860s,

74 ANTIRACIST AND CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS and the Kabyle heroine in Algeria Al Kahina (Ferrah, in the United Kingdom, such as the Organisation of Women 1999). Women resisters took on a symbolic resonance as of African and Asian Descent, argued that they were subject guardians of a peoples integrity and traditions. In Algeria to “”: gender, race, and class (Bryan et al., women moudjhadiates played an important role in the war 1985). There were divisions within the black and ethnic mi- for national liberation; women were also important in nority communities in the United Kingdom over issues such Kenya in the Land and Freedom movement, and more re- as women’s rights, domestic violence, and arranged mar- cently in Zimbabwe and South Africa. In these and other riages. Southall Black Sisters continues to campaign on cases women were pushed aside at independence and were these issues. Although not all black women’s organizations unable to take their place in national governments or other would identify themselves as feminists, their priorities have areas of public life. had a great impact on contemporary feminism.

Feminism and Antiracism Defining Antiracism With post-1945 immigration to western Europe, discrimi- Although antiracism can be seen as an oppositional dis- nation, restrictive immigration regulations, and racist vio- course, it is important to focus on how antiracists organize, lence prompted antiracist mobilization. In the 1970s, what they stand for, and what they do. At an institutional important debates took place within the antiracist and level antiracism is a constellation of organizations shifting women’s movement in the United Kingdom, informed by between a series of linked pressure groups and a social earlier experiences. Second-wave feminism was part of a movement (Heineman, 1972). It is deeply rooted in differ- wave of social movements in the West inspired by move- ent political cultures. Antiracist organizations vary from ments for national liberation, protests against the Vietnam relatively well-endowed statutory bodies such as the Brit- war, and the civil rights movement in the United States. ish Commission for Racial Equality to more informal or- At the center of feminist arguments in the 1960s and ganizations run by volunteers at the grassroots level, 1970s was patriarchy: the universal system by which campaigns based on an individual or family, such as the women were oppressed by men. This set the terms of de- Stephen Lawrence Family Campaign or politically based bates between women about the priorities of their move- movements such as SOS Racisme in France. Broader social ment, which had a bearing on the feminist and the antiracist movements, such as those of undocumented people or peo- movements. Although the family was the core of white ple seeking asylum, have been significant in recent years. women’s oppression, black women defended their families The main themes of antiracism are antidiscrimination, rep- from racism. They argued that the most important problem resentation, solidarity, and the hegemonic establishment of for them was not patriarchy but racism. an antiracist common sense indissociable from a wider Black women insisted that their specific experience had agenda of social justice. Antiracism also affirms the need to to be taken into account. Whereas the white women’s develop different ways in which human beings can relate to movement was campaigning for the right to work, black one another, respecting human rights and civil liberties. women had always worked, often as domestic workers in Another important aspect is the basis of membership the homes of white professional women. While the wom- within antiracist groups: this varies within and between dif- en’s movement campaigned for abortion rights, black ferent countries. Groups can be categorized by whether women were concerned about the racist effects of popula- membership is based on ethnicity or support for a more tion policies which legitimized forced sterilization or the universalist program (Neveu, 1994), although the same or- use of dangerous injectable contraceptives. They criticized ganization may articulate discourses based on different as- international campaigns against female circumcision for pects at the same time or during different periods. augmenting sterotyping and at the same time ignoring vio- Antiracists are caught between universalism and lence against women closer to home. In France, only a particularism: at one level they argue for human equality handful of commentators stood back from the debate about and the application of social justice. In opposing discrimi- Muslim women’s appearance to ask more about the mean- nation, representing and practising solidarity toward cer- ing of the head scarf for young immigrant women (Gaspard tain groups of people, they also work within a particularist and Khosrokhavar, 1995). agenda. Many black women argued that their oppression was in- Globalization emphasizes an increased consciousness separable from racism but could not be reduced to it, wanting of the international, often accompanied by yearnings for to be able to express their grievances while still remaining the recognition of difference and identity. Politically this rooted in their communities. Black women’s organizations may involve an apparent loss of control of key aspects of

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sovereignty by the nation-state, leading to a focus on the Heineman, B. 1972. The politics of the powerless: A study of the control of its own population and its borders. Under these campaign against racial discrimination. Oxford: Oxford conditions, power leaves traditional political channels; the University Press. result is political demobilization, disillusion with main- Lloyd, C. 1998. Discourses of antiracism in France. Aldershot: stream politics, increasing social insecurity, and swings be- Ashgate. tween universalizing and particularistic impulses. Neveu, C. 1994. Is “black” an exportable category to mainland Economic globalization may increase insecurity among Europe? Race and citizenship in a European context. In J. migrant and ethnic minority populations. If they have the Rex and B.Drury, eds. Ethnic mobilisation in a multicutural resources, groups can exploit the enhanced opportunities Europe, 97–105. Aldershot: Avebury. for rapid communications by means of the Internet and E- Stanton, E., S.Anthony, and M.Gage. 1889. History of woman suf- mail. At the same time, there are problems of alliance frage. New York: Susan B.Anthony. building: structure, hierarchies, equality between well- Yuval-Davis, N. 1997. Gender and nation. London: Sage. resourced and impoverished groups. While creating uni- Catherine Lloyd formity, globalization also stimulates particularist agendas: racism and extreme forms of nationalism. Thus globaliza- tion has produced new problems for antiracists, but it has also opened up new opportunities for dialogues and inter- ANTIRACIST EDUCATION vention. See EDUCATION: ANTIRACIST. Antiracism is multifaceted and various and cannot be wholly separated from ethnic mobilization. At different levels of mobilization (international, national, civil society, grassroots) organizations vary in their distance from policy ANTI-SEMITISM makers. Groups close to centers of power benefit from funding and may help to set the political agenda, but they Anti-Semitism is a special form of racism, directed toward may lose their credibility with the grassroots sections of the Jews and based mainly on Christian anti-Judaism. Of antiracist movement who fear their concerns may be di- course anti-Jewish resentment had existed even before the luted. Co-option is dangerous for antiracists because they rise of Christianity—for example, the mistrust and persecu- claim to be representative. Despite cultural and tion which accompanied Jewish monotheism during the generational differences, “transversal” ways of working, Roman Empire as well as the Jewish people’s marginal common aims, and respect for the positions of different though powerful position in classical Egypt. This, however, participants are possible. As a system of “alliances” trans- is not comparable to the endemic and enduring Christian versal collectives are unstable over the long term, but they persecution of the Jews. Christianity has a specific prob- also offer a more tolerant and pluralist way for pressure lematic relationship to Jews, since it has its origins in the groups and social movement organizations to cooperate Jewish religion and Christ was a Jew. The new religion de- (Yuval-Davis, 1997). This may suggest future forms of in- nied the teachings of the Jewish religion in order to assert ternational antiracism. its own doctrines. The credibility of Christianity was there- fore at stake. The resulting tension is responsible, for exam- See Also ple, for the centuries-old reproach that the Jews had ACTIVISM; FEMINISM: AFRICAN-AMERICAN; FEMINISM: BLACK murdered Christ. BRITISH; FEMINISM: BRITISH ASIAN; NONGOVERNMENTAL Christian persecution of the Jews—ubiquitous since the ORGANIZATIONS; QUAKERS; RACE; RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA founding of Christianity—was pronounced throughout the late Middle Ages, especially during the Crusades in the References and Further Reading eleventh and twelfth centuries and during plagues and epi- Bryan, B., S.Dadzie, and S.Scafe. 1985. The heart of the race: demics. The Jews were expelled from England in 1290, Black women’s lives in Britain. London: Virago. from France in 1306, and from Spain in 1492. The expul- Davis, A. 1999. Blues legacies and black feminism. New York: sion from Spain marks the emergence of racist anti- Vintage. Semitism from religious anti-Judaism. Ferrah, A. 1999. Kahina. lger. Editions Marinoor. At that time the Spaniards had reconquered Spain from Gaspard, F., and F.Khosrokhavar. 1995. Le foulard et la the Muslims (the Reconquista). This marked the end of a république. Paris: La Decouverte. “golden age” of tolerance during which the Jews had

76 ANTI-SEMITISM experienced a certain degree of acceptance. The Jews were anti-Semitic stereotypes are always striking. The anti- then forced either to leave the country or to convert to Semites had no difficulty declaring a Jewish capitalist con- Christianity. The “converses,” however, as the converts spiracy (“die goldene Internationale,” or golden were called, were never fully accepted or trusted as authen- association), that is, a notion that Jews secretly govern the tic Christians. With time, this mistrust led to desperate at- world through their financial superiority, and at the same tempts to “prove” Christian authenticity by referring to time portraying Jews as communist revolutionaries and Christian ancestors. The “impiezza de sangre” (purity of Bolshevists. This contradiction is inherent, for example, in blood) became all-important, and religion became a matter the post-Soviet anti-Semitic Pamjat movement in Russia in of ancestry, of blood, of race. the late 1990s. On the one hand, Jews are declared respon- The Reconquista coincided with the Conquista, the sible for the disastrous and corrupt socialist system. On the Christian conquest of the Americas. Therefore—it is often other hand—a typical anti-Zionist attitude—the Jews were held—the murderous missionaryism in the world outside accused of being imperialists. of Europe’s borders ran parallel to the murderous It is important, however, to distinguish between missionaryism within, persecuting all “others,” all reli- antiSemitism and colonial racism. According to the racist gious dissidents as well as real or alleged opponents—es- view, blacks and people of color were considered to be less pecially women, who were burned as witches. On this view, civilized, more “primitive,” somehow subhuman, whereas Christian missionaryism gave birth to the secular the Jews in contrast were considered to be “too civilized,” universalism formulated in a Eurocentric male science. too rich, too intelligent, and so on. The Jews supposedly Christian doctrine propagates universal equality under (a embodied modernity and the cosmopolitan lifestyle. Envy Christian) God, and secular universalism propagates a uni- and feelings of inferiority seem to have played an impor- versal equality of reason. The criteria set for the equality of tant role in resentment toward Jews. secular universalism, based on a Eurocentric male view- Another difference between colonial racism and point, necessarily led to race hierarchy backed by science. antiSemitism is that Jews were not strangers from another In the eighteenth century a “Semitic race” was con- country but citizens who had lived with Christians side by structed from common traits between Judeo-Arab lan- side for centuries. Colonial racism is based on external eco- guages. Language, however, was an unsuitable criterion nomic and political expansion, whereas anti-Semitism is even according to racist standards, so secular anti- based on an ideal of cultural purity within. This ideal be- Semitism fell back on religious sources. Even anti-Chris- came an obsession that reached its terrible climax in Nazi tian racist Nazi Germany was dependent on parochial fascism, when Jews became the ultimate scapegoats. registration lists for proof of Jewishness. Religious anti- Barely a few months in power, the Nazis had “legally” re- Judaism therefore was a cornerstone for secular anti- duced the Jews to second-class citizens. They were gradu- Semitism. For example, the central Christian anti-Judaistic ally excluded from their professions, it was forbidden for figure Judas, who betrayed Jesus for 36 pieces of silver, them to marry an “Aryan,” they were banned from cultural was represented in the secular antiSemitic stereotype as the events, they were forced to wear a yellow star marking money-hungry, two-faced, underhanded Jew. them as Jews, and so on. This process of delegit-imization In western feminist discourse we also find anti-Semitic finally ended up in the planning of the complete extermina- Christian traditions, especially in the research on matriar- tion of European Jewry. From 1939 to 1945 about six mil- chy. Here Jewish monotheism is charged with killing the lion Jews were murdered: they were shot, were worked to mother goddess in a symbolic sense. Feminist theologists death, died of disease and hunger, or were gassed in the attempting to emphasize the androgynity of Christ require concentration camps. a rigid, patriarichal Judaism as a contrast. The image of the The most far-reaching Jewish reaction to the persistent lusty old Jew is frequently reactivated in discussions of in- European anti-Semitism was the immigration to Palestine cest, for example, the story of Lot and his daughters. initiated by Herzl in 1896 (der Judenstaat). They were In anti-Semitism Jewish women are mostly ignored. The backed by the English (Balfour Declaration, 1917) and image of the male Jew is usually understood to represent founded the state of Israel in 1948. Israel’s politics met with Jewishness. There are, however, a few female stereotypes: critiques and resistance. A campaign was launched against for example, the image of the submissive Jewish woman “the” Jews, leaning upon traditional anti-Semitic stere- bowing to Jewish patriarchy or, in contrast, the image of the otypes, especially the stereotype depicting Jewry as a secret castrating, vengeful Jewess as personified by the biblical world power. It is argued that Jews should have learned figures Judith, Esther, and Salome. The contradictions in from their own history as victims of the Holocaust and

77 APARTHEID, SEGREGATION, AND GHETTOIZATION should—more than others—consequently turn away from and 1990. This system of laws decreed that all South Afri- violence. Their tragic loss is therefore used against them. cans should be assigned membership in a racialized group. The conflicts over Jewish settlement in Israel have taken Different racialized groups had different levels of access to on many of the discursive and ideological elements of political power and economic and social resources. Thus, traditional European anti-Semitism. The Islamization of those defined as white—although a relatively small minor- anti-Semitism is the most important recent change (Lewis, ity of the population—controlled all the major political in- 1986). stitutions; owned most of the land, the mines, and the industrial wealth; and earned higher wages than the black See Also majority. White South Africans had better education and FASCISM AND NAZISM health care, better housing, and better social welfare. Most white women, though owning less than white men and References and Further Reading earning lower wages, generally had a much better standard Adorno, Theodor, et al. 1993. The authoritarian personality. New of living than black men and women. York: Norton. Apartheid was a form of segregation, the division of Heschel, Susannah. 1992. From the Bible to Nazism: German populations based on perceived racial, linguistic, reli- feminists on the Jewish origins of patriarchy. Tel Aviver gious, caste, or national differences. Segregation gener- Jahrbuch für deutsche Geschichte Tel Aviv. ally entails a separation of social activities (for example, Poliakov, Leon. 1977–1987. Geschichte des Antisemitismus 6 housing or schooling) that reinforces and may be used to Bde. Worms. legitimate political and economic inequalities between Mosse, G.L. 1970. Germans and Jews. New York: Fertig. groups. All societies that practice segregation value cer- Plaskow, Judith. 1978. Blaming the Jews for the birth of patriar- tain groups more highly than others. One purpose of seg- chy. Cross Currents. regation is to regulate political, economic, and social relations so that the power of the dominant group, which Birgit Rommelspacher may be a majority or a minority, is not threatened. Exam- ples of segregation are the different treatment accorded to African-Americans in many parts of the United States, enforced settlement of low-caste people on the outskirts of APARTHEID, SEGREGATION, towns and villages in parts of India, and the division of AND GHETTOIZATION some cities of Northern Ireland between Protestant and Catholic communities. Apartheid, segregation, and ghettoization all entail en- Although in segregated societies there are gender in- forced separation of communities that are identified by as- equalities within racial or religious groups, these gender cribed differences of race, religion, caste, or nationality. divisions may have different features from group to The separation is generally between unequal groups. Thus, group. The different forms of gender inequity must be in such societies, greater access to political, economic, and examined within the context of segregation. Women of social power is usually vested in certain groups and specifi- dominant groups may not suffer the same gender dis- cally forbidden to others. Under conditions of apartheid, crimination as women form subordinate groups, and gen- segregation, or ghettoization, gender differences are often erally have better living conditions than both women and amplified, partly because of the need to control the mem- men from subordinate groups. Thus women from a subor- bership of both dominant and subordinate groups through dinate group, although subject to strict controls within it, birth and marriage. Hence particular controls are exerted may in fact identify more with men from that group be- over women to maintain racial purity, for example, or to cause of the shared conditions of hardship at the hands of ensure that religious instruction is carried out appropriately the dominant group. Achieving a universal feminism in the home. Despite the powerful enforcement of identities across the boundaries of segregated societies is therefore in such societies, however, women often have been active problematic, despite the similar forms of oppression in opposing the controls placed on them, and in creating women suffer within racialized or nationally defined bonds across the boundaries that separate them from communities. women and men of different groups. Apartheid no longer describes South African society, Apartheid, narrowly defined, was the political and eco- which has changed dramatically since its first democratic nomic system that prevailed in South Africa between 1948 elections in 1994. The term is now used widely outside

78 APARTHEID, SEGREGATION, AND GHETTOIZATION

South Africa, however, to describe segregation and the ac- an orphanage after her mother was placed in a mental asy- companying political, economic, and social inequality. lum for crossing the barrier. Ghettoization has many features similar to apartheid. Although gender discrimination is marked in segregated The word ghetto was used from the twelfth century in Eu- societies, gender cannot be understood in these societies rope to identify parts of cities where Jews were compelled outside of the additional forms of segregated social divi- to live. Segregated in ghettos, they could work only in cer- sion maintained by the legal, economic, and social frame- tain occupations. The dominant population was generally work. In such societies women are generally not easily able hostile and strictly limited its interaction with the ghetto. to work together politically despite their common experi- From the beginning of the nineteenth century, European ence of gender discrimination. However, both women and Jews slowly gained some measure of acceptance and men have joined opposition movements, which often unite moved out of the ghetto. The term continues to be used, people across imposed divisions of nationality, caste, or however, to signify any area where a group—generally no- race. Thus, in South Africa, action against apartheid was ticeably different from and considered inferior to the ma- undertaken by people of all races, often working together jority of the population of a city—is forced to live. One of in nonracial organizations. Small numbers of white women the clearest examples of ghettoization at the turn of the were critics of apartheid and tried to work together with twenty-first century can be seen in the treatment of the black women in organizations based on class (like the trade Roma (Gypsies) in various postcornmunist central and unions and the Communist Party) or in organizations based eastern European countries. Ghettoization, evident in cities on liberal ideas about human rights, or in the national lib- of North America that have distinct communities of black eration movement of the African National Congress and white, is now usually the result of discrimination in (ANC). In segregated societies such as South Africa under housing and employment and fear of violence. While the apartheid, or parts of the United States or Israel, alliances laws of a country such as the United States do not enforce made by women across boundaries of race or religion have ghettoization as it was applied in Europe against Jews, nei- been very fragile and sometimes difficult to maintain. ther do the laws make it easy for African-Americans to Nonetheless, in many segregated societies, the high degree overcome social discrimination. Thus, for example, the de- of discrimination against women, even those of dominant centralization of schools means that unequal education re- groups, means they are often more receptive to ideas and sources are available for poor ghetto communities. political strategies that try to break down barriers. Women Because segregation, apartheid, and ghettoization all from dominant groups often differ in this way from men of work by delimiting which groups can live in certain places those groups, who may have vested interests in maintaining and have access to certain resources, all rely on some form the system. In South Africa, women’s contribution to the of biological or social marker for members of a particular resistance against apartheid is celebrated on Women’s Day, group. Women, because they bear children, are important a national holiday on August 9th, which commemorates a in this regard. Dominant groups go to great lengths to large and courageous protest, held mainly by black women keep “their” women from living or working with subordi- with the support of a small number of white women. nated groups, except in settings where appropriate rela- tions between groups are established. For example, See Also women from subordinated groups may be employed as FEMINISM: AFRICAN-AMERICAN; FEMINISM: SOUTH AFRICA; domestic workers by dominant groups. Strict rules, how- HOUSEHOLD WORKERS; RACE; RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA ever, often govern the kinds of domestic work they can do. They may be allowed to be nannies to young children, for References and Further Reading example, but not to teach somewhat older children; they Anthias, F., and N.Yuval-Davis. 1989. Woman-nation-state. Lon- may be allowed to be cleaners or work outside, but not to don: Macmillan. cook or touch food. These rules vary considerably from Cock, J., 1989. Maids and madams. London: Women’s Press. society to society. Cockburn, C., 1998. The space between us: Negotiating gender Often women who cross these socially imposed bounda- and national identities in conflict. London: Zed. ries are vilified. For instance, the apartheid system imposed Stasiulis, D., and N.Yuval-Davis. 1995. Unsettling settler socie- strict legal sanctions against sex or marriage across racial ties: Articulations of gender, race, ethnicity, and class. Lon- barriers. The South African writer Bessie Head was the don: Sage. child of a rich white South African woman and a black man Young, G., and B.J.Dickerson. 1994. Color, class, and country: who worked in her father’s stables. Head was brought up in Experiences of gender London: Zed.

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Unterhalte, E., 1987. Forced removal: The division, segregation, a response to assumptions made about the nature of gender and control of the people of South Africa. London: Interna- relations in the past. Many researchers assumed that the tional Defence and Aid Fund for Southern Africa. western gender division of labor was “natural” and thus Walker, C., 1982. Women and resistance in South Africa. London: unworthy of critical scrutiny. Interpretations regarding the Onyx. past often implicitly assumed that men made most artifacts, hunted, went to war, and were the main contributors to reli- Elaine Unterhalter gious and intellectual life. On the other hand, it was as- sumed that women gathered food, cared for children, and were often invisible in the archaeological record because they were not primary actors in developing technologies ARCHAEOLOGY and making tools. Early feminist researchers were able to show the fallacy of these assumptions by examining wom- Archaeology is the study of the past; it aims to reconstruct en’s grave sites, such as those described by Merete Ipsen, the way people lived in the past and to explore and recon- which contained tools and weapons that, in other contexts, struct past cultures. To this end, archaeologists study mate- had been assumed to have been made and used by men. rial culture—that is, things made and used by humans. The The feminist response in archaeology developed during term material culture assumes that the manufacture and use the 1980s with a number of aims and goals. One of the pri- of artifacts and other objects will in some way be influ- mary goals was to challenge many of the androcentric as- enced by and reflect the culture of the period or people that sumptions made by archaeologists and to illustrate the made and used the objects. Archaeologists also study re- extent to which many researchers unwittingly extrapolate mains of humans as well as plants and animals that were present-day values and assumptions about gender into the used as food or domesticated. past. Another goal was to introduce “gender” as an active and critical factor in the interpretation of past material cul- Archaeology and Its Masculine Image ture, and, by so doing, to bring archaeological theory upto- Indiana Jones is a popular Hollywood character who portrays date with a number of sister disciplines already studying the archaeologist’s professional life as one full of high adven- gender issues. Another primary goal was to challenge the ture, treasure hunts, and danger. The masculine stereotype masculine stereotypes of the discipline and to provide personified by Indiana Jones is one that has been widely held women with a support network to better the working condi- about archaeologists for a long time. For instance, in 1949 tions and career prospects of women archaeologists. Or- A.V.Kidder noted that two publicly held stereotypes existed: ganizations such as Kvindelige Arkaeologer i Norge that of the “hairy chested” archaeologist seeking adventure (KAN) and Women in Archaeology (Australia) were devel- and treasure and that of the “hairy chinned” archaeologist, a oped to provide these networks of support. vague although highly intelligent type, capable of correctly Conferences were held to promote gender research, interpreting the most puzzling aspects of the past (Ascher, many of which have had significant impacts on archaeo- 1960). These romantic images have little or no relevance in logical theoretical debates and on research questions and describing the actual nature of archaeological research and interpretations. The earliest and most nationally or inter- endeavor. However, a number of commentators have noted nationally influential conferences and resulting publica- that these images do have some currency in archaeology be- tions included one held in Norway in 1979 (Bertelsen et cause they are often used, particularly in western countries, to al., 1987); “Women and Production in Prehistory,” 1988, socialize students into the “culture” of the discipline (see South Carolina, United States (Gero and Conkey, 1991); Woodall and Perricone, 1981; Zarmati, 1995, for further de- 1989 Chacmool Conference, Canada (Walde and Willows, tails). Masculine images, particularly of “cowboys,” are used 1991); “Feminism and Archaeology?!” 1991, Germany to develop camaraderie on excavations and during other field- (Kastner and Karlisch, 1991); Women in Archaeology, work. They are images that, in the view of many women ar- 1991, Australia (du Cros and Smith, 1993); and many chaeologists, work to marginalize both them and their more (e.g., Claassen, 1992, 1994). Some of these confer- research (see Nelson et al., 1994). ences, such as Women in Archaeology (Australia) are now held biannually (Balme and Beck, 1995; Casey et al., 1998), and many annual mainstream archaeological con- Feminist archaeology arose in part as a response to the ex- ferences now have sessions dedicated to gender and femi- istence of these stereotypes in the discipline, and in part as nist research.

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A further goal of feminist archaeology was to challenge A significant part of cultural heritage management is the the “naturalness” of present-day gender categories and interpretation of heritage for the public. The physicality of- roles. Archaeology as a study of the past is in a significant fered by material culture provides a significant resource position, although an apparently paradoxical one, to ques- through which critical interpretations that challenge tion the way in which the present is understood. The past is androcentric notions about gender roles in the past and used to validate what we do in the present and to help us present can be made. Thus, it is through cultural heritage understand ourselves and our culture. For instance, we management that feminist archaeologists may have a direct may use the history and past of the country we live in to and active impact on public perceptions about past and help us define our cultural or national identity. The fact present gender roles and experiences. that archaeology examines physical evidence further rein- forces the role archaeological research can play in rein- Future Directions in Feminist Research forcing the use of the past in understanding and validating Although there have now been two decades of active femi- the present. This thing we call “the past” is intangible and nist debate in archaeology, many androcentric assump- often difficult to conceptualize. However, the tangibility tions and practices still remain. Initially, feminist and physical reality of material culture help to give sub- archaeologists—in challenging archaeological stance to the past and to the links we may make between androcentric preconceptions—attempted to identify indi- the past and the present. vidual women in the past, a practice that has left two lega- Feminist archaeologists have thus argued that interpre- cies. The first concerns a tendency by many to equate tations of our past have a real ability to influence how we “gender” issues with women; when this happens, the iden- see the present. Studies of past material culture that ques- tification of gender in the past becomes simply a matter of tion how gender categories and roles were organized in the “finding women.” The concept that males are gendered past will have an impact on public debates about present- and that masculinity may be a variable in the interpretation day gender roles. This goal of feminist archaeology has of the past is yet to be self-consciously taken up in ar- significant implications not only for archaeological re- chaeological discourse. The second legacy is the realiza- search but also on how archaeologists manage archaeologi- tion that in many cases archaeology cannot identify cal sites and places for the future. individual women or men in the past, and that the desire to identify individuals in fact limits the scope of archaeologi- Cultural Heritage cal interpretation and debate. Rather, the recognition of Archaeologists in many countries not only research the gender as a variable of interpretation has the exciting po- past but may also be active players in the management of tential to extend the scope of archaeological endeavor to their country’s heritage. Archaeological sites, artifacts, and include an examination of dynamics, complexities, and places are often part of a country’s or a people’s cultural developments in gender relations in the past. heritage. The process of looking after a cultural heritage is called “cultural heritage management” or “cultural re- See Also source management” or even “archaeological heritage management.” Feminists involved in cultural heritage man- ANDOCENTRISM; ANTHROPOLOGY; ARCHAEOLOGY: agement are concerned to identify, save, and preserve NORTHERN EUROPEAN CASE STUDY; HISTORY; HUNTING; places of value and significance to women. Feminist ar- PRIMATOLOGY; SCIENCE: FEMINIST CRITIQUES chaeologists argue that the preservation of women’s herit- References and Further Reading age will ensure that women’s history, culture, and past experiences will be made visible and that women will be Ascher, Robert. 1960. Archaeology and the public image. Ameri- acknowledged as having made important contributions to can Antiquity 25(3):402–403. the present. If women’s heritage and material culture are Balme, Jane, and Wendy Beck, eds. 1995. Gendered archaeology. not saved and actively managed, then it is possible that the Canberra: ANH Publications, Research School of Pacific and roles that women played in the past will remain or be re- Asian Studies, Australian National University. garded as invisible and intangible. Further, the multiplicity Bertelsen, R., A.Lillehammer, and J.R.Naess, eds. 1987. Were they and complexity of women’s experiences and cultures may all men? Stavanger, Norway: Arkaeologish Museum i also be explored and celebrated through the conservation Stavanger. and preservation of the range of material culture and herit- Casey, Mary, Denise Donlan, Jeannette Hope, and Sharon age associated with past women’s lives. Wellfare, eds. 1998. Redefining archaeology: Feminist

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perspectives. Canberra: ANH Publications, Research such knowledge is filtered through what we already know School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National or think we know. The knowledge generated by archaeo- University. logical findings is shaped and reshaped both by the period Claassen, Cheryl, ed. 1992. Exploring gender through archaeol- in which these discoveries are made and by what the people ogy: Selected papers from the 1991 Boone conference. Madi- who seek and find information from the past tell us about it son, Wis.: Prehistory. and how they interpret it. ——, ed. 1994. Women in archaeology. Philadelphia: University For women anthropologists, archaeologists, historians, of Pennsylvania Press. and psychologists it is important that we make our own dis- Díaz-Andreu, Margarita, and Marie Louise Stig Sorensen, eds. coveries, but even more important that we interpret the 1998. Women in European archaeology. London: Routledge. findings ourselves—that we trace the steps of prehistoric du Cros, Hilary, and Laurajane Smith, eds. 1993. Women in ar- women and witness their actions through the interpretation chaeology: A feminist critique. Canberra: ANH Publications, of their bones, their tools, and their utensils. Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian The majority of excavation reports and museum exhibi- National University. tions present the actions of men and women and the rela- Gero, Joan M., and Margaret W.Conkey, eds. 1991. Engendering tionship between them in such a way that the man is seen as archaeology: Women and prehistory. Oxford: Blackwell. active, strong, and dominant, whereas the woman is seen as Kästner, Sibylle, and Sigrun M.Karlisch, eds. 1991. Feminismus dependent and in need of protection. und Archäologie?! Tübingen: Institut für Vor- und This article presents a number of archaeological find- Frühgeschichte. ings from Scandinavia that can be seen to challenge com- Nelson, Margaret C., Sarah M.Nelson, and Alison Wylie, eds. monly held beliefs about the prehistoric relationship 1994. Equity issues for women in archaeology. Washington, between the sexes. D.C.: Archaeological Papers of the American Anthropologi- cal Association Number 5. Man, the Hunter Smith, Laurajane. 1995. Cultural resource management and femi- More often than not, our prehistoric forefathers are repre- nist expression in Australian archaeology. Norwegian Ar- sented trough masculine metaphors. In western European chaeological Review 28(1) 55–63. culture it is the exception rather than the rule for these, the Walde, Dale, and Noreen D.Willows, eds. 1991. The archaeology oldest remains of the human race, to be spoken of as be- of gender. Calgary: University of Calgary Archaeological longing to our foremothers. Association. In most of the findings men have a larger physique than Woodall, J.Ned, and Phillip J.Perricone. 1981. The archaeologist women, leading to theories claiming that the choice of a as cowboy: The consequence of professional stereotype. partner was primarily the initiative of males. Darwin’s Journal of Field Archaeology 8:506–509. theory of evolution of the mid-1800s had a great impact on Zarmati, Louise. 1995. Popular archaeology, and the archaeolo- the interpretation of human—indeed all species’—devel- gist as hero. In Jane Balme and Wendy Beck, eds., opment. In Darwin’s theory, male strength and dominance Gendered archaeology. Canberra: ANH Publications, Re- are the motivating forces behind the reproduction of the search School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian Na- species. Among humans, gender characteristics such as the tional University. strength of the male and the weakness of the female are amplified by the males’ choice of curvaceous partners with Laurajane Smith little body hair and the females’ preference for large and powerful suitors. The Darwinian theory of evolution perpe- trates this gendered division of strength and weakness in much the same way as the Victorians did in Darwin’s time. ARCHAEOLOGY: Similarly, according to such theories, it was man who Northern European Case Study was the prehistoric inventor of tools—tools for hunting and battle. Women’s tools as gatherers—which many anthro- Archaeological findings are the physical remains of our pologists and archaeologists agree was their “natural” oc- past, and when we look at them they can change the way we cupation—are largely ignored, as is the inventiveness see the past. Archaeologists find real things, and as a sci- involved in the development of tools like digging sticks and ence archaeology presents us with concrete, tangible bags to carry the gathered roots, seeds, berries, and small knowledge. But we need to be aware of the ways in which animals.

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Man, then, is the warrior. Some women like to pride important discovery, made as early as 1904: the Oseberg themselves on their allegedly peaceful nature, but in the grave in Norway. Two people were buried (A.D. 834) in a context of this discussion, to be the peaceful sex is to be the well-equipped ship containing coffers, household utensils, passive sex. Do the archaeological findings support this and many other artifacts, including a fascinating small tap- view of man as the initiator in the choice of partner, the estry depicting sword-bearing women in a funeral proces- protector, and the warrior, and of woman as the hesitant, sion together with men. The remains are believed to be passive pacifist? those of a queen and her female servant. When a grave containing swords and hunting tools is Such discoveries make any simple interpretation of discovered, archaeologists see it as unambiguously male. the relative strength of men and women during this pe- On this issue there is widespread agreement. Women’s riod impossible. Not all prehistoric women were depend- graves contain household utensils such as pots, knives, ent on strong, protective men. Some were independent sewing equipment, and jewelry. and equal with men, while others were queens or rulers of both men and women. We do not know how many such Valkyries and Queens women existed, but it seems feasible that there were more A number of findings do, however, support an interpreta- than the interpretations of archaeologists would lead us tion different from that of the weak, dependent woman. to believe. What follows is a discussion of three very different discov- eries, all thought to be between 1,000 and 1,200 years old. Sexing the Remains During the past 15 years an unusual discovery was made Just as there is today, in prehistoric times there was a wide in Denmark: two skeletons buried alongside each other. range of body sizes for both men and women—tall women One was small and slender, with stones on the chest to pre- who were larger than short men, slender women who were vent the deceased from rising again. Buried with the body tinier than large men. Perhaps graves containing swords were a sword, a knife, and a needle case. The skeletons di- belong to women more often than we are told. It is difficult mensions—especially the width of the hips—together with to classify remains as male or female merely by looking at the knife and needle case, all led to the same conclusion: the skeleton. When asked, all archaeologists and the remains were those of a woman. But the sword was paleoanthropologists admit that there are no absolute de- unusual in a woman’s grave; thus this discovery was called ciding factors; they have only body height and breadth and the Valkyrie grave. hip width to judge by—all of which are very much open to The second skeleton was that of a tall, well-built per- interpretation. son—without doubt a man. The neck was broken as it Today’s DNA analysis would appear to make such un- would be after hanging. Possibly the body was that of a certainties a thing of the past. But DNA analysis of remains slave. He had neither a sword nor a knife to protect himself, is expensive and is itself plagued with uncertainty. The and there were no stones to prevent him rising from the slightest contact with the remains during excavation or ex- burial place. There are no conclusive theories as to why he amination can result in the modern scientist’s DNA code was hanged and buried with the woman. being taken instead of that of the excavated skeleton. Thus What is interesting in this context is that the woman has a scientists can at best make only educated guesses about the sword. It did happen that women bore arms. Chronicles, sex of remains. such as those of Saxo, written 800 years ago, tell of women’s The findings discussed above raise important questions participation in armed battle in much the same way as those about the interpretation of gender and behavior in prehis- that recount the battles of the Greek Amazons. These ac- toric times. But unfortunately this questioning has had very counts are usually regarded as myths. Contrary to this inter- little impact on the way in which prehistoric life continues pretation, however, the discovery of the female skeleton to be presented. Time and again museum exhibitions in provided concrete evidence that women might bear arms. Scandinavia present a child’s skeleton with a knife, and Three brooches from the same period have also been viewers are told, without a trace of doubt, that the skeleton found, two in Denmark and one in Sweden. The motif that is that of a little boy who was buried with his knife. Why decorates them is a mounted woman bearing a sword. She not a little girl? As mentioned above, knives are among the is being offered a goblet of wine, is being saluted, and is most common tools found in women’s graves. Therefore, a obviously of high rank and a warrior. little girl—who was presumably taught by her mother— This picture of independent women from the same pe- might have a knife at her side when she was buried. Perhaps riod in prehistoric Scandinavia is strengthened by a very archaeology is as blinded by contemporary images and

83 ARCHAEOLOGY: NORTHERN EUROPEAN CASE STUDY expectations as Darwin’s theory of evolution and gender. back. The vessel was probably used for blood offerings, Perhaps it is thought unsuitable for a little girl to use a and the seven upper panels all show different people. The knife. Perhaps knives are more immediately associated in missing eighth panel probably continued the motif of the the modern mind with bold boys than with girls. Until upper torsos of men and women. They could be male or physical analyses can accurately identify the sex of all hu- female gods or priests and are the same size, indicating that man remains, we can only speculate. they are of equal importance. The men, shown in four of The discoveries described above all come from the latter these panels, have their hands in the air as if they are sur- years of the Viking period of Nordic history. This period rendering, while the women in the remaining three panels also marked the end of a paganism in which Nordic my- all have contact with their own bodies. One touches her thology formed the basis of religious beliefs. Cults of fertil- breasts, while a man fights with a wild animal near her; one ity were at the core of Nordic paganism, which elevated the bears a small man in her arm whom she is about to suckle, status of women, associating them with Mother Earth and while a dog lies beside her other breast, and a small woman the goddess of fertility. stands arranging her hair. The last woman is flanked by two men with the characteristic raised arms. Goddesses and Priestesses This vessel is evidence of the cross-cultural exchange of The worship of personified gods was apparently not religious representations, and it functions in the same way practiced at the time in the same way that it is in contempo- as the goddess status to show the high, or at least the equal, rary Christian culture. Since the mid-1500s Protestantism status women had in prehistoric religious rituals. has been the predominant religion of northern Europe—a Despite evidence such as this, we are still given our religion based on male figures: the Father, his Son, and the knowledge of the past through myths of forefathers and con- Holy Spirit, with all their masculine characteristics. cepts of heroism attached to men. Dominant scientific tradi- Around the turn of the twentieth century there were a tions focus on prehistoric man. These traditions either refuse number of interesting archaeological discoveries, which to take alternative evidence into account or else represent it have formed the basis for theories of widespread goddess as aberrations without meaning or relevance to an under- worship in our past. Throughout Europe at this time small, standing of the life of Nordic peoples in prehistoric times. full-bodied Venus figures were discovered. These statues Almost 15 years ago a group of women archaeologists pay tribute to women and are an homage to the female in Norway formed the association Kvindelige Arkaeologer form. No male figures were discovered at the same sites; i Norge, KAN (Women archaeologists in Norway; kan this would seem to point strongly toward goddess worship means can in English). This association has the dual goals in our distant past. of bringing gender analysis to archaeological findings and In pagan times in the Nordic region the asa (pre-Chris- spreading knowledge of the alternative interpretations that tian) beliefs were central to all aspects of life. Sacrifices an awareness of gender can bring to the field. Similar or- and other religious rituals are believed to have been as sig- ganizations have yet to be established in Denmark and nificant as the work of the individual in sowing and reaping Sweden, but informal networks and multidisciplinary fo- crops. With fertility rituals it seems most logical that the rums create an environment for research, interpretation, religious ceremonies of the farming communities would and representation with an awareness how projections from have been led by women. our present—particularly our gender roles and rules—can In Denmark in 1891 a large ancient silver vessel was found affect our understanding of the past. in a swamp. It was decorated with fantastic patterns, including images of women. The vessel is thought to date from around See Also 100 B.C., and the decorative motifs, together with the tech- ANTHROPOLOGY; ARCHAEOLOGY; GODDESS; HUNTING; niques used, indicate that it was probably brought to Denmark PRIMATOLOGY during a migration from the Celtic regions. The vessel is decorated with many relief images of ani- References and Further Reading mals and people—or beings that resemble people. There is Dahlberg, Frances, ed. 1981. Woman the gatherer. New Haven, no direct narrative in the pictures, which show men fighting Conn.: Yale University Press. with wild animals and marching with swords and shields. Darwin, Charles. 1871. The descent of man and selection in rela- But the base of the vessel is decorated with a picture of a tion to sex. New York: Modern Library. wounded bull awaiting the final merciful blow. The killer, a Müller, Sophus. 1892. Det store Sölvkar fra Gundestrup. Copen- woman, is shown with her sword drawn behind the bull’s hagen: Nordiske Fortidsminder.

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Saxos Danmarks Krönnike (Saxonis Grammatici Historia mothering role, as well as the primordial images of the Danica). [ca. 1210] 1898. Copenhagen: A.Christiansen. mother that arise in everyone spontaneously from the deep unconscious. Like instincts, archetypes underlie the feel- Merete Ipsen ing-toned complexes in individuals’ psyches but are them- selves purely formal, beginning only as a possibility of representation that is later to be filled in by one’s actual living experience. ARCHETYPE Important archetypal images of woman include mother, daughter, amazon, witch, wife, virgin, siren, spiritual part- Archetype is a term occurring as early as Philo Judaeus (13 ner, sister, hetira, and wise woman. In religion, such figures B.C. -A.D 45) and Irenaeus (c. A.D. 130–200), used by as Lilith, Eve, Kali, Kwan-Yin, the Virgin Mary, and Plato (428–348 B.C.) and Augustine (d. 604 A.D.), and Sophia personify archetypal images of feminine potency. adopted by the twentieth-century psychiatrist and psy- The feminine modality of being makes itself known in hu- chologist C.G. Jung to describe “universal images that have man history in various archetypal forms, that is, in recur- existed since the remotest times” (Jung, Collected Works rent clusters of images and patterns of behavior associated CW 9:1, 4–5, para. 5). For Jung the archetype “is an with certain dominant types of the feminine. The funda- irrepresentable unconscious, pre-existent form that seems mental archetypal forms of the feminine come from vari- to be part of the inherited structure of the psyche and can ous combinations of one’s basic instinctual traits, from the therefore manifest itself spontaneously anywhere, at any influence of environment and culture, and from one’s ad- time” (1963:380). Evidence for the existence of archetypes aptation to these factors. can be found in recurrent motifs in world myths, fairy tales, These archetypal patterns are only a potential presence and religious texts, as well as in personal dreams, fantasies, in individuals, never predetermined as to content. An indi- hallucinations, and delusions at every time in history. vidual woman must work out her personal relation to the Archetypes symbolize the life of the nonindividual conditioning images of her culture and the primordial im- depths of the unconscious psyche that everyone experi- ages that address her from her own experience of the un- ences but that no one possesses. One feels the instinctual conscious. Often a woman finds strength to defy and to “driveeffects” of the archetype, its emotional patterns and influence cultural stereotypes of the female from the power images, but without experiencing the archetype per se, be- that the primordial images in her own unconscious provide. cause “an archetypal content expresses itself, first and fore- most, in metaphors.” (CW 9:1, 157, para. 267). In order, See Also then, to be in touch with the objective reality that arche- DAUGHTER; FAIRY TALES; FEMININITY; MOTHER; MYTH; WIFE; typal symbols communicate, one must be wiling to work WITCHES: ASIA; WITCHES: WESTERN WORLD with the imagination and to trust it. Archetypes have biological and psychological aspects, References and Further Reading as well as form and content. The biological aspect denotes Lauter, Estella, and Carol Schreier Rupprecht, eds. 1985. Femi- inherited modes of psychic functioning that are preformed, nist archetypal theory: Interdisciplinary re-visions of instinctual patterns of response, experienced psychologi- Jungian thought. Knoxville: University of Tennessee cally in individual lives as goal-directedness of purposeful Press. behavior, in patterns of emotional response and expecta- Jung, C.G., 1953–1975. Collected works. Trans. R F.C.Hull. Pub- tion, and in value systems. Jung describes this sort of pri- lished by the Bollingen Foundation (Bollingen Series XX) in mordial archetypal image as “the instinct’s perception of the United States by Princeton University Press and in Eng- itself” (CW 8, 136, para. 275). The archetypes, like the in- land by Routledge and Kegan Paul. stincts, are part of the given structure of life, although their ——. 1963. Memories, dreams, reflections. Recorded and ed. patterns may be modified over the centuries. Jung calls them Aniela Jaffé. Trans. Richard and Clara Winston. New York: “organs of the pre-rational psyche” (CW11, 518, para. 845). Pantheon. Archetypes are not determined as to content but are de- Ulanov, Ann Belford. 1971. The feminine in Jungian psychology termined only in form. For example, one’s experience of and in Christian theology. Evanston, Ill: Northwestern Uni- the mother archetype comprises one’s actual relation to versity Press. one’s own specific mother and other maternal figures, both positive and negative, of one’s culture’s images of the Ann Belford Ulanov

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apprentice in the atelier of a master architect or by obtain- ARCHITECTURE ing a formal architectural education. Both routes presented formidable obstacles for women. Whereas the personal Buildings, neighborhoods, and cities are cultural artifacts prejudice of individual males made it difficult for women that symbolically declare to society the place held by each to obtain professional training through apprenticeship, dis- of their members. This is true among all cultures through- criminatory policies in the academy made it equally diffi- out time, from the spatial segregation of women from men cult for women to obtain architectural degrees. in the domestic architecture of almost all Islamic societies, Although the percentage of women practicing architec- to the segregation of rich and poor in luxury housing and ture varies from country to country, it has been consistently public housing in North American cities. low. In 1989 in Great Britain, the proportion was 10 per- Even though built space shapes the experiences of peo- cent, in Norway 19 percent, and in New South Wales, Aus- ple’s daily lives and the cultural assumptions in which they tralia, 3.2 percent. In the United States in 1988, 14.6 are immersed, it is easy to accept the physical landscape percent of architects were women; in 1983, the figure in unthinkingly as a neutral background. But the spatial ar- Spain was 3 percent. While the percentage slowly in- rangements of buildings and communities are neither value- creased worldwide throughout the 1980s and 1990s (al- free nor neutral; they reflect and reinforce the nature of each though in some countries it actually decreased) today society’s gender, race, and class relations. They are shaped women remain dramatically underrepresented in the field. by social, political, and economic forces and values em- The same is true in architectural education. Among the total bodied in the forms themselves, the processes through which number of architecture faculty members teaching in ac- they are built, and the manner in which they are used. The credited degree programs in North American universities in built environment contributes to the power of some groups 1990, women represented only 15.7 percent, and of this to- over others and the maintenance of human inequality. tal, only 2.8 percent were tenured. Moreover, although the Architecture thus defined is a record of deeds by those enrollment of women students in schools of architecture in who have the power to build. Professional architects, be North America made up 30 percent of the bachelor’s pro- they women or men, generally have little to say about what grams and 40 percent of the masters programs between actually gets built, where, how, and for whom. Most of 1993 and 1994, enrollment patterns are very uneven among these decisions are made by men, who are the majority of schools; in some, women may number as high as 50 per- industrialists, financiers, building developers, engineers, cent; in others, there are too few to count. politicians, real estate investors, and corporate heads. Indi- Throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s, the edu- vidual buildings designed by architects as technologically cation and employment experiences of women in architec- and aesthetically unified works of art represent only a small ture paralleled those of other professional women in percentage of this larger anonymous landscape. male-dominated fields. In the schools students were not While it is possible to critique architectural history, edu- taken seriously; there was a paucity of women professors, cation, and practice, as well as built architectural work, and among them the design studio “master” was a rarity. In from a feminist perspective, it is within the cultural context architectural practice women made less money than men of built space that feminist criticism and activism have an and in the large firms were clustered in lower-status ancil- especially important role to play. Therefore, this article will lary specialities and were promoted less. Few had introduce the former and focus on the latter. achieved associate or partner status; fewer still had their own practices. Women, Feminism, and the Discipline of Architecture A feminist analysis of the built environment as a form of The versus the Old Professionalism social oppression, an expression of social power, and a part Beginning in the late 1960s, the “new” lessons of feminism of women’s struggle for equality is relatively recent. The caused significant numbers of women architects and archi- reason is that such an evaluation would logically be initi- tectural educators to shift their energies from proving that ated by women architects, and there are simply fewer of they could work in a man’s field to challenging architec- them worldwide than there are women in other fields and tural practice itself. Advocates of change within the estab- fewer still who are committed to feminism and directing lished profession sought to identify and eliminate various their work accordingly. forms of discrimination and to develop an affirmative ac- Entry into the architectural profession was historically tion plan; to promote careers for and accomplished either by gaining practical experience as an to help prepare women for professional licensing exams;

86 ARCHITECTURE and to revise the traditional office work structure to incor- majority of the poor worldwide are women and children. porate flexible and part-time schedules helpful to women As a result, in the United States, for example, public hous- with families. ing is virtually a female ghetto, with women heading more Advocates of change outside the established profession than 90 percent of households. began to form women’s design collectives in which all The fourth direction, female principles in architecture, members participated equally in decision making. The in- articulated the special sensibilities, attributes, and priorities herent conflict between the profit motive and the social re- women bring to architecture. For some that meant search- sponsibility of the architect was resolved by paying ing for a woman’s cultural heritage and archetypal female members only for work done and using the profits to subsi- imagery in architecture derived from sources in the dize projects beneficial to women. The professional practi- matrifocal Paleolithic and Neolithic cultures. Others devel- tioner identified with nonprofessionals as clients and oped hypotheses about “female” and “male” principles in collaborators by accepting and respecting their values, life architecture based on different socially constructed gender experiences, and aesthetic preferences, even when they roles for women and men. violated the canon of “architects’ architecture.” Gender socialization in most cultures has historically encouraged women to consider the needs, comfort, and Women and Environments well-being of others in their decisions, while encouraging Beginning in the late 1970s, feminist architects, sociolo- men to be self-expressive and intellectually independent. gists, historians, planners, geographers, and environmen- Among women and men who practice architecture, the tal psychologists joined forces to create a new manifestation of these differences appears not so much in cross-disciplinary field of research known as women and the use of different spatial forms and building technologies, environments. Four dominant directions emerged to guide but rather in the different social and ethical contexts in this ongoing work. which women and men are likely to conceptualize and de- The first direction emphasized gender-based spatial di- sign buildings and spaces. chotomies produced by industrial capitalism: the segrega- In 1941 Henry Atherton Frost, the man responsible for tion of workplace and dwelling, cities and suburbs, and founding and running the first professional architecture private life from public existence. Academicians analyzed school for women in the United States, the Cambridge how prescriptive residential zoning prevents the establish- School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (1917– ment of neighborhood-based commercial services essential 1942), wrote: “The woman architect is interested in hous- to women and prohibits home occupations that would ing rather than houses, in community centers for the make the combination of work and family roles easier. Ar- masses rather than in neighborhood clubs for the elect…. chitects and planners proposed designing new forms of Her interest in her profession embraces its social and hu- congregate and cohousing in neighborhoods that would man implications” (Stevens, 1977:91–95). encourage personal support, companionship, and the shar- In an interview in Paris in 1929 the English architect ing of domestic tasks. and designer Eileen Gray compared her work with the The second direction, environmental fit, provided em- “new” modern architecture with which her male contem- pirical research on the compatibility between the activities poraries—masters of the modern movement like Walter that characterize women’s daily lives and the design of Gropius, Le Corbusier, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe— dwellings, neighborhoods, and cities. For example, in were obsessed: North America, inner-city neighborhoods that are often labeled as deteriorating and disorganized by professional This intellectual coldness which we have arrived at urban planners frequently provide precisely the kinds of and which interprets only too well the hard laws of services that divorced mothers need: child care, schools, modern machinery can only be a temporary phe- public transportation, shopping, apartment houses, wel- nomenon…. I want to develop these formulas and fare, and social services. push them to the point at which they are in contact The third direction, environmental equity, analyzed how with life…. The avant-garde is intoxicated by the women are unfairly disadvantaged and rendered invisible machine aesthetic. Their intense intellectualism by public policies and practices relating to housing, trans- wants to suppress that which is marvelous in life… portation, and social services. For example, subsidized as their concern with a misunderstood hygiene public housing policy in most countries is evaluated rela- makes hygiene unbearable. Their desire for rigid tive to its impact on the poor, not on women. Yet the vast precision makes them neglect the beauty of all these

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forms: discs, cylinders, lines which undulate and Elizabeth Hatz in Sweden. In the coming decades, the zigzag, elliptical lines which are like straight lines numbers of nationally and internationally known archi- in movement. Their architecture is without soul. tects who are women will no doubt increase considerably, (1981:71–72) as will the impressive collection of books written to date by women in architectural education and practice on a Gray was far ahead of her time in predicting the demise of wide range of subjects and the numbers of biographies and the noncontextual, rational, and often sterile glass box monographs documenting their lives and work. buildings of the new international style. Her work, though designed with the same understated elegance as that of the Woman-Made Space modern movement and using the same materials and archi- Women peripheral to professional architectural practice tectural forms, expresses an exceptional sensitivity to hu- have had a major impact on the design and use of built en- man comfort, the movement of the body, and the activities vironments. Since the early 1900s women have written of daily life. books of domestic advice that have influenced their coun- tries’ national values, attitudes, and home design; and have The Impact of Feminist Scholarship on developed models of cooperative housekeeping in which Current Architectural Education and Practice kitchenless houses and apartment hotels with communal Convincing evidence now exists that women, to the extent dining, laundry, and day care would free women to work that their roles differ from men’s, use, perceive, and design outside the home by paying other women to provide do- environments differently and have different environmental mestic services. At the turn of the century, women estab- needs. Yet there is little evidence that the fundamental chal- lished more than 100 settlement houses in the immigrant lenge posed by feminist values and environmental design ghettos and slums of cities in England and the United States research has had any effect on the dominant mode of archi- to reform inadequate housing, neighborhood blight, and tectural thought. For the most part, architecture is still inhumane institutions. Globally, women have also played a taught and practiced, and has its content determined and leading role in neighborhood beautification programs, ur- controlled, by men. The integration of feminist theory, ban sanitation and public health, historic preservation, the content, and pedagogy within the standard architectural parks and recreation movement, and, more recently, the curriculum is entirely dependent on the feminist con- environmental conservation movement. sciousness of those doing the teaching; and most archi- At the community level, women have organized to tects, be they women or men, still practice in traditional solve the problems that directly affect them, their fami- ways, serving clients who commission projects that usu- lies, and their neighbors. In the United States, Bertha ally have little to do with social justice or benefiting Gilke in St. Louis and Kimi Gray in Washington, D.C., women. formed selfmanagement tenant organizations in some of The obstacles women historically faced that hindered the country’s most shameful public housing develop- their careers as architectural practitioners have ensured ments, transforming these “projects” from places of ne- that very few have achieved more than a modest reputa- glect to homes that are safe and clean. Women worldwide tion. Some notable exceptions include, from the United have led rent strikes, formed housing committees, and States, Julia Morgan (1872–1957), Marion Mahony Grif- sheltered one another. fin (1891–1961, whose work is best known in Australia), Grassroots women’s groups like the National Congress Denise Scott Brown, Adel Naude Santos, Elizabeth Plater- of Neighborhood Women in Brooklyn and the Women’s Zyberk, and Jane Thompson. The Iraqi-born architect Research and Development Center in Cincinnati have Zaha Hadid lives in London; Jane Drew and Christine turned old, abandoned buildings into affordable housing Hawley are also in Britain. Other well-known architects with support services for low-income and elderly women. are Eve Laron and Christine Vadasz in Australia; Itsuko Canadian women have established numerous cooperative Hasegawa in Japan; Odilfia Suarez in Argentina; Sol housing developments for women and formed an organiza- Madridejos and Marta Maiz in Spain; Minette DeSilva, tion called METRAC—the Toronto Metro Action Commit- Eulie Chowdhury, and Elizabeth Ghuman in India; Edith tee on Public Violence Against Women and Children—that Girard, Marina Devillers, and Lena Perot in France; has raised awareness and affected public policy regarding Gillian Hopwood in Nigeria; Diana Lee-Smith in Kenya; the connections among transportation, safety, and women’s Gae Aulenti in Italy; Karla Kowalski in Austria; Natalya participation in the workforce. The Pancha Carrasco Wom- Zakharina in Russia; Ada KarmiMelamede in Israel; and en’s Cooperative in Costa Rica wasformed by women,

88 ARCHITECTURE most of them housewives, who wanted to run small busi- standing denies them the right to own property, which nesses from their homes so that they could look after their means they cannot protect themselves and their children families and earn an income as well. The Nairobi-based or- from domestic instability and violence or provide collateral ganization Habitat International Coalition (HIC) Women to gain access to credit or capital. and Shelter Network links people and organizations work- An estimated one-third of the world’s households are ing on issues of women and shelter in Africa, Asia, Europe, now headed by women. In parts of Africa and many ur- Latin America, and North America. ban areas, especially in Latin America, the figure is In countries worldwide, women have created centers for greater than 50 percent; in the squalid refugee camps in day care, health care, and battered and homeless women Central America and the deplorable public housing and children. They have marched together to “take back the projects of North America, the figure exceeds 90 per- night,” reclaiming public streets from pornographers and cent. Yet the universal favoritism bestowed on the male- rapists; led sit-ins in public buildings and spaces to protest headed family guarantees that the selection process for segregation; occupied vacant houses as urban squatters be- recipients of affordable rental and subsidized housing cause their governments will not provide for them; and es- will screen out female-headed households. Moreover, tablished peace camps at the sites of nuclear missile depots households headed by women are more likely than any in defiance of the male war machine. other households to be involuntarily displaced from their housing. Housing, Development, and Social Justice for Women Homelessness among women is a common and wide- Perhaps more than any other women’s issue, the need for spread occurrence in many third world cities and is bur- shelter has begun to unite women globally in a sisterhood geoning across the United States as increasing of purpose that crosses the boundaries of race, class, and displacement and domestic violence force women on to the nationalism. Through international networking among streets and into welfare hotels and shelters, where they are women, there is an increasing realization that the needs of once again frequently the victims of sexual assault by women in developing countries parallel those of males. In fact, gender violence is among the leading causes lowincome women in North America. From first world of homelessness among women worldwide. The number of slums and public housing projects to third world squatter shelters everywhere, especially in rural areas, is scandal- settlements, women live in appallingly overcrowded, haz- ously few relative to the magnitude of the need. ardous, unsanitary dwellings that lack basic facilities—cir- Between the 1960s and the 1990s major wars around the cumstances that worsen daily, exacerbated by global world have created a vast population of some 30 million economic recessions, military spending, and debt crises refugees, 75 percent of them women and children. Women that make affordable housing a low priority for many gov- refugees, made homeless and widowed by political up- ernments. Worldwide poverty among women means that heaval, are systematically subjected to rape in the camps many can afford only limited infrastructural services such while they await resettlement, an act that is surely a form of as pit latrines, public water hydrants, open drains, and political torture. unpaved roads. Lack of adequate sanitation increases Violence against women also affects their use of public health risks. In and Middle Eastern countries, space and their participation in community and civic life. If where the purdah system segregates the sexes, women who the fear of sexual harassment on the streets causes women do not have private toilets are forced to defecate on stress, the fear of rape keeps women off the streets at night, rooftops and urinate only before sunrise or after sunset, away from public parks and “dangerous” parts of town, and which causes severe medical problems. unconsciously afraid of half the human race. Women living Women’s generally low wages mean that fewer housing in shanty towns and rural areas are also vulnerable to as- units are affordable and that household income is fre- sault when they are forced to travel to desolate places to quently insufficient to meet the eligibility criteria for subsi- satisfy such basic needs as sanitation, water, and garbage dized housing. The high illiteracy rate among women removal. worldwide limits their access to information on the avail- As women from first world and third world countries ability of subsidized housing schemes, which is typically share their varied housing experiences and strategies, they published in newspapers and public notices by housing au- increase their ability to control their housing and commu- thorities; the complexity of the application forms and re- nities, thereby claiming greater control over their own quired documentation further prevents women from being lives, their future, and the welfare of their children. The successful applicants. In many countries women’s legal increasing realization among diverse women of their

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common, urgent need for safe shelter is contributing to a of feminist designs for American homes, neighborhoods and growing solidarity among white women and women of cities. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. color, and migrant, native, rural, peasant, displaced, and ——. 1984. Redesigning the American dream: The future of hous- refugee women. ing, work, and family life. New York: Norton. Lorenz, Clare. 1990. Women in architecture. New York: Rizzoli. Architecture, Feminism, and Social Change Sprague, Joan Forrester. 1991. More than housing: Life- The built environment exists fundamentally as the expres- boats for women and children. Boston: Butterworth Ar- sion of an established social order. It is not easily changed chitecture. until the society that produced it is changed. The estab- Stevens, Mary Ottis. 1977. Struggle for place: Women in architec- lishment of dwellings, neighborhoods, public buildings, ture. In Susana Torre, ed., Women in American architecture: and cities that embody values which support human rights A historic and contemporary perspective. New York: for women and expand women’s life choices holds the Whitney Library of Design. potential to foster healthy, nurturing communities where Weisman, Leslie Kanes. 1992a. Designing differences: Women all women, men, and children can live productive, fulfill- and architecture. In Cheris Kramarae and Dale Spender, eds., ing lives in relationships of equality and environmental The knowledge explosion: Generations of feminist scholar- wholeness. To achieve a future in which all people and all ship. New York: Teachers College Press. living things matter, we will have to recognize the interde- ——. 1992b. Discrimination by design: A feminist critique of the pendence among all of humanity, the natural world, and man-made environment. Urbana: University of Illinois the built environment and learn to think and act out of that Press. recognition. Wekerle, Gerda R. 1988. Women’s housing projects in eight Canadian cities. Ottawa: CMHC. See Also Leslie Kanes Weisman BUILT ENVIRONMENT; DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW; DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; HOMELESSNESS; HOUSEHOLDS: OVERVIEW; HOUSING; REFUGEES; VIOLENCE: OVERVIEW ARMAMENT AND MILITARIZATION References and Further Reading

Adam, Peter. 1987. Eileen Gray: Architect/designer. New York: Definition of Militarization Abrams. The term militarization refers to a process by which a Berkeley, Ellen Perry, with Matilda McQuaid, eds. 1989. Archi- group of human beings organize their lives and their work tecture: A place for women. Washington, D.C.: Smithson-ian in preparation for fighting other human beings in wars. The Institution. first half of the twentieth century was characterized by Boutelle, Sara. 1988. Julia Morgan: Architect. New York: world wars that involved almost all people on earth in fight- Abbeville. ing or in supplying those who were fighting. The second Colomina, Beatriz, ed. 1992. Sexuality and space. Princeton, N.J.: half of the twentieth century was characterized by regional Princeton Architectural. wars in which the battlegrounds were localized. The war- Dandekar, Hemalata, C., ed. 1929. Shelter, women and develop- ring parties were both local people and people from other ment. Ann Arbor, Mich: George Wahr. nations. The people supplying the combatants included all Dutton, Thomas, ed. 1991. Voices in architectural education: the local people and most of the people who lived in the Cultural politics and pedagogy. New York: Bergin and other participating nations. Garvey. Militarization is occurring in most nations in the Franck, Karen A., and Sherry Ahrentzen, eds. 1989. New world, although it takes different forms depending on the households, new housing. New York: Van Nostrand culture and political organization of each nation. In a rep- Reinhold. resentative democracy, militarization is often not per- Gray, Eileen. 1981. From eclecticism to doubt. Heresies (Issue II) ceived by the general public. Soldiers in uniform are not 3(3):72–72. Trans. Deborah F.Nevins. Originally published usually seen on the streets; military officers who partici- as De L’Eclestisme au doute, L’Architecture Vivante (1929): pate in high-level decision-making groups with civilian 17–21. leaders often are out of uniform and not identified by their Hayden, Dolores. 1981. The grand domestic revolution: A history rank in press releases. In a military dictatorship, soldiers

90 ARMAMENT AND MILITARIZATION in uniform with visible weapons may patrol the streets. United States) to limit the export of nuclear weapons mate- The national leaders usually appear in uniform and are rials and technologies to other nations. As more nations ac- referred to by their military rank. Variations in these two quire nuclear weapons and the capability of producing their political extremes occur depending on whether the nation own, the nuclear arms race is accelerated. is in a war or a nonwar period, whether there is a draft or a volunteer military force, and whether there is a high rate Feminist Theories and Perspectives of preparedness or a more steady state of maintaining the The women’s suffrage movement before and during forces. World War I produced theories and descriptions of Militarization is a process comparable to industrializa- militarization that are still relevant today. An essay on tion, which becomes part of every aspect of the civil order, militarization and feminism by Ogden and Florence adapting itself to existing institutions and practices. Mili- (1987) analyzed male despotism and patriarchy as the ba- tary values are expressed throughout the culture, with an sic cause of militarism. They described how all aspects of emphasis on authority and obedience, on aggression and social life were being directed by war and preparation for violence, and on the acceptance of hardship and sacrifice. war, resulting in the continued subjection and oppression The purpose of militarization is preparation or readiness of women, and in the “perversion” of industry, religion, for war, which results in decision-making power and public and education by militarism. tax money for the military, often greater than that for Current feminist theories on militarization also focus on nonmilitary purposes. male dominance in all societal institutions, especially the Definition of Armament military and civilian government, corporations, and scien- tific and technical institutions. These theories are based on Armament is necessary for the process of militarization, several disciplines, including economics, political science, whether in the stage of continual readiness for war or in war social psychology, peace studies, and women’s studies. itself. The political and economic systems of a nation are The basic feminist thesis is that male dominance is inextri- involved in the production of arms or weapons; the scien- cably linked to militarization. At the most fundamental tific and technological systems are involved in the design level, men maintain their dominance by the threat or use of and development of arms; the military system selects the force: the threat to harm, injure, or kill, as well as actual people and trains them in the use of arms. The most milita- harming, injuring, and killing. Feminist analysis describes rized nations in the world maintain their global power by militarization as the process that maintains male domi- the export of armament, especially weapons, equipment, nance or the patriarchy, in which preparation or readiness and training, to the military of other nations. Four countries for war enables men to allocate most national resources to (United States, United Kingdom, France, and Russia) ac- militarization and in which the actual conduct of war ena- count for over 80 percent of arms exports, supplying mili- bles men to display the need for readiness and the need for tary forces and regional and civil wars with armament and all available resources. A war may defeat the enemy and at technical military personnel. the same time reinforce the need for military supremacy in The term armament refers to a nation’s total military its own nation. strength—its soldiers, sailors, and air force personnel; its weapons and equipment; its vehicles, airplanes, missiles, The Role of Women in Militarization and Armament battleships, and submarines—together with all the indus- tries, manufactured products accumulated, and raw materi- Women are central to the ongoing process of militarization als needed for war. Briefly, armament can be categorized as and the production of armament. Women throughout the (1) people, (2) weapons, (3) factories, and (4) raw materi- world take active and passive roles in militarization, de- als: the concrete, specific objects necessary for the process pending on the nation in which they live, their class mem- of militarization to occur. People are involved in different bership (upper, middle, or lower class), their race or ethnic ways on the basis of their age, gender, race, and class, as identity, and their age. Their most active roles are as mili- they enter military service, or as producers of weapons of tary personnel, enlisted or drafted into one of the military war, or as taxpayers, or as investors in the corporations pro- services, and as civilian personnel employed by the mili- ducing armament. tary services. Nations vary widely in the active participa- Nuclear weapons are a special category of armament tion of women, from those that prohibit military service for because of the effort by certain nuclear-armed nations women to those that encourage young women to join the (such as China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and military.

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Many women participate in militarization as workers References and Further Reading in the war (or defense) industries producing equipment, D’Amico, Francine, and Laurie Weinstein, eds. 1999. Gender weapons, and services. Prostitution and other forms of camouflage: Women and the U.S. military. New York: New sex work accompany the military wherever armed forces York University Press. are, including peacekeeping missions. It sometimes Enloe, Cynthia. 2000. Maneuvers: The international politics of seems that the military could not function without prosti- militarizing women’s lives. Berkeley: University of Califor- tution, both forced and voluntary, and a steady stream of nia Press. women and girls are produced for this function and re- Grossman, Lieutenant Colonel Dave. 1995. On killing: The psy- lated functions through the destruction of these women’s chological cost of learning to kill in war and society. Boston: civil societies and traditional occupations. Some of the Little, Brown. least visible participants in militarization are female chil- Lumpe, Lora, and Jeff Donarski. 1998. The arms trade revealed: A dren, who participate in the male military cultural values guide for investigators and activists. Washington, D.C.: Fed- and symbols propagated by media, schools, and manufac- eration of American Scientists Fund. turers of children’s toys and clothing; and elderly women Mies, Maria. 1999. Patriarchy and accumulation on a world whose retirement funds are invested in corporations that scale: Women in the international division of labour. Lon- produce goods and services for the military and whose don: Zed. votes or support are sought in elections or public demon- Ogden, C.K., and Mary Sargant Florence. 1987. Militarism ver- strations. sus feminism: An enquiry and policy demonstrating that In the military services, women are generally limited to militarism involves . In Margaret noncombat occupations such as health care, administra- Kamester and Jo Vellacott, eds., Militarism versus femi- tion, personnel, and supply services. They may be excluded nism: Writings on women and war: Catherine Marshall, from certain units such as infantry, armor, special forces, C.K. Ogden, and Mary Sargant Florence, 53–140. London: and submarine warfare. In scientific and technical fields, Virago. women may be limited by their lack of preparatory educa- Regan, Patrick M. 1994. Organizing societies for war: The proc- tion in science and mathematics, or may be unable to find ess and consequences of societal militarization. Westport, employment after such preparation. In the industrial world, Conn.: Praeger. many corporations are multipurpose, manufacturing for Russell, Diana E.H., ed. 1989. Exposing nuclear phallacies. New both military and civilian markets. Many military proc- York: Pergamon. esses require security clearances in order to work in these U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Executive Secretary. factories, and women may not qualify. Women are the larg- 2000. Annual report to the president and the Congress. est part of the labor force in all countries, as home workers whose work is unpaid and as paid workers who may work JoAn A.Saltzen inside or outside the home. In some countries, women, who are half of the labor force, are limited to certain occupa- ARMED FORCES tions, such as nurses, teachers, clerical workers, waitresses, See MILITARY. and domestic workers. These occupations in both the mili- tary sector and the civil sector are an essential part of the ART maintenance of the militarization process. See ART PRACTICE: FEMINIST and FINE ARTS, specific topics. Women’s participation also is characterized by hardship and sacrifice that directly affect their work as homemakers. The use of most social goods for militarization and arma- ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION ment means that basic needs for food, water, shelter, heat- See REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES. ing, clothing, health care, and schooling are unmet or partially met at subsistence levels. The lives of women eve- rywhere are affected by the meager proportion of national goods remaining from the militarization process. ART PRACTICE: Feminist

See Also Feminist art practice is a generic term, created by the wom- DISARMAMENT; MILITARY; NUCLEAR WEAPONS; PACIFISM AND en’s art movement in the 1970s, to describe the relationship PEACE ACTIVISM; WAR between the work of contemporary women artists, the

92 ART PRACTICE: FEMINIST larger feminist movement, and feminist theory. Feminist movement, as it does not encompass all women artists’ practices in art have not been dependent on specific media practice or all kinds of collective collaboration between (for example, painting, photo-text or scriptovisual work, women artists on art projects or exhibitions. Feminist activ- performance, film, video, and so on). They have been ism on social and political questions was fundamental to manifest through all the media available to artists, as well defining art practices as feminist in the 1970s. In the 1990s, as many nontraditional media (such as the incorporation of the work of many women artists has been concerned with domestic objects or clothing into artworks). The term itself different questions of identity politics and transgression, should be thought of in the plural, as feminist practices in from “bad girls” to lesbian identity politics or art do not represent the use of a specific style, medium, ap- . There also has been a renewed debate proach, or uniform methodology by women artists. about the relationship of contemporary women’s artwork This is a contested term, constantly under redefinition, to the legacy of feminist art practice in the 1970s. and the short history of its use also reflects broader tenden- Feminist practices in art have emerged as a truly interna- cies in feminist theory, specifically the debates over essen- tional phenomenon, with a critique of both sexism and dou- tialism and antiessentialism, which dominated the 1980s. ble standards in the art world, as well as through the When considered against a background of critical and his- collective action taken by women artists to increase their torical terms, feminist art practices are part of the equally visibility and contest the current and dominant forms of contested field represented by a shift from modernism and representation of women. Demands for integration and rec- late modernism to postmodernism. Feminist art practices ognition followed the first critiques of sexism in the art cannot be described as an “ism” in the modernist sense of world, and there is a 30-year history of outstanding women an identifiable group of artists with a manifesto, producing artists’ exhibitions in many countries worldwide. work that can be characterized through formal or stylistic Feminist art practice is not, however, concerned with a features. Historically, the “norm” for women artists within celebration of all women’s creativity in the visual arts or modernism was to be positioned as the “other,” and, there- culture. Although feminist artists have been eager to edu- fore, subject to the feminine stereotype—analyzed by cate and develop projects with groups of women, distinc- Griselda Pollock and Rozsika Parker—where the category tion remains between sustaining a career as a “art” is defined and appropriated by men and art produced professional visual artist because of specialized training by women falls under the separate and “lesser” category of and contributing creatively to a project on the basis of “women’s work” (Parker and Pollock, 1987:84–87). Femi- one’s experience or specified knowledge. The separation nist art practices begin with a critique of this value system. between the women’s art movement—as part of the It is useful to consider a feminist art practice as the result of broader women’s movement—and the establishment of a a specific kind of intervention in meaning and method, more specialized and professional understanding of art drawing on analysis of the politics of representation and practices as feminist among women artists working in the challenging conventional understandings in both art and contemporary art market is important. The distinction feminism of “woman.” Mary Kelly (1998) argued that the rests on answers to the question: To what extent does a feminist critique of modernism also drew on many concep- work of art enable political, aesthetic, or cultural change? tual approaches to art in the 1970s, and that it offered a new The conclusions are determined by different feminist means for women artists to contest the materiality, camps: Marxist, socialist culturalist, liberal, conserva- sociality, and sexuality of art and its values. Kelly used the tive, or anarchist. term “the feminist problematic” to describe this field for challenging received ideas of femininity in feminist art Political and Ideological Aspects practice. of Feminist Art Practice In the mid-1980s, Craig Owens defined an apparent Some women in the campaigns of the 1970s rejected the crossing-over between a feminist critique of patriarchy and notion that visual art could contribute to political or ideo- the postmodern critique of representation in a group of logical change except as a form of propaganda. Other women in New York whose work used postmodern strate- women argued that all women’s creativity was to be fos- gies with imagery appropriated from the media and juxta- tered and encouraged. The idea that some women pos- posed images and text to open up questions of sessed special skills as artists, while others did not, was intelligibility, subjectivity, and identification processes anathema to the spirit of the women’s movement as an in- (Owens, 1985:59). Feminist art practice could be charac- clusive movement. These two ideas from different camps terized as a form of avant-gardism within the women’s art led many women artists to withdraw from the women’s

93 ART PRACTICE: FEMINIST movement, since either art was thought of as a luxury sub- movement’s analysis of many social and political ques- ordinate to political necessity or their specific professional tions. Feminists introduced into art many new subjects: the training or knowledge was not respected as possessing any representation, ideology, and iconology of rape, incest, value. In the late 1970s, this division was institutionally re- violence against women, domestic labor, homeworking, inforced by the developing curricula of women’s studies, and homelessness; a reevaluation of the labor of women; a where art was rarely taught, while feminist artists contin- critique of traditional femininity, especially in revived and ued to work—albeit often marginalized—in art schools and critical uses of traditional women’s crafts; the representa- departments. In the late 1980s, with the increasing recogni- tion of motherhood, of relationships between mothers and tion of specialization within the academy, the situation daughters and between women as lesbians; women’s im- shifted and even feminist philosophers looked to the work ages of men; questions of racism, xenophobia, and repre- of visual artists for insights on questions of representation, senting the colonized and colonizer; women’s sexuality ideology, and transformative potential among women. from vaginal imagery to menstruation to pregnancy to im- Women artists did start working together as a direct re- ages of sexual pleasure; the representation of the identity of sult of the women’s movement in the 1970s. Women art- the woman artist in relationship to her peers or to the his- ists’ collaboration in public debates from the 1970s has led tory of other women artists; and subjects that played with to numerous analyses of whether there is a separate wom- traditional mythology and fairy tales. en’s culture, a female or feminine aesthetic, and how this is Feminist practices in art also initiated collaborative and different from a feminist aesthetic. Women artists working sometimes collective methods of working, which sought to professionally in well-established conventions or forms of challenge the notion of art as a product of the individual art practice, who could be seen as producing an identifiably genius, toiling alone in the studio, through the development feminine response to emerging tendencies, were often dis- of group workshops, and through group art projects or ex- tinguished from feminist artists who had a specific cultural hibitions developed with consciousnessraising techniques agenda to reform the conception of art itself, redefine who or with other specific techniques and approaches, like pho- the audience for contemporary art might be, and challenge totherapy. Feminist practices in art have not been confined familiar or stereotypical representations of women. In the to the gallery or museum; social actions, media-staged 1970s and early 1980s, the notion that feminist art was by events, agitprop, street theater, sitespecific work, and com- women, for women, and about women became an abbre- munity-based projects were all developed to expand the viation for this idea. The biological sex of the maker did not audience for art and specifically to engage the participation guarantee that her work or approach would be understood of groups of women in social and political issues concern- as feminist, nor was this credo a justification for personal ing them. expression of all women’s subjective viewpoints. How to define a woman artist’s work as feminist rested on how the See Also work could be read and integrated into a new collective AESTHETICS: FEMINIST; CREATIVITY; CULTURAL CRITICISM; context for understanding social and political questions in CULTURE: WOMEN AS PRODUCERS; ESSENTIALISM; antiessentialist terms. How the personal could become po- FINE ARTS: CRITICISM AND ART HISTORY; FINE ARTS: litical and how family relationships and social and political POLITICS OF REPRESENTATION; POSTMODERNISM: questions could be used as a source or reference point in a LITERARY THEORY work (and be related to or differentiated from other wom- en’s experiences) became part of an important discussion References and Further Reading of the context for the social and critical reception of the Arbour, Marie Rose, ed. 1982. Art et feminisme. Canada: Quebec, work of art. Musée d’Art Contemporain, Montréal and Ministère des Griselda Pollock (1998) argues that this is a question of Affaires Culturelles. reading, not making. For feminist artists, however, this is a Broude, N., and M.Garrard, eds. 1994. The power of feminist art: question about the relevance of their work to cultural Emergence, impact and triumph of American feminist art change and how questions of identity and social, cultural, movement. New York: Abrams. and political problems could be addressed and challenged. Burke, Janine. 1990. Field of vision, Decade of change: Women’s art in the 1970s. Victoria, Australia: Viking. Conclusion La Centrale (Galerie Powerhouse). 1990, Instabili: La ques- Feminist art practice has introduced new subject matter into tion du sujet, The question of subject. Montréal: La art, which came directly from the impetus of the women’s Centrale.

94 ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING

Deepwell, Katy, ed. 1995. New feminist art criticism: Critical Sinha, Gayatri, ed. 1997. Expressions and evocations: contempo- Strategies. Manchester: Manchester University. rary women artists of India. New Delhi, Marg. Dysart, Dinah, and Hanna Fink. 1996. Asian women artists. Witzling, Mara S., ed. 1994/1995. Voicing today’s visions. Lon- Roseville East, New South Wales, Australia: Craftsman don: Women’s Press. House. Web site: Ecker, Gisela. 1985. Feminist aesthetics. London: Women’s Press. Zegher, Catherine de, ed. 1996. Inside the visible: An elliptical Frueh, Joanna, Cassandra Langer, and Arlene Raven, eds. 1991. traverse of 20th century an, in, of and from the feminine. Bos- Feminist art criticism; An anthology. New York: ton: ICA catalogue, MIT Press/Kanaal Art Foundation. HarperCollins. Katy Deepwell Frueh, J., C.Langer, and A.Raven, eds. 1996. Feminist criticism: Art, identity, action. New York: HarperCollins. Isaak, Jo-Anna. 1996. Feminism and contemporary art: The revolutionary power of women’s laughter. London: Routledge. ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING Jones, Amelia. 1996. Sexual politics: Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party in feminist art history. Berkeley: University of Califor- Assertiveness, according to Jean Baer, is making your own nia Press. choices, standing up for yourself appropriately, and having Kelly, Mary. 1998. Reviewing modernist criticism. In M.Kelly, an active orientation to life. Assertiveness training is the Imaging Desire. Boston: MIT Press. area of behavior therapy that concerns the skills of relating King-Hammond, Leslie. 1995. Gumbo ya ya; Anthology of con- to people and the world around one (1976:18, 20). temporary African-American women artists. New York: For a time in the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the Midmarch. United States, many authors and trainers publicized assert- Kirby, Sandy. 1992. Sightlines: Women, Art and Feminist Perspec- iveness training programs as processes designed to enable tives in Australia. Roseville East, New South Wales, Aus- women to change some of the limiting habitual patterns of tralia, Craftsman House. their interaction. Directed primarily toward middle-class La Duke, Betty. 1985. Compañeras: Women, art and social women, the training programs were popular among the change in Latin America. San Francisco: City Lights. many who read the books and practiced assertive tech- Lippard, Lucy. 1976. From the center: Feminist essays on wom- niques in workshops. Assertiveness training programs can en’s art. New York: Dutton. help empower women to make appropriate choices for their Loeb, Judy. 1979. Feminist collage: Educating women in the families and their own welfare. While interest in the pro- visual arts. New York: Teachers College. grams has decreased in recent years, such programs can Moore, Catriona, ed. 1994. Dissonance: Feminism and the arts, still be useful in encouraging women to be courageous and 1970–1990. St. Leonards, New South Wales, Australia: Allen to accept only dignified and respectful treatment. However, and Unwin. the programs also have critics. Owens, Craig. 1985. The discourse of others, in H.Foster, In societies with double standards, assertiveness train- Postmodern Culture. London: Pluto. ing can offer women alternative perspectives on negotia- Parker, Rozsika, and G.Pollock. 1987. Framing feminism: Art tion techniques and communication styles (Winston, and the women’s movement, 1970–1985. London: 1999:50). Suzette Haden Elgin, a linguist, has developed a Routledge. program to help people learn “the gentle art of verbal Pollock, Griselda, ed. 1996. Generations and geographies. Lon- selfdefense” (1997:13). She criticizes the media’s wide- don: Routledge. spread acceptance of theories that women and men merely Raven, Arlene. 1988. Crossing over: Feminism and the art of so- speak “different languages,” and that communication prob- cial concern. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. lems between men and women can, basically, be solved if Robinson, Hilary, ed. 1987. Visibly female. London: Camden. each learns the “other’s” language. (These differing com- Rosen, R., and C.Brauer. 1989. Making their mark: Women artists munication styles are described in popular terms in John move into the mainstream, 1970–1985. New York: Abbeville. Gray’s best-selling series, which includes Men Are from Roth, Moira. 1983. The amazing decade: Women and perform- Mars and Women Are from Venus.) Elgin points out that ance art in America, 1970–1980. Los Angeles, Astro Artz. while the problems of physical violence are receiving in- Siegel, Judy. 1992. Mutiny and the mainstream: Talk that changed creased attention, the problems of verbal violence have re- art, 1975–1990. New York: Midmarch. ceived relatively little.

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Many programs suggest that women can be empowered See Also to address their problems by changing their traditional COMMUNICATIONS: OVERVIEW; EMPOWERMENT; LEADERSHIP; behavior and thus changing the behavior of others. As a MANAGEMENT; ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY branch of behavior therapy, assertiveness training can edu- cate women to be more expressive and candid. Baer’s focus References and Further Reading is primarily on life in the home, social relationships, and Baer, Jean. 1976. How to be an assertive (not aggressive) woman: some workplace relationships. Pamela Butler uses the term A classic guide to becoming a self-assured person. New “assertion,” which she defines as “the freedom to state your York: Signet. feelings and opinions without anxiety or embarrassment, Butler, Pamela E. 1992. Self-assertion for women. San Francisco: while at the same time allowing other people to have their HarperCollins. own feelings and opinions” (1992:3). Her focus is now on Elgin, Suzette Haden. 1997. How to disagree without being disa- women’s need to be assertive in expressing who they are as greeable: Getting your point across with the gentle art of ver- unique individuals rather on a basic style or behavior that bal self-defense. New York: Wiley. needs to be altered. Henley, Nancy. 1979. Assertiveness training: Making the political Others have also been doubtful about the focus on personal. Paper given at the meeting of the Society for the changing individuals’ behavior. While acknowledging that Study of Social Problems (August). assertiveness training programs can provide guidance and Janice, Elizabeth. 1994. How to put your foot down without step- support, these critics point out that the training can be ping on others. Black Enterprise 25(4):71 largely cosmetic, helping some individuals at the expense Kramarae, Cheris, and Paula Treichler, with Ann Russo. 1985. A of others. Assertive behavior involves an honest expression feminist dictionary. London: Pandora. of one’s feelings from one’s own perspective. It does not McMurrer, Daniel P., and Mark E.Van Buren. 1999. The Japanese attend to the other person’s understanding of the truth. This training scene. Training and Development 53(8):43. method assumes that, if done properly, the interaction Paik, Yongsun, and Rosalie L.Tung. 1999. Negotiating with east should not hurt the receiver (Janice, 1994:71). However, Asians. Management International Review 39(2):103. often the suggested solutions can injure others, including Winston, Stephanie. 1999. Getting out from under: Redefining other women. Also, the training programs usually pay little your priorities in an overwhelming world. Reading, Mass.: attention to the economics and social context of interac- . tions. That is, the training may emphasize treating symp- Wood, Julia T. 1999. Gendered lives: Communication, gender, toms without acknowledging or working on the underlying and culture. 3rd ed. Belmont, Calif: Wadsworth. problems of a society or considering the need for social change (Kramarae and Treichler, 1985:59). Mary Thomas-Gallet In a critique of the earlier assertiveness training pro- grams, Nancy Henley (1979) wrote, “To focus on women’s ASTRONAUTS own minds and interaction styles as the source of their op- See SPACE. pression is the most vicious sort of blaming the victim, right up there with curfews for women to save them from ATHLETICS attack.” Other critics have suggested that the programs re- See SPORT. flect a notion—which seems characteristic of thinking in the United States—that major problems can be solved by AUDIENCE ANALYSIS individuals working through short training courses. See COMMUNICATIONS: AUDIENCE ANALYSIS. Some assertiveness training programs have been criti- cized as being based on traditional North American ideas of male leadership and behavior (Julia Wood, 1999). Today, AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL CRITICISM as we are learning to live in a global environment, we need to be sensitive to a multicultural citizenry. We need to pay The term autobiographical criticism describes a hybrid attention not only to the different expectations for and evalu- mode of scholarly writing now gaining increasing promi- ations of women and women’s behavior in the same cul- nence, especially among American feminist literary schol- ture, but also to the many cultural differences in how people ars. Variously termed experimental critical writing, personal worldwide express their honest feelings and exercise their criticism, cross-genre writing, the new subjectivity, and nar- personal rights without denying the rights of others. rative criticism, it is a politically and emotionally engaged,

96 AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL CRITICISM often belletristic mode that “freely mixes personal elements the sentiment Jane Tompkins expresses in a much-reprinted with research expertise” (Heller, 1992.). essay, “Me and My Shadow”: Although autobiographical criticism represents a radical shift in academic writing, its variants owe something to the The criticism I would like to write would always take essay tradition, with its writerly freedom; to the off from personal experience, would always be in some secondwave feminist tenet that the personal is the political; way a chronicle of my hours and days, would speak in a to a female psychology that allegedly favors “connected” voice which can talk about everything, would reach out over “separate” knowing (Belenky et al., 1986; Gilligan, to readers like me and touch me where I want to be 1982); and to a that sees social loca- touched. (1987) tion (the nexus of one’s racial, religious, gender, class, geo- graphic, sexual, familial, and institutional histories) as Autobiographical criticism—in whatever discipline—has necessarily implicated (and thus needing to be articulated) its detractors. As more of these experiments are being pub- in one’s research (Harding, 1991; Rich, 1986). lished, some critics have branded the “personal” as out- Autobiographical literary criticism, the most common dated, essentialist, antitheoretical, and solipsistic. and widely published form of autobiographical criticism, Defenders respond that although women’s studies have owes something, in addition, to the increasing presence of long connected lived experience and theory, one’s work poets in the academy, to the proliferation of creative writ- and one’s life, most academic feminists continued to echo ing programs, to the historically hybrid nature of poets’ establishment forms in their work even if they challenged prose, and to the fact that English departments house poets expectations about subject matter and research methodol- and novelists along with composition teachers, textual crit- ogy. As to the charge of its being antitheoretical, Jane Gal- ics, and literary and cultural theorists. lop suggests that one can think or theorize through the Autobiographical criticism thus shares, for example, body, while others see personal criticism as an extension of composition theorists’ emphasis on writing as process, what is meant by theory. Others support autobiographical not product; reader-response theorists’ attention to the re- criticism for its accessibility and inclusivity—its potential actions of readers; and some French theorists’ penchant for engaging readers beyond the halls of academe, an im- for “crossing over genre lines, cross-pollinating autobiog- portant goal of women’s studies. As the anthropologist raphy, fiction and theory, and challenging traditional di- Ruth Behar (1993) has asserted, rather than being self-ab- viding lines between subject and object, self and others” sorbed, the best autobiographical scholarship reaches out (Flieger, 1994). Autobiographical criticism may also be to its readers, beginning with personal discovery but finally indebted to such first-person cultural traditions as the producing “a redrawn map of social terrain.” Latin American testimonio and the African-American nar- See Also rative of liberation and literacy. Perhaps China and Japan, two cultures with a strong tradition of “I” writing, will be AUTOBIOGRAPHY; LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM the next great producers of and influences upon autobio- graphical criticism. References and Further Reading A short list of autobiographical-critical scholars might Behar, Ruth. 1993. Translated woman: Crossing the border with include Appiah (philosophy and Africana studies), Behar Esperanza’s story. Boston: Beacon. (anthropology); Field (Asian studies); Lipton (art his- Belenky, Mary field, et al. 1986. Women’s ways of knowing: The tory); Ruddick (philosophy); Williams (law); and development of self, voice, and mind. New York: Basic Books. Anzaldua, Atkins, Brownstein, Freedman, Gallop, hooks, Flieger, Jerry Aline. 1994. Growing up theoretical: Across the di- Miller, and Tompkins (literature, theory, pedagogy) in the vide. In Gayle Greene and Coppelia Kahn, eds., Changing United States. In the United Kingdom, the list would in- subjects: The making of feminist literary criticism. clude Steedman (sociology and psychoanalysis) and Freedman, Diane, et al., eds. 1993. The intimate critique: Autobio- Jouve, Roe, and Wandor (literature). Gould (literary criti- graphical literary criticism. Durham, N.C.: Duke University cism and theory) works in Canada. (See also Freedman et Press. al., 1993.) Gallop, Jane. 1988. Thinking through the body. New York: Colum- Autobiographical literary critics challenge “objective” bia University Press. notions of literary interpretation and evaluation; they claim Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice: Psychological theory to know themselves through literature and to know litera- and women’s development, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uni- ture from the perspective of their lives. Many concur with versity Press.

97 AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Harding, Sandra. 1991. Who Knows? Identities and feminist epis- impetus for the questioning of disciplinary as well as ge- temology. In Joan E.Hartman and Ellen Messer-Davidow, neric boundaries. For feminist historians women’s autobi- eds., (En)gendering knowledge: Feminists in academe. ographies provide not just source material about lives Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press. previously overlooked but a way of thinking about subjec- Heller, Scott. 1992. Experience and expertise meet in new brand of tivity and its form and place within historical accounts. So- scholarship. Chronicle of Higher Education (May): A7. cial scientists have thought about the effect of their own life Rich, Adrienne. 1986. Blood, bread, and poetry: Selected prose histories on their research methods as well as the problem 1979–1985. New York: Norton. of using other women’s life stories as research data. Within Tompkins, Jane. 1987. Me and my shadow. In New Literary His- feminist teaching the reading and writing of autobiography tory. 19:169–178; reprinted in Diane Freedman et al., eds., have been used politically as a strategy of empowerment, as The intimate critique: Autobiographical literary criticism, a way for women to use their own experience and to recog- Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1993. nize themselves as subjects. Autobiography has played an important part, too, in feminist thinking about the diversity Diane Freedman of women’s lives and the differences between women: its engagement with specificity, with a particular point of view, and with the materiality of women’s lives has posed a challenge to theoretical generalizations. AUTOBIOGRAPHY Within feminist debates, autobiography occupies an im- portant place between theory and practice and has been a Autobiography is a literary term that refers to a writer’s ac- site of questioning of the relevance of postmodernist theory count of his or her own life. Used to define a literary genre, to a feminist political agenda; at the same time, it provides autobiography means the retrospective narrative of the au- a focus for the development of complex arguments about thor’s life. Feminist critics, however, have sometimes used subjectivity and about the danger of collapsing the “tex- the term more flexibly to include memoirs and journals, tual” or the “literary” into too simple or direct a notion of perceiving the ways that genre and gender are inextricably “experience.” Julia Swindells argues that in their autobiog- intertwined. Genre, used as a set of rules to define literary raphies, nineteenth-century working women turned to the texts, can preserve a hierarchy of texts that are like each “literary,” to inherited models of melodrama or romance, other. The assumption that autobiographical subjects can as a response to the difficulty of writing about what is gen- present a unified and coherent narrative about themselves, der-specific. An understanding of subjectivity depends on which is also representative of their era or even of humanity reading the “textual” or the intertextual and being aware of in general, prevents much of women’s autobiographical “slippages” (1985). writing from being included within generic classifications. Shari Benstock, using Virginia Woolf as her primary The study of women’s autobiography has therefore re- example, has explored the division within the autobio- quired questioning the accepted definitions and theories of graphical subject between writer and written, je and moi, autobiography, along with the discovery of women’s texts conscious and unconscious. The autobiographer aspires and the identification of their historical and literary impor- to a knowledge of herself which she can never have, and tance. Autobiographical writing by women spans different which writing itself constantly defers. This problem of eras, cultures, and literary modes and forms a rich and di- autobiography is intensified for women who are doubly verse field; on the other hand, feminist critics have also alienated, situated as “other” within the symbolic sys- traced through autobiographical texts the difficulty for tem. Woolf exemplifies this in questioning both the sta- women of telling their own story when culturally and his- tus of the self and the written in the very act of writing torically they have been designated as object or “other” in (1988). forms of telling that assume a masculine subject. Ap- Bella Brodski and Celeste Schenk, on the other hand, proaches to autobiography have seen it both as a mode of have argued that an acknowledgment of the textual and of witnessing or testimony to women’s lives and women’s ex- the constructed nature of the subject should not be allowed perience and as evidence of the strategies of concealment, to cancel out the “bios,” the lived element in autobiography displacement, or splitting that women must use in relation (1988). To allow this is to lose the possibility of addressing to their own lives and writing. the social subject and issues of class, race, and sexual ori- The study of women’s autobiography has been incorpo- entation. It is also to deny the validation of women’s rated into many different disciplines and has provided the agency and visibility that autobiography can bring; it is to

98 AUTOMATION deny the importance of autobiography to a feminist agenda Automation: Historical Perspective and politics. The principles that underlie automation can be identified in developments that began long before large-scale automated See also systems. For example, in the Jacquard loom, developed in AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL THEORY AND CRITICISM France in the early 1800s, patterned fabrics were produced by using metal plates, punched with holes, to “program” References and Further Reading repeating combinations of colored threads. There are rec- Benstock, Shari, ed. 1988. The private self: Theory and practice of ognizable similarities, here, with the later use of punched women’s autobiographical writing. London: Routledge. cards in the programming of early computers. As with Brodski, Bella, and Celeste Schenck, eds. 1988. Life/lines: Theo- many other aspects of the history of technology, much at- rizing women’s autobiography. Ithaca, N.Y., and London: tention has been paid to the achievements of “great men” Cornell University Press. such as Jacquard. It has become difficult to distinguish the Smith, Sidonie, and Julia Watson, eds. 1992. De/colonizing the more diffuse processes through which large numbers of subject: The politics of gender in women’s autobiography. men and women have contributed to designing, implement- Minneapolis: Minnesota University Press. ing, and redesigning technologies. Similarly, the familiar Stanley, Liz. 1992. The auto/biographical I: The theory and prac- landmarks in the history of automation tend to be located in tice of feminist auto/biography. England: Manchester Uni- what the novelist Doris Lessing has called the “north-west versity Press. fringes” of the globe: northern Europe and North America. Swindells, Julia. 1985. Victorian writing and working women. These landmarks include the following: Cambridge: Polity. • 1920–1930s: partial automation of switching in tel- Linda Anderson ephone exchanges • 1940s: introduction of automation in some areas of car assembly plants • 1950s: development and use of the first automated ma- AUTOMATION chine tools • 1960s: development of the first industrial robots The term automation commonly refers to the partial replace- • 1970s: spread of word processing and other forms of ment of human labor by machines. What makes this different office automation from mechanization is that automation usually requires a • 1980s: development of “flexible manufacturing sys- combination of mechanical devices and systems for pro- tems” (FMS), aiming to integrate computer-based sys- gramming, monitoring, and control; this includes the capac- tems that were previously separate, at shop floor, office, ity for a degree of self-adjustment in response to feedback. and management levels Domestic central heating systems provide one simple il- lustration of this combination. The boiler and pump come Automation: Issues for Women on in response to an electric timer and to a thermostat set at and for Gender Relations a certain level; once the temperature in the house reaches As with technology more generally, automation has been this level, the heating switches off again. Examples in seen as bringing about both salvation and disaster. In 1964, which automation is in use on a large scale include steel for example, Robert Blauner’s study predicted that auto- rolling mills, chemical processing plants, and major banks. mated systems would release workers from the drudgery of In these contexts, automated systems are used to physically routine tasks; a decade later, Harry Braverman saw auto- handle materials (a molten steel ingot, a batch of checks), mation as part of a process in which technologies are used and to monitor the processing of these within preset con- to “deskill” and degrade human labor, within a wider pat- straints (rolling the steel to a given thickness, sorting and tern of managerial control. Both views tended to see tech- recording written details within given formats). nology as a “cause” of change in its own right, rather than There have been conflicting views about the scope and as an integral part of social and cultural relations. Both also significance of automation; this article explores some of saw women in the passive role of beneficiary or victim— these with particular reference to gender relations, follow- rather than as active participants in technological change. ing a short overview of important features of the develop- But in practice, changes in the workplace, in mass commu- ment of automated systems. nications, and in the home have proved double-edged and

99 AUTOMATION far more complex than either Blauner or Braverman could the “smart” or “self-servicing” automated house that has anticipate. Word processing, for example, has neither emerged in some social science literature: more high-tech “freed” women clerical workers from routine typing nor systems in the home will be as open to differing interpreta- destroyed women’s employment in offices. Office comput- tions and possibilities as those in the office or the factory. ers can be used to speed up the large-scale production of Some of the most thought-provoking feminist assess- standard letters and documents—intensifying the pressure ments of automation (and technology more generally) have of work for the clerical staff in a bank, for instance. Com- been developed in fiction. In her novel The Female Man, puters can also enable community or labor organizations to first published in 1975, Joanna Russ created a “smart communicate rapidly across international boundaries, in house” that not only cleaned itself but also provided a very order to share information and to develop political responsive artificial lover: an imaginative leap somewhat campaigns. beyond the confines of interactive links between computer, A number of studies by women have examined proc- cooker, vacuum cleaner, and washing machine. Two novels esses of automation from a gender perspective. Cynthia by Marge Piercy, published in 1979 and 1992, explore the Cockburn (1983, 1985) has examined the ways in which contrasting political choices embodied in automated sys- technological systems—including automation—tend to be tems: intensified surveillance and entrenched inequality or associated with masculinity in western societies; at the cooperative networks, in which both men and women can same time, she shows how processes of technological literally wire themselves up to the Internet, and in which change and development can also create tension within es- automated systems are a shared sphere of activity rather tablished divisions of labor. Automation in printing or in than an external threat or promise. garment manufacture, for instance, has brought an empha- sis on keyboard skills rather than on crude physical See Also strength. Cockburn describes the intense personal conflicts COMPUTING: OVERVIEW; DETERMINISM: ECONOMIC; experienced by men contemplating the prospect of relying INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY; NETWORKS: ELECTRONIC; on skills previously associated with femininity—a blurring TECHNOLOGY; TECHNOLOGY: WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT of previously clear-cut gender roles in the workplace. References and Further Reading Another dimension that has been of concern to feminists is the role of automation in countries that are currently be- Blauner, Robert. 1964. Alienation and freedom. Chicago: Univer- coming more intensively industrialized. Swasti Mitter sity of Chicago Press. (1986), for example, discusses the ways in which low-paid Braverman, Harry. 1974. Labor and monopoly capital. New York: women factory workers and homeworkers, in countries Monthly Review. such as India, are employed on casual terms by large multi- Cockburn, Cynthia. 1983. Brothers: Male dominance and techno- national corporations. Both clerical operations and soft- logical change. London: Pluto. ware production can be located “offshore” in this way, with ——. 1985. The machinery of dominance: Women, men and tech- potential long-term damage to local cultures, economies, nical know-how. London: Pluto. and labor markets. The work involved in producing and Mitter, Swasti. 1986. Common fate, common bond: Women in the checking silicon chips is a related concern: many women in global economy. London: Pluto. the Pacific rim areas are employed in these activities, in Piercy, Marge. 1992. Body of glass. London: Michael Joseph. which permanent damage to eyesight and other health risks (Published in the United States in 1991 under the title He, can be involved. she, it.) Judy Wajcman’s overview of feminist studies of science ——. 1979. Woman on the edge of time. London: Women’s Press. and technology (1991) illustrates the ways in which past Russ, Joanna. 1975. The female man. New York: Bantam. studies of automation have tended to focus implicidy or Wajcman, Judy. 1991. Feminism confronts technology. London: explicitly on men’s work (as with machine tools in engi- Polity. neering). She also casts a skeptical eye over the vision of Jenny Owen

100 B

BABY-SITTING psychological abuse. First, there is concern that if the term See CHILD CARE. is utilized too broadly, its import will be lessened when it is applied to physical or sexual violence. Second, any varia- tion in the definitions of battery would make it difficult to BATTERY compare its prevalence from one location to another and would raise problems for determining social or other poli- Broadly, the term battery, or battering, refers to some form cies aimed at improving the situation. of physical or sexual violence perpetrated by one or more individuals against one or several others. In most of the Prevalence of Battering: world, battering has the additional connotation of gender- Geographical and Temporal Parameters related violence. Questionnaires on the prevalence of as- As mentioned above, it is difficult to find comparable data saults, police records, court appearances, sentencing data, concerning the prevalence of battery of women around the and prison censuses all confirm that most victims of batter- world. Additional challenges for determining the preva- ing are women and children, and that the majority of assail- lence of assault include the fact that domestic violence is ants are men. The term battering is often restricted to typically hidden. People are often loath to acknowledge its assaults that occur in private between individuals who know occurrence, and therefore instances are not reported. In ad- one another, rather than to violence in public or perpetrated dition, various social agencies, such as the police, courts, by strangers. Most cases of battering involve the physical and women’s shelters, each deal with only a portion of the or sexual abuse of women by their husbands, partners, or victims of battering, making it difficult to assemble a com- other family members. (This does not deny the existence of prehensive overview of the prevalence of violence in fami- battering by women—abuse of women, children, and some- lies from these agencies’ records. times men by women. Battering in lesbian relationships and Despite these documentation problems, the extant evi- other forms of women-on-women battering do occur, but dence demonstrates that battering does occur in most soci- male-perpetrated assault is many times more frequent.) eties. In the contemporary well-documented world, an examination of just about any newspaper reveals evidence Inclusion of Psychological Abuse of battering. In the case of cultures which are compara- In some parts of the world, typically in developed western tively less well documented in print media, similar evi- nations, psychological abuse may also be considered bat- dence is found in the Human Relations Area Files (HRAF) tery; however, this is a more recent association. Emotional cultural data archives, which are “a cross-indexed, cross- abuse is destructive. While no form of abuse should be tol- referenced collection of mostly primary ethnographic re- erated, and ideally, all members of society should work to ports describing the ways of life of people in some 330 minimize their harmful effects on others, problems remain different cultural and ethnic groups from all regions of the in extending the definition of battering to include world” (Levinson, 1989:23). Levinson’s study of these

101 BATTERY data demonstrates that “[w]ife beating is the most common Explanations for Battering form of family violence around the world. It occurs at least The many theories advanced to explain battering can be di- occasionally in 84.5 percent of the societies” in his sample. vided into four groups based on their premises: individual This is a disturbing finding for women, given that “[t]he models, sociological models, sociostructural models, and sample is composed of 90 small-scale and peasant societies ecological models. Individual models comprise approaches selected from the HRAF Probability Sample Files [which] based on unique behavioral attributes, usually attributes of is a stratified probability sample of 120 societies presum- the perpetrators, such as low self-esteem, substance abuse, ably representative of the 60 major geographical/cultural mental illness, or inability to ascribe blame. regions of the world” (1989:31, 22). In other words, Sociological models move beyond an analysis of indi- Levinson’s research provides compelling evidence that vidual characteristics to examine social dynamics within battering is ubiquitous worldwide. the group, usually the family. In this approach, root causes Documentation of the presence of battering is one thing; are attributed to goal-directed aggression, intergenerational measuring its prevalence is another. The first methodologi- transmission of violence, or other stresses. For example, cally rigorous attempt to do so was the American National resource theory suggests that each partner brings material Family Violence Survey of 1975. “This study [published by and nonmaterial resources to the relationship. If one part- Straus, Gelles, and Steinmetz, 1980] measure [d] ner lacks resources, that partner may use violence as a intrafamily violence in a large, nationally representative means to gain power in domestic interactions. Neither the sample. This survey found that individuals faced the great- sociological nor the individual models advance under- est risk of assault and physical injury in their own homes by standing of why women typically are the victims of vio- members of their own families” (Jasinski and Williams, lence and men are usually its perpetrators. 1998:ix). This finding corroborated the experiences of In contrast to the somewhat static processes envisaged women working in frontline community initiatives such as in sociological models, sociostructural models are based on battered women’s shelters or refuges and rape crisis organi- the dynamic powerful opposition between males and fe- zations. Many of these organizations began to mobilize in males within family units. Feminist or postmodernist re- the early 1970s in the United States, the United Kingdom, searchers often theorize in this framework. For example, New Zealand, and other nations. At approximately the social scientists using patriarchal theory view domestic same time, the feminist movement began gaining momen- violence as the result of women’s subordination to men. tum. All of these developments shared connections, and The ecological models incorporate various aspects of “[t]he discovery of violence against women as a major is- the other groups, with the addition of environmental fac- sue in Europe and North America coincided with the early tors. An example might be research to investigate domestic feminist stages of theory development. In other parts of the violence in the specific cultural context of Indian Fiji. world the convergence of development, human rights, and These final two groups of theories have been of greatest feminist praxis produced the framework for discovering the interest to women’s studies. Indeed, it has been suggested nature, forms, extent and pernicious effects of violence that “one of the great achievements of feminism was to de- against women” (Schuler, 1992:2; emphases in original). fine wife beating as a social problem, not merely a phe- Women’s Studies and Research on Battering nomenon of particular violent individuals or relationships” (Klein et al., 1997:1). Following this line of reasoning, The development of women’s studies programs combined many activists propose that the problem of battering is inti- with the grassroots mobilization of feminists and the publi- mately linked with the issue of women’s subordination to The Battered cation, in 1979, of both Lenore Walker’s men, and as long as gender equality proves elusive, so too Woman, and Dobash and Dobash’s Violence Against Wives will peaceful egalitarian relationships between the sexes. stimulated further research into violence against women. This linkage has strong implications for public policy ini- From these initial publications, a flood of books and arti- tiatives. cles rapidly developed: “the 1990 ISIS International Bib- liographic Survey of documentation on violence against women in the 1980s identified some 650 entries from Legal Sanctions and Public Policy around the world” (Schuler, 1992:1). This prolific output According to this reasoning, social policy to decrease do- resulted in significant advances in understanding battering mestic violence should be directed toward the social, politi- and its causes. cal, and economic advancement of women in order to

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achieve gender equity. By this means, ultimately, male ag- PORNOGRAPHY AND VIOLENCE; RAPE; SEXUAL VIOLENCE; gression toward women would be diminished. VIOLENCE, specific entries However, most public policy and legal sanctions dealing with family violence penalize the individual perpetrators References and Further Reading with fines or prison sentences, or in some cases mandatory Browne, Kevin, and Martin Herbert. 1997. Preventing family vio- attendance at reeducation programs, or penalties with re- lence. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley. gard to child custody or access. There has been relatively Commonwealth Secretariat. 1992. Confronting violence: A little governmental recognition—in terms of concrete manual for commonwealth action (Revised). London: policy—of the gender inequities that foster domestic Women and Development Programme, Human Resource De- violence. velopment Group, Commonwealth Secretariat. Counts, Dorothy Ayers, ed. 1990. Special issue: Domestic vio- Economic Costs of Battering lence in Oceania. Pacific Studies 13(3). In attempts to impel governments both to acknowledge Dobash, R.Emerson, and Russell Dobash. 1979. Violence against the costs of domestic violence and to enact effective poli- wives: A case against the patriarchy. New York: Free Press. cies to lessen the prevalence of battering, various re- Douglas, Kay. 1994. Invisible wounds: A self-help guide for New searchers have quantified the economic costs of Zealand women in destructive relationships. Auckland: intrafamily abuse. The idea is to demonstrate that funds Penguin. put into preventative programs are ultimately cost-effec- Jasinski, Jana L., and Linda M.Williams, eds. 1998. Partner vio- tive in terms of decreasing the amount spent on individu- lence: A comprehensive review of 20 years of research. Thou- als’ and families’ recovery. A study by Gelles in 1987 sand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. (reported in Browne and Herbert, 1997:294), for example, Jones, Ann. 1994. Next time she’ll be dead: Battering and how to suggested that family violence in the United States re- stop it. Boston: Beacon. sulted in individual economic costs of “175,500 lost days Klein, Ethel, Jacquelyn Campbell, Esta Soler, and Marissa Ghez. from paid work; [and] with regard to the economy of soci- 1997. Ending domestic violence: Changing public percep- ety as a whole, $44 million were spent in direct medical tions/halting the epidemic. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. costs in order to provide the necessary services to victims Levinson, David. 1989. Family violence in cross-cultural perspec- of family violence.” tive. Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage. The long-term solution to violence against women en- Schuler, Margaret, ed. 1992. Freedom from violence: Women’s tails a commitment to gender equality, described in Article strategies from around the world. New York: UNIFEM. 5(a) of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination Shepard, Melanie F., and Ellen L.Pence, eds. 1999. Coordinating of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979). community responses to domestic violence: Lessons from The goal must be to modify the social and cultural patterns Duluth and beyond. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. of conduct of men and women, with a view to eliminating Walker, Lenore E. 1979. The battered woman. New York: Harper prejudices and all practices which are based on the idea of and Row. the inferiority or the superiority of either of the sexes or on Susan J.Wurtzburg stereotyped roles for men and women. Battery is a social problem which requires large-scale social policy such as ratification by individual nations of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. However, it must also be recognized that long- BEAUTY CONTESTS AND PAGEANTS standing gender imbalances will not be corrected instantly. While societies are working for more equitable gender re- Beauty pageants are popular cultural events that take many lations, short-term approaches such as strong legal sanc- forms, have many goals, and generate a host of often dispa- tions against the perpetrators of battery are necessary for rate expectations. Though the actual structure of pageants the safety of its victims. varies depending on the context, most beauty pageants have a familiar, recognizable format: women contestants See Also enter a competitive event where they are judged on beauty, ABUSE; ANGER; DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; FAMILY: POWER personality, talent, and the elusive “poise.” A panel of RELATIONS AND POWER STRUCTURE; FEMICIDE; MISOGYNY; judges evaluates each contestant, and the woman who

103 BIAS garners the most points in the various categories of the pag- goals to reflect the contemporary goals of women. How- eant—often including swimsuit, evening gown, talent, and ever, because beauty pageants remain dedicated to the interview competitions—wins and is crowned “queen” objectification of women’s bodies, the goals of these events (Banet-Weiser, 1999). seem to remain contradictory and conflicted. The United States sponsors many different pageants each year including the Miss America pageant, the Miss See Also U.S.A. pageant, and the two most famous “global beauty BODY; IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW pageants,” the Miss World and the Miss Universe pageants. However, there are scores of smaller local and international References and Further Reading pageants that focus less on the glamour and conventional Banet-Weiser, Sarah. 1999. The most beautiful girl in the world: constructions of femininity displayed on stages of larger Beauty pageants and national identity. Berkeley: University pageants than with cementing and legitimating local and of California Press. cultural identity (Cohen et al., 1996). Beauty pageants have Chapkis, Wendy. 1986. Beauty secrets: Women and the politics of different meanings depending on cultural and geographic appearance. Boston: South End. differences, and they are often important, significant cul- Cohen, Colleen Ballerino, Richard Wilk, and Berverly Stoeltje, tural events, where “local values and imported foreign eds. 1996. Beauty queens on the global stage: Gender, con- [western] ones collide on stage” (Wilk, 1996). Smaller, less tests, and power. New York: Routledge. corporate international pageants are often sites where con- Echols, Alice. 1997. Nothing distant about it: Women’s liberation tradictions, conflicts, and claims of diversity are simultane- and sixties radicalism. In Cathy J.Cohen, Kathleen B. Jones, ously constructed and maintained. and Joan C.Tronto, eds., Women transforming politics: An Feminist protests against beauty pageants began in 1968 alternative reader. New York: New York University Press. at the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Wilk, Richard. 1996. Introduction: Beauty queens on the global This protest is often noted as heralding the second wave of stage. In Colleen Ballerino Cohen, Richard Wilk, and in the United States. At that time, femi- Berverly Stoeltje, eds., Beauty queens on the global stage: nists protested the pageant by throwing bras, girdles, and Gender, contests, and power. New York: Routledge. other “instruments of torture” into a “Freedom Trash Can” Sarah Banet-Weiser as a gesture of their refusal to be constrained by patriarchal society (Chapkis, 1986). Many feminists persuasively ar- gued that pageants such as the Miss America pageant BIAS objectify and alienate women. Alice Echols (1997) added See DISCRIMINATION; HETEROPHOBIA AND HOMOPHOBIA; that this important argument calls attention to the way in MISOGYNY; RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA; and SEXISM. which beauty practices and rituals constitute a particular kind of politics. The beauty pageant has often been under- stood in a feminist context as symbolic of the various regu- latory practices and discriminatory acts of a sexist society. BIGAMY Objectifying and evaluating a woman’s physical appear- ance—which constitutes the central focus of beauty pag- Bigamy refers to the narrowly defined crime of having eants—has been interpreted as a microcosm of the way that two wives or two husbands at the same time. While patriarchal societies regulate and monitor women’s bodies criminalizing marriage between individuals who already more generally. have a living spouse, bigamy does not address a wider Because of vocal feminist protests against the beauty range of behavioral practices that fall outside the bounda- pageant, the event itself has been fundamentally trans- ries of exclusive monogamous marriage: long-term con- formed. Beauty pageants continue to be a popular cultural sensual unions, adultery while residing with a spouse, form where women are evaluated on the basis of their premarital sex, and casual liaisons (Boyer, 1995). Al- physical appearance, but the pageant itself often appropri- though the term bigamy extends to marital behaviors of ates liberal in terms of equal opportunity, both men and women, in practice bigamy is largely under- access, and tolerance. Beauty pageants in the 1990s in the stood as a crime committed by men who have two or more United States and elsewhere have been forced to confront wives at once. The concept of bigamy as a crime appears and respond to demands that they accurately reflect racial to have its roots in Christian Europe, dating back at least and ethnic diversity, and that they adjust their format and to the Middle Ages.

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Western colonial expansion and missionizing brought Penitentiary 1884–87. Ed. Stan Larson. Urbana: Univer- the European Christian belief in and practice of monogamy sity of Illinois Press. into conflict with the polygamous family relationships of Frost, Ginger. 1997. Bigamy and cohabitation in Victorian Eng- many different peoples in the Americas, Africa, Australia, land. Journal of Family History 22(3: July):286–306. and Asia. Bigamy was a passionate issue for European Hunt, Nancy. 1991. Noise over camouflaged polygamy: Colonial colonialists and missionaries and often represented a light- morality taxation and a woman-naming crisis in Belgian Af- ning rod for the expression of tensions between indigenous rica. Journal of African History 32(3):471–494. and colonial ways of life (Hunt, 1991). Frequently, Europe- Katherine! McCaffrey ans expressed the belief that plural marriages degraded women in the societies that openly practiced polygyny. In the United States, controversy over bigamy peaked in the mid-nineteenth century and focused on the Mormons, whose church formally advocated polygamy until 1890. BIOETHICS: FEMINIST Opponents of Mormon polygamy claimed that plural marriages degraded Mormon women, that polygamy was Bioethics and second-wave feminism were both offspring lustful and immoral, and that the practice of plural of the civil rights movement in the United States in the marriages eroded the marital relationship. Antibigamy 1960s, although they pursued different paths toward matu- legislation, however, was used not to advance the position rity. Persisting throughout many turns and twists in femi- of Mormon women but to threaten Mormon civil rights and nist thinking has been an unswerving commitment to seize property of the church. During the antipolygamy identifying, analyzing, and subverting structures of power campaigns of the late 1800s, many feminists, who equated and authority that oppress women. However, few main- polygamy with the oppression of women, were surprised to stream bioethicists have attended systematically to power find Morman women publicly demonstrating in favor of imbalances in physician-patient and researcher-subject re- the right to plural marriage as a matter of religious lationships or to the background conditions of such rela- freedom. tionships. Bioethics has remained largely insensitive to In postcolonial times western and nonwestern feminists hierarchical rankings that parcel people into more or less alike, who believe that polygamy erodes women’s status arbitrary groups—sex, race, ethnicity, age, and susceptibil- and power, advocate its elimination. The liberation of ity to illness and disability. Feminist bioethics aims to rec- women, especially in Muslim countries, is associated with tify these imbalances. the abolition of the practice of polygamy. For example, in 1957, after gaining independence from France, Tunisia at- The Emergence of Feminist Bioethics tempted to establish formal equality between the sexes by Women have a long history of interest in health care is- guaranteeing women certain rights, among them the elimi- sues extending back to midwifery and nursing before the nation of polygamy. The attempt to achieve liberation for medical profession took control of these practices. In the women through the abolition of polygamy is not restricted 1960s, women rose in protest over the increasing to Muslim countries: in 1950 Communist China enacted a medicalization of their bodily functions, and interest in National Marriage Law that sought to enhance women’s the fledgling women’s health movement swelled. The status by prohibiting a number of practices, among them first edition of Our Bodies, Ourselves appeared in 1969. polygamy. By the mid-1970s, feminist scholars were decrying the erosion of access to abortion, supposedly secured by Roe See Also v. Wade, and lamenting childbirth practices that sacrificed ADULTERY; MARRIAGE: OVERVIEW; MORMONS; POLYGYNY the humanity of the women to the convenience of her ob- AND POLYANDRY; WIFE stetrician and the presumably independent rights of her fetus. In the 1980s, feminists’ interest in new reproductive Reference and Further Readings technologies mounted, and the National Institutes of Boyer, Richard. 1995. Lives of the bigamists: Marriage, family Health belatedly acknowledged the long-standing exclu- and community in colonial Mexico. Albuquerque: University sion of women from clinical trials, the consequent dearth of New Mexico Press. of research on diseases prevalent among women, and the Clawson, Rudger. 1993. Prisoner for polygamy: The memoirs differential effects of drugs on the female body. By then, and letters of Rudger Clawson at the Utah Territorial work by feminist bioethicists was being widely circulated

105 BIOETHICS: FEMINIST in feminist publications, and some was surfacing in Recent Developments and Future Directions bioethics journals. In 1981 Helen Bequaert Holmes and others published an anthology that was arguably the first In the 1990s, feminist bioethics began to catch the attention book to link bioethics with systematic gender analysis. of think tanks, journal editors, and textbook publishers, and It took almost another decade, however, before schol- it is now a credible topic for graduate students’ disserta- arship in feminist bioethics reached a critical mass. The tions. However, although more women are turning to feminist philosophy journal devoted two special bioethics scholarship, their influence on the field is still issues to and medicine in 1989, and in limited. The format of most bioethics texts has changed re- 1992 a collection based on these articles appeared as markably little. As though women’s expertise were con- Feminist Perspectives in Medical Ethics. In the same year, fined to childbearing issues, women’s contributions to the the first book-length treatment of feminist bioethical more established bioethics anthologies have been relegated theory appeared—Susan Sherwin’s No Longer Patient: primarily to the sections on abortion, maternal-fetal rela- Feminist Ethics and Health Care. In the next year, works tions, and reproductive technologies. Despite diversifica- by Susan Bordo and Mary Mahowald appeared critiquing tion in bioethical theory, the prestige of theoretical dominant medical and cultural attitudes toward women’s approaches that rely on abstract universal norms and regard bodies, and Anne Donchin and Helen Bequaert Holmes concrete individuals as instances of generic “man” still re- founded the International Network on Feminist Ap- mains high. Feminist critiques of mainstream bioethical proaches to Bioethics (FAB). Recognizing the need for a theory tend to be classified along with communitarianism cross-cultural perspective on bioethical issues that is re- and casuistry as “alternative” approaches or subsumed un- sponsive to nondominant social groups, FAB aimed to der an “ethic of care.” And, although bioethicists are better foster development of a more inclusive theory of represented on public-policy panels and in medical school bioethics. faculties, they include few women and virtually no As articulated in the work of feminist bioethicists and feminists. incorporated in FAB’s aims, three goals have been central In other respects, too, feminist influence on the direc- to development of feminist bioethics: tion of bioethics scholarship and teaching remains periph- eral. As globalization extends first world technologies 1. To extend bioethical theory to encompass women in all into developing economies, American bioethicists are social locations as well as other social groups suscepti- now exporting the very same affliction feminist ble to harm through group identification and to assimi- bioethicists identified in the United States: a focus on ab- late the significance of race, ethnicity, and gender in stract individuals and universal principles that slight con- bioethical theory and health care practice. crete people and their lives. Moreover, as formerly 2. To reexamine the principles and legitimizing functions socialist countries shift toward market economies, along of bioethics insofar as they have been constructed from with a tendency to appropriate morally dubious western the standpoint of an elite group blinded to its own par- technological practices comes a proclivity to view wom- tiality. Dominant bioethical theory has overlooked en’s bodies as (often faulty) reproductive machines. such key components of moral life as context, partial- Nonwestern leaders, by coupling western technology ity, and relational bonds and is often unresponsive to with social power, can intensify control over women by institutionalized injustices. Assimilation into theory the medical establishment and utilize women’s bodies to and practice of these neglected moral dimensions can reproduce their own distinctive cultural norms. In both serve as corrective to the common tendency to regard developed and developing countries, the effects of bio- patients only in their generality—as repeatable in- medical practices on women still tend to be viewed as stances of generic care—ingnoring particularities es- only incidental side effects that raise “women’s ques- sential to understanding the situations of sick and tions” which can readily be deferred. vulnerable individuals. Feminist bioethics, then, still has a considerable dis- 3. To create new strategies and methodologies that can in- tance to travel before it can overcome the mistaken as- terject the standpoints of nondominant people into sumption that feminists are addressing only “women’s policy-making processes, catalyze change within both concerns”—a special ethics for women. Like the broader developing and developed countries, and empower feminist movement, which also aims to rectify systemic in- marginalized people to address their problems in terms justices, feminist bioethicists look forward to a future when of their own cultural beliefs and interests. both theory and practice have been transformed, when the

106 BIOGRAPHY voices of the socially marginalized are fully recognized, the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, lives of women and the needs of all peoples are incorporated into a system were used to evoke humility and modesty in their female of health care justice that is responsive to the differing con- readers, as in Mrs. Mary Pilkington’s Biography for Girls ditions of human lives across all the earth. (1799) and biographies of women such as Florence Night- ingale (Vicinus, in Shortland and Yeo, 1996). Nineteenth- See Also century positivist approaches, which made literary, artistic, ABORTION; DISABILITY: HEALTH AND SEXUALITY; ETHICS: and political figures popular subjects, affirmed the place of FEMINIST; ETHICS: MEDICAL; ETHICS: SCIENTIFIC; biography as a means of recording heroic achievements in EXPERIMENTS ON WOMEN; FETUS; HEALTH: OVERVIEW; the public sphere. MEDICAL CONTROL OF WOMEN; MEDICINE: INTERNAL, I and In the twentieth century, several debates about the writ- II; REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS; REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES; ing of biography led to a departure from the simple collec- SCIENTIFIC SEXISM AND RACISM tion and narration of “facts.” Tension developed between history and fiction; for example, Virginia Woolf described References and Further Reading her biography of Roger Fry as “all too detailed and tied Bordo, Susan. 1993. Unbearable weight: Feminism, Western cul- down,” in contrast to her Orlando, a study of Vita ture, and the body. Berkeley: University of California Press. Sackville-West, which she considered a “writer’s holiday” Callahan, Joan C., ed. 1995. Reproduction, ethics, and the law: (Edel, 1984:208, 190). Feminist perspectives. Bloomington: Indiana University The increasing links between biography, sociology, his- Press. tory, and psychology have provoked much discussion. The Donchin, Anne, and Laura M.Purdy, eds. 1999. Embodying interdisciplinary journal Biography, published at the bioethics: Recent feminist advancers. Lanham, Md.: Center for Biographical Research at the University of Ha- Rowman and Littlefield. waii, has provided a medium for such cross-fertilization. Holmes, Helen Bequaert, and Laura M.Purdy, eds. 1992. Feminist Biographers’ incorporation of Freudian ideas in exploring perspectives in medical ethics. Bloomington: Indiana Uni- powerful women’s inner lives, as in Leo Abse’s study of versity Press. Margaret Thatcher (1989), have provoked questions about ——, B.Hoskins, and M.Gross, eds. 1981. The custom-made how best to apply such models in interpreting a life. child? Women-centered perspectives. Totowa, N.J.: Feminist biographers have destabilized the voice of the Humana. authoritative biographer by challenging us to reconsider Mahowald, Mary. 1993. Women and children in health care. New versions of lives that glorify individual greatness and mask York: Oxford University Press. the social context that has produced the subject (Stanley, Mahowald, Mary. 2000. Genes, women, equality. New York: Ox- 1992). By introducing the voice of the author, some ex- ford University Press. plore their own relationship to the subject as part of the text Purdy, Laura. 1996. Reproducing persons: Issues in feminist (Modjeska, 1990). The notion of a coherent “self” with a bioethics. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. life-course recoverable by another has also prompted Sherwin, Susan. 1992. No longer patient: Feminist ethics and postmodern critiques of biography as a form (Rhiel and health care. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Suchoff, 1996). Tong, Rosemarie. 1997. Feminist approaches to bioethics. Boul- The consumption of biographies by the book-buying der, Col.: Westview. public has created a profitable genre within the publishing Wolf, Susan, ed. 1996. Feminism and bioethics: Beyond reproduc- industry. In 1994, a poll on reading habits in Britain found tion. New York: Oxford University Press. that biography was the most popular genre of nonfiction (Shortland and Yeo, 1996). Deirdre Bair and Claire Anne Donchin Tomalin both have made their mark in this industry, Bair with her biographies of (1990) and Anaïs Nin (1995) and Tomalin with studies of Mary Woll- stonecraft (1974), Katherine Mansfield (1987), and Jane BIOGRAPHY Austen (1997). The publics desire to glimpse secrets of the famous has led to an industry of works that, like Andrew The word biography was first defined in the Oxford English Morton’s biography of Princess Diana, can change the way Dictionary in 1683. Since then, its central meaning has re- powerful figures are perceived and alter their place in the mained the same: the narrated life-course of a person. In public sphere.

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In her study of the various biographies of the poet Shortland, Michael, and Richard Yeo. 1996. Introduction. In Sylvia Plath, Janet Malcolm claimed that a biographer is Shortland and Yeo, eds., Telling lives in science: Essays on like “the professional burglar, breaking into the house, ri- scientific biography. Cambridge: Cambridge University fling through certain drawers…and triumphantly bearing Press, 1–44. [the] loot away” (1994:9). In the way biographers appear Stanley, Liz. 1992. The auto/biographical: The theory and prac- to transgress on the privacy of the subject, ethical issues tice of feminist auto/biography. Manchester: Manchester arise about whose interests are served in the process of University Press. biography. Tomalin, Claire. 1997. Jane Austen: A life. London: Viking. On the other hand, the recording of life-stories can con- ——. 1987. Katherine Mansfield: A secret life. London: Viking. vey a history that often is hidden from the public’s gaze. ——. 1974. The life and death of Mary Wolstonecraft. New York: Women of color, indigenous women, lesbians, working- Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. class women, and women with disabilities may not see Belinda Robson their lives reflected in mainstream culture, and biographies can help them claim their place in history. Biography can convey a synthesis of public and private because it de- scribes the shaping of a life-project through self-discovery. This genre remains a growing and exciting field in wom- BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM en’s studies through its depiction of the experience of re- sistance and acceptance. Biological determinism is the belief that human behaviors may be attributed to a person’s underlying essential genetic See Also makeup. Popularly discussed in debates about nature ver- AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL CRITICISM: AUTOBIOGRAPHY; CULTURAL sus nurture or heredity versus environment, deterministic CRITICISM; DIARIES AND JOURNALS; FICTION; HEROINE; thinking has its roots in evolutionary theory and dates back HISTORY; JOURNALISM; LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM; to the middle to late nineteenth century. Deterministic theo- LITERATURE: OVERVIEW; POSTMODERNISM: LITERARY ries rose to prominence after Charles Darwin’s theory of THEORY evolution by natural selection was popularized, and they became widespread in the United States and Europe in the References and Further Reading midnineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Applications Abse, Leo. 1989. Margaret, daughter of Beatrice: A politi- of biological determinism to social and cultural problems cian’s psycho-biography of Margaret Thatcher. London: have usually coincided with periods of social upheaval Cape. (Bem, 1993; Bleier, 1984). Biological determinism has Bair, Deirdre. 1990. Simone de Beauvoir: A life. New York: been used to discredit social movements such as antislav- Summit. ery, women’s rights, and women’s suffrage. Theories rising ——. 1995. Anaïs Nin: A life. New York: Putnam. from biological determinism include eugenics, social Dar- Edel, Leon. 1984. Writing lives: Principia biographica. New winism, and sociobiology. York: Norton. Francis Galton applied—actually, misapplied—evolu- Iles, Teresa, ed. 1992.. All sides of the subject: Women and biog- tionary thinking to heredity when he invented eugenics. raphy. New York: Teachers College Press, Columbia Uni- Although Galton appreciated the interaction of heredity and versity. environment, he still thought that selective mating would Kadar, Melanie, ed. 1992. Essays on life writing: From genre to result in a superior populace—one that did not include ra- critical practice. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. cial mixing (Pearson, 1996). The Nazis applied such bio- Malcolm, Janet. 1994. The silent woman: Sylvia Plath and Ted logical ideas to social and cultural institutions in the Hughes. London: Picado. mid-twentieth century (Birke and Hubbard, 1995). Biologi- Modjeska, Drusilla. 1990. Poppy. Melbourne: Penguin. cal differences assumed enormous significance and resulted ——. Stravinsky’s lunch. 1999. Sydney: Picador. in gender segregation in schools as well as a continuum of Pilkington, Mary. 1799. Biography for girls, or, Moral and in- racial superiority, which placed some races below animals. structive examples for young ladies. London: Vernor and This was the worst manifestation of biology as destiny. Hood. Throughout history, women have been subjugated in Rhiel, Mary, and David Suchoff, eds. 1996. The seductions of bi- various cultures because of their assumed inherent nature ography. New York: Routledge. (Bem, 1993). Seen as passive, nurturing, and dependent,

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women have been denied higher education, the right to Shiva, Vandana. 1995. Democratizing biology: Reinventing biol- vote, and other means for social and cultural advancement. ogy from a feminist, ecological, and third world perspective. Education was thought to be damaging to women’s repro- In Lynda Birke and Ruth Hubbard, eds., Reinventing biology: ductive system. Even many nineteenth-century suffragists Respect for life and the creation of knowledge, 50–71. used deterministic beliefs about innate racial differences to Bloomington: Indiana University Press. promote their cause. Barbara I.Bond The sexual division of labor has long been assumed to be natural and universal, although, for example, Indian women contribute widely to agriculture and dairy farming. Recent studies reveal that in rural India agriculture is the major occupation of working women (Shiva, 1995)—a fact BIOLOGY that aften does not appear in statistics because of sexist definitions of “work.” The impact of women’s studies on the biological sciences In the late nineteenth century, Herbert Spencer used can be best understood by exploring two distinct but related evolution to justify a conservative political and social fields—“” and “gender in science.” The agenda known as social Darwinism. Spencer used biology distinction between sex and gender, absent in scientific dis- to justify restrictive Victorian constraints on women’s course, is a significant contribution of feminists and is cen- roles. Although social Darwinism is no longer popular in its tral to feminist critiques of science. Sex generally refers to original version, a new form became popular in the twenti- the biological categories male and female, whereas gender eth century—sociobiology (Bleier, 1984). In the mid- refers to the cultural categories masculine and feminine, 1970s, E.O.Wilson published his first book on shaped and defined by society. sociobiology, which casts the world in biological Research on “women in science” includes the work of universals largely free from the influence of environment, historians, philosophers, and sociologists who study the learning, or culture. presence of women scientists and their political, social, and This persistent manifestation of biological determinism intellectual influence, past and present. Although a perusal reinforces cultural and racial stereotypes under the guise of of textbooks, Nobel laureates, and scientific “greats” genetic predisposition. These stereotypes continue to cast would suggest a lack of women in biology, feminists have women as passive, manipulative, and dependent (Bleier, documented a long and rich history of women’s participa- 1984). In the wake of the modern feminist movement, tion in the field. This participation occurred despite strong feminist critiques of science have included both critics and social and political factors and speaks to the compelling adherents of biologically deterministic thinking (Bem, interest, devotion, and commitment of women in the scien- 1993). Though no one perspective of biological determin- tific enterprise. ism appears to be totally correct, women and society con- In considering the factors that contribute to the contin- tinue to benefit from the ongoing critique. ued underrepresentation of women in the biological sci- ences, two main arguments have been put forth. The first, See Also largely from within the sciences, notes that with the in- DIVISION OF LABOR; ESSENTIALISM; EUGENICS; NATURE- creased visibility of women—thanks to women’s move- NURTURE DEBATE; SCIENCE: FEMINIST CRITIQUES ments—things have improved, especially in biology, a field that historically has had more women in its ranks, as con- References and Further Reading trasted with the physical sciences. Legal cases brought by Bem, Sandra Lipsitz. 1993. The lenses of gender: Transforming women charging sex discrimination, sexual harassment, the debate in sexual inequality. New Haven, Conn.: Yale Uni- and unfair tenure and hiring practices have exposed unjust versity Press. policies and opened the doors for the entry of more women. Birke, Lynda, and Ruth Hubbard, eds. 1995. Reinventing biology: This camp argues that the problem lies not within science Respect for life and the creation of knowledge. Bloomington: but in historical problems of women’s “access” to scientific Indiana University Press. careers. Scholarships, fellowships, and aggressive affirma- Bleier, Ruth. 1984. Science and gender: A critique of biology and tive action policies will provide access for women, and, its theories on women. New York: Pergamon. once in science, women will be welcomed and included in Pearson, Roger. 1996. Heredity and humanity: Race, eugenics and the scientific enterprise. Many such arguments cite the in- modern science. Washington, D.C.: Scott-Townsend. creased participation of women in biology—in the United

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States, for instance, the proportion of women among em- menopause, and childbirth. Studies on sex differences span ployed biologists rose from 18.3 percent in 1978 to 41 per- many disciplines where, it is held, complex traits have been cent in 1995. reduced to being biologically determined by individual The second argument is that science is a social enter- genes (like the fields of genetics, cell biology, and develop- prise and reflects a history of male domination in a mental biology); individual hormones (endocrinology); or “masculinist culture.” Feminists supporting this view structures in the brain or other organs (neuroscience and point out that although the overall numbers of women in anatomy). Feminist critics have attacked these studies on biology have increased, women continue to be dispropor- grounds of poor experimental design, inadequate data, in- tionately represented in the lower ranks. These feminists correct assumptions, poor controls, overstated conclusions, argue that the problem lies in the “culture” of science and, or extrapolation from studies of animals to humans (as in therefore, programs to recruit women should work ac- primatology and animal behavior). The mass media publi- tively to retain women by transforming the culture of sci- cize these research studies because they validate the “status ence rather than transforming women to fit into the quo,” but there are few data to support assertions that any culture. group is biologically inferior. Scholars have largely focused on white, western women Using close, careful historical documentation feminist scientists, but recent cross-cultural work suggests equiva- scholars have argued that science has served the interest of lent though culture-specific barriers for women scientists white, western, heterosexual, upper-class men. Although in other countries. Colonial and postcolonial policies have scientific theories changed, the subordination of various institutionalized western science across the globe in medi- groups remained, from eighteenth-century beliefs that edu- cine, agriculture, and other fields in the guise of develop- cating women deprived the reproductive organs of blood ment replacing indigenous practices. (because the brain would need more) to current debates on The greatest impact of scholarship in women’s studies mathematics and spatial ability. These theories seem has been made by extensive work attacking the concept of Eurocentric and class-based and also illogical: if educating science as gender-neutral and value-free. Influential fig- women reduces their fertility physiologically, why did rac- ures include Ruth Bleier, Anne Fausto-Sterling, Donna ist and imperialist policies not involve mass education of all Har-away, Sandra Harding, Ruth Hubbard, Evelyn Fox women of color? Keller, and Sue Rosser. Their work shifts the focus from If the history of science suggests that science mirrors biological sex and “human nature” to gender. Feminist society, how can we use this insight in the current practices scholars have argued that science constructs gender and and methodology of science? Feminist critics of science vice versa, and that social policies use “scientific knowl- have developed a framework to explore questions of objec- edge” to reinforce contemporary social stereotypes of mas- tivity and subjectivity and new grounds for alternative culine and feminine, thereby justifying the continued epistemologies. An unfortunate historical fact is that many subjugation of women. They have found considerable evi- of the feminist critiques have developed outside the sci- dence that science is socially constructed, citing various ences, removed from the lives of women scientists, creating episodes in his-tory when gender stereotypes of a culture distrust between women scientists and feminist critics of were encoded into scientific theories. Thus, they argue, sci- science. It is increasingly evident that, over the next dec- ence constructing gender and gender constructing science ade, women’s studies needs to bridge this chasm with have together proved a potent tool in maintaining the status analyses beginning with “the question of where and how quo—that is, social privilege is scientifically encoded into the force of beliefs, interests, and cultural norms enter into biological privilege. the process by which effective knowledge is generated” Critiques of biological determinism are particularly sig- (Keller, 1987:90). nificant because of its implications for women’s lives and women’s health. The view of women’s biology as inher- See Also ently inferior has a severe impact on the social and intellec- ANATOMY; BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM; EDUCATION: tual role of women in contemporary society. In addition to SCIENCE; ESSENTIALISM; HORMONES; NATURE-NURTURE challenging the extension of data from men to women and DEBATE; PHYSIOLOGY; PRIMATOLOGY; PSYCHOLOGY: the exclusion of women subjects from medical research, OVERVIEW; PSYCHOLOGY: NEUROSCIENCE AND BRAIN feminists have challenged the medical view of women as RESEARCH; REPRODUCTION: OVERVIEW; REPRODUCTIVE deviant from “normal” male biology—the “disease model” TECHNOLOGIES; SCIENCE: FEMINIST PHILOSOPHY; SCIENCE: of women’s biology, for example, premenstrual syndrome, OVERVIEW; SCIENCE: FEMINISM AND SCIENCE STUDIES;

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SCIENCE: FEMINIST CRITIQUES; SCIENCE: TRADITIONAL it from sexual attraction, desire, or activity directed exclu- AND INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE; SCIENTIFIC SEXISM AND sively toward one particular sex, which some bisexual RACISM theorists refer to as monosexuality (George, 1993; Rose et al., 1996). References and Further Reading According to some commentators, the convergence of Bleier, Ruth. 1984. Science and gender: A critique of biology and second-wave feminism and the “sexual revolution” of the its theories on women. Elmsford, N.Y.: Pergamon. late 1960s and early 1970s created a climate in which bi- Fausto-Sterling, Anne. 1985. Myths of gender New York: Basic sexuality was regarded by many feminists as a sexual op- Books. tion, part of the sexual autonomy and freedom for women Haraway, Donna. 1997. Modest_witness@second_millennium. that were important feminist goals. This climate was short- femaleman. ©_meets_oncomouse™. New York: Routledge. lived, however, and the increasingly bitter “sex wars” of the ——. 1990. Primate visions. New York: Routledge. late 1970s and 1980s saw the rise of feminist hostility to- Harding, Sandra. 1993. The racial economy of science: Toward a ward bisexual women, who were often accused of under- democratic future. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. mining the women’s movement by taking energy from Hubbard, Ruth. 1995. Refiguring life: Metaphors of twentieth- women while putting their own energies into men, or of century biology. New York: Columbia University Press. retreating behind “heterosexual privilege” when a political ——, and Marion Lowe, eds. 1983. Women’s nature: Rational- situation became too serious, or of simply lacking the cour- izations of inequality. Elmsford, N.Y.: Pergamon. age to come out as lesbian (George, 1993; Rust, 1995). Keller, Evelyn Fox. 1985. Reflection on gender and science. New Feminists’ negative attitude toward bisexual women was Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press. compounded by more general stereotypes of bisexuals as ——. 1987. Women scientists and feminist critics of science. promiscuous, irresponsible, and—an effect of the “moral 116(4):77–91. panic” regarding HIV/AIDS in the 1980s—carriers and National Science Foundation. 1998. Women, minorities, and per- spreaders of disease, either from gay communities to the sons with disabilities in science and engineering: 1998. “general” (that is, heterosexual) population, or, in some Rosser, Sue. 1992. Biology and feminism. New York: Twayne. versions of the “moral panic,” from men to lesbian commu- Spanier, Bonnie B. 1995. Im/partial science: Gender ideology in nities (Rose et al., 1996). Bisexual theorists and activists molecular biology. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. coined the term biphobia to describe this kind of stereotyp- ing and prejudice, which comes both from mainstream het- Banu Subramaniam erosexual society and from lesbian and gay communities (George, 1993). Partly in response to biphobia of various kinds, bisexu- BIRTH ality enjoyed something of a renaissance in the 1990s, al- See CHILDBIRTH and PREGNANCY AND BIRTH. though it did not immediately become clear to what extent one could speak of a coherent bisexual movement (Hutchins and Kaahumanu, 1991; Rose et al., 1996). De- spite (or perhaps because of) the previously negative atti- BIRTH CONTROL tudes often encountered by bisexual women within See CONTRACEPTIVES. feminism, some distinctively bisexual feminist analyses of gender, sexuality, and oppression began to emerge in the 1990s. These included a celebration of the sexual au- tonomy and freedom of choice represented by a sexuality BISEXUALITY not subordinated to gender roles or expectations, and an analysis of the specific forms of oppression of bisexual The term bisexual has a checkered history and has under- women as distinct from those faced by nonbisexual women gone several shifts in meaning since its first recorded ap- and some men (George, 1993; Rust, 1995). Some bisexual pearance in 1804. It originally meant “of two sexes,” and it feminists, more radically and ambitiously, claim that bi- has often been associated with hermaphroditism or an- sexuality subverts dominant constructions of gender and drogyny. However, most bisexual activists and theorists to- sexuality as binary or dichotomous (that is, divided into day use the term bisexuality to refer to sexual attraction to, exactly two parts), and therefore has the potential to desire for, or activity with more than one sex, and distinguish deconstruct the binary oppositions (conceptual pairings

111 BLACK FEMINISM such as masculine-feminine, strong-weak, rational-emo- References and Further Reading tional) that underpin sexism and heterosexism (Hemmings, Academic Intervention. 1997. The bisexual imaginary: Represen- 1993; Weise, 1992). Indeed, some argue that binary oppo- tation, identity and desire. London: Casell. sition and dualistic thinking underpin the whole tradition of Bisexual Anthology Collective. 1995. Plural desires: Writing bi- western thought and that the mechanism of oppression it- sexual women’s realities. Toronto: Sister Vision, Black self is based on the hierarchical relations set up by this du- Women and Women of Colour Press. alistic tradition; some bisexual feminists suggest that Garber, Marjorie. 1996. Vice versa: Bisexuality and the eroticism bisexuality may therefore have the potential not just to of everyday life. London: Hamish Hamilton. deconstruct current notions of gender and sexuality but George, Sue. 1993. Women and bisexuality. London: Scarlet. even to deconstruct western dualism and hence the possi- Hemmings, Clare. 1993. Resituating the bisexual body: From bility of oppression itself (Rose et al., 1996; Weise, 1992). identity to difference. In Joseph Bristow and Angelia R. Although this perspective has many attractions and may Wilson, eds., Activating theory: Lesbian, gay, bisexual poli- gain popularity, it presents political and theoretical difficul- tics, 118–138. London: Lawrence and Wishart. ties. Some formulations from within queer politics and Hutchins, Loraine, and Lani Kaahumanu, eds. 1991. Bi any other theory suggest that gender and sexuality may not always be name: Bisexual people speak out. Boston: Alyson. as straightforwardly binary or dichotomous as this perspec- Nataf, Zachary I.1996. Lesbians talk: Transgender. London: tive assumes, particularly in the light of transgendered Scarlet. sexualities (Nataf, 1996); in any case, it remains unclear, to Rose, Sharon, Cris Stevens, et al., eds. 1996. Bisexual horizons: say the least, how bisexuality is to make the leap from as- Politics, histories, lives. London: Lawrence and Wishart. serting itself as a feminist identity or practice to disman- Rust, Paula C. 1995. Bisexuality and the challenge to lesbian poli- tling the entire edifice of western metaphysics. tics: Sex, loyalty, and revolution. New York and London: Other recent work has investigated the ways in which New York University Press. bisexuality may covertly inform apparently nonbisexual Storr, Merl. 1999. Bisexuality: A critical reader. London and New lives, histories, and sexualities. One of the most com- York: Routledge and Kegan Paul. mon popular assumptions about bisexuality is that “eve- Weise, Elizabeth Reba, ed. 1992. Closer to home: Bisexuality and ryone is bisexual really,” meaning that all human beings feminism. Seattle: Seal Press. are potentially bisexual; this view of bisexuality as po- tential is also current in psychology and psychoanalysis, Web Sites from Freud onward (Garber, 1996; George, 1993). Many http://www.bi.org bisexual feminists now reject this as a myth, pointing out http://www.bisexual.org that not everyone is actually bisexual here and now and that human beings are probably neither more nor less po- Merl Storr tentially bisexual than they are potentially lesbian, gay, heterosexual, or anything else. Some have argued that BLACK FEMINISM bisexuality often functions as a subtext of other forms of See FEMINISM: AFRICAN-AMERICAN and FEMINISM: BLACK sexual identity: as the excluded other that embodies the BRITISH. collective fears and desires of particular sexual groups (Rust, 1995), or as a sexual narrative which may emerge when sexuality is considered as a process in continuous flux rather than as a fixed state or identity (Garber, 1996). Such work suggests ways in which bisexuality BLACKNESS AND WHITENESS may have importance for feminism, both as a concept and for the political goals and contributions of bisexual In sixteenth-century Europe, words for black had negative women. connotations of ill-fortune, impurity, and evil. Words for white had connotations of innocence, purity, and blessed- See Also ness. When Europeans applied these terms to people, de- AIDS AND HIV; EPISTEMOLOGY; HETEROPHOBIA AND spite obvious physical inaccuracies, the words contributed HOMOPHOBIA; HETEROSEXISM; HETEROSEXUALITY; to the perception that Africans and south Asians were the LESBIANISM; OTHER; QUEER THEORY; SEXUAL moral and physical opposite of Europeans: so different that ORIENTATION; SEXUALITY: OVERVIEW; TRANSGENDER they could be treated more like animals than humans.

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In the late eighteenth century, western scientists linked as a response to white racism but also because the concepts color with cultural stereotypes to create the concept of race. encompass “individual and group valuation of an inde- In the first “scientific” racial taxonomy, the Swedish pendent, long-standing Afrocentric consciousness” naturalist Carl von Linne divided people into four types: (1991:27). In contrast, contemporary white Europeans and Americans seldom describe whiteness as salient to their Americanus or red—Tenacious, contented, free, ruled by sense of self, and they often deny the cultural specificity of custom their worldviews (Garza and Herringer, 1987). Europeans or white—Light, lively, inventive, ruled by rites Postcolonial scholars have described the absence of ex- Asiaticus or yellow—Stern, haughty, stingy, ruled by pressed white identity as a consequence of imperialism: opinion western constructions of bounded, namable, subordinate Africanus or black—Cunning, slow, negligent, ruled by ca- “others” dialectically created whiteness as an empty, un- price. (Corcos, 1997, p. 17) marked, normative category (Trinh, 1986/1987). In the last two decades of the twentieth century, feminist scholars and Even after early twentieth-century scientists objected to the political activists devoted increasing attention to the inves- idea of biological races, color-specific concepts of race re- tigation and articulation of relationships between gender mained a central, if mutable, feature of western ideology identity and racial or ethnic identity, including whiteness and discourse. (see, for instance, Davis, 1981; Frankenberg, 1993; Lorde, Definitions of white and nonwhite have changed over 1984; Moghadam, 1994; Moraga and Anzaldua, 1981; time and across national boundaries. Eighteenth- and nine- Trinh, 1986/1987). teenth-century slave owners in the United States catego- rized people with “one drop” of African blood as legally See Also black, but people with mixed Native American and Euro- ANTIRACIST AND CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS; APARTHEID, pean ancestry could be legally white. American and north- SEGREGATION, AND GHETTOIZATION; EDUCATION: ern European governments have at times considered Arab, ANTIRACIST; ETHNIC STUDIES; EUROCENTISM: OTHER; Latino, Irish, Italian, and Jewish people white, and at other RACE; RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA times nonwhite (Allen, 1994; Morsy, 1994; Sacks, 1994). Whereas colonial powers constructed race in binary terms, References and Further Reading Latin American countries such as Brazil developed over Allen, Theodore. 1994. The invention of the white race. Lon- one hundred words for racial identity and skin color don: Verso. (Rodriguez, 1994). Ruth Frankenburg observes that Collins, Patricia Hill. 1991. Black feminist thought: Knowledge, “‘white’ is as much as anything else an economic and po- consciousness, and the politics of empowerment. New York: litical category maintained over time by a changing set of Routledge. exclusionary practices both legislative and customary” Corcos, Alain. 1997. The myth of human races. East Lansing: (1993:11–12). Michigan State University Press. Despite the racist ideology inherent in western concepts Davis, Angela Y. 1981. Women, race and class. New York: Vintage. of race, oppressed minorities and colonized nations often Frankenberg, Ruth. 1993. White women, race matters: The social constructed positive interpretations of racial identity. As construction of whiteness. Minneapolis: University of Min- Audre Lorde writes, “It is axiomatic that if we do not define nesota Press. ourselves for ourselves, we will be defined by others—for Garza, R.T., and L.G.Herringer. 1987. Social identity: A mul- their use and to our detriment” (1984:45). In the 1960s, the tidimensional approach. Journal of Social Psychology 127: African-American “black power” movement consciously 299–308. transformed the derogatory label black into a positive term, Lorde, Audre. 1984. Sister outsider: Essays and speeches. signifying strength, beauty, and unity. Native American ac- Trumansburg, N.Y.: Crossing. tivists similarly adopted the term “red power.” These move- Moghadam, Valentine M., ed. 1994. Identity politics and women: ments allied themselves with anticolonial struggles around Cultural reassertions and feminisms in international per- the world and challenged western representations of the spective. Boulder, Col.: Westview. “other” with native articulations of ethnic pride and Moraga, Cherie, and Gloria Anzaldua, eds. 1981. This bridge selfdetermination. called my back: Writings by radical women of color. Water- Patricia Hill Collins argues that Africans have identified town, Mass.: Persephone. with the social construction of blackness and race not only Morsy, Soheir A. 1994. Beyond the honorary “white” classification

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of Egyptians: Societal identity in historical context. In Steven space for men and women to gather and engage in intellec- Gregory and Roger Sanjek, eds., Race, 175–198. New Bruns- tual and literary debate. The original group included the wick, N.J. : Rutgers University Press. hostesses and their close friends: Elizabeth Montagu, Eliza- Rodriguez, Clara E. 1994. Challenging racial hegemony: Puerto beth Vesey, Elizabeth Carter, Catherine Talbot, Mary Delany, Ricans in the United States. In Steven Gregory and Roger Hester Chapone, and Frances Boscawen. Soon a younger Sanjek, eds., Race, 131–145. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers and more literary generation of women joined: Hester University Press. Thrale, Fanny Burney, and Hannah More (whose poem “Bas Sacks, Karen Brodkin. 1994. How did Jews become white folks? Bleu; or Conversation,” immortalized the group). In Steven Gregory and Roger Sanjek, eds., Race, 78–102. Montagu, Carter, and Vesey were the formative group New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. whose friendship and correspondence began the exchanges Trinh, T.Minh-ha. 1986/1987. Difference: A special third world in the 1760s that resulted in holding the London salons. women’s issue. Discourse 8:11–37. Although their own use of the term was origi- nally in reference to male intellectualism—indeed, Vesey Lori Blewett apparently coined the term for their philosophically minded friend Benjamin Stillingfleet, because he wore BLENDED FAMILIES worsted blue stockings instead of white silk hose—they See STEPFAMILIES. gradually began to use the term to refer to the kind of liter- ate “conversation” they cultivated, finally calling it “blue stocking philosophy” to each other. Such conversations of- BLUESTOCKINGS ten included their favorite pastime, the promotion of wom- en’s education and intellectual endeavors. Elizabeth The term bluestocking has been used since the beginning of Carter’s own classical scholarship, including her transla- the nineteenth century as a derogatory label for any woman tion of the Stoic philosopher Epictetus (1758), provided whose ostentatious display of learning makes her behavior Montagu in particular with a model of what female intel- arrogant and immodest, hence “unfeminine.” Although the lectualism could achieve. The Blues proved themselves primary objection is to the woman’s appearance rather than women of letters with the publication of Carter’s Epictetus to the improvement of her mind, the kind and degree of (the first edition of which was printed by Samuel improvement are also at issue: the bluestocking typically Richardson) and Poems (1762), in addition to her contribu- dabbles in male pursuits such as mathematics, science, or tions to Gentleman’s Magazine; Montagu’s work of liter- philosophy. The term rapidly came to be used in a negative ary criticism Essay on the Writings and Genius of sense; but it originally had a positive connotation, referring Shakespeare (1772) and her three Dialogues of the Dead; first to intellectual men and then more specifically to a Catherine Talbot’s Reflections on the Seven Days of the group of celebrated women in late-eighteenth-century Week (1770) and Essays on Various Subjects (1772); and London. Although the term has been applied to women ac- Hester Chapone’s Letters on the Improvement of the Mind tively engaged in promoting salons and intellectual culture (1773) and Miscellanies (1775). They also supported in various countries, it properly refers only to the British women writers such as , Mary group. The subsequent generalization and pejorative use of Collyer, Sarah Fielding, Hannah More, Fanny Burney, Ann the term coincided with reaction against the French Revo- Yearsley, and Montagu’s sister Sarah Scott. They were lution, as such reaction affected assumptions about gender, friends with men such as Samuel Johnson, David Garrick, the social role of women, and changes in the political tem- Samuel Richardson, George Berkeley, George Lyttelton, per at the turn of the nineteenth century. Laurence Sterne, Horace Walpole, and Joshua Reynolds. The Bluestocking Circle was the group of London host- The salons were made possible by Edward Montagu’s esses whose imitation of the Parisian fashion for salons cre- will, in which at his death in 1775 he left his estate to his ated for them a degree of fame. But, unlike the Parisian wife. Elizabeth traveled to Paris, heard Voltaire speak at salonières, these women were less interested in re-creating the Académie Française, and was herself received as an a court atmosphere at home than in creating an outlet for author. She was able to build a large house in Portman female intellectualism during the London season. Domi- Square in London and entertain with “conversaziones” nated by Elizabeth Montagu (1720–1800), who became where aristocrats, intelligentsia, and artists mingled, as known as “queen of the Blues,” this circle of intelligent and well as Parisianstyle salons. While Montagu favored as- educated women created in their London mansions a social semblies where debate was emphasized, Vesey developed

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a more informal style for which she became famous. The Tinker, Chancey Brewster. 1915. The salon and English letters: small rooms and spaces in Vesey’s house encouraged her Chapters on the interrelations of literature and society in the guests to gather in various groups for multiple conver- age of Johnson. New York: Macmillan. sations. Elizabeth Fay In addition to the creation of the London salons, the Bluestocking Circle also contributed much to making women’s education acceptable, and to disarming the con- ventional and disabling association between women artists BODY and sexual laxity. But with Montagu’s death in 1800 the Bluestocking Circle was broken. The female body as a general concept and actual individual Even before this, younger women of intellectual inclina- women’s bodies represent, of course, a very complex sub- tion found little encouragement of the kind Burney and ject that can be approached in many ways and as part of More had experienced when they were first introduced to many disciplines—anatomically, physiologically, histori- the circle. By the late 1790s “bluestocking” had become a cally, socially, aesthetically; in terms of health, of art, of term of disapprobation and eventually misogyny. It began literature, of economics; and on and on. This essay will dis- to mark a woman who was ungainly in society rather than a cuss certain aspects of the body as a current sociocultural suave and sophisticated society hostess; the blue was by phenomenon. this time a woman unaware of how her learning detracted The emergence of the feminist movement and the devel- from her person by making her mentally and politically opment of feminist theory have called into question the suspect. The blue was a bit mad, and possibly more than a idea that biology is destiny. Social thought has been bit jacobin à la . By the time Jane reoriented toward the study of the body as a social con- Austen wrote Pride and Prejudice, the ungainly and unat- struct. Feminism, lesbian and gay politics, and the work of tractive sister Mary was cast as a bluestocking to oppose theorists such as Michel Foucault have led to an increased her essential antisocialism to Elizabeth’s sociable but nar- sensitivity to subtle forms of power that control and mold rowly educated native wit. the body. The best-known visual tribute to the Bluestockings’ im- The ideas that any society develops regarding the human portance remains Richard Samuel’s painting Nine Living body can be thought of as receptors, organizers, and order- Muses of Great Britain, exhibited at the Royal Academy in ing codes that can project themselves into the social and 1779. The painting, now at the National Portrait Gallery, physical spheres surrounding the body. In western socie- shows Elizabeth Montagu surrounded by other luminaries ties, for instance, genital and reproductive distinctions be- such as and Catherine Macaulay, with tween biological men and women have been considered a Hannah More standing behind her. Montagu is shown sit- sufficient explanation for different identities, needs, and ting in critical judgment; this prominent placement in the desires. Recent evidence suggests that our bodies are, in a composition is testimony to her centrality in the promotion sense, constructed of a complex web of beliefs, habits, ide- of culture in London, and of women’s intellectual and liter- ologies, and social practices, although the relationships be- ary achievements. tween these have yet to be investigated. We know, for example, that the dichotomy between mind and body is not References and Further Reading as clear-cut in African cultures and traditional cultures as it Carter, Elizabeth. 1817. Letters from Mrs. Elizabeth Carter to tends to be in many other places. We also know that in some Mrs. Montagu between the years 1755 and 1800. Ed. Asian cultures, sex is considered an integral part of healthy Montagu Pennington. 3 vols. London: R.C. and living and a way to achieve divinity. J.Rivington. The way we think shapes the way we live. There are Huchon, René. 1907. Mrs. Montagu and her friends, 1720–1800: many different and often contradictory discourses defining A sketch . London: John Murray. our bodies. Individual bodies are shaped and shape them- Montagu, Elizabeth. 1906. Elizabeth Montagu, the queen of the selves in relation to preexisting sets of meaning, which blue-stockings: Her correspondence from 1720 to 1761. Ed. regulate and control perceptions and behavior according to Emily J.Climenson. 2 vols. London: John Murray. consciously and unconsciously accepted rules. Myers, Sylvia Harcstark. 1990. The Bluestocking Circle: Women, In western societies, the body, sexuality, and gender are friendship, and the life of the mind in eighteenth-century intertwined and are heavily influenced by the fact that chil- England. Oxford: Clarendon. dren, on the basis of their physiological characteristics, are

115 BODY assigned a gender at birth. This constitutes a set of cultural functions, to see the body as an enemy. For women it also mandates that will order their sexuality and behavior. Gen- has meant an estrangement from eroticism and sexuality, der, the social condition of being a woman or a man, and both of which are experienced as dangerous. sexuality, the cultural way of living out our bodily experi- By the end of the twentieth century, health had become a ences and desires, will be inextricably linked from that prominent concern, even a vogue, in much of the western point on. Gender can be thought of as the corporeal locus of world, and various trends related to health popularized the cultural meanings, both received and reconstructed, and concept of “body awareness.” In part, this development sexuality as a way of fashioning one’s identity in the expe- was a result of increased preoccupation with old age and rience of a body that is constituted from and around certain chronic illnesses. Body awareness, then, has transformed rules for socially accepted behavior. the body into an object that can be shaped and “preserved” In contemporary Judeo-Christian societies, the male by specific practices, such as aerobic activity and carefully body and male sexuality remain the norms by which we controlled nutrition. Control of women’s sexuality and judge women’s bodies. Despite all the debate that has taken eroticism is also very much a component of the new con- place in recent decades, female sexuality continues to be a cern for the body; thus the concept of health continues, at problem. Women’s bodies are understood and acted upon least in part, to be an image of a lean body that appeals to by science, which involves a male-based model of social men’s sexuality precisely because it is lean. and natural reality. With regard to the female body, modern The androcentric concept of the mind-body split is medicine concentrates on menstruation, reproduction, and deeply imbedded in these new vogues because it makes the menopause and may use metaphors based on these aspects body an entity that must be “shaped,” “monitored,” or of femaleness—while female sexuality is seen as an brought under control. During the 1970s, the feminist enigma. Since the late nineteenth century, the conventional movement provoked discussion of the political implica- image of female sexuality has been that it is basically pas- tions of culturally constructed sexuality. It also drew atten- sive, brought to life only through some sort of reproductive tion to the idea that control of women’s bodies is at the instinct. center of social organization and social domination, and Michel Foucault’s idea of control of the body can give that women’s appropriation of their own bodies can be a insights into how normative discourse about the human point of departure for modeling new social relations. Even body has moved from religion to science. The modern fe- though the recent preoccupation with the body has, overall, male body has been constructed and given a name by bio- had a positive impact on health, women still need to appro- medicine, which uses terms such as “natural” and priate their own bodies. Males’ naming of females’ func- “unnatural” or “healthy” and “sick” bodies and speaks of tions and desires has driven women away from their “differences” in sexuality. bodies; there is still a need for women to name their own Many women continue to have a sense of fragmentation bodily experience and their own sexuality. Women must and lack of autonomy because masculine gender norms develop knowledge based on systematic experimentation imply a model of autonomy that denies the body. The mod- with body functions, sexuality, and eroticism. ern idea of rationality implies a dichotomy between mind In this process, the concept of “body consciousness” is and body, in which the mind is the master that “controls” important. Such consciousness can be achieved in various the body. This need to control one’s own body reveals itself ways; for example, one exercise simply involves lying in a as estrangement from one’s very existence. Simone de darkened room, breathing deeply, being still, feeling one’s Beauvoir identified our cultural tradition as one in which emotions and desires, being in contact with bodily proc- men have been associated with the transcendent features of esses, and listening to the body’s needs—which may be as human existence and women with physical, “natural” exist- basic as needing to stay home and rest from the rush of ence. Thus women are defined by a masculine perspective being an “active woman.” Body consciousness also has that places them in the bodily sphere—the sphere that must wider implications: it can be a process through which be controlled. This mind-body split is a condition that women seek and find identity, control, and power. forces a woman to “live in” her body in a special sense: the body is her essential, enslaving identity. Because society’s See Also perception of the human body is an androcentric view that ANDROCENTRISM; BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM; EROTICA; separates flesh from spirit, women are led to deny their own ESSENTIALISM; FEMINISM: OVERVIEW; GENDER STUDIES; bodies. The androcentric perspective of the human body IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; NAMING; SEXISM; has led many men and women to despise their body and its SEXUALITY: OVERVIEW

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References and Further Reading in changing this, and women’s bookstores followed. Be- Boston Women’s Health Book Collective (BWHBC). 1998. Our cause many first world feminists are fortunate enough not to bodies, ourselves for the new century. New York: Simon and have to spend many of their waking hours securing life’s ba- Schuster. sic needs, such as food and clean water, women’s bookstores ——. Nuestros cuerpos, nuestras vidas, 2000. New York: Siete developed first, and are still located primarily in, English- Cuentros/Seven Stories. speaking first world countries. The objectives of most women’s bookshops are much Irma Saucedo Gonzalez like those expressed in the mission statement of Silver Moon Women’s Bookshop in London: “To make available BODY IMAGE to the widest audience the works of women writers, femi- See ADVERTISING; BODY; EATING DISORDERS; and IMAGES nist books and periodicals, many of which are not generally OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW. available due to the unsympathetic nature of the large dis- tributors and the traditional policies of most bookshops.” BOOK PUBLISHING Working from this principle, women’s bookshops the world over have listened to and created a demand for wom- See PUBLISHING. en’s voices and politics. Women’s voices are now heard and even sought at the highest levels. Maya Angelou, un- published in the United Kingdom until Virago Press cham- pioned her, now has world renown. When Toni Morrison BOOKSHOPS visited Silver Moon Women’s Bookshop after publication of Beloved, other major bookstores were not much inter- “Look, there’s a women’s bookshop!” There is incredulity ested in the future Nobel laureate. Katherine V. For-rest’s in the voice. From inside the shop, the staff and regular cus- works are stocked in every lesbian section. Jeanette tomers silently respond in any number of ways: “Yes, and Winterson, now studied in schools and universities, was you’d better get used to it.” Or “Where’ve you been—this first presented by the feminist publisher Pandora Press and is the twenty-first century.” Or “It’s a niche market like any built a word-of-mouth following among lesbian and femi- other.” Or “Well, then, sir [and occasionally madam], nist booksellers. Voices of have been gath- you’ve just had a learning experience.” ered and recorded by the publishing house Kali. Without all this groundwork, the large publishers would not have rec- Origins and Raison d’Être ognized or pursued the talent of women such as Arundhati The first wave of feminism concentrated on political action Roy or Michele Roberts. By taking on the infrastructure of to win women the vote. The launch of the second wave of distribution and controlling it, women’s bookstores to- feminism is often credited to the publication of The Second gether with the publishers have connected the writers to Sex by Simone de Beauvoir (1949), The Feminine Mystique their readers. They have created a circle that has produced a by Betty Friedan (1963), and The Female Eunuch by magnificent flowering of women’s literature and knowl- (1970). The Seven Demands of the Wom- edge of women’s lives and concerns. en’s Liberation Movement (Ruskin College, 1970) and fur- Women’s bookstores do much more than sell books. To ther communication of ideas and consciousness-raising quote again from the mission statement of Silver Moon helped sustain this second wave. The slogan “The personal Women’s Bookshop, the aim is “to provide a safe and com- is political” was at the heart of the revolution. fortable forum where women may hold community and The gatekeeping of knowledge was again, as access to cultural events…[and] to provide a secure and welcoming education before it, a prime site of political struggle. Wom- meeting place.” Everywhere, but particularly in the third en’s voices were demanding to be heard, and women real- world, women’s bookstores are fundamentally a commu- ized that if this were to happen, they had to take control of nity resource. Women’s bookstores make a huge effort to their own communications. Authors and readers were there, supply information such as legal advice, health and politi- but the means of linking them were often in indifferent or cal information, and community news through notice hostile hands. Women’s publishing companies—including boards and newsletters; to provide support for school Daughters Inc. and Feminist Press in New York, Virago Press projects and dissertations; to offer literacy classes; and so and Onlywomen Press in London, Naiad Press in on. As destination stores they may also be tourist informa- Tallahassee, and Argument Verlag in Germany—led the way tion centers. In many cases they are the first safe haven and

117 BOOKSHOPS contact for help for a woman in distress from violence or founders. At one point, News counted sexual abuse. Women’s bookstores are counselors for 500 feminist bookstores in the United States, Canada, women coming out, for parents and daughters of lesbians, England, continental Europe, Australia, New Zealand, In- and for people in the caring and legal professions who are dia, Japan, and Kenya. updating their attitudes and knowledge. Very much more than just a place to buy books! The Future As you can see, women’s bookstores are not your gar- Women’s bookstores have been a huge success, but at the den-variety capitalist enterprise. For the women who start time of this writing many faced an uncertain future. and run them, they are a mission, but one that must balance Thirty-five percent of North America’s feminist book- economic viability with a political commitment to femi- stores had closed, and Sisterwrite in London and Des nism. The passion, dedication, and personal sacrifice of Femmes in Paris were no more. Politically and culturally, women’s bookstore owners and workers all over the world women’s bookstores have changed the world of reading are immense. and ideas. In the first world this success has brought two The grassroots and political origins of women’s book- negative consequences. First, the assumption that femi- stores have also meant that probably all are undercapital- nists have achieved everything they wanted has ized, and many have also challenged traditional business depoliticized many young people. The battles won after so organizational structures. Certainly in the 1970s working hard a fight—and those yet to be taken on—are accepted, collectively and sharing skills were de rigeur among British forgotten, and subsumed in lifestyle, not political action. feminists. Working in this different way was part of chal- Second, the vibrant market for women’s books is now an lenging patriarchal and hierarchical methodology. Mostly attractive target for ordinary commercial players. Book this theoretical position did not survive the pressures of the chains with deep pockets are cherry-picking the most prof- marketplace. itable bits of the feminist market. The chains still ignore difficult politics and most lesbian works, but nevertheless Different Contexts they endanger the overall profitability of many feminist Cultural specificity has given feminist bookstores quite bookstores. And the chains provide little in the way of different patterns of development. In the United States, community resources or services. Canada, and Australasia, the absence of any profound so- In North America and Europe, there is considerable cialist or communist politics has meant that feminist book- competition for market share in the book trade. This is not stores broke new community ground. These areas have specifically an antifeminist backlash: all smaller and in- many bookstores in both large and small cities, which dependent bookshops are imperiled. In North America, were founded exclusively as women’s bookstores. In 40 percent of independents had gone out of business in France, Spain, and England, which have longer central- the five or six years before this writing. Globalization and ized histories and stronger socialist traditions, women’s new technology, and the dominance of the English lan- bookstores have developed in a different pattern. Having guage in both, are creating volatile and challenging cir- spent years in the labor movement, many feminists in cumstances. these European countries did not readily adapt to the en- trepreneurial and capitalist spirit of American feminism. See Also Furthermore, the established net-works of radical book- ENTREPRENEURSHIP; MANAGEMENT; PUBLISHING, all entries; sellers sold feminist tides in their shops. Thus the openings WOMEN’S CENTERS for exclusively feminist shops were fewer. Those that exist are located in the capital cities. Italy and Germany have References and Further Reading had yet another model of the development of women’s Federation of Radical Booksellers. 1985. Starting a book- bookstores. Both countries have strong socialist histories, shop. but their citizens maintain local loyalties to their city, state, Freeman, Jo. The tyranny of structurelessness. Self-published. and Länder that go deeper than their fairly recent (mid- Garnham, Nicholas. 1989. Concepts of culture, public policy and nineteenth-century) nationhood. Their pattern of book- the cultural industries. Discussion Paper. London: Greater stores looks American but derives from different roots. London Council. India’s feminist bookstores Streelekha and those in Ja- Redclift, Nanneke, and M.Thea Sinclair, eds. 1991. Working pan—Shokado in Osaka and Grayon House in Tokyo—are women: International perspectives on labour and gender a tribute to the personal dynamism and courage of their ideology. London: Routledge.

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Ruskin College. 1970. The seven demands of the women’s libera- Worldwide (Nelson and Chowdhury, 1994). These works tion movement. England: Oxford University. are important for contextualizing global movements and Russ, Joanna. 1983. How to suppress women’s writing. Austin: ideologies; The Challenge of Local Feminisms (Basu, University of Texas Press. 1995) is an example. Some collections have focused on Spender, Dale. 1980. man made language. London: women’s participation in transitions to democracy, for in- stance, in Latin America and Eastern Europe (Jaquette and Jane Cholmeley Wolchik, 1998). Thanks to feminist theorizing in international rela- tions, gender has become visible in constructions of na- tionalism. For example, in wordplay involving domestic BORDERS imagery and the stark language of apartheid, Christine Sylvester situates women’s homelessness and the home- Borders are usually defined as territorial lines that demar- lands men have made (1994). Women assume agency in cate one sovereign nation-state from another, or, within the nuanced constructions of Feminist Nationalisms the nation-state, one legal jurisdiction from another. Given (West, 1997). men’s virtual monopoly of government decisionmaking Where does this leave women’s transnational political historically, one could say that borders are lines men have agency across borders? At one level, those who analyze drawn. Rather than view borderlines as fixed and immuta- global movements and international organizations provide ble, scholars increasingly treat borders as politically con- the broadest panorama (see, among many, Baden and structed, in order to explore when, why, and how they are Goetz, 1997). But the scope of such analysis does not ex- drawn, and the consequences of peculiar borderlines. In tend to everyday transnationalism, such as migration and Imagined Communities (1983), Anderson transformed regional “free trade” schemes as some issue-oriented thinking about nations, seeing them as “imaginations” (Pettman, 1996) and regional political economy analyses that were made coherent by schools, languages, and com- (Staudt, 1998) have done. Conceptually, analysts need to pulsion. attend more to cross-border networking and organizing Increasingly, borders are used in metaphorical ways to with regard to specific issues and areas. differentiate cultural and linguistic identities. Sometimes The European Union (EU) and North American Free these identities are imposed on people (under apartheid, Trade Agreement (NAFTA) provide manageable re- South Africa corralled its “Bantu-speakers” into gional units of organizing within transnational political “Bantustans”), but at other times people claim an identity units ranging from narrow (NAFTA) to broad (EU) in for themselves (such as Chicanos and Chicanas or Latinos policy and legal leverage. These regional communities and Latinas in the United States, versus Hispanics or North show how new borders are drawn for finance, com- Americans). Identities are likewise imposed on or claimed merce, and occasionally migration, and old borders lose by diverse women, either within nation-states or across ter- some of their traditional meaning. Still, national capital- ritorial and cultural borderlines. to-capital organizing offers challenges regarding cul- Until relatively recently, few scholars theorized about or tural, linguistic, and national identities that continue to pursued research on women’s containment within or affect women. Electronic communication, especially bi- agency across borders. Research on women, gender, and lingual communication, eases cross-border exchanges, feminism blossomed only a quarter century ago, and when but the machinery is selectively available—that is, avail- it did, writers often operated within disciplines that neces- able mainly to the privileged. Ultimately, it is the per- sarily relied on territorial borders as units of analysis. Just son-to-person, cross-border organizing among women as political science focuses on nation-states, their territorial regarding health, immigration, human rights, and social borders, and relations between, among, and within them, justice that demonstrates the challenges and opportuni- the subfields of comparative politics and international rela- ties of contesting the national political machinery that tions (IR) also confined their analysis to nation-states, and men have made. Borders are policed, even militarized, IR paid little attention to women. (On the discipline, see with some ferocity, and immigration policies continue to Staudt and Weaver, 1997.) draw real and metaphoric lines between “natives” and In comparative women’s studies, writers often take the “foreigners.” nation-state as the unit of analysis. Many fine collections Analysts cannot assume that women’s solidarity will exist, including the 43-country study Women and Politics transcend borders. Rather, women are implicated in

119 BREAST nationalism (McClintock, 1996), along with actions that seemingly protect jobs, encourage cheap consumer goods BREAST in the global economy, and mute or affirm national and In many modern cultures, women’s breasts are a target of cultural differences. Meanwhile, globalization in the new lust, mockery, and objectification. Although women’s millennium will probably continue to be associated with sexuality may be arguably as important as physiology, we simultaneous bordering, debordering, and rebordering seem to have lost sight of the breast’s main purpose: secret- (Spener and Staudt, 1998). ing and transporting milk for infants. A clinical perspective can provide insight into the importance of the breast as well See Also as into breast health and the proper care of breasts. GLOBALIZATION; INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS; Anatomy MIGRATION; NATION AND NATIONALISM; POLITICS AND THE STATE: OVERVIEW Breast tissue extends from the collarbone to the inferior portion called the bra line, and from the breastbone to the References and Further Reading middle of the armpit. In depth, breast tissue extends from the skin to the muscles of the chest. There is very little mus- Anderson, Benedict. 1983. Imagined communities. London: cle tissue in the breast—only a small amount around the Verso. nipples. Baden, Sally, and Anne Marie Goetz. 1997. Who needs [sex] when Breasts come in all shapes and sizes. They may be sym- you can have [gender]? Conflicting discourses on gender at metrical, but it is considered normal for the breasts to be Beijing. In Kathleen Staudt, ed., Women, international devel- different sizes. Usually, there is one nipple in the middle of opment and politics: The bureaucratic mire. Philadelphia: each breast. It may protrude or lie flat or even be inverted; Temple University Press. all these forms are generally considered normal. A change Basu, Amrita, ed. 1995. The challenge of local feminisms. Boul- in the appearance or shape of the nipple, however, would der, Col.: Westview. warrant a visit to a health care practitioner for an examina- Jaquette, Jane, and Sharon Wolchik, eds. 1998. Women and tion. Some women have more than one nipple on each democracy: Latin American and Central and Eastern breast, or a nipple that fepis unusually placed. These Europe. Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University extramammary nipples are not a sign of disease but rather a Press. variation on the norm. Nipples contain spongy tissue that McClintock, Cynthia. 1996. “No longer a future heaven”: Nation- fills with blood. They respond to touch, cold weather, and a alism, gender, and race. In Geoff Eley and Ronald Suny, eds., baby’s suckling, and usually become taut or erect under Becoming national: A reader. New York: Oxford University those circumstances. The pigmented area around the base Press. of the nipple is called the areola. The tiny pores or lumps on Nelson, Barbara, and , eds. 1994. Women the areola are openings for the oil glands that lubricate the and politics worldwide. New Haven: Yale University nipple and the areola itself during breast feeding. Press. Each breast is divided into 15 to 20 sections or lobes that Pettman, Jendy. 1996. Worlding women: A feminist international are separated by Cooper’s ligaments—bands of strong, politics. London: Routledge. flexible tissue that give the breast its support. Fat cells lie Spener, David, and Kathleen Staudt, eds. 1998. The U.S.-Mexico between and around the lobes and provide cushioning and border: Transcending divisions, contesting identities. Boul- shape to the breast. The fat cells, fibrous tissue, and other der, Col.: Lynne Rienner. parts of the breast that do not produce, transport, or store Staudt, Kathleen. 1998. Free trade? Informal economies at the milk are called the stroma. The milk-related parts of the U.S.-Mexico border. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. breast are called the parenchyma. ——, and William Weaver. 1997. Political science and feminisms: Integration or transformation? New York: Twayne Function Macmillan. Within each lobe lie lobules that look like tiny bunches of Sylvester, Christine. 1994. Feminist theory and international rela- grapes. Tiny gland cells lining the acinus (sac) at the end of tions in a postmodern era. New York: Cambridge University each “grape” extract the ingredients needed to make milk Press. from nearby blood vessels. For a few days after the birth of West, Lois. 1997. Feminist nationalisms. London: Routledge. a baby, the gland cells extract water, sugar, fat, protein, and Kathleen Staudt salts to make colostrum, the fluid that is nutritionally best

120 BREAST for a newborn. As the infant grows, the formulation more fat and less glandular tissue. This fatty tissue makes it changes because the mother’s hormones communicate to much easier to read mammograms. If a woman uses hor- the gland cells that these cells are to make a different mix- mone replacement therapy after menopause, however, the tures of ingredients. The milk is squeezed into the acinus breasts will still be influenced by hormones, although to a and then into a small duct. These small ducts join to be- lesser degree than during the reproductive years. come larger ducts and transport the milk to a reservoir un- der the areola, where it stays until nursing time. Breast Conditions The breasts are rich in blood vessels that bring not only Unusual breast conditions that are not cancerous are called the ingredients for milk production but also hormones from benign problems. They include normal physiological the brain and ovaries as well as energy for the breast to do changes such as minor tenderness, swelling, and lumpi- its work. The lymph system removes wastes from the breast ness; mastalgia, or breast pain; infections and and even recycles some of them. Lymph vessels connect inflammations; discharge and other problems of the nip- the breasts and also drain each breast. Lymph nodes along ples; excessive lumpiness or nodules; and dominant lumps. the lymph channels filter and trap cells that cannot pass For a woman, a dominant lump tends to be the most fright- through. ening discovery. Fortunately, most of the time the lump will Each month from adolescence through menopause, a be either a cyst or a harder benign lump called a woman’s breasts physiologically prepare for a possible fibroadenoma. pregnancy. During the menstrual cycle, estrogen flows to Some dominant lumps may in fact be cancerous. They the breasts from the ovaries and the adrenal glands. This tend to be harder but also can be minimal lumps that feel estrogen reaches its peak during the middle two weeks of like a thickening. A cancerous lump can have other changes the cycle, counting from day one of the menstrual period. associated with it, such as swelling, dimpling, changes in Estrogen tells the breast cells to prepare for milk produc- skin color, visible blood vessels, enlarged pores, and tion and transport. changes in the nipple; nipple discharge; and When the ovary releases its egg, usually at midcycle, it microcalcifications or other observations visible on begins to release progesterone. The blood supply to the mammograms. breast then increases to prepare for the potential pregnancy. This increased blood supply plus some additional fluid Caring for the Breasts may cause a sense of fullness, tenderness, discomfort, and Three important methods are used to detect breast changes: sometimes even pain. This is a very typical premenstrual self-examination of the breasts, mammography, and regu- symptom for many women. lar examinations by a health professional. No one method If no pregnancy occurs, the breasts begin to change of detection is perfect, but the three work together. Each again right after the menstrual period. The extra fluid re- method has advantages and weaknesses. As science and turns to the body’s general circulation through the lymph medicine progress, new methods of breast cancer detection system. If pregnancy does occur, preparations for milk pro- will evolve and improvements will be made. duction begin to accelerate. The gland cells multiply, the One of the more meaningful risk factors for breast can- lobules enlarge, the ducts lengthen, and the blood and cer is having a first-degree relative with breast cancer. Five lymph vessels become larger. By the end of a full-term to 10 percent of breast cancer cases occur in true “breast pregnancy, the hormonal influence causes the glandular tis- cancer families,” in which mutated copies of the tumor sup- sue to crowd out almost all the fat tissue. After pregnancy pressor genes BRCA1 or BRCA2 are passed from genera- and lactation, the breasts and lymph system undergo a con- tion to generation. Since we receive genetic information from siderable adjustment of cells and structures for the breasts both parents, however, not every female in an affected fam- to revert to their prepregnancy state. ily will inherit these genes. If a woman inherits the BRCA1 gene, her genes must still undergo other mutations that oc- Life Changes cur over a period of many years before cancer could occur, Women’s breasts change not only during each menstrual but these mutations may never happen. A woman born with cycle, pregnancy, and lactation, but also with age, body a copy of a mutated gene does face an estimated 56 percent weight, and menopause. As women grow older, and espe- chance of developing breast cancer by age 70. BRCA1 is cially after menopause, the proportions of parenchyma and probably present in about 80 percent of families with a major stroma in the breasts keep changing. At some point, there is history of both premenopausal breast cancer and ovarian no working or lactating tissue left and the breasts become cancer. Mutated BRCA2 may appear in up to 50 percent of

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all breast cancer families. A woman with mutated BRCA2 Guyton, Arthur C. 1997. Human physiology and mechanisms of faces a chance of developing breast or ovarian cancer simi- disease. Philadelphia: Saunders. lar to the chance faced by a woman with mutated BRCA1. Hudson, Tori. 1999. Women’s encyclopedia of natural medicine. Assertive prevention strategies become of vital impor- Lincolnwood, Ill.: Keats. tance for women with these inherited genes. Such strate- Keunke, Robin. 1988. Total breast health. New York: Kensington. gies include adopting dietary habits that have been Love, Susan. 1995. Susan Love’s breast book. Reading, Mass.: scientifically associated with lower rates of breast cancer Addison-Wesley. (low fat, low animal fat, high fish fat, soy, fruits, vegetables, Novak, Edmund R., Howard Wilbur Jones III, Anne Colston fiber, flaxseed, fewer calories); making changes in lifestyle Wentz , and Lonnie S.Burnett. 1988. Novak’s textbook of that reduce risk (less alcohol, more exercise, less stress); gynecology. Baltimore, Md.: Williams and Wilkins. reducing body weight; reducing exposure to estrogens (as Tori Hudson from hormone replacement therapy, certain pesticides, some plastics, and chlorinated organic compounds); and reducing exposure to radiation. There are also pharmaceu- BREAST CANCER tical options for prevention (antiestrogen), as well as surgi- See CANCER and ENDOCRINE DISRUPTION. cal options. Although more research is needed, there may also be some nutrients and herbs in supplement form that can reduce the risk of breast cancer, such as green tea, fish oils, flaxseed, vitamins C and D, and melatonin. BREAST FEEDING Empowering women to take charge of their health in- volves providing education and resources and improving Believed by many to be objects of sexual attractiveness, self-esteem and overall quality of life. Depression, low breasts in fact are intended by nature and actually used in selfworth, social degradation, poverty, poor-quality rela- most societies to provide milk to babies and small children. tionships, and violence are among the most damaging in- As western scientists reassess their opinion of what have fluences on women and women’s health. For some women, sometimes been regarded as merely decorative append- breasts may be an integral part of these problems; some ages, they consider the following data: women may become depressed, for instance, because they do not believe they are sexy enough, or because they have • Colostrum, the first milk after the baby’s birth, helps received mistreatment related to sexuality and breasts. Low protect the baby from infection and disease. Colostrum self-esteem is closely related to ways in which women are is a laxative and helps clear the meconium out of the physically degraded because of their bodies, including newborn’s bowels. Breast-fed babies have fewer prob- their breasts. Relationships may be poor because they are lem with allergies, constipation, ear infections, respira- oversexualized. Some women have been the victims of tory infections, diarrhea, and skin disorders than child or adult sexual abuse. As women gain more powerful formula-fed babies (Boston Women’s Health Book Col- positions in society, as men treat women more as equals, lective, 1988; La Leche League, 1991). and as women grow and evolve with regard to self-care and • Human breast milk contains fats, carbohydrates, and power, the well-being of all women, including their emo- proteins in the proportions and forms ideally suited tional and physical health, is more likely to be achieved. for optimal absorption and metabolism by the baby (Kitzinger, 1989). The long-chain fatty acids (fats) in See Also human milk are not duplicated in cow’s milk, and fat ANATOMY; BREAST FEEDING; CANCER; COSMETIC SURGERY; intake (type and quantity) in infancy is critical to brain HORMONES development. Minerals and salts from human milk are absorbed in a way that is healthiest for the human References and Further Reading infant; for example, although human milk is low in Arnot, Robert. 1998. The breast cancer prevention diet: The pow- iron, it is absorbed much better than is iron in erful foods, supplements, and drugs that can save your life. cow’s milk. Boston: Little, Brown. • Breast feeding reduces the health risks associated with Austin, Steve, and Cathy Hitchcock. 1994. Breast cancer: What being born in poverty, at least for the time that the breast you should know (but may not be told) about prevention, di- feeding continues. Unless a woman is severely mal- agnosis, and treatment. Rocklin, Calif.: Prima. nourished, her breast milk is as nutritious as that of an

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affluent, well-nourished woman. (However, the cost to a human milk or formula, love, security, and trust are the malnourished woman’s health of repeated or closely most important things consumed by the child during feed- spaced childbearing and nursing is considerable.) ing and during life.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, See Also among other major agencies, have made increasing the in- BODY; BREAST; CANCER; CHILDBIRTH; MATERNAL HEALTH cidence of breast feeding—as well as increasing its dura- AND MORBIDITY; MOTHER; MOTHERHOOD; NATURE- tion—critical goals. All over the world, formula makers NURTURE DEBATE; SEX AND CULTURE provide samples of their product to expectant families or families with newborns. Using the samples instead of nurs- References and Further Reading ing can cause the mothers production of milk to stop; also, Blum, L.M. 1999. At the breast: Ideologies of breastfeeding and poor families may have to overdilute the formula or use motherhood in the contemporary United States. Boston: contaminated water in the formula, which they then must Beacon. continue to buy. Even when families can afford formula, it Boston Women’s Health Book Collective. 1998. Our bodies, may be difficult for them to prepare and store it under sani- ourselves for the new century. New York: Simon and tary conditions, with serious or even fatal results to chil- Schuster. dren’s health (Boston Women’s Health Book Collective, La Leche League. 1991. The womanly art of breastfeeding. New 1998; La Leche League, 1991). York: Penguin. Even women who are secure in their decision to Huggins, K. 1990. The nursing mother’s companion. Boston: breastfeed can be intimidated by the reactions of others. Harvard Common. Although it is clear that a nursing mother is simply feeding Kitzinger, S. 1989. Breastfeeding your baby. New York: Knopf. her baby, not engaging in a public display, there are those Reukauf, M.D., and M.A.Traus. 1988. Commonsense who can see prurience even in the act of nourishing an in- breastfeeding: A practical guide to the pleasures, problems, fant. Women whose milk letdown is inhibited by anxiety or and solutions. New York: Atheneum. nervousness may find it easier when breast-feeding to wear Brinlee Kramer clothing loose enough to drape around the breast and the baby’s head to cover the nipple during feeding; to go to another room to let the baby latch on, then rejoin the group BRIDEPRICE once nursing has begun; and to nurse in areas in which it is See DOWRY AND BRIDEPRICE. possible to turn away from other people (Huggins, 1990). Women whose letdown is not inhibited may choose to nurse in public and simply ignore inappropriate attention. Although breast-feeding women face pressure from ad- BUDDHISM vertisers and disapproving strangers, many women who prefer not to breast-feed or who are unable to do so feel Buddhism has been of particular interest to feminists in re- another kind of pressure. A few women do not have suffi- cent years for many reasons. It is a major religion, with cient glandular tissue; many others run into problems with 2,500-year-old traditions, which has spread beyond its nursing that are not resolved quickly. Long periods during homeland into very different cultures; throughout its his- which milk production is not adequately stimulated by the tory, Buddhist texts have included conflicting statements baby’s sucking can lead to premature, involuntary wean- about the status of women; and within the male dominance ing. (However, a high-quality breast pump, used frequently of Buddhism, many women have lived as nuns or have be- to mimic the baby’s feeding patterns, may be used to main- come well-educated laypeople. Recently many western tain milk supply until the nursing problem is resolved.) A women have become dedicated Buddhists; they expect to pacifier can reduce a baby’s need to suck at the breast and study and practice along with men; to participate fully, and can have a detrimental effect on milk production. Working to take responsibility for propagating Buddhism. inside or outside the home may make it difficult for a woman to breast-feed, and choosing formula may make her Basic Tenets of Buddhism life much easier. Women who would like to breast-feed but Buddhism came into existence in the sixth century B.C.E. cannot, or families for whom breast feeding is not the op- when a prince was born into a small tribal clan at the foot of tion chosen, should be assured that whether a child receives the Himalaya mountains, in what is now Nepal. He was

123 BUDDHISM known as Prince Siddhartha. Soon after his birth, his horo- authoritative Hindu ethical code written after the begin- scope was read, and it predicted that he would become ei- nings of Buddhism. In this text women are treated as com- ther the “king of kings” or the “world renouncer.” King modities belonging to male members of the family. Sudhodhana, his father, obviously preferred the first pre- Women, considered impure, are not allowed to study the diction and in order to make it come true provided the Veda, which is the most sacred Hindu text. Offerings by young prince with all worldly comforts. Yet when the women alone are not accepted by the gods. In this vicious prince was exposed to the realities of life—sickness, old circle, women have no right to seek spiritual salvation. The age, and death—he became deeply concerned. His ques- only hope for salvation for women is through Bhakti (devo- tion was: How are we to rid ourselves of this human suffer- tion), submission, and service to their husbands. ing? That question was the beginning of Buddhism. When Buddhism, however, denies the absolute authority of his own son was born, the prince decided to go forth to seek the Vedic texts and does not recognize the caste distinc- the answer to his question, to save not only himself and his tions so important to Hindu society. The Buddha was the newborn child but also the human race. first religious leader in the history of major world reli- After six years of both physical and mental journeys, gions to proclaim the equal spiritual potential of both men the prince found his own spiritual path and became en- and women. lightened. He became known as the Buddha—the En- It is important to distinguish between supramundane lightened One. and mundane teachings in Buddhist literature. His first sermon, given to five ascetics, was in fact an Supramundane teachings deal directly with the question of exposition of what he had discovered in answer to his ques- how to become enlightened. One becomes enlightened not tion about human suffering. He made two significant points as male or female. Enlightenment is beyond gender differ- before the actual sermon: first, he was self-enlightened, ences. that is, the knowledge was not handed down to him by an However, the teachings on the mundane level deal with outside factor; second, teaching is the middle path between life in society. It is at this level that social values play a the two extremes of idealism and materialism. prominent role. Early Buddhist society was Indian society. The sermon focused on the Four Noble Truths: Dukkha, Oppressive elements prevalent in Indian society can be Samudaya, Nirodha, and Marga. Dukkha—the First Noble seen throughout Buddhist literature. Reading through that Truth—is the realization that everyone born into life is sub- literature, one needs to be constantly reminded of the con- ject to human suffering, in the form of sickness, old age, textual history and must be able to sift Buddhism from the and death. Buddhism can help to free one from the suffer- Indian social values handed down unconsciously. There are ing that is caused by clinging to the self as real or eternal. many liberating elements that are the real contribution of But suffering does not occur of its own accord. Since it is Buddhism to women in Indian society. Under Buddhism, the result of something else, it must have a cause. This is women are free to strive for their own salvation without the Second Noble Truth. depending on their husbands or sons. Women, single or di- The Third Noble Truth confirms that even though there vorced, enjoy full rights to work out their own salvation. is suffering, it can be overcome. This is the cessation of Spiritual life is allowed for women, and many of them have suffering. The Buddha and his enlightened disciples were taken this opportunity. living proof of this truth. The fourth Noble Truth asserts that there is a path to end Role of Women in Society this suffering. The Buddha prescribed, like a good physi- Women played very active roles in the Buddha’s time and cian, an Eightfold Path to be followed by those who realize shared with men an equal responsibility to bring about the suffering and desire to be free from it. growth of Buddhism. The Buddha assigned this responsi- This, very briefly, is the message of Buddhism. bility to four groups of Buddhists: monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen. Laypeople are expected to provide the Oppressive and Liberating Factors for Women monks and nuns with four requirements: food, dwelling In order to appreciate the liberating factors some women place, robes, and medicine. The monks and nuns, in return, have experienced in Buddhism, one needs to understand should readily give spiritual guidance to the lay commu- the social context from which Buddhism arose. It started in nity. In the Buddha’s time some laywomen were very ad- India, amid a cultural background heavily laden with a pa- vanced in the study and practice of Buddhism. Hence, they triarchal worldview. Some of the earlier social norms of were in a position to offer advice to the ordained sangha Indian society can be found in Manu Dharma Shastra, the (community of monks and nuns). The nuns were often well

124 BUDDHISM advanced in their practice and proved themselves equally After the lineage in Sri Lanka died out, people in qualified in propagating Buddhism. southeast Asia who practice Theravada were never or- At present, in some countries women are mostly seen as dained. Instead of the fully ordained nuns, there are local playing the role of supporters to the sangha; in some coun- nuns in each country who hold much lower positions than tries there are only monks, no nuns. monks. In the last three decades of the twentieth century there Contemporary Attempts at Emancipating were attempts to revive the nuns’ lineage from abroad. Tai- Buddhist Women wan has been a stronghold for the revival of nuns. In 1988 In the past three decades women have become more active Hsi-Lai Temple in Los Angeles, California, ordained 200 in Buddhism. The flow of Buddhists out of Tibet since women from various traditions. In 1998 the same organiza- 1959 is partly responsible for this phenomenon. More tion provided an international ordination in Bodh Gaya, western women have been exposed to Buddhism, and India, for 135 nuns from various countries. In March 2000 many have chosen to follow the Tibetan lineage. Zen Bud- there was another international ordination in Kaohsring, dhism as it is now commonly practiced in the West offers Taiwan. Full ordination can be obtained from Hsi-Lai Tem- an opportunity for women to practice without emphasizing ple in Los Angeles or in Taiwan, where each year more issues related to ordination. women than men receive ordination. In 1987 Sakyadhita, an international Buddhist women’s Ordination is not a status to be claimed for purposes of association, came into existence after Buddhist women met equality only. Rather, it is a path in which one walks with for the first time at Bodh Gaya, India, where the Buddha full responsibility to develop one’s spirituality and in that attained enlightenment. This association promotes Bud- process help others along the path as well. dhist education for women in general and supports full or- Feminist scholars have been interested not only in the dination of women in other countries. Sakyadhita is differing treatment of women and men in Buddhist tradi- registered in the United States. The association organized tions, but also in the similarity of the Buddhist figure five conferences, in India (1987), Thailand (1991), Sri known as the Perfection of Wisdom to the Goddess of Wis- Lanka (1995), Ladakh (1995), Cambodia (1997), and Ne- dom, Sophia, in other traditions; and in the comparison of pal (2000), to bring about awareness of the status of women Buddhist explanations of suffering with principles of in Buddhism in each country where it is practiced. This women-dominant religions where illness is not considered heightened awareness should improve the role and status of inevitable and where healing procedures are practiced as Buddhist women. effective solutions to human suffering.

Revival of Buddhist Nuns See Also In Buddhism, unlike Christianity, the order of fully or- CASTE; FAMILY: RELIGIOUS AND LEGAL SYSTEMS—BUDDHIST dained nuns (bhikkhuni, bhikshumi) was instituted by the TRADITIONS; HINDUISM; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: founder of the faith, the Buddha; hence, the movement to SOUTH ASIA; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: SOUTHEAST ASIA; revive the heritage of fully ordained nuns should be easier. NUNS; SACRED TEXTS; ZEN In reality, however, Catholic and Buddhist sisters, particu- larly in Theravada countries, are not very different, particu- References and Further Reading larly regarding the struggle to ordain women. Buddhism is Allione, Tsultrim. 1996. Women of wisdom. Boston: Arkana. traditionally divided roughly into two major schools: Boucher, Sandy. 1988. Turning the wheel: American women creat- Theravada, the southern school, in Sri Lanka, Thailand, ing the new Buddhism. San Francisco: Harper and Row. Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia; and Mahayana, some- Chakravarty, U. 1981. The rise of Buddhism as experienced by times called the northern school, in China, Korea, Japan, women. Mansui 8:6–10. Taiwan, and Vietnam. (Theravada tends to follow the letter Chodroen, Thupten, ed. 1999. Blossoms of the dharma. Berkeley, of the teachings whereas Mahayana is more progressive Calif.: North Atlantic. and more assertive in social involvement) For the sake of Findlay, Ellison, and Yvonne Haddad, eds. 1985. Women, reli- convenience, Tibet is also included in the Mahayana cat- gions, and social change. Albany: State University of New egory. The lineage of fully ordained nuns went from India York Press. to Sri Lanka in the third century B.C.E. during King Gross, Rita. 1993. Buddhism after patriarchy: A , Asoka’s period and later spread to China, Korea, and else- analysis, and reconstruction of Buddhism. Albany: State where. University of New York Press.

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Horner, I.B. 1930. Women under primitive Buddhism: Laywomen The theoretical corpus of gender studies of the environ- and almswomen. London: Routledge. ment can be divided into two general directions. The first Kabilsingh, C. 1981. A comparative study of bhikkhuni theoretical direction, which deals with the construction of patimokkha. India: Chowghambha Orientalia. gender, explains the differences and similarities between ——. 1991. Thai women and Buddhism. Berkeley, Calif.: Par- human males and females within the environment. Gender allax. is explored and interpreted in relation to its reciprocal links ——, trans. 1998. The bhikkhuni patimokkha of the six schools. with the environment. Emphasis is placed on the ways of India: India Books Centre. changing either the urban environment or gender relations. Macy, Joanna. 1985. Dharma and development: Religion as re- This direction includes two antithetical approaches source in the Sarvodaya self-help movement. West Hartford, (Borden, 1995): (1) An approach as a functional critique, Conn.: Kumarian. which focuses mainly on the ways of changing the urban Tsomo, Karma Lekshe. 1996. Sisters in solitude: Two traditions of environment as a means for changing gender relations—or, Buddhist monastic ethics for women. Albany: State Univer- more correctly, for changing social relations in general—to sity of New York Press. achieve a more equitable society. (Dolores Hayden’s pio- neer work belongs here.) (2) An approach as a more ex- Chatsumarn Kabilsingh perimental and personal standpoint; instead of trying to change the fabric of the city according to a set of rules or provisions, it articulates ways of changing gender rela- tions, exploring more libertarian ideas about what living in cities is (or should be) like. (The work of Elizabeth Wilson BUILT ENVIRONMENT belongs here.) The second theoretical direction consists of concep- “Feminist approaches to the built environment” covers a tual approaches, whose intent is not only to understand wide range of topics within gender studies. Fields covered the architectural discourse but also to speculate on the include any that are related to human-made (built and meanings and representations of gender. These ap- unbuilt) environments, on any scale (geographical, archi- proaches incorporate the logocentrism of Derrida into the tectural, and so on), for example, geography, urban plan- architectural discourse. As a consequence, they consider ning, urban design, architecture, landscape architecture, the notions of gender and space as texts and focus not history of architecture, and environmental psychology. The only on what is present but also on what is not present in introduction of gender into the study and interpretation of the text. “The logic in the system of architecture represses the environment has not changed the epistemologies of sex in two different ways: sex is understood in positive these disciplines but rather has raised new theoretical ques- and negative terms, and woman [are] assigned the nega- tions, shifted angles, and revealed new perspectives and tive term (phallocentrism)” (Agrest, 1988). Under the hypotheses. constraints of Derrida’s deconstruction, while philoso- Scholars have suggested the following hypotheses, phy, literary criticism, and psychoanalysis deal with the aimed at “degendering” the environment: “Women’s social architectonics of the text, architecture adopts philosophi- experience is notably absent from the human-made envi- cal, literary, and psychoanalytical methods or concepts. ronment and mechanisms by which this absence is perpetu- The work of Mark Wigley and Beatrice Colomina be- ated” (Boys et al., 1984:1–2). “Women in design can use longs here. Social Science information in new and different ways.” (Howell, 1983). “The man-made environment, through its See Also production process, expresses or reinforces the social con- AESTHETICS: FEMINIST; ARCHITECTURE; ENGINEERING; struction of genders, or, vice-versa, the social construction HOUSING; INTERIOR DESIGN AND DECORATION of genders is reproduced or reinforced through the human- made environment as a lived experience” (Tentokali, References and Further Reading 1989). “Gender stratification is reinforced by spatial segre- Agrest, Diana, Patricia Conway, and Leslie Kanes Weisman, eds. gation. Gendered spaces that create distance between 1996. The sex of architecture. New York: Abrams. women and sources of masculine knowledge have the Borden, Iain. 1995. Gender and the city. In Iain Borden and David strongest association with gender stratification” (Spain, Dunster, eds., Architecture and the sites of history, 317–330. 1992:27). London: Butterworth Architecture.

126 BULIMIA NERVOSA

Boys, Jos, Frances Bradshaw, Jane Darke, Benedicte Foo, Sue BULIMIA NERVOSA Francis, Barbara McFarlane, and Marion Roberts. 1984. Making space: Women and the man-made environment. Lon- Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by re- don: Pluto. curring episodes of binge eating alternating with episodes Braidotti, Rosi. 1994. Nomadic subjects, embodiment and sexual of fasting or purging behaviors intended to prevent weight difference in contemporary feminist theory. New York: Co- gain and undo the effects of the original binges. The health lumbia University Press. advocacy organization Anorexia Nervosa and Related Eat- Colomina, Beatriz. 1992. Domesticity at war. Assemblage 16. ing Disorders, Inc. (ANRED), classifies bulimia nervosa as ——, ed. 1994. Privacy and publicity. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT a diet-binge-purge disorder and links it to anorexia nervosa Press. (the relentless pursuit of thinness), anorexia athletica (com- ——, ed. 1992. Sexuality and space. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton pulsive exercising), and binge eating disorder (compulsive Papers on Architecture. eating). The American Psychiatric Association classifies Hayden, Dolores. 1981a. The grand domestic revolution: A history bulimia nervosa as a severe disturbance in eating behavior of feminist designs for American homes, neighborhoods, and closely related to anorexia nervosa, but different from binge cities. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. eating disorder, which does not include subsequent purging ——. 1981b. Seven American Utopias: The architecture of or fasting (American Psychiatric Assocation, 1994). Re- communitarian socialism. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT searchers are studying the physiology, psychology, and Press. treatment of bulimia nervosa, but medical insurance com- Howell, Sandra. 1983. Women, housing and habitability. Paper panies in the United States do not pay for its treatment. presented at the Symposium on Gender-Related Issues. Bulimia nervosa occurs most frequently among white Women in Housing. Seattle: University of Washington, 18– females in western cultures and affects young women 20 May. about ten times more often than it affects young men. Onset Howell, Sandra, and Vana Tentokali. 1989. Domestic privacy: occurs most often during the teenage years and early twen- Gender, culture and development issues. In Low Shetha and ties (Academy for Eating Disorders, American Academy of Erving Chambers, eds. Housing, culture and design: A com- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, American Anorexia parative perspective. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylva- Bulimia Association). Statistics about prevalence are unre- nia Press. liable, however. Many girls with bulimia are able to main- Sellers, Susan, ed. 1988. Writing differences: Readings from tain a normal or nearly normal body size, in contrast to girls the seminar of Hélène Cixous. Oxford: Open University with anorexia (whose bodies often show evidence of star- Press. vation and wasting) and girls with binge eating disorder Spain, Daphne. 1992. Gendered spaces. Chapel Hill: University (whose bodies show evidence of obesity). Many girls with of North Carolina Press. bulimia conceal their eating disorder from their parents and Tentokali, Vana. 1989. The spatial organization of the house as the doctors (although not necessarily from their peers), and expression of the family structure: The Organi case. doctors are not required to report cases of bulimia nervosa : University Studio Press. to public health authorities. Webster’s New World Dictionary. 1991. New York: Webster’s New World. Bulimia Nervosa and the Body Weddon, Chris. 1987. Feminist practice and poststructuralist theory. Oxford: Blackwell. Many girls and women are preoccupied with issues related Wigley, Mark. 1992. Untitled: The housing of gender. In Beatriz to diet, exercise, thinness, and body image (Bordo, 1993; Colomina, ed. Sexuality and space, 327–389. Princeton, N.J.: Thompson et al., 1999). A girl with bulimia nervosa experi- Princeton Papers on Architecture. ences these preoccupations to the point of pathology, with ——. 1994. The domestication of the house: Deconstruction after signs and symptoms that include appetite disturbances, en- architecture. In Brunette Peter and David Wills, eds. forced fasts, enforced exercise sessions, insatiable hunger, Deconstruction and the visual arts: Art, media, architecture. and a sense of being unable to control her own behavior. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. During a bulimic binge, she stuffs her body with food. Dur- Wilson, Elizabeth. 1991. The Sphinx and the city: Urban life, the ing a bulimic purge, she uses laxatives, diuretics, and control of disorder and women. London: Virago. selfinduced vomiting to get rid of the food she has gorged, or she fasts or exercises relentlessly to get rid of the extra Vana Tentokali body weight that she fears. She may use stimulants,

127 BULIMIA NERVOSA psychoactive drugs, and alcohol to cope with the anxiety, it away, so that she seems outwardly to be in compliance depression, and mood disorders that frequently accompany with social rules once again. Acting out the binge-purge bulimia. She may experience side effects that include dehy- cycle returns the girl to a calmer homeostatis (stability); but dration, electrolyte imbalances, neuroendocrine distur- as the pressures of being a young girl in a patriarchal cul- bances, menstrual irregularities, irritation of the esophagus, ture build up again, another destabilizing binge-purge epi- and erosion of dental enamel. Many researchers report a sode is likely to follow. On this theory, it is not surprising link between bulimic behaviors and episodes of shoplift- that most researchers who study bulimia nervosa and other ing, obsessive-compulsive patterns that are not related to eating disorders report very high relapse rates. As long as food, and self-mutilation (cutting). Whether the physical patriarchal cultures continue to thwart and repress female and emotional disturbances that accompany bulimia are a power, there seems little likelihood of a reduction in the cause or an effect of repeated cycles of bingeing and purg- prevalence of bulimia nervosa among young women. ing is still unclear, but a powerfully reinforcing feedback loop does seem to be at work in either case. See Also Psychiatrists diagnose bulimia nervosa if cycles of bingeing ANOREXIA NERVOSA; BODY; DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE; and purging cycles recur, on average, at least twice a week EATING DISORDERS; FOOD AND CULTURE; PSYCHOLOGY: for three months (American Psychiatric Association, 1994); COGNITIVE and PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY; many girls with bulimia report that their episodes occur as SEXUALITY: ADOLESCENT SEXUALITY frequently as several times a day. Treatment may include antidepressant medication, family therapy, and cognitive- References and Further Readings behavioral psychotherapy aimed at reducing impulsive Academy for Eating Disorders. Bulimia nervosa. . and self-esteem (Fairburn and Wilson, 1993; Tobin, 2000). American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 1998. Teenagers with eating disorders, . Ringing and purging are often accompanied by shame, se- American Anorexia Bulimia Association, Inc. Risk factors in the crecy, and self-loathing. These behaviors also appear to be development of eating disorders. . lescent sexuality, food and nurturance, diet, pressure to be American Psychiatric Association. 1994. Diagnostic and statisti- thin, body size, body image, power, and control (Bordo, cal manual of mental disorders, 4th ed. (DSM-IV). Washing- 1993; Thompson et al., 1999). Princess Diana of Great ton, D.C.: American Psychiatric Association. Britain joked in public about having her head down the loo Anorexia Nervosa and Related Eating Disorders, Inc. (ANRED). (the WC or toilet); and the actress Jane Fonda, who pro- Statistics: How many people have eating and exercise disor- moted and sold exercise videos, reported more than twenty ders? . years of bulimic behavior that sometimes involved binging Bordo, Susan. 1993. Unbearable weight: Feminism, western cul- and purging as frequently as twenty times a day. ture, and the body. Berkeley: University of California Press. Hilde Bruch linked the development of anorexia ner- Bruch, Hilde. 1985. Eating disorders: Obesity, anorexia nervosa, vosa and bulimia nervosa to disturbances in the mother- and the person within. New York: Basic Books. child dyad (Bruch, 1985), and Marian Woodman expanded Fairburn, Christopher G., and G.Terence Wilson, eds. 1993. Binge that theory to encompass repression of feminine power at eating: Nature, assessment, and treatment. New York: the archetypal level (Woodman, 1980). According to this Guilford. interpretation, when female power is stigmatized, Thompson, J.Kevin, Leslie J.Heinberg, Madeline N.Altabe, and thwarted, and legislated against in patriarchal cultures, the Stacey Tantleff-Dunn. 1999. Exacting beauty: Theory, as- bingeing and purging characteristic of adolescent girls with sessment, and treatment of body image disturbance. Wash- bulimia nervosa can be interpreted as a ritual that repre- ington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. sents alternating cycles of rebellion against and compliance Tobin, David I. 2000. Coping strategies therapy for bulimia ner- with patriarchal requirements. During the binge portion of vosa. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. a bulimic episode, the girl’s covert behavior resembles Woodman, Maria. 1980. The owl was a baker’s daughter: Obesity, ano- theft, as she consumes oversize amounts of forbidden rexia nervosa, and the repressed feminine. Toronto: Inner City. foods. During the purse episode that follows the binge, the girl vomits up evidence of her crime or her sin and flushes Faye Zucker

128 BUREAUCRACY

work in ways which bracket out their embodied and do- BUREAUCRACY mestic existence, an option that is simply not available to women as a group. Also, the bureaucratic type of organiza- “Women in bureaucracy” covers a number of topics or tion is structured in terms of highly specialized jobs or- themes: dered in a hierarchical relationship to each other; in this hierarchy, masculine-patriarchal styles of operating are 1. Women in bureaucratic types of organization, where the privileged, at the expense of the more cooperatively ori- issue concerns whether “bureaucracy” as a type of so- ented and holistic approaches favored by women as a cial organization is inherently patriarchal, or whether group. The third type is poststructuralist (for example, this has been a historical circumstance of the develop- Pringle, 1989): this is the view that the bureaucratic type of ment of this organizational form that can be altered. organization is not as simple as it seems, that its dominant 2. Women in management positions in complex, bureau- style of operating in terms of patriarchal rationality already cratic organizations, both public and private, where it is contains, because it depends on, its opposite—what are assumed that organizational change of various kinds is typecast as feminine qualities of nurturance, sexualized or needed for women to be adequately included in these embodied presence, and informal patterns of cooperation. positions. Just what is the bureaucratic order in any one particular or- 3. Women in public bureaucratic types of organization, ganization is a dynamic and contested site of struggle be- and the gender division of labor within the modern ad- tween quite different interpretations of how this order ministrative state (see Siim, 1987; Yeatman, 1990: chap- should work. ter 5). Each perspective has insights as well as limitations. The 4. A closely related topic, femocracy. Femocrat is the liberal reformist view implies that the formal universalism name that has been given to second-wave feminists in of the bureaucratic organization may work to facilitate, Australia and New Zealand who take up policy-related even to invite, strategies that are oriented toward develop- positions in government, which either directly promote ing equal participation for not just women, but all social the interests of women or promote generic policies such actors. The fundamental orientation of the bureaucratic as equal opportunity that provide critical support for the form toward merit-based principles of selection and pro- promotion of women’s interests. motion encourages participation regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, and so on, even as it raises debates over what The bureaucratic organizational form has underpinned the “merit” means and how it should be interpreted. The radi- development of both the modern state and the modern capi- cal feminist view, by contrast, argues that the bureaucratic talist firm (see Weber, 1968). The bureaucratic organiza- organizational form depends for its very existence on an tional form is fundamentally characterized by an ethos of internal gender division of labor: the typical bureaucratic “impersonality” as evidenced especially in the separation style of disembodied, specialist, calculative rationality de- of the bureaucratic office from the private-domestic life pends on a large number of poorly paid subordinates who and obligations of officials. This has been a peculiarly do the bureaucrat’s housekeeping both inside the organiza- modern-western phenomenon, which has influenced—but tion (for example, secretaries, office cleaners) and outside not supplanted—the kinship-oriented organizational order (wives). of many nonwestern states. The issue is whether bureauc- Thus, when some women are selected, on “merit,” to racy is inherently patriarchal, and, if it is, whether this also become bureaucrats, they are contradictorily positioned as allows for a play of internal contradictions. actors who are asked to assume a patriarchal-masculine There have been three types of response to this question. style of organizational being but are also located within this The first type is liberal reformist (for example, Kanter, category of society’s housekeepers. The weakness of this 1977; for discussion, see Savage and Witz, 1992:13–18): view is that it cannot explain why some bureaucracies have the argument that bureaucratic organizations become less proved to be more open to women’s participation than oth- patriarchal the more they include women, that there is noth- ers: for example, Australian femocracy indicates the rela- ing inherent in the bureaucratic form itself that precludes tive openness of the Australian state to feminist gender equality. The second type is radical feminist (see participation and agendas between 1972 and 1987 (see Ferguson, 1984), arguing that the kind of rationality that Dowse, 1988; Sawer, 1990; Watson, 1990; Yeatman, 1990). structures the bureaucratic form is inherently masculine If the radical feminist view tends to naturalize the mascu- and patriarchal, requiring its practitioners to think and line-patriarchal character of bureaucracy, the virtue of the

129 BUREAUCRACY poststructuralist perspective is its insistence on more open- staffing of a universal school system or in the various state ended dynamics of contested agendas and contradictions administrative policy bureaus that underpinned the early within any actual bureaucratic organization. This literature, development of welfare states (for example, the Children’s however, is not cross-referenced with the traditional socio- Bureau created in 1912 under the leadership of Julia logical critique of the Weberian model of bureaucracy for Lathrop in the United States). The Australasian literature its neglect of the informal, nonbureaucratic relationships on “femocracy” is concerned with the reform-oriented and styles of working on which the bureaucratic formal or- Australian and New Zealand social democratic administra- der depends. tions of the 1970s and 1980s. This literature is neither situ- None of these views locate their perspectives in relation ated historically in relation to past patterns of women’s to mainstream organizational theory and management participation in the administrative state, nor, as yet, policy literatures (see, for example, Mintzberg, 1979; reevaluated in terms of the implications of public sector re- Perrow, 1986). Nor do they respond adequately to the im- structuring for this participation. At the same time, there is plications of the late-twentieth-century restructuring of the a great deal of talk of a “glass ceiling” for women in private public sector in the liberal democracies for the bureaucratic and public sector management, and this perspective is valid form. Managerialism, devolution, and privatization have for most large organizations, especially global corpora- all fundamentally changed the organizational dynamics tions. Information technology enables these organizations and structures of the public sector. Organizations tend now to centralize their strategic management, and to to be less hierarchical (“flatter”), less rule-bound, and more rebureaucratize the controls this central mind exercises outcomes-oriented; less defensive in relation to outsiders; over the many operations and functions it devolves or con- and more proactive in relation to what they perceive as a tracts out. Some individual women may cross the glass constantly changing context for their policy and manage- ceiling and become central organizational executives, but ment. This requires their personnel to become more flex- there will be a greater distance between them and women ible, intelligently proactive, strategic, multiskilled, and workers who staff service operations such as call centers. A democratic. These developments do not fit the classical good deal of new empirical research needs to be done on Weberian picture of bureaucracy. Because it favors more women in the context of these new organizational and bu- collegial, democratic, and intuitive styles of working, as reaucratic forms. well as requiring tough-minded and analytical policy skills, this new type of “postbureaucratic” organization has both See Also “feminine” and “masculine” features. There is an emerging FEMOCRAT; GOVERNMENT; HIERARCHY AND BUREAUCRACY; debate about how the postbureaucratic type of public sector ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY organization (see Barzelay, 1992) relates to the older bu- reaucratic form: Does the former supplant or does it sedi- References and Further Reading ment over the latter? (For this debate, see Yeatman, 1994.) Barzelay, Michael. 1992. Breaking through bureaucracy: A new Certainly there is no suggestion by the exponents of the vision for managing in government. Berkeley and Los Ange- postbureaucratic type—such as Peters’s and Waterman’s les: University of California Press. antisytems models of management—that the ethical virtues Deacon, Desley. 1989. Managing gender: The state, the new mid- of the bureaucratic type are jettisoned in today’s business dle class, and women workers, 1830–1930. Melbourne: Ox- environment. These virtues are impersonality and due ford University Press. process. The democratic values of natural justice, equality, Dowse, Sara. 1988. The women’s movement fandango with the and accountability are fundamentally dependent on these state: The movement’s role in public policy since 1972. In virtues. Cora V.Baldock and Beltina Cass, eds., Women, social wel- There is an inadequately elaborated and scattered litera- fare and the state (2nd ed.), 205–227. Sydney: Allen and ture on the participation of women in the development of Unwin. the administrative state over the course of the twentieth Ferguson, Kathy. 1984. The feminist case against bureaucracy. century. There is a small literature on the participation of Philadelphia: Temple University Press. women in the staffing of the administrative state’s services Franzway, Suzanne, Dianne Court, and R.W.Connell. 1989. Stak- to the national citizenry in their early inception—the post ing a claim: Feminism, bureaucracy and the state. Sydney: office, for example (see Deacon, 1989; Zimmeck, 1992,). Allen and Unwin. This literature has not been cross-referenced with the sec- Kanter, Rosabeth Moss. 1977. Men and women of the corporation. tor-specific literatures on the participation of women in the New York: Basic Books.

130 BUTCH/FEMME

Mintzberg, Henry. 1979. The structuring of organization: A syn- produces its own particular social and erotic vocabularies, thesis of the research. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall. which facilitate desire and give expression and legitimation Perrow, Charles. 1986. Complex organization: A critical essay, to lesbian genders and sexualities. Although gender differ- 3rd ed. New York: Random House. ence is eroticized, it cannot be simply read as reproducing Peters, Thomas J., and Robert H.Waterman. 1984. In search of or mimicking heterosexuality and traditional gender roles. excellence. New York: Warner. Butch/femme deploys and subverts traditional gender rep- Pringle, Rosemary. 1989. Secretaries talk: Sexuality, power and resentations associated with heterosexuality by self-con- work. London and New York: Verso. sciously appropriating and recontextualizing both Savage, Michael, and Anne Witz. 1992. The gender of organiza- masculinity and femininity and in the process radically tions. In Savage and Witz, eds., Gender and bureaucracy. transforming them both. Oxford: Blackwell. Although butch and femme share an important history Sawer, Marian. 1990. Sisters in suits: Women and public policy in as allies and companions, it is important to understand Australia. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. them as separate and distinct identities with different tra- Siim, Birta. 1987. The Scandinavian welfare states: Towards jectories, unique childhood narratives, and distinct defining sexual equality or a new kind of male domination? Acta and developmental experiences. In order to have a richer Sociologica 30:255–270. understanding of what butch/femme means as erotic dy- Watson, Sophie, ed. 1990. Playing the state: Australian feminist namics, it is crucial to understand who and what butch and interventions. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. femme are as separate identities. Weber, Max. 1968. Bureaucracy. In Economy and society, Vol. 3: Femme is a set of codes and behaviors that articulate 956–1006. New York: Bedminster. desire in a seemingly traditionally feminine way. In actual- Yeatman, Anna. 1990. Bureaucrats, technocrats, femocrats: Es- ity, however, femmes turn traditional femininity on its says on the contemporary Australian state. Sydney: Allen head. Although femmes may present a feminine appear- and Unwin. ance and mannerisms, they are not so easily dismissed. ——. 1994. The reform of public management: An overview. Aus- Femmes are women who vehemently reject the limitations tralian Journal of Public Administration 53(3):287–296. imposed on them by a patriarchal society that seeks to con- Zimmeck, Meta. 1992. Marry in haste, repent at leisure: Women, trol and manipulate women’s bodies and sexualities. In di- bureaucracy and the post office, 1870–1920. In Michael Sav- recting their erotic impulses away from normative age and Anne Witz, eds., Gender and bureaucracy. 65–94. heterosexual relations, femmes take their desires into their Oxford: Blackwell. own hands and, in the process, reshape femininity to satisfy their own wants and needs. Femmes reappropriate feminin- Anna Yeatman ity and tease out its most dangerous and subversive ele- ments. How femme femininity is articulated also has much to do with other variants such as race, class, religion, and BUSINESS AND BUISNESSWOMEN region. Femme diversity is also manifested in the sexual See ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION; arena. As many femmes may be attracted exclusively to ENTREPRENEURSHIP; FINANCE; LEADERSHIP; butches, some are attracted to other femmes, and still others MANAGEMENT; and MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS. are also attracted to men and consider themselves bisexual. Femme variation, in addition to femme strength and brav- ery, has enriched lesbian communities throughout the twentieth century. BUTCH/FEMME Butch is also set of behavior and codes that articulates and facilitates desire. Butches are born physically female Butch and femme are two unique articulations of lesbian but are more comfortable presenting and embodying a gender and desire. As a couplet, butch/femme (or butch- masculine gender and sexual identity. Many butches expe- femme) is erotic dynamics cultivated through gender dif- rience differing degrees of gender dysphoria, which means ference, between a masculine woman and feminine that they feel a certain amount of discomfort with the gen- woman. It is a way of knowing and embodying desire der they were assigned at birth, based on their anatomical through behaviors, mannerisms, deportment, style, and the sex. To rectify their discomfort, butches appropriate and negotiation and orchestration of sexual relations and prac- remake aspects of male masculinity to satisfy their own tices. Butch/femme as gender and sexual identities needs and desires. Many butches appropriate masculine

131 BUTCH/FEMME clothing, haircuts, hobbies, and jobs in order to facilitate White working-class women and working-class women of their masculine identification. As butches take masculinity color often socialized together, although there were bars out of its traditional context, they transform it into some- that catered more specifically to each crowd. However, be- thing new and unique. Masculinity layered over a female cause bar space was limited, especially in the early days, body disrupts conventional notions of gender as a natural women of color and white women were often thrown to- outgrowth of anatomical sex. Butches threaten normative gether by circumstance. The heyday or “golden age” of masculinity by usurping male privileges, particularly the butch/ femme culture was the 1950s and early 1960s. Dur- right to conduct sexual relations with other women. Rather ing this period, butch/femme communities grew in size and than see butchness as merely male mimicry, it is perhaps number and flourished despite constant harassment, raids, more accurate to understand it as resembling some aspects and vicious assaults by the police and thugs. Butch/femme of male masculinity but as still being its own unique and eroticism was the primary way in which working-class les- separate gender expression. Butch masculinity, like femme bians organized their sexual and romantic relationships and femininity, is nuanced by other variables such as race, friendships. Tacit rules and etiquette provided instruction class, religion, and region. There is a diverse range of butch on courtship, romance, and sex, as well as friendship. sexualities; for example, some butches may be exclusively Butches were expected to be the aggressors in sex and ro- attracted to femmes, some are attracted to other butches, mance as well as in social situations. Butches also were and some may occasionally be attracted to gay men. These expected to be attracted only to femmes and never to an- rich and diverse butch identities participated in the con- other butch; and, finally, butches were supposed to be sexu- struction of lesbian communities throughout the twentieth ally untouchable, or “stone.” Femmes were expected to be century. more sexually receptive, gentle, and accommodating. The historical development of butch/femme communi- Femmes were supposed to direct their sexual desires onto ties occured during the course of the twentieth century. butches and never to other femmes; and, finally, they were During the 1910s and 1920s, groups of expatriates, artists, not supposed to want to touch their butch lovers genitally. and upper-class women in New York, Paris, and London Although these were the rules and one could be ostracized began living in romantic and sexual unions that resembled for any publicized infraction, not everyone followed them butch/femme relationships—perhaps the most-famous (or all the time or interpreted them stringently. Many women infamous) example was British author Radclyffe Hall and found the rules perfectly compatible with their personali- her lover Una Troubridge. The term butch/femme would ties and desires. Some women, however, did find them stul- have been categorically inconsequential, however, and in- tifying and felt trapped by them. The latter voices would comprehensible to these women. As such, the terms and hear their grievances elaborated and championed in the identities of butch and femme did not exist in these early next decade. milieus. Butch/femme emerged as an intelligible identity As the 1960s progressed, liberation struggles and move- and signifier during the 1930s and 1940s, mostly in urban ments for social change took the center of the political and centers in the United States. Aided by historical forces such social stage. The black civil rights struggles, student move- as the fundamental technological changes engendered by ments, and antiwar movements bombarded popular con- the second wave of the Industrial Revolution in the 1890s; sciousness with demands for social justice and change. It the social, political, and artistic upheavals caused by the was in this climate that the women’s liberation movement Great War; and the long process of steady urbanization that and lesbian feminism were born. During the course of the had begun a century before, new social and sexual land- 1970s, lesbian feminism radically refigured what it meant scapes were being formed. During World War II, which to be a lesbian, which was predicated less on erotic prefer- took many American men overseas, many women enjoyed ence and more on political allegiance. Any woman could be access to better-paying jobs and less familial policing. It a lesbian as long as she placed the political and social was during this period that butch/femme communities re- causes and concerns of women above everything else. ally flourished and carved a permanent—albeit often pre- Butch/femme was rejected by lesbian feminists as deriva- carious—place for themselves on the urban landscape. In tive of heterosexuality and, therefore, inherently oppres- the 1930s and 1940s communities of primarily working- sive to women. Butch/femme relationships were reviled class women began organizing themselves around butch/ and devalued by the burgeoning lesbian feminist move- femme erotics. For most of these communities the primary ment, and many butch and femme women were ostracized site for socializing was the bars, which afforded a sense of from these communities. Made to feel ashamed of their re- community and refuge from the hostile world outside. lationships, communities, and identities, butches and

132 BUTCH/FEMME femmes were ridiculed and silenced by lesbian feminism. working-class and conduct romantic relationships with other Many butches and femmes fought back and refused to be very feminine working-class women called carnivelesque pushed out of lesbian communities; however, many others women. In the Philippines, masculine homosexual women felt forced out and isolated. are often referred to as tomboys or T-birds. More feminine With the start of the “sex wars” in the early 1980s—after women seem to be identified in relation to tomboys; they are a decade of forced silence and exile—butch/femme the “wives” or “girlfriends” of tomboys. In the Philippines, reemerged as a viable and desirable way to organize sexual masculine/feminine gender dynamics in female homosexual relationships and gender and sexual identities. Academics, relationships are evident among the working and upper activists, and community members began to actively chal- classes. These sexual unions and gender expressions resem- lenge lesbian feminist assumptions that butch/femme sexu- ble American and western European butch/femme couples ality merely mirrored heterosexuality. Instead, they argued but must be understood within the context of their location. that butch/femme as a couple or as individual identities Across cultures divergent attitudes toward gender, sexuality, were unique and radical subjectivities that persisted, and and religion profoundly shape the worlds in which we live. sustained lesbians, throughout the twentieth century. Butch/femme pride was not only respected; it was actively See Also encouraged. New scholarship and writing glorified butch/ FEMINISM: LESBIAN; FEMINISM: RADICAL; GENDER; LESBIAN femme and lauded it as being instrumental to the construc- SEXUALITY; LESBIAN STUDIES; LESBIANISM; QUEER THEORY; tion of modern public lesbian identities. With the advent of SEXUAL DIFFERENCE; SEXUAL ORIENTATION; SEXUALITY: queer theory in the late 1980s and 1990s, butch/femme OVERVIEW identities were celebrated as sites of gender subversion. This revaluation and visible rearticulation of butch/femme References and Further Reading have led to its renaissance in many lesbian communities Halberstrom, Judith. 1998. Female masculinity. Durham, N.C., around the United States and western Europe. Although and London: Duke University Press. butch/femme has remained a viable and common identifi- Harris, Laura, and Elizabeth Crocker. 1997. Femme: Feminists, cation in workingclass lesbian communities, it also has be- lesbians and bad girls. New York and London: Routledge. come more acceptable among younger middle-class Lapovsky, Elizabeth, and Madeline Davis. 1993. Boots of leather, lesbians. slippers of gold: The history of a lesbian community . New Outside the United States and western Europe, there exist York and London: Routledge. thriving sexual economies that resemble butch/femme but Munt, Sally. 1998. Butch/femme: Inside lesbian gender. London: are distinct and unique to their particular cultures. Like the Cassell. American butch/femme communities of the 1930s, 1940s, Nestle, Joan. 1992. The persistent desire: A femme/butch reader. and 1950s, many of these communal formations are divided Boston: Alyson. along class lines and have created their own unique language ——. 1987. A restricted country. Ithaca, N.Y.: Firebrand. and codes to signify desire. In Greece, very masculine ho- mosexual women are called dalikes. They are predominantly Sherry Breyette

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CANCER inhibiting the normal functioning of organs and glands and causing a host of debilitating symptoms and often death. Physical, social, and economic factors influence a wom- an’s experience of cancer. The kinds, causes, and treatments A Global Disease of cancer, the means of its prevention, and the incidence of Cancer affects people in all parts of the world. No reliable mortality and morbidity are determined not only by the statistics exist on the number of cancer cases or the number physical differences between men and women but also by of deaths from cancer worldwide, since many countries have the particular conditions in which they live. These condi- no cancer registries. But available figures reveal that cancer is tions vary considerably by region and reflect disparities in a major health problem everywhere. Dramatic increases in political, economic, and medical resources available to life expectancy and profound changes in lifestyles have women around the world in the fight against the disease. caused the total number of new cancer cases to soar. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that by 2020 General Definition there will be 20 million new cancer patients each year, more Cancer refers to several diseases with one common trait— than 70 percent of whom will live in developing countries. the rapid, unrestrained growth and spread of cells that do not Although mortality rates in developing countries are still react to the body’s normal mechanisms for limiting cell rep- higher for communicable diseases that have been eradicated lication. Healthy, benign cells have specialized functions, in developed nations, more than two out of three of the and the body stimulates and regulates their rate of replication world’s cancer patients will come from a developing country. in order to restrict their growth to contact with other cells. As global development increases, two factors will make Cancerous, or “malignant,” cells lack what is called contact cancer the leading cause of death worldwide: higher life inhibition and so invade the surrounding tissue of other cells. expectancy and environmental contamination. Cancer is This lack of inhibition causes solid tumors or lumps called partially a disease of aging, and as life expectancy rises carcinomas, which begin in the lining of organs and account around the world, the number of cancer cases rises as well. for nearly 90 percent of all cancers. Other cancers affect the In addition, as cancer-causing pollutants, particularly blood (leukemias), the lymph system (lymphomas), and endocrine-disrupting chemicals, are released into the bone and connective tissues (sarcomas). Cancerous cells can environment, the incidence of cancers that affect the invade surrounding cells and enter the circulatory or the lym- reproductive organs of both women and men will increase. phatic system—the two systems that supply nutrients to the Specific behaviors, such as eating certain kinds of food, body’s organs and carry away waste. When cancerous cells drinking alcohol, and smoking cigarettes, also increase the enter the circulatory or lymphatic system, they can spread to risk of certain cancers. Cultural or economic encouragement any tissue or organ in the body in a process called metastasis. of such behaviors influences the incidence and kind of can- The spreading of cancerous cells kills normal cells by de- cer cases within a region. Such links help explain regional priving them of nutrients, thereby hindering or completely variations; for example, breast cancer has been relatively

135 CANCER uncommon in Japan, but its incidence is now rising as the in developed nations (often called “the North”), with the Japanese adopt western-style foods rich in saturated fats, a United Kingdom, the United States, and the Netherlands shift encouraged by commercial food manufacturing. To- having the highest rates. By contrast, cervical cancer—the bacco chewing in India explains why cancer of the oral cav- most preventable cause of death in women of reproductive ity is more common there than in other countries. Factors age—is the leading cancer among women in developing associated with cancer include the following: regions (called “the South” or the third world), particularly east and central Africa, some areas in Asia, the Caribbean, and tropical South America. The factors contributing to • Low fiber intake Colon cancer such cancers are distinct and reflect the varying priorities • High intake of salt- Esophagus and stomach of women from these different regions and from developed cured, smoked, and cancer as opposed to developing countries. For breast cancer, nitrate-cured foods contributing factors include late childbirth and few or no children; for cervical cancer, factors include early • Tobacco chewing Mouth and throat cancer childbirth and multiple pregnancies. In addition, women • Heavy drinking Liver cancer from poor communities in the developed world may be susceptible to cancers typical of both developed and • Heavy smoking allied Mouth, throat, laryngeal, underdeveloped areas, and their mortality rates may be to heavy drinking and esophagal cancer higher than those of more privileged women. For example, • Overexposure to the sun Skin cancer the incidence of cervical cancer is 2.5 times higher among African-American women than among white women, and • Cigarette smoking Lung cancer (and as many while the incidence of breast cancer among African- as one-third of all cancer cases) Americans of all age groups is rising, the incidence of breast cancer among white women under age 50 is falling. Other generally acknowledged risk factors are excessive Overall, 34 percent of indigenous women around the world exposure to X rays and, in a small number of cases, genetic and 38 percent of African-American women survive for inheritance (for example, there is evidence that genetic fac- five years after a diagnosis of cancer, compared with 50 tors account for 5 to 10 percent of breast cancer). Hyper- percent of white women. tension, or stress, can be a factor as well and may have Although ethnic differences and class distinctions pro- political, economic, or cultural causes specific to a region foundly influence the risk of cancer and the chances of sur- or lifestyle. Although personal choices and cultural context vival among women, gender itself unites women’s influence both the cause and the prevention of cancer, envi- experience of cancer and can serve as an important crite- ronmental and social factors also play a role in determining rion for examining and combating the global increase in the a community’s ability to prevent or treat the disease. His- disease. torically, powerful corporations manufacturing chemicals and sexism are significant factors in and pesticides or dumping toxic wastes have downplayed the prevention and treatment of cancer. Cancers that affect the evidence linking these activities to cancer. As more af- women occur mainly in the reproductive-genital system. fluent communities in the developed world organized Worldwide cancer cases among women rank in the follow- against such dangers, companies began exporting toxic ing order: breast, cervix, uterus, ovaries, vagina, placenta, waste, pesticides, and chemicals, harming communities and fallopian tubes. Such cancers affect the health and sur- less economically able, or insufficiently politically organ- vival of women more severely than cancers of the male re- ized, to defend themselves against such practices. productive organs affect men. Among Latin American and In an effort to account for specific trends related to can- Caribbean women, deaths from cancers of the reproductive cer, some researchers distinguish between cancer in devel- organs are double or even triple those for men, and the fe- oped and underdeveloped nations and between cancers male-to-male ratio for healthy years of life lost is 7 to 1. In predominant in affluent countries and those common in the United States, the incidence of breast cancer is 1 in 2,000 poorer, generally less developed countries. for women age 20, 1 in 40 at age 50, and 1 in 8 at age 85. Cancer afflicts women differently from men. A major Women’s Experience of Cancer risk factor is the prolonged presence of estrogen in the Cancers afflicting women conform in large measure to this body, including estrogen that is produced naturally. The pattern. Breast cancer is the leading cancer among women link between estrogen and cancer involves issues of

136 CANCER reproductive health that are exclusive to women, including an early age, and cervical cancer is associated with early late childbirth and few or no children, early menstruation, sexual activity in women. In addition, men often make the late menopause, and no breast feeding. In addition to the decision whether or not to wear a condom, which could natural link between estrogen and cancer, several factors protect women against the cancer-related health risks asso- compound this risk in one or more reproductive organs: ciated with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Because societies often expect or even encourage male promiscuity, • Pesticides, drugs, fuels, and plastics that mimic the ac- many women are at risk for STDs as well as for the HIV tion of estrogen or alter the hormone’s activity virus, which impairs or destroys their ability to resist dis- • Alcohol, which increases estrogen production ease. Crucial to cancer prevention is a woman’s ability to • Long-term use of estrogen-heavy oral contraceptives control highrisk behaviors in her own life. • Fat and obesity (because estrogen is produced not only in the bloodstream but also in fat cells) Women’s Cancer Prevention • DES (diethylstilbestrol), a synthetic estrogen prescribed Women in many countries have organized to fight the pre- to prevent miscarriages, which gives the user’s daughter ventable causes of cancer and are acquiring a greater claim an increased risk of cervical or vaginal cancer and the to the economic and political resources for cancer preven- user herself a higher risk of cancers of the breast, uterus, tion and treatment around the world. cervix, and ovaries. DES, a drug made under about two A woman’s most effective strategy against cancer is hundred brand names, is banned in the developed world early detection. With early detection, some female can- but is still prescribed in some developing countries. cers can be cured or put into remission, the temporary but sometimes long-term disappearance of symptoms. The Environmental pollutants and toxins, processed foods, al- Pap smear is a low-cost diagnostic tool for cervical can- cohol, and undertested medicines increase the general risk cer, which is almost 100 percent curable if detected early. of cancer for all, but they increase a woman’s risk in ways Chances of surviving breast cancer also are greatly in- that require distinct preventive measures. creased by early detection because deaths from breast In attempting to prevent cancer, a woman may need to cancer result not from the localized tumor in the breast make choices about cancer risks that are unique to her but from metastasis, the spread of cancer beyond its pri- health needs. For example, a woman for whom estrogen is mary site to the blood and lymph systems. Annual prescribed, perhaps to protect her from osteoporosis, must mammograms and examination of the breasts by a medi- weigh her relative risk of osteoporosis, reproductive can- cal professional, together with monthly breast self-exami- cer, and other illness or disability in light of her own, and nation, are the most effective tools in early detection. her family’s, medical history. These choices affect the spe- Mammograms are sometimes considered not “cost-effec- cific way a woman will experience cancer or the threat of it tive” for women under the age of 30 because “only 20 in her lifetime. percent” of breast cancers occur in that age group; but it Society’s views of women play a role in determining a can be argued that this assumption disregards women who woman’s risk. The tendency of the pharmaceutical indus- develop breast cancer at a young age, and particularly Af- try and the medical establishment to view reproduction as rican-American women, a large proportion of whom de- a mechanism and the female body as a machine that can be velop breast cancer before age 40. Routine health tinkered with has increased women’s risk of certain can- examinations are an inexpensive yet often effective inter- cers. Examples include the long dismissal of the dangers vention—but they are not available to all women around associated with the earliest oral contraceptives, the experi- the world. ments in hormonal manipulation to regulate the ovulation Women also can initiate effective and personally em- of premenopausal women, and the attempt to induce false powering actions to enhance cancer prevention, detection, pregnancies in teenagers to counter the “incessant ovula- and survival. These include adopting lifestyle habits that tion” blamed for breast cancer. These experiments illus- detoxify the body, correct the metabolism, and strengthen trate that medical practices are susceptible to cultural the immune system, such as regular exercise and a diet high misconceptions of women that increase women’s risk of in fiber, low in saturated fats, and rich in vitamins A, C, and cancer. E as well as minerals and enzymes. It is important to maxi- Another example is male dominance in the private mize the body’s capacity for self-healing by reducing hy- sphere. Because men often control the decision-making pertension and by incorporating emotional and mental process in sexual relations, many young women have sex at health in preventing and caring for disease.

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Women have made medical research increasingly sensi- available in more affluent regions. The need for these effec- tive to women’s health issues. Because conventional tive resources will grow because the number of curable chemotherapy has been less effective in treating several fe- cases is expected to rise to one-half of cancer cases by 2025. male reproductive organ cancers than in treating some On a global scale, more must be done to bridge the gap other types of cancer, alternative therapies have been devel- between well-organized and well-financed women’s advo- oped, with some success. Researchers have discovered a cacy groups in developed countries and the women of the gene that may suppress tumor growth in breast and ovarian poorest countries who have the fewest material resources cancer and have developed a drug that controls cell division for preventing and surviving cancer. in metastatic ovarian and breast cancers which are unre- sponsive to chemotherapy. Research has also found that See Also timing treatments to the body’s natural daily rhythms re- ENDOCRINE DISRUPTION; GLOBAL HEALTH MOVEMENT; duces the toxicity of chemotherapy. Research continues on HEALTH CHALLENGES; HEALTH EDUCATION; HORMONE alternatives to radical procedures, such as mastectomies, REPLACEMENT THERAPY; LIFE EXPECTANCY; MENOPAUSE that can cause severe physical and emotional damage to women’s reproductive and sexual health. References and Further Reading In designing a global strategy of cancer prevention, Lorde, Audre. 1980. The cancer journals. San Francisco: Spin- consideration for the specific needs of regions and coun- sters/Aunt Lutte. tries is crucial. Understanding the diverse patterns of can- ——. 1988. A burst of light. Ithaca, N.Y.: Firebrand. cer in the world helps tailor national prevention programs Proctor, Robert N. 1988. The politics of breast cancer. Dissent to the epidemiological and economic situation of a spe- (Spring). cific country. There is still a widespread misconception Rennie, Susan. 1993. The politics of breast cancer. Ms., May— that noncommunicable diseases such as cancer do not af- June. flict the developing world, that they are burdens of afflu- Restrepo, Helen. 1993. Cancer epidemiology and control in ent societies only. As a result, many developing countries women in Latin America and the Caribbean. In Gender, face an increased incidence of noncommunicable dis- women, and health in the Americas. PAHO Scientific Publi- eases along with their persistently high rates of communi- cation no. 54. cable diseases. Sontag, Susan. 1988. Illness as metaphor. New York: Farrar, Inexpensive but effective interventions, such as encour- Straus, and Giroux. aging healthy eating and pressuring food manufacturers to WHO Working Group on National Cancer Control Projects. 1991. decrease fat and increase fiber content in their products, WHO report 1993. Bauf, Canada, 25 September-1 October. can help prevent both cancers and cardiovascular diseases. Willis, Claudia. 1991. A puzzling plague. Time, 14 January. As cancer-causing industries confront organized opposi- Andaiye tion in the developed world, they must not be allowed sim- ply to migrate to developing countries. For example, WHO estimates that there are 200 million female smokers in the world, and tobacco industries are increasingly targeting developing regions as developed countries organize against CAPITALISM cigarette smoking. In developed countries, 25 percent of women smoke, compared with 7 percent in developing Capitalism usually refers to a form of economic or social countries. If prevailing trends continue, however, and the organization characterized by the pervasive commo- tobacco industry continues to target the developing world, dification of property, labor, and knowledge. It has been a it is estimated that by 2020 more than 1 million women will focus for feminists in many different ways. In the 1970s, die each year from tobacco-related illnesses—twice the when Marxist vocabulary was a kind of lingua franca number in 2000. In India, for example, rates of tobacco- among left-leaning intellectuals, socialist feminists tried to related cancers are already higher among women than the construct a theoretical understanding of patriarchy by us- rate of breast cancer. ing the concepts associated with the Marxist analysis of Access to resources is critical. One-third of all cancer capitalism as a theoretical template. Alongside this fairly cases are curable by applying current knowledge and tech- abstract analysis, those concerned with shifts in gender re- nologies. Yet in many parts of the world, the population has lations, including women’s place in economic organiza- no access to the basic cancer-fighting medical practices tion, have necessarily had to understand changes in the

138 CAPITALISM relationship between local economies and the world mar- modern urban capitalist development has made it possible ket. These and other aspects of feminist analyses of capital- for individuals to lead lives outside marriage, it is linked to ism and its relation to gender are usefully reviewed in the development of modern homosexual lifestyles and Barrett (1988) and Andermahr et al. (1997), among others. communities. In the 1990s, analysis of the comm- However, for a number of reasons analyses that focus on odification of sexuality also made reference to the expan- capitalism fell out of favor in the 1990s. sion of capitalist investment into new spheres (Hawkes, 1996), but here (as was increasingly the case elsewhere) Marxist Analysis of Capitalism capitalism has tended to be defined in terms of In classical Marxism, capitalism has a twofold character. commodification and market exchange rather than in terms Although it is defined by a unique type of exploitation— of the social relations of labor. the construction of human labor as a commodity for which the worker is paid, but at less than the value of that labor— Feminist Analysis of Capitalism it also has a progressive role in the evolution of human his- To begin with, second-wave feminist theory in the West torical development. Because production under capitalism turned to highly abstract analyses of capitalism as a mode is organized around the continuing accumulation of capital, of production with its own laws of development. The most as against other social or spiritual goals, it tends to revolu- influential text, initially, was Engels’s late nineteen- tionize the forces of production through scientific and tech- thcentury work The Origin of the Family, Private Property, nological development. As it expands, it subordinates and the State (1972), which argued that modes of produc- other, earlier modes of production, either appropriating tion incorporated systems of reproduction as well as sys- their surplus or replacing them with capitalist forms of pro- tems of production, thereby creating a space for feminists duction. According to orthodox Marxists, however, the to bring the analysis of sexual partnerships between men means of production created by capitalism will eventually and women within Marxist theory. Feminist theorists ex- outgrow their foundation in the exploitative capitalist rela- tended the concept of reproduction to include not only bio- tions that gave birth to them. Thus although capitalism al- logical, generational reproduction but also women’s ienates human labor and blocks the free development of domestic labor, which reproduced the labor force on a day- human potential, class conflict engendered by the oppres- to-day basis. They also drew heavily on the French Marxist sion of the proletariat would lead the working classes to philosopher Louis Althusser’s analysis (Althusser and join forces to overthrow bourgeois rule and create a social- Balibar, 1970) of capitalism’s dependence on its political ist society in which the fruits of capitalist development and ideological levels, not merely its economic laws, in re- could be enjoyed by all. producing itself as a mode of production. Thus even though Ambivalence about capitalism in Marxism was also women may not have been as involved as men in capitalist present in the ways it envisioned the relationship between relations in the workplace, their position in society was capitalism and what second-wave feminism came to call nonetheless determined by capitalism. The state, which gender relations. On the one hand, in the Communist Mani- was seen to reflect the interests of capital, played a particu- festo Marx drew a parallel between the power relation be- larly important role in cementing women’s dependence on, tween wives and husbands as social categories and the and subordination to, men. However, the question whether oppression of the proletariat by the bourgeoisie, seeing the the patriarchal basis of women’s oppression was an aspect monopolization of property ownership as crucial in both of capitalism or a separate but interacting system (dual sys- cases. But Marxists have also tended to see capitalism as tems theory) was much debated. Though it would be hard sweeping away all preexisting hierarchies and divisions, to say that the exact nature of the relationship between dif- including women’s oppression, and in nineteenth-century ferent aspects of gender relations and capitalism was ever Europe the new economic independence of women em- resolved, these debates, which now seem rather arcane, put ployed in the factories spawned by the industrial revolution the situation of women at the center of theories of social seemed evidence that this was occurring. Since then many formation rather than at their margins. theorists, feminist and other, have tried to posit a relation- Since the collapse of the socialist regimes in eastern Eu- ship between capitalism and sexuality. Marcuse (1964), for rope and the marginalization of Marxist social theory more instance, initially assumed that capitalism required the re- generally, capitalism as a focus for analysis has faded into pression of sexual pleasure but later argued that sexuality the background. Even feminist researchers concerned with was deployed by capital in the interest of expanded workplace issues have argued that the concepts Marxists consumption. In contrast, others have argued that because developed to understand women’s entry into industrial

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production under capitalism, such as the concept of the re- Andermahr, S., T.Lovell, and C.Wolkowitz. 1997. A glossary of serve army of labor, are not well suited to understanding feminist theory. London: Arnold. women’s concentration in reproductive labor or the service Barrett, Michèle. 1988. Women’s oppression today: The sector (Benhabib and Cornell, 1987). Studies of large-scale Marxistfeminist encounter, 2nd ed. London: Verso. change have deployed concepts like globalization or post- ——. 1999. Words and things. In M.Barrett, Imagination in Fordism (Fordism being a technological system that in- theory: Essays on writing and culture. Cambridge: Polity. creases efficiency by breaking down and interlocking Benhabib, Seyla, and Drucilla Cornell, eds. 1987. Feminism as production operations, as on an assembly line, to mass-pro- critique. Oxford: Polity. duce goods) or postindustrialism rather than focusing on Ebert, Teresa. 1996. Ludic feminism and after: Postmodernity, de- capitalism as such. As examples one could compare writing sire, and labor in late capitalism. Ann Arbor: University of from the 1970s and early 1980s on what was called “gender Michigan Press. in development,” in which the expansion of the capitalist Engels, Friedrich. 1972. The origin of the family, private property, world system was seen as a crucial determinant of transfor- and the state. London: Lawrence and Wishart (originally mations in gender relations (for example, Young, McCullagh, published 1884). and Wolkowitz, 1985, first published in 1981; Signs, 1981), Hawkes, Gail. 1996. A sociology of sex and sexuality. Bucking- with later work (for example, Marchand and Parpart, 1995). ham: Open University Press. The marginalization of capitalism as an analytic focus Marchand, Marianne, and Jane L.Parpart, eds. 1995. Feminism/ has been particularly pronounced in western feminist postmodernism/development. London: Routledge. thought, where the “cultural turn” privileging of the local, Marcuse, Herbert. 1964. One dimensional man. London: the personal, and the textual as against the structural and Routledge and Kegan Paul. economic, play and choice as against constraint and op- Signs, 1981. 7(2). Special issue on development and the sexual pression, has been particularly pronounced (Barren, 1999). division of labor. Foucauldian definitions of power, which refuse to see it Young, K., R.McCullagh, and C.Wolkowitz, eds. 1985. Of mar- based in any one sphere (such as the economy), have also riage and the market: Women’s subordination in interna- turned attention away from relations of production. This tional perspective, 2nd ed. London: Routledge and Kegan analytic refocusing obviously has complicated roots and is Paul. linked to economic and social changes, not just shifting in- Carol Wolkowitz tellectual currents. But although calls for a feminist revival of materialist analysis as against cultural studies—for ex- ample, Ebert (1996)—may be justified, real changes in economic life and women’s roles in it make a simple return CAREGIVERS to the analysis of gender and capitalism where it left off very unlikely. For instance, the proliferation of cultural and Women’s role as domestic caregivers—maintaining a intellectual activities and their centrality to economic life household and the people in it—may be a source of both make it difficult to contrast the cultural and the economic in strength and oppression for them. Although women do any simple way. Indeed, the centrality of commodification most of the world’s household work, domestic caregiving to the expansion of feminist culture—through the purchase has varied over periods and cultures. Food preparation, and sale of commodities such as books, journals, theater cleaning, child care, and even nursing infants may be allo- and cinema, and the development of electronic communi- cated among groups of women, children, and men. The dis- cation—suggests that feminist theory will have to take note tinction between domestic and nondomestic activities may of how feminism is itself linked to, if not dependent on, be blurred or clear. developments in late capitalism. In industrialized countries the middle-class norm strongly associates domestic caregiving with mothering See Also (Ruddick, 1989). Yet the extent to which women mother, COMMUNISM; ECONOMY: OVERVIEW; ECONOMY: HISTORY and how mothering and other domestic tasks are arranged, OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION; MARXISM; SOCIALISM will depend on social and economic conditions. When women move into paid work, domestic caregiving may be References and Further Reading restructured; for example, cooking may be replaced by the Althusser, Louis, and Etienne Balibar. 1970. Reading capital. purchase of prepared foods, older children may be assigned London: New Left. to child care. Kin and neighbors may participate in the

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division of caring labor. Same-sex households can divide Ruddick, Sara. 1989. Maternal thinking: Toward a politics of caregiving without reference to gender roles. More affluent peace. Boston: Beacon. families often hire poor women to do some, if not most, Berenice Fisher domestic caregiving (Colen, 1989). As more women have entered paid work and feminist ideas have spread, men have been pressured and encouraged to share domestic caregiving. CARTOONS AND COMICS Organization of Caring Activities How societies organize caring activities greatly influences Women have worked in cartooning almost since its incep- women’s domestic work (Fisher and Tronto, 1990). Where tion. Many women published cartoons in the early twenti- a free-market economy prevails, women with money may eth century, but several pioneers stand out. buy caring services, whereas poorer women perform their own caring work or do without it. Where caring is organ- Pioneers ized into private or state bureaucracies or offered through In 1909, Rose O’Neill created her adorable, androgynous community-based agencies, domestic caregivers must Kewpies. First featured in the Ladies’ Home Journal, the connect members of their households to caring services; “Kewpies” became a national craze and remained a staple of for example, they must take a child to a child care center, women’s magazines and newspaper funny pages for dec- help a disabled relative go to a clinic, or get home care for ades. Nell Brinkley’s glamorous Brinkley Girl became a an aged parent. Because women are concentrated in the pre—jazz age cultural ideal. Grace Drayton used the charac- underpaid “caring professions,” women domestic ters in her “Dimples” cartoon strip as models for her caregivers often find themselves pitted against women Campbell Kids, who appear on soup cans to this day. In Eng- who work as paid caregivers (a mother against an over- land, Mary Caldwell Toutel’s “Rupert Bear” series began worked elementary-school teacher, a daughter against a running in 1874 and was still popular in the early twenty-first nurse who is on strike). Without an increase in women’s century. The strip “Bib and Bob,” created by May Gibbs, economic power, support for women as both paid and un- Australia’s first female cartoonist, ran from 1924 to 1967. paid caregivers, and, perhaps, the full integration of men The first “continuity strip” to be penned by a woman into domestic and nondomestic caring, such tensions are was Edwina Dumm’s classic boy-and-his-dog strip, “Cap likely to continue. Stubbs and Tippie,” which began in 1918. Dumm also worked as an editorial cartoonist, for the Columbus Moni- See Also tor, before women got the vote. Mary Orr’s “Apple Mary,” CHILD CARE; DOMESTIC LABOR; ELDERLY CARE, all which later evolved into “Mary Worth,” first appeared in topics; HOUSEHOLD WORKERS; HOUSEHOLDS AND 1932. Inspired by Brinkley, Dale Messick created “Brenda FAMILIES: OVERVIEW; HOUSEWORK; LONG-TERM CARE Start, Reporter” in 1940, and this adventure strip with its SERVICES implausibly glamorous heroine was still in syndication in 2000. Tarpe Mill’s “Miss Fury,” was the first major cos- References and Further Reading tumed action heroine and the only one created by a woman. Colen, Shellee. 1989. “Just a little respect”: West Indian domestic Clad in a panther skin, Miss Fury fought crime from 1941 workers in New York City. In Elsa M.Chaney and Mary through 1949. Marge Henderson Buell’s venerable “Little Garcia Castro, eds., Muchachas no more: Household work- Lulu” first came into being in the 1930s. ers in Latin America and the Caribbean, 171–194. Philadel- phia: Temple University Press. Mainstream Publications DeVault, Marjorie L. 1991. Feeding the family: The social organi- For most of the twentieth century, women cartoonists were zation of caring as gendered work. Chicago: University of absent from the pages of comic books and as creators of Chicago Press. single-panel “gag cartoons,” with the notable exception of Fisher, Berenice, and Joan Tronto. 1990. Toward a feminist Helen Hokinson, whose gently ironic portrayals of society theory of caring. In Emily K.Abel and Margaret K. matrons (cowritten with a man) ran in the New Yorker in the Nelson, eds., Circles of care: Work and identity in wom- 1940s and 1950s. Despite the work of the pioneers, women en’s lives, 35–62. Albany: State University of New cartoonists have also been underrepresented in the daily York Press. funny pages. Newspaper editors, many of whom are men,

141 CASTE apparently assume that whereas material by men is of inter- influential “Twisted Sisters” anthologies followed. Also at est to all, a woman-centered strip is a special-interest niche, this time, in France, Claire Bretecher began to pen her and they tend to carry only one woman-penned strip; the groundbreaking multipage comics, mixing acerbic femi- rest are by and often primarily about men. nist humor with insightful social commentary. This situation is changing, but slowly. Excluded from mainstream venues, women cartoonists In wide-circulation magazines and in the daily news-pa- such as Nicole Hollander (“Sylvia”) and Lynda Barry pers, women cartoonists remain the exception rather than (“Ernie Pook’s Comeek”) were able to reach an audience the rule. The Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist by selfsyndicating their work to alternative weekly news- Signe Wilkinson is a rarity. The New Yorker, the primary papers. They became so well known that they were staples venue for single-panel gag cartoons, publishes only a few of bookstore checkout counters. Others who went this route women, notably Roz Chast, Australia’s Victoria Roberts, were Nina Paley (“Nina’s Adventures”), Marian Henley and, occasionally, Carol Lay. (“Maxine”), and Carol Lay (“Story Minute”), as well as “Brenda Starr” was for years the only woman-penned Alison Bechdel, whose “Dykes to Watch Out For” ap- strip in the funny pages. It was finally joined in the 1970s by peared in countless feminist and lesbian papers. All are “Cathy,” Cathy Guisewite’s comic strip about a strongly feminist, uncompromised voices. selfdepreciating single working girl, and later by Lynn Others, like Diane DiMassa (“Hothead Paisn, Homicidal Johnston’s reality-based domestic strip, “For Better or for Lesbian Terrorist”), self-published their work in zine form. Worse.” In the 1990s, women-oriented strips such as Jan In the late 1990s, several editors and small presses be- Eliot’s “Stone Soup” and Barbara Brandons “Where I’m gan to specialize in publishing women cartoonists, among Coming From” were picked up by the big syndicates. them England’s Cath Tate and “Fanny Knockabout Com- Brandons was the first cartoon by an African-American ics,” Italy’s Luciana Tufani, and North America’s Roz War- woman to be nationally syndicated. ren and Deb Werksman (Hysteria Publications). For the most part, however, comics and cartoons by Also in the 1990s, the Internet emerged as a venue women remained ghettoized in nonmainstream venues where women artists could easily and inexpensively pub- such as small-press comics, zines, alternative weekly lish their work, sidestepping the gatekeepers—the many newspapers, and the Internet. male editors—to reach and build an audience. However, women artists continued to be underrepresented in the far Alternative Publications more lucrative mainstream venues. Without the influence In the 1960s, with the advent of underground comics, and financial rewards of mainstream syndication and publi- women were inspired to tell stories that, in the words of the cation, talented women cartoonists will continue to face cartoonist Trina Robbins (1999), “were more valid to my major obstacles. generation than…Sgt. Fury and His Howling Comman- dos.” Although the underground movement liberated car- See Also toonists with respect to subject matter, publication MAGAZINES; PUBLISHING; ZINES remained very much a “boys’ club” in which male under- ground editors published comics primarily by men. Na- References and Further Reading tional Lampoon in the 1970s was a rare exception, Robbins, Trina. 1999. From girls to grrrlz: A history of women’s including Shary Flenniken’s “Trots and Bonnie” as well as comics from teens to zines. San Francisco: Chronicle. work by M.K.Brown and Mary Wilshire. Women cartoon- Warren, Roz. 1995. Dyke strippers: Lesbian cartoonists from A to ists began founding their own underground publications, Z. Pittsburgh, Pa.: Cleis. such as Robbins’s “It Ain’t Me, Babe,” the first all-woman Roz Warren “alternative” comic book. The collectively published “Wimmen’s Comix” first appeared in 1972. Joyce Farmer and Lynn Chevely’s “Tits ‘n’ Clits,” a comic book series about female sexuality, came out at this time, as did CASTE Roberta Gregory’s “Dynamite Damsels,” the first lesbian comic book. In 1976, Diane Noomin and Aline Komisky- Caste is a hierarchical, hegemonic ranking of social groups Crumb pioneered “Twisted Sisters,” a comic book found predominantly on the Indian subcontinent. A word showcasing work that was, in Noomin’s words, “personal, of Portuguese and Spanish origin, casta in the early six- self-depreciating, ironic, crude and in-your-face.” Two teenth century had several meanings, one of which was

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“purity of blood.” By the eighteenth century, it designated lower-caste men), ritual purity, commensality, and slavery two levels of groups on the subcontinent: the jatis, roughly defined the caste system. 3,000 or more, loosely grouped into four varnas, system- atically elaborated in the Brahmanic scriptures of the Vedic Critiques of Caste period. The critique of caste has its origin in the work of Jotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule in Maharashtra in the nineteenth Organization of the Caste System century, E.V.Ramaswami Naicker “Periyar” and Tamil In the upper-caste Brahman construction, which is elabo- Nadu in the early twentieth century, and B.R.Ambedkar in rated in the Hindu Dharmasastras as part of a tradition of the later twentieth century. universal law, caste has its origin in the varna system, which Phule and his associates founded the Satyashodhak was constituted by four orders: Brahman (priests), Kshtriya Samaj (Truth-Seeking Society) in 1873. The overarching (warriors), Vaisya (traders), and Sudra (artisans, workers, theme of Phule’s addresses at meetings of the Samaj was peasants, and the like). Of these, the first three were the the character and unity of the working classes, the unequal dvija (twice-born “clean”) castes, the men of which are en- division of labor between women of different castes, and titled to initiation into Hinduism. A fifth order, the the vital contribution of peasant women to production. panchama, or untouchables, made up of the slaves who per- Tarabai Shinde’s Stree Purusha Tulana (1882), also part of formed menial chores (cleaning villages, washing clothes, the Satyashodhak tradition, confronts Brahmanic patriar- and in general being engaged directly in production and chy as well as patriarchy within non-Brahman castes. connected closely to organic life), was included later. In mapping a non-Brahman worldview through the Self- Within this framework, women and slaves figure as sub- Respect Movement, launched in 1925, Periyar stood the jects. Women are considered by nature fickle and unchaste, caste system on its head. The new social order could so their sexuality, bodies, and minds must be reined in by emerge only through a radical transformation of structures the dharma; the Manusmriti epitomizes this view. Evidence of feeling and material conditions. This immediately freed from the eighteenth century points to the vulnerability of women and Adi Dravidas () from caste-bound tradi- all women, irrespective of jati, to enslavement for infringe- tions, created a moral ground in which women exercised ment of moral codes. choice and consent in matters of both marriage and sexual- The panchamas, the untouchable castes, have for centu- ity, and eliminated the priesthood and the chanting of Vedic ries been ghettoized in vadas (colonies), enslaved to the hymns in marriage solemnities. other four varnas in perpetual bondage. For women of Ambedkar, an intrepid advocate of formal rights for the these castes, the additional implication is sexual slavery. untouchables, belonged to the untouchable Mahar caste. He The word asprsya (literally “untouchable”) was first used coined the word (literally “downtrodden”) to desig- in the Visnusmrti, which calls for death for any member of nate untouchables as a political entity. During the struggle these castes who deliberately touches a member of a higher for independence in the early part of the twentieth century, caste. However, this proscription on physical contact did Ambedkar’s concerns centered on finding ways in which not extend to sexual relations between upper-caste men and independence could bring freedom to the oppressed. As an untouchable women, because sexual labor was regarded as architect of the Indian Constitution, he instituted constitu- part of the physical labor provided by slave women and tional safeguards for the depressed classes against exclu- appropriated by the upper-caste owner or master. sion (social boycott) and active discrimination by majority With few exceptions, the caste system is patrilineal and uppercaste Hindus in independent India. Significant among patrilocal. There is evidence that seems to indicate the these provisions was the right to substantive equality brief coexistence of patrilineality, patrilocality, and egali- through reservations in education and employment. tarian gender relations in the early Rig Vedic period. His- Articulations of caste by the Dalit Panther movement in torical evidence also points to extremely fluid social Maharashtra and elsewhere in India since 1972 illustrate groups with shifting occupational status and widely vary- the intermeshing of gender with caste, although the con- ing dietary practices among the four varnas: Sudra kings nections are not made explicit. Dalit writing defines social and Brahman military commanders, beef-eating Vedic location in terms of centrality in production processes. Dalit Brahmans, and so on. Formal education, however, re- literature also articulates the playing out of nationality and mained the preserve of the Brahman. Endogamy (specifi- citizenship on the bodies of women of lower castes, by jux- cally, the absolute proscription on upper-caste women taposing, for instance, the fine of 50 rupees for molesting a engaging in marital or other physical relationships with Dalit woman against the fine of 300 rupees for disrespect to

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the national flag. This echoes the concerns of Pandita Mendelsohn, Oliver, and Marika Vicziany. 1998. The Ramabai, who, in the late nineteenth century, drew a paral- Untouchables: Subordination, poverty, and the state in mod- lel between English rule in India and the rule of high-caste ern India. New Delhi: Cambridge University Press. men over low-caste men and women down the ages. Omvedt, Gail. 1993. Reinventing revolution: New social move- The National Dalit Women’s Federation, formed in 1995, ments and the socialist tradition in India. New York: Sharpe. brings together the various perspectives in Dalit assertion Phule, Mahatma Jotirao. 1991. Selections: Collected works of and resistance, encapsulating a two-hundred-year history. Mahatma Jotirao Phule. Vol. 2. Bombay: Government of The federation questions both upper-caste, Brahmanic he- Maharashtra. Reprint. gemony in intercaste relations (particularly the antagonistic, Kalpana Kannabiran often violent relations between upper castes and Dalit women, in a climate of increasing right-wing nationalism) and Dalit from within. This approach by the fed- eration brings into sharp focus current debates on the place CATHOLICISM of Dalit women in quotidian politics: Should Dalit women See CHRISTIANITY and FAMILY: RELIGIOUS AND LEGAL have a quota within the quota earmarked for reserved catego- SYSTEMS—CATHOLIC AND ORTHODOX. ries, or a quota within the quota reserved for women? That they might have a right to both is rarely acknowledged.

See Also CLASS; HINDUISM CELIBACY: Religious

References and Further Reading The term celibacy comes from the Latin caelebs (“unmar- Ambedkar, B.R. 1990. Writings and speeches. Vol. 9. Bombay: ried”) and denotes the state of remaining unmarried and Government of Maharashtra. Reprint. abstaining from all sexual activity, whether through per- Bapat, Ram. 1995. Pandita Ramabai: Faith and reason in the sonal choice or force of circumstances. In the Roman shadow of the East and West. In Vasudha Dalmia and Catholic and Orthodox Christian churches, “consecrated Heinrich von Stietencron, eds., Representing Hinduism: The celibacy” designates the special state of persons who make construction of religious traditions and national identity, a vow not to marry when they join a religious order. Male 224–252. New Delhi: Sage. institutional celibates are present in many societies, but fe- Chatterjee, Indrani. 1999. Gender, slavery, and law in colonial In- male celibacy is somewhat less common. This article ad- dia. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. dresses female celibacy in formal contexts. Dharampal-Frick, Gita. 1995. Shifting categories in the discourse Celibacy as a state of life is alien to the Old Testament on caste: Some historical observations. In Vasudha Dalmia tradition and Judaism. With their strong belief in the divine and Heinrich von Stietencron, eds., Representing Hinduism: mandate to marry and have children, the Jews regarded The construction of religious traditions and national identity, willful celibacy as reprehensible. Thus, in the Bible, 82–100. New Delhi: Sage. Jephthah’s daughter bewails her virginity, and Hannah, Geetha, V., and S.V.Rajadurai. 1998. Towards a non-Brahmin mil- mother of Samuel, grieves over her barrenness. It was rare lennium: From Iyothee Thass to Periyar. Calcutta: Samya. for a Hebrew to embrace lifelong celibacy as an expression Guru, Gopal. 1995. Dalit women talk differently. Economic and of exclusive devotion to God. Political Weekly 30(41, 42). Hanlon, Rosalind. 1985. Caste, conflict, and ideology: Mahatma Celibacy in Christianity Jotirao Phule and low caste protest in nineteenth century Jesus departed from this tradition by modeling a life unfet- western India. Hyderabad: Cambridge University Press and tered by family ties. According to Matthew 19:12, Jesus Orient Longman. positively counseled that celibacy be chosen freely “for the Ilaiah, Kancha. 1996. Why I am not a Hindu. Calcutta: Samya. sake of the Kingdom of Heaven.” Since Jesus’s time, the Jaiswal, Suvira. 1998. Caste: Origin, function, and dimensions of challenge to be celibate has inspired Christians to follow change. New Delhi: Manohar. his example of total bodily surrender to the demands of Kannabiran, Vasanth, and Kalpana Kannabiran. 1991. Caste and faith. Nevertheless, it is clear that Jesus and his disciples gender: Understanding dynamics of power and violence. (several of whom were married men) did not enjoin this Economic and Political Weekly 26(37). state on all Christians.

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Virginity as a state of religious power was already rec- it is not clear to what extent it has managed to survive under ognized in Rome, where the purity of the vestal virgins was the current regime. a symbolic guarantor of the virtue and stability of the state. During the first four centuries after Christ, so many young Celibacy in Other Religious Traditions women took vows of virginity that church authorities be- Beyond these major religious traditions, there is little evi- gan to view the trend with alarm and addressed it at the dence of female celibacy by choice on a large scale. Both Synod of Elvira (c. 306 C.E.). Some early Christian sects Islam and Zoroastrianism reject the notion. In many cultures, required that all their adherents be celibate, but, depending however, women are expected to remain celibate before mar- necessarily on a constant stream of converts, they were un- riage and sometimes in widowhood. Ritual purifications able to persist. At first, Christian celibate communities in- throughout the world usually require that people abstain cluded both men and women, but anxiety over possible from sex in order to devote themselves to higher aims and to scandal led to the sexes being separated. avoid contaminating holy times, places, and acts. In the Middle Ages, a monastic life for women came to In the modern western world, consecrated celibacy is fill social as well as religious needs. Convents offered a re- widely devalued in comparison with marriage. It is, how- spectable, useful life to women who remained unmarried ever, gaining unprecedented meaning as a countercultural by choice, because their families could not provide ad- option against the backdrop of the market economy. equate dowries, or because of a surplus of females in a Women may choose celibacy as a reaction against being population; many middle-aged widows also became nuns. commodified, reified, and bartered because of their sex. Free from the demands of childbearing and child care, they Their surrender of the body to their faith signals a decision devoted themselves not only to prayer but also to healing, in favor of human dignity, womanly freedom, and feminin- teaching, and serving the indigent. ity liberated from the dictates of a patriarchal culture. As Protestants in the Reformation turned away abruptly Mary John Mananzan has written, the meaning of celibacy from clerical celibacy, but the long equation of female vir- today lies “in the freedom of the heart that is needed to be tue with celibacy retained some influence, and women celi- truly available to the many” (1993:144). bate by choice were often accepted as church functionaries and teachers of children. All members of the Shaker sect, See Also founded by Ann Lee in the eighteenth century and later CELIBACY: SECULAR; NUNS; RELIGION: OVERVIEW; SEXUALITY: widespread in the United States, were celibate. OVERVIEW; SEXUALITY, Specific topics; VIRGINITY

Celibacy in Hinduism and in Taoism References and Further Reading On the Indian subcontinent, Hindu women did not begin Abbot, Elizabeth. 2000. A history of celibacy. New York: Scribner. entering the monastic life until the late nineteenth century. Mananzan, Mary John. 1993. Redefining religious commitment Buddhists, by contrast, have a long tradition of nuns who today. In Women religious now: Impact of the Second Vatican renounce attachment to worldly life and devote themselves Council on women religious in the Philippines, 138–149. to seeking enlightenment through restraint of the senses Manila: Institute of Women’s Studies. and meditation. Such women were not required to be vir- Rees, Daniel, et al. 1978. Celibacy. In Consider your call, 154–188. gins before joining their community but had to remain celi- London: Society for Propagation of Christian Knowledge. bate thereafter. In some divisions of Buddhism, nuns Schneiders, Sandra. 1986. New wineskins. New York: Paulist. (called bhikshunis) can preach and perform ritual functions The way. 1993. Supplement to no. 77, special issue on celibacy. as monks do. In the Jain religion, the Svetambara sect has a Sr. Irene Dabalus preponderance of celibate (“renunciant”) nuns over male monastics; the other sect, the Digambara, discourages fe- male renunciants but still includes a few. Taoism, the indigenous religion of China, developed a CELIBACY: Secular monastic pattern during the Tang dynasty (618–907 C.E.), and there were female orders. Celibacy was recommended In Victorian times women were regarded as deviant if they in at least some of these, but apparently not in all. In the enjoyed a genitally active sex life. Today women invite pe- modern period before the establishment of the Peoples Re- jorative labels if they do not enjoy such a life. Some say that public of China, a large number of women joined the our orgasm-fixated society considers no sexual activity Quanzhen order, which emphasized celibacy and meditation; freakish except no sexual activity.

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Historical Background any sexual activity. It was considered degenerate for girls The original and primary meaning of celibacy was “the not to control their sexual impulses; signs in factories state of living unmarried,” derived in the seventeenth cen- stated, “Sex is a mental disease.” By contrast, the current tury from Latin caelibatus, from caelebs. A secondary ethos is that celibacy is a mental disease. meaning is “abstention from sexual intercourse, especially by resolve or as an obligation.” Celibacy in Modern Societies The ancient view of celibacy in the West and elsewhere In the West at the turn of the twenty-first century, women was positive singlehood conferring wisdom, health, and are encouraged to engage in sexual—preferably hetero- spiritual power. This idea of celibacy as a more elevated sexual—activity, which, together with diets, beauty prod- ideal than genital activity significantly contrasts with the ucts, low wages, pornography, and violence, is part of a centrality in many twentieth-century societies of hetero- culture that limits women’s progress and power. The sexuality and reproduction. multimillion-dollar pornography industry, which exists Chastity as an element of celibacy has been shrouded in alongside a cosmetic surgery industry aimed at persuading myth in most religions. Christians are taught that Christ and women that it is healthy to be starved, snipped, and stitched Mary were virgins and that virginity was a holier state than in pursuit of a prolonged sexual shelf life, upholds an ideol- sexual engagement. Catholics are taught to revere sexual ogy that suggests that anyone who lacks interest in sexual abstinence. The European monastic movement offered its activity must be in need of a cure. Given this oppressive own example of celibacy as the highest purity. In medieval climate, it is not surprising that women are deciding to England the proportion of celibate men was as high as 5 abandon the sexual treadmill and find other, more fulfilling percent of the male population and the proportion of celi- ways to express themselves. Many of today’s celibates, bate convent women only slightly lower. then, are neither virgins-in-waiting nor the reluctantly sin- In the nineteenth-century United States, three postCivil gle; they are women, married and single, heterosexual and War Utopian societies—the Shakers, the Koreshans, and lesbian, who have often found in celibacy the freedom and the Sanctificationists—substituted celibacy for sex, as a autonomy to redefine and celebrate their sexuality. symbol which empowered their promotion of theoretical Research by the present author for her book Women, sexual equality and female social power (an early form of Passion, and Celibacy (Cline, 1993) found that a “genital feminism). In these three religious groups, the support of myth” which prescribes genitally active behavior is ac- women’s economic and personal independence accompa- cepted by women across social classes, cultures, ages, and nied their acceptance of celibacy. sexual orientations. Celibate women today are labeled In nineteenth-century Britain, female celibates were frigid or asexual despite an honorable male tradition that denigrated as “prudes,” a term that became a weapon for historically saw celibacy as a prestigious ideal. attacking suffragists and feminists who challenged men’s Whereas the patriarchal definition of female celibacy is abusive sexual behavior or who spurned heterosexual rela- genital abstention, women are now redefining celibate tionships. identity and behavior as a mode of sexuality. Celibacy may Western European societies have long preached lifelong be a choice to be without a sexual partner for positive rea- celibacy or delayed marriage, and non-European groups sons of political, personal, or spiritual growth. Women see have also observed lengthy restrictions on sexual inter- it as a sexual independence that enables them to retain inti- course. A highly abstemious society is the Dani of Irian mate connections yet define themselves autonomously. Jaya, Indonesia, who require a four- to six-year postpartum Though without the power struggles of a genitally active period of sexual abstinence, which is invariably observed relationship, it remains a form of sexual practice. It focuses and seems to lead to no signs of stress or misery in celibate on women’s personal development, and it is not about re- abstainers. lating to other people. Buddhist monastic life of poverty, chastity, and “Ascetic celibates,” who eschew any form of genital ex- selfabnegation in places like Burma is remarkable for its pression, see themselves as different from “sensual celi- firm renunciation of the society of women and “lustful” bates,” who enjoy masturbation, touching, and some desires and for the degree to which it is part of ordinary physical intimacy. Some religious women today seeking people’s daily lives. spiritual growth, together with nuns, accept celibacy as a In China in the 1960s and 1970s, a campaign to limit vocational requirement. Evidently, however, more women population growth was largely a campaign in favor of celi- choose passion without possession, a key determinant of bacy. Chinese adolescents were not expected to engage in contemporary celibacy, for positive reasons of autonomy, a

146 CENSORSHIP need for solitude, a search for passion, platonic compan- true and what is right. Efforts by authorities to censor falla- ionship, time for their careers, improvement in communi- cious or dangerous ideas are integral and often palpable cation with their partners, or antipathy toward parts of their efforts to proclaim and propagate factual or possessiveness within partnerships. Some women become felicitous views. Sense is made by censoring nonsense. celibate as a consequence of widowhood, illness, disability, All societies, from ancient Sumer and Egypt to the cor- fear of AIDS or violence, dislike of penetration, sexual anxi- porate states that make up the emerging global cultures of ety caused by childhood sexual abuse, or dislike of the un- the microchip, practice some form of censorship. Censor- equal power dimension they perceive in genital ship not only assumes different forms—for example, offi- relationships. cial, subterranean, and self-censorship—but also “Partnered” lesbian women experience less pressure frequently operates under other names, for example, patri- about turning to celibacy than do partnered heterosexual otism, reason, competition, good taste, or national security. women. All celibates in couples find it more difficult than Censorship is the knot that binds power and knowledge. single celibates to express their celibacy publicly, for fear Social order is created, and bodies of knowledge are assem- of stigmatizing their partners. Still, many women find that bled and organized by marking boundaries between con- celibacy enables them to view men as friends instead of formity and deviance, reason and chaos. In some societies lovers or enemies. these boundaries are codified into law and enforced by for- New definitions of contemporary female celibacy— mal administrative agencies, censorship boards, police, ju- which include defining it as a form of sexuality—change dicial officers, or their representatives. Every social group the philosophical meaning of the word. In the area of sexu- supplements or supplants formal controls with social pres- ality, women are not only breaking new ground philosophi- sures, conventions, rituals, and institutional practices that cally but also making a cultural shift in the perception of discourage dissent. Censorship is therefore a pervasive, in- celibacy, linguistically and practically. tractable, and sociologically significant constituent of all human communities. See Also CHASTITY: RELIGIOUS; MARRIAGE: OVERVIEW; SEXUALITY: The Received History of Censorship OVERVIEW; SINGLE PEOPLE; VIRGINITY The word censorship and the practices conventionally as- sociated with it are, however, usually more narrowly con- References and Further Reading ceived within the discourses of contemporary scholars, Cline, Sally. 1993. Women, passion, and celibacy. London: André jurists, and human rights advocates. Censorship is com- Deutsch. monly thought of as a historical development that accom- Greer, Germaine. 1984. Sex and destiny: The politics of human panied the rise of the modern state and the invention of the fertility. London: Seeker and Warburg. printing press (Lahav, 1989). Conversely, the great victo- Kitch, Sally L. 1989. Chaste liberation: Celibacy and female cul- ries against censorship and for freedom of expression are tural status. Chicago and Urbana: University of Illinois regarded as outcomes both of the scientific revolutions that Press. occurred in Europe in the sixteenth and seventeenth centu- McNamara, Jo Ann. 1985. A new song: Celibate women in the first ries and of the western Enlightenment that followed in the three Christian centuries. New York: Harrington Park. eighteenth century (Bury, 1913). Rothblum, Esther D., and Kathleen A.Brehony, eds. 1993. Boston The emergence of liberal democracies is associated with marriages: Romantic but asexual relationships among con- these developments. The American and French Revolu- temporary lesbians. Amherst: University of Massachusetts tions were, in part, precipitated by restrictions on press Press. freedom. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1791) is regarded as a benchmark in the history of free Sally Cline expression. For the first time, a government formally barred itself from making any laws restricting freedom of speech, press, or religion. Subsequent legal controversies CENSORSHIP about censorship in the United States have therefore been largely restricted to: (1) issues of state or local censorships Censorship is an exercise of the critical faculty that is sanc- of books, the arts, and pornography; (2) questions related tioned by institutional authority. Authorities use censorship to the abuses of free speech and freedom of the press—for to control the power to name: the power to define what is example, slander and libel; and (3) controversies about the

147 CENSORSHIP forms and limits of press censorship during wartime and regarded women, slaves, and servants as property, not as other national emergencies, as well as controversies that rational human beings, passes without comment. Liberal permit some prior censorship of the writings of govern- histories record the democratic revolutions of the eight- ment employees and former government employees. In eenth century as narratives of progress. They remain silent western democracies, such as the United Kingdom, where about the fact that the franchises for freedom of expression church and state retain formal ties, publications or practices and freedom of the press secured by these revolutions were that are deemed blasphemous may also be proscribed by limited franchises extended only to citizens: free, white government regulation. males who owned land, or, in the case of freedom of the Etymology supports this historically circumscribed, press, those who owned printing presses, publishing house, Eurocentric understanding of the term. Censorship derives or newspapers. These histories chronicle the daring deeds from the root cense, from the Latin censure: to estimate, of great men. In short, they suggest that all the significant rate, assess, be of the opinion, judge, reckon. Historically, victories for freedom of expression took place in “a world the tide “censor” was first used to designate two magis- without women” (Noble, 1992). trates in ancient Rome who were responsible for the cen- From Cato the Elder (234–149 B.C., Roman) to sus, the official registry of citizens, as well as the Anthony Comstock (1844–1915, American), the censors supervision of public morals. Censorship was common in vilified in liberal histories of censorship were, to a man, both Greece and Rome, but it was not systematically ad- defenders of the morals and manners of patriarchal gender ministered until technology extended access to the written orders. Their adversaries, the champions of free expres- word beyond nobles, aristocrats, and clerics. The invention sion, posed no fundamental threats to that order. Indeed, of movable type by Johannes Gutenberg in Mainz, Ger- with the exception of (1806–1873, Brit- many (c. 1450), was followed almost immediately by a pa- ish), they expressed little or no awareness of it. On the con- pal decree that established and enforced book censorship trary, almost to a man, they struggled for the ascendancy of throughout all of Europe until the Protestant Reformation. their respective political or social causes within the existing The Reformation did not abolish censorship. Protestant re- gender order. The great egalitarian revolutions of eight- formers such as John Calvin set up far more rigorous cen- eenth-century liberalism were, for example, conceived sorial regimes than any envisioned by the papacy. within natural rights philosophies that understood the In reaction to what they regarded as the licentious cor- rights of man to be the rights of men. ruptions of the Roman Catholic clergy, Protestants, espe- In this view, the monotheistic, monocular, and cially the Puritan sects, instituted far more comprehensive monological assumptions of western thought naturalized regimens for disciplining the body than had prevailed un- the subordination of women. These constituent assump- der Catholicism. In the United States, fundamentalist Prot- tions denied women both subjectivity and agency in his- estant groups continue to play leadership roles in organized torical processes. They provided the auspices for discursive efforts to prohibit or restrict sex education in public forms that legitimated ignoring or, in the case of some his- schools, to limit scientific inquiry in areas where science torical writing, erasing women’s participation in struggles and Scripture conflict, to ban controversial books from for freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Conse- public schools and libraries, and to influence textbook se- quently, repression and persecution of heresies like Gnosti- lections for public schools. cism and witchcraft, which disproportionately targeted women, were not classified as censorship by historians. Yet Women’s Studies, History, and Censorship church and state repression directed against these ideas and From the perspective of women’s studies, the received his- their advocates claimed more lives than many wars (Kors tory of censorship is western, and patriarchal in origin. It and Peters, 1972). Conversely, women’s participation in recounts a familiar western myth of a progressive, almost the family-run clandestine presses that sprang up in many oedipal, struggle of the forces of truth, justice, freedom, parts of Europe from the Inquisition until the French Revo- and enlightenment over tradition, superstition, ignorance, lution is not examined in histories of free expression. Yet and punitive authority. All the featured players in this story women’s work was essential to these enterprises, and wid- are European men, and virtually all the action revolves ows often continued to operate illicit presses long after the around their struggles with one another. death of their husbands. Within this historical narrative, the Reformation marks Standard histories, it is argued, do not just fail to an epochal triumph for freedom of conscience and reason. chronicle the experiences of European women. They also The fact that this freedom was achieved within cultures that ignore the struggles of European men who belonged to

148 CENSORSHIP subordinate or nonhegemonic categories of masculinity: Dualistic models do not, for example, advance analysis homosexual men, landless men, servants, most laborers, when applied to some Native American cultures where and most members of non-Anglo-Saxon immigrant women are the primary producers of objects of aesthetic groups. In short, they exclude most of the European popu- value, participate fully in political affairs, and yet play no lation. More significantly, they write all non-Europeans part in important religious ceremonies. out of history. Liberal history frames its narratives in a Viewed from the perspective of women’s history, liberal periodizing schema—the Dark Ages, the Age of Reason, triumphs over church and state censorship require much and so forth—that treats the achievements of prominent fuller explanations. Using linear, positivistic theories of European men as universal. Within this schema, the En- progress to theorize these developments greatly underesti- lightenment marked the end of the great struggles against mates their complexity. These theories ignore the fact that censorship. Yet most of the world’s population was either victory within one of the multiple and mobile sets of social disenfranchised or untouched by the “light” of the west- relations that make up the field of power is often accompa- ern Enlightenment. nied by defeat within another (Foucault, 1980). The daring When the chronology of liberal history is used to tell the deeds of great men frequently require great sacrifices by stories of women, working-class, colonial, or postcolonial their foot soldiers, servants, slaves, mothers, wives, sisters, subjects, it reduces their struggles to attempts to amend or and children. The free expression of such men often de- complete the received history of censorship. The liberal pends on the silence of their subordinates. A step forward model ignores the differential social positioning of these in the historical process by some individuals or groups people in time, place, and hierarchies of power and knowl- may signal steps backward by others. Women’s history re- edge. It captures their resistances within its fictions of uni- quires analysis of all the moves that take place within the versal enlightenment. field of power. The women’s history movement abandons these narra- To cite a paradigmatic example: from the perspectives tive conventions. It treats gender as a primary category of of standard historiography and women’s history, Thomas historical analysis. Gender is conceived as a difference that Jefferson’s arguments against censorship assume very dif- makes a difference in how social order is created and how ferent levels of significance. Liberal historians view history power relations are arranged, sustained, and contested. Re- as a progressive development that culminates in the En- ceived history is therefore not regarded simply as an in- lightenment, free inquiry, and the rule of reason. Therefore, complete record of the past. Rather, it is seen, for example they regard the internal contradictions in Jefferson’s dis- by Joan Wallach Scott, as an active “participant in the pro- cussions of censorship as inexplicable conundrums and rel- duction of knowledge that legitimized the exclusion or sub- egate them to the museum of historical curiosities. In ordination of women” (1988:26). The goal of women’s contrast, women’s history theorizes power as a complex history is not just to write women’s achievements into the and conflictual process that constitutes the entire social record. It is, Scott, a leader of this movement, points out, to body. As a result, it approaches Jefferson’s contradictions write “histories that focus on women’s experiences and as historical discoveries and rich resources for analysis. To analyze the ways in which politics construct gender and bring women’s experience of Jeffersonian liberalism into gender constructs politics” (1988:27). focus requires analysis of the fact that Jefferson vehe- Women’s history is only beginning to lay the groundwork mently condemned any form of state or local censorship in for rewriting histories of censorship. It is, nevertheless, pos- the American Republic, simultaneously advocating strict sible to identify some of the epistemological moves wom- censorship of women’s reading. en’s history must make to transcend the myopia of the The goal of women’s history is not to diminish received history of censorship. Sociological—rather than Jefferson’s achievements but to provide a fuller and more etymological or juridical—definitions of censorship are re- accurate account of their complexity. When historians ex- quired to bring women’s experience into focus. Alternative amine the ways that “politics construct gender and gender schemata for periodizing history need to be replaced with constructs politics” in liberal democracies, the censorship reflexive, contextual forms that recognize the uniqueness of women’s reading becomes a contradiction that requires and multiplicity of diverse cultural experiences, discursive explanation because men’s reading is no longer subject to practices, and gender orders. Dichotomous concepts, like censorship. From this perspective, the American Enlighten- patriarchy, which provide a useful lens for understanding ment can be understood as both a reaffirmation of female European experiences, may distort rather than enhance com- subordination and a partial victory for women’s struggles prehension of the gender politics of nonwestern cultures. for emancipation. Even though it reproduced the gender

149 CENSORSHIP order of the Old World, Jeffersonian liberalism also laid approach that can begin to examine the diverse and distinc- some of the philosophical and legal foundations for west- tive ways that nonwestern cultures constitute their dis- ern feminist critiques of patriarchy. courses and censorship. This approach allows censorship in Argentina, Azerbaijan, Indonesia, or Iran, for example, to Constituent and Regulative Censorship be understood and critiqued on its own terms rather than Sociological definitions of censorship recognize the arbi- within the terms of an alien screen of meaning that auto- trary, expansive, and fluid character of power relations and matically codes difference as regressive, primitive, exotic, of the social structures and hierarchies they support. Two or unenlightened. overlapping types of censorship can be distinguished: con- By emphasizing both the necessity and the difficulty of stituent and regulative (Jansen, 1988; Miller, 1962). Con- analyzing constituent forms of censorship, this termino- stituent censorship provides the epistemological logical distinction also provides new ways of conceptualiz- foundations for the creation of social order and the legiti- ing, contesting, and mediating current debates about mation of authority. It operates at the level of tacit or taken- censorship in the West. Groundbreaking works like Susan for-granted assumptions. Constituent censorship is not Griffin’s Pornography and Silence (1981) and Carolyn ordinarily open to question or contestation except in peri- Merchant’s The Death of Nature (1980), which document ods of social tumult or transformation. Yet constituent cen- historical repression and erasure of the female principle in sorship provides the precedent and anchor for regulative the mythopoetics of western thought, acquire new signifi- censorships. The gender order—what Gayle Rubin cance. Viewed as probes of constituent censorship in west- (1975:157) describes as “the sex/gender system”—has ern power and knowledge rather than as specialized studies served as a form of constituent censorship in virtually all of pornography or ecology, they begin the work of writing known literate societies. Gender must therefore be under- women’s experience into the history of western censorship. stood as a fundamental constituent of all power relations, The challenge of rewriting the history of censorship including the relationships of men with men. through the lens of women’s experience is a formidable Regulative censorship, by contrast, is generally both one. A first step is to free the term censorship from the he- “visible and legible” (Sennett, 1980), even though it is of- gemony of western legal and semantic traditions. The next ten administered in inconsistent, arbitrary, or duplicitous step is to develop a radical methodological reflectiveness ways. It involves formal, frequently bureaucratic, adminis- that incorporates the lessons of both feminist and tration of written laws or rules. Regulative censorship is a postcolonial examinations of the constituents of western legally constituted form of censorship practiced by church thought. Then it may be possible to begin to build interna- or state; it marks the limits of social permission and en- tional forums where the multiple, disparate, and possibly forces sanctions against those who cross the boundaries of irreconcilable voices of women’s historical and contempo- propriety, canon, or law. Liberal histories of censorship are rary experiences of censorship can be articulated. histories of regulative censorships in the West. For many women throughout the world, organized Regulative censorship frequently contributes to the struggles for freedom of expression and against censorship maintenance of the dominant sex or gender system in many are just beginning to gain momentum. These women are cultures. It may, for example, be used variously to ban or claiming a voice and making history in places like Dakar, restrict access to sexually explicit materials, including im- Dublin, Lagos, Ljubljana, Los Angeles, Manchester, Ma- ages and texts deemed pornographic or obscene; to censor nila, Phnom Penh, Santiago, and Tashkent. As historical materials that deal with homosexuality or lesbianism; and subjects and agents, they are reconstructing gender, poli- to restrict access to birth control information. In contempo- tics, and definitions of free expression. rary liberal democracies, regulation of sexuality has been a flash point for debates about censorship. Debates about See Also regulating pornography framed within the terms of liberal DEMOCRACY; EROTICA; EUROCENTRISM; HUMAN discourse have deeply divided contemporary feminists in RIGHTS; LITERATURE: OVERVIEW; PATRIARCHY: FEMINIST Europe and North America. THEORY; PORNOGRAPHY IN ART AND LITERATURE; The distinction between constituent and regulative cen- PUBLISHING; REPRESENTATION sorship is useful because it underscores both the intracta- bility and the cultural variability of this suppression. It References and Further Reading moves beyond and beneath western liberalism’s circum- Bury, J.B. 1913. A history of freedom of thought. London: Oxford scribed understanding of the concept. It opens up an University Press.

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Butler, Judith, and Joan Wallach Scott, eds. 1992. Feminists theo- wished to own and control) within their borders. Most early rize the political. New York: Routledge. censuses were conducted to enumerate the wealth and re- Chester, Gail, and Julienne Dickey, eds. 1988. Feminism and cen- sources of the state for the purpose of assessing taxes and sorship: The current debate. Bridport, U.K.: Prism. tributes due. Modern national censuses still provide eco- Coetzee, J.M. 1996. Giving offense: Essays on censorship. Chi- nomic information, but most states today conduct censuses cago: University of Chicago Press. primarily for broader social science purposes: the census, Curry, Ann, and Robert Usherwood. 1996. The limits of tolerance: in most countries, is the main (often sole) document that Censorship and intellectual freedom in public libraries. aims to provide a comprehensive social survey of the na- Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow. tion. The most basic social census is designed to elicit in- Doherty, Thomas. 1999. Pre-code Hollywood: Sex, immorality, formation on the sex, age, marital status, family size, and insurrection in American cinema, 1930–1934. New educational attainment, and economic status of each person York: Columbia University Press. enumerated; most national censuses go much further and Foucault, Michel. 1980. The history of sexuality. Vol. 1: An intro- include questions on health, welfare, housing conditions, duction. New York: Vintage. consumption patterns, religious preference, and racial Griffin, Susan. 1981. Pornography and silence: Culture’s revenge identity. against nature. New York: Harper and Row. Conducting a regular census is considered a hallmark— Jansen, Sue Curry. 1988. Censorship: The knot that binds power and an obligation—of modern statehood; the United Na- and knowledge. New York: Oxford University Press. tions issues guidelines on developing and conducting Kors, Alan C., and Edward Peters. 1972. Introduction to Witch- censuses. A decennial census (taken every 10 years) has craft in Europe, 1100–1700: A documentary history. Phila- become the international standard, but the ability of states delphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. to conduct regular censuses varies widely. A complex and Lahav, Pnina. 1989. Government censorship. In Erik Barnouw, costly infrastructure is required to conduct and interpret a ed., International encyclopedia of communications. Vol. 1, national census, and in many poorer countries censuses are 246–249. New York: Oxford University Press. taken infrequently. On a global scale, then, the level of in- Merchant, Carolyn. 1980. The death of nature: Women, ecology, formation available about the social and economic lives of and the scientific revolution. San Francisco: Harper and Row. women and men is wildly uneven; as a general rule, one Miller, Jonathan. 1962. Censorship and the limits of permission. can presume that the least information—or the least reli- London: Oxford University Press. able information—is available for the poorest and more Noble, David. 1992. A world without women: The Christian cleri- marginalized peoples and nations. cal culture of western science. New York: Knopf. Rubin, Gayle. 1975. The traffic in women: Notes on the “politi- Uses of the Census cal economy” of sex. In Rayna Rapp Reiter, ed., Toward In many countries, the census is key to national govern- an anthropology of women, 157–210. New York: Monthly ment decision making—it is the primary document that Review. provides the “factual” basis for a wide range of social, eco- Scott, Joan Wallach. 1988. Gender and the politics of history. New nomic, and political policies. Most censuses are intended to York: Columbia University Press. be comprehensive social surveys, and most demographers, Sennett, Richard. 1980. Authority. New York: Knopf. policy makers, and analysts who interpret census informa- Spender, Dale. 1982. Women of ideas and what men have done to tion have long assumed that this is what censuses provide. them: From to Adrienne Rich. London: Recent critiques from social scientists, however, including Routledge and Kegan Paul. feminists, particularly in western countries where census taking is a high-profile and high-expense government ac- Sue Curry Jansen tivity, have called into question presumptions about the comprehensiveness of modern censuses. It is increasingly clear that censuses provide, at best, a partial assessment of the “state of the state.” It also is clear that the degree to CENSUS which certain groups are rendered visible or invisible in a census will have important consequences in social and eco- Throughout recorded history, elites and governments have nomic policy. conducted censuses as a means of keeping track of the ma- In some cases, certain peoples and groups may actively terial resources that they have owned or controlled (or have avoid being counted in national censuses; censuses are, after

151 CENSUS all, an arm of state surveillance, no matter how benign a activity as “work” and define “work” in ways that mask function they may play in the national mechanisms of gov- women’s economic contributions to family and state. Pro- ernance. Racial or ethnic minority groups, or peoples with ductive labor is typically defined solely as participation in particular political and religious affiliations, may feel they the “waged” market economy. This renders invisible have good reason to resist being caught in the census net. household labor, unpaid labor in family economic projects, However, intentional invisibility such as this probably ac- unwaged agricultural labor, and volunteer activities, all of counts for only a small part of the underrepresentation that which have significant value to a national economy and all characterizes all censuses. Undercounting, which plagues of which are feminized spheres of activity. In virtually most censuses, is more typically (though not always) unin- every economy and family structure around the world, the tentional and reflects the logistical difficulties of taking a greatest share of nonmonetary economic activity is done by census: certain groups, such as the homeless or people liv- women—and this sector of activity remains unaccounted ing in isolated parts of a country, are difficult to enumer- for in most censuses (Waring, 1988). ate fully. The definition of family and of women’s role as part of Censuses are also flawed by blind spots, which are the households is just as problematic in censuses as is the defi- product of design predilections and presumptions built nition of economic activity—and, indeed, the two are into the census itself. A census is a social construct, itself a linked (Folbre, 1991; Folbre and Abel, 1989). Most cen- social document; the questions that are asked or not asked suses take the “household,” not the individual, as their ba- on a census reflect presumptions about who and what are sic unit of measure. The presumption built into most considered by the state to be “important” enough to count. censuses that households have a single and identifiable Thus, the census as a social mirror seldom reflects all lives “head” is usually paired with a default presumption that equally. this “head of household” is male. Under these presump- Racial and ethnic census classifications are especially tions, married women who live with their husbands disap- problematic. Most censuses require people to identify pear, and women living in households without male heads themselves by one of a small number of preselected racial become abnormalities. Allegiance to the notion that every categories—the U.S. census, for example, allows for only family must have a head is strong, and in most national cen- five racial groupings. In most countries, this practice is suses this is still the norm, although women’s protests have coming under increasing criticism. Census racial classifi- resulted in changes to these census categories in countries cations typically reflect stereotyped, simplistic, hierarchi- including Canada, the United States, Sweden, and New cal, or imperialist classifications; once in place, such Zealand. Virtually all censuses continue to ignore non-kin classifications narrow the nature of national debate and residential arrangements, such as people living in commu- understanding about race relations; census categories give nal groups or in same-sex partnerships. Mismeasurement the impression that race is a fixed (and official) identity, of the extent of female residential independence contrib- and such categories can seldom accommodate multiracial utes to an exaggerated perception of male family headship, identities. which is then privileged by public policy. Men, women, and children within a household seldom have equal status, Women’s invisibility in the Census roles, aspirations, or access to money or amenities; aggre- Throughout history, and in all countries, censuses, by both gating data by household makes these differences among commission and omission, have rendered most of women’s members of a household invisible and gives a false impres- lives invisible most of the time. The invisibility of women sion of homogeneity and intrafamily equality. in official statistics perpetuates the myth that what women Despite their failings, censuses do provide baseline do is less important, less noteworthy, and less significant measurements on the state and status of a country’s popula- than what men do. It is only relatively recently that women tion, and census reports are a unique source of information have been counted in censuses—literally. Although women useful to women and to feminists. For example, census re- are no longer counted merely as men’s chattel, it is very ports have provided the empirical data for feminist analy- much still the case that the basic categories and classifica- ses about the increasing feminization of poverty tions used in most national censuses largely ignore women throughout western Europe and for analyses of the chang- or misrepresent their social and economic roles. ing composition of households in Canada and the United For example, most censuses include questions about the States. Similarly, census data have provided the starkest participation of the population in economic activities. It is evidence of the persistence of preference for sons and of still the case, however, that most censuses define economic female infanticide in India, Pakistan, and China: sex ratios

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(the number of females per 1,000 males) are recognized as that occurred at that time as a consequence of industrial a good indicator of the status of women within society, and capitalism was accompanied by an ideology of domestic- data on sex ratios are almost always available from even the ity, which prescribed that, while men went out to paid most rudimentary census. In India, the census of 1991 re- work, women’s place was in the household: charitable ported a sex ratio of 929 females per 1,000 males, a drop work, as an extension of domesticity, was the only activity since 1981, when the ratio was 934:1,000 (Barrett and suited to them. Many charitable organizations were run by O’Hare, 1992). women only (although men might be called on to chair Feminists have developed sophisticated critiques of the meetings and donate money), and their activities were gen- politics of statistics, and in most countries women are erally oriented toward working-class women and children. struggling to insist that their national censuses reflect their Upperclass women used these charitable pursuits “to wield lives more fully and accurately. Some of the greatest head- power in societies intent upon rendering them powerless” way in this battle appears to have been made in New Zea- (McCarthy, 1990:1). In some countries—the United King- land and in Canada, where the censuses have been dom, for example—these organizations were the forerun- significantly modified in response to women’s critiques— ners of professional social work. In other instances—for although, as Marilyn Waring (1988) and others point out, example, in Mexico and Russia—well-to-do women di- there is still considerable room for improvement. rected their charity mainly to the church, raising funds for convents and other religious endeavors (McCarthy, 1990). See Also DEMOGRAPHY; ECONOMY: INFORMAL; FAMILY STRUCTURE; Interpretations of Charitable Activities GEOGRAPHY; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: OVERVIEW The charitable activities of nineteenth-century upper-class women have often been interpreted as instances of References and Further Reading upperclass control over the working class. For example, Barrett, Hazel, and Greg O’Hare. 1992. India counts its people. Octavia Hill (1838–1912), a wealthy Englishwoman who Geography 77(2):170–174. provided cheap housing for the poor, exercised vigilant Folbre, Nancy. 1991. The unproductive housewife: Her evolu- control over their morality and cleanliness. On the other tion in nineteenth-century economic thought. Signs 16(3): hand, Jane Addams (1860–1935), a philanthropist and 463–484. feminist who lived and worked among the poor in the ——, and Marjorie Abel. 1989. Women’s work and women’s United States, rejected the notion of charity as implying households: Gender bias in the U.S. census. Social Research inequality and made every effort to assist poor people with- 56(3: Autumn):545–569. out patronizing or controlling them (Stebner, 1997). Waring, Marilyn. 1988. If women counted: A new feminist eco- During the twentieth century, professional social work nomics. New York: HarperCollins. came to the fore, and governments took on the responsibil- ity for supporting the poor and disadvantaged through sys- Joni Seager tems of social security. This, however, did not mean the demise of charitable organizations. Women continue to make a major, albeit often unacknowledged, contribution CHADOR as leaders and workers in such organizations. See VEILING. See Also ALTRUISM; PHILANTHROPY; VOLUNTEERISM

CHARITY References and Further Reading McCarthy, Kathleen D. 1990. Lady Bountiful revisited: Women, Generally, charity or philanthropy is associated with Chris- philanthropy, and power. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers Uni- tian doctrines of love and goodwill toward fellow beings. In versity Press. late eighteenth- and nineteenth-century western industrial Stebner, E.J. 1997. The women of Hull House: A study in spiritual- nations, the concept received a more specific meaning, that ity, vocation, and friendship. Albany: State University of of benevolence toward the poor, in close association with New York Press. the establishment of charitable organizations as the domain of upper-class women. The separation of home and work Cora V.Baldock

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wife’s fidelity. Hence, writes Hume, society must ensure CHASTITY that women are faithful by overemphasizing the virtue of chastity. Further, women are the objects through which The word chastity has two related historical meanings. men procreate and pass on property; because of this dubi- First, it refers to an abstention from almost all sexual activ- ous power, women’s freedom of sexual expression is ity: a chaste woman does not have sex. Second, it is used to strictly limited through chastity. describe a person whose only sexual interactions are with a spouse for the purpose of procreation: the chaste, faithful See Also wife performs her uncomfortable generative duty. Unlike virginity, chastity does not depend on sexual purity and “in- CELIBACY: RELIGIOUS; CELIBACY: SECULAR; VIRGINITY nocence.” Nonetheless, the terms are related in that they References and Further Reading refer to qualities desired more from women than from men, placing primary value on women’s sexual restraint and Blue, Polly. 1987. A time to refrain from embracing. In Linda avoidance. Hurcombe, ed., Sex and God. New York: Routledge. Engelstein, Laura. 1992. The keys to happiness: Sex and the search Chastity As a Female Virtue for modernity in fin-de-siècle Russia. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. Historically and across cultures, chastity has been a par- Hume, David. 1990. A treatise on human nature. Oxford: Oxford ticularly female virtue. The cult of widow chastity, a phe- University Press. nomenon of early Chinese civilization, encouraged women not to remarry after a husband’s death. Damage to Jennifer Casey “female honor and chastity” was the focus of a midnineteenth-century Russian rape code, an emphasis that highlighted the victim’s status and downplayed the rapist’s violence (Engelstein, 1992:76). The eighteenth- CHILD century Scottish philosopher David Hume described chas- See GIRL CHILD. tity as such a necessary requirement of virtuous women that “bachelors, however debauch’d, cannot chuse but be shock’d with any instance of lewdness or impudence in CHILD ABUSE women” (1990:572). See ABUSE and CHILD LABOR. The initial focus on women’s chasteness as paramount and more necessary than men’s sexual restraint comes from religious forces. Women were inextricably connected with the excesses and dangers of sexuality through a direct CHILDBIRTH identification with the body. Polly Blue ties the foundations of sexual chastity to a “fear and loathing of the female A woman’s capacity to conceive, gestate, and give birth to body’s functions; in identification of evil with the flesh, a human being is often described as a miracle, especially by and flesh with women” (1987:59). This is apparent not those who have ever seen a baby slip from the enclosure of only in the Judeo-Christian tradition, in which women’s a woman’s womb into the outside world. Pregnancy, labor, sinfulness and bodiliness began with Eve’s collapse to and birth, however, always take place in a societal context; temptation, but also in other religious thought. the concept of birth as miraculous and the actual event of childbearing are mediated by the beliefs and practices of Chastity and Property each culture (Jordan, 1978/1993). How women learn about In addition to religious influences, a societal emphasis on childbearing and motherhood; whether and how they view personal property and inheritance brought about chastity themselves as spiritual, emotional, and practical agents of for women alone. Although Hume was characterizing the cultural continuity; and how their needs are met by customs social mores of upper-class eighteenth-century Britain, his and institutions related to maternity care are essential com- description of the rationale for the chaste woman is an ef- ponents of an understanding of childbearing. The under- fective one. According to the philosopher, a man will only standing of childbirth reflected in this article, though by no support a child he is related to biologically; in order to be means the only possible view, is a perspective shared by sure of his child’s paternity, he must have no doubts of his many today.

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Needs of Mothers and deserving of great respect. Women are treated with dig- Every pregnant woman deserves nurturance, encourage- nity and are trusted to know or to be able to learn what they ment, love, and support from family and friends: a safe need to know to be healthy, to give birth well, and to have work and home environment; good child care; adequate healthy children. In this world, compassionate, experi- transportation; food, rest, and exercise; and a long enough enced midwives “journey with” women during pregnancy, leave from her work, with assurance that she can return to labor, and birth. Integral members of their communities, her job. She needs a skilled, wise, trustworthy practitioner these midwives learn through apprenticeships, in mid- to provide continuity of care throughout the time of child- wifery schools, and occasionally in hospitals. Babies are bearing, which is usually considered to be a year. born at home, in community birthing centers, or in hospi- During labor, a woman needs a reassuring environment, tals when necessary. Every child is a wanted child. The as close to home and to her particular culture as possible, so community provides the resources to nurture and provide that she can shape her labor as it unfolds. She needs attend- for every child. Family physicians and obstetricians hold ants to help her relax and open up, to guide her and pa- women, motherhood, and midwifery in high regard. These tiently observe the natural process of labor, and to be practitioners, trained as medical and surgical specialists, confident in her own intuitive and physical ability to give provide backup when needed, in consultation with the at- birth well. Labor progresses best when a woman can move tendant midwives, in homes, birth centers, or nearby hospi- around, change positions, and eat and drink as she desires tals, having carefully assessed the benefits and risks of any to keep up her energy—and when she is surrounded by the medical interventions they use. If this ideology were to be- people and objects that make her happiest and give her come public policy, it would be consonant with women’s ease. She needs accessible medical resources nearby in needs; would come close to ensuring healthy, happy moth- case of an emergency. ers and babies; and would cost society less money to imple- After the birth, she needs time to be with her baby, as ment and maintain than obstetrical care (Luce and Pincus, well as a helping hand during the following days and weeks 1998; Rothman, 1982). to help her care for herself, the baby, and her family. She Obstetrics continues to need good food, rest, and exercise. A firsttime parent needs information, encouragement, and the influ- Obstetrics, a surgical specialty, treats every woman’s preg- ence of experienced parents to help her be a good mother. nancy as a potential illness, and birth as a medical event, to She may want access to family-planning services so that be “managed” and “controlled” in hospitals with drugs and she can plan any future pregnancies. Motherhood requires technology. Within the hospital system, physicians (and women to use their capacity for creativity, resilience, intui- nurse-midwives) may work in teams, so that a pregnant tion, endurance, humor, and love, and to give so much of woman will not know whom she will see for her next ap- themselves that they deserve in turn to be well cared for. pointment or who will assist her at the birth of her baby. How, then, do maternity care systems meet women’s Obstetrical care can be invaluable when it concentrates on needs? Some questions to consider include these: Are medical surveillance and surgical rescue in times of crisis, women, mothers, and motherhood revered or discounted? but it is simply not appropriate for most women. Obstetri- Are women’s birthing powers admired or feared? Do a cians are not trained to pay attention to a woman within the society’s practitioners and institutions support, control, or context of her life throughout the childbearing year; they obliterate these powers? are trained to examine her periodically very briefly during pregnancy, and then to enter the delivery room at the last Woman-Oriented Maternity Care moment to “deliver” the baby. They view labor as unbear- There are two main ideologies of childbearing and mater- ably painful and much too long, and birth as excessively nity: woman-oriented and obstetrical. The first, woman- messy, risky, and dangerous. They rely on extensive test- oriented maternity care, or the midwifery model of care, in ing, monitoring, probing, intrusion, and interference dur- its ideal form, places mothers at the heart of the childbear- ing pregnancy and labor, using drugs, devices, and ing experience. Society, structured to value mothers’ procedures that have become the norm simply because they strengths and their perception of their own needs, pays exist, their risks often undisclosed, their benefits—safety, careful attention to the social, economic, spiritual, and necessity, effectiveness—unproven in any truly scientific emotional circumstances of their lives. Childbearing and way (Enkin et al., 1995; Goer, 1995). motherhood are viewed as creative, healthy, joyous life Assuming that women’s bodies don’t work well by transitions, eluding most efforts to measure and tame them themselves, obstetrical practitioners impose a concatenation

155 CHILDBIRTH of interventions on labors that would ordinarily progress at Childbirth Activism a natural, harmonious rate in less coercive circumstances. In response to the efforts of childbirth activists and mid- Hospitals, modeled on factories, have rules, schedules, and wives, many hospitals in the United States have become routines of their own that interfere with the unique flow of more woman- and family-oriented, with birthing rooms each woman’s labor; for example, each phase of labor must and nurse-midwives as practitioners (Edwards and be accomplished within a predetermined amount of time. Waldorf, 1984). Birthing centers have sprung up to meet In industrialized societies, a “normal, standard hospital de- women’s needs for a more homelike atmosphere. Doulas livery” will involve the use of a hospital bed, a fetal moni- (birthing attendants) are accepted in many medical set- tor, an intravenous hookup, induction of labor, an epidural tings. A very few hospitals serve as backup for direct-entry injection, and an episiotomy. All too often, over the last midwives who attend women in their homes. These mid- thirty years of the twentieth century—especially in the wives themselves are seeking licensing laws that will en- United States—labors ended in cesarean section, increas- able them to receive reimbursement. Although these ing both the expense and the risk of the birth, since a improvements offer some women more choices, they do cesarean involves anesthesia, cutting into the woman’s not change the basic structure of maternity care. body, and possible postoperative infection. Thus it is crucial for women, their families, and their The idea of the superiority of obstetrics prevails in al- advocates to support midwives and midwifery practiced in most all “developed” countries, where the obstetrical ap- harmony with obstetrics when needed. It is essential that proach has become the norm. From the eighteenth century women bring to light stories about truly natural, individual (and earlier) up to the turn of the twenty-first century, ob- births and describe pregnancy, labor, and birth as the flow- stetricians have suppressed or eliminated midwifery prac- ing, organic, spiritual, sensual, and empowering experi- tice, the result being that knowledge of some midwifery ences they can be. Positive, joyous birth stories serve to techniques and native medicine is lost (Murphy-Lawless, preserve women’s awareness of their own capable, strong 1998; Wertz and Wertz, 1979/1989). Midwives and their minds and bodies and of the benefits of midwifery (Gaskin, advocates are harassed when they threaten obstetrical he- 1978; Mason, 1990). They counteract the technological gemony and medical practices. Most women do not know bias of the present generation and add to the wealth of wis- that alternatives exist, or they assume that midwifery care is dom that enhances women’s experiences wherever they inferior. They have their babies in hospitals, believing give birth. medicalized care to be the best and safest way. Ironically, because one intervention does lead to another (lying in bed See Also slows labor; induction speeds it up, making it painful; MEDICAL CONTROL OF WOMEN; MIDWIVES; OBSTETRICS; drugs ease the pain; and so on), obstetrical technology ends REPRODUCTION: OVERVIEW; REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH; up becoming “necessary.” REPRODUCTIVE PHYSIOLOGY Young women absorb the pervasive medical message permeating modern culture. Never having seen a woman References and Further Reading actually giving birth, naturally or otherwise, they may fear Edwards, M., and M.Waldorf. 1984. Reclaiming birth: History the pain of labor and lack confidence in their bodies’ ca- and heroines of American childbirth reform. Trumansburg, pacity to give birth to a child. They learn from films and N.Y.: Crossing. television shows that childbirth consists of hospitalized Enkin, M., M.J.N.C.Keirse, M.Renfrew, and J.Neilson. 1995. A women lying on their backs in great distress, covered with guide to effective care in pregnancy and childbirth. New sheets, under bright lights, surrounded by masked and York: Oxford University Press. gowned practitioners attending to a crisis, if not an emer- Gaskin, I.M. 1978. Spiritual midwifery. Rev. ed. Summertown, gency. In this age of technological proliferation, they tend Tenn.: Book Publishing. to believe that medical technology will guarantee a Goer, H. 1995. Obstetric myths versus research realities: A guide to healthy baby. If their intuition, their needs, and their de- the medical literature. Westport, Conn.: Bergin and Garvey. sire for calmer, less intrusive treatment lead them to ques- Jordan, B. 1978/1993. Birth in four cultures. Reprint, Prospect tion routine experimental or invasive procedures, they are Heights, Ill.: Waveland. asked, “Don’t you care about your baby?” and are made to Luce, J., and J.Pincus. 1998. Childbirth. In Boston Women’s feel selfish or guilty. They then go on to become mothers Health Book Collective, Our bodies, ourselves for the new who carry on the message of medicalized birth to their century. New York: Simon and Schuster. daughters. Mason, J. 1990. The meaning of birth stories. Birth Gazette 3: 14–19.

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Murphy-Lawless, J. 1998. Reading birth and death: A history of more older siblings at home to mind the younger ones while obstetric thinking. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. they helped with the chores) were friendships that led to the Rothman, B.K. 1982. In labor: Women and power in the birth- emergence of child care as an identifiable task. Meanwhile, place. New York: Norton. Marxist thinkers, in their analysis of industrial society, were Wertz, R., and D.Wertz. 1979/1989. Lying-in: A history of child- describing women’s roles as productive and reproductive, birth in America. Reprint, New Haven, Conn.: Yale Univer- thereby collapsing the two important functions of home- sity Press. making and childbearing or -rearing into one, a conclusion that can justifiably be attributed to a male perspective. Internet Resources At the same time, a revolution in thinking relating to ; human nature and human development, starting with Rousseau in the eighteenth century, led to a wider under- Jane Pincus standing that the child was a unique being in his or her own right, not just a miniature adult. The concept of childhood as a unique and precious period of life requiring special attention finally arrived, leading to an understanding of CHILD CARE child care as a specialized activity. The work of later psychologists and the growth of the discipline of child development in the twentieth century The Triple Roles of Women emphasized still more the importance of early childhood as For most of human history, women’s multiple roles in life a stage in human development, making it meaningful once have been perceived as inseparable. Today, the significance again to speak of women’s triple roles instead of the “dou- of women’s triple roles is recognized: women as worker, ble burden.” The increasing unease felt by working moth- the productive economic role; as housewife and home- ers about the conflict between their maternal and economic maker, the consumer role; and as mother, the bearer and roles came to a climax in the mid-twentieth century with rearer of children, the reproductive and caregiver role. the work of John Bowlby, who, by bringing powerful evi- In preindustrial times and in many agrarian, pastoral, dence of the severely detrimental and long-term effects on and other societies in the developing world, child care was children of separation from their mothers at an early age, part of the traditional female role, combined with produc- lent credence to the theory that working mothers of young tion and consumption. In almost all times and places, how- children could damage these children’s development. ever, care of the very young, as in primate societies, has The intellectual heritage of Freud and Marx thus pro- been seen as female responsibility, to be handled by women vides the ideological base for some contemporary concepts of all age groups (grandmothers, aunts, sisters, and other of childhood, child care, and the mother alone as the pri- female relatives) and not solely by the biological mother. mary or sole caregiver. Although these ideologies are influ- ential worldwide, they are not equally accepted or equally Rationale for Child Care applicable everywhere, because the objective conditions in With the coming of the industrial revolution, profound so- which women and children find themselves differ widely cial changes deeply affected the pattern of women’s lives in across the globe. In most developing societies, the majority the industrial world. Production moved into large factories, of women continue to work largely in the informal sector or where groups of workers congregated, not only separating in agriculture; the involvement of extended families in the workplace from the home but also creating working child care is the norm; school-age children participate in conditions that made it impossible to keep young children labor as well as in household chores, including care of near their parents while they worked. More affluent younger siblings; and childhood itself is viewed in different women, who were not obliged to seek work under these ways in various cultures. Nevertheless, the importance of conditions, found their responsibilities in the home gradu- child care services, both as an instrument for child develop- ally reduced to the tasks of home management; thus was ment and as a support for women as workers, has gradually born the “housewife” of modern times. come to be recognized in almost all countries and has be- Along with the “housewifization” of women, the come a plank of the women’s movement in some. At the nuclearization of the family (increasingly becoming the same time, the gradual recognition of group child care as a “one-parent” family of postindustrial societies), declining skilled activity has led to the growth of training and educa- fertility, and universal primary education (which left no tion and the emergence of a new profession.

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Historical Review of Formal Child Care (or, in Europe, the father) to stay away from work as The dawn of the twentieth century saw the beginnings of much as possible in order to care for the child. formal institutional child care in many countries of west- • Crèches (also known as nurseries or day care centers), ern Europe, a development that arose from both the growth which provide group substitute care for young children of the labor movement and the influence of Fabian and so- near the parents’ workplace or their residence. This cat- cialist thought. Early labor legislation led to institutions egory increasingly includes family day care (also re- such as l’école maternelle in France. The two world wars ferred to as child minding or home-based care), which had a tremendous impact on women’s work status and attempts to provide care in a homelike setting. roles. A significant event of World War I was the Soviet revolution in Russia, with its emphasis on the liberation of Data available from the International Labor Organization women from the traditional roles of capitalist society and (1989) regarding provision for maternity benefits and child its declaration of commitment to state support for women care for women workers in 135 countries reveal distinct workers in fulfilling their maternal roles. These policies patterns related to two groups of factors: were to be faithfully adopted by all the countries that em- braced Soviet-style socialism in the years to come. In the • Economic—level of development western world, the entry of large numbers of married • Political—degree of socialist or market orientation. women with children into the workforce brought about profound social changes, which were, however, slow to be In the case of the formerly colonized countries, another pow- understood. erful factor is the influence of the former imperial power. The second half of the twentieth century was character- In the developed world, child care ranges from high in ized by the rise of alternative “models” of child care: on the Scandinavia, through continental western Europe, to low in one hand, the growth of institutionalized child care systems Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and the United States, in the western world, both private and state-funded, re- with the United States at the bottom of the heap, next to sponding to the needs of working women and children, Japan. At its best, child care encompasses extensive mater- with diversity both in quantity and in content; and on the nity benefits, including maternity leave, and now increas- other, the Soviet model of state-supported child care sys- ingly parental leave (as much as 18 months to two years in tems. The rest of the world, including many developing some countries), as well as high-quality child care, in either countries, attempted to copy one or the other, while the group or family settings, with a high caregiver-child ratio. older informal kinds of “coping strategies,” rather than sys- In Scandinavia, this may be attributed to the long history of tems, continued to predominate because of the slow, in- welfare-oriented socialist governments and strong labor complete, and varied pace of “development.” and women’s movements in the context of high per capita income, dwindling family size, declining birthrates, univer- Present Status sal nuclearization of the family, and increasing incidence of Child care services should include arrangements for the single-parent families. Several of these factors are equally child from birth (or even before) up to the age at which applicable to western European countries, many of which the child begins to attend school full-time (and child care have similar or somewhat lower and varying levels of pro- may continue part-time even after that age), but the nature vision. The table summarizes the extent of coverage of of the provision required may vary with the age of the publicly funded child care services in some major Euro- child. During the first few months of life, when pean Union countries. However, there is a large and grow- breastfeeding is of greatest significance, mother and child ing private and voluntary sector, which further need close proximity for both nutritional and psychic rea- disadvantages the most vulnerable. sons; for the age group from 2 to 6 years, there are more At the other end of the spectrum, the poor record of the possibilities for substitute caregiving within or outside the Anglo-Saxon countries may be related to the greater degree home. Child care services thus include two major ele- of market orientation and the policies of right-of-center ments: governments. Significantly, in the United States, the most free market economy, there has been hardly any-attention • Maternity leave, now broadening into parental leave, to maternity policy until recently; maternity leave (in some including job protection, along with arrangements places quaintly termed pregnancy disability) is left prima- such as flexible work schedules, part-time work, rily to private arrangements, and only very limited job pro- home-based work, and so on, which enable the mother tection is available.

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Publicly funded early childhood services as percentage of all children in the age group, selected countries (1990)

Key: ?=no information; (-)=less than 0.5; a=school hours vary from day to day; b=school hours increase as children get older

Notes: The table shows publicly funded services as a percentage of the child population; the percentage of children attending may be higher because some places offering services are used on a part-time basis. Play groups in the Netherlands have not been included, although 10 percent of children under 3 and 25 percent of children ages 3–4 attend, and most play groups receive public funds. Average hours of attendance—5 to 6 hours per week—are so much shorter than for other services that it would be difficult and potentially misleading to include them on the same basis as other services; however, play groups should not be forgotten in considering publicly funded care in the Netherlands.

Source: European Commission. 1990. Childcare in the European Communities (1985–1900). Brussels. In Peter Moss. 1992. Perspectives from Europe.

The socialist world shows a similar range of child care are imaginative schemes such as the involvement of elderly from the former U.S.S.R. and the more developed countries women in home-based day care services. About 35 percent of eastern Europe to the poorer Asian and Latin American of the 3–6 age group and 25 percent of the age group 0–3 socialist countries. Common to all, however, is a strong are said to be covered by these arrangements. In China, the political commitment to the care of children and support extensive network of crèches and day care centers is re- for working women. ported to be declining, and although maternity leave for 6 In the former U.S.S.R. and the countries of eastern Eu- to 12 months is available, women are returning to work ear- rope, the services available have included extensive mater- lier in order to earn the full wage. The achievements in the nity benefits (with leave of up to two years in some cases), smaller socialist countries of Latin America and Africa are accessible crèches, and nurseries of medium to high qual- also under threat. ity, as well as financial incentives for protection of the fam- Developing countries vary according to both the extent ily. These comments relate to the pre-1989 period. In light of market versus socialist orientation and the impact of the of the sweeping changes and political developments after former imperial power. All Commonwealth countries, for 1989, reliable estimates of the present situation are difficult example, have more or less the same pattern. India, a typi- to locate, but there are indications that facilities have been cal example, differs from China and Vietnam, at one end, substantially eroded. and from Brazil, the Philippines, or Senegal at the other. In Vietnam, the poorest country in this group, crèches Most follow the standard practice of three months’ mater- are extensively provided, though of low quality. Also found nity leave (including both prenatal and postnatal periods).

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Crèches are negligible in number, confined to urban areas, References and Further Reading and more akin to preprimary schools, or altogether nonex- Ariès, Philippe. 1962. Centuries of childhood. New York: istent. Among the developing countries, India has the larg- Knopf. est and most comprehensive network of child care services, Boserup, Esther. 1989. Women’s role in economic development. covering 12 percent of the child population below age 5 London: Earthscan (originally published 1970). and more than 25 percent of the members of this age group Bowlby, John. 1953. Childcare and the growth of love. below the poverty line. But, as in most third world coun- Harmondsworth, U.K.: Pelican. tries, the services focus on survival, health, and nutrition, Clarke-Stewart, Allison. 1982. Day care (The developing child on the one hand, and preschool education as preparation series). London: Fontana. for universal elementary education, on the other, with little Folbre, Nancy. 1994. Who pays for the kids? Gender and the struc- commitment to day care as a support service for working tures of constraint. New York: Routledge. women. Hewlett, Sylvia Ann. 1986. A lesser life. New York: Warner. Inter- Although the majority of their women work in the unor- national Labor Organization (ILO). 1989. Report on mater- ganized sector, most of these countries have borrowed their nity and childcare provision. Geneva: ILO (mimeo). legislation from the industrialized countries. The resulting Lewenhak, Sheela. 1989. Women and work. London: Fontana. policies are applicable to only a small minority of women, Myers, Robert. 1992. The twelve who survive. London and Paris: and few countries have made serious efforts to develop sys- Routledge/UNESCO/CGECCD. tems more suited to their economies. Crèches are legally Pugh, Gillian, ed. 1992. Contemporary issues in the early years: mandated in many countries for the industrial sector, but Working collaboratively for children. London: Paul because conditions are not conducive to their development, Chapman/National Children’s Bureau. the laws often remain unheeded. Sidel, Ruth. 1972. Childcare in China. New York: Hill and Wang. Spiro, Melford. 1965. Children of the kibbutz. New York: Professionalism in Child Care Schocken. With the emergence of the concept of child care as a spe- Swaminathan, Mina. 1985. Who cares? A study of childcare facili- cialized activity, recognition is emerging of the caregiver ties for low-income working women in India. New Delhi: as a full-time skilled professional and of the need for Centre for Women’s Development Studies. training for this role. But caregiving is still a highly femi- ——, ed. 1998. The first five years: A critical perspective on early nine profession, relatively low-paid, low-status, and with childhood care and education in India. New Delhi: Sage. low visibility. The shift toward professionalism may sig- nal a return to both an earlier acceptance of social, rather Mina Swaminathan than merely individual, responsibility for the care and up- bringing of children and an appreciation of quality as vi- tal to the development of children at a crucial stage in their lives. CHILD DEVELOPMENT The impact of feminism and the women’s movement worldwide, both on the development of child care services In what ways do gender, ethnicity, and culture affect chil- and on changing attitudes toward child care itself, has come dren? How do children understand everyday emotions? from both directions because of the wide spectrum of opin- What can infants see? Why are relationships with family ion among feminists on this issue. Whereas there have been and friends important to children? The field of child devel- vociferous demands from some sectors, others have tended opment can answer these questions and many more, pro- to downplay women’s maternal role in order to compete viding information about children’s physical, cognitive, “like men,” and still other groups have voiced a need for social, and emotional development (Berk, 1996). Child de- communal child rearing in order to give women real velopment is a field of study that has two primary responsi- choices. The impact has been mostly on the heightened vis- bilities. The first is to formulate theories that make specific ibility of the issue. predictions about how and why children grow and change. The second is to use scientific research to obtain knowl- See Also edge about development by testing the predictions that CAREGIVERS; CHILD DEVELOPMENT; EDUCATION: these theories make. This knowledge can then be used to PRESCHOOL; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: OVERVIEW; guide parents, teachers, psychologists, and others who in- MATERNITY LEAVE; MOTHER; PARENTHOOD teract with children.

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For any individual, child development begins at concep- well-rounded view of child development that is sensitive to tion and continues through birth, infancy, childhood, and cultural differences. adolescence. After adolescence, individuals enter adult- Not only have international scholars played an impor- hood, which signals the end of child development and the tant role in the field of child development, but women also beginning of adult development. Many aspects of child de- have contributed theories to the field. For instance, women velopment are universal and occur in the same way for all such as Myrtle McGraw (a U.S. scholar), Eleanor Gibson children because of certain genes that are present in all hu- (a U.S. researcher), Mary Ainsworth (working in Canada, mans. For example, all children carry genes that enable Britain, Uganda, and the United States), and Nancy Bayley them to crawl before they are able to walk (Berk, 1996). (a U.S. scientist) have contributed meaningful theories This explains why all children, regardless of their sex or about topics such as physical growth (McGraw and their ethnic or cultural background, develop in similar Bayley), perception of visual, tactile, and auditory stimuli ways and have many commonalities. Each child, however, (Gibson), relationships between parents and infants ultimately develops into a unique individual. This occurs (Ainsworth), and infant intelligence (Bayley). for two reasons. First, all individuals have unique genes, as The importance of gender in child development is ap- well as genes that are common to all humans. Second, all parent in another way. Several developmental theories have individuals experience different types and combinations of been designed specifically to explain children’s gender- experiences. Thus biological influences (such as unique role development. These theories have focused on how genes) and environmental influences (such as family and children come to understand what it means to be a girl or a culture) interact to ensure that each child develops into a boy and why there are gender differences in children’s per- unique person. sonal qualities, behaviors, and social relationships (Ruble and Martin, 1998). The two major influences on children’s Theories of Child Development gender-role development, according to these theories, are Theories about how children develop help researchers to their social interactions and their cognitive abilities (that is, organize and explain what is known and what is still un- the way they think about the world). One way that children known about development and to select topics to be ex- learn about gender is through their interactions with others, plored in future research. Because children are complex particularly parents, siblings, peers, and teachers. By individuals who develop in many different ways, no one watching and imitating those around them, children begin theory can adequately explain all aspects of their develop- to learn at a very early age about the activities and ment (Berk, 1996). Instead, many theories are needed. behaviors that are associated with being a girl or a boy. In Some theories, such as Lawrence Kohlberg’s theory of addition, as children begin to engage in different activities moral reasoning, offer explanations about how children and behaviors, they also learn from the messages they re- make moral decisions. Other theories, such as Erik ceive from others about their actions. Parents, for example, Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development and may praise them when they behave in ways that girls or Sigmund Freud’s theory of psychosexual development, boys are supposed to act (according to cultural or societal make predictions about how children’s interactions with beliefs). Or, parents may discourage or punish them when parents and other important people help them to develop they engage in what are considered cross-gender activities healthy identities. Still other theories, such as Jean (for example, if girls play with trucks). Thus children’s so- Piaget’s theory of cognitive development and cial experiences are important because their gender-role L.S.Vygotskii s sociocultural theory, make predictions development is influenced by what they observe others do- about how children think about the world and develop new ing and by the feedback they receive from others when they skills. behave in ways that are either consistent or inconsistent All these theorists—Kohlberg (a U.S. scientist), Erikson with their biological sex. (a theorist born in Denmark but raised in Germany), Freud Child development theorists suggest that to understand (an Austrian doctor), Piaget (a Swiss scholar), and children’s gender-role development, it is not enough to con- Vygotskii (a psychologist from the former Soviet Union)— sider their social interactions. Another important influence come from different cultural backgrounds, reflecting the on gender-role development is how children think about or fact that child development is an international field. Indeed, interpret the observations they make and the messages they theorists and researchers from around the world have made receive from others. In order to begin to understand the important contributions to explaining how children de- world in a meaningful way, children simplify information velop (Adler, 1989). This has provided the field with a by putting it into categories. In the many cultures where

161 CHILD DEVELOPMENT gender is an important part of everyday life, children or- gender is determined by biological factors, such as genes or ganize information into gender categories (that is, feminine hormones (Osmond and Thorne, 1993). Feminists or masculine). These categories, which also are referred to downplay biological explanations for differences between as gender schemes (Ruble and Martin, 1998), are particu- girls and boys because biological differences are often per- larly important once children are able to label themselves ceived to be inherent and unchangeable (Leaper, 2000). as either a girl or a boy. When this happens, children use the Suggesting that boys’ greater interest in math and science gender categories they have developed to guide how they careers is the result of boys’ having more natural spatial act and what they pay attention to in their environment (for and math abilities than girls, for example, implies that sex example, at home, when playing with their peers). Thus differences in career choice are inevitable. children develop an understanding of gender through the Instead, feminists have argued that the meaning attached way they think about and interpret the experiences they have to gender is determined in each culture and society by the with others and the observations they make on a daily basis. behaviors and roles assigned to girls and boys (or women and men). Thus feminists have suggested that gender differ- A Feminist Perspective on Child Development ences in career pathways can be explained by differences in Feminist scholars have made substantial contributions to the social expectations (for example, girls receive less encour- study of child development (Jacklin and McBride-Chang, agement in math and science than boys from parents and 1991). First, they have emphasized that girls’ and women’s teachers) and in the opportunities that girls and boys have to issues are important and that the field of child development develop math and science skills (for example, boys take must pay attention to these issues (Osmond and Thorne, more advanced math and science courses). The result is 1993). In this respect, feminists have criticized studies of that, rather than accepting sex differences in career choices child development because they have often neglected to con- as unavoidable, girls are encouraged in “traditionally” mas- sider girls’ experiences and how girls’ development may dif- culine areas such as math, science, and engineering. fer from boys’. Instead, the studies have focused primarily on boys’ experiences (Jacklin and McBride-Chang, 1991). Conclusion In fact, some of the most influential developmental theories, The field of child development provides valuable informa- including Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, Kohlberg’s theory tion about how girls and boys grow and develop and about of moral reasoning, and Erikson’s theory of psychosocial how these changes are related to children’s gender and cul- development, were based on information collected primarily tural background. Feminists have been particularly influen- from males or were formulated from a male standpoint, with tial in drawing attention to the role that gender plays in little consideration for the special challenges that girls face children’s development, and scholars from a variety of cul- (Jacklin and McBride-Chang, 1991; Muuss, 1996). tural backgrounds have demonstrated the importance of Kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning has received the cultural influences on children’s development. In the years most criticism from feminist scholars, particularly from Carol to come, this information will be beneficial in helping chil- Gilligan (a U.S. scholar) and her colleagues (Gilligan, 1982; dren around the world develop into healthy individuals. Gilligan and Attanucci, 1994). Gilligan and her colleagues (whose research involved white women in the United States) See Also are concerned that Kohlberg’s “male-based” model has been ADOLESCENCE; CHILDBIRTH; CHILD CARE; EDUCATION, inappropriately applied to females and has led to the incorrect selected topics; GENDER CONSTRUCTIONS IN THE FAMILY; conclusion that girls are less skilled than boys in making moral GENDERED PLAY; GENETICS AND GENETIC TECHNOLOGIES; decisions. This feminist debate has raised awareness that cau- GIRL CHILD; LIFE CYCLE; PARENTHOOD; PREGNANCY AND tion must be exercised when theories developed for males are BIRTH; PSYCHOLOGY: OVERVIEW; PSYCHOLOGY: COGNITIVE; applied to females. Furthermore, the ongoing discussion of YOUTH CULTURE gender differences sparked by feminists has fueled important research on moral reasoning. For example, researchers now References and Further Reading know that moral decisions are based not only on what is fair or Adler, Leonore Loeb, ed. 1989. Cross-cultural research in human just, as Kohlberg suggested, but also on how others will be development. New York: Praeger. affected by the decision; that is, a “caring” orientation Berk, Laura E. 1996. Infants, children, and adolescents. Boston: (Gilligan, 1982; Gilligan and Attanucci, 1994). Allyn and Bacon. A second important contribution that feminist scholars ——, ed. 1999. Landscapes of development: An anthology of have made to the field is in challenging the assumption that readings. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth.

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Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice: Psychological theory this time-consuming labor. In comparison with boys, girls and women’s development. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uni- carry out a disproportionate share. In a study by Benjamin versity Press. White, rural Javanese girls aged 7 to 9 did 2.8 hours of do- ——, and Attanucci, Jane. 1994. Caring voices and women’s mestic work per day compared with 1 hour by boys of the moral frames: Gilligan’s view. In Moral development: A same age (Rodgers and Standing, 1981:3). Children’s in- compendium. Vol. 6,123–137. New York: Garland. volvement in work activities is thus part of the reproduction Jacklin, Carol, and Catherine McBride-Chang. 1991. The effects of gender roles. In some countries children may be bonded of feminist scholarship on developmental psychology. Psy- to wealthier households as low-paid apprentices or unpaid chology of Women Quarterly 15:549–556. servants or else pledged by their parents as part of debt re- Leaper, Cam. 2000. The social construction and socialization of payment. This is a factor in child prostitution. gender during development. In Patricia H.Miller and Ellin K.Scholnick, eds., Toward a feminist developmental psychol- Historical Changes ogy, 1–22. New York: Routledge. With industrialization, production is transferred from the Muuss, Rolf. 1996. Theories of adolescence. New York: McGraw- family unit to industrial corporations. Children are valued as Hill. a source of cheap factory labor. In eighteenth- and nine- Osmond, Marie W., and Barrie Thorne. 1993. Feminist theories: teenth-century Europe, children were often hired as part of The social construction of gender in families and society. In the family work group. Wages were paid directly to parents. Pauline G.Boss et al., eds., Sourcebook of family theories and Concern about children’s conditions led to the passing of methods, 591–623. New York: Plenum. child labor laws in Europe from the early nineteenth cen- Ruble, Diane N., and Carol L.Martin. 1998. Gender development. tury. Collusion among parents, employers, and often chil- In William Damon and Nancy Eisenberg, eds., Handbook of dren themselves, and the lack of children’s empowerment, child psychology, 5th ed. Vol. 3, 933–1016. New York: Wiley. mean that protective regulations and education requirements Thomas, R.Murray. 2000. Comparing theories of child development, are frequently circumvented in both western and nonwestern 5th ed. Stamford, Conn.: Wadsworth Thomson Learning. countries. Outside the formal economy, children also engage in independent survival activities such as street vending, shoe Kimberly Updegraff shining, scavenging, begging, theft, and prostitution. Laura Hanish See Also DIVISION OF LABOR; DOMESTIC LABOR; ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION; ECONOMY: INFORMAL; GIRL CHILD LABOR CHILD; PROSTITUTION

Child labor is often regarded as exploitative because chil- References and Further Reading dren are more subordinated than adults in work relations, Goddard, Victoria, and Benjamin White. 1982. Child workers and but some types of work are also seen as giving children capitalist development: An introductory note and bibliogra- pride and status. In poor households, including some phy. Development and Change 13:465–477. headed by women, children’s labor and earnings contribute Reynolds, Pamela. 1991. Dance, civet cat: Child labour in the to survival. Zambezi Valley. London: Zed. Rodgers, Gerry, and Guy Standing, eds. 1981. Child work, pov- Definitions erty, and underdevelopment. Geneva: International Labour Questions arise in defining child labor. Definitions of child- Office. hood vary across societies and time and according to class Gaynor Dawson and gender (Goddard and White, 1982). The concept of labor is also problematic. For instance, when does play with younger siblings become child care? As members of the family unit of production in agrarian CHILDREN’S LITERATURE societies, children contribute unpaid labor to incomeearning activities in the fields, in family enterprises, Children’s literature is most simply defined as literature collecting and hunting, and so on. Children also do much written for and read by children. The simplicity of this defi- unpaid domestic work, freeing adults from the burden of nition is deceptive, however, and for many years critics

163 CHILDREN’S LITERATURE have debated whether there can be such a thing as “chil- By the end of the nineteenth century, most western dren’s literature.” Foremost among the issues in this debate countries had developed some form of a children’s is the relationship between the child and the text. For in- publishing industry. However, much of what was produced stance, since almost without exception children’s books are were imported and translated versions of texts that written, published, marketed, and purchased by adults, in originated in Great Britain and, to a lesser extent, the what sense do they belong to children? Are the characters United States, France, and Germany. Elsewhere this in children’s literature created to appeal to young readers, situation was compounded by the fact that printed material or are they products of adults’ needs and fears? In an influ- for children in the form of books, magazines, and tracts was ential study, Jacqueline Rose (1984) proposes that chil- frequently introduced by white missionaries and teachers dren’s literature is an impossibility and that the books in the and consisted of English-based stories translated into children’s canon are preoccupied with rescuing childhood vernacular languages. Therefore, images of women for adults. generated by western, industrial-capitalist, patriarchal Children’s literature is a relatively recent and geo- cultures dominated world publishing for children, a graphically limited phenomenon. Before it is possible to process that continued into the twenty-first century through have literature for children, it is necessary to have a concept the practice of buying and selling “world” copyrights of childhood as a distinct phase, with its own cognitive and (almost invariably including the North American market) emotional needs and interests. Literature is not essential for and the need to attract copublishers in other countries. basic survival; in developing countries, reading is a skill However, many governments have now recognized both that is primarily valued for its practical applications. Thus that a literate population is essential in the modern world for cultural and economic reasons, literature for children— and that what young people read can profoundly affect how especially that concerned with cultivating the imagina- they understand the world. Explicit and implicit, tion—is at the bottom of the literary hierarchy. The low consciously and unconsciously inscribed ideologies status of children’s literature is compounded by the fact pervade literature for children. Newly affluent and that in many countries books and stories for children are emerging countries frequently use children’s books to help associated with women writers and storytellers, themselves create a sense of national identity through shared stories, placed low in the literary establishment. vocabularies, and illustrations based on the traditional arts The conditions necessary for the creation of a literature of a country or people. Examples of this can be seen in for children had been established in Great Britain by the Australia (especially in relation to the indigenous, seventeenth century, and Great Britain is generally ac- Aborigine population), India, Iran, and Israel and in the cepted as the country with the longest and most developed socialist realism of the former Soviet Union. tradition of writing for children. The Puritan movement is One woman who was particularly alert to the positive credited with developing children’s literature in Great Brit- political potential of children’s literature was the German- ain because the Puritans recognized that children could born Jella Lepman, who founded the International Board learn (in this case about their sinful natures and the need to on Books for Young People (IBBY) at the end of World control them) from books. War II. Lepman believed that through exchanging and shar- The didactic nature of writing for children continues to ing books, young people would learn about and learn to be an important impetus and shaping force, though the na- value each other’s cultures, thus reducing the possibility of ture of the message and the mode of its delivery have al- future wars. IBBY is particularly concerned with encour- tered radically over the centuries. Initially children’s aging children’s literature in developing countries, where it literature was taught primarily through alternating stories fosters local publishing ventures, mobile libraries, and lit- of the exemplary with stories of the horribly punished and eracy plans. damned or by providing an indigestible diet of facts. Financial exigency means that in many countries an Through the influence of educators, philosophers (notably indigenous children’s literature is prevented from devel- Locke [1632–1704], Rousseau [1712–1778]), and the Ro- oping. The paradoxical consequence is that it is often in mantic movement, the prevailing idea of childhood and host countries to large groups of immigrants or refugees children’s needs was changed. Publishing for children be- that traditional tales first get printed. Through the com- gan to combine its underlying drive to teach with an urge to plex networks of coeditions, such bsook may be pro- entertain. The result is confusion about the criteria for as- duced in the United States, Great Britain, Germany, or sessing the merit of writing for children: Should it be France and subsequently exported to the countries from judged by pedagogic, literary, or artistic standards? which they originate.

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Women Writers Women and Girl Characters For most of the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth Folktales and fairy tales are the oldest branch of literature centuries, it was not regarded as appropriate for women to for children. They are particularly interesting to women not write scholarly or worldly books. However, women were only because they contain many images of girls and women immediately accepted as writers for children. Indeed, re- but also because they have traditionally been told and per- ferring to Great Britain, Peter Hunt (1994) observed that petuated by women. Feminist and Marxist critics have “women have dominated children’s books from the begin- traced the history of the best-known tales and recovered ning.” There are a number of explanations for this. For in- others that have been omitted from the popular canon. In stance, women were regarded as children’s “natural” the process, several facts of interest to women have been care-givers; women were thought to have intellects not uncovered. For instance, Jack Zipes (1983) argues that much more developed than children’s and therefore to be many of the negative female stereotypes characteristic of able to communicate at their level; and writing for children well-known fairy tales (wicked stepmothers, passive prin- was a low-status occupation and therefore relegated to cesses) are distortions of more positive and powerful fe- women. Considerable evidence proves that many women male archetypes. In oral versions generated before did write for children primarily because it was an accept- patriarchy became a dominant organizing principle in able form of paid employment and a natural extension of many societies, he argues, female characters were both other kinds of work in which they were already employed good and powerful. The perversion of these earlier models (for example, running Sunday schools and teaching chil- was accelerated during the nineteenth century, when men dren at home). However, some women writers of chil- such as the Grimm brothers (1785–1863; 1786–1859) and dren’s literature had other motivations. Crudely, these Andrew Lang (1844–1912) began collecting tales for patri- women can be divided into two kinds: those who used this otic and scholarly purposes. In line with the predominantly approved forum to show that they were men’s intellectual patriarchal and Christian values of their time, these equals and to seek acceptance within the dominant dis- retellings of old tales tended to diminish female characters courses of their time; and those who discovered that in from goddesses to wicked witches to mean step-mothers. writing for children they found a voice and a vehicle (as Moreover, they often added a Christian dimension that well as an impressionable audience) to critique the society linked curiosity and the rise of evil to women. In such sto- in which they lived. ries, the only good females are pretty, passive, obedient, Julia Briggs (1989) compares both kinds of writers and and domesticated, though feminists have been careful to suggests that not until the end of the nineteenth century and show that “wicked” women are often made bad by a male- the publication of innovative children’s books by the Brit- dominated society that values women only for their beauty ish writer Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) did women begin to and marriageability. exploit the subversive and liberating potential of writing for Feminist and Marxist critics have also focused attention children. Women writers began to see similarities between on the importance of reading in the construction of identity the situations of women and children: both groups were and the dissemination of ideology. Because it is entirely disparaged and repressed by the prevailing social order. No bound up in language and images, reading can play a cen- longer were all the women who wrote for young people tral role in determining the range of characters a young per- interested in promoting and reproducing the values es- son identifies with and inhabits. By the 1970s gender-based poused by the male academic and social establishment— stereotypes in all kinds of children’s literature (including not least because their efforts were largely ignored. As school reading texts) needed to be replaced with more real- women and as writers for children, they were doubly istic portrayals. As a consequence, girl characters are now marginalized. This status encouraged some women writers frequently shown as active, clever, and innovative. Many to use children’s literature to criticize and challenge the feminists have returned to the books that impressed them as male establishment. Specifically, adopting the child’s point children and have sought to understand both the nature of of view and on occasion imitating the child’s way of speak- the original appeal and the kinds of messages such stories ing helped women writers to break free from male-domi- transmit. nated literary modes and values. One work that has attracted considerable attention is In the 1990s, a number of women writers used chil- Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women (1868). Many women dren’s literature explicitly to criticize social practice and to remember being attracted to that book’s central character, consider the treatment of women, including minority Jo March, precisely because she seemed to embody rejec- women, throughout history. tion of the feminine ideal. However, some adult readers say

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that, at least superficially, Alcott’s text forces Jo into the Landsberg, Michele. 1988. The world of children’s books: A guide role of a “little woman,” and that the reader colludes in this to choosing the best. London: Simon and Schuster. process because it is necessary for a conventional happy Paul, Lissa. 1987. Enigma variations: What feminist theory knows ending. Arguably, however, a closer scrutiny of the sexual about children’s literature. Signal 54:186–201. politics of this novel shows that Alcott explored the de- Reynolds, Kimberley. 1994. Children’s literature, 1890–1990. structive nature of the feminine ideal: Beth March, the Plymouth: Northcote House/British Council. character who is the quintessence of this ideal, is incapaci- ——. 1990. Girls only? Gender and popular children’s fiction in tated by her self-sacrificing femininity, which ultimately Britain, 1880–1910. Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheat- leads to her death. Moreover, Little Women, which is set sheaf. against the backdrop of the American Civil War, can be Rose, Jacqueline. 1984. The case of Peter Pan, or, The impossibil- read as a book that celebrates matriarchy. The world of ity of children’s fiction. London: Macmillan. women and home functions well through collective effort; Zipes, Jack. 1983. Fairy tales and the art of subversion. London: the manly sphere of politics, battle, and individual achieve- Heinemann. ment has collapsed into destruction and disease. Kimberley Reynolds Another influential female character in children’s litera- ture who has attracted the attention of feminist critics is Pippi Longstocking, created by the Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren (b. 1907). Pippi is the strongest girl in the world—she regularly carries her horse in her arms. Be- CHILLY CLIMATE cause her mother is dead and her father the king of a canni- See EDUCATION: CHILLY CLIMATE IN THE CLASSROOM. bal island, she lives on her own, precisely as she pleases. Pippi subverts the twin ideals of “child” and “girl” and cel- ebrates qualities such as freedom and spontaneity over the CHOREOGRAPHY habitual and correct. Through her writing for children, See DANCE: CHOREOGRAPHY. Lindgren has become a figure of national and international importance (her work has been translated into fifty-seven languages); with Pippi Longstocking she provides an origi- CHRISTIANITY nal role model for girl readers around the world. Children’s literature has offered opportunities for As one of the three major western monotheistic traditions, women writers and has seen the creation of many original, Christianity affirms the existence of only one supreme be- powerful female characters. However, because so many ing, a god who is intimately interested and involved in hu- women continue to be denied education and a public voice, man affairs. However, Christianity differs sharply from and because they are frequently caught in the double traps Judaism and Islam when it comes to defining the nature of of poverty and reproduction, women from many countries this deity. Whereas the other two traditions are resolute in lag behind men even in this traditionally female sphere of their iconoclasm—that is, their insistence that God can be publishing. neither pictured nor adequately described in human terms—Christianity not only takes literally the idea that See Also humans were created “in God’s image” (Genesis 1:26) but FAIRY TALES; LITERATURE: OVERVIEW also maintains that God took on human form in the histori- cal person of Jesus of Nazareth (c. 6 or 5 B.C.–A.D. c. 30– References and Further Reading 33). The apparent conundrum of persons of both sexes Briggs, Julia. 1989. Women writers and writing for children: From being created “in the image” of one divine being, and the Sarah Fielding to E.Nesbit. In Gillian Avery and Julia Briggs, fact that in its human incarnation that being was a man, eds., Children and their books: A celebration of the work of have made the position of women in the Christian traditions Iona and Peter Opie. Oxford: Clarendon. especially problematic. Carpenter, Humphrey, and Mari Prichard. 1984. The Oxford com- panion to children’s literature. London: Oxford University Christian Origins Press. Christianity begins in the affirmation that Jesus was the Son Hunt, Peter. 1994. An introduction to children’s literature. Ox- of God. In declaring him to be the Messiah (Greek ford: Oxford University Press. Christos=“Anointed One,” whence the term Christian), his

166 CHRISTIANITY original followers asserted that his life, death, and reported claiming universal appeal and global relevance that ulti- resurrection constituted the fulfillment of Jewish messianic mately transcend cultural or ethnic boundaries. expectation. Little can be gleaned from extra-biblical Saul of Tarsus (c, 10–65/67 C.E.), who after his dra- sources about the career of Jesus of Nazareth, other than matic conversion to Christianity on the Damascus road the facts that he did indeed live and die in first-century went by his Roman name Paul, was the most influential Judea; that he was an itinerant preacher who amassed a among the first generation of Christian missionaries—so considerable following at a time of growing unrest among influential, indeed, that it may readily be argued that he, Jews chafing under Roman rule; and that, apparently con- rather than Jesus, was the true “founder” of Christianity. cerned about the political implications of his popularity, the The Jesus sect was rapidly spawning “house churches” Roman governor Pontius Pilate had him executed. The rest throughout the Mediterranean world by the middle of the of our information about Jesus comes primarily from the first century of the common era, and Paul’s letters to these New Testament Gospel narratives, which were written less fledgling communities were the earliest written documents with concern for historical accuracy than to demonstrate of the New Testament. In their blending of Jewish cosmol- that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. ogy with Hellenistic philosophy, they set the model for the Two facts about his public ministry do emerge clearly, development of doctrine and theology that would preoc- however: Jesus preached a revolutionary message of radi- cupy Christian thinkers for the next several centuries. It is cal love, equality, and justice; and, no doubt owing to this clear from his letters that Paul, like Jesus, had a number of message, he counted among his closest friends and disci- close and highly regarded female associates. Yet it is in ples a number of women. The prominence of these women Paul’s own writings, along with others attributed to him, among his core followers is affirmed at several key points that one repeatedly finds statements that provide the scrip- in his story: he performed his first public miracle at the re- tural foundations not only for the subordination of women quest of his mother; he praised Mary of Bethany’s aban- in the Christian churches but also for the development of an donment of housework in favor of religious study; it was oppressive theology of sexuality. Mary’s sister Martha who declared Jesus to be “the Christ, What accounts for this apparent contradiction? How the Son of God” (John 11:27); when all but one of his male could the same writer who proclaimed that “in Christ… apostles deserted him on the day of his crucifixion, the there is neither male nor female” (Galatians 3:26–28) si- women stood by the foot of the cross; and when he rose multaneously instruct women to “keep silence in the from the dead, his first appearance was to a woman, Mary churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be of Magdala, who appears to have been one of his closest subordinate, as even the Law says” (1 Corinthians 14:34)? associates. In addition, many of his most radical religious In part the answer lies in the fact that it was not the same pronouncements were of especial concern to women: his writer: whereas the passage from Galatians most certainly rejection of divorce, in the context of a Jewish system that represents Paul’s own view, the oft-quoted passage from 1 gave no rights to the wife; his intervention to prevent the Corinthians is generally regarded as a later interpolation stoning death of a woman convicted of adultery; his forgiv- into Paul’s text. Additionally, all of Paul’s statements about ing of the repentant prostitute (traditionally, if mistakenly, such social institutions as marriage and slavery (in the letter identified with Mary Magdalene); and his consistent cham- to Philemon he enjoins slaves to obey their masters) must pioning of the interests of the socially subordinated be read in their apocalyptic context. Taking to heart Jesus’s (women, children, and slaves). Nowhere in the Gospels statements about the Kingdom of God being at hand, Paul does Jesus employ a patriarchal vocabulary regarding the apparently expected the world to end relatively soon, and value of and distinctions among persons. he regarded spiritual renewal to be far more important than It is not clear that Jesus himself intended to found a social reform. He may not have been, as some have argued, “new” religion; he was a Jewish religious reformer. In this a protofeminist. But neither was he, as others have claimed, regard, he is very similar to Gotama Buddha, who six cen- a misogynist. The same cannot be said for many of the the- turies earlier had sought to reform the Hinduism of his day. ologians who would come after him. In both cases, while on one level the reform message is un- intelligible without the context (Jewish or Hindu) that gave The Early Church Fathers and the rise to it, on another level it became clear quite early that Development of a Theology of Sexuality the teachings of Jesus and Buddha had implications well In the first few centuries of the common era, two parallel beyond their original environments. Hence, both Christian- processes were at work, both of which would have a major ity and Buddhism developed into missionary religions, impact on the shaping of Christian ideas about women in

167 CHRISTIANITY general and female sexuality in particular. The first was the context in which the canon developed, and the male-domi- process of canonization, that is, the creation of the Chris- nated world for which it was intended. The best way for tian Bible. The second involved the development of several Christian missionaries to “sell” their message to their pa- key theological concepts relating to the nature of God and gan contemporaries was to make it conform, by and large, Christ, original sin and the institution of marriage. to social assumptions with which they were already com- Christian theology actually begins in the creation of the fortable. The New Testament contains, at most, tantalizing canon. In the century following the life of Jesus of Naza- hints regarding women’s leadership in the earliest Chris- reth, numerous texts appeared, attributed to various disci- tian communities, but the patriarchal overlay is so thick that ples and representing different—sometimes widely we ultimately cannot penetrate it. Thus, for the last two divergent—views regarding his teachings. As it gradually thousand years, the orthodox Gospel (from the Greek, became clear that the world was not about to end, the Chris- meaning “good news”) has been far better news for men tian movement needed to become organized both socially than for women. As recently as the 1990s, Pope John Paul in the form of the church and spiritually through the affir- II appealed to the idea of apostolic succession to reiterate mation of a set of beliefs and practices held in common. that women cannot be priests because Christ “chose” all The process of canonization (canon, from both Latin and men for his apostles. In 2000, when the Southern Baptist Greek roots referring to a rule or measuring rod) involved Convention similarly reaffirmed that women could not be coming to consensus on those texts that “measured up” to ministers, it could appeal to a long tradition of Scripture- several criteria determined by the early church fathers. These based theological interpretation. criteria for canonicity also implied a standard of orthodoxy Just as there was no room for women in positions of re- (from the Greek, meaning “right belief” or “straight think- ligious leadership, as far as the early fathers of the church ing”). The texts that became the New Testament were the were concerned, there was no room for the feminine in the ones that shared a common, essentially Pauline point of view Christian godhead. Christian theology (Greek theos+logos regarding the rudiments of Christian belief and practice, as =“god-talk”) took several centuries to sort out the basic well as four Gospel narratives, all of them written after and questions regarding the natures of God, man, and woman. influenced by Paul’s letters, that present a relatively coher- God was understood to be triune in nature, and by the be- ent picture of the life and teachings of Jesus. ginning of the third century the Latin father Tertullian (d. From the vantage point of women’s history, what got 230?) had developed the vocabulary to describe the Trinity left out of the New Testament is as important as what was as one God in three “Persons” (Latin personae=“masks” or included. This is especially true of the body of literature “faces”): Father (the Creator), Son (incarnate in the figure that has come to be known as the Gnostic Gospels. The of Jesus Christ), and a somewhat ephemeral but decidedly Gnostics (Greek gnosis=“knowledge”) were regarded as male Holy Spirit (generally symbolized by a dove). heretics by the early church fathers, and among their most Trinitarian theology flatly rejected the female Holy Spirit heinous doctrinal errors, from the orthodox point of view, of the Gnostics. It is hard to imagine Tertullian doing other- was their tendency to ascribe feminine qualities to God. wise: one of the most incisive thinkers and eloquent writers The Apochryphon of John, for example, describes God as a among the early fathers, he was also among the most trinity of Father, Son, and Mother; several other texts simi- misogynistic. Reflecting on Eve—and by extension, on all larly assumed the Holy Spirit to be female. In addition, women—he wrote: “The curse God pronounced on your Mary Magdalene figures prominently in Gnostic writings; sex weighs still on the world. Guilty, you must bear its the Gospel of Mary establishes her as a major disciple and hardships. You are the devil’s gateway.” The major framers teacher. Women held positions of prominence equal to of Christian theology agreed with him regarding women’s those of men in many Gnostic communities. It was clear to fundamental corruption. the early fathers of the church that if women were to be Jerome (c. 347–420), declaring, “Death came through kept silent in the churches, the Gnostic materials must be Eve: life has come through Mary,” exalted celibacy as the kept out of the canon. most appropriate lifestyle for Christian believers in general Those texts that did “measure up” supported a male- and for women in particular. Eve, who used her feminine dominated hierarchy: in the canonical narratives the twelve wiles to trick Adam into eating the forbidden fruit, had apostles, Christ’s major disciples, are all men, and what been Satan’s agent in humanity’s fall and expulsion from would come to be called the “apostolic succession” as- the Garden of Eden. By contrast, the Virgin Mary was sumed that spiritual authority passed from one male to an- God’s agent in the cosmic drama of redemption; she pro- other. This is not altogether surprising, given the patriarchal vided the human half of her divine Son’s dual nature. But

168 CHRISTIANITY in order for her to do this, she must have remained pure, would disrupt the male culture of the U.S. military, church- without taint of sin (that is, sexuality). Here, Jerome and men argued that the mere presence of women presented too subsequent theologians misread the Old Testament proph- great a sexual distraction to the monks. Female-only con- ecy that the Messiah would be born of a virgin (Hebrew vents were therefore instituted as parallel institutions, and alma=“maiden”) in the light of their own mistrust of fe- the role of nun (with Mary Magdalene, now identified with male sexuality. Not only was the female excluded from the the repentant whore of Luke 7:37–39, as prototype) godhead; she was also the “occasion of sin” for man and evolved as a church-sanctioned way for women to deny the more intimately related to the forces of evil and death. body and devote themselves to the life of the spirit—most Jerome’s logic laid the groundwork both for the tradition of often under the direction of male spiritual advisers. female asceticism (what the historian Rudolph Bell has The medieval period saw not only the flowering of the termed “holy anorexia”) in which sainthood is possible for monastic movement but also the rise of the cult of the Vir- women only to the extent that they renounce their own gin Mary. The church was adamant in its insistence that the sexuality and for the witch craze during the Renaissance Mother of God was in no way herself divine; however, and Reformation periods of European history. This logic of popular piety clearly ruled otherwise, and the Blessed Vir- female culpability and corruptibility was reinforced in the gin attained a goddess-like stature. Indeed, many of her ti- theology of the greatest of the Latin fathers, Augustine of tles and the symbols associated with her were appropriated Hippo (354–430). A libertine and heretic in his youth, Au- from earlier goddess traditions. As if to keep her under gustine well appreciated the power that temptation to sin church control, Catholic theology stressed Mary’s function could exert on both body and spirit. (He reports in his Con- as a role model for women, most of whom would be as- fessions that prior to his conversion to Christianity, he signed the role of wife and mother. Given the Virgin’s su- would pray, “Lord, give me chastity, but not yet.”) Yet his perhuman sinlessness, they would of course be destined to reading of Genesis led him to reject his contemporary fall short of the ideal. Jerome’s insistence on celibacy: God had, after all, insti- It was against the backdrop of the cult of the Virgin that tuted marriage in the Garden, before the fall. For Augus- Dame Julian of Norwich (1342–c. 1416) wrote of “Christ tine, the Christian theology of marriage is, nevertheless, the Mother.” There were many medieval women, like inextricably related to the “original sin” of Adam and Julian, for whom neither the convent nor marriage pro- Eve—a sin that passes, through procreation, to every suc- vided spiritual satisfaction. Like their male counterparts, cessive human generation. Even within marriage, each act female mystics like Angela of Foligno (1248–1309), of sex is tainted with sin, just as even in the cradle, each Catherine of Siena (1347–1380), and Margery Kempe infant is already a sinful being. Because God ordained the (1373–c. 1439) sought direct, unmediated experience of marriage bond for the purpose of procreation, however, sex the divine. Some women mystics were nuns, others were is something of a necessary evil. Woman’s purpose, in this not; but all were, or became, celibate. Their visions were scheme of things, is to seek salvation through reproducing typically characterized by highly charged sexual imagery children as well as through submission to male rule (Gen- of their mystical marriage to Christ, while at the same time esis 3:16). The Augustinian theology of marriage and sexu- they engaged in often extreme forms of ascetic self-abase- ality set the pattern for orthodox Christian theology for the ment, reinforcing the idea that the female body is the site of next fifteen hundred years. human sinfulness. Mystics, of course, always risked being accused of her- Mystics, Heretics, Witches, and Protestants esy or witchcraft, and many divergent spirits went to their Of course, for as long as Christian theologians have strived death. By the sixteenth century, for complex political and to guarantee orthodoxy, there have been heterodox think- social reasons, the Roman church was no longer able to ers. As the church in Rome solidified its authority through- control religious divergence through either containment (as out Europe, it developed means for containing or in the case of monastics and certain mystics) or expulsion controlling individualistic thinkers lest they become free and execution (as in the case of witches and heretics). With spirits in too literal a sense. Monasticism grew directly, and the Protestant Reformation, European Christianity became with church approval, out of the spiritual zeal that had led far more variegated in both belief and practice. Women ex- Christians in earlier centuries to either martyrdom or the perienced both gains and losses as a result. hermitage. Originally, monasteries housed men and Martin Luther, for example, abolished monasteries and women together. However, in much the same fashion that it convents and enjoined all good Christians to marry. (The has been claimed that the presence of women or of gay men former monk was forced to be true to his word when the

169 CHRISTIANITY former nun Katharina von Bora insisted she would have twentieth century: globalization, the ecumenical move- none other than Luther himself; theirs turned out to be a ment, and the international women’s movement. long and loving union.) On the one hand, Lutheran theol- Globalization. Christianity had been a “worldwide” re- ogy took a far more positive view of the social role of wife ligion nearly since its inception; but from the seventeenth and mother than did Catholic theology. On the other, it de- century forward, its world became much larger. Catholic prived women of any church-sanctioned religious role (the and Protestant missionaries brought their “good news” to Lutheran churches would not begin ordaining women as Asia, Africa, and North and South America; in these gener- ministers until well into the twentieth century, and some ally imperialistic settings, conversion to Christianity usu- Lutheran denominations still bar women from the minis- ally meant adoption of European cultural values as well. try). Similarly, John Calvin wrote that women should in- However, by the twentieth century, it had become clear that deed be allowed to speak in church—but not to preach. The the effort to “Europeanize” or “Americanize” native cul- seventeenth-century Calvinist John Milton wrote movingly tures ultimately did more harm than good to the natives in in his divorce tracts that marriage was first and foremost a question. Moreover, in those cultures where Christianity spiritual and intellectual union between persons; yet in his had taken root, over time the symbolism had taken on more masterwork Paradise Lost he depicted Eve as spiritually of a local color. and intellectually inferior to Adam and as his sexual se- In patriarchal contexts—as in much of Catholic Latin ducer into sin. America—male dominance was still the religious norm. Women were more likely to attain something like genu- However, revivalist movements like the Zionist churches in ine equality only in the more radical Protestant groups. South Africa and Pentecostalism in South America drew on Among the Quakers, for example, women and men were indigenous culture and opened up possibilities for women equally liable to be moved by the Holy Spirit to speak in to experience the Holy Spirit and to testify and perform Friends’ meetings. Mother Ann Lee, the eighteenth-cen- healing rituals on an equal footing with men. Arguably, the tury founder of the Shakers, was regarded by her followers less God could be imaged as a white male, the greater the as the female Messiah. Fleeing from England to North possibility over time for women, drawing on the authority America, the Shakers practiced a communal lifestyle in of their own spiritual experience, to assert their spiritual which the sexes were equal; they were, however, prohibited equality with men. from intercourse on other than the spiritual plane. The ecumenical movement. The Second Vatican Council Subsequent nineteenth- and early twentieth-century (1962–1965), which brought Roman Catholicism into dia- communitarian movements in the United States sought logue with Protestantism, was in a sense the culmination of other ways to balance the sexes, either literally or symboli- a century of interreligious conversation among Christians, cally. The Oneida Community practiced a variation on and between Christianity and other religions. What began open marriage in which women were freed from many of as a conversation among religious professionals would the more onerous responsibilities of childbirth and child have a revolutionary impact on believers: Roman Catholic rearing. Two indigenous U.S. churches, the Mormons and ritual became much more immediate, with the Mass being the Seventh-Day Adventists, prayed to “Father/Mother performed in the vernacular rather than Latin and God”; and in their early years both had female as well as laypersons given a far greater role in the service. Much male leaders, although in both women were eventually ex- Catholic doctrine was similarly demystified. In a spirit of cluded from positions of leadership. Some women started unity and mutual understanding, Protestants and Catholics their own churches: Ellen White (1827–1915) co-founded discovered far more common ground, when it came to be- Adventism; Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910) founded lief and practice, than earlier generations had suspected. Christian Science; and Aimee Semple McPherson (1890– Especially in the United States, where Catholicism was in- 1944) founded the Foursquare Gospel Church. Interest- fluenced by denominationalism, this led to increasing au- ingly, the female-founded U.S. churches tended to place tonomy from Rome—at least on the parish level—and considerable emphasis on physical health and spiritual greater visibility and freedom for women within the reli- healing—as if to counterbalance centuries of female denial gious community. The church continued to prohibit abor- of the body. tion and artificial contraception, to deny divorced Catholics the right to remarry in the church, and to refuse to ordain Twentieth-Century Developments women as priests. Many Catholic women simply ignored Three interrelated developments had a direct impact on the church’s strictures on their sexual behavior. Others, in- women in, and in relationship to, Christianity in the fluenced by the women’s movement, called for a change in

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policy; by century’s end, groups like Catholics for Free Bynum, Caroline Walker. 1982. Jesus as mother: Studies in the Choice and the Women’s Ordination Conference had or- spirituality of the High Middle Ages. Berkeley: University of ganized to demand reproductive rights, on the one hand, California Press. female priests, on the other. Clark, Elizabeth, and Herbert Richardson, eds. 1996. Women and The international women’s movement. Throughout the religion: The original sourcebook of women in Christian so-called mainline Protestant churches, women have made thought. San Francisco: HarperCollins. terrific strides as a result of feminism. By the close of the Heyward, Carter. 1999. Saving Jesus from those who are right. twentieth century, women were becoming ministers in all Philadelphia: Fortress. but the most conservative denominations and accounted for Pagels, Elaine. 1988. Adam, Eve, and the serpent. New York: roughly half the students in major divinity schools in the Vintage. United States. The Episcopal and Anglican churches began Ranke-Heinemann, Uta. 1991. Eunuchs for the kingdom of to ordain women as priests, and the Episcopal church to heaven. New York: Penguin. consecrate female bishops. Issues of direct relevance to Ruether, Rosemary Radford. 1983. Sexism and God-talk: Toward women—ranging from economic justice to reproductive a . Boston: Beacon. freedom to world peace—were at or near the top of every Schüssler Fiorenza, Elisabeth. 1993. Discipleship of equals: A church’s agenda. Simultaneously, international women’s critical feminist ekklesialogy of liberation. New York: conferences highlighted the role played by Christianity, as Crossroad. well as other religions, in the continuing oppression of ——. 1987. In memory of her: A feminist theological reconstruc- women around the world and called for more aggressive tion of Christian origins. New York: Crossroad. action on the part of religious communities. Urban, Linwood. 1995. A short history of Christian thought. New However, the late twentieth century also saw a resur- York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. gence of religious fundamentalism worldwide, which argu- Mary Zeiss Stange ably represents a direct backlash against such gains as women have made. Christian conservatives, both Catholic and Protestant, bemoan the loss of “family values” and at- tribute that loss primarily to women’s increased independ- ence from male spiritual and economic control. They want CHRISTIANITY: Feminist Christology to return Christianity to its roots: the patriarchal church and family, with men in charge and women willingly submit- Feminist Christology is part of an attempt by feminist theo- ting to male rule. Christian feminists, ironically, are also logians from all over the world to analyze and overcome calling for a return to Christianity’s original spirit: that the perceived patriarchal structures of Christianity and to message of radical love, justice, and equality for which Je- reformulate the Christian faith from their own perspective sus lived and died and around which the earliest Christian and experience as women living in different contexts. Dur- communities organized themselves. The shape that Christi- ing this process, feminist Christology increasingly revealed anity takes in the twenty-first century will depend, in large the crucial question whether feminism—women’s struggle part, on which interpretation of “that good old-time reli- against all kinds of patriarchal oppression—and Christian gion” prevails. belief are compatible. For feminist Christology, the Chris- tian doctrine that the Jewish preacher Jesus of Nazareth is See Also the Messiah (Christ), the universal savior for all people and CHRISTIANITY: FEMINIST CHRISTOLOGY; CHRISTIANITY: the whole world, the unique, once-for-all, and full incarna- STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE CHURCH; HOLY SPIRIT; MARTYRS; tion of God is not only the “heart” or center of Christianity MORMONS; MYSTICISM; QUAKERS; SHAKERS; THEOLOGIES: but also one of the Christian doctrines most used to oppress FEMINIST; WOMEN-CHURCH women.

References and Further Reading The Maleness of Christ Armstrong, Karen. 1987. The gospel according to women: The first problem for women arises with regard to the male- Christianity’s creation of the sex war in the West. New ness of Christ. The historical particularity of Jesus as male York: Anchor. has been interpreted by the church throughout the ages to Bell, Rudolph. 1987. Holy anorexia. Chicago: University of Chi- support and justify male dominance and the acceptance of cago Press. it and female subordination and inferiority in church and

171 CHRISTIANITY: FEMINIST CHRISTOLOGY society. On the basis of Hellenistic androcentric anthropol- diverse contextual interpretations of who Jesus was for ogy, the Christian church soon lifted the idea that the incar- the people believing in him. But early on, the interpreta- nation of God in a male was an ontological necessity: only tion of Jesus as Logos of God, a term connoted with male- the male represents full human nature and is by himself the ness, began to prevail over the very old complete image of God. Therefore, God had to choose the Sophia-Christology (probably the oldest Christological male sex to become human. Turning the historical particu- tradition), which understands Jesus as the child/prophet larity of Jesus’s maleness into an ontological and or incarnation of the (female) Sophia, the divine wisdom. Christological principle, the church not only emphasized This patriarchalization culminated in the fourth century the conceptualization of God as male but also denied that A.D. with the establishment of Christianity as the official women were fully human, the image of the divine, and thus state religion of the Roman Empire. The Christological representative of the Christ. Christ became the male dogmas of Nicaea and Chalcedon defining the one bind- revealer of a male god whose full representative can only ing understanding of Jesus Christ as the Son of God not be male (Ruether, 1983). In the Catholic, Orthodox, and only made an end to the Christological controversies of some Protestant churches, the maleness of Christ serves to various Christian groups but also served to guarantee the exclude women from ordination even in the twenty-first unity of the religious basis of the empire. Thus century. Christology, constructed in the context of political power, Some western feminists decided to leave Christianity legitimated the patriarchal sociopolitical order of the Ro- because of the irreversibly sexist character of its central man Empire and supported the establishment of a male symbol (Daly, 1973). Other feminist theologians have tried hierarchical church. Christ became the head of the church to solve or reduce the problem of the maleness of Christ by (as man is the head of woman) and—like the Roman em- rejecting the understanding of Jesus as the exclusive incar- peror—Pantocrator, that is, lord of the whole universe nation of God or by criticizing the deification of Jesus’s (Ruether, 1983). maleness as a distortion of the Christian doctrine of incar- Through the ages this patriarchal and imperial nation and salvation. Women from the third world, who Christology not only oppressed alternative Christologies experience not only sexism but also poverty, (for instance, Christologies more egalitarian in spirit) but neocolonialism, racism, and political oppression, empha- also established the claim of Christ as being the unique way size that the maleness of Jesus is not a constitutive factor to salvation. Anti-Judaism, crusades, imperialistic conver- for his being Immanuel—“God with us”—or for the proc- sions, and conquests of non-Christian peoples and cultures ess of salvation. For them, Jesus is the representative of a have been the cruel historical outcomes of this new (redeemed) humanity that includes women and men Christological model. equally, the incarnation not of a male but of a compassion- Feminist theologians from the third world therefore ate God who is with them in their daily struggle. For Afri- criticize not only the patriarchal but also the imperialistic can-American women, as well, the male existence of Jesus character of western Christology, which has justified the is not the crucial point; they question whether Jesus is a colonization and exploitation of non-Christian continents white racist justifying slavery and white supremacy or and nations in the name of Jesus Christ, the lord of the whether he is on the side of black women, who suffer the whole universe. This colonial Christ also destroyed the in- triple oppression of racism, sexism, and classism (Grant, digenous religious and cultural traditions and worsened the 1989). Some Asian feminist theologians understand the situation of women in most cases. As African and Asian maleness of the historical Jesus as functional in a positive feminist theologians discovered in the history of their cul- way: as a man having just and mutual relationships with tures, very often a patriarchal and Eurocentric Christianity women, Jesus challenged the patriarchal power system and added new forms of discrimination to the patriarchal struc- the male definition of humanity (Fabella, 1993). tures of the indigenous cultures while repressing the tradi- tional power of women, especially their spiritual power and A Patriarchal and Imperial Christology agency (Chung, 1990; Kanyoro and Oduyoye, 1992). Most Feminist theologians criticize also the Christological doc- Asian and African feminist theologians reject this imperial trine, normatively defined at the church Councils of “lordship” Christology for the patriarchal and colonialist Nicaea (A.D. 325) and Chalcedon (A.D. 451), as the re- oppression women have suffered in the name of the Lord. sult of a patriarchalization of Christology during the first In the multireligious context of Asia, with its rich tradition centuries of church history. The New Testament contains of centuries-old salvation models, some feminist theolo- not one unique and standard Christology but a plurality of gians also have questioned the Christian claim of the

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“uniqueness” of Jesus as the savior for all and the only full women are giving individually and collectively their own disclosure of God (Fabella, 1993). answers to the Christological question: Who do you say that I am (Mark 8:29)? The answers are pluralistic and con- Redemption through the Suffering textual, based on their experiences as women—experi- and Sacrifice of Christ ences deeply influenced not only by gender but also by Another problem for women in relation to traditional race, culture, and class. In Africa, where women endure Christology is the Christological doctrine of redemption extreme poverty and are subjected to oppressive cultural through the suffering, sacrifice, and death of Christ. As the customs, Christian women discover the Jesus of the Gos- U.S. feminist Mary Daly (1973) pointed out, the image of pels, who opposed religious and cultural practices oppres- the suffering savior sacrificing himself for the sake of hu- sive for women in his time. Jesus is seen as liberator and manity has been used as a model, especially for women, to healer, as companion and personal friend of women, and, reinforce female “virtues” such as self-sacrifice and pas- like the African woman as the nurturer of life, as one who sive suffering and to render women subservient to various encourages the self-affirmation of African women (Fabella modes of domination. Some U.S. feminist theologians and Oduyoye, 1988). have further explored the relationship between the image For Christian women in Asia, Jesus is the one who tran- of the suffering and self-sacrificing Christ and the legiti- scends the evil order of patriarchy. In a continent of less mation of the victimization of women. For them, Christ, than 3 percent Christians, where the majority of the poor the son who suffers in obedience to his fathers will, legiti- and oppressed are women, most feminist theologians try to mizes, as an example to be imitated by those suffering pa- develop an understanding of Christ that is both liberating triarchal oppression, violence against women and children, for women and respectful of religious pluralism (Fabella, especially domestic violence and sexual abuse (Brown and 1993). Some Asian women also use religious imagery from Bohn, 1989). For others, the Christological discourse of their own cultural background to express who Jesus is for God sacrificing his innocent son for our sins reflects patri- them in the context of modern Asia. They are transforming archal views of divine power that sanction child abuse as western Christology into a real Asian Christology based on divine behavior (Brock, 1988). Some womanist theolo- their political, cultural, and spiritual experiences as Asian gians criticize the Christian notion of Christ as surrogate women (Chung, 1990). In Latin America, where women figure standing in place of sinful humankind. This notion need liberation from both gender and politicoeconomic gives surrogacy an aura of the sacred and reinforces for oppression, feminist theologians emphasize Christ’s liber- African-American women the surrogacy roles as ating mission by stressing aspects ignored by male libera- “mammies” they have been forced to perform since slavery tion theologians: women’s active participation in the Jesus (Williams, 1993). movement, their equal status as disciples, Jesus’s humaniz- In Latin America, Africa, and especially Asia, the image ing attitude toward women, and his criticism of patriarchal of the suffering Christ is claimed by many Christian social and religious institutions (Aquino, 1993). women who suffer profoundly to give meaning to their own For black women in the United States, Jesus is the divine suffering. But feminist theologians from these continents co-sufferer who is with them in times of trouble. In the past warn their sisters not to accept every suffering as redemp- black women identified with Jesus because they believed tive. Suffering inflected by oppressive and patriarchal that Jesus identified with them. The resurrection of Christ structures and passively accepted by women does not lead signified for them that their tridimensional oppression was to the new life Jesus lived and died for. Some Asian femi- not without end and inspired hope in the struggle for libera- nist theologians underscore the fact that the image of the tion. Therefore, Christ, in their experiences and commu- suffering Christ or suffering servant has helped to promote nity, is reimaged in womanist Christology as a black the existing overemphasis on Asian women’s self-denial woman (Grant, 1989). and must be treated with caution (Fabella, 1993). Most white feminist theologians in the United States and western Europe try to articulate a Christology that no Feminist Reenvisioning of Christology longer supports sexism, anti-Judaism, racism, and western Aware of the various oppressive functions of traditional imperialism. Some understand Jesus as a messianic Christologies in the life of women, Christian women all prophet, starting a process of liberation and redemption over the world began to reenvision Christology in the con- that must be carried on by his followers (Ruether, 1983). text of their experience of oppression and their yearning Some rediscover the Sophia-Christology of the New Testa- for liberation and healing. For the first time in history ment, which interprets Jesus as the prophet or incarnation

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of the (female) Sophia, the divine wisdom (Schüssler Grey, Mary. 1989. Redeeming the dream: Feminism, redemption, Fiorenza, 1987). Others see Jesus as brother, showing us and Christian tradition. London: SPCK. what it means to incarnate God—the power-in-relation—in Heyward, Carter. 1982. The redemption of God: A theology of our world and inviting us to do the same by living just and mutual relation. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America. mutual relationships (Grey, 1989; Heyward, 1982). While Kanyoro, Musimbi R.A., and Mercy Amba Oduyoye, eds. 1992. this relational Christology does not confine Christ to the The will to arise: Women, tradition, and the church in Africa. historical Jesus and leaves room for future revelations of Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis. the “Christic” power in our sisters and brothers, there are Ruether, Rosemary Radford. 1983. Sexism and God-talk. Boston: attempts to consider even the historical Jesus not as an iso- Beacon. lated hero but as part of a healing community. Christ is seen Schüssler Fiorenzina, Elisabeth. 1987. In memory of her: A femi- as located in the (messianic) community of which Jesus nist theological reconstruction of Christian origins. New was one historical part, and it is the community that gener- York: Crossroad. ates the life-giving and healing power and thus becomes Williams, Delores S. 1993. Sisters in the wilderness: The chal- the locus for redemption (Brock, 1988). lenge of womanist God-talk. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis. Despite the diversity of feminist Christologies in differ- Doris Strahm ent sociopolitical and cultural contexts, they all share the belief that the Jesus traditions of the Bible contain liberat- ing elements which Christian women today can reclaim as they struggle for dignity, self-affirmation, survival, and lib- eration in a patriarchal world. CHRISTIANITY: Status of Women in the Church See Also PATRIARCHY: FEMINIST THEORY; THEOLOGIES: FEMINIST; Throughout history women have been active in the life and WOMANIST THEOLOGY witness of the Christian church—supporting it by their faith and faithfulness, being its moral and spiritual energy References and Further Reading at all times and all continents. Yet women have been denied Aquino, Maria Pilar. 1993. Our cry for life: Feminist theology a place as ordained clergy, in theological discourse, and in from Latin America. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis. the preaching and teaching ministries of the church, as well Brock, Rita Nakashima. 1988. Journeys by heart: A Christology of as in its liturgical life and its administrative and decision- erotic power. New York: Crossroad. making processes. The church is often said to have re- Brown, Joanne Carlson, and Carol R.Bohn, eds. 1989. Christi- mained a bastion of patriarchal power, in spite of the anity, patriarchy, and abuse: A feminist critique. New York: articulate voices of women and their active involvement in Pilgrim. attempting to create an inclusive and just community of Chung, Hyun Kyung. 1990. Struggle to be the sun again: In- women and men. As Pauline Webb (1991) suggests, “There troducing Asian women’s theology. Maryknoll, N.Y.: is a long history throughout the church of the lay ministry Orbis. of women, of women in religious orders, diaconates and Daly, Mary. 1973. Beyond God the Father: Toward a philosophy of missionary service, and of the strength of women’s move- women’s liberation. Boston: Beacon. ments within congregational life.” But these women have Fabella, Virginia. 1993. Beyond bonding: A third world woman’s been trivialized and silenced. theological journey. Manila: EATWOT and Institute of This article provides a glimpse of the status and role of Women’s Studies. women in the Christian church. It can only make broad ——, and Mercy Amba Oduyoye, eds. 1988. With passion and generalizations because of the varied traditions, theologies, compassion: Third world women doing theology. Maryknoll, cultures, ecclesiologies, and administrative structures that N.Y.: Orbis. have patterned the life and witness of the various denomi- ——, Lee Park, and Sun Ai, eds. 1989. We dare to dream: Doing nations within the church. It is not always possible to speak theology as Asian women. Hong Kong: AWCCT and in the same breath, for example, of the way the Eastern Or- EATWOT. thodox churches in the Middle East or the Baptist churches Grant, Jacquelyn. 1989. White women’s Christ and black women’s in the southern United States or the African Independent Jesus: Feminist Christology and womanist response. Atlanta, churches in Nigeria would view the participation of women Ga.: Scholars Press. in their lives. Therefore, this article will concentrate on the

174 CHRISTIANITY: STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE CHURCH way in which the World Council of Churches as a global is expected of women, has penetrated many mainline ecumenical instrument of the Protestant and Orthodox churches, which formulate their ministries according to churches has discussed some of the issues involved. this tradition. It is by falling back on tradition that the church has often The Ecumenical Decade of the Churches silenced any attempts to transform itself into a true commu- in Solidarity with Women (1988–1998) nity of women and men. This tendency was challenged by The Ecumenical Decade of the Churches in Solidarity with the congregational-based Study on the Community of Women was launched by the World Council of Churches in Women and Men that the World Council of Churches 1988 as a response to the growing strength of the voices of launched in 1975. At a global gathering in Sheffield, Eng- women in the churches who seek more visible demonstra- land, in 1981, which marked the culmination of this study tions of solidarity. It was also launched in order to chal- process, an Orthodox woman, Elisabeth BehrSigel, main- lenge the churches to take forward the gains of the United tained that it is only within the dynamics of the authentic Nations Decade for Women (1975–1985). The Ecumenical tradition that one can find radical newness of the church, Decade called on the churches to stand with women in their which is the basis of real community. Affirming the vision struggles to achieve justice and human dignity. At the mid- of the Orthodox tradition of living the Trinitarian life as the point of the decade, four issues were identified for con- foundation of genuine community in the church, Behr- certed action by the churches. The participation of women Sigel (1983) spoke of tradition as “the very life of the in the life of the church continued to be of central concern. church and its continuity,” as “an ever-renewed inspira- The churches were urged to embrace the theological and tion,” and as the “dynamic of faith, hope and love.” But she spiritual gifts that women offer and to affirm the shared went on to say: leadership of women in the life of the church. But the Dec- ade was not intended to be merely inward looking. It in- Faithfulness to tradition does not mean sacralization of vited the churches to deal with issues like the global the past, of the history of the church. Tradition is not a economic crisis and its impact on women; the increasing kind of immutable monster, a prison in which we are violence against women in all its manifestations; and the confined forever. It is a stream of life driven and im- many ways in which racism and xenophobia have torn pregnated by the energies of the Holy Spirit, a stream apart women’s lives. The churches were given a ten-year which unavoidably carried historical and therefore time frame within which to plan how they will act on the transitory elements and even ashes and cinders, but un- issues identified in order to ensure a significant change in der the rigid surface the clear • waters of spring run. It the quality of life of women and men in church and society. is our task with the help of God’s mercy, to break The churches have not acted to ensure radical changes in through the ice, especially the ice in our slumbering their structures, as many women had expected and hoped. frozen hearts. In us and from us, the tradition will be- What has happened instead, in many contexts, is that come a spring of living water again. women are in solidarity with the church more than the church is in solidarity with women. Tradition is often invoked when the issue of the ordination of women is considered. In South Korea, for example, ordi- Tradition: For or Against Women? nation was discussed for sixty-two synod sessions of the For the churches to be truly “in solidarity” with women, Presbyterian church in Korea before it was finally decided they must reconstruct some of their basic theological and on. The arguments against ordination are organizational ecclesiological foundations. Biblical literalists insist that and sometimes biblical, but in the analysis of women in the subordination of women and the leadership of men are Korean society, it is the Confucianist value system that divinely ordained, and they compound this by emphasiz- causes the problem. The church hides behind the traditional ing that women can achieve happiness only if they live values of the society and does not give space for the gospel according to biblical dictates on “womanhood.” Such a to challenge injustices that the culture perpetuates. But theological view has been at the heart of the Christian ide- more often it is the traditions of the church that oppose ology of the sacredness of the Christian family, which in change. Patriarchal power and privilege of those with all regions of the world has often denied women their ecclesial authority lie at the heart of the unjust structures of right to a life of dignity or, more seriously, has denied the church. The institutional impunity that some have en- them their right to move from a violent environment to a joyed over the centuries has numbed the church into inac- safe one. This theology, which determines narrowly what tivity, giving quasidivine sanctions to traditions that sustain

175 CHRISTIANITY: STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE CHURCH this power. Added to this situation is the very androcentric ministries of women, the teaching ministries of women in theology that has governed the life of the church—dimin- reaching out to the young, and the caring and nurturing ishing women and legitimizing the unjust ways that women ministries as women engage in many forms of healing and experience the truth. serving the community—these are all essential to the sur- In spite of the resistance to women in ordained minis- vival and witness of the church, and yet they are not gener- try, denomination after denomination in the Protestant ally considered central to the life of the church. They are church family has had to respond to movements for the often seen as the peripheral services, in which it is expected ordination of women, which have grown in every region of that women will play the major role. And yet women have the world. A significant day in church history, 12 March through the centuries given of themselves so selflessly to 1994 was the first time in the 460-year history of that the church and the community. How can these gifts that church that thirty-two women deacons of the Church of women have brought to the church be given the status that England were ordained as ministers. This action by the they deserve? Church of England came late: Takahashi Hisano was or- In many churches around the world, the traditions of the dained by the Presbyterian church (now a part of the church—the forms of ministry they have followed and the United church of Tokyo, Kyodan) in 1933. There are now structures they have established—are evoked to deny thousands of women ministers in all parts of the world be- women participation. The church fathers had spoken and longing to the Anglican communion, as well as to many would accept no argument. Ecclesiastical patriarchy of this other Protestant denominations. It is also true that several kind is part of church history. Tertullian captured the mi- churches have consecrated women as bishops. But there sogyny of the fathers when he wrote: “Women you ought to are also churches that still refuse women the right to read dress in mourning and rags, representing yourself as pa- the Scriptures or pray aloud in the church. There are still tients bathed in tears, redeeming thus the fault of having many churches where the participation of women is token, ruined the human race. You are the door to hell: you finally where women are expected to be “good” and “obedient” in are the cause why Jesus Christ had to die” (quoted in order to be accepted into the inner circles of power. Mananzan, 1992). Women who do not behave according to the rules set by Such attitudes have followed women throughout his- men or who have the courage to articulate a new way of tory. Women who spoke out, who challenged misogyny, being in the church are rejected, denounced, and even were branded and persecuted. It is estimated that more than branded as heretical. one million women were burned at the stake in Europe be- tween the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries because they Affirming Other Forms of Ministry were classified as witches. Churches no longer burn It is not only the question of ordination that preoccupies the women to death as witches, but violence continues, some- minds of women in the church. There is another view times in very subtle forms: in language and symbols that among women that would challenge clericalism itself. exclude the experiences of women, in denying women their What is needed today is perhaps not so much the participation and creativity. Unfortunately, violence in its clericalism that the institutionalized church tends to offer most overt expressions, such as sexual abuse by the clergy but rather the demands of priesthood set forth by St. Paul: a in pastoral contexts, also exists and threatens to destroy the new and transformed lifestyle of sacrificial living, so that very fabric of the church. others may live. Women have established that ministry is This history of repression, misogyny, and violence has more than a privileged role for a cleric. By their life of self- led many to ask why women stay in the church. It is true, of less service, women have demonstrated a more vibrant and course, that many women have left the church, but it is also enriching form of ministry. The suffering and sacrifice that true that many women have stayed. One source of inspira- women have been called on to bear by a society that has tion to many women is the newly emerging message of lib- systematically devalued them make them preeminently eration that feminist theology highlights. equipped to offer the church a new vision of service and a new lifestyle of priesthood that the church and the world The Feminist Theology Movement—A Sign of Hope need today. It is ironic that it is the same Bible and biblical tradition that Women have served the church in multifarious ways have been used, in some contexts, against women that are at through the centuries. These contributions, as indicated the heart of the worldwide feminist theology movement. earlier, have often been trivialized and discounted—seen as Women seek ways to find sustenance and hope in their mere extensions of the housewifely role. The diaconal struggles for justice and survival and invoke the authority

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of the Bible to support them in their liberation. They draw Gnanadason, Aruna. Women’s programme. Geneva: World Coun- particular strength from the Jesus movement, which is cil of Churches. based on the radical newness of Jesus’s life and teachings. Hunt, Mary. Forthcoming. Patriarchy and post-patriarchal possi- In Jesus all old and odious distinctions were broken down, bilities. Geneva: World Council of Churches. all barriers were torn down, and everyone found freedom Mananzan, Mary John. 1992. Woman and religion. Manila: Insti- and wholeness. In Jesus’s community there were no fixed tute of Women’s Studies, St. Scholastica’s College. structures, nor did institutionalized leadership prevail. Webb, Pauline. 1991. Women in church and society. In Nicholas Such a holistic vision of an ecclesia of equals has inspired Lossky, José Miguez Bonino, John S.Pobee, et al., eds., Dic- women to reimage faith, God, and Christ in a way that tionary of the ecumenical movement, 1069. Geneva: World gives them meaning and hope. As women on every conti- Council of Churches. nent of the world reread the Bible with new eyes, they ar- Aruna Gnanadason ticulate a new paradigm that shirts from the traditional ways in which the Bible has been read and interpreted. While developing a “hermeneutics of suspicion” of tradi- tional ways of understanding the Bible and the canoniza- CHURCH tion process, which had selectively excluded several texts, See CHRISTIANITY: STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE CHURCH. women have formulated alternative, theologically liberat- ing visions. Many women have left the church because of its patriar- chal, institutionalized power structures. The church, be- CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST cause of its conservatism and lack of vision, is causing deep OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS hurt to women who stay within its structures. More and See MORMONS. more women in many countries are leaving the church, which they believe has systematically dehumanized them. Some women have demonstrated a new liturgical and spir- CINEMA itual life experience in a new form of church—which See FILM. women see as “a religious attempt, part of a global feminist effort to transform patriarchal structures of government, business, education as well as religions” (Hunt). The church has much to do to ensure that the true com- CITIZENSHIP munity of equality and justice that Jesus came to establish is achieved. If the church is to give to the people of God the The western idea of citizenship first appeared in the ancient courage to live life meaningfully and fully, giving expres- Greek city-states, where it was defined by the Aristotelian sion to what God means to them in their struggles and notion of ruling as well as being ruled. In the Roman Em- hopes, then the theological vision that women articulate pire, however, citizenship became associated with legal sta- takes on significance and relevance for the world today. tus and with specific rights and duties (Shafir, 1998). These This new voice of women needs to be nurtured, encour- two notions of citizenship came together in the construc- aged, and sustained. Women’s cry within the church is a tion of citizenship in the nation-state, where it first ap- cry for a new ordering of church life, where all will find peared during the French Revolution. The word citoyen, acceptance and dignity. the French equivalent of citizen, implied a broad relation- ship between the individual and society. As with earlier See Also forms, modern French revolutionary citizenship was con- CHRISTIANITY; CHRISTIANITY: FEMINIST CHRISTOLOGY; structed in a way that excluded women by virtue of their MISOGYNY; THEOLOGIES: FEMINIST; WITCHES: WESTERN gender. Class and race were also exclusionary dimensions WORLD; WOMEN-CHURCH of early citizenship. Carol Pateman (1988) links the “social contract” of the republican “fraternity” in revolutionary References and Further Reading France with a sexual contract giving men the right to rule Behr-Sigel, Elisabeth. 1983. The energizing force of tradition. In and represent women and children in the public domain. Constance F.Parvey, ed., The community of women and men Despite the exclusionary history of modern citizenship, the in the church, 62. Geneva: World Council of Churches. universalist terminology on which it was based would later

177 CITIZENSHIP be used by a variety of social movements of excluded citi- citizenship, although the children of British men did. At the zens, including women, to demand their rights. end of the twentieth century, British citizenship rules still privileged, the male line, allowing citizenship to be con- Models of Citizenship ferred on children by their paternal grandfather but not by The debate about women and citizenship has generally had any other grandparents. two sides. The first is an evolutionary/progressive model of The basis for granting people in general and women in increasing female inclusion. This argument proposes that particular a formal citizenship varies among states. The women are latecomers to citizenship as a result of historical “blood and soil” charters of most European countries de- disenfranchisement and exclusion from the public sphere; fine citizenship by blood relations. Such charters construct with growing equality between the sexes, however, their women as a national flag that must be protected—they are political exclusion will continue to attenuate gradually. the carriers and reproducers of the nations but not necessar- This trope of evolving equality is the dominant folk model ily by extension of the nation itself. Ethnic Germans who for female citizenship. The “postrevolutionary” cuts in have lived in central Asia for generations can claim and women’s citizenship rights in countries such as Iran and have claimed German citizenship through an imagined or especially Afghanistan show that history does not always real blood connection to the soil of Germany. work in this inevitable progressive direction. Nazi Germany, perhaps the society most concerned with The other argument holds that the exclusion of women blood and soil, valued women predominantly as child- from full citizenship and women’s association with the bearers and claimed that they belonged in the domestic “private” domain have been part of the more general politi- sphere. This belief was summed up in the slogan prescrib- cal project of the Enlightenment, which is at the root of ing the role of women: “Kinder, Küche, Kirche” (“chil- modern citizenship. Fraternity, at the heart of enlighten- dren, kitchen, church”). Many other national discourses ment and citizenship, is not just about social solidarity or have constructed women as symbols of the collectivity—its even “male bonding” among citizens. The concept refers to biological and cultural reproducers—and have therefore the transformation of society from a patriarchy, in which told women that it is their moral duty as citizens to have as the father (or the king as a father figure) ruled over both many children as possible. men and women, to a fraternity, in which men have the Nations, sometimes called setder states, that define their right to rule over women in the private sphere but agree to identity through their immigrant populations tend to place equality in the public sphere. Women, therefore, were not more emphasis on where one was born or where one’s par- excluded from the public sphere incidentally but as part of ents were born (though not on previous generations) when a bargain between the new regime and its member citizens granting citizenship. It is difficult to imagine someone of (Pateman, 1988; Vogel, 1991; Walby, 1994). Australian or Canadian descent claiming an ethnic identity Women’s exclusion was part and parcel of men’s enti- based on bloodlines. Whereas the great-grandchildren of tlement to democratic participation, which conferred citi- an Italian immigrant to the United States might call them- zenship status not on individuals but on men as selves Italian or Italian-American, there is really no analo- representatives of a family (that is, a group of gous term for someone of Australian or Canadian noncitizens). The social philosophy at the center of mod- parentage. Where blood is of less importance to the con- ern state citizenship was therefore not truly universalist, struction of a nation, the reproductive role of women is less as it claimed; it was constructed in terms of “rights of significant to the perpetuation and identity of that nation. man” or, more specifically, “rights of white man” Socialist countries tended to define citizenship in yet (Pateman, 1989). another way. Because their charters were connected to the There are many historical examples of the incomplete idea of the proletariat, citizenship was constructed in terms integration of women into the modern institution of citizen- of who lived and worked in a place. In the early years of the ship. Britain was one of the outstanding early exemplars of Soviet Union, there were no restrictions on citizenship; im- modern citizenship. During Victorian times, however, migrants could immediately vote and be elected to the gov- women lost their citizenship when they married. This was ernment. Although religious and other traditions that particularly problematic for women who married foreign- defined women’s roles more in terms of gender persisted in ers and therefore lost juridical rights to their homeland. many places, national charters generally valued women Women continued to lose their citizenship when they mar- first and foremost as workers. This is reflected in the poli- ried foreign nationals until 1948. As late as 1981, the chil- cies of Cuba and most of the former eastern bloc, where the dren of British women did not have the automatic right to recognition that persistent inequalities in child rearing and

178 CITIZENSHIP domestic duties lead women to do more work over their inclusionary and democratic. Moreover, the distributive lifetimes was, and still is, compensated for by earlier retire- function of the welfare state, which constitutes much of ment ages for women. what is known as “social citizenship,” has been dependent on division of labor along gender lines within the family as Marriage and Citizenship well as in the public domain. Marriage is a universal means of gaining citizenship in a country where one was not born, regardless of how the na- Domains of Citizenship tion is defined. However, strict citizenship regulations can Feminist critiques of the influential comparative analysis of make women particularly vulnerable to difficult or abusive welfare states by Gosta Esping-Andersen (1990), like those situations. Existing gender inequalities can be com- of Ann Orloff (1993) and Julia O’Connor (1993), have pounded by the absence of full legal rights for a spouse pointed out the need to add the family domain to that of the whose citizenship is pending. This becomes particularly state and the market when examining the ways in which problematic when the immigrant is from a poorer, weaker countries organize the provision of welfare. This is an im- country, so that her citizenship is of less value in the global portant correction. The family domain must also be added context. when discussing different locations for political organiza- Women from poor backgrounds in countries where eco- tions and power. This is especially important if we expand nomic opportunities may be scarce can become entirely the comparative span of citizenship beyond the very lim- dependent on their husbands and are left with few options ited western range of case studies to which most citizenship for confronting a bad marriage. With nowhere to return to theorizations have referred. and no rights in their adopted country, some women will It is misleading to see in the rise of the modern nation- endure abusive relationships when faced with the threat of state a completely different form of social organization deportation. In the mid-1990s, an Ecuadorian woman from the premodern nation-state. In many states—espe- named Lorena Bobbitt, married to a U.S. citizen and living cially postcolonial ones—for example, extended family in the United States, appeared in newspapers and on televi- and kinship relationships continue to be used as focal sion around the world after she cut off her husbands penis. points of loyalty and organization, even when constructed She claimed that her actions were the result of her feelings as ideological political parties. Political, social, and prob- of utter powerlessness in the face of an abusive marriage ably even civil rights might depend on the familial posi- coupled with the threat of deportation if she left him. tioning of the particular citizen. In these states, traditional “Mail-order brides,” as they are euphemistically termed, social and especially familial relations continue to operate, are sometimes “marketed” for their submissive nature on and often women have either no formal citizenship rights the basis of cultural stereotypes as well as the vulnerability or only very minimal rights. Paradoxically, where familial of their situation. Women from southeast Asia have been relations are important in the politics of a country, women the most visible group. Since the collapse of the Soviet who are widows or daughters of political leaders have the Union, Russian women have increasingly married foreign- highest chance of becoming political leaders, as on the In- ers as a means of escaping the country’s economic prob- dian subcontinent, for example. lems. Although men also partake in marriages to gain It is important, therefore, to include the three domains— citizenship, the transactions are more often a financial mat- the familial, the civil, and that of state agencies that vary ter than an emotional or sexual one. among states and societies—in the determination of the so- In the liberal tradition, individuals are presumed to have cial, political, and civil rights of citizens. None of these equal status and equal rights and duties with regard to sta- spheres is ever homogeneous, because different parts of the tus as citizens; inequalities deriving from gender, ethnicity, state can act in ways that contradict the actions of other class, and other contexts are irrelevant. This individualist, parts, with different effects on ethnic, class, and other “universalist” approach, in which differences among citi- groupings in the society as a result. zens are seen as irrelevant, can become exclusionary and The role of gender in citizenship rights is evident in all discriminatory. Membership in a state, and resultant rights these areas as well as in considering the kinds of rights that and responsibilities, are mediated by membership in other were not considered by T.H.Marshall (1950, 1981), the collectivities and polities, sub-, cross-, and supra-state. An most influential theorist of citizenship. One such right is individual’s positioning in that respect, as well as in terms the right to enter a state and, having entered, to be allowed of class, gender, sexuality, age, ability, and so on, must be to reside there. Women and men tend to be treated differ- acknowledged in any citizenship project that would be ently when bringing dependent relatives or children into

179 CITIZENSHIP their state of residence (Bhabha and Shutter, 1994). The as well as of general citizenship duty (of both men and question of cultural rights and their implications for the women), to evaluate critically the roles of the military in citizenship of women of specific ethnic communities is local, national, and global communities. even more complex, because notions of cultures are often The notion of global citizenship has become more popu- stereotyped, reified, and homogenized in multicultural lar with increasing globalization, and nongovernmental or- policies. Such a perspective does not take into account in- ganizations and networks of women often operate across ternal differences and contestations of power within minor- borders, sharing a belief that the rights of women should ity communities and can be detrimental to women who find not be left only to the dictates of the state. In effect, many of themselves with the “burden of representation” of that ab- these groups supporting women’s rights counter-poise stract and static notion of culture (Mercer, 1990). themselves to states, and women often benefit from the work and funding of these supra-state and interstate organi- Women and Citizenship Duties zations, as patriarchal social and economic structures lo- An often-debated issue in feminist and other circles is the cated within the state deny them effective autonomous connection between citizenship rights and duties in general access to money and power. The increasing ease of com- and those of women in particular. Various definitions em- municating and traveling around the globe means that peo- phasize that citizenship is a two-way process, involving ple are often less bound by their nation of citizenship. This obligations as well as rights. This, of course, raises not only leaves them free to build cross-border identities and thus to the thorny issue of whether specific rights should be condi- identify with women on the other side of the world not as tioned by carrying out specific duties but also the more members of a foreign nation but simply as women with general question of the boundaries of citizenship in relation problems and challenges in common. At the same time, it is to people who are not able to carry out such duties important to remember that the differential positioning of (Meekosha and Dowse, 1997). For instance, defending women who are citizens of different states is not symmetri- one’s own community and country is generally seen as the cal and is mediated by the relative power of their citizen- ultimate duty of citizenship—to die (as well as to kill) for ship states in the international pecking order, as well as by the sake of the homeland or the nation (Yuval-Davis, membership in particular ethnic, racial, and other group- 1991a, b). This duty has given rise to Kathleen Jones’s ings within their states (Yuval-Davis and Werbner, 1999). claim (1990) that the body is a dimension in the definition Contemporary citizenships are best described as multilay- of citizenship. Traditionally, she claims, citizenship has ered citizenships, in which we are all, simultaneously but in been linked with the ability to take part in armed struggle a relational way, citizens of our local, ethnic, national, for national defense; this ability in turn has been equated trans-, and supra-national polities (Yuval-Davis, 1999). with maleness, whereas weakness and the need for male protection have been equated with femaleness. See Also Some feminist organizations (NOW in the United DEMOCRACY; ECONOMY: WELFARE AND THE ECONOMY; States, ANMLAE in Nicaragua, and others) have fought for MILITARY; NATION AND NATIONALISM; POLITICAL the equal inclusion of ; they argue PARTICIPATION; POLITICAL REPRESENTATION; POLITICS AND that once women share with men the ultimate citizens’ THE STATE: OVERVIEW duty—to die for one’s country—they will also be able to gain equal citizenship rights. The experience of women References and Further Reading who have served in the military, both in national liberation Bhabha, Jacqueline, and Susan Shutter. 1994. Women’s move- armies and, especially, in western military machines does ment: Women under immigration, nationality, and refugee not support this argument. Women in the military, as in the law. Stoke-on-Trent: Trentham. civil labor market, changed but did not abolish sexual divi- Enloe, Cynthia. 1983. Does khaki become you? London: Pluto. sions of labor and power. Moreover—and most signifi- Esping-Andersen, Costa. 1990. The three worlds of welfare capi- cantly—the entrance en masse of women into western talism. Cambridge: Polity. militaries (although they continue to constitute small mi- Jones, Kathleen B. 1990. Citizenship in a woman-friendly polity. norities) usually occurs once the national draft has been Signs 15(4). abolished and military service is no longer a citizenship Marshall, T.H. 1950. Citizenship and social class. Cambridge: duty but, rather, a professional career choice (Enloe, 1983; Cambridge University Press. Yuval-Davis, 1997a, b). The participation of women in the ——. 1981. The right to welfare and other essays. London: military, then, must become a question of equal opportunity Heinemann Educational.

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Meekosha, Helen, and Leanne Dowse. 1997. Enabling citizen- and to each other, then class constitutes the fundamental ship: Gender, disability, and citizenship in Australia. Femi- social relationship through which the central processes of nist Review 57:49–72. capitalism—production, or the material sustenance of the Mercer, Kubena. 1990. Welcome to the jungle: Identity and diver- current generation; and reproduction, or the biological and sity in postmodern politics. In J.Rutherford, ed., Identity, social propagation of future generations—are organized. community, culture, difference. London: Lawrence and Wishart . Class Systems and Marxism O’Connor, Julia. 1993. Gender, class, and citizenship in the com- Any discussion of class must begin with Karl Marx’s ob- parative analysis of welfare state regimes. British Journal of servation that all humans, as living, breathing, biological Sociology 44(3):501–518. entities, must extract the means of their continued survival Orloff, Ann. 1993. Gender and the social rights of citizenship: The from nature: food, clothing, shelter, and warmth must be comparative analysis of gender relations and welfare states. obtained from the organic and inorganic materials that American Sociological Review 58(June):303–328. make up the material world. In maintaining this continuous Pateman, Carol. 1989. The disorder of women. Cambridge: Polity. metabolic relationship with nature, labor—productive, en- ——. 1988. The sexual contract. Cambridge: Polity. ergy-expending, physical interaction—constitutes the fun- Shafir, Gershon, ed. 1998. The citizenship debates, a reader. damental mediating mechanism between humans and their Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. environment. Unlike other organisms, which must also in- Vogel, Ursula. 1991. Is citizenship gender specific? In U.Vogel teract with their surroundings to survive, humans possess and M.Moran, eds., The frontiers of citizenship. Basing- the unique capacity to negotiate their relationship with na- stock: Macmillan. ture through the conscious, deliberate, coordinated organi- Walby, Sylvia. 1994. Is citizenship gendered? Sociology 28(2): zation of labor. This capacity allows for a variety of 379–395. subsistence arrangements. At various periods in human his- Yuval-Davis, Nira. 1991a. The citizenship debate: Women, ethnic tory, communities have developed distinct modes of pro- processes and the state. Feminist Review 39:58–68. duction based on particular divisions of labor to sustain ——. 1991b. The gendered Gulf War: Women’s citizenship themselves. A society based on a class system, in which a and modern warfare. In Haim Bresheeth and Nira massive working class bears the bulk of the responsibility Yuval-Davis, The Gulf War and the new world order. for satisfying social needs, is one of many configurations London: Zed. through which human groups have historically organized ——. 1997a. Gender and nation. London: Sage. their relationship to nature, and consequently to each other. ——. 1997b. Women, citizenship, and difference. Feminist Re- Like other modes of production, class-based societies, such view 57(Autumn). as capitalism, engender specific relationships between men ——. 1999. The “multilayered citizen”: Citizenship in the age of and women, particularly as these relationships are rooted in globalization. International Feminist Journal of Politics the ownership of property and the sexual division of labor. 1(1):119–137. Much of the writing on class and gender has derived ——, Nira, and Pnina Werbner. 1999. Women, citizenship, and dif- from the search for the social and historical roots of wom- ference. London: Zed. en’s oppression. Such research has served to counter bio- logical determinism, or the argument that male dominance Nira Yuval-Davis follows “naturally” from the physiological differences be- Jo Sanson tween men and women, as well as to explain how different relations between the sexes obtain under different modes of CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT production. Beginning with the publication of Friedrich SEE ANTIRACIST AND CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS. Engels’s Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State in 1884, Marxists have argued that human history may be broadly conceived as a series of evolving stages based on emergent innovations in the social division of CLASS labor. As these divisions have changed, the status of women, women’s access to the means of production, and If the capitalist mode of production comprises the set of their relationships to men have taken on new characteris- social, political, and economic structures through which tics. Drawing on the work of the anthropologist Lewis human beings in the modern world system relate to nature Henry Morgan, Engels posited three distinct phases of

181 CLASS human history—hunter-gatherer, horticultural, and class commodities for sale. In terms of the metabolic process society—based on particular divisions of labor, marital ar- mentioned above, labor constitutes the class of society that rangements, and patterns of property ownership. As human transforms nature into the things human beings require for communities moved through these periods, Engels argued, survival, while capital compels the working class to sell its women gradually lost the status as reciprocal equals in the labor by removing from it the other necessary elements of productive process that they enjoyed in the earliest stage of production, including nature as land and resources and the primitive communism. Land once held in common gave technologies required to transform nature efficiently. way to a system of private property, divisions of labor once Through a series of historical developments rooted in feu- based on sex alone were elaborated by the emergence of dalism and its dissolution, capital comes to monopolize the classes, and marriage systems once based on easily dis- means of production, leaving labor with no way to satisfy solved, loose associations of groups became restrictive and its own needs, compelled to sell the only thing it does own: based on monogamous pairings. labor power, or the capacity to work. By crippling labor’s According to this scenario, hunter-gatherer societies capacity to produce for itself, capital compels labor to work were based on purely sexual divisions of labor, loose forms for it. Devoid of land, tools, and capital, workers assemble of group marriage, and communal ownership of land. As in factories, where they sell their labor power for an hourly these communistic bands gave way to horticultural socie- wage in the making of commodities. The exchange is not ties, such relations became more restrictive; more complex an even one, for labor generates more value in the produc- divisions of labor arose, marriage came to be based on tion process than capital pays for it. This difference is the loose pairings of couples, and rudimentary forms of private source of surplus value, which capital extracts from labor property emerged with settled agriculture and the domesti- and invests in further production. Competition between in- cation of animals. The development of class society wit- dividual capitals for increasingly larger portions of the so- nessed the emergence of private property, classes of cial surplus results in a productive system whose primary exploiters and exploited, and the bourgeois state as an in- motor force is the accumulation of profit rather than the strument of the ruling class. In the process, women not only satisfaction of human needs. The long historical transition lost access to land previously held in common but took on to class-based capitalism thus represents a fundamental the characteristics of private property themselves, particu- shift in the relationship between production and reproduc- larly within the institution of marriage. As class became the tion, from a state in which production occurs for the pur- organizing principle of society, marriage came to be based pose of reproduction to one in which the reverse is true. exclusively on strict monogamy, the nuclear family became Although this unequal relationship forms the basis of capi- the basic economic unit of society, and women were rel- tal’s exploitation of labor, it also provides a means for egated to the private or domestic realm of reproduction and labor’s emancipation, as capital’s dependence on the work- lost access to the means of production, thereby becoming ing class to create its profits can be used as a weapon for dependent on the wage labor of individual men. The extent seizing productive power through the collective capacity of to which real human societies “fit” into these categories— laborers to refuse work. as well as the extent to which women have ever enjoyed In full-blown capitalism, participation in the wage-labor true egalitarian status—has long been debated by anthro- relation is not necessarily restricted to men. Some Marxists pologists. What most recognize, however, is that different have conceptualized the entry of women into the sphere of modes of production organize the subjugation of women in capitalist production as a potential source of cheap labor, a quite specific ways. In capitalist societies, the status of reserve army used by capital to maintain leverage over women is closely linked to the division of labor according men’s wages. Yet drawing women into the wage labor force to class. has potentially liberating consequences, because in theory it lends women access to their own means of subsistence Class Systems and Capitalism and frees them from dependency on a breadwinning male: Capitalist production is often described as dividing society no longer slaves of the wage slave, they become wage into two economic categories: labor, the working class that slaves in their own right. Participation in capitalist produc- produces social value out of nature and that must sell this tion, however, does not necessarily free women from their capacity in exchange for a wage in order to survive; and reproductive roles. As feminist critics of Marxism have capital, the nonworking class that owns the means of pro- noted, the foregoing portrait of the capitalist organization duction (tools, land, raw materials, and capital) and that of labor omits a crucial facet of working life in capitalist buys labor from the working class in order to produce societies: unpaid labor. In order for capitalist relations to

182 CLASS continue over generations, not only must workers be con- nations may experience both class and gender in vastly dif- tinually compelled to exchange their labor for a wage; they ferent ways from women in “developing” nations, the poor- must be conceived, born, nurtured, and socialized. Though est of whom confront decreased average life-expectancy reproduction is subordinated to production under capital- rates and higher average infant-mortality rates, face re- ism, it must still take place in order for capitalism to sur- stricted access to health care and reproductive technolo- vive. For much of capitalism’s history, reproduction has gies, and suffer the effects of exposure to more extreme remained outside the sphere of wage labor, as well as out- forms of environmental degradation. side the primary responsibility of women—even when they The complexity of such divisions has led many scholars also are engaged in wage labor in addition to their repro- to question the extent to which gender constitutes a funda- ductive roles. Reproduction entails a host of laborious ac- mental category uniting all women. How is the project of tivities, from the bearing, birth, and raising of children to women’s liberation to be carried out in the face of such a household domestic chores to the organization and mainte- wide variety of interests, experiences, and identities? Do nance of kinship ties. Whereas responsibility for reproduc- women as a community of interest have enough in common tive work falls primarily on women even in advanced with one another to override the class divisions that differ- capitalist nations, reproduction is not immune to the entiate them? Does the working class as a community of commoditizing effects of capitalist development. Child interest have enough in common to override the divisions care, housework, even procreation itself have become of gender that differentiates it? How should the emancipa- profit-generating industries, driven by inputs of labor, capi- tory struggles of the working class relate to the liberatory tal, and technology. Thus women of the upper classes are struggles of women? How would a society free of both more easily able to free themselves from certain reproduc- gendered and class-based oppression organize production tive labors by contracting them out to working-class and reproduction? How can the feminist project be incor- women. Working-class women may find themselves re- porated into the socialist struggle to eliminate class, and sponsible for their own unpaid reproductive labor at home, how can the socialist project be incorporated into the femi- while simultaneously exchanging their reproductive labor nist struggle to eliminate patriarchy? with other women for a wage; their reproductive labor be- Despite the difficulties feminists and socialists have en- comes the source of their productive labor as their mother- countered in allying their struggles, there remains little ing roles are commoditized. doubt that one cannot succeed absolutely unless accompa- nied by the absolute success of the other. The working class Women As a Global Underclass cannot obtain total freedom if half its members continue to The widespread structural inequalities faced by women live under patriarchal oppression; nor can women obtain have led some to posit women as a global underclass in universal liberation if the majority continue to labor under themselves. Yet the ways in which individuals construct the yoke of class. The investigation of the relationship be- their identities around class and gender under capitalism tween class and gender entails not only analyzing the shift- are complex, for the two relationships intersect. The work- ing past and sorting out the complex present but also ing class comprises both male and female wage laborers, imagining a just and equitable future, for women of all and constructions of gender strongly influence occupa- classes and workers of all genders. tional segregation as well as unequal compensation for men’s and women’s work. At the same time, class differen- See Also tiates the broad category of “women,” producing vastly dif- CAPITALISM; CLASS AND FEMINISM; DIVISION OF LABOR; ferent experiences of life under capitalism among women FEMINISM: MARXIST; MARXISM; POLITICS AND THE STATE: of the working, middle, and capitalist classes. And both re- OVERVIEW; SOCIALISM lationships are complicated by differential experiences of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, age, and culture. Thus References and Further Reading working women of color in the West, for example, encoun- Barrett, Michèle. 1998. Women’s oppression today: The Marx- ter working-class life in different ways from working white ist/ feminist encounter. Rev. ed. London and New York: women, even while they may encounter race in different Verso. ways from middle- or upper-class women of color. The Collins, Jane L., and Martha Gimenez, eds. 1990. Work with- geographical division of labor in the modern world system out wages: Comparative studies of domestic labor and produces disparities among women not only within socie- self-employment. Albany: State University of New York ties but between them. Women in advanced capitalist Press.

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Coontz, Stephanie, and Peta Henderson, eds. 1986. Women’s class position depends on their relationship to the means of work, men’s property: The origins of gender and class. Lon- production (raw materials, machines, tools, and so on) don: Verso. within capitalist society. The ruling capitalist class is that Engels, Friedrich. 1993. The origin of the family, private property, very small group of human beings who own and control the and the state. Ed. Eleanor Burke Leacock. New York: Inter- means of production and thus also have control and owner- national. ship of the end products of commodity production, and Fox, Bonnie, ed. 1980. Hidden in the household: Women’s domes- consequently of most of the world’s wealth. The human tic labour under capitalism. Toronto: Women’s Press. beings who constitute the ruling class control and own Ginsburg, Faye D., and Rayna Rapp, eds. 1995. Conceiving the capital, which is the form of money that is found in capital- new world order: The global politics of reproduction. ist society (by virtue of the nature of its circulation within Berkeley: University of California Press. the circuit of capitalist commodity production). Hansen, Karen V., and Ilene J.Philipson, eds. 1990. Women, class, The working class is that majority of human beings who and the feminist imagination: A socialist-feminist reader. work the means of production but do not control or own the Philadelphia: Temple University Press. products of their labor and thus own little of the world’s Leacock, Eleanor Burke. 1981. Myths of male dominance: Col- wealth. The human beings who constitute the working lected articles on women cross-culturally. New York: class draw a wage in return for selling their labor to the Monthly Review. capitalist class, but this is not a voluntary arrangement: Mullings, Leith. 1997. On our own terms: Race, class, and gender workers are compelled by capitalist society to sell the prod- in the lives of African American women. New York and Lon- ucts of their labor in exchange for wages. don: Routledge. Nash, June, and Maria Patricia Fernández-Kelly, eds. 1983. The Relationship of Class to Feminism Women, men, and the international division of labor. Albany: Human beings of different classes have opposing interests State University of New York Press. that are a consequence of the unequal distribution of wealth Saffioti, Heleieth. 1978. Women in class society. Trans. Michael and resources created by differences in their relationship to Vale. New York: Monthly Review. the means of production. This opposition of material inter- Tilly, Louise A., and Joan W.Scott. 1987. Women, work, and fam- ests is accompanied by a severe power imbalance. Mem- ily. New York and London: Routledge. bers of the same class have common interests, bringing about certain affinities and cultural similarities due to a Eliza Darling common way of experiencing life. By virtue of belonging to the same class, people develop similar characteristics, as certain other characteristics are excluded by the nature of the lives they are likely to lead. This is determined by what CLASS AND FEMINISM they do: their daily labor. The way a worker experiences life will, in many ways, be the same as the way another Class is one of the central political concepts of Marxist worker experiences life. For instance, workers will be less theory and is connected centrally to Karl Marx’s economic physically healthy than capitalists because of the hard na- analysis of capitalist society. In the Marxist analysis, the ture of their labor, will be generally less well educated, and way commodities are produced in capitalist society (the will vote in similar patterns and engage in similar forms of “capitalist mode of production”) brings into existence three cultural recreation. major classes of people, corresponding to the economic It cannot be overemphasized how central the issue of categories of capital and labor: wage laborers, capitalists, class has traditionally been to feminism, and it may be ar- and landowners. For the purposes of this article, we will gued that attitude toward class is the point from which the refer to just two classes: wage laborers (the working class, various formations of feminism have taken their departure. or proletariat) and capitalists (the ruling class, or bourgeoi- Feminists disagree about the importance of the role that sie). We may do so because, technically, the landowning class plays in the oppression of women. The political task class is a rural formation of the urban, industrialized capi- for feminists has been to determine where to draw the line talist class and thus may be absorbed into this latter between the oppression women experience as a result of category. class disempowerment and the oppression they experience Capitalist society, then, comprises two major classes of as a result of patriarchy. Roughly speaking, Marxist femi- people (who are also further stratified into layers), whose nists deny that there is a system of oppression called

184 CLASS AND FEMINISM patriarchy; they argue that women’s oppression is caused family unit, in this view, is simply a socially constructed by the stratification of society into classes and that the op- way of forming a cohesive economic unit within the con- pression of women commences with the advent of the pri- straints of capitalism, but its construction is a result of the vatization of the ownership of the means of production, the part orchestrated for women to play in capitalist society accumulation of capital by the capitalist class at the ex- rather than a “natural” family arrangement. The term fam- pense of the working class, and the resultant lack of demo- ily, for Marxist feminists, refers to nothing more than a sys- cratic control of the means of life. Oppression specific to tem of association and kinship dependent on the social and women exists only insofar as women’s practices become economic function that it serves. The Marxist feminist sees different from men’s under the capitalist mode of produc- nothing “natural” about a heterosexual coupling in which tion. What is primary to this view is that women are women children are produced to be raised by their biological par- only insofar as they are human beings and, because there is ents on the basis of the blood tie. no immutable or essential “human nature,” there is no es- This analysis poses a problem for Marxist feminists, sential “women’s nature.” Rather, human nature is formed who face the question of why it is women in particular who by the predominant type of labor in which human beings stay in the home while men take part in commodity produc- engage in any historical epoch. Women are no exception to tion in the public sphere. If capitalism is gender-blind, this this, and thus “women’s nature” is manifold, reflecting the argument would suggest, then why have men not stayed at fact that women from different classes have engaged in home? Why has the distribution of women and men over varying types of labor over the course of history. Hence, reproductive and productive activities not been equal? If women from the same class have more in common with women have almost exclusively performed reproductive one another as “workers” than they do as “women.” activities rather than been involved in productive activities because their proximity to their children constitutes an eco- Oppression: Class versus Patriarchy nomically convenient arrangement, then why do women In direct opposition to the Marxist view, liberal feminists stay at home longer than this formative period of child de- deny that class has played any oppressive function in the velopment in which they must be at home, for example, to social subjugation of women. In the liberal feminist analy- breast-feed their babies? sis, patriarchy is the only structure that causes the oppres- The Marxist feminist argues that though it is true that sion of women. Between these two poles there exists a women have stayed in the home, this is more likely to be a range of opinions. For example, some feminists maintain function of their class position. Working-class women sim- that class in the Marxist sense exists and provides the cor- ply do not stay at home after having their children, and rect analysis of capitalist society but that it has not played most do, in fact, labor in the marketplace just as men do. If the principal role in the oppression of women. Others reject working-class women do stay at home until their children the primacy of the category of “class” in favor of a feminist are of school age, then this is only because child care is analysis of oppression that posits a difference between unaffordable to them. Only bourgeois women face this type women’s and men’s way of experiencing the world. Femi- of exclusion from productive activity in that they are pro- nists who subscribe to the latter belief are likely to be inter- ductively redundant in the eyes of the marketplace because ested in what they consider the specificity of female they do not contribute to commodity production. Bour- experience. geois women, according to Marxist feminists, become ob- How do Marxist feminists argue for the oppression of jects that belong to capitalist men because, unlike women in terms of class? The fact that the (lower and mid- working-class women, they are supported by and depend- dle) working classes have possessed only their physical and ent on capitalist men in living indirectly off the profits of mental abilities to labor to sell in the marketplace has the working class generated by their husbands. This eco- meant that workers have been forced into commodity pro- nomic enslavement of bourgeois women to bourgeois men duction in order to live. Because much of a worker’s day is gives bourgeois men a position of dominance over bour- taken up with selling her or his labor power in productive geois women that working-class men have never had over activity, relatively little time is left for reproductive activi- workingclass women, and this in turn leads to a particular ties, which include all of those things that, together, main- sexist formulation of what Marx calls “false conscious- tain the workers ability to take part in productive activity in ness” in the distorted view of women’s nature that it cre- return for wages in the marketplace: the cleaning of the ates. Noteworthy here is the fact that Marxist feminist home, the washing of clothes, the preparation of food, en- political activism, through “” cam- tertainment, sleeping, and the procreation of children. The paigns, has sought to address the problem of the

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“invisibility” of women’s domestic labor and to expose the See Also implicit dependency of capitalism on the reproductive CAPITALISM; CLASS; ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE labor that women perform. ANALYSIS; FEMINISM: MARXIST; FEMINISM: RADICAL; Another problem for the class interpretation is to dis- FEMINISM: SOCIALIST; MARXISM; PATRIARCHY; SOCIALISM; cover why, even when women have been involved in types WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES of labor comparable to the labor of men, women’s earnings have always been less than men’s. The Marxist feminist References and Further Reading must account for the empirical fact that even when women Dixon, Marlene. 1978. Women in class struggle. San Francisco: are in the marketplace, their work somehow comes to be Synthesis. socially undervalued and thus underpaid in comparison Engels, Friedrich. 1954. The origin of the family, private property, with male equivalents. There does not seem to be any rea- and the state. Moscow: Foreign Languages. son determined by class that traditional women’s work, Ferrier, Carole. 1991. Publicising feminism. In Carole Ferrier and such as nursing and teaching, should be paid less than tra- Bronwen Levy, eds., Hecate 17(1):116–123. ditional men’s work, when such labor is just as socially Hansen, Karen V., and Ilene J.Philipson, eds. 1990. Women, class, indispensable as men’s work. With respect to skilled labor, and the feminist imagination: A socialist-feminist reader. the class analysis may successfully extend as far as a dem- Philadelphia: Temple University Press. onstration that the very things that allow men to undertake Jaggar, Alison M. 1983. Feminist politics and human nature. skilled labor, such as postsecondary education and voca- Lanham, Md.: Rowman and Littlefield. tional training, have not been open to women until re- Lerner, Gerda. 1986. The creation of patriarchy. Oxford: Oxford cently. The Marxist feminist is certainly correct in saying University Press. that this has occurred because education has usually been a Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. 1948. Manifesto of the Commu- privilege of the ruling classes and that the under-represen- nist party. New York: International Publishers. tation of women in positions of skilled labor is diminish- Phillips, Anne. 1987. Divided loyalties: Dilemmas of sex and ing. But the question why men’s ability to labor, and not class. London: Virago. women’s, has taken them outside the home when the ma- Sargent, Lydia, ed. 1981. Women and revolution: A discussion of jority of commodity production does not require skills or the unhappy marriage of Marxism and feminism. Boston: qualities that are particular to men (such as a greater abun- South End. dance or density of muscle) seems intractable. Hard physi- Walby, Sylvia. 1992. Post-post-modernism? Theorizing social cal labor constitutes only a small portion of the activity complexity. In Michèle Barrett and Anne Phillips, eds., demanded by capitalist commodity production, and im- Destabilizing theory: Contemporary feminist debates, 31– provements in the type and quantity of machinery in the 52. Cambridge: Polity. latter period of the industrial revolution and the techno- logical revolution have reduced this proportion to even Melissa White lower levels. Nevertheless, the actual distribution of men and women across the various types of laboring activities remains unequal. It might seem that the Marxist feminist position would CLONING be simple enough to disprove by appealing to the fact that women’s oppression predated industrial capitalist society Cloning is a reproductive technology that exploits natural as we know it, or that disadvantage of class is at least par- cell division processes to produce identical copies of ge- tially neutralized for the women’s struggle because of the netic material. The cloned offspring may be part of an or- integration of global feminist discourse. But a refutation is ganism or a complete organism—a plant or an animal. A not quite so easily achieved as this, because capitalist soci- clone may have more than one genetic parent, and these ety has deep historical roots from which we may chart a parents may be from different species, resulting in a continuous development from the ancient slave societies. “transgenic” offspring. Both historically and politically, it is perilous to assert that Technological progress can precede progress in social the forms of oppression that characterize capitalism’s pred- thought and institutions, and this is nowhere more compel- ecessor modes of production (such as feudalism) can be lingly true than in considering the implications of cloning. clearly distinguished from the forms of oppression that The ethical issues involved in cloning are complex and vary women experience today. with the application.

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Cloning of Animals possesses spiritual or ethical significance are opposed to On 24 February 1997, a lamb named Dolly was born that fetal cloning. Others believe that advanced medical treat- had been cloned by a Scottish research team headed by Ian ments based on cloning may disproportionately benefit the Wilmot. Dolly ushered in a new era of genetic engineering. few and, further, that these methods may be too readily To produce this clone, the researchers had removed the nu- adaptable from medicine to unsuitable applications. clei of unfertilized sheep eggs and replaced them with a Human Cloning nucleus containing DNA from the udder of a 6-year-old ewe (the genetic parent). These reconstructed eggs were The cloning of animals raises the possibility—and the is- artificially stimulated to begin embryonic growth and then sue—of cloning as a means of human reproduction. Femi- were implanted in surrogate ewes, one of which gave birth nists and others have pointed out that techniques originally to Dolly. used in animal husbandry, for example in vitro fertilization, Since 1997 numerous animals of both sexes have been are eventually practiced on humans, especially on women cloned, including rodents, primates, and other mammals. (Corea, 1985). Cloning can be viewed as a way to improve the breeding of One application of cloning techniques involves ge- livestock and research animals. However, cloned animals netically altering in vitro a sexually produced may incur risks related to health and to survival itself: these (noncloned) embryo, so that certain genes are suppre- animals are often frail, dying shortly after birth (Renard, ssed or introduced in the new individual. Using this 1999). Also, although cloning techniques are likely to im- method to eliminate genetic diseases could of course be prove with research and practice, the experience with the beneficial. However, some commentators see the proc- animals involved so far is of great concern to advocates of ess of predetermining a person’s genetic makeup as a animals’ rights. Cloning requires exploiting the reproduc- form of eugenics that could lead to socially engineered tive capacities of female animals, and killing many of them. “designer babies.” Dolly, for example, resulted from one of 29 implanted The reproduction of a completely cloned person would eggs: “In total, 62% of fetuses were lost, a significantly involve procedures quite similar to those already in use greater proportion than the estimate of 6% after natural with animals. The nucleus of a somatic cell of an existing mating…. At about day no of pregnancy, four fetuses were (or previously existing) human being would be transferred dead, all from embryoderived cells, and postmortem analy- to an ovum from which the nucleus had been removed. sis was possible after killing the ewes” (Wilmot and This reconstructed egg would be artificially stimulated to Campbell, 1997). begin life, then transplanted into the uterus of a woman—a surrogate mother or genetic mother who would carry the Scientific and Medical Applications cloned fetus in a pregnancy and give birth. Transgenic cloning of animals promises significant ad- To ease public fears about human cloning, governmen- vances in medicine and pharmaceutical science. A sheep tal and private bans were imposed in various nations in the has been cloned to carry a human gene for a blood-clotting late 1990s. In 1997 the president of the United States, Bill factor used in treating hemophilia. Pigs have been cloned Clinton, barred federal funding for research involving as suitable host animals for “xenotransplantation” of or- cloning a person. In the same year, the minister of public gans to humans: that is, human genes are transferred into health in Great Britain issued the following statement: pigs, and the organs of these transgenic pigs may be less “Under United Kingdom law, cloning of individual hu- likely to be rejected by a human recipient. Transgenic clon- mans cannot take place whatever the origin of the material ing may be done with human fetal cells as well as with re- and whatever technique is used.” The Federation of productive cells (sperm and eggs). Through such methods, American Scientific Societies for Experimental Biology, a vital bodily parts or processes can be replaced with bio- group representing more than 52,000 biologists, adopted a medical materials. Using nonfetal materials, people who five-year voluntary moratorium on research involving have damaged or diseased organ tissue could provide their cloning a person (FASSEB, 1997). At the turn of the own somatic cells (that is, cells other than sperm and eggs) twenty-first century, though, many nations had no laws to grow stem cells—undifferentiated cells—which would prohibiting the practice, and scientists in some prestigious in turn form whatever type of tissue was required for thera- organizations were recommending opening the door to peutic purposes. human reproductive cloning. Initially, reproductive clon- These technologies have, not surprisingly, given rise to ing might be used to assist infertile women. Self-cloning is ethical concerns. Those who believe that the human fetus an additional possibility.

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Cloning of human beings would challenge some con- References and Further Reading cepts that have traditionally been associated with human Corea, Gena. 1985. The mother machine: Reproductive technolo- life and human reproduction. Thus the ethical ramifications gies from artificial insemination to artificial wombs. New of human cloning must be addressed from religious, philo- York: Harper and Row. sophical, and bioethical viewpoints. Moreover, with clon- FASSEB (Federation of American Scientific Societies for Experi- ing—as with other reproductive technologies—feminist mental Biology). 1997. Statement (September). ethics must be in the forefront of the social dialogue, since Human Genome Advisory Commission. 1998. Cloning issues in ethical discourse should be grounded in the experience of reproduction, science, and medicine. Paper (December). those most likely to be affected. Kolata, G. 1997. Clone: The road to Dolly and the path ahead. The identity of a cloned person would constitute a New York: Morrow. somewhat novel situation affecting both the child and the Pretorius, Diederika. 1996. Surrogate motherhood: A worldwide family. A parent and a clone are analogous to identical view of the issues. American Series in Behavioral Science twins, who, though sharing the same genes, develop obvi- and Law. Springfield, Ill.: Thomas. ous individuality through their different life experiences. Renard, Jean-Paul. 1999. British Medical Journal 318(8: May): Unlike a parent and clone, however, twins are contempo- 1230. raries, and neither one is a deliberate copy of the other. An Sorosky, Arthur D., Annette Baran, and Reuben Pannor. 1989. The envisioned alternative to replacing the cell nucleus is called adoption triangle: The effects of the sealed record on “embryo splitting”; with this method clones would be born, adoptees, birth parents, and adoptive parents. Garden City, like identical twins, into the same environment. N.Y.: Doubleday. As noted above, cloning would be likely to involve sur- Stacey, M. 1996. The new genetics: A feminist perspective. In T. rogate motherhood. This form of parentage, in which Marteau and M.Richards, eds., The troubled helix: Social women bear children who are not their own genetic off- and psychological implications of the new human genetics. spring, emerged in relation to artificial insemination and in Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. vitro fertilization. Surrogacy, too, raises issues, because Transgenic sheep expressing human factor IX. 1997. Science 278: studies of surrogate mothers suggest that their long-term 2130–2133. adjustment is problematic. With “surrogate cloning,” the Viable offspring derived from fetal and adult mammalian cells. extraction of human ova, the insertion of the cloned em- 1997. Nature 385:881. bryo, the process of gestation and childbirth, and the subse- Wilmot, Ian, and Keith H.S.Campbell. 1997. Statement of the quent emotional reactions may constitute a cost that is Roslin Institute, Edinburgh. simply too high. Issues of class cannot be ignored; women from developing nations, as well as poor women and mi- Celeste Newbrough nority women in developed nations, are at greatest risk of exploitation by reproductive methods involving surrogate motherhood. CLOTHING Human cloning would affect the family identity of all See DRESS and FASHION. those involved—the genetic parent, the childbearing mother, the nurturing parent or parents, and the offspring. We may already have some clues to the complex identities COEDUCATION implied by cloning: for instance, cloned offspring are likely See EDUCATION: SINGLE-SEX AND COEDUCATION. to have some of the experiences of children resulting from artificial insemination (AI); and the experience of adoptive parents and children, surrogate mothers, and identical twins and other multiple births may also be relevant in COHABITATION some ways. These considerations too will need to become a part of the reality and ethics of cloning. The term cohabitation refers to a heterosexual couple living together in a more or less permanent relationship without See Also being legally married (Trost, 1979). Among the peasantry BIOETHICS; MEDICAL CONTROL OF WOMEN; REPRODUCTION: of northern and central Europe in the Middle Ages, mar- OVERVIEW; REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH; REPRODUCTIVE riages would often take place after proof of fertility was PHYSIOLOGY; REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES; SURROGACY produced through cohabitation. When socially condoned,

188 COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM cohabitation is variously called living together, common- considered concubines or prostitutes. In some industri- law marriage, quasi marriage, trial marriage, and consen- alizing countries, married cohabitation is becoming less sus marriage. Cohabitation has met with disapproval at common. With increased migration, working men are various historical times and in different regions of the more likely to leave their wives and children behind, in- world. Terms such as “living in sin” or “shacking up” re- creasing the number of single-parent, female-headed flect this disapproval. households. In the twentieth century, the number of common-law unions increased in most western countries as marriage See Also rates declined. However, cohabiting unions have been ADULTERY; COURTSHIP; DIVISION OF LABOR; HOUSEHOLDS found more prone to dissolution than legal marriages. This AND FAMILIES: OVERVIEW; MARRIAGE: OVERVIEW; MARRIAGE: relative ease of dissolution may be part of the attraction of REGIONAL TRADITIONS AND PRACTICES cohabitation as compared with traditional marriage. McRae (1993) suggests that the more acceptable cohabita- References and Further Reading tion becomes, the more likely the unions are to last. She Eekelaar, John M. 1980. Marriage and cohabitation in contempo- also reports that, paradoxically, cohabiting couples who rary societies: Areas of Legal, social, and ethical change: An marry are more likely to have unstable marriages and are international and interdisciplinary study. Toronto: Butter- more likely to divorce. A 17-nation study (Stack and worths. Eshelman, 1998) found support for the thesis that marriage McRae, Susan. 1993. Cohabiting mother: Changing marriage is associated with higher levels of personal well-being than and motherhood? London: Policy Studies Institute. cohabitation. Stack, Steven, and J.Ross Eshelman. 1998. Marital status and hap- Heterosexual cohabiting couples in western countries piness: A 17-nation study. Journal of Marriage and the Fam- hold less traditional views of gender relations than married ily 60(2):527–537. couples but are not likely to differ with regard to the divi- Trost, Jan. 1979. Unmarried cohabitation. Vasterås: International sion of household labor by gender (McRae, 1993). The fact Library. that cohabitation holds the potential for an increasing Vappu Tyyska equality in male-female relationships could have an appeal for women who hold feminist ideals. In the twentieth century, unmarried cohabitation was COLLEGES first observed and studied in Scandinavia and in the north- See EDUCATION: HIGHER EDUCATION and EDUCATORS: ern and central European countries, as well as in Canada HIGHER EDUCATION. and the United States. Reflecting increased social accept- ance since the 1960s, common-law marriages have gradu- ally become legally recognized in western countries. Three general patterns of cohabitation have been found in Eu- COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM rope: (1) countries where cohabitation is a relatively estab- lished phenomenon (Sweden and Denmark); (2) countries The Colonial Experience where cohabitation is emerging as a significant pattern (the Colonialism is the domination of poorer, weaker countries Netherlands, France, Finland, Norway, Austria, Switzer- by wealthier, more technically advanced nations. The term land, and Britain); and (3) countries with very little cohabi- is generally used when a formal system of political depend- tation (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Ireland) (McRae, ency is constructed by one country over people of a differ- 1993). Canada and the United States follow the second pat- ent ethnicity and also designates the political frameworks tern. In the first pattern, cohabitation may be seen as an through which control is established and maintained. Colo- alternative to marriage, whereas in the second grouping, nialism has been practiced since ancient times by cultures cohabitation is more likely to be seen as a part of courtship, all over the world, but the modern colonial period began leading to marriage. with European overseas expansion into Asia, India, the Nonwestern and less industrialized countries, espe- Middle East, Africa, and South and North America in the cially those with strong religious sanctions, fall into the seventeeth century and continued into the twentieth century. third category, likening cohabitation to adultery. A dou- During the colonial period economists and politicians ble standard prevails: women are more severely ostra- emphasized social mores as well as the political economy of cized or punished for cohabitation than men and may be the colonies. In his History of India, J.S.Mill (1806–1873)

189 COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM wrote, “The condition of women is one of the most remark- nationalisms gender difference between women and men able circumstances in the manner of nations. Among rude serves to symbolically define the limits of national differ- people the women are generally degraded, among civilised ence and power between men” (McClintock, 1993:62). people they are exalted.” This concept was often used to jus- In British India, the Permanent Settlement Act of 1793 tify colonization (Liddle and Rai, 1998) and also reflects is an example of the far-reaching effects of property rela- early developmentalism: civilization was regarded as both tions (Metcalf, 1995). Under this act, zamindars, the tradi- social and economic. tional tax collectors, who had earlier been dependent on Relations between men and women in the colonized coun- feudal nawabs, were given property rights. The resulting tries were considered symptomatic of degeneration. Colo- commercialization of Indian agriculture changed social re- nized men, for example, were said to be brutal to lations, and the sequestering of common land meant that women—not only when these men were described as martial, women had little access to an important means of economic aggressive, and boorish (examples are Aryan groups such as survival. Also, under this act cash replaced kind in the pay- the Afghans and Sikhs) but even when they were “feminized” ment of taxes; and cash crops changed patterns of agricul- by stressing their small stature and their presumed frailty; tural production, including the division of family labor thus colonized women were rescued from them by an exter- (Mackenzie, 1995). Women’s labor became concentrated nal, modernist authority. In colonial discourse, then, men’s in providing food for the family and so was invisible within relationship to women mediated east-west relations. the new financial arrangements, while men’s contribution For the colonial powers, civility implied modernity: to the family income became more visible. Thus property modern social relations were spoken of in the same breath rights and land management changed relations between as capitalist individuation. Colonialism was seen as a peasants and landholders, and also the position of women. “sharing of progress,” either by modifying indigenous mo- These new social realities were then given a legal frame- res (as the orientalists demanded for India) or through com- work. Particularly under the British, the idea of the “rule of pletely new arrangements (as in the Americas)—through law” was central to the “improvement” of the colonies. colonization itself (Cowen and Shenton, 1996:42–59). One One issue that continues today is access to natural re- aspect of this process was recasting the social relations of sources. Modern capitalism involved the state more in ex- colonized men and women, among other means by direct ploiting resources; and terracing, logging, irrigating, and indirect humiliation. conservation, and infrastructure projects were often used In the first stages of colonial conquest, humiliation was the forced labor of colonized men and women. While re- direct. In Latin America, “for the vast majority of indig- sistance was widespread, it was also gendered, as in the enous women, the Conquest [by the Spanish and Portu- Chipko movement in India and the renegotiation of the tra- guese] meant the loss of material, political and ritual ditional Matengo pit system of cultivation in Tanganyika privileges; exploitation of their labour, and sexual abuse by (Mackenzie, 1995). The Chipko movement originated in the the invading soldiers and priests who crucified them in bed 1970s as a protest by village women against logging abuses under the pretext of saving their souls” (Stolcke, 1994:8). in Uttar Pradesh in the Himalayas; it led to bans on clear Often, women who were sexually abused by the conquer- felling in several regions and influenced natural resource ors were then rejected by their own male relatives in the policy. Chipko comes from a word meaning “embrace”: the name of honor and purity. Often, too, rejected women be- women practiced satagraha—nonviolent resistance—inter- came part of the political economy of colonial war by posing their bodies between the trees and the contractors’ “servicing” soldiers. Socially, prostitution at first placed axes. The Matengo system involves labor-intensive crop women in a gray area—vulnerable, forgotten, abused, the rotation done in large part by women, who have defended responsibility of no one. However, as a colonial power set- this environmentally sound agriculture against the threat of tled in, prostitutes were generally regulated; an example is high-yield methods that ravage the land. the implementation of the Contagious Diseases Acts in British colonial states in the late nineteenth century. The Nationalist Response Humiliation was also indirect, as when customary rela- The colonial discourse on gender relations was challenged, tions between men and women were refashioned. This af- but some of it was also absorbed into postcolonial national- fected economic arrangements such as property rights and ist thinking (Metcalf, 1995:xi). Often, a nation in the mak- the organization of labor, and also social arrangements such ing was described idealistically, even as sacred. The terms as marriage and education; and it reflected power relations “fatherland” and (more generally) “motherland” symbol- between colonial and colonized men: “All too often in male ized familial relations; thus the home, the family, and the

190 COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM concept of womanhood became critical in the discourse of while still leaving her untouched within the home—a re- national-ism (Papanek, 1994:46–47): “Certain ideals of flection of a broader distinction between technology and womanhood are propagated as indispensable to the attain- traditional culture. In China, for instance, this distinction ment of an ideal society. These ideals apply to women’s allowed a compromise between the communists and the personal behaviour, dress, sexual activity, choice of part- peasant elites on the “woman question” (Stacey, 1983). ner, and the reproductive options…. Women [are] the ‘car- An important factor in the delineation of women was the riers of tradition’ or ‘the center of the family’ especially growth of print capitalism. Vernacular journals carried wom- during periods of rapid social change.” Women’s “actions en’s own voices, becoming a vehicle for the first feminist and appearance should alter less quickly than that of men, challenges to both colonial and nationalistic ideas about or should not be seen to change at all”; and women should women’s position in society (Talwar, 1993). However, femi- “conform to prescriptive norms of a collective identity that nist agendas did not gain equality with those of male nation- is seen as advancing the goals of the group.” Societal ide- alists, perhaps partly because feminists also needed to keep als, then, become attached to notions of appropriate “the woman” as a recognizable, stable entity: at this stage, the behavior of women, and restoring social order means im- struggle did not center on diversity. Women were mobilized posing stringent controls over women rather than address- in the nationalist cause—and such mobilization became the ing more structural issues. basis of women’s first demands in their own interest. In India, for instance, the ideal home and the ideal woman were upper-class or high-caste concepts of familial Nationalist Movements space and relations (Liddle and Joshi, 1988). However, and Women’s “Self-Determination” they became the basis of a “national” understanding of so- For women, nationalism created new spaces but also posed cial relations and were legally codified, perhaps because challenges. The greatest challenge involved unity: nationalism was viewed not simply as an ideology but as anticolonialism demanded discipline and sacrifice. “Particu- similar to kinship and religion (Moghadem, 1994:4). lar interests” were seen as a threat to the national agenda, and The “home-nation” stood for security, familiarity, and tra- the rights of particular groups might have to be compro- dition and remained the domain of indigenous male elites. mised. Recognizable social relations—such as the figure of Indeed, colonizers allowed patriarchal autonomy within the the woman within the home—cemented political unity. home in the hope of undermining anticolonial resistance. In Most women’s groups accepted the urgency of the na- northern Rhodesia-Zambia and Nyasaland-Malawi, accord- tionalist struggle, but they were also aware that it ing to Martin Chanock, male elders allied themselves with marginalized their interests. Nongendered citizenship ap- colonial rulers to reestablish control over women through a pealed to women in the language of equality even though contrived “customary law” (Parpart and Staudt, 1989:7). In they were aware of differences between women’s and men’s India, when the British tried to refashion familial relations lives, publicly and privately. Women’s groups rebelled through legislation on the age of consent (sati), modern na- against being cast as victims of their own society and as- tionalists supported them but nationalists such as Tilak were serted their cultural identity; but when they were recast as bitterly opposed. The home, then, was an integral part of na- new women of a new nation-state, they were aware of the tionalist discourse and was seen as threatened from without gap between political rhetoric and social reality. Despite (by the colonizers) and from within—by traditionalists who their voluntary code of silence, women’s groups were un- were endangering the future or by modernists who were pol- comfortable with male nationalists’ articulation of women’s luting the authentic culture (Kandiyoti, 1991). “place.” The demand for unity and solidarity was, then, often Authentic culture was embodied by the woman within a dilemma for women: “Women had been assigned a place in the home: “Only the women of the nation are the beautiful society which could not be challenged without questioning ones” (Pettman, 1996:51). National identity was linked to both the past and the future” (Helie-Lucas, 1991:58). boundaries, purity, and chastity and was in jeopardy if Anticolonialism led to an “era of patriotic feminism.” In women’s role in the home was compromised. The woman Turkey, “no less than a dozen women’s associations [were] created future generations and ensured cultural continuity founded between 1908 and 1916, ranging from primarily through her own appropriate social conduct and the reli- philanthropic organisations to those more explicitly com- gious and cultural education of her children. Male elites mitted to struggle for women’s rights” (Kandiyoti, might disagree about changes in women’s outer garb, but 1991:28–29); and this same phenomenon existed in other they agreed that her inner core, like the idea of the nation, countries engaged in nationalist transformations. Often, was immutable; thus modernity might include the woman however, women’s organizations were established by and

191 COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM with the support of men, or—given the primacy of unity— trained to accept new social roles in conformity with the existing women’s groups were incorporated into dominant emerging bourgeois ideology of the period” (Jayawardene, nationalist parties. In Turkey in the 1920s, under Mustafa 1987:9). Postcolonial constitutional reforms remained Kemal, the “new woman” symbolized a break with the past, largely political: legal equality for women; rescinding of but Kemal’s paternalistic (though benevolent) regime hin- obviously discriminatory practices; the right to the vote, to dered women’s political initiatives. Kemal refused to au- education, and usually to own property; and laws forbid- thorize the Women’s People’s Party in 1923; he advised ding violence against women. women’s groups to establish a Turkish Women’s Federa- Postcolonial nationalists—liberal, socialist, or Marx- tion—an association rather than a party—but even this was ist—saw themselves as regenerating their countries disbanded in 1935, only a few days after it had hosted the through independence, progressivism, modernism, and in- Twelfth Congress of the International Federation of Women. dustrialization. These concepts had direct consequences for The issue of unity was sharpened by disagreement gender relations. Industrialization, for example, implied a within women’s groups on modernism versus culture and focus on male employment; commercial; mechanized agri- on different types of feminism. Most women who became culture in rural societies implied a marginalization of wom- leaders during nationalist movements were bourgeois— en’s work; and new infrastructure (such as damming rivers educated, well connected, from politicalized families, sym- for hydroelectric projects—Nehru called these dams the bolic of modernity, but also circumscribed within “temples of modern India”) implied displacing upper-class boundaries. Motherhood, for instance, held an populations, a situation in which women are particularly important but contested place. Malathi de Alwis observed vulnerable. Modernization was often equated with the pre- of motherhood in Sri Lanka that it “can be defined as not ferred political system, restricting the space in which only incorporating the act of reproduction…but also the women could challenge their marginalization. Except in nursing, feeding and looking after of babies, adolescents, Marxist nationalist states, private property was taken as the sick, the old and even grown women and men, includ- given; in terms of agrarian gender relations, this meant that ing one’s husband” (Maunaguru, 1995:160). In other under “cultural regimes,” women could rarely inherit land. words, motherhood was contained within recognizable Thus postcolonial nationalism was deeply gendered, but family forms, validated by the nationalist elite, and part of this was seldom acknowledged. National development was the iconography of patriotism. Similarly, matters of class, the primary issue; “the woman” continued to have a shad- ethnic diversity, and religion became blurred and would owy existence on the periphery of nationalist conscious- later emerge as divisive issues for women’s movements. In ness—mobilized in its cause but confined within the home, India, for instance, women who subscribed to the which was also the nation. secularization of social and public life were often accused At the point when a nationalist movement became the of cultural ignorance, insensitivity, class bias, and a slavish dominant political force in an independent nation-state, acceptance of western ideas. Thus when women’s groups most women’s groups remained convinced of its agenda supported one articulation of nationalism, that could be and were reluctant to seek special dispensations. In India, presented as denying other identities. for example, the All India Women’s Committee, the Wom- Another problem for local and national feminism was en’s Indian Association, and the Central Committee of the feminist intervention from the outside, especially from west- National Council of Women demanded political equality ern “maternal imperialists” (Ramusack, quoted in Liddle for women but rejected “any form of preferential treat- and Rai, 1998). Nationalist feminists who accepted western ment” (Sharma and Rai, 2000:154). liberalism became a target for traditionalists—solidarity However, differing visions of the future of the nation- with western feminists, therefore, came at a high price. state determined women’s position within different politi- cal systems. In liberal contexts, although women were Codifying Patriotism as Development individualized as citizens, they might also be regarded as Struggles within nationalist movements over women’s role markers of a group identity. This was true of Indian women: reflect an acceptance of modernity and are important for after partition at the time of independence—in the interest understanding alternative visions of postcolonial develop- of political stability—Muslim women were denied many ment. In most nationalist movements, a bourgeois liberal rights that Hindu and Christian women were granted. For elite became dominant, as did its idea of women’s place in Muslims, such matters as polygamy, divorce, and inherit- the new nation-state: “The women of the peasantry ance were decided according to Islamic family law rather were…proletarianised, those of the bourgeoisie were than Indian constitutional law. In Algeria, a more authoritar-

192 COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM

ian context, the revolutionary state tried to maintain both a Jayawardene, K. 1987. Feminism and nationalism in the third “socialist” and an “Islamist” identity but was unable to pla- world. London: Zed. cate the fundamentalists while also providing economic Kandiyoti, D. 1991. Bargaining with patriarchy. Gender and Soci- goods. The political situation deteriorated, with tragic con- ety 2(3). sequences for the country and for Algerian women (Bouatta Liddle, J., and R.Joshi. 1988. Daughters of independence. Lon- and Cherifati-Merabtine, 1994). In Marxist states, citizen- don: Zed. ship and nationalism were subsumed under ideology: gen- ——, and S.Rai, 1998. Orientalism and feminism: The challenge der was subordinated to economic development and of the “Indian woman.” Women’s Journal of History 24(4). political power. Thus at one point in China, “having chil- Mackenzie, F. 1995. Selective silence: A feminist encounter with dren was a social duty, failure to observe which ‘should be environmental discourse in colonial Africa. In J.Crush, ed., severely criticized by the party’” (Evans, 1997:31, 44); and Power of development. London: Routledge. concerns about women’s appropriate behavior within the Maunaguru, S. 1995. Gendering Tamil nationalism: The Con- family were implicitly accepted in policy making (Stacey, struction of “woman” in projects of protest and control. In 1983:188). In all three political contexts, at the moment of P.Jeganathan and Q.Ismail, eds., Unmaking the nation: The victory for a decolonized nation-state, women seemed to be politics of identity and history in modern Sri Lanka. Co- shut out of the institutional design. lombo: Social Scientists’ Association. In sum, while social reform was a priority, postcolonial McClintock, A. 1993. Family feuds: Gender, nationalism, and the states also emphasized an “essential distinction between the family. Feminist Review (44: Summer). social roles of men and women in terms of material and spir- Metcalf, T.R. 1995. Ideologies of the Raj. Cambridge: Cambridge itual virtues” (Chatterjee, 1989:243). Though unacknowl- University Press. edged, this distinction became part of law and state policy in Moghadem, V., ed. 1994. Identity politics and women: Cultural various ways. As Carol Smart has argued, “we can begin to reassertions and feminisms in international perspective. analyse law as a process of producing fixed gender identities Boulder, Col.: Westview. rather than simply as the application of law to previously Oberoi, P. 1996. Social reform, sexuality, and the state. New Delhi, Sage. gendered subjects” (1991:9). Although most postcolonial Papanek. Hannah. 1994. Ideal woman and ideal society: Control states used the language of equality, citizenship remained and autonomy in the construction of identity.” In V. different for men and women; and women remained very Moghadem, ed., Identity politics and women: Cultural much targets, not agents. Women’s struggle to translate the reassertions and feminisms in international perspective. language of equality into political agency has continued in Boulder, Col.: Westview. postcolonial states with varying degrees of success. Parpart, J., and K.Staudt. 1989. Women and the state in Africa. Boulder, Col: Lynne Rienner. See Also Pettman, J.J. 1996. Worlding women: A feminist international INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S RIGHTS; NATION AND NATIONALISM; politics. London: Routledge. POSTCOLONIALISM: THEORY AND CRITICISM Sharma, K., and S.Rai. 2000. Democratising the Indian parlia- ment: The “reservation for women” debate. In S.Rai, ed., In- References and Further Reading ternational perspectives on gender and democratisation. Bouatta, Cherifa, and Doria Cherifati-Merabtine. 1994. The social Basingstoke, England: Macmillan. represenation of ’s Islamist movement. In Smart, Carol. 1991. The woman of legal discourse. Social Legal V.Moghadem, ed., Identity politics and women: Cultural Studies 1(1). reassertions and feminisms in international perspective. Stacey, J. 1983. Patriarchy and socialist revolution in China. Boulder, Col.: Westview. Berkeley: University of California Press. Chatterjee, P. 1989. The nationalist resolution of the women’s Stolcke, V. 1994. Invaded women: Sex, race, and class in the for- question. In K.Sangari and S.Vaid, eds., Recasting women. mation of colonial society. European Journal of Develop- New Delhi, Kali for Women. ment Research 6(2). Special Issue: Ethnicity, gender, and the Cowen, M.P., and R.W.Shenton. 1996. Doctrines of development. subversion of nationalism. London: Routledge. Talwar, V.B. 1989. Feminist consciousness in women’s journals in Evans, H. 1997. Gender and sexuality in China. Cambridge: Polity. Hindi: 1910–1920. In K.Sangari and S.Vaid, eds., Recasting Helie-Lucas, M. 1991. Women in the Algerian liberation struggle. women. New Delhi: Kali for Women. In T.Wallace and C.March, eds., Changing perceptions: Writings on gender and development . Oxford: Oxfam. Shirin M.Rai

193 COMEDY

COMEDY Each commodity culture lends consumer goods its own See HUMOR. specific repertoire of social and sexual meanings. Rather than assuming a monolithic, Anglocentric concept of a commodity culture, then, some researchers have begun to study the diversity and regional specificity of consumer COMMODITY CULTURE practices and their implications for relations between the sexes. In Japan, for example, clothes (purchased, as they A commodity culture is a culture in which people define are in most English-speaking cultures, primarily by themselves and make sense of their world primarily women) are emblems of status and correctness: hence the through their relationship to manufactured products. The uniformlike skirts and white blouses considered appropri- idea that a person is defined by the acquisition of commodi- ate for “office ladies.” Packaging is important in a society ties is summed up in the contemporary maxims “I shop, that stresses aesthetics and “taste.” Thus the wrapping at- therefore I am,” and “You are what you shop.” In addition tached to each commodity in Japan carries a cultural sig- to having a practical use as a material object, a commodity nificance that would be unknown to most western stands for a set of culturally specific meanings and desires. consumers. In buying a fashionable article of clothing, for example, a John Clammer (Shields, 1992) argues that Japan’s ur- woman buys certain culturally constructed images of ban consumer culture is manifestly postmodern. In contrast sexual attractiveness, modernity, and style. The notion of to those who hold that consumer culture exploits and op- commodity culture helps explain how gender and sexual presses women, students of postmodern culture suggest identities are formed and transformed in western industrial- that a woman’s choice of commodities allows her to play ized societies. with, experiment with, and literally refashion herself. If The idea that the commodity acquires a social value commodities in a modernist commodity culture rigidly pre- through the process of exchange has its origins in the Marx- scribed fixed sexual meanings, in postmodernity the com- ist analysis of capitalism. The concept of commodity cul- modity becomes an empty category waiting to be filled, or ture generally has negative connotations in Marxist and added to. Shopping is increasingly associated with leisure feminist thought. Leftist critics have argued that the rapid and entertainment, rather than work. Buying different com- growth of commodity culture in the twentieth century co- modities permits women (and men) to “try on” and change opted class conflict and contributed to the so-called Ameri- social identities. Fashion, described by Gail Faurschou canization of immigrant populations. Feminists have argued (1987) as the postmodern commodity par excellence, “be- that mass marketing techniques have produced stereotypi- comes a data base of aesthetic categories.” Many feminists cal and demeaning images of women. The mass media, por- believe that postmodern commodity cultures offer new op- nography, and prostitution turn women into products—more portunities for renegotiating sexual identities previously specifically, into sexualized bodies or body parts—to be thought to be essential and unchangeable. used and exchanged by and for the pleasure of men. Women and, some argue, lately even feminism become commodi- See Also ties in a culture that commodifies everything. CAPITALISM; FASHION; MARXISM; POSTMODERNISM: FEMINIST The subject of women as commodities has attracted CRITIQUES more feminist attention than have the implications of women having commodities that are imbued with gendered References and Further Reading meanings. As the gendered division of retail space in de- Farschou, Gail. 1987. Fashion and the cultural logic of post-mo- partment stores used to indicate, retailers and marketing dernity. In Arthur Kroker and Marilouise Kroker, eds., Body experts have viewed most goods as unambiguously “male” invaders: Panic sex in America. New York: St. Martin’s. or “female” in character. Many commodities are still mar- Irigaray, Luce. 1985. This sex which is not one. Trans. Catherine keted to either women or men. Commodities can thus func- Porter with Carolyn Burke. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University tion conservatively as powerful symbols of ideal Press. femininity, masculinity, and heterosexuality. By reinforc- McCracken, Grant. 1988. Culture and consumption: New ap- ing apparently fundamental differences between the sexes, proaches to the symbolic character of consumer goods and commodities help maintain the cultural boundaries that activities. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. mark the feminine as different from, and often inferior to, Shields, Rob, ed. 1992. Lifestyle shopping: The subject of con- the masculine. sumption. London and New York: Routledge.

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Strasser, Susan. 1989. Satisfaction guaranteed: The making of the for interpretive studies of audiences, which open up studies American mass market. New York: Pantheon. of communication to voices other than those of privileged researchers. Gail Reekie Because communication studies is an emergent focus that cuts across disciplines, one finds emphasis on gendered communication in a bewildering number of locales that indicate differing degrees and qualities of COMMUNICATIONS: Overview attention. As one example, women’s studies has had a longer influence on media studies than on interpersonal The term communications generally brings to mind atten- communication studies, so, whereas media studies tion to the symbolic messages of the human species; the advanced beyond sex-role differences in the early 1980s, processes involved in creating, sending, and receiving interpersonal communication began to do so only in the these messages; and the myriad historical, political, eco- 1990s. Likewise, branches of communication studies nomic, cultural, psychological, and sociological contexts arising from social scientific traditions have been slower to in which these processes are embedded. attend to gendered discourse than branches arising from The rise of communication studies and the rise of wom- humanities traditions. en’s studies were historically contemporaneous, with calls In general, there are three major thrusts or focuses in for both in the 1930s and again in the 1970s. Both have studies of gendered communication. One focus is on the shifted perspective from more essentialist to more interpre- nature of the structures within which messages are created, tive approaches. Where communication studies and wom- including the study of the political, economic, and other en’s studies intersect, this change is illustrated by the forces that affect the creators of messages. The second fo- difference in conceptualizing gender as cause versus effect. cus is on the nature of texts and involves analyses of repre- When gender is thought of as cause, questions focus, for sentations of gendered discourse in, for example, popular instance, on how men and women differ in their communi- culture or defined communities. The third focus is on audi- cation styles, or how they are portrayed differently in the ences and their reception of gendered messages, or the way media. When gender is thought of as effect, questions be- they make sense of those messages. come more interpretively focused on which forces create In the mid-1990s, these once-distinct divisions blurred and maintain gender differences: in essence, how human as feminist studies of communication begin to address two beings, human artifacts, and human structures become issues. One was how to conceptualize the relationship be- gendered. In the earlier stages, gender is assumed to be a tween structures (which contain and reinforce gendered biological distinction; in the latter stages, it is understood practices) and human actors (who maintain these structures as created in communication. and also resist and transform them). The second issue was Over time, women’s studies has evolved to challenge how to study gendered communication so that neither an communications studies to extend its understanding of entirely structuralist view nor an entirely individualistic communication to incorporate women’s experience and to view would be privileged. The former perspective is identi- see communication as political. At the same time, commu- fied more frequently with socialist and critical perspectives; nication studies has challenged women’s studies to go be- the latter more frequently with liberal and postmodern per- yond a polarized concept of the political, from feminism to spectives. By the end of the 1990s, what began to emerge feminisms, from one view to multiple views. Inherent strongly was a call for a synergy or, at least, a communion within this movement has been a journey from a liberal between these usually polarized perspectives. concept of gendered communication (how women are treated unfairly) to a radical concept (how women differ See Also inherently) to a socialist concept (how power structures COMMUNICATIONS, all entries; MEDIA: OVERVIEW hold inequities in place) to a discourse concept (how gen- der is created, maintained, and changed in discourse). References and Further Reading This evolution has also led to a call for methodological Carter, Kathryn, and Carole Spitzack, eds. 1989. Doing research innovation. One result is a move from reductionist, non- on women’s communication. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex. holistic ways of analyzing gendered messages to richer ap- Dervin, Brenda. 1987. The potential contribution of feminist proaches that focus on revealing the subtle ways in which scholarship to the field of communication. Journal of Com- power is embedded in discourse. A second result is a call munication 37(4):107–120.

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Lont, Cynthia, ed. 1995. Women and media: Content/career s/ pursued include combining different types of traditional criticism. New York: Wadsworth. methodologies (for example, mixing qualitative and quan- Pearson, J., L.Turner, and W.Todd-Mancillas. 1991. Gender and titative methods) as well as developing more in-depth, in- communication, 2nd ed. Dubuque, Iowa: Brown. terpretive approaches to studying media as part of the Steeves, Leslie H. 1987. Feminist theories and media studies. general cultural environment. Critical Studies in Mass Communication 4(2):95–135. Feminist study of the audience for popular culture has Shields, Vickie R., and Brenda Dervin. 1993. Sense-making in grown over the last several decades. It now constitutes a feminist social science research: A call to enlarge the meth- sizable body of work with its own history, subfields, criti- odological options of feminist studies. Women’s Studies In- cism, and problems. In addition, whereas traditionally the ternational Forum 16(1):65–81. focus of audience study has been on the particular media of Valdivia, Angharad N., ed. 1995. Feminism, multiculturalism, and film and television, recent studies have broadened this nar- the media: Global diversities. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. row concentration to include consideration of popular mu- Van, Zoonen, L. 1994. Feminist media studies. London: Sage. sic and audiences’ reception of and participation in other popular forms such as romance novels. Finally, recent theo- Brenda Dervin retical perspectives in the field have emphasized the diver- sity and fragmentation of the female audience for popular culture and have produced studies of the receptive experi- ences and activities of racially, ethnically, COMMUNICATIONS: Audience Analysis socioeconomically, and sexually diverse groups within this general category. Why study the audiences for mass media and popular cul- ture? From a feminist perspective, there are many potential Film and Television Study reasons. Products of mass media and popular culture per- Although most film scholars have come out of humanities meate our cultural experience in complex societies and, in- traditions in universities and have studied film as art, televi- creasingly, in all areas of the globe. Because, in a sense, we sion scholarship has been rooted primarily in the social sci- are all members of the audience all the time, in the post- ences and has been governed by quite different traditions. modern world audience study has been transformed into a Film study: As has been true of much literary criticism more general analysis of how we receive culture in every- of the past several decades, and in keeping with its base in day life, in addition to the more specific study of actual the humanities disciplines, film audience theory has uti- audiences constituted to receive particular products of lized psychoanalytic theory to describe modes of reception. popular culture. Scholars studying film reception have generally “theo- This situation raises interesting questions for feminists rized” about “the spectator” rather than applying social sci- concerned with cultural and media studies. If we come of entific methods to the empirical study of actual film age in a cultural climate awash with the products of popular viewers. The tradition can be traced to the early work of culture, then popular culture is an extremely important in- scholars like Christian Metz (1982), who argued that psy- fluence on the development of our gender identities and choanalytic theory was necessary to understand the orientations. Yet, if it is true that popular culture is as ubiq- “dreamlike” state to which the film audience regressed in uitous in the postmodern world as most scholars believe, it the darkened movie theater. Problems inherent in this body is difficult to study its influence using traditional scientific of work stem from a lack of historical and cultural context methods, which require the ability to manipulate variables in most psychoanalytic writing, generally. The psychoana- and to control for their respective influences. In fact, many lytic literature often falsely universalizes a white, middle- feminist scholars now argue that these traditional ap- class, heterosexual nuclear family, ignoring the experience proaches to audience analysis, predicated on the assump- of members of racial, ethnic, and sexual minority groups. tion that the influence of popular culture can be controlled, In contrast to the abstract theorizing popular in film litera- have under-estimated the actual influence of popular cul- ture, the television audience has been primarily studied by ture on women and others. social scientists who use survey methods, interviews, or As a result of their dissatisfaction with traditional ap- other research methods to gather data about actual audi- proaches, feminists have investigated nontraditional meth- ence members, their thoughts, and their habits. ods of studying the influence of popular culture and media Gender and the film spectator: The dominant narratives on the women in their audience. Approaches they have of the classic Hollywood film often deemphasize women’s

196 COMMUNICATIONS: AUDIENCE ANALYSIS subjectivity or activity, emphasizing instead the woman as several slow-moving hours in the domestic life of a woman, a passive object, decorated with the finery of consumer so- following her through the movements of her day. Rather ciety. Many theorists have discussed the prevalence of men than, in Hollywood style, glamorizing the domestic arena as the central agents in most mainstream popular films, and women’s role within it, Ranier highlights the work in- with women serving as the decorative objects of their ac- volved in domestic life, showing it as very repetitious, tedi- tions or desires (Kaplan, 1983; Mulvey, 1975; Silverman, ous, and dull. This sort of reality is rarely presented in the 1983). These scholars note that women are “looked at” in dominant cinema we view most often. Audience theorists films—as the object of the male gaze—more than they ac- hypothesize that such films disrupt, in a critical manner, tively look at others. Feminist film scholars have hypoth- conventional female subjectivity for the women who watch esized that these conventions encourage women to view them; they therefore are considered to have critical poten- themselves as passive objects rather than active agents tak- tial for feminists. ing charge of their own lives. Current films made by women—and current critical Feminist scholars have developed some rather compli- feminist film theorists such as Bobo (1995)—often chal- cated theories in their attempt to explain the pleasure that lenge the lack of racial, class, ethnic, and sexual diversity many women (often including themselves) derive from that characterizes both classical Hollywood cinema and watching dominant Hollywood cinema. Most prominent much other contemporary cinema. These films, and the among these is Laura Mulvey’s famous essay, “Visual new film theories as well, often focus on the experiences of Pleasure in Narrative Cinema” (1975). Using psychoana- nonwhite women, working-class women, or women living lytic theory to develop her ideas about how spectators de- in non-western cultures, or they have central characters rive pleasure from films generally, Mulvey theorizes that who are lesbian or bisexual. In these ways, both feminist women watching Hollywood films actually identify with filmmakers and feminist theorists are changing many of the the male spectator to whom most films are addressed. conventions of traditional film and creating new patterns Taking the part of men, then, in their viewing, women get and models. Feminists theorize that the ultimate impact of the same pleasure that men do when they watch other these images on audiences will be to challenge the he- women in the film who are framed as beautiful objects to gemony of white, upper-class individuals in our society. be looked at. Gender and the television audience: Because television Other feminist scholars have challenged Mulvey’s theo- study is rooted in the social sciences, a plethora of social ries. Arbuthnot and Seneca (1982), for example, use the scientific methodologies have been applied to the study of example of a popular Hollywood musical of the 1950s, the television audience, and in particular, to gender differ- Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, to counter Mulvey’s argument. ences in that audience; these include traditional social sci- In this film, Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe, the stars, entific methodologies such as survey research, as well as were often shown actively looking at men or “returning the “softer,” more qualitative techniques such as in-depth inter- gaze” of the men looking at them. Many feminist theorists viewing or ethnographic investigations. The study of the have argued that film noir, which features extremely sexual television audience is no exception. There have been sev- images of women, also can be read as showcasing women’s eral interesting qualitative studies of the television audi- strength, rather than their objectlike status (Kaplan, 1998). ence in recent years using in-depth interviewing or Current feminist work on film often questions the sup- ethnographic techniques. One such study, Family Televi- posed lack of women in many aspects of film production sion by David Morley (1986), employed a vast team of re- (Kaplan, 1983). These authors discuss innovative films searchers who used ethnographic and interviewing made by feminist producers, writers, and directors, which techniques to investigate the way television is received in often challenge the dominant conventions of Hollywood the context of the family. Studying a group of primarily narrative films and posit a different type of female audience working-class families in London, researchers found member. Some films, such as Laura Mulvey and Peter strong gender dynamics in families watching together dur- Wollen’s Riddles of the Sphinx (1976), or Michelle ing prime-time viewing hours. Men, it was discovered, of- Citron’s Daughter-Rite (1978), challenge the conventions ten hold the remote control for the television and determine of narrative itself, moving nonlinearly so that no story is the fare of the family’s collective viewing. Specifically told in the traditional sense. Others, such as Chantal “women’s genres” of television such as melodramas, soap Akerman’s Jeanne Dielman (1975), challenge the domi- operas, or romantic shows or movies, are more likely to be nant notion of time in the Hollywood film by creating a viewed by women alone at times when men and other fam- filmic time that mirrors actual time. This film follows ily members who devalue such shows are not present.

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Other investigators (Ang, 1985; Hobson, 1982) have For middle-class women, the class-related aspects of televi- examined how women view particularly female genres sion are less important. Instead, they are more likely to dis- such as soap operas, and what meanings they make of cuss the relationships between men and women, and within them. Hobson’s study involved participant observation and the family, which they view on television, and to use televi- depth-interviewing with British working-class women fans sion as a way to explore alternative relationships or possi- of a very popular nighttime soap opera called Crossroads. ble solutions to relationship problems that they themselves She discussed the intricate ways in which women weave may be experiencing. their reception of soap operas around their domestic labor and their relationships with family and friends in their Women’s Genres and Female Readers homes. Crossroads, Hobson found, played an important Many feminist audience scholars have focused exclusively role in the lives of lonely—and emotionally isolated—fe- on what are traditionally thought of as “female genres,” a male viewers. Women were able to develop relationships category applied to the analysis of many different media with the soap opera characters, which were vibrant and real including books, television, and films. So-called female for them. Ang (1985) discusses the importance of soap op- genres—romance novels, television soap operas, cinematic era characters and relationships, in terms of the emotional melodramas—are thought to appeal specifically to women, lives of women fans of the show Dallas. Ang hypothesizes and, as in each of these examples, are consumed by many that Dallas, stereotypical as its female characters are in more women than men (although of course there are some some ways, offers women valuable forms of pleasure and male consumers in each case). escape, which may encourage their feminist imaginations Perhaps the most famous reception study which focuses in important ways rather than merely contributing to their on a female genre is Janice Radway’s Reading the Ro- oppression in patriarchal society. Such works opened up mance (1984). In her study, Radway used several methods the possibility that soap opera, so often disparaged as “low- including questionnaires, individual and group interviews, level” entertainment and assumed by even feminist schol- and ethnographic participant-observation to study a small ars to be degrading to women, is in fact worthy of serious group of white, middle-class midwestern women in the attention by feminist scholars because of its widespread United States who were avid readers of romance novels. In consumption and the obvious pleasure it affords its many 1984, Radway’s book was revolutionary in its methodol- women viewers. ogy and its claims, when considered in the context of the Some scholars have focused on women’s reactions to feminist literature about romances current at the time. With prime-time television entertainment (Press, 1991, 1992; the new approach of audience analysis—for example, actu- Press and Cole, 1999). In particular, their work has ex- ally using as data women readers’ own explanations of plored differences in reactions among women of different their fondness for romance novels—Radway theorized that social classes and generations. Women Watching Televi- romances in several ways were symbols and tools of resist- sion: Gender, Class, and Generation in the American Tel- ance to patriarchy, rather than a means by which women evision Experience is based on the present author’s were enslaved by a patriarchal system. Women liked, and openended in-depth interviews with a sample of working- sought, the most independent heroines romances had to of- class and middle-class women of different social classes fer, for example, and were more likely to dislike romantic and age groups (Press, 1991). Essentially, I asked women heroines who were too docile or spiritless. They disliked to “tell me about television” and the meaning it had in their scenes in which heroines showed no spunk or resistance lives. Using their responses as data, I theorized about the against senseless brutality or violence. They enjoyed the fundamentally different ways in which television influ- happy endings of romances, which helped them interpret ences working-class and middle-class women, and women their lives and prospects positively, even in the face of ad- of different generations, in our society. Working-class versity. In addition, and perhaps most important, these women are more likely to notice aspects of television re- readers, who were most often married and consumed with lated to social class while middle-class women are more the very demanding tasks of being wives, homemakers, and likely to notice gender-related content. Working-class mothers, used the act of reading as a means of carving out women tend to construct from television a vision of mid- time for themselves in the midst of the numerous and com- dle-class life as “normal.” This causes them to see their peting demands of their families. Reading romances was own lives, very different from that reality, as evolving to- often the only time these women had for themselves. The ward it, and to discount the aspects of their own lives which very act of becoming a regular romance reader was a sort of indicate that they live very differently from this “norm.” rebellion against their families, and the minimum care they

198 COMMUNICATIONS: AUDIENCE ANALYSIS themselves received within the family. As caretakers to all, offers an interesting analysis of Madonna’s play on the these women suffered from the lack of a caretaker of their concept of “femininity” in the different incarnations her own; time for reading was, in a sense, a substitute. If no one image has taken, referring to Baudrillard’s notion of simu- was assigned to take care of these women, they could make lation to explain, in postmodern terms, what Madonna’s sure they took the time to care for themselves by asserting image signifies (1992:132–133). the importance of their reading habit. In these ways, In general, feminist discussion of popular music has Radway challenged prevailing feminist criticism of the ro- been critical of the field for excluding women from many mance genre, and developed a new theory that gave more of its dimensions. Other than as singers, few women musi- credit to its female audience. Women, rather than being cians really “make it” in the world of music. As is the case negatively influenced by romances, instead used them in many other professions feminist scholars study, the rea- creatively to resist the oppressive features of patriarchal sons for this are complex and very difficult to isolate; culture. clearly, it is a problem that requires further study. The im- pact of this fact is unfortunate, though scholars disagree as Popular Music to what the particular impact is in the case of popular mu- One of the most interesting new areas of study in the field sic. Lewis’s interesting studies of female musicians and of the female audience for popular culture is the audience fans (1990, 1992) chronicle the careers of some of the few for popular music. With regard to popular music, and the top female rock stars, their music, their video products, and music videos that have become its accompaniment, femi- their fans, from a feminist perspective. nist scholars have engaged in some of the most interesting Other feminists discuss their ambivalence about female debates in the field, involving issues both of general recep- fans of rock and roll stars. Wise (1990) offers an interest- tion of music and of fan groups and their specific modes of ing argument based on her own experience growing up as reception. a fan of Elvis Presley. It has been assumed, Wise argues, One of the most controversial phenomena in this area that rock stars such as Elvis are sex symbols for female has been the study of the image of pop star Madonna. Fiske fans, either strong, macho figures or cuddly teddy-bear (1987) and Schwichtenberg (1992) use both textual re- types. This interpretation of the popularity of male rock search and some audience research to argue that Madonna stars serves male interests, Wise argues. It assumes that is a liberatory image for women, challenging many stere- female fans are merely “responding” to manipulation and otypes (such as those of the demure, “pure,” virginal control by the strong figure of the star. Instead, she argues woman) with her blatant displays of female sexuality and that the star figure himself is the object of the fans, and desire in her live performances, her films, and her music that the way to find out the true meaning of rock stars for videos. Quoting young teenage fans, Fiske argues that for female fans would be to ask the fans themselves, some- them, Madonna symbolizes individuality, independence, thing that has rarely been done, and has never been done and freedom and is an image that explicitly challenges in the case of Elvis Presley. Wise argues that in her own many of the more traditional teachings still predominating case, she knows that Elvis functioned more as a friend in our gender culture (1987:125–126). Whereas more tra- than a sex symbol during a lonely, stormy adolescence in ditional feminist analysis might say that Madonna’s early which she felt essentially friendless and alienated. (Later, image is sexist, in that it flaunts what is in some ways the she found out that her emerging lesbian sexuality, still very traditional garb of female sexuality—heavy makeup, concealed at the time, was one cause of this loneliness.) lacy undergarments, a vampy look overall—Fisk’s theory She hypothesizes that for other fans he may have func- highlights the irony in Madonna’s presentation of these tioned similarly. features. She is using them, he intimates, to critique, or at Current work in the field is beginning to investigate the least to expose, traditional assumptions about female meaning of “fandom” from the female point of view. sexual behavior. She is “playing” with these assumptions Petrusso (1992), for example, interviewed and observed a and, through her play, opens the possibility of criticizing group of female fans of what is normally considered an ex- them and ultimately subverting them. In Fiske’s analysis, clusively male genre, heavy metal music. Whereas it is nor- Madonna’s image is extremely feminist. The many con- mally assumed that women participating in heavy metal tributors to Schwichtenberg’s edited volume The Madonna culture are there only to be sexual groupies of the male Connection (1992) make a series of sophisticated argu- stars, Petrusso found that many women were interested in ments about what Madonna signifies for girls, feminism, the music, which they found meaningful in itself. These and feminist politics in particular. Schwichtenberg herself women considered the “groupie” stereotype of women fans

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extremely demeaning, and not at all representative of their Bobo, Jacqueline. 1995. Black women as cultural readers. New own relationship to popular music culture. York: Columbia University Press. Other feminist scholars challenge specific genres of Fiske, John. 1987. Television culture. New York: Methuen. popular music for blatant and, they fear, harmful sexism Hobson, Dorothy. 1982. Crossroads: The drama of a soap opera. (Peterson-Lewis, 1991). But Rose (1994) argues that, al- London: Methuen. though there is some misogyny in rap music lyrics, there Kaplan, E.Ann. 1983. Women and film: Both sides of the camera. also are discernibly feminist songs. Emphasizing the New York: Methuen. music of female rappers, she shows how many female ——, ed. 1998. noir. London: British Film rap artists take the opportunity to address issues of inter- Institute. est to women in the African-American community— Lewis, Lisa A. 1990. Gender politics and MTV: Voicing the differ- sometimes explicitly addressing male rappers about ence. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. their potentially misogynist and exploitive lyrics. Rose’s ——. 1992. The adorning audience: Fan culture and popular me- argument raises interesting questions for audience dia. London: Routledge. analysis. Metz, Christian. 1982. The imaginary signifier: Psychoanaly- sis and the cinema. Bloomington: Indiana University Conclusion Press. Morley, David. 1986. Family television. London: Comedia. Much work has been done in analyzing the female audi- Mulvey, Laura. 1975. Visual pleasure and narrative cinema. ence for different types of popular culture. Many studies Screen 16(3: Autumn):6–18. employ qualitative, interpretive methodologies that are Peterson-Lewis, Sonja. 1991. A feminist analysis of the defenses sensitive to the difficulties involved in assessing actual “ef- of obscene rap lyrics. Black sacred music: A journal of fects” of media and culture on individual and group beliefs, theomusicology 5 (1: Spring):68–79. values, and actions. In addition, variations in the experi- Petrusso, Annette. 1992. Women fans of heavy metal. Ann Arbor: ences of different groups within the female audience, espe- Unpublished honors’ thesis, Residential College, University cially those differentiated by race, class, and sexual of Michigan. orientation, have been discussed. Newer studies often seek Press, Andrea L., and Elizabeth R.Cole. 1994. Women like us: to combine qualitative and quantitative data, thus present- Working-class women respond to television representations ing as complete a picture as current social science analysis of abortion . In Jon Cruz, Sut Jhally, and Cathy will allow. Some, particularly those influenced by Schwichtenberg, eds., Reading, Viewing, Listening: Audi- postmodernist analyses that question the unity and value of ences and Cultural Reception. Boulder, Col.:Westview the notion of the subject, consider the future of audience Press. analyses. For these scholars, the very term “audience” is ——, and Terry Strathman. 1993. Work, family, and social class in laden with indefensible assumptions about characteristics television images of women: Prime-time television and the that popular culture itself maps onto its alleged recipients. construction of postfeminism. Women and Language Until those espousing such perspectives re-create a social 16(2):7–15. science capable of studying the true audience more effec- Radway, Janice. 1984. Reading the romance: Women, patriarchy, tively than can be done with the methods currently in use, and popular literature. Chapel Hill:University of North however, audience analysis will continue to be a vital part Carolina Press. of feminist cultural and media studies. Rose, Tricia. 1994. Black noise: Rap music and black culture in contemporary America. Hanover and London:Wesleyan Uni- See Also versity Press. COMMUNICATIONS: OVERVIEW; CULTURE: WOMEN AS Schwichtenberg, Cathy, ed. 1992. The Madonna connection: Rep- CONSUMERS OF CULTURE; MUSIC: ROCK AND POP; POPULAR resentational politics, subcultural identities, and cultural CULTURE; SOAP OPERAS; TELEVISION theory. Boulder, Col.: Westview. Silverman, Kaja. 1983. The subject of semiotics. New References and Further Reading York:Oxford University Press. Ang, Ien. 1985. Watching Dallas: Soap operas and the melodra- Wise, Sue. 1990. Sexing Elvis. In Simon Frith and Andrew Good- matic imagination. London: Methuen. win, eds., On record, 390–409. New York: Pantheon. Arbuthnot, Lucie, and Gail Seneca. 1982. Pre-text and text in Gen- tlemen Prefer Blondes. Film Reader 5:13–23. Andrea Press

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(4) whether any such correction would be accompanied COMMUNICATIONS: by change beyond the world of televised representation; Content and Discourse Analysis or (5) what is the significance or meaning of this observed fact. In addition, content analyses tend to assume an ob- Content and discourse analysis are two distinct analytical jective reality against which representations can and methods used in the study of communication. Both can be should be measured. Content-analytical work that does applied to various types of communication, including inter- not address these questions is of limited usefulness for personal exchange, mass media such as television drama obvious reasons: although it may record a fact about rep- and newspaper editorials, and political discourse. Both resentation, it is not sufficiently connected to a rationale analytical methods may be used to examine linguistic ele- or goal for change and cannot explain its findings. Con- ments or more generalized themes and issues. Both have tent analysis is defended on the grounds that it reveals been used extensively to document bias related to race, something about the values and attitudes of mass media class, gender, nationality, sexual identity, and so forth. Be- producers and audiences. yond these similarities, the two methodologies should be considered distinct and will be treated as such here. The Discourse Analysis primary use of these methods has been in the analysis of Discourse analysis is a qualitative method that aims at re- mass communications. vealing the ways in which communication legitimizes or maintains ideology. This work offers a means for under- Content Analysis standing how language, particularly patterns and habits of Content analysis uses a quantitative approach to identify, usage, reflects and reproduces biased patterns of thought, categorize, and describe themes, issues, or subjects in order decision making, and distribution of power. Discourse to record bias or differences in representation, reveal or ex- analysis examines the language used within a given text or amine trends in a particular medium, or make a comparison interaction: it assumes that relations of power are embed- between different media. The aim of content analysis is to ded in language and attempts to deconstruct the ways in assess the degree of importance or attention given to the which this occurs. Individual analyses of discourse might elements under examination. Feminist scholars and others take a variety of approaches to identifying patterns of ar- interested in relations of power have made use of content ticulation and absence, including the observation of domi- analysis that calculates the prevalence and types of imagery nant metaphors and analogies, the recognition of cultural in representations of women and minorities. The edited myths and stereotypes, the examination of available frames volume Hearth and Home: Images of Women in the Mass of meaning, or simply an analysis of central terms or clus- Media (Tuchman et al., 1978), which documents the dearth ters of key terms within a text. Such work is designed to of representations of women in mass media in the United reveal values, perspectives, and interests which are not ex- States, is an excellent and well-known early example. plicitly stated in the text but which convey subtle ideologi- Although content analysis has frequently been used by cal messages such as who or what is dangerous or scholars interested in relations of power and has been use- threatening. Discourse analysis is used by feminists to re- ful in documenting both lack of representation and vari- veal the subtle ways in which communication transmits fa- ous negative portrayals of minorities and women in the miliar ideas about gender, such as the idea that women are mass media, it has also come under criticism by feminists emotional and men are rational. and others for its lack of a theoretical and explanatory Discourse analysis is based on the assumption that a framework. Although high-quality content-analytical sense of reality is constructed through the use of language work can overcome such objections, the tendency has of- and is often interested in revealing how racism, sexism, ten been comparative counting of representations of racial class differences, and other inequalities are subtly fur- groups, for example, without an accompanying discus- thered. Thus, discourse analysis can be used to reveal gen- sion of significance, interpretation, or purpose. For exam- der or racial bias within a language or within a particular ple, simply determining that few women characters usage pattern or text, such as the observation that women portrayed are in positions of power in prime-time televi- and girls are often in a grammatically “passive” position sion programming does not explain: (1) why it is impor- while males are grammatically “active,” or the finding that tant to count their representation; (2) why the inclusion of mainstream news makes use of traditional ideas about rape such characters might be rare; (3) what course, if any, to structure its coverage of sexual assault. In its emphasis should be followed to correct this gap in representation; on the deconstruction of ideological power within texts,

201 COMMUNICATIONS: SPEECH this work can sometimes make use of highly abstract schol- speech communications from public communications, arly jargon that is difficult even for readers with graduate- such as speeches presented to large groups in openly acces- level education. As such, it has been accused of being sible settings, and mass communications, such as broadcast detached from or unrelated to practical issues of social or print media messages reaching huge audiences. Inter- change. Discourse analysts claim that only limited social personal communication refers to dyadic (two-person) in- change can take place without accompanying change at the teraction; small-group communication designates level of language and language use, and thus assert that interactions among a cluster of usually 10 or fewer indi- their work is a sort of praxis aimed at the transformation of viduals; and organizational communication signifies inter- elements of social life such as what a group accepts as real- personal and small-group interactions within formally ity, truth, normality, and knowledge. structured environments focused on task-oriented goals. For current essays employing discourse analysis, con- Speech communications research has historically been sult the journal Discourse and Society, edited byTeun A. dominated by studies of white, English-speaking, hetero- van Dijk and published by Sage. sexual, middle-class, able-bodied individuals living in the United States (where communication programs are well See Also established). As a result, the experiences of people of color, COMMUNICATIONS: AUDIENCE ANALYSIS; COMMUNICATIONS: non-English-speaking, homosexual or bisexual, low-in- SPEECH; LINGUISTICS; MEDIA: OVERVIEW come, and disabled persons in the United States and around the world have generally been excluded from mainstream References and Further Reading research. The studies reviewed in this article should be Bell, Allan, and Peter Garrett, eds. 1998. Approaches to media evaluated in light of these limitations. discourse. Oxford: Blackwell. Berelson, Bernard. 1952. Content analysis in communications re- Interpersonal and Small-Group Communication: search. New York: Free Press. Gender, Competence, Power, and Context Foucault, Michel. 1972. The archaeology of knowledge and the Since the mid-1970s, feminist research in speech commu- discourse on language. New York: Pantheon. nications has often focused on the controversial relation- Greenberg, Bradley S. 1980. Life on television: Content analysis ship of sex and gender to interpersonal communication. of US TV drama. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex. Scholars studying female-male verbal communication Holsti, O.R. 1969. Content analysis for the social sciences and have contended that women generally communicate in a humanities. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley. more expressive and empathic manner than men, develop- Lentz, Leo, and Henk Pander Maat, eds. 1997. Discourse analysis ing topics at length and utilizing questions and verbal mini- and evaluation: Functional approaches. Amsterdam: mal responses (such as “uh-huh”) to maintain conversation Rodopi. (see Henley and Kramarae, 1994:388–389). Research on Thomas, Sari. 1994. Artifactual study in the analysis of culture: A nonverbal communication has suggested that women use defense of content analysis in a postmodern age. Communi- vocal and facial displays to communicate emotion more cation Research 21 (6 December):683–697. often than men and employ body movements and gestures Tuchman, Gaye, Arlene Kaplan Daniels, and James Benet, eds. to signify positive affect. Further, women utilize touch and 1978. Hearth and home: Images of women in the mass me- seek greater physical contact than men, assuming less per- dia. New York: Oxford University Press. sonal space and tolerating greater spatial intrusion (see van Dijk, Teun. 1985. Handbook of discourse analysis. Vols. 1–4. Burgoon, 1994:247). Numerous studies have documented New York: Academic. observed differences in female and male speech communi- ——. 1988. News as discourse. Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum. cation, but debate arises among feminist scholars about whether this diversity results from biology or gender Lisa Cuklanz enculturation or is an effect of women’s oppression in pa- triarchal societies (Henley and Kramarae, 1994). Related to studies of gendered conversational dynamics COMMUNICATIONS: Speech and power are analyses of impression formation and com- municative competence. Analyzing responses from 94 par- The study of speech communications includes the analysis ticipants in the United States, Scott (1980) found that of verbal and nonverbal interaction at interpersonal, small- stereotypically feminine communication traits, such as group, and organizational levels. This article distinguishes “gentle” or “smooth” speech, were consistently rated as

202 COMMUNICATIONS: SPEECH more socially desirable than stereotypically masculine found that the function of politeness, which is characteris- traits, such as “forceful” or “direct” speech. Moreover, re- tic of Tenejapan women’s speech across contexts, varies spondents in Scott’s study described the sex-generic “adult widely. While women’s use of polite forms signifies affect, competent communicator” in terms of traditionally empathy, and cooperation in “ordinary” conversation, feminized behaviors. Yet, despite these positive evalua- women’s display of polite speech behaviors in court com- tions, Scott cautioned that socially desirable or competent municates opposite meanings, including discontent, hostil- communication may not imply effective communication ity, and disagreement. Brown’s study stressed that no for women lacking relational power in a given context. universal conclusions should be drawn concerning the Similar to interpersonal communication research, femi- positive or negative affect conveyed by communication, nist marital and family communication studies have prima- because speech behaviors may denote vastly different rily emphasized sex or gender differences and power meanings in different contexts. differentials that affect communicative patterns. Empirical research on marital and family communication in the Organizational and Task-Oriented Communication: United States has most often focused on the dyadic or inter- Gender, Leadership, Health, and Group Behavior personal level, concentrating on middle-class heterosexual Feminist research in organizational communication has courtship, spousal, and parent-child interactions. Feminist frequently examined the influence of gender on managerial researchers studying dominance and control in marital in- behavior. Recurring topics of inquiry in superior-subordi- teractions have argued that women utilize questions and nate communication research are managerial efforts to ob- minimal responses to facilitate communication, while men tain compliance and conflict management. Although use silence to control length, pace, and topic. Additionally, research has documented many similarities in the tactics research has suggested that power in decision making is utilized by female and male managers to shape employees’ frequently under dispute for Caucasian and African- behavior, a number of differences have also been uncov- American couples, with final authority often resting on a ered. In a meta-analysis of research on gender and manage- husband’s occupational prestige, income, and education rial influence, Kathleen J.Krone et al. (1994) found that (see Kramarae, 1981). female and male managers display similar preferences for Research further indicates that gender and power rela- rational persuasion and altruism in employee relations but tions that characterize spousal communication are repli- tend to differ in the use of rewards and coercive strategies. cated in parent-child interaction. In a study of preschool Because observed differences in managerial influence tac- children, Esther Blank Greif (1980) found that fathers were tics do not always correspond to gender-role stereotypes, more likely than mothers to interrupt and speak simultane- Krone et al. concluded that managerial behavior results ously with children. However, both parents were more from a combination of gender and organizational likely to interrupt or interfere with daughters’ speech than socialization. These researchers also concluded that man- sons’ speech. Greif’s research suggested that women learn agers’ use of influence strategies emerges from a complex stereotypically feminine, passive communication roles in interrelationship between gender, situational confidence, childhood, as girls’ speech is often hindered. structural position, and self-perception of power in the or- Although feminist speech communication research has ganization. often considered gender the dominant influence on wom- In contrast to managerial influence research, which cites en’s communicative behavior, multicultural studies of gender as one of many factors shaping communication, meta- women’s speech communities have demonstrated that gen- analyses of sex differences in conflict management see gender der is one of many social and cultural factors that affect as a key element in decision making. Aggregating results from communication. Feminist scholars investigating women’s several studies, Barbara Mae Gayle et al. (1994) concluded speech communities have examined the way female social that males are 27 percent more likely than females to employ roles and activities and gender relations in specific socio- competitive or aggressive conflict resolution tactics, while, cultural contexts shape communication patterns. Penelope conversely, females are 27 percent more likely than males to Brown’s study (1994) of women speakers in a community use compromising, relationally driven strategies. Noting sta- of peasant Mayan Indians inTenejapa, Mexico, illustrated bility in managers’ use of conflict management strategies the importance of context for understanding the dynamic across contexts, the researchers concluded that compromising meanings of gendered speech. Comparing women’s use of and competitive tactics are “intrinsically tied to gender roles the Tzeltal language in “amicable, cooperative, ‘ordinary’” rather than processes that emerge over the length of the con- interactions and “angry” courtroom confrontations, Brown flict interaction” (19). How and why female and male man

203 COMMUNICATIONS: SPEECH agers sometimes deviate from gender-related patterns of con- Future Directions in Feminist Studies flict management remains at issue. of Speech Communications A key context for the study of superior-subordinate com- “Gender difference” theories of speech communications, munication has been health care. Scholars examining inter- which have been the basis of many feminist analyses, have personal health communication have focused primarily on come under scrutiny in recent years for evaluating female practitioner-client relationships, analyzing such issues as speech against a masculine norm. The concept of gender power relations in medical interactions, effective commu- difference has been further criticized for its inability to ac- nication by providers, clients’ satisfaction, and compliance count for the complexity of women’s speech. Encouraging with care. Many feminist studies of physician-client com- greater attention to the social and cultural context of speech munication have focused on obstetric/gynecologic (OB/ communications, many feminist researchers are calling for GYN) interactions. After two and a half years of observa- the consideration of multiple and sometimes competing in- tions of gynecologist-client interactions in private offices fluences (such as gender, race, class, and sexual identity) and community clinics, Alexandra Dundas Todd (1989) on communicative behaviors. The construction of gender concluded that gynecologists consistently initiate, direct, as a stable, unproblematic category is also increasingly and close conversation with clients, dominating question- questioned in feminist research. Regarding gender as a ing, selecting topics, and monopolizing the distribution of fluid construct, many feminist researchers are investigating talk. Because 80 percent of gynecologist-client interactions the ways in which the communication patterns of both in the United States involve female-male communication, sexes are shaped by power structures that foster particular physicians in the OB/GYN context may assert communica- forms of gendered (feminized or masculinized) communi- tive power as medical experts and as men (Todd, 1989). cation in specific cultural contexts and historical moments Further impeding communication between gynecologists (Henley and Kramarae, 1994). Contemporary feminist and clients are a range of sociocultural influences, includ- studies of speech communications analyze gender as part ing race, ethnicity, language barriers, sexual identity, stere- of an interrelated matrix of factors that constitute the social otypes, and beliefs about the body and illness. For example, field of communication. the gynecological disorders of women of color have often been misdiagnosed and falsely attributed to sexual promis- See Also cuity on the basis of prejudicial stereotypes. Effective COMMUNICATIONS: OVERVIEW; COMMUNICATIONS: gynecologist-client communication hinges on both parties’ AUDIENCE ANALYSIS; COMMUNICATIONS: CONTENT AND competent negotiation of contextual variables. DISCOURSE ANALYSIS; CONVERSATION Along with superior-subordinate contexts, feminist re- searchers studying organizational communication have References and Further Reading also investigated women’s communicative roles in work Berger, Charles R. 1994. Power, dominance, and social interac- groups. Analyzing mixed-sex groups, researchers have tion. In Mark L.Knapp and Gerald R.Miller, eds., Handbook found that men generally tend to be assigned overall lead- of interpersonal communication, 2nd ed., 450–507. Thou- ership roles, while women are relegated to socioemotional sand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. leadership roles on the basis of gender-related expectations Brown, Penelope. 1994. Gender, politeness, and confrontation in about communication. However, as task complexity and Tenejapa . In Camille Roman, Suzanne Juhasz, and Cristanne group longevity increase, studies suggest that men are pro- Miller, eds., The women and language debate, 322–339. New portionately less likely to assume general leadership posi- Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. tions. The gender composition of groups also plays a key Burgoon, Judee K. 1994. Nonverbal signals. In Mark L.Knapp role in shaping communication patterns, as men speak and Gerald R.Miller, eds. Handbook of interpersonal com- more often with longer utterances and women speak more munication, 2nd ed., 229–285. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: tentatively (using disclaimers and hedges) in mixed-sex Sage. groups. Furthermore, both males and females have been Gayle, Barbara Mae, Raymond W.Preiss, and Mike Allen. 1994. found to enact stereotypically gendered communication Gender differences and the use of conflict strategies. In Lynn behaviors more frequently in same-sex groups (see Berger, H.Turner and Helen M.Sterk, eds., Differences that make a 1994, for a full review). In sum, work group research rein- difference, 13–26. Westport, Conn.: Bergin and Garvey. forces gender as an important but inconsistent influence on Greif, Esther Blank. 1980. Sex differences in parent-child conver- communication, because group or task characteristics may sation. Women’s Studies International Quarterly 3(2/3): lead individuals to transcend traditional gender roles. 253–258.

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Henley, Nancy M., and Cheris Kramarae. 1994. Gender, power, of the (male) worker’s wages would cost the capitalist sys- and miscommunication. In Camille Roman, Suzanne Juhasz, tem enormously. If capitalism were replaced by a fairer and Cristanne Miller, eds. The women and language debate, economic system, such expropriation of women’s labor 383–406. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. would be replaced by their inclusion in a waged economy. Kramarae, Cheris. 1981. Women and men speaking. Rowley, Women also had to struggle against the social form of prop- Mass.: Newbury House. erty relations—marriage was the everyday site of a wom- Krone, Kathleen J., Mike Allen, and John Ludlum. 1994. A meta- an’s oppression and needed to be replaced by a relationship analysis of gender research in managerial influence. In Lynn not enforced by the state—one that would be based not on H.Turner and Helen M.Sterk, eds. Differences that make a economic and legal dependence but on mutual respect. difference, 73–84. Westport, Conn.: Bergin and Garvey. This analysis was adopted by most communist parties and Scott, Kathryn P. 1980. Perceptions of communication compe- leaders as the basis on which to formulate the “woman tence: What’s good for the goose is not good for the gander. question,” and it inspired the strategies and policies to em- In Cheris Kramarae, ed., The voices and words of women and power women pursued by subsequent state institutions. men, 199–208. Oxford: Pergamon. Participation in waged work would be a feature of a new Todd, Alexandra Dundas. 1989. Intimate adversaries. Philadel- socialist society; therefore, women’s liberation from the phia: University of Pennsylvania Press. yoke of marriage and social subordination was dependent on their participation in the socialist revolution. Mobiliza- Lisa Sanmiguel tion of women followed as these revolutionary movements gained ground. For example, in Russia on International Women’s Day in 1917 women textile workers went on strike, and this action helped delegitimize the provisional COMMUNISM government. In China, women participated in great num- bers in the May Fourth Movement in 1919 and supported Marxist socialists analyzed gender relations from a materi- the armed struggle of the Communist Party against both the alist perspective best articulated by Engels in his book Guomindang government and the Japanese. Family, Private Property and the State. Engels argued that the subordination of women is an aspect of class oppres- Problems with a Materialist Analysis sion. The transference of private property from father to of Gender Relations son meant ensuring a monogamous relationship between There were several problems with this materialist under- man and woman, which further needed the continued mate- standing of gender relations. The first set of problems arose rial dependence of women on men within marriage. The from the importance of property and class relations in this argument, therefore, was that with the abolition of private analysis. There was no recognition of the fact that many property under socialism the subordination of women aspects of women’s subordination cannot be explained would be at an end. With economic independence derived simply by reference to property, let alone to the bourgeois from inclusion into “waged” work (that is, work earning family form. Because of the emphasis on class relations, wages), women would be equal to men in the productive there also was a universalizing of the family without any and, therefore, social spheres. Marriage in such a context sensitivity to the various family arrangements in different would lose its constraining characteristics and become a cultures, historical periods, and social groups. Such an union of independent partners. analysis allowed the assumption that women’s social status was exclusively bound up with property relations, and, Property Relations and Gender Relations therefore, the alteration of these relations would automati- Property relations lay at the heart of this analysis and took cally result in a fundamental change in their position. It was the social form of marriage. There were two foci for wom- because of these assumptions that Stalin could declare the en’s struggles. Class struggle was the way forward for “woman question” resolved in 1930. women wanting economic independence. If capitalist A second set of problems with this analysis of gender property relations were changed, women would benefit. relations stemmed from the emphasis on class relations This was because capitalism treated women as what Marx and class structures in social transformation. When dis- called a “reserve army” of cheap labor, subsidizing its eco- cussing the Jewish socialists’ demand for a separate fo- nomic outlays by providing facilities—cleaning, ironing, rum within the Socialist International to discuss particular looking after children, and so on—which if paid for as part issues pertaining to the Jewish community (for example,

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anti-Semitism), Marx argued that any such separate iden- Benefits of a Materialist Analysis of Gender Relations tity for a group would be divisive and thus detrimental to The materialist understanding of gender relations did, the working-class struggle against the bourgeoisie. By the however, lead to some real improvements in the economic same argument women, too, could not seek a separate and legal position of women. In 1922, for example, the space within the working-class socialist movement. On Soviet Land Code was passed, which distributed land to the one hand, this resulted in suppressing debate about “all citizens” and gave women the right to land ownership gender relations; on the other hand, it also had the effect for the first time, even though some patterns of social rela- of creating hierarchies of oppression. For example, in tions within the family and the community remained un- China, Mao Zedong declared that the class struggle was challenged. The woman left her natal village to go to her the “primary contradiction” that needed to be resolved husband’s. Once accepted as part of a household, how- before all others. The postponement of other struggles— ever, she owned land not because of the presence of her including women’s issues—was to become a permanent husband or son, but because of her own membership in the feature of state socialist regimes. dvor (household). What made matters more complex was This materialist construction of the woman question, the Family Code, which allowed women to leave house- when linked to a hierarchy of oppressions set out by male holds with their property rights protected. Whereas the party elites, posed difficult issues for the women’s move- Land Code guaranteed the rights of households, the Fam- ments and for groups struggling to organize in their own ily Code protected the rights of women—tension was in- interests. If a socialist revolution was the primary goal of evitable in this context. Variations at the levels of the party organization, then strategic decisions had been implementation meant that women frequently did not get made that might or might not support the struggles of what was due to them, though the legal position was in women. Judith Stacey (1983) has argued, for example, that their favor. the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) made compromises We find similar issues and tensions in the Chinese com- with a socially conservative peasant patriarchy for its sup- munists’ attempt at reforming the old system through the port of the revolution at the expense of women’s rights. Land and Marriage Laws of the 1950s. Considerations of Whether this compromise was a conscious device for gain- political stability were often in conflict with the reformist ing support of peasant male heads of households, or impulses of the communist parties; however, the reformist whether the logic of “primary contradiction” led the CCP impulses in themselves did not always challenge custom- to this position, is arguable. What is pertinent here is that ary practices or discourses. This was most evident in the the materialist understanding of history and gender rela- ways in which the traditional patriarchal monogamous tions allowed the communist state to focus on one form of family continued to be recognized as the norm and was oppression (class-based) rather than another (gender). privileged politically as ensuring social stability. In China, Marxist theory, while making gender relations integral to for example, the Marriage Law of 1950 presented the “new its critique of property regimes, especially under capital- democratic family” as constituted by a monogamous het- ism, does not let women’s specific experiences contribute erosexual couple—monogamy as “natural” and the basis of to revolutionary transformations other than through partici- a new socialist “morality.” During the campaigns to publi- pation in party-organized class struggles. cize the law, the emphasis was not on women’s claiming of The forms that the revolutionary states took also pose rights but on harmonizing interests within the household, issues for gender relations. The Leninist party organization with concessions made by women to patriarchal rituals and was a rigid, hierarchical structure with clear vertical lines practices in the wider interests of social cohesion so much of authority ensuring discipline within its ranks. Represen- needed by a state engaged in a process of economic recon- tation of special interests was difficult within the rubric of struction. The images of women that were constructed at Marxist politics. The debates that raged within the Bolshe- different periods bore the imprint of this particularized un- vik party before the setting up of a separate women’s or- derstanding of gender relations within the boundaries of ganization (Zhenotdel) indicate the passion with which the nation-state—at different points in time, women were specific interests of women were denied, and also the deter- “comrades,” “heroine mothers,” or revolutionary workers. mination with which women within the Bolshevik party An area of public policy where the immediate concerns fought for them to be recognized. Once the battle for a of the state were paramount was demographic control. Pro- separate organization was won, however, a second strug- and antinatal policies were implemented in communist gle—pertaining to its agenda—was launched. The party states, and they reflect the concerns of these political sys- was more successful in this battle. tems and the range of choices denied to women. Access to,

206 COMMUNISM and choice of, contraception has formed an important part able to represent the views of their members only so long as of the demographic story in these countries. Whereas the they did not conflict with communist party policies. Given Soviet Union and eastern European countries largely pur- the suspicion of special interest representation, the domi- sued pronatalist policies, the Chinese state implemented an nance of the communist party, and the only partial reor- antinatalist policy. In the first group of countries, women ganization of gender relations in these countries, women were denied access to contraception; as a result, multiple have lacked choice in their lives. abortions became the last resort for millions of women. The Gender relations in communist states were, thus, con- implications for the health and welfare of women are obvi- sidered subsidiary to the agendas set by a party or state that ous. In China, by contrast, the antinatalist perspective re- is complicit in the perpetuation of patriarchal value systems sulted in the implementation of the “one child policy.” and material relations. The narrow confines of a materialist Women, especially urban women, experienced extraordi- analysis of gender relations proved inadequate for chal- nary state control over their reproductive capacities and lenging patriarchy within the communist framework. The choices. The state has used several measures of control— one-party political state also restricted the avenues open to wide provision of contraception, surveillance of women to women to mobilize independently in their own various in- ensure the use of contraception, and significant disincen- terests. Although the materialist analysis of gender rela- tives for women and their families in case of the birth of a tions provided a powerful critique of property-based second child. The national agenda has been privileged over relations between men and women under capitalism, it has the rights of choice of women in these countries. The inclu- been unable to deliver on the promise of equality and jus- sion of women in public life under communist parties took tice for women within the confines of state communism. place in specific and particular ways. Whereas the mobili- zation of women into waged work was extremely success- See Also ful, the redistribution of nonwaged housework, which CLASS AND FEMINISM; FEMINISM: MARXIST; HOUSEHOLDS depends on a reordering of gender relations, remained AND FAMILIES: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES; largely undisturbed. A “”—a dual responsi- HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: EAST ASIA; HOUSEHOLDS AND bility—was placed on women: to be good workers as well FAMILIES: EASTERN EUROPE; MARXISM; POLITICS AND THE as good mothers, wives, and daughters. Women’s partici- STATE: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES; POLITICS pation in political life remained limited. AND THE STATE: EAST ASIA; POLITICS AND THE STATE: Women resisted both the economic mobilization and the EASTERN EUROPE; SOCIALISM demographic policies implemented by the state. This resist- ance, however, did not have organized expression, because References and Further Reading of the lack of political space within the communist political Buckley, Mary. 1989. Women and ideology in the Soviet Union systems for the articulation and mobilization of special in- Hemel Hempstead: Harvester-Wheatsheaf. terests. In the formal political sphere, dominated by the Christiansen, Flemming, and Shirin M.Rai. 1996. Chinese politics communist parties, women also did not fare well. For ex- and society: An introduction. Hemel Hempstead: Harvester- ample, “of the 30 people who have sat on the Standing Wheatsheaf. Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Commit- Einhorn, Barbara. 1992. Cinderella goes to the market. London: tee of the Chinese Communist Party between 1969 and Verso. 1990s, not one was a woman. Among the 15 people who Engels, Fredrick. 1968. The origins of family, private property and served as Chair and Vice-chairmen of the Central Commit- the state. In Karl Marx and Fredrick Engels, Selected works. tee, not one was a woman, and among almost 725 people London: Lawrence and Wishart. who served as members of the Central Committee in that Evans, Harriet. 1997. Gender and sexuality in China. Cambridge: period only 35 were women” (Christiansen and Rai, Polity. 1996:115–116). Although in most communist states pro- Kruks, Sonia, Rayna Rapp, and Marilyn B.Young, eds. 1989. portional representation determined by the communist Promissory notes: Women in transition to socialism. New party ensured a presence of women in legislative bodies, York: Monthly Review. the absence of women was pronounced in decision-making Rai, Shirin, Hilary Pilkington, and Annie Phizacklea, eds. 1992. bodies. The organizations set up to represent women’s in- Women in the face of change: Eastern Europe, Soviet Union terests—such as the Chinese Women’s Federation—oper- and China. London: Routledge. ated under the “leadership of the communist party” and Stacey, Judith. 1983. Patriarchy and socialist revolution in China. were part of the state and party system. As such, they were Berkeley: University of California Press.

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Wolfe, Margery. 1985. Revolution postponed: Women in contem- Power, “I think community is…people with whom I’ve de- porary China. London: Methuen. veloped not only a history, but a connectedness, a kinship, around some common areas.” And Mary Cross, an activist Shirin M.Rai in Washington, D.C., wrote in the same issue, “A commu- nity is…based on a set of values that people share or want to build together.”

COMMUNITY The Women’s Community The women’s community is characterized not only by the “Community,” of course, has many meanings. For activists obvious bond of being female, and of having a shared com- in the women’s movement, community is defined as a mitment to actively change a male-dominated world, but process. It can be described as a creative process through even more importantly by a commitment to engage in the which they explore, challenge, and validate female identity process of connecting with other sectors and other in a male-dominated society. It can also be described as a populations. Shared values are clearly important, but if a process of creating a cohesive, supportive group from a community is to be more than a homogeneous enclave, it collection of people who, although diverse, share a com- must also stress inclusivity and open-mindedness—and act mitment to work through issues of gender peacefully and accordingly. nonagressively. Bernice Johnson (1981) described this situation as follows: The Creation of Community A fundamental aspect of this community is that it is not Now every once in a while there is a need for people to limited to a static place, time, or group but is something to try to clean out corners and bar the doors and check eve- be created. Because much of society is designed by men, rybody who comes in the door and check what they carry whose perspective is that of power, women throughout his- in and say, “Humph; inside this place the only thing we tory have created groups—salons, clubs, societies, con- are going to deal with is X or Y or Z. And so only the X’s sciousness-raising circles, and now on-line networks, or Y’s or Z’s get to come in.” That place can then be- where issues and needs could be explored from a female come a nurturing place or a very destructive place. perspective. Such groups may also have a religious charac- ter. Rev. Kittredge Cherry of the Universe Fellowship of This concept of community as both sharing and Metropolitan Community Churches, for instance, has said, inclusiveness has resulted in an ongoing effort to make and “Building women’s community is one of my passions, and maintain connections, and it has also involved meeting the creating community among women is also part of my pro- challenge of recognizing and overcoming barriers to com- fession as a minister.” munity. In other words, community, for women, combines Another fundamental aspect of community is that it is activism, inclusion, and self-examination to identify barri- something to which each of us belongs, physically, men- ers to inclusion. To activists in the women’s movement, tally, or both. Our personal identity reflects the communi- community has always meant more than simply a place to ties to which we belong and is in turn reflected in them. In feel “at home.” It is a way to build connections and develop this regard community is sometimes compared explicitly to shared values, and, at its best, a process of overcoming ob- a family: “I have this need to feel a part of a community. It stacles to unity. The following illustrations from the United is not that I want to be a member of this or that group but to States have many counterparts in other societies. be part of a larger ‘family.’ This is important to me” (Utne Reader, 1992). Developments in the United States Although one conventional understanding of commu- In the United States, a significant connection has been nity is related primarily to a particular site, community can made between academics and grassroots activists. During be defined as a shared sense of purpose, values, or identity. the second wave of the women’s mvement, the recognition In this sense, then, we can speak of the civil rights commu- that women had been largely omitted from history and nity, the environmental community, or the Jewish commu- from educational leadership led to nationwide calls for nity. As the word itself implies, community is often women’s studies programs. In 1969, Cornell University in described in terms of ideas held in common. For eample, New York state offered the first course in women’s studies, Tania Adbulahad wrote in 1992, in the magazine Women of New York University (in New York City) offered the first

208 COMMUNITY POLITICS course in women’s law, and San Diego State College in And community itself can have many broader implica- California offered the first women’s studies program, con- tions. In 1994, participants in a conference called “Sustain- sisting of 10 courses. By 1974, more than 1,000 colleges ing Definable Communities” suggested some ramifications and universites in the United States had courses in wom- of community: “If we are committed to sustainability, then en’s studies, and 80 had full programs. This development we are committed to overcoming inequity, racism, and eth- resulted both from ideology—a heightened consciousness nic conflict.” “Quality of life means more than clean air of women’s issues—and from direct action: a campaign by and solving traffic problems—it means addressing concen- the National Organization for Women (NOW) to promote tration of wealth.” “A sustainable community requires com- women’s studies. Thus the new academic courses and pro- mitment to engage in a dynamic natural process that enables grams were directly connected to pragmatic activism. a coalescence of diversity toward a common purpose.” These developments in the United States also incorpo- Whether conventional or unconventional, a collabora- rated the commitment to overcome barriers to community. tive process of change is essential to our understanding of Women’s studies programs and women’s centers were es- the women’s community. tablished that required learners to participate in off-campus advocacy; to ground their research in the need for under- See Also standing women’s daily lives (for instance, how to define FEMINISM: SECOND-WAVE NORTH AMERICAN; WOMEN’S and measure violence against women, leadership by CENTERS; WOMEN’S MOVEMENT, specific topics; WOMEN’S women, and women’s educational advancement); and to STUDIES: OVERVIEW; WOMEN’S STUDIES: UNITED STATES promote new centers to address research findings and fill in researchers’ omissions. Examples include the Center for References and Further Reading Women Policy Studies, which began by focusing on do- Johnson, Bernice. 1981. Coalition politics: Turning the century. mestic violence and then expanded its coverage to address Speech at the West Coast Women’s Music Festival. a range of issues critical to women’s equity; the National Utne Reader. 1992 (July-August):86. Women’s Law Center, which has examined and advocated Women of Power. 1992. No. 22:7. for equity in legal status; the Project on the Status of Sharon Parker Women and Girls in Education, which has confronted the issue of sexual assault, and women’s safety in general, on campuses; and Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual (WATER), which has sought to update Christian COMMUNITY POLITICS teachings to reflect, and change, women’s lives and needs. Today, most colleges and universities in the United The meaning of the term community politics varies consid- States have not only women’s studies programs but also erably depending on the cultural and political context. It centers for women and women’s research centers. Such became popular in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s centers take an interest in topics concerning women in soci- to refer to the grassroots, locally based activism associated ety and also maintain links with the world outside with popular democratic protests, such as the civil rights, academia. The Wellesley College Center for Research on black power, women’s, and environmental movements. In Women (in Massachesetts) has guest researchers who are these contexts, community politics was counterposed to in residence for up to a year, studying and writing. The “traditional,” “mainstream,” or “electoral” politics, and car- Union Institute—a nontraditional university in Washing- ried with it assumptions about the connections between new ton, D.C., that specializes in individualized learning—has a forms of political participation and popular empowerment. Center for Women whose mission is to form coalitions be- In many other contexts, however, particularly in India (and tween academics and local residents that will work on over- south Asia, more generally), in the United Kingdom, and coming societal impediments to women’s achievement. increasingly in the countries of the Commonwealth of In- Activism, of course, tends to imply at least some degree dependent States, eastern Europe, the Middle East, and of conflict. Mary Cross spoke of this too in Women in north Africa, it has come to be associated with what is also Power. “I think we have to have conflict; otherwise, we’re termed communalism, a politics characterized by the mobi- making assumptions about those values and beliefs that lization of people on the bases of religious identification, maybe we don’t all share. And without that conflict, we are often of a fundamentalist sort. With respect to both uses of missing an opportunity to build that community a little bit the term, key issues are how community is defined and who stronger than it was before.” participates in creating—and maintaining—that definition.

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History of the Concept of Community politics, they have also begun to be addressed in Anglo- Raymond Plant (1978) noted that community has long American contexts. Critics and activists in both arenas (see, been a contested concept in political theory and practice. for example, Young, 1991; and Howard, 1993) note that Although the term generally has positive connotations, definitions of community cannot be separated from the evoking images of home, belonging, and connection and structuring of ideology, power, and inequality in any par- providing a powerful impetus for mobilization, the other ticular society, and that no community, however defined, side of inclusion and belonging is exclusion. The concept will ever be totally homogeneous: its membership will be of community has also been used to exclude those defined differentiated by sex, age, life stage, class, and other fac- as other, and to dominate those defined as members of a tors. How those differences are welcomed, denied, or oth- given community on the basis of purported “community erwise negotiated must become a critical question of values.” Many of these issues have proved to be topics of “community politics.” Why are some identities (out of the intense debate among contemporary Anglo-American whole complex of possibilities) chosen as “central” in any political philosophers, presented under the general rubric particular context? Who chooses? How are those choices of “liberalism versus communitarianism.” enforced? Who defines what constitutes membership in a For some, community refers to a geographic area and is community or what constitutes appropriate behavior for effectively synonymous with neighborhood in the sense of members? How are the boundaries of membership created a physical environment. Others emphasize the significance and maintained? of interpersonal relationships and argue that community is essentially a social construct, the viability of which de- Women’s Roles pends on ongoing interactions among its members. Still Feminist historians and anthropologists have noted the im- others focus on what Beth Roy refers to as “metaphoric” portance of women to the creation and maintenance of communities, based on presumed cultural or other community values and boundaries (Kaplan, 1982; Rosaldo commonalities among individuals—for example, the and Lamphere, 1974; Ruddick, 1989). One could argue, in “black community,” the “women’s community,” the “Jew- fact, that in the United States, such political participation as ish community.” Although there may sometimes be a con- most women engaged in during the nineteenth and early gruence between such culturally or geographically defined twentieth centuries was primarily what might be termed communities and class-based divisions, “community poli- “community politics” (see Baker, 1984), expressing “qual- tics” often tends to treat issues of class as somewhat less ity-of-life” concerns. Some feminist theorists in the United fundamental than those of ethnicity, culture, or identity. States have argued (Kaplan, 1980; Ruddick, 1989) that Linking the construction of community to a sort of community-based mobilization around these quality-of- “identity politics,” however, highlights the problematic na- life or survival issues represents the predominant form of ture of both communities and community politics. The lan- women’s political participation cross-culturally. They sug- guage of “the community” implies that there is a single, gest that (in most societies) women’s responsibility for nur- homogeneous, unified (if not monolithic) group that shares turing children and family results in a particular propensity certain critical characteristics or a particular set of political to engage in such struggles and explains the disproportion- perspectives. But a sense of community must be created; it ate presence of women in these forms of activism in many does not arise naturally simply from living in a particular cultural contexts. place or from being born into a particular group. And al- Closely connected with these perspectives on commu- though a sense of community can be empowering—if it nity politics and participation is a view of the relationship mobilizes new participants into the political arena and ena- between participation and “empowerment.” Classical theo- bles them to find their voice—it also can serve to reinforce, rists of democratic participation such as John Stuart Mill or protect from scrutiny, existing relations of domination and Alexis de Tocqueville argued that participation in pub- and subordination (particularly of men over women, for lic affairs has important educative effects on those who par- example, or of traditionalists over modernizers) within par- ticipate: it engages them in “public business,” increases ticular communities and within larger political entities, on their sense of belonging to the larger political entity, and the basis of what may be represented as community values, increases their commitment to broader democratic process. tradition, or community autonomy. Similarly, some contemporary feminist and participatory Although these problematic uses of community have democratic critics have argued that the participation of been brought to the fore quite dramatically in those areas working-class women and women of ethnic and racial minori- where communalism is the dominant form of community ties in community-based politics has provided opportunities

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for both individual and community empowerment of those Ruddick, Sara. 1989. Maternal thinking: Toward a politics of who were previously marginalized and ignored, and gener- peace. Boston: Beacon. ated radical critiques of the workings of power in the for- Young, Iris Marion. 1991. Justice and the politics of difference. mal political institutions and processes of the larger society Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. (Cockburn, 1977; Evans and Boyte, 1986). Martha A.Ackelsberg Nevertheless, both in the context of “communalist” politics and within U.S.-style community politics, women can be ignored or relegated to secondary status by those COMPOSERS who claim to represent “authentic” community values. See MUSIC: COMPOSERS. What is clear, then, is that neither “communities” nor “community politics”—as concepts or practices—are nec- COMPULSORY HETEROSEXUALITY essarily either liberating or oppressive to women or to other See FEMINISM: LESBIAN. so-called “marginalized” groups. Definitions of marginal- ity, themselves, are the products of complex, and dynamic, interactions between and among “communities” and the institutions of the state. COMPUTER SCIENCE In short, questions of identity, community, and power are at the center of many contemporary political struggles. Computer science is one of the three subfields in As participants in those conflicts, women in a variety of informatics—information technology and information sys- cultural contexts will continue both to affect and to be af- tems science being the other two. They share the same ba- fected by the ways those questions are posed and answered. sic knowledge, but the directions of specialization differ. Computer science is more theoretically oriented, including See Also programming and databases at the professional level and COMMUNITY; DEMOCRACY; IDENTITY POLITICS; LIBERALISM artificial intelligence and algorithms at the research level. In working life, computer scientists are people who design, References and Further Reading run, and maintain information systems. Ackelsberg, Martha A. 1995. Identity politics, political identities: The introduction of new technology was expected to help Thoughts toward a multicultural politics. In Frontiers: A break down the gender division in the labor market and nar- Journal of Women’s Studies (Fall). row the wage gap between women and men. However, there Baker, Paula. 1984. The domestication of politics: Women and is no evidence that technological change has so far had any American political society, 1780–1920. American Historial impact in promoting equality in these essential aspects. A Review, 89:620–647. negative attitude toward technology has also been present— Cockburn, Cynthia. 1977. The local state. London: Pluto. for example, among the West German women’s movement Evans, Sara, and Harry Boyte. 1986. Free spaces: The sources of in the 1970s until the mid-1980s. Computer technology was democratic change in America. New York: Harper and Row. considered male-dominated, while the women’s movement Freitag, Sandria B. 1989. Collective action and community: Pub- focused on the social implications of technology. lic arenas and the emergence of communalism in North In- dia. Berkeley: University of California Press The Role of Women in Computer Science Howard, Rhoda E. 1993. Cultural absolutism and the nostalgia for The early history of computer programming includes a community. Human Rights Quarterly 15:315–338. number of women pioneers. The best known is Lady Ada Kaplan, Temma. 1982. Female consciousness and collective ac- Lovelace, considered the first programmer (1843, United tion: The case of Barcelona, 1910–1918. Signs: Journal of Kingdom). Her role as a programmer is overemphasized, Women in Culture and Society 7(3):545–566. but the programming language ADA bears her name, and Plant, Raymond R. 1978. Community: Concept, conception, and she became a female “role model” in the field. Grace Hop- ideology. Politics and Society 8(1):79–107. per (United States) supervised a group at the Eckert- Rosaldo, Michelle Zimbalist, and Louise Lamphere. 1974. Mauchly Computer Corporation which created the first Woman, culture and society. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Uni- compiler (1952). This group also developed the longest- versity Press. lived programming language, COBOL. Another female Roy, Beth. 1994. Some trouble with cows: Making sense of social computer pioneer, Jean Sammet (United States) taught the conflict. Berkeley: University of California Press. first computer courses in American universities.

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Women have gained admittance into low-skilled data percent felt they received comparable pay when they started entry jobs and professional software programming. Female but were not promoted as rapidly as their male colleagues. computer scientists are also found at the management level and as technical personnel, programmers, analysts, compu- Barriers to Women in Computer Science Education ter operators, teachers, and researchers. Higher up in the Another barrier to entry is the educational system. Segrega- hierarchy there are, however, very few women, and overall tion starts early; boys have more access to computers than women are underrepresented in computer science. girls, and much software is designed to attract boys. Sci- A commonplace view is that women are not interested ence is not made interesting in schools, and girls are not in technology or in computers. There are attitudinal and encouraged to pursue sciences. cultural obstacles, from differences in the upbringing of For undergraduates, four problems to entry and comple- boys and girls to workplace culture. Men and women also tion of computer science studies are reported. First, girls often emphasize different aspects of computers—technol- have difficulties with self-esteem. Second, there is a lack of ogy versus implications. Courses in management informa- mentoring and role models. Third, gender discrimination is tion systems (MIS) have emerged at many business schools perceived. Fourth, there are difficulties in balancing career as an alternative for students desiring to enter the comput- and family responsibilities. Instead of fighting these prob- ing profession. Women are better represented in MIS than lems women often opt out of computer science. in computer science. The explanation for this choice may At universities, “pipeline shrinkage” is noticeable (as provide an answer to the declining number of female com- women move along the academic pipeline, their percentage puter scientists. continues to shrink). Although somewhat more than 50 per- cent of university students are female in the United States Barriers to Women in the Profession (as in most western countries), relatively few take a bach- Attitudinal and cultural barriers to computer science cer- elor’s degree in computer science, and even fewer take a tainly differ between countries. In Scandinavia, for exam- master’s or doctor’s degree. Less than 10 percent of com- ple, the opportunities are relatively fair. puter science faculty members at universities are female. In Germany female computer scientists have problems Two severe barriers are identified. First, the “tenure with obtaining equal qualification status and with social clock versus the biological clock” often results in dropouts differences. They try to counter such shortcomings with to industry or an independent career—for example, as a special qualifications and, in many cases, advance their ca- consultant. Second, female doctoral students usually prefer reer at the expense of their family situation: only 5 percent a female mentor, but the number of female faculty mem- of female computer scientists have children, compared bers is low. The resulting supervision problem is twofold: with 62 percent of men. national backgrounds can influence how male mentors In Spain women’s presence in the labor market is low treat female students, and research interests may differ. In compared with other OECD (Organization for Economic artificial intelligence, for example, designing tutoring sys- Cooperation and Development) countries, and they are less tems attracts women more than men. There are also women qualified than men. They are notably absent from technical interested in basic theoretical research and software engi- studies and therefore from computer science. neering, which are by no means gender-biased and should In Africa women’s work is often invisible, because they not present a supervision problem. generally work in the informal sector. A Nigerian report tells of lower salaries and lower status for female computer scien- Increasing the Number of Female Computer Scientists tists, although their capabilities and work tasks are the same as The shortage of qualified people in computer science and those of their male colleagues. It is also reported to be almost female underrepresentation in the field have led to national impossible to combine a profession with home and children. initiatives. Britain, for example, has a “Women in IT” (in- In the United States the computer culture is not friendly to formation technology) campaign, educational schemes women. Two studies of female engineers and engineering such as “Girls into Science and Technology,” and a host of undergraduates found that 70 percent of women felt they had women’s training workshops. In West Germany a working to work harder than their male counterparts to get compara- group within the Society for Computer Science was estab- ble pay; 58 percent felt that harassment of some sort was lished in 1986 and became a specialized group called prevalent in the workplace; 50 percent felt that they viewed Women’s Work and Computer Science. In the United ethical issues differently from men; 39 percent felt they States the Association for (AWC) would be penalized if they took maternity leave; and 78 was established. The introduction of the Equal Status Law

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(United States) is reported to have increased the percentage education, work, entertainment, and private life is the in- of female engineering students. There are also several creasing dominance of the computer. This article briefly groups—for example, the Women’s Action Alliance and traces the history of women in computing and notes some Educational Equity Concepts—that organize courses for of the major issues that have concerned feminists working teachers. Networks such as Systers (mostly U.S.-based) in the area for the past 25 years. The rapid growth of com- and WITI (an international network of women in technol- puting since World War II has prompted predictions of a ogy) provide a medium for mentoring among female com- major social transformation (Olerup et al., 1985). Femi- puter science professionals in business and academia. nists in the field ask if a new technology alone can create There are also conferences, seminars, and workshops for social change. Further, can that change benefit women? researchers in computer science—for example, the confer- Many feminist writers fear that current inequalities be- ence on women, work, and computerization supported by tween men and women will be perpetuated and widened by the International Federation for Information Processing. developments in computing.

See Also Gender and Computing COMPUTING: OVERVIEW; CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY; Although technology itself might be construed as neutral, EDUCATION: TECHNOLOGY; INFORMATION REVOLUTION; many observers have described the contexts and culture of INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY; NETWORKS, ELECTRONIC computing, in common with many other technologies, as deeply gendered (Cockburn, 1980; Cockburn and Ormrod, References and Further Reading 1993; Game and Pringle, 1983; Greenbaum, 1994; Perry Adam, Alison, and Jenny Owen, eds. 1994. Proceedings of the and Greber, 1990). fifth international conference on women, work and compu- The increasing recognition of the stratified nature of terization: Breaking old boundaries, building new forms. computer work, of computer education, and of the lan- Manchester: UMIST. guage and meanings surrounding computing has led during Bromley, H., and M.Apple, eds. 1988. Education/technology/ the last twenty-five years of the twentieth century to a vir- power. Albany: State University of New York Press. Commu- tual avalanche of women’s publications, special editions of nications of the ACM. 1990. Vol. 33, no. 11 (November: Spe- journals, and meetings—for example, the now well estab- cial issue on “Women and computing”). lished “Women, Work, and Computerization” conferences. ——. 1995. Vol. 38, no. 1 (January: Special issue on “Women in A major strength of this activity is the diversity of discipli- computing”): 26–82. nary backgrounds from which it springs and the richness of Eriksson, Inger V., Barbara A.Kitchenham, and G.Tijdens, the debates it initiates. eds. 1991. Women, work and computerization: Understand- ing and overcoming bias in work and education. Amsterdam: Historical Background North-Holland. Machines for mechanical computation have been known Grundy, A.E., et al., eds. 1997. Women, work, and computeriza- for almost three hundred years. The historical record lists tion: spinning a web from past to future. Proceedings of the notables such as the Frenchman Blaise Pascal and the Ger- sixth international IFIP conference. Bonn, Germany, 24–27, man Gottfried von Leibniz. Women are not entirely absent. May. Berlin: Springer. In the earliest period, Ada Lovelace, daughter of the Eng- Kick, Russel C., Jr., and F.Stuart Wells. 1993. Women in computer lish poet Lord Byron, played a significant role in develop- science. SIGCSE Bulletin 25(1):203–207. ing a computer program for the “analytic engine” designed Stein, Dorothy. 1987. Sex and the COBOL cabal. New Scientist, by Charles Babbage in the nineteenth century. The contri- 17 Sept.:79–80. bution of Ada Lovelace was recognized by the U.S. Depart- ment of Defense when it named a powerful computer Inger V.Eriksson language “Ada.” The computer did not develop on a significant scale until after World War II. Wartime needs in North America and Great COMPUTING: Overview Britain led to the development of machines with calculating power vastly superior to that provided by women using hand Information technology is radically transforming society in calculators (Perry and Greber, 1990). The links between the ways that have made significant parts of our lives unrecog- military and the development of the computer continue to nizable in the twenty-first century. Central to shifts in shape its acceptability and patterns of work in computing.

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Women have been associated with computer software little control. The increasing equalization of work in the de- since the earliest days, although their contribution is yet to veloped world has been characterized as a “feminizing” of be fully documented. Grace Hopper, an American, had a work, with more men from white-collar and blue-collar significant impact on the computer language COBOL; occupations having to adapt to contingent patterns of work Adele Goldstine is thought to have been involved in de- previously associated with women (Haraway, 1991). signing software for the United States’ large computer At the same time, the computer presents possibilities for ENIAC during World War II (Perry and Greber, 1990). Yet a break in the pattern of work that has prevailed in the de- the occupation rapidly became sex-typed. Men operated the veloped world since the industrial revolution. The separa- large early computers while women fed them data (Game tion of home and work, which occurred when mechanized and Pringle, 1983). With the increasing demarcation of work was transferred to large factories, underpinned the hardware (machines) and software (programs), men be- separation of public life (usually associated with men) came associated with the development of machines and from private life (usually the domain of women). This sepa- women with data entry. The emerging area of programming, ration in turn justified the sexual division of labor—a resil- though initially attractive to women, has become associ- ient division that undervalues women’s work in the home ated with men, at least at the higher levels. In the developed and declares paid labor in the factory or office the domain world in the early 1990s, women held roughly one-third of of men. This sharply defined boundary between home and positions overall in systems analysis, programming, con- work may well be blurred as the computer allows for the sulting, and informatics (Mackinnon et al., 1993). possibility of performing paid work from one’s home. With The gendered nature of higher education worldwide ex- the assistance of telephones, facsimile machines, and pho- acerbates the sex typing of computer work. In universities tocopiers, employees in many businesses can now conduct and technical colleges, women students constitute a tiny their work without leaving their dwelling. minority in electronic engineering, the training ground for This new form of work, variously called telework, the architects of supercomputing and artificial intelligence. telecommuting, or remote work, has significant benefits for The number of women in computer science in the developd the environment (less time is taken up in travel, traffic jams world is decreasing, a phenomenon that has been attrib- are avoided, the atmosphere is less polluted by fossil fuels) uted, paradoxically, to the introduction of microcomputers and for regional redevelopment. The “electronic cottage” in schools and to the violence and competitiveness of com- allows, in theory, a blending of the nurturant and the in- puter games, which do not, in general, appeal to girls. come-generating work of the household. Yet feminists monitoring this new working style observe that women who The Global Village and the Electronic Cottage lack significant professional skills are disadvantaged, often The computer, allied with communication technologies experiencing isolation, exploitation, and the horrors of the such as satellites, propels vast amounts of information sweated laborer of the nineteenth century or the developing around the world, making national boundaries more per- country (Huws, 1984; Wajcman and Probert, 1988). meable and bridging vast distances. This shrinking is en- The issue of telework raises again the central question capsulated in Marshall McLuhan’s famous expression “the relevant to the entire computing field. Does computing en- global village.” Ownership and control of the large media hance women’s public and private lives, or does it reinforce and electronic companies that encircle the globe is vested the sexual division of labor? Can new technology create in men, usually from a handful of wealthy developed coun- social change? Curiously, as telecommuting has become tries, whose decisions influence national and international increasingly attractive for professionals, the concern ex- economic policy. In order to maximize profits, large corpo- pressed by feminists for lower-paid workers has virtually rations shift work sites to developing countries where labor disappeared from the literature. Few women are currently costs are cheaper, often employing women workers in con- writing about the phenomenon. Telework has not devel- ditions that would be unacceptable in their own, more regu- oped on the major scale predicted in the 1980s partly be- lated economies. cause of managers’ concerns about loss of control and The ensuing international division of labor destabilizes employees’ fears of isolation and exploitation. However, it work patterns in developed countries, where full-time jobs is likely to become increasingly important as work contin- are shrinking and “contingent” work (temporary, short- ues to become more flexible and more jobs are lost from term, contract, casual) is increasing (Greenbaum, 1994). the core workforce (Greenbaum, 1994). Feminists’ con- Thus, the destinies of women in both developing and devel- cerns that the electronic cottage may consign women to the oped countries are linked in ways over which they have home and child care at a time when women have made

214 COMPUTING: OVERVIEW many advances in education and paid work ensure that the generally associated with women’s patterns of issue will continue to arouse lively debate. socialization. They question the style of thinking dominant in computer programming, claiming that the formal, ab- Patterns of Debate stract, linear thinking central to computer programming is Feminist analysis of women in computing has paralleled less hospitable to women (Turkle and Papert, 1990). major theoretical developments in feminism and in the so- The most influential feminist poststructuralist writer is cial sciences and humanities since the 1970s. Writers have undoubtedly Donna Haraway, whose frequently cited work generally avoided arguing that technology determines so- is a clarion call for women to “refuse an anti-science meta- cial change, attempting instead to map the location of physics, a demonology of technology,” to “embrace the women in the computer industry and to highlight women’s skillful task of reconstructing the boundaries of daily life” exclusion from computer education, software design, and (1991:181). Haraway exhorts women to take responsibility computer work due to underlying patterns of male domi- for the “social relations of science and technology,” to see nance. Drawing on the feminist notion of the sexual divi- the subversive potential of computing and information sion of labor, writers demonstrated the way in which technology, to form alliances with other marginalized computing education and work became sex-typed (Game groups, and to appropriate computing and information and Pringle, 1983). In order to explain the relegation of technology to their own ends (see also Plant, 1997; Her- women to the menial level of computing work, writers ring, 1996). It remains to be seen if current patterns of gen- drew on the Marxist “deskilling” hypothesis developed by der bias in computing can be disrupted and the promise of Braverman, which suggested that the erosion of the skills information technology realized for all. of low-paid workers was a necessary step in capitalists’ in- creasing appetite for control over the workplace (Wajcman, See Also 1991). Braverman’s labor process theory and the sexual di- COMPUTER SCIENCE; COMPUTING: PARTICIPATORY AND vision of labor together provided a framework for explana- FEMINIST DESIGN; CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY; tions of women’s exclusion. CYBORG ANTHROPOLOGY; EDUCATION: TECHNOLOGY; By the 1980s arguments that stressed the social construc- INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY; NETWORKS, ELECTRONIC; PART- tion of masculinity and femininity were increasingly used TIME AND CASUAL WORK; TELEWORKING; WORK: to explain the differential access of boys and girls to com- OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION; WORK: PATTERNS puter education and of men and women to particular forms of computer work. Writers such as Cynthia Cockburn References and Further Reading (1985; Cockburn and Ormrod, 1993) demonstrated that the Cockburn, Cynthia. 1985. Machinery of dominance: Women, men, sexual division of labor was involved in the conception and and technical know-how. London: Pluto. design of technologies. Writers also implicated the mili- ——, and S.Ormrod. 1993. Gender and technology in the making. tary’s continuing connection with developments in comput- London: Sage. ing. It has been argued that the military represents our Erisson, I.V., B.A.Kitchenham, and K.G.Tijdens, eds. 1991. culture’s definition of masculinity in its clearest form (Perry Women, work and computerization: Understanding and over- and Greber, 1990). The association of computing with mas- coming bias in work and education. Amsterdam: Elsevier. culinity is reinforced by computer games, often the first Game, Ann, and Rosemary Pringle, 1983. Gender at work. Syd- point of contact with computers for young people. The so- ney: Allen and Unwin. cially constructed nature of masculinity and femininity re- Greenbaum, Joan. 1994. Windows on the workplace: The tempori- mains of central importance as an explanation for the zation of work. In Alison Adam and Jenny Owen, eds. Break- continuing division of labor in computing and for the de- ing old boundaries: Building new forms. Proceedings of the creasing numbers of girls and young women in computing Fifth International Conference on Women, Work and Com- classes in school and in undergraduate courses. puterization, Manchester. Haraway, Donna. 1991. Simians, cyborgs and women (The Language, Meaning, and Feminist Epistemology reinvention of nature). London: Routledge. More recently writers have drawn from postmodernist and Herring, Susan, ed. 1996. Computer-mediated communication: poststructuralist debates in order to deconstruct the lan- Linguistic, social and cross-cultural perspectives, Amster- guages, meanings, and representations surrounding the dam: Benjamins. culture of computing. There they find themes of domina- Huws, Ursula. 1986. New technology homeworkers. Employment tion, control, competition, and escape, themes that are not Gazette (January): 13–1.

215 COMPUTING: PARTICIPATORY AND FEMINIST DESIGN

Mackinnon, Alison, Martha Blomqvist, and Maria Vehviläinen. The first two reasons are practical. The third, which is 1993. Gendering computer work: An international compari- based on experiments on “working life democracy” in son, in AI and Society 7(4):280–294. Scandinavia in the early 1960s, is partly political but also Olerup, A., L.Schneider, and E.Monod, eds. 1985. Women, work practical: participation was seen as means of increasing and computerization: Opportunities and disadvantages. Am- productivity and efficiency. sterdam: Elsevier. A large-scale program for improving working life and Perry, R., and L.Greber. 1990. Women and computers: An intro- enhancing industrial democracy was conducted by the Nor- duction. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society wegian Federation of Trade Unions (which wanted to em- 16(1):74–101. power workers), in cooperation with the Norwegian Plant, Sadie. 1997. Zeroes and ones: Digital women and the new Employers’ Federation (which wanted to rationalize and technoculture. London: Fourth Estate. improve organizational development). Scandinavian un- Turkle, Sherry, and Seymour Papert. 1990. Epistemological ions initiated a series of associated research projects in the pluralism: Style and voices within the computer culture. 1970s and 1980s to develop alternative views and knowl- Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 16(1): edge about computers in the workplace, and to strengthen 128–157. workers (labor) relative to employers (capital). In Norway, Wajcman, Judy. 1991. Feminism confronts technology. London: the most important result of the democracy program was Polity. legislation specifying that workers and their representa- Wajcman, Judy, and Belinda Probert. 1988. New technology tives would be kept informed about systems used for plan- outwork. In E.Willis, ed. Technology and the labour process: ning and performing work, and about proposed changes in Australian case studies. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. such systems. The law emphasized sufficient education for using the systems, and participation in the design process, Alison Mackinnon the main idea being that the workers themselves should control work and be responsible for performing it. Similar laws were passed in Denmark and Sweden. In the 1980s and and 1990s, Scandinavian approaches to COMPUTING: system design were critical in attitude and were user-ori- Participatory and Feminist Design ented rather than management-oriented. Techniques were developed for users’ participation in analysis, design, and Participatory design and feminist design are not finished implementation of computer-based systems; and because products but processes. Participatory design means that fu- of the practical benefits of involving users in design, other ture users of a computer-based system take part in develop- European, North American, and Australian researchers ing it. Feminist design is used here to talk about computer have also worked on creating techniques for participatory design processes in which women’s interests and perspec- design. The Scandinavian participatory design projects in- tives are taken into account. volved large, tailored in-house computer systems, with us- ers from strong, cooperative trade unions. Techniques for Participatory Design system description and system presentation (such as How users are involved in designing a computer-based sys- prototyping) with users have also been developed, expand- tem varies: they can act as representatives of a larger user ing the objective from helping system designers to enhanc- community, can be directly involved in the design, can be ing communication and discussion between designers and consultants, can be actual collaborators, and can have more users; the term cooperative design describes this approach or less influence—that is, greater or lesser power to make more accurately. design decisions. Common reasons for using a participatory process to Feminist Design design computer systems are: To discuss feminist design, one has to consider system de- sign from a feminist perspective. This feminist perspec- 1. To improve the “fit” between the system and the work it tive can be applied to criticize methods and work styles in will perform. system design, as well as the values underlying system 2. To help users develop realistic expectations about the design as a discipline and a profession. A starting point is system and reduce their resistance to change. to look at the consequences of using computers at work 3. To increase workplace democracy. and in society.

216 CONFLICT RESOLUTION: MEDIATION AND NEGOTIATION

Analyses of technology by feminist theorists, such as At least one lesson of participatory and feminist compu- Cockburn’s discussion of technology in the printing indus- ter design would seem to be, then, that a computer system try (1983), tend to conclude that neither technology devel- useful in work represents a new basis for evaluating the opment nor technology itself is neutral. In systems design, success of the system—and that this may be more appropri- most traditional methods and work styles seem to operate ate than many traditional design methods and projects. within a reductionist, rationalistic, scientific paradigm. This implies that work processes can be described precisely See Also and then automated—a belief that excludes informal, so- COMPUTER SCIENCE; COMPUTING: OVERVIEW; CYBERSPACE cial, and tacit knowledge. The same ways of formalizing AND VIRTUAL REALITY; EDUCATION: TECHNOLOGY; work processes have been used in traditional industry (as TECHNOLOGY on assembly lines) and in office work (such as typing pools), so they have affected not only predominantly male References and Further Reading industrial workers but also predominantly female office Adam, A., et al., eds. 1994. Women, work, and computerization: workers. Even when the methods seem to be more sophisti- Breaking old boundaries, building new forms. Proceedings of cated—for example, when they incorporate techniques for Fifth International Conference, Manchester. Amsterdam and describing tacit and informal aspects of work—the familiar New York: Elsevier. metaphor of the assembly line is still considered valid for Bjerknes, G., P.Ehn, and M.Kyng, eds. 1987. Computers and de- describing modern workflows. mocracy: A Scandinavian challenge. Aldershot: Avebury. Participatory design in general and feminist design in Cockburn, C. 1983. Brothers, male dominance, and technological particular represent an alternative to this rationalistic ap- change. London: Pluto. proach. Involving future users in computer design may Ehn, P. 1989. Work-oriented design of computer artifacts. mean emphasizing aspects of work other than those most Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum. easily described and formalized; focusing on reproduction Emery, M., ed. 1993. Participative design for participative de- of information or on the security of information may run mocracy. Centre for Continuing Education, Australian Na- counter to a highly rationalistic, formal, and efficient infor- tional University. mation flow. Female-dominated work tends to be oriented Eriksson, I.V., et al., eds. 1991. Women, work and computeriza- toward reproduction and care of information as well as to- tion: Understanding and overcoming bias in work and edu- ward people and artifacts; thus a feminist design process cation. Proceedings of Conference, Helsinki. Amsterdam needs to include nonformalizable aspects of work—some- and New York: North-Holland Elsevier. thing that can be done only by engaging and involving Green, E., et al., eds. 1991. Gendered by design? London: Taylor workers in the design process. A feminist perspective al- and Francis. lows alternative views on computer systems and on the Greenbaum, J., and M.Kyng, eds. 1991. Design at work: Coop- work organization these systems are meant to support. erative design of computer systems. Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum. Thus introducing multiple voices—other disciplines and Gustavsen, B. 1992. Dialogue and development. Assen/ other methods—can challenge and change system design. Maastricht: Arbetslivscentrum and Van Gorcum. A feminist perspective can also be used to examine the Mumford, E. 1983. Designing human systems. Manchester, U.K.: basis and and values of system design. Often, women tend Manchester Business School. to be interested in technology because it helps them do Tijdens, K., et al., eds. 1989. Women, work, and computerization: their work—not because it is “advanced” or because it con- Forming new alliances. Proceedings of Conference, Amster- fers status. Women are generally interested in technology dam. Amsterdam and New York: North-Holland Elsevier. that is useful, easy to learn, and easy to use. For example, Tone Bratteteig researchers have found that women generally do not learn all the features of the latest version of a word processing program unless they recognize a need for these features. (Not only women react this way, of course; thus an initially simpler computer system, which could be made more com- CONFLICT RESOLUTION: plex as the user becomes more skillful and requires more Mediation and Negotiation sophistication, is often suggested. Interestingly, however, such a system is just as difficult to build as an initially com- Conflict—a pervasive part of life—can be defined as disa- plex system.) greement or dispute over issues, attitudes, opinions, or

217 CONFLICT RESOLUTION: MEDIATION AND NEGOTIATION behavior. It can take many forms, from words to violence, have the trust, respect, and confidence of the contending and people engaged in a conflict can range from two indi- parties; have influence over both sides; and be able to com- viduals to virtually the entire world. Women (like men) municate effectively with both. Mediators are often used in have caused and participated in conflicts and have also traditional societies, in large corporations, and in regional, been instrumental in solving them. national, and international political conflicts, among other settings. Conflict and Power A negotiator, in the simplest sense of the term, is an indi- Power is a significant element in conflicts. In this regard, vidual who bargains. Such a person can negotiate a com- psychology contributes to escalation or deescalation of a mercial or political agreement or, at times, legislation. conflict because, consciously or unconsciously, the con- Negotiation in all three settings—commerce, politics, and tending parties form a perception of their relative strength. law—often involves applying psychology. A skilled nego- This perception of power is based on one or more of its tiator should be able to reach an agreement acceptable to facets: power can be, for example, intellectual, hierarchi- both parties; in some cases, a negotiator can impose an cal, material, military, cultural, traditional, customary, le- agreement. gal, or related to nationality, class, or gender. When power Conflict resolution, as an art and a technique, has flour- on both sides of a conflict is more or less equal, it is often ished in recent years in much of the western world, particu- described as symmetrical; when power is unequal, it is said larly in Anglo-Saxon countries. Its practitioners often base to be asymmetrical. their approach on several assumptions: that there is good- Those who regard relationships in terms of wielding ness in every human being; that peace is better than war; power may not value human dignity, and that in itself is a and that in every conflict the parties will sooner or later source of conflict. Individual, group, and national interests reach a point where they need to negotiate and need a me- will eventually cause conflict if relationships are exclu- diator to enhance the negotiation process. sively competitive and are not mutually rewarding. It should be noted that these assumptions are not univer- Not all conflict is destructive; some conflicts remain sally held, nor is conflict resolution universally practiced: harmless and inconsequential, and some can even be ben- for example, throughout history there have been those who eficial. Conflict between individuals, for instance, can re- believe that war is inevitable or even desirable and those duce tension and lead them to a better understanding of (usually the powerful) who believe that power always each other. In general, conflicts can enhance understanding rules; and advocates of nonviolence, such as conscientious when those involved, whether individuals or groups, dem- objectors, often lack the strength to intervene in conflicts. onstrate caring and want to resolve the conflict. By con- Also, the process of conflict resolution has drawn criticism: trast, conflicts tend to escalate when the relationship is in 1995, a report by the Refugees Studies Program argued based on power rather than on caring. that this approach “does not take the element of power and control into consideration.” Conflict Resolution Conflict resolution can be assessed by considering those Conflict resolution, mediation, and negotiation are con- who receive training in the process; by measuring the cerned with human nature, needs, and aspirations. deescalation of strife when these techniques are intro- Conflict resolution is the process by which individuals duced; by noting whether the parties to a conflict are in- and groups mediate and negotiate to deescalate and settle a deed engaged in finding mutually beneficial soloutions; by dispute. This process is often described as an art: it requires asking whether the approach does increase conscientious- time, interest, skill, specific techniques for addressing the ness; and by determining to what degree the parties have conflicting parties, knowledge of the situation, and an un- internalized the concept—that is, adopted it as a value of derstanding of the factors—ideological, structural, or cul- their own. The assessment is likely to vary, depending on tural—that led to the conflict. Conflict resolution is most the context. likely to succeed in contexts of symmetrical power rela- In the Middle East, for instance, conflicts have generally tionships. ended with one party losing and the other succeeding, or in A mediator is an individual who intervenes in a conflict, a stalemate. Negotiations involving mediation have often usually by request. The mediator’s aim may be to settle the been based on such an asymmetrical power relationship conflict; however, a mediator has no power to impose a set- that one party views them as invalid—as with agreements tlement but can only offer advice or recommendations. To negotiated between Israel and the Palestinians. In this re- ensure the success of the intervention, the mediator should gion, hegemony tends to be an obstacle to conflict

218 CONFLICT RESOLUTION: MEDIATION AND NEGOTIATION resolution: each contending party tries to dominate. An- professionalism in this work would have a positive effect other obstacle, in some Middle Eastern conflicts, is that one on values regarding women’s rights and women’s role in party ignores the existence of the other: conflict has esca- Middle Eastern society, perhaps especially as decision lated in this way in Algeria, Turkey, Iran, and the Sudan. makers; and that more training would enhance women’s It is probably fair to say that in many conflicts in the role in society as citizens and active partners. Women’s ac- Middle East, neither party has taken sufficient account of tivity in regional nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), the rights or dignity of the other, or of the benefits that their ability to assess power relationships within their own could be derived from mutual recognition. In some con- organizations, their demands for a greater voice in public texts, conflicts have been resolved by an imposed peace— policy, and their increasing networking, not only locally that is, a peace imposed on both of the contending parties but also with international NGOs, were all expected to have by a superior power. This is a dangerous situation, because an impact. it leaves both parties dissatisfied; when regional, national, Significant developments include the women in Leba- or international circumstances allow, either party may esca- non who demonstrated to call for an end to the Lebanese late the conflict again. conflict and the country’s war machine; and the Israeli and Not surprisingly, conflict resolution is easier when—as Palestinian women who started working together to build in Lebanon—people can draw on earlier experiences with peace. Still, such trends have been seen mainly, if not ex- the process and when the necessary resources are already in clusively, among elite women, whereas true conflict resolu- place to serve as a basis for their future coexistence. In tion may need to start from the bottom up. Women who toil other situations, innovative, imaginative methods of resolu- daily to earn a living for themselves and their families often tion are required, such as appealing to historical coexist- have violence inflicted on them, and their voices must be ence, a shared cultural heritage, or common goals for the part of the contemporary wave of conflict resolution. When future. In the Middle East, for instance, mediation and ne- women’s rights and abilities are acknowledged, in the Mid- gotiation are an integral part of Arab-Islamic culture; con- dle East and worldwide, they have much to contribute to sensus is fundamental to communal life; and there is the nonviolent resolution of conflicts. abundant literature on mediation and negotiation between warring peoples—made possible by shared values, beliefs, See Also social makeup, and territory. However, any such innovative PEACE EDUCATION; PEACEKEEPING; PEACE MOVEMENTS, concepts should be based on a symmetrical power relation- specific regions ship if their effect is to be long-lasting. References and Further Reading Women and Conflict Resolution Baruch Bush, A.Robert, and P.Joseph Folger. 1994. The promise Women’s role in conflict resolution also varies with the of mediation. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. context. Women have always mediated and negotiated in Cornelius, Helena, and Shoshana Faire. 1989. Everyone can win. family, neighborhood, and school conflicts. In some socie- Sydney, Australia: Simon and Schuster. ties their influence has theoretically been limited to these ESCWA. 1994. Arab regional preparatory meeting for the spheres, or to just the family—but even there, women have Fourth World Conference on Women, 6–10 November. Am- not been completely isolated from the contemporary cul- man, Jordan: Publication No. ESCWA A/SD/1994/WG-3- ture of conflict resolution. WOM/4. To return to our example of the Middle East, women International Alert. 1993. Conflict resolution Training in the north have begun to work as trainers in conflict resolution and Caucasus and Georgia: Nalchick seminar. London: Interna- nonviolence (see Ougarit Younan in Osseiran, 1994). A tional Alert, November. Lebanese trainer, Randa Slim, became a resource person in ——. 1994. Internal conflicts in Africa. London: International conflict resolution not only in the Middle East but else- Alert, January. where as well (Report on Training of Trainers, 1994). By ——, Gernika Gogoratuz Peace Research Centre (1993). the year 2000, there were still only a few women trainers in Intercultural conflict research training. London: Interna- the Middle East (and not many more men); but some com- tional Alert, April. mentators were urging that more women be trained in all Migauda, Edith. 1994. Harnessing internal local resources for types of conflicts in this region, on the theory that women conflict resolution and self-sustaining peace in the face of trainers would bring an element of concern for life, com- ethnic violence. Paper presented at IPRA Conference, passion, and cooperation. It was also argued that women’s Valetta, Malta, November.

219 CONFUCIANISM

Morton, Deutsch. 1991. Subjective features of conflict resolution: disciples. But Confucianism regards as its special texts the Psychological, social, and cultural influences. In Interna- Classics—books of widely divergent genres. In his time there tional Social Sciences Council (ISSC), ed., New directions in were six, including the Book of Changes or Yijing, well conflict theory . London: Sage. known today in the West as a divination manual; the Book Moussala, Ahmad. 1993. An Islamic theoretical model for politi- of Historical Documents or Shujing; the Book of Songs or cal conflict resolution: Takhim (arbitration). Paper pre- Poetry or Shijing; the Classic of Rites or Lijing; the Spring- sented at AUB Conference on Conflict Resolution, Larnaca, Autumn Annals, a chronicle of Kong’s native state of Lu; Cyprus, July. and a sixth, the Book of Music, which is no longer extant. Nasr, N.Waddah. 1993. Nonviolence as a means for resolving conflict and its relevance to the Arab world. Paper presented Relationships within Confucianism at AUB Conference on Conflict Resolution, Larnaca, Within Confucianism, the well-known Five Relationships Cypurs, July. include ruler-minister, father-son, husband-wife, elder and Osseiran, Sanàa. 1994. Handbook of teaching and resource mate- younger brother, and friend and friend. Three of these are rial in conflict resolution: Education for human rights, family relationships, and the other two are usually con- peace, and democracy. Paris: IPRA/UNESCO. ceived in terms of the family models. For example, the ——. 1990. Peace building and development in Lebanon. Paris: ruler-minister relationship resembles father—son, and IPRA/UNESCO, April. friendship resembles brotherliness. For this reason, Confu- ——. 1993. Training in conflict resolution in Lebanon. Paris: cian society regards itself as a large family: “Within the IPRA/UNESCO, April. four seas all men are brothers” (Analects 12:5). The re- ——. 1995. Training in conflict resolution: Jal-el-Deeb. Paris: sponsibilities ensuing from these relationships are sup- IPRA/International Alert, March. posed to be mutual and reciprocal, but the relationships Paye, Olivier, and Eric Remacle. 1994. Conflicts in Abkhazia and emphasize the vertical sense of hierarchy. And the duty of Nagorno-Karabakh. Paper presented at IPRA Conference, filial piety, the need of procuring progeny for the sake of Valletta, Malta, November. ensuring the continuance of the ancestral cult, has been for Report on Training of Trainers. 1994. Paris: IPRA/UNESCO, centuries an ethical justification for polygamy. Kong sup- February. ported the patriarchal character of society in general. He Ryan, Stephan. 1990. The United Nations and the resolution of said: “Women and people of low birth are very hard to deal ethnic conflicts. Paper presented at IPRA Conference, with. If you are familiar with them, they get out of hand. If Groningen, Netherlands. you keep your distance, they resent it” (Analects 17:25).

Sanàa Osseiran Social Behavior and Religious Rituals Confucianism is not just about social behavior. It gives a definite importance to rituals, including religious rituals. The central doctrine is of the virtue of ren, which is associ- CONFUCIANISM ated with loyalty (zhong), loyalty to one’s own heart and conscience; and reciprocity (shu), respect of and considera- Confucianism is a system of thought dominant in China tion for others (Analects 4:25). Ren is translated variously and parts of east Asia for more than 2,000 years. The name as goodness, benevolence, humanity, and human- Confucius is a Latin rendering of Master Kong (c. 551–479 heartedness. It was formerly a particular virtue, the kind- B.C.E.), the Chinese name of a wise man from the state of ness that distinguished the gentleman in his behavior Lu (modern Shantung), who proclaimed his love for the toward his inferiors. Kong transformed it into a universal learning of antiquity. “I transmit but do not create,” he said; virtue, that which makes the perfect human being, the sage. “I love antiquity and am faithful to it.” Kong had a strong Confucius’s later follower in the fifth century B.C.E., the sense of his own mission, associated with teaching. He ap- philosopher Mencius, emphasized that human nature is pears to have been a modest, religious man, who sought to originally good and thus perfectible. He therefore taught understand and follow heaven’s will. But he lived in an age that every person could become a sage (Mencius 6B: 2)—a of turmoil, during which the ancient religious beliefs were teaching that has served to strengthen a basic belief in hu- questioned, and he contributed to the rationalist atmosphere man equality. Mencius also emphasized that the taboo be- of philosophical reflection. His teachings are best found tween the sexes should not prevent a man from helping to in the Analects—the record of his conversations with his rescue a drowning woman, such as his sister-in-law

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(Mencius 4A: 17), thus putting human life and dignity be- school, which taught that wives were to husbands as ministers fore ritual law. And Confucian political philosophy pro- were to rulers, thereby discouraging the remarriage of wid- motes a benevolent government from above, which is ows, which had been much more commonplace earlier. And different from western democracy. Yet Confucianism also while it was never part of the school’s teaching, Confucian- taught that the ruler could govern only with a mandate from ism did not discourage the custom of foot binding for young heaven, which he stood to lose if he became unworthy. In- girls, which became widespread in China after the fourteenth deed, Mencius explicitly taught that people had a right to century and was abrogated only in the twentieth century. rebel against an unjust ruler (Mencius 1B:8, 7B:14). Confucianism became the established orthodoxy for the See Also Chinese state in the second century B.C.E. and remained HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: EAST ASIA; POLITICS AND THE dominant for most of premodern times, spreading to Ko- STATE: EAST ASIA; RELIGION: OVERVIEW rea, Japan, and Vietnam. Its later movement is sometimes known as Neo-Confucianism, a western coinage. Neo- References and Further Reading Confucian thinkers concentrated their attention on the Andors, Phyllis. 1983. The unfinished liberation of Chinese Four Books: the Analects of Confucius; the Book of women, 1949–1980. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Mencius, also a collection of conversations; and the Great Ching, Julia. 1997. Mysticism and sagehood in China. Cambridge: Learning and the Doctrine of the Mean, two short treatises Cambridge University Press. derived from the Book of Rites. The movement oriented Johnson, Kay. 1985. Women, the family, and peasant revolution in itself increasingly toward metaphysical and spiritual ques- China. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. tions and assimilated much from Buddhist and Daoist phi- Karim, Wazir Jahan, ed. 1995. “Male”and “female” in develop- losophies. Zhu Xi (or Chu Hsi) (1130–1200) is the best ing southeast Asia. Washington, D.C.: Berg. known and the most prolific Neo-Confucian scholar. His Kit-Wah, Eva Man. 1993. Chinese women in the family: A Confu- commentaries (on the Four Books) were eventually inte- cian perspective. Tripod 77:19–28. grated into the curriculum of the civil service examinations Sharma, Arvind, ed. 1994. Today’s women in world religions. (1313), making his philosophy the new state orthodoxy for Albany: State University of New York Press. six centuries. Julia Ching In the late nineteenth century, when China was shaken politically and psychologically by western intrusion, Con- fucianism was regarded by many as intellectual shackles, preventing modernization and stifling human freedom and individual initiative in the name of passive, conformist vir- CONSCIOUSNESS-RAISING tues. With the Communists’ takeover of the mainland (1949), vigorous debates took place over the merits and Consciousness-raising is a central activity of the women’s demerits of the Confucian tradition. Succeeding decades liberation movement, enabling women as a group to share witnessed the rise of Japan as an economic giant and the problems, experiences, and feelings. It allows women to rapid economic and political growth of the Pacific rim recognize that what they perceive as personal problems— countries, where Confucianism was never formally re- “problems that have no name”—are shared with others. It jected. Now it is credited with offering a work ethic and also enables women to realize that what they think of as family solidarity for Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, and Viet- resulting from their own personal inadequacy, or their own namese and promoting their economic development. This inability, may be a result of living in a patriarchal society— claim is being increasingly recognized in western society. that the personal is often political. Confucianism has often been criticized for subjugating Consciousness-raising can be seen as enabling women women to men. Actually, the process began before Confu- to overcome false consciousness—to throw off the man- cius, with the development of a patriarchal kinship system made model of women, come to a realization of their own (zongfa or tsung-fa) associated with the ancestral cult. The potential, and move from self-deluded dependence to au- ritual texts speak about “three obediences,” subjecting tonomy and self-reliance. This view is reflected in the women to their fathers, to their husbands, and then to their “consciousness-raising novels” of the 1970s—for exam- sons during widowhood. ple, Marilyn French’s The Women’s Room (1977). Liz Speaking generally, women’s position deteriorated in Chi- Stanley and Sue Wise (1983) point out that consciousness- nese history, a process that was intensified by Zhu Xi’s raising is not just a series of stages—going from a

221 CONSERVATISM prefeminist consciousness to one of true understanding, a variations within conservatism, there are several elements feminist consciousness—but an ongoing process. It is a that are central to all conservative ideologies. These in- process that brings about personal and collaborative clude commitment to the defense of tradition, support for change as opposed to structural change. The need for ongo- authority, a defense of the right to own private property, an ing discussion—in small groups or informally—is, they assumption that humans are imperfect and fallible (and a suggest, central to being a feminist. distrust in the ability of government to solve the problems of society related to human imperfection), a willingness to See Also limit individual freedom in order to preserve traditional FEMININE MYSTIQUE; FEMINISM: OVERVIEW; SLOGANS: values or maintain social order, an organic view of society, “THE PERSONAL is THE POLITICAL”; WOMEN’S MOVEMENT, and, to varying degrees, support for free market economic specific topics principles. Conservatives are committed to defending tradition, References and Further Reading which is assumed to reflect the wisdom of those who have Robinson, Victoria. 1993. Introducing women’s studies. In D. gone before and who have made decisions with the benefit Richardson and V.Robinson, eds., Introducing women’s stud- of long experience. For this reason, conservatives tend to ies. London: Macmillan. resist change unless change is necessary in order for soci- Stanley, Liz, and Sue Wise. 1983. Breaking out. London: ety to evolve in a nonrevolutionary manner. Part and parcel Routledge and Kegan Paul (2nd ed. 1993). of conservative ideology is that it is important for people to have the right to own property privately, although the con- Pamela Abbott servative view should not be assumed to be congruent with the classical liberal principle of property ownership, which entitles owners to use their property however they see fit. For conservatives, property ownership not only provides an CONSERVATISM individual with a vested interest in society, especially in maintaining order; it also entails certain obligations and, in The Evolution of Western Conservatism the case of inheritance of property, reflects the conservative Lamenting the challenges and Utopian ideals offered by commitment to preserving tradition. Enlightenment rationalist philosophers of the late A further defining element of conservatism is the as- eighteenth century, Edmund Burke produced the seminal sumption that humans are imperfect, flawed creatures who work on conservatism in 1790. His Reflections on the need the guidance provided by strong family structures and Revolution in France criticized the assumption that government-enforced law and order to exist together drastically altering the political system in order to promote peaceably. Whereas conservatives generally support a abstract ideals such as liberty, equality, and fraternity strong state in order to promote the law and order deemed would result in positive societal change. Burke emphasized necessary by the imperfect nature of the human condition, instead slow change through existing institutions that have it is important to note that conservatives do not support the at their center history, religion, and tradition. It is not the notion that government should or can intervene to try to case that conservatism resists all change; rather, as Burke improve people (Oakeshott, 1962). The exception to this proposed, conservatism should reflect the willingness to principle is that conservatives do support government inter- “change in order to conserve.” vention in the case of preserving traditional values, or at Although Burke is generally credited with establishing least in preserving what they deem the best moral standards the central tenets of conservatism, it is difficult to equate that the past represents (Kirk, 1954). Government involve- the history of conservatism and conservative principles ment in economic matters has been an inconsistent element with Burkean philosophy or even with the history of Eng- of conservatism, ranging from support for the laissez-faire land or France. Unlike Marxism, socialism, or commu- economic principles of Adam Smith in the 1800s to the nism, all of which are tied in more explicit ways to specific more interventionist policies of John Maynard Keynes in historical figures or events, conservatism has evolved dif- the early twentieth century, and back to more laissez-faire ferently in response to changes in governmental structures, principles in the late twentieth century. The economic poli- such as the transition from monarchy to representative gov- cies of Margaret Thatcher and John Major in the United ernment, technological changes such as industrialization, Kingdom and of Ronald Reagan and George Bush in the and the ideological challenge of feminism. Despite the United States illustrate this shift from Keynesianism to less

222 CONSERVATISM government intervention in economic policies, and, per- nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, or the second- haps more important, illustrate one contemporary branch wave feminist movement of the 1960s, women’s involve- of conservatism: neoconservatism (the new right). ment with these elements of conservatism—either as Neoconservatives subscribe to a distinctively libertarian opponents or as defenders—has been complex and fluid. economic philosophy that is coupled with a clearly con- servative social philosophy, at least to the extent that social Temperance and Suffrage in the United States order must be maintained even while economic freedom is The temperance movement is an intriguing historical ex- expanded (Nozick, 1974). ample of the complex intersection of gender and ideology. Frances Willard, founder of the Women’s Christian Tem- Conservatism and Women’s Politics perance Union (WCTU), was able to mobilize many tradi- It is against this backdrop that the conservative view of so- tional, conservative women to join the temperance ciety as organic becomes most important in considering the movement, because the call for prohibition was worded in role of conservatism in women’s politics. Their organic the language of protecting the family. For example, prohi- view of society means that conservatives consider family bitionists argued that men wasted money on alcohol instead structures to be “natural” and the basis of the larger struc- of providing for their families, and that alcohol contributed ture of society. Contrary to liberalism, conservatism holds to domestic violence and promoted prostitution. This ap- that membership in both the family and society cannot be proach made possible the mobilization of thousands of seen as based on either tacit or voluntary consent, and, in conservative women, yet Willard herself was far from con- this sense, cannot be viewed as approximating a social con- servative (Fowler, Hertzke, and Olson, 1999). Dean of a tract. Rather, the family, because it is the basic unit on women’s college, and professor of aesthetics, Willard used which all other social institutions are formed, in the con- the WCTU to promote the creation of kindergartens, re- servative view, must be preserved and defended at all costs. forms in child labor laws, and, perhaps most important, For conservatives, this is so even if patriarchy and inequal- women’s suffrage. The WCTU was able to convince the ity are fostered by traditional familial relationships. As conservative women it had mobilized that prohibition women are necessarily disadvantaged by the patriarchy and would come only if women got the vote. In this manner, the inequality that may be argued to be inherent in traditional WCTU mobilized conservative women to participate in a familial structures, conservatism has posed a particular struggle for women’s rights that in some regards seemed to paradox for women. To defend conservatism is tantamount contradict conservative ideology. to accepting or even supporting traditional, patriarchal fa- Suffrage was not, however, an issue that was clearly de- milial structures. By contrast, to oppose conservatism is to fined ideologically. Influential leaders of the early wom- undermine the most abiding element of women’s status in en’s movement, such as Susan B.Anthony and Elizabeth the social order, that of wife, mother, and moral guardian. Cady Stanton, were far more liberal than the majority of That the price of equality has meant at various times in his- women who supported suffrage. Many women who sup- tory abandoning those roles, or at least redefining them, has ported suffrage did so not because they embraced feminist placed conservatism squarely in the center of women’s or liberal ideals but because they believed that in doing so politics. Whether the distinction is between women as so- they were acting in the best interest of their families. Em- cial conservatives or economic conservatives (Klatch, bracing their “natural” roles as wives and mothers, these 1987) or between women as either conservative or femi- women supported suffrage as a means of securing the abil- nist, the ideological battleground of women’s politics has ity to influence legislation regarding child labor, working often contained an element of conservatism. conditions for women, and better government. In this man- Perhaps more than in any other country, this can be seen ner, their conservatism did not contradict their support of in the politics of women’s movements in the United States. suffrage; rather, it was a logical extension of their commit- The distinctive historical context provided by a country ment to their traditional roles, despite the fact that it placed that was built on assumptions about property rights and in- them alongside their feminist and liberal sisters (McGlen dividual freedom, that had a strong religious foundation, and O’Connor, 1998). and that experienced very early in its history the Industrial Revolution, created an environment in which ideological Conservatism and Second-Wave Feminism battles centering on conservatism were bound to prolifer- in the United States ate. Whether we consider the temperance movement of the An important recent addition to the discussion of women late nineteenth century, the struggle for suffrage in the late and conservatism in United States politics centers on the

223 CONSERVATISM second-wave feminism of the 1960s that provided the im- fail. Thirty-eight states would have to ratify the amendment petus for the proposed (ERA) to for it to become a law, and despite an initial flurry of sup- the U.S. Constitution in 1972. This is especially important port, by 1982, even though extensions were granted by the in understanding the evolution of the most recent manifes- U.S. Supreme Court, only 35 states had voted to ratify. The tation of conservatism: neoconservatism. Partly in response failure of the ERA to be ratified is due in large part to the to the permissiveness of the 1960s—which was evidenced activism of neoconservative women who mobilized against by student radicalism, civil disobedience, sexual freedom, feminist women around the issue of women’s legal equal- a growing illegal drug culture, and the willingness to chal- ity. In this manner, even for an issue that seems so clearly lenge and question authority—and partly in response to the linked to feminism, the importance of conservatism and its reemergence of feminism as an influential political ideol- influence on women’s politics cannot be overlooked. ogy, neoconservatism flourished in the 1980s. Although it As the battle over the ERA illustrates, there are pro- was certainly not their intention, feminist activists in the found differences between feminists and conservatives in United States helped to fan the flames of neoconservatism. terms of ideologies and values. Conservative women in Neoconservatives called for a return to “family values” the antifeminist movement argue that sex differences are (what Thatcher called “Victorian values” in the United innate and biologically determined. Thus, women are Kingdom) and social order against the backdrop of a unique and different from men and any attempt to equal- deregulated economy and a commitment to strong national ize men and women has the potential to threaten the insti- defense. This new face of conservatism was a direct re- tution of the family and women’s roles as wives and sponse to a perceived upheaval in social institutions such as mothers. For conservatives, to do this is tantamount to de- traditional familial relationships and traditional gender stroying the very cement of society, because the family for roles. The battle over the ERA in the United States is one them is the basic social unit on which all other societal example that clearly illustrates the way in which conserva- institutions are built. tism structured the battle for women’s rights for both femi- nists and neoconservatives. Women and Contemporary Nonwestern Conservatism Proposed as an amendment to the U.S. Constitution in Although our previous discussion of women’s politics em- 1972, the ERA was the first tangible piece of legislation phasized the clash of conservatism with a liberal feminist that spelled out the equality that feminist women in the movement, it should be noted that this clash between the United States were seeking. The ERA was perceived by two core ideologies—that is, liberalism and conserva- neoconservatives as a threat to—even a destruction of— tism—in the United States does not always represent the everything that they believed was important about women conflict about gender politics in other parts of the world. and women’s traditional roles. The ERA, by bringing equal For instance, gender politics in postcommunist eastern Eu- legal status to men and women, was seen by ropean countries has to be at least partially understood as a neoconservative women as threatening not only their spe- response to the experience of communism. cific roles as wives and mothers but the “family values” that The western idea that patriarchy and capitalism are at they believed were central to maintaining the very structure the heart of women’s oppression does not adequately de- of society. In this manner, the ERA was a specific issue that scribe eastern European and post-Soviet gender politics. reflected the general trend toward a more permissive soci- Many eastern European and former Soviet countries are ety in which the roles of men and women would no longer characterized by an “intensification of gender segregations clearly be differentiated. Traditional values, it seemed, in the economy and society as a whole” (Molyneux, would no longer have any safe haven, as their very exist- 1994:293). Studies on the role of women in these countries ence required a clear sense of difference in gender roles; (for example, Heitlinger, 1996) show that vehement and the ERA, its opponents argued, would eliminate any is not only based on a conservative ideology legal difference between the sexes. This strategy, employed that values motherhood and family but also represents a by anti-ERA activists such as Phyllis Schlafly, was to a cer- backlash against communism and state socialism—ideolo- tain extent successful, as many women came to believe that gies that favored, at last officially, the “emancipation” of the ERA would actually undermine the status of women women. In fact, there is evidence suggesting that Russian, and, hence, they mobilized against it. Although the ratifica- Lithuanian, and Ukrainian women are more skeptical tion of the ERA seemed assured, because in 1972 it had about democratization and capitalism than their male overwhelming support (especially in the U.S. Senate), the counterparts, possibly because the new capitalistic market battle for ratification in the state legislatures was doomed to systems are not perceived as dealing as effectively with

224 CONSERVATISM women’s concerns as the old communist systems (Hesli that stands out is the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, an and Miller, 1993). Argentinian group of women who protested the disappear- Gender relations in many developing countries are char- ance of their family members under military dictatorship. acterized by a resurgence of nationalism and religious fun- Instead of basing their protests on their rights as citizens, damentalism. For instance, an analysis of the politics of these women used their traditional gender identity as gender in Islamic nations shows that western feminist dis- mothers, wives, and grandmothers to politicize their de- course contributes only little to an understanding of wom- mands. Their activities, which were seemingly apolitical, en’s roles. Whereas conservative women from advanced made it possible for women to occupy political spaces that industrialized western nations assert that legal equality be- were previously vacant (Jacquette and Wolchik, 1998; tween men and women has already been achieved, women Marshall, 2000). in many Middle Eastern countries, parts of Africa, and the Asia-Pacific regions live in societies that are deeply segre- Toward the Future of Conservatism gated along gender lines. Those women are subject to a It is undeniable that one of the major elements of conserva- deep-rooted social and cultural conservatism, which is of- tism, limited government involvement as long as social or- ten justified by religious doctrine. Although fundamentalist der is not threatened, has become increasingly important movements are far from monolithic, they tend to converge for the twenty-first century. The demise of communist and in their opposition to women’s equality. This opposition is socialist governments has given way to a privatized and not so much the result of religious beliefs as prescribed by deregulated economic system in many parts of the world. the Qur’an, the Sunnah, or the Hadith—the three sources of At the same time, economic freedom and the consequent Islamic religion—but rather stems from a particularly mod- free market values that it engenders may create particular ern interpretation of these writings that justifies women’s problems for conservatism in the future. Heywood (1998) subordination and sexually repressive practices. argues the values and behaviors created by late twentieth- Although much of the literature on women in develop- century conservatism (particularly by neoconservatism) ing nations emphasizes women’s roles as victims, it ignores have produced an environment that promotes self-seeking the significant presence of women’s movements in most of competitiveness (the heart of free market economics) at the these nations and the significant activism of women. Obvi- expense of social order and stability, something that would ously, women who live in societies in which religion con- seem anathema to conservatism. Because conservatism re- tinues to regulate all aspects of daily life and is a source of quires government-mandated social order and the preser- personal identity apply different benchmarks to measure vation of tradition, it is possible that the individualistic and the success of women. Western standards of progress, such egoistic behaviors and values created by the economic as economic equality and access to legalized abortions, are principles of the most recent wave of conservatism may of less significance to women struggling for elementary prove to be its own worst enemy. In the absence of commu- rights, such as access to education or the right to protect nism and socialism as serious economic or ideological their bodies from violence. Given the many social, cultural, challenges to contemporary conservatism, this apparent in- and economic constraints, women’s activism has developed ternal paradox may be the new threat to twenty-first-cen- in dialogue with prevailing cultural contexts. Women in Is- tury conservatism. lamic nations draw on the universal concept of human rights; however, they, along with many of their African sis- See Also ters, reject western notions of extreme individualism. In- FUNDAMENTALISM; FUNDAMENTALISM AND PUBLIC POLICY; stead of rejecting religion, they seek to reinterpret religious LIBERALISM; POLITICS AND THE STATE: OVERVIEW doctrine to end centuries of discrimination against women. Despite these profound differences in women’s activ- References and Further Reading ism, there are many unifying features. Similar to the Fowler, Robert Booth, Allen D.Hertzke, and Laura R.Olson. 1999. United States women’s temperance and early suffrage Religion and politics in America. Boulder, Col.: West-view. movements, many of the women’s movements all over the Heitlinger, Alena. 1996. Framing feminism in the postcommunist world emerged from more traditional women’s concerns Czech Republic. Communist and Post-Communist Studies over the family. For instance, the initial organizing of 29(1):77–93. women in many Latin American countries was not politi- Hesli, Vicki L., and Arthur Miller. 1993. The gender base of insti- cal in the conventional sense, but reinforced traditional tutional support in Lithuania, Ukraine and Russia. Europe- women’s roles as mothers, wives, and sisters. An example Asia Studies 45(3):505–533.

225 CONSTITUTIONS

Heywood, Andrew. 1998. Political ideologies. New York: Some theorists argue that individualism misrepresents the Worth. moral vision and experience of women, who live in a web Jaquette, Jane, and Sharon L.Wolchik. 1998. Women and democ- of relationships with men, women, and children (Gilligan, racy: Latin American and Central and Eastern Europe. Bal- 1982). Bills of rights for individuals are alleged to divide timore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press. and isolate women, disguising the structural nature of op- Kirk, Russell. 1954. A program for conservatives. Chicago: Henry pression. The prevalent liberal model, originating in west- Regnery. ern thought, has been contested as colonization through Klatch, Rebekah. 1987. Women of the New Right. Philadelphia: constitutionalism. Temple University Press. Regardless, the authority of constitutions lends signifi- Marshall, Barbara L. 2000. Configuring gender: Explorations in cance to their treatment of women. Constitutional texts theory and politics. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview. may speak directly of women. But their silences also con- Molyneux, Maxine. 1994. Women’s rights and the international tribute to the construction of gender norms and roles. The context: Some reflections on the postcommunist states. Mil- language of many constitutions makes women invisible, lennium 23(2):287–313. granting universal rights in the generic masculine (“words McGlen, Nancy E., and Karen O’Connor. 1998. Women, poli- importing the masculine gender shall be taken to include tics, and American society. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: females,” Pakistan, Art. 263). Ostensibly neutral words Prentice Hall. may conceal gender bias, as when “citizenship” is transmit- Nozick, Robert. 1974. Anarchy, state and Utopia. Oxford: ted through the male line or bears responsibilities like mili- Black-well. tary service sometimes barred to women. Some recent texts Oakeshott, Michael. 1962. Rationalism in politics and other es- speak directly of women and men (Hungary, 1989; Nicara- says. New York: Basic Books. gua, 1987; South Africa, 1996). Yet all contain provisions that affect women and men differently, through language Lorraine Bernotsky and through institutions such as federalism that divide Frauke Schnell power in ways that have an impact on women. And consti- tutions almost without exception are heterosexual docu- ments, rarely even acknowledging discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation (South Africa, Art. 9). CONSTITUTIONS Contradictions in Constitutions The constitution of a nation-state specifies political goals The writing of constitutions is a political process, and tex- and institutions, and defines relationships between people tual compromises and contradictions abound. Constitu- and the state. The practice of codifying basic principles tions typically make simple, skeletal declarations that dates from the eighteenth century. The United States cannot match the complexity of the roles of women in (1787) and France (1789 and 1791) set a pattern, granting families, economies, and states. One problem is to recon- limited powers to government and individual rights to cer- cile individual freedom and equality with still-respected tain men. In the twentieth century, in the wake of wars, co- but inegalitarian traditional cultures and customary law. lonialism, and communism, writing a constitution became The constitution of South Africa prioritizes “nonsexism” a part of the founding process of every new state. Today, all (Sections 30, 31, 39, 212); it also protects language, cul- but three nations (Israel, New Zealand, and the United tural and religious freedom, and traditional authorities Kingdom) have a codified constitution (collected in (Section 1), leaving open the question whether both are Blaustein and Flanz, 1971+). Constitutions carry excep- possible. When paternal transmission of citizenship was tional authority. They stand above and regulate legislation challenged in Botswana, it was said that “if gender dis- and governmental actions, legitimate and delegitimize cer- crimination were outlawed in customary law, very little of tain goals and groups, and often symbolize national iden- customary law would be left at all” (Bazilli, 1991:259). tity and social ideals. Customary property rights, inheritance laws, and hierar- The doctrine that constitutions derive authority from the chies conflict with individual rights from Africa to south- consent of free and rational individuals is problematic for east Asia and the Aboriginal nations of Australia. women. Pateman (1989:79–81) believes there has never Contradictions between rights and religions also leave been equal respect for the consent of women and men. women’s status contested. In Islamic nations, constitutions Women’s consent has been proxied, assumed, or falsified. may recognize both religious law and women’s rights.

226 CONSTITUTIONS

Algeria affirms political and labor equality and an Islamic commonly led by men, make them resistant to change. Two Family Code of obedience to husbands. Egypt guarantees centuries of American constitutionalism (with two female equality and coordination between “the duties of the Supreme Court justices out of 108) show only slow and woman toward the family and her work in the society, uncertain progress. Often there is no attempt to make a con- considering her equal with man in the fields of political, stitution work, and declarations of equality remain pious social, cultural and economic life without violation of the hopes. The Japanese equal rights clauses (1946, Arts. 14, rules of Islamic jurisprudence” (Arts. 8, 10). In the 24) were little used for decades, although lately, Japanese Catholic tradition, Ireland’s guarantee of equality “shall women have used the constitution to advance legal equality not be held to mean that the State shall not…have due through litigation and legislation. Thus constitutional regard to differences of capacity, physical and moral, and equality on its own does not guarantee substantive change of social function” (Art. 40), categories of difference most in women’s lives. Gains for women in protection and social often used to subordinate women’s roles. rights to education, welfare, or housing contained in new The family, sexuality, and reproductive rights are critical eastern European constitutions have been negated by the issues for constitutionalism, exemplifying the allocation of disproportionate economic loss, increased violence, and power over women’s lives. Gender difference, historically restricted reproductive rights suffered during the centered on these concerns, conflicts with secular as well as postcommunist transition (Scheppele, 1995:66). traditional and religious beliefs, with the aspirations to Many features of national constitutions recur in interna- equality raised by liberal constitutionalism, and with wom- tional conventions (Peters and Wolper, 1995). The influen- en’s full participation in economic and political life. In a tial European Convention on the Protection of Human characteristic evasion, women are often constructed simul- Rights (1950) grants civil right such as “respect for his pri- taneously as free and equal individuals and in the circum- vate and family life, his home,” without “discrimination on scribed roles of wife, mother, and dependent: “Men and any ground such as sex.” United Nations conventions on women are equal before the law. The law shall protect the the political and marital rights of women (1952, 1957, organization and development of the family” (Mexico, Art. 1962) and the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination 4). Alternatively, the Irish constitution states the equal right Against Women (1979, with 151 signatory states by 1996) to life of unborn and mother, and elevates the family as proscribe discrimination, seek to reconcile family and indi- bearer of rights “antecedent and superior to all positive vidual rights through aligning the responsibilities of laws” (Art. 40, 41). Mexico’s Article 4 grants “every per- women and men, and in most cases comprehensively en- son” the right to decide in a “free, responsible, and in- dorse women’s need for social as well as civil rights. Edu- formed manner on the number and spacing of…children,” cational and symbolic at first, these instruments and but this gender-neutral statement brings its own problems, national constitutions are now monitored by an interna- giving men equal rights in decisions about women’s bod- tional women’s rights movement (see Sisterhood Is Global ies. Where, as in the United States, a constitution is silent Institute, 2000). But their role remains educational and on family and reproductive issues, women still seek consti- symbolic, without adequate means for enforcement. Inter- tutional recognition, but their claims may be insecurely re- national Labor Organization conventions and the single solved by inference from rights to equality or privacy. gender-specific clause of the European Economic Commu- nity Treaty of Rome (1957, Art. 119), requiring equal pay Interpretation of Constitutions for equal work, have also made some gains for women in What a constitution fails to specify or prioritize, legislators the workforce but still fail to reconcile work with reproduc- and courts will interpret: “In view of the different legal and tive and family roles. institutional starting position with regard to the employ- Why, then, have women found some hopeful prospects ment of mothers and fathers, it shall be the task of the in constitutional politics? First, inclusion gives symbolic allGerman legislator to shape the legal situation in such a standing and recognition. And, second, even a right that is way as to allow a reconciliation of family and occupational contradicted, overruled, or ignored in practice creates a life” (German Treaty of Unification, 1990, Art. 31). The resource for women. Women have contested constitutional paper powers of constitutions become political forces constructions of gender, used existing texts to their benefit, through human agency. Most constitutions embody domi- and demanded change. Women in the United States failed nant assumptions and biases from the time of their writing. to win an Equal Rights Amendment. Cana-dian women Stiff requirements for amending these texts, along with the demanded a guarantee of equality in the Charter of Rights practice of interpretation and enforcement through courts, and Freedoms (Canada, 1982, s. 28) and have used this to

227 CONTRACEPTION win a measure of social change. Women in Brazil (Verucci, 1991), postcommunist East Germany (Scheppele, 1995), CONTRACEPTION South Africa, and elsewhere have seized the initiative in the Numerous options for contraception are available for formative phases of constitutions (Bazilli, 1991). As women, many of them highly effective. Each method is re- women recognize the pervasive presence of constitutions in viewed here. Female methods are described first, and then twenty-first-century politics, they are increasingly male methods are discussed, each category in order from appropriating these authoritative texts for their own needs. most effective to least effective. The failure rate for a contraceptive method is defined See Also as follows. If 100 women use the method for a year, the CITIZENSHIP; GOVERNMENT; HUMAN RIGHTS number who are pregnant by the end of the year is the failure rate. Failure rates are further classed as perfect- References and Further Reading user and typical-user failure rates. The typical-user fail- Bazilli, Susan, ed. 1991. Putting women on the agenda. Johannes- ure rate refers to actual use of the method and includes burg: Ravan. mistakes made by users, such as forgetting to take a pill or Blaustein, Albert F., and Gilbert H.Flanz, eds. 1971+. Constitu- neglecting to use a diaphragm. The perfect-user failure tions of the countries of the world. Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.: rate is just that—the failure rate for a person using the Oceanea. method perfectly. Connelly, Alpha. 1999. Women and the constitution of Ireland. In Yvonne Galligan, Ellis Ward, and Rick Wilford, eds., Con- Sterilization testing politics: Women in Ireland, north and south, 18–37. Two surgical procedures are available for female steriliza- Boulder, Col.: Westview. tion: minilaparotomy and laparoscopy (“having the tubes Dobrowolsky, Alexandra. 2000. The politics of pragmatism: tied,” or tubal ligation). Both are performed under either Women, representation, and constitutionalism in Canada. local or general anesthesia and involve blocking the Don Mills, Ont.: Oxford University Press. fallopian tubes so that sperm and egg cannot meet. In both Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice: Psychological theory cases, the physician makes a small incision in the abdo- and women’s development. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uni- men, identifies each fallopian tube, severs it, and then versity Press, chapter 5. blocks each end with a small clip or by tying or electroco- Pateman, Carole. 1989. The disorder of women. Stanford, Calif.: agulation. Stanford University Press. Following the surgery, the ovaries continue to function Peters, Anne. 1999. Women, quotas and constitutions. The Hague: normally and, therefore, the production of sex hormones Kluwer Law. continues. The failure rate is 0.5 percent (occasionally, the Peters, Julie, and Andrea Wolper. 1995. Women’s rights, human ends of the tubes will rejoin). rights: International feminist perspectives. London and New Female sterilization should be considered a permanent York: Routledge. method of contraception, although researchers are devel- Scheppele, Kim Lane. 1995. Women’s rights in eastern Europe. oping increasingly effective methods for reversing the East European Constitutional Review 4:66–69. procedure if a woman changes her mind and wishes to Tétreault, Mary Ann, and Haya al-Mughni. 2000. From subjects to have a child. citizens: Women and the nation in Kuwait. In Sita Ranchod Sterilization is a common method of birth control; in the Nilsson and Mary Ann Tétreault, eds., Women, states, and United States, for example, it is the most common method nationalism. London and New York: Routledge. for married couples. In 1990, 30 percent of married white Verucci, Florisa. 1991. Women and the new Brazilian constitution. women and 48 percent of married black women in the Feminist Studies 17:551–68. United States were sterilized, as were 20 percent of mar- ried white men and 2 percent of married black men Internet Sources (Mosher, 1990). International Constitutional Law. 2000. Implants and Injectables Sisterhood Is Global Institute. 2000. Norplant consists of six rod-shaped capsules, each about the size of a matchbook match, that are implanted under the skin Vivien Hart in the upper arm. Depo-Provera (DMPA) is administered by

228 CONTRACEPTION injection. Both methods deliver progestin (a synthetic pro- The mechanism for the effectiveness of the IUD has gesterone) at a steady rate. been somewhat murky. It is thought to prevent fertilization Norplant and Depo-Provera work by inhibiting ovula- by creating an environment in the uterus that immobilizes tion; in addition, they thicken the cervical mucus, making it sperm. The addition of copper reduces the chance of im- difficult for sperm to penetrate it; and they reduce the lining plantation. Added progestin thickens cervical mucus and of the uterus (endometrium) so that it will not provide an reduces the chance of ovulation. adequate environment for implantation should a fertilized The IUD with copper has a failure rate of 0.8 percent in egg arrive. the first year and a lower failure rate after that. Most fail- Norplant has a failure rate of only 0.05 percent. It ures result from expulsion of the IUD, which is more likely lasts for five years and then must be replaced. Depo- in women who have not had children. Provera has a typical-user failure rate of less than 1 per- A rare but serious potential side effect of the IUD is pel- cent. Women using Depo-Provera must obtain a new vic inflammatory disease (PID), which is an infection of shot every three months, because it is effective only for the uterus or fallopian tubes. The IUD may increase men- that length of time. strual cramps and produce increased menstrual flow. Few side effects have been documented for either method. Many women using these methods experience The Diaphragm and Cervical Cap menstrual irregularities, such as amenorrhea (absence of The diaphragm is a circular, dome-shaped device made of menstruation), because of the interference with natural hor- thin rubber, with a rubber-covered rim of flexible metal. A mone levels. woman inserts it so that it covers her cervix. The cervical cap is quite similar except that the shape is somewhat dif- The Pill ferent; it fits more snugly over the uterus. Each comes in Three basic types of pills are available: the combination different sizes and must be properly fitted by a medical pro- pill, which provides a steady high dose of both estrogen fessional. and progestin; the triphasic pill, which provides a steady Both the diaphragm and the cervical cap work by cover- level of estrogen but varying levels of progestin corre- ing the entrance to the uterus, thus preventing sperm from sponding roughly to the natural cycle; and the progestin- reaching the egg. For proper use, both must be lined, before only pill, which contains progestin but no estrogen. Most of insertion, with a spermicidal cream, which kills any sperm the discussion that follows focuses on the combination pill, that may get past the barrier of the device. They must be left because it is the one most widely used. in place for at least six hours after intercourse. The Pill works by preventing ovulation; it provides The typical-user failure rate for the diaphragm is around backup effects as well, thickening the cervical mucus so 20 percent. Most failures are due to improper use: a woman that it is difficult for sperm to penetrate, and changing the may not use the diaphragm, may not keep it in long lining of the uterus so that, if a fertilized egg does arrive, it enough, or may fail to use a spermicide with it. The cervical will have little chance of successfully implanting and cap has a typical-user failure rate of around 18 percent, growing. with most failures occurring for the same reasons as dia- The Pill has a perfect-user failure rate of 0.1 percent and phragm failures. a typical-user failure rate of 5 percent. Failures occur pri- marily because the woman forgets to take a pill. If she for- The Female Condom gets one pill, she should take it as soon as she remembers it The female condom is made of polyurethane and resembles and then take the next one at the regular time. If she forgets a clear balloon. It contains two rings, one at the top and one two pills, the chance of pregnancy increases and she should at the bottom. The smaller ring, with polyurethane reaching use a backup method for the rest of the cycle. across it, is inserted by the woman into the vagina like a diaphragm, so that it covers the cervix. The other ring re- The IUD mains external and covers much of the vulva. Polyurethane The intrauterine device (IUD) is a small piece of plastic that then lines the vagina. The female condom is available over is inserted into the uterus by a medical professional. Differ- the counter; each condom should be used only once. ent types of IUD may also contain progestin or copper, The female condom became available only in 1994, so both of which are intended to improve effectiveness. The data on its effectiveness are less certain than those for older IUD can remain effective for long periods of time, up to methods. Early results indicate a typical-user failure rate of five or ten years. 21 percent.

229 CONTRACEPTION

No side effects appear to be associated with the female produced by the cervix over the course of the cycle. A condom. A major advantage is that it provides some protec- woman can be trained to “read” her cervical mucus and use tion against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). it to determine the day of ovulation. Home ovulation tests were developed only in the 1990s, Foams and Other Spermicides so it is too early to know their effectiveness. Contraceptive foams, cream, jellies, and inserts are all The typical-user failure rate is around 25 percent for all spermicides, that is, sperm killers. They are inserted into rhythm methods. Thus this method is not adequate for ab- the vagina before intercourse and are effective for only one solute prevention of pregnancy, but it may be adequate if act of intercourse. the goal is to space children. In addition, the rhythm Spermicides work in two ways. First, they contain method may be combined with another method, such as the chemicals that kill sperm. Second, the inert base, ideally, diaphragm, to increase its effectiveness. covers the entrance to the cervix so that sperm cannot swim into the uterus. Male Methods Spermicides are not very effective, with typical-user fail- Male methods of contraception have an enormous impact ure rates of 26 percent. In addition, some women are allergic on women and therefore are reviewed here as well. At the to them. One advantage is that they are an over-thecounter beginning of the twenty-first century, only two male meth- method, not requiring a visit to a doctor or clinic. In addi- ods are available—sterilization and the condom—but other tion, they may provide some protection from bacterial STDs methods are under development. These potential methods such as chlamydia and gonorrhea; there is no evidence, include a male hormonal oral contraceptive (a male Pill) however, that they provide protection against HIV. and hormonal implants (analogous to Norplant), both of which would reduce or stop sperm production. Rhythm The male sterilization procedure is known as vasectomy, Rhythm, or “fertility awareness,” methods are a form of because it involves severing and tying off the vas deferens, “natural” family planning and, as such, are the only meth- the tube that carries sperm from the testes to mix with the ods approved by the Roman Catholic church. The essence ejaculate. The procedure can be done in a physician’s of- of these methods is determining when the woman ovulates fice and requires only about 20 minutes to perform. After and abstaining from intercourse for several days before and the surgery, sperm are still manufactured, but they are pre- after that date. Several variations exist, then, depending on vented from moving through the duct structure, so that the the method used to determine the date of ovulation. ejaculate contains no sperm. The one exception is that a The calendar method is based on the assumption—well few stray sperm may linger postsurgically, so the man supported by the evidence—that women ovulate 14 days needs to have several ejaculations and a sperm count for before the onset of menstruation. To implement the calen- verification. Then the method is 100 percent effective. It is dar method, a woman keeps track of her menstrual cycles a permanent method of contraception. for at least six months and preferably for a year. She then The male condom is a thin sheath that fits over the penis knows the length of her longest and shortest cycles and, and, thus, prevents ejaculate from entering a woman’s va- from that information, can deduce the earliest and latest gina. Condoms may be made of latex (“rubber”), poly- times in the cycle when she ovulates. She abstains from urethane, or the intestinal skin of lambs. Latex condoms are intercourse from four days before the earliest day of ovula- by far the most frequently used. A major benefit is that they tion until three days after the latest date. Clearly, this provide protection from several STDs. As a method of con- method works best for women who have a very regular cy- traception, the condom has a 14 percent failure rate for cle. With an irregular cycle, it is difficult to pinpoint the day typical users but a much lower failure rate, 3 percent, for of ovulation, and two weeks of abstinence may be required. perfect users. The basal body temperature method makes use of the fact that a woman’s first morning temperature drops on the Conclusion day of ovulation and then rises the next day and stays A wide variety of contraceptive options are available to somewhat higher for the rest of the cycle. This method can women today. Selection of the best method depends on the be combined with the calendar method for more accurate individual. If, for example, a woman has intercourse fre- identification of ovulation. quently (several times a week), she needs one of the highly The cervical mucus, or ovulation, method relies on well- effective methods such as Depo-Provera or the Pill. If she documented changes in the consistency of the mucus has intercourse infrequently (for example, once a month), a

230 CONTRACEPTIVES: DEVELOPMENT diaphragm may provide adequate protection. If she feels influence on the direction of modern contraceptive re- embarrassed about using a diaphragm or condom and may search. Until the 1960s, mainstream scientists and the therefore not use it consistently, she will be better off with a pharmaceutical industry were reluctant to engage in method such as the Pill, which is unconnected with inter- contraceptive research because they did not want to con- course. If she needs protection from STDs, the condom— front social taboos concerning women’s sexual freedom perhaps combined with a second method—is a good and reproductive selfdetermination. choice. If, however, she is in a monogamous relationship Thus, although the pharmaceutical industry and main- with an uninfected partner and she is uninfected as well, stream scientists had the knowledge needed to develop a then the Pill or Depo-Provera is a good choice. Thus, the contraceptive pill as early as the 1920s, it was left to method, the individual, and her situation must all be con- Gregory Pincus, a reproductive scientist who conducted sidered in arriving at a “best” choice. contract research at a private foundation, to do much of the research into the oral contraceptive that became known as See Also “the Pill.” Pincus formulated the Pill in the 1950s, at the CONTRACEPTIVES: DEVELOPMENT; HEALTH: OVERVIEW; behest of Margaret Sanger of the Planned Parenthood Fed- NORPLANT; THE PILL; REPRODUCTION: OVERVIEW; eration, who wanted women to have access to a contracep- REPRODUCTIVE PHYSIOLOGY; REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS; tive that would be easy to use. Sanger, like many of her REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES; RU 486 contemporaries in the United States and elsewhere, was worried about “race suicide”; she feared that poor people, References and Further Reading particularly black people, would “outbreed” white Hatcher, Robert A., et al. 1998. Contraceptive technology, 17th ed. middleclass Americans. Though initially women-centered, New York: Ardent Media. Sanger’s family-planning perspective had shifted toward a Hyde, J.S., and J.D.DeLamater. 2000. Understanding human eugenic view, captured in her declaration: “More children sexuality, 7th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill. from the fit, less from the unfit—that is the chief issue of Kaunitz, A.M. 1997. Reappearance of the intrauterine device: A birth control” (Gordon, 1990:277). Sanger considered poor “user-friendly” contraceptive. International Journal of Fer- people to be less adept at using the contraceptive methods tility 42:120–127. that were then available, such as the diaphragm, vaginal Marquette, C.M., L.M.Koonin, L.Antaish, P.M.Gargiullo, and douches, condoms, the rhythm method, and withdrawal. J.C.Smith. 1995. Vasectomy in the United States, 1991. Unexpectedly, however, white, middle-class women en- American Journal of Public Health 8:644–649. thusiastically took up the Pill when it became available in Mosher, W.D. 1990. Contraceptive practice in the United States, the early 1960s. Many mainstream accounts of contracep- 1982–1988. Family Planning Perspectives 22:198–205. tive research hailed the Pill as a milestone of women’s emancipation—but this was an unintended outcome of the Janet Shibley Hyde technology and not in fact the intention behind its develop- ment. Feminist research has shown that the rise of the population control ideology in the late 1950s and early CONTRACEPTIVES: Development 1960s was the decisive factor in turning contraceptive de- velopment from an effort that scientists had shied away Modern contraceptive development has a distinct history from into a socially acceptable, even desirable, endeavor compared with that of other industrially manufactured (Clarke, 1998; Hartmann, 1995). drugs or devices: the decision concerning which birth con- The negotiations that ultimately determined the nature trol method to develop (or not to develop) has been deter- of modern contraceptives took place primarily between mined primarily by the intersecting interests of population 1925 and 1945 in western countries such as the United control institutions and the scientific community, rather States and Germany. The main actors were advocates of than by the profit motives of the pharmaceutical industry— birth control (including feminists who wanted reproductive or by concern for women. self-determination, medical professionals who wanted to reduce maternal mortality, and eugenicists and neo- History before 1970 Malthusians who wanted population control) and repro- Throughout the ages and in many cultures, women have ductive scientists. Parallel to a shift from birth control as an wanted means to gain greater control over their own fer- issue of individual self-determination to an issue of popula- tility. Their wishes, however, have had only a marginal tion was a shift from “simple” user-controlled means of

231 CONTRACEPTIVES: DEVELOPMENT contraception to contraception that was under professional a lack of care and compassion on the part of the services control (Clarke, 1998). when users felt uncomfortable with hormonal contracep- From the start of research into modern contraceptives, tion). “User failure” was also an easy (if inaccurate) label corporate and private foundations in the United States, for pregnancies that occurred as a result of substandard such as the Rockefeller and Ford Foundations, were instru- quality or an irregular supply of contraceptives. mental in creating institutions and networks of scientists to Large pharmaceutical companies have been willing to engage in contraceptive development. In the 1960s, lobby- help perfect and market new contraceptives only if they ing by proponents of population control resulted in a sub- were satisfied about the profit potential—and only after the stantial flow of public funds for contraceptive research and initial research institutions had fostered public acceptance distribution. During the 1960s, however, the major part of of these methods. the research funds came from pharmaceutical companies, What was the result of the combination of scientists attracted by the potentially enormous market for products working in a narrow, biomedical framework that sees a to be used by women worldwide throughout their fertile woman’s body as a reproductive machine—often with years. little consideration of the real-life situation of women— and a population framework that is preoccupied with Developments after 1970 bringing birthrates down? The outcome has been that the During the 1970s, this situation changed. Most large safety of contraceptives was given a lower priority than American companies started to pull out of research into and their efficacy. The focus on long-action methods with development of new contraceptives, partly in reaction to low rates of user failure resulted in the development of protests over inadequate testing of contraceptives. In addi- high-technology contraceptive methods with a signifi- tion, liability suits over the misleading safety claims of the cant potential for abuse. After the Pill, which a woman first generation of (high-dose) pills and intrauterine devices could discontinue at any time, came intrauterine devices (IUDs, in particular the Dalkon shield), had resulted in (IUDs), injectable hormones, and implants, which act tighter standards for research prior to registration of a prod- for months or years at a time, so that women have to wait uct; consequently, the cost of research and development in- until the contraceptive effect wears off or depend on a creased. Women’s associations and third world solidarity medically trained person for removal. (Two exceptions groups also opposed the introduction of unsafe products, will be vaginal rings and skin patches, both hormonal especially the injectable hormonal contraceptive methods that at the time of this writing were said to be DepoProvera. As a result, large pharmaceutical companies close to market introduction; women can remove them at decided that other biomedical products would be more any time without professional help). profitable and less controversial than birth control methods Research on barrier methods (such as diaphragms and (Mastroianni, 1990:61). male and female condoms), improvement of natural meth- By the early 1990s, there was a clear dual research ods of family planning, and research into traditional meth- agenda for birth control methods: larger pharmaceutical ods and practices of fertility control and male companies tended to leave the financial risks of research on contraceptives received only a fraction of worldwide con- new contraceptives to governments, national and interna- traceptive funding. tional organizations, and small entrepreneurial firms, while concentrating their own efforts on improving existing hor- Contraceptive Research after Cairo monal contraceptives for customers who could afford to The women’s movement has lobbied consistently for a re- pay for them (Gelijns and Pannenborg, 1993). versal of this trend. In 1994, just before the International Nonprofit investment was focusing on new contracep- Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, tives that would be highly effective in preventing preg- some highly placed individuals within the contraceptive nancy, would have long-term action, and would pose a low research establishment started calling for a reorientation of risk of “user failure.” These contraceptives were intended contraceptive research—away from “demographically primarily for subsidized population programs in the third driven goals” and toward addressing the “still unmet needs world. Preoccupation with “user failure” made little dis- of women.” But, because this reorientation was portrayed tinction between (1) incorrect use of contraceptives such as as “one of the best strategies for saving the planet” the Pill because of insufficient prior information about cor- (Fatallah, 1994:229), many participants in the women’s rect use and (2) cases where women deliberately stopped and people’s rights movements felt that, to some degree, it taking the Pill because of its adverse effects (or because of might actually represent a shift from “hard” to “soft”

232 CONVERSATION

population control, a shift from coercion toward more sub- Journal of Technology Assessment and Health Care 9(2): tle manipulation. A true reorientation of contraceptive de- 210–232. velopment, they argued, cannot be achieved simply by Gordon, Linda. 1990. Women’s body, women’s right: Birth control adding a few more contraceptives to the gamut developed in America, rev. ed. New York: Penguin. within a framework that is not people-centered. The wom- Hartmann, Betsy. 1995. Reproductive rights and wrongs: The glo- en’s movement also argued that in making decisions about bal politics of population control and contraceptive choice, the direction of contraceptive research, the research com- 2nd ed., 173–286. Boston: South End. munity must take the AIDS epidemic into account. LaCheen, Cary. 1986. Population control and the pharmaceutical At the beginning of the twenty-first century, there are industry. In Kathleen McDonnell, ed., Adverse effects: finally some substantial shifts in contraceptive develop- women and the pharmaceutical industry. Penang: Interna- ment. More funds are now being allocated to research on tional Organization of Consumers Unions, Regional Office barrier methods and microbicides. However, the challenge for Asia and the Pacific. remains to reevaluate all birth control methods still being Mastroianni, Luigi, et al., eds. 1990. Developing new contracep- developed, such as the chemical sterilant Quinacrine and tives: Obstacles and opportunities. Washington, D.C.: Na- antifertility “vaccines”—a new class of contraceptives tional Academy Press. which act by turning the immune system against reproduc- Ollila, E. (1999). Norplant in the context of population and drug tive hormones or egg or sperm cells, and which a number of policies. Helsinki: STAKES, National Research and Devel- articles in scientific and popular media have described as opment Center for Welfare and Health. offering unprecedented effectiveness for demographic con- Richter, J. (1996). Vaccination against pregnancy: Miracle or trol (Richter, 1996:81–89). There is a great difference be- menace? London and New Jersey: Zed; Melbourne, Aus- tween a framework for development and distribution of tralia: Spinifex. contraceptives that aims to bring birthrates down and a Wajcman, Judy (1994). Delivered into men’s hands? The social framework designed to support women’s reproductive self- construction of reproductive technology. In Gita Sen and determination and give men more methods to share the bur- Rachel C.Snow, eds., Power and decision: The social control dens of birth control. It is the difference between birth of reproduction. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University control as a duty and birth control as a right. Press, 153–175.

See Also Judith Richter CONTRACEPTION; EUGENICS; FAMILY PLANNING; GLOBAL HEALTH MOVEMENT; NORPLANT; THE PILL; POPULATION CONTROL; PRO-CHOICE MOVEMENT; REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS; REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES; STERILIZATION CONVERSATION

References and Further Reading The concept of gendered conversational dynamics refers to Clarke, Adele E. (1998). Disciplining reproduction: Modernity, generalizable differences in the communication of women American life sciences, and the problem of sex . Berkeley: and men, as groups. In recent years scholars have identified University of California Press. a number of distinctions between women’s and men’s Corréa, Sonia. 1994. Population and reproductive rights: Feminist communication. This article summarizes differences re- perspectives from the South. London: Zed, in association ported by researchers, examines alternative explanations of with Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era the differences, and highlights implications of gendered (DAWN). conversational dynamics. Fathallah, Mahmoud F. (1994). “Fertility control technology: A women-centered approach to research.” In Gita Sen et al., Sex Differences in Communication eds., Population policies reconsidered: Health, empower- Gender-related differences in interpersonal communica- ment, and rights. Boston, Mass.: Harvard University Press. tion were most studied in the United States in the late twen- Freedman, A.M. (1998). Two Americans export chemical sterili- tieth century. Researchers have documented relatively zation to the third world. Wall Street Journal 1: A10, A11. consistent and generalizable distinctions between the con- Gelijns, Anne Christine, and C.O.Pannenborg (1993). “The de- versational behaviors of the sexes (Aries, 1987; Henley, velopment of contraceptive technology: Case studies of in- 1977; Noller, 1986; Tannen, 1990; Wood, 2000). The table centives and disincentives to innovation.” International on page 234 summarizes a number of specific differences

233 CONVERSATION reported in the verbal and nonverbal communication of A sampling of gender differences in communication western women and men. Verbal differences Rather than catalog particular differences in verbal and nonverbal behaviors, this article surveys broader gender differences in the goals, content, and styles generally 1. Women take shorter speaking turns. characteristic of women’s and men’s interpersonal com- 2. Women respond more personally and expressively. munication. 3. Women maintain conversations by inviting others to speak, asking questions, and so forth. Goals of Communication 4. Men interrupt more. Women and men appear to pursue dissimilar primary goals 5. Men more often reroute conversations to topics that in- in interpersonal communication. As a rule, women use terest them, or they highlight such topics. communication to build relationships with others; they do 6. Men give “minimum response cues,” which show mini- this by sharing feelings and ideas, expressing empathy, in- mum interest in another’s talk. cluding and responding to others, and giving verbal sup- 7. Women’s talk is more detailed. port. As a rule, men are more likely to use communication 8. Women communicate interactively, whereas men com- to establish and assert individual status, give information, municate using sequential monologues. achieve results, and gain and keep the conversational stage. The terms expressive and instrumental, respectively, cap- Nonverbal differences ture the communicative goals of women and men. The lin- guist Deborah Tannen (1990) refers to these differences as 1. Men assume more space and enter others’ space. “rapport” (feminine) and “report” (masculine) talk. These 2. Women engage in more eye contact when interacting are general differences only, and it must be remembered with others. that both sexes pursue expressive and instrumental objec- 3. Caucasian women smile more. tives, although each sex may emphasize one goal more than 4. Women tilt the head to show attentiveness. the other. Also, not all women use communication prima- 5. Women use more facial expressions, both in response to rily for expressive reasons, and not all men talk primarily others and to create their messages. for instrumental purposes. 6. Women use touch to indicate liking; men use touch to Content of Communication demonstrate or gain power. Scholars have also reported generalizable, although not universal, differences in the content of women’s and Styles of Communication men’s communication. Whereas women’s talk tends to In general, women and men also adopt distinct styles of focus on personal topics such as intimate issues, feelings, interpersonal communication. The contrast most often and relationships, men’s talk typically concentrates more noted is between women’s conversational emphasis on on what have been labeled impersonal topics such as process and men’s emphasis on outcome. In practice, this is sports, politics, work, and activities being done while evidenced by women’s greater attention to the dynamics of talking. Also, women’s talk often includes attention to communication, or how the process of interaction unfolds: mundane daily issues and is typically sprinkled with How is the conversation going? Is everyone having a many details and asides. Neither abundant detail nor at- chance to speak? Are we being responsive to what every- tention to everyday matters seems as typical of men’s talk one says? Are we feeling close, angry, and so forth, in this (Wood, 1993, 1998, 2000). These dissimilarities in con- interaction? As a group, men adopt a more instrumental tent suggest that women often connect with others style that focuses on results of talk. In other words, men through verbal sharing of feelings and experiences, while regard communication as a means to other ends, whereas men build connections through common interests, con- women perceive communication as an end in itself. texts, and activities. Paralleling the expressive-instrumen- Consistent with other differences in style, women tend tal goals of communication, gender-differentiated content to communicate interactively, whereas men are more of communication reflects a feminine preference for likely to communicate using sequential monologues. “closeness in dialogue” (Aries, 1987) and a masculine in- Thus, talk between women friends typically involves rap- clination toward “closeness in the doing” (Cancian, 1987; idly executed back-and-forth exchanges in which the con- Swain, 1989). versational floor is shared as each speaker talks for only

234 CONVERSATION short periods before the other speaks. More characteristic callosum connecting the two lobes are more developed, of men’s conversational style are extended monologues in and these govern integrative and synthetic thinking, which which speakers talk in sequence and each speaker holds is reflected in the weblike structure of women’s communi- the conversational floor for a longer period of unshared cation. Some scholars, particularly French feminists, time. The interactive-monologic distinction renders femi- claim that women’s bodies and biology tie them to natural nine communication more informal and evolving and mas- rhythms and interdependence that are not promoted by culine communication more formal and preset (Wood, male biology. Yet a third type of essentialist explanation 1998, 2000). accounts for communication differences as matters of di- Another gender-related difference in style concerns how vine law. Thus, goes the reasoning, God or another deity the content of talk is narrated. Men generally follow a lin- designed women to be nurturing and deferential and men ear style of presentation in which events are highlighted in to be instrumental and dominating. The conversational dif- a climactic sequence. Thus, a story has a clearly defined ferences, like other differences between the sexes, are part plot through which it progresses from the start through key of a divine design. events to a clear apex. Women tend to follow a weblike, or Constructionist explanations: The second broad multiple-track, style of presentation in which events, peo- genre of explanation for communication disparities is ple, relationships, and feelings are described within con- constructionist theories, which currently enjoy a greater texts, sometimes multiple contexts that are richly following than essentialist theories. Common to the portrayed. A pronounced plot and a climactic sequence are many specific constructionist explanations is the basic not necessarily found in women’s narrative style, since assumption that gender is socially constructed, not in- people, relationships, and feelings are more emphasized nate. Constructionists believe that aside from a few quite than an event-focused plot (Hall and Langellier, 1988; obvious differences (for example, reproductive organs Wood, 2000). Thus, women’s narration moves fluidly from and abilities, secondary sex characteristics) that result topic to topic, and a given conversation may include several from biological sex, differences between women and lines of talk that are woven together in the process of com- men are constructed and sustained through social prac- municating. tices that reflect the prevailing ideologies in various so- cieties. Cultural theorists argue that the institutions, also called Explanations for Sex Differences structures, and practices that make up cultures reflect and Several explanations have been advanced for gendered reproduce distinctly gendered identities. Institutions such conversational dynamics. At present, no one theory or ex- as religion, the military, and schools are hierarchically or- planation has eclipsed others, and there is substantial con- ganized, with men consistently occupying positions of troversy over the reasons for and meaning of identified greater power than those assigned to women. Practices differences. The explanations developed fall into two broad such as granting maternity leave, but not paternity leave, and oppositional categories: essentialist and constructionist embody and perpetuate the cultural expectation that accounts. women should be the primary caregivers (Wood, 1994). In Essentialist explanations: Essentialist explanations concert, the structures and practices of a culture reflect and share the fundamental premise that some essential, innate continuously re-create gendered identities and associated quality in women and men accounts for their distinct com- communication differences. munication behaviors. The most obvious form of essen- A recent and important addition to the cultural group of tialist explanation is rooted in biology and genetics. For accounts is standpoint theory, which notes that the posi- example, men’s more aggressive communication style is tion a social group occupies in a culture shapes what and explained by the greater presence of the hormone testo- how members of a group know (Harding, 1991). Stand- sterone; women’s nurturing, inclusive communication point theorists trace how intersections among gender, style is explained by the greater presence of the hormone race, class, and other bases of social groupings influence estrogen. Another version of biological explanation traces group members’ experiences and, thus, the identities they communication differences to differential hemispheric form and the patterns of communication they develop. specialization in the brains of the two sexes. Men have Sara Ruddick (1989) argues that women’s traditional greater development of the left lobe, which enables the lin- placement in domestic relationships cultivates “maternal ear, analytic thought more characteristic of men’s commu- thinking,” which emphasizes noticing and responding to nication; in women the left hemisphere and corpus others and their needs.

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Standpoint thinking provides a theoretical foundation of newer psychoanalytic accounts is that core personality is for research on gendered communication cultures. Some shaped by relationships in the early years of life. As the scholars (Johnson, 1989) believe that males and females usual first primary caregiver, mothers form distinct rela- are socialized into different communication cultures that tionships with sons and daughters. Between daughters and inculcate distinct understandings of how to communicate. mothers there is a basic identification, so that girls typically Daniel Maltz and Ruth Borker’s classic study of children’s develop gender identity within a relationship and internal- play (1982) suggests that the games girls and boys play ize the mother as part of themselves. Since boys do not teach the sexes different rules about communication. War share the sex of mothers, they must establish their gender and foot-ball, which are typical boys’ games, emphasize identity apart from a relationship. Because males carve out competition and instrumental goals, whereas house and their identity relatively independently of others, and fe- jump rope, games more usual for girls, place a priority on males establish their identity in relation to others, the two cooperation and relationship goals. sexes develop fundamentally different orientations to rela- More than other theories, standpoint reasoning sheds tionships and interpersonal communication. Women’s light on documented differences between women of differ- documented tendency to use communication to build con- ent races. For example, Caucasian women tend to smile nections, create and express empathy, and engage in per- more than African-Americans, and African-American sonal disclosures can be explained by their earliest women are more verbally assertive and dramatic than Cau- relationships, which featured intimacy, openness, and iden- casians. The greater protection or patronization imposed on tification with one another. The lack of identification be- white women in western culture may explain why, as a tween sons and mothers and the sons’ need to define gender group, they have had less need than black women to de- identity independently of the bond with the mother could velop assertiveness. explain men’s use of communication to assert individual Complementary to cultural accounts are social learning status, their emotional reserve, and their preference for do- theory (Bandura and Walters, 1963; Mischel, 1966), which ing over talking as a way to create and express closeness. claims that individuals learn to behave in masculine or No one theory has emerged as clearly superior, although feminine ways through observing and imitating others and constructionist theories have gained wider adherence than by reinforcement from others; and cognitive development essentialist theories. theories (Gilligan, 1982; Kohlberg, 1958; Piaget, 1932), which assert that individuals develop a constant sense of Consequences of Sex Differences their gender by age 3, and that they actively work to be- Regardless of how differences in women’s and men’s com- come competent in meeting social expectations for their munication are explained, they have pragmatic conse- gender. These kindred theories propose that girls learn to quences for personal identity and interpersonal communicate in cooperative, responsive, caring ways by relationships. Women’s tendency to sense others’ feelings, modeling themselves after women, and boys learn to com- provide emotional support, and monitor interpersonal dy- municate in competitive, assertive, instrumental ways by namics imposes on them primary responsibility for main- modeling themselves after men. taining conversations and relationships. More than men, A final constructionist view is psychoanalytic, or psy- women take care of others, express empathy, resolve ten- chodynamic, theory. While other constructionist accounts sion, and otherwise keep relationships amiable (Cancian, focus on conscious and observable ways that gender is 1987; Tavris, 1992). Because women’s attentiveness to formed, psychoanalytic theory deals with unconscious others and to relationships ties them more closely to others, processes of identification and internalization through these tendencies may reflect and perpetuate their low which gender is constructed. In his original psychoanalytic power relative to men (Kramarae, 1981). Women’s com- theorizing, Sigmund Freud contended that “anatomy is munication style also encourages their emotional expres- destiny.” By this he meant that a child’s genitals determine sion and growth, which may be inhibited by the with which sex she or he will identify, and that a penis is a communication patterns men tend to favor. source of envy for girls and a source of fear for boys (that Gendered conversational dynamics may also compli- is, boys fear castration). cate interaction between women and men. Because the two A large number of scholars and clinicians who reject sexes, in general, use communication in different ways and Freud’s biological determinism and his reverence for the to accomplish distinct goals, they often misunderstand one penis endorse alternative psychoanalytic theories another (Tannen, 1990). A woman may discuss a problem (Chodorow, 1978; Wood, 1994, 2001). The basic principle with a man to build a connection with him and in the hope

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of receiving empathy and emotional support. However, the Cancian, Francesco. 1987. Love in America. Cambridge: Cam- instrumental communication style typical of men may lead bridge University Press. them to show they care by doing something—diverting the Chodorow, Nancy. 1978. The reproduction of mothering: Psy- conversation to less painful topics or offering advice in- choanalysis and the sociology of gender. Berkeley: Univer- stead of emotional connection. Anne Wilson Schaef sity of California Press. (1981), among others, claims that women are often disap- Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice: Psychological theory pointed and frustrated in relationships with men because and women’s development. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uni- women reveal themselves and reach out for connection versity Press. while men maintain emotional reserve and independence. Hall, Deana, and Kristin Langellier. 1988. Storytelling strategies Conversely, men may be unsatisfied when women respond in mother-daughter communication. In Barbara Bate and to their problems by providing empathy and emotional sup- Anita Taylor, eds., Women communicating: Studies of wom- port instead of instrumental assistance. en’s talk. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex. Women and men may also fail to understand and appre- Harding, Sandra. 1991. Whose science? Whose knowledge: Think- ciate one another’s narrative patterns. Women may be ing from women’s lives. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University frustrated by the lack of details and contextualizing in Press. men’s narrative method, and men may be equally frus- Henley, Nancy. 1977. Body politics: Power, sex and nonverbal trated by the presence of rich detailing and contextualizing communicating. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall. in women’s narratives. As a rule, men assume that conver- Herring, Susan. 1999. The rhetorical dynamics of gender harass- sation in general and stories in particular move relatively ment online. Information Society 5(3):157–167. systematically toward a clear point, defined as a plot and Johnson, Fern L. 1989. Women’s culture and communication: An climax. Yet women generally regard the primary point of analytical perspective. In Cynthia Lont and S.A.Friedley, conversation not as a recounting of events but as making eds., Beyond boundaries: Sex and gender diversity in com- personal connections, a goal that may lead narrators be- munication, 301–316. Fairfax, Va.: George Mason University yond plot-focused accounts. These and other misunder- Press. standings between the sexes reflect gendered Kohlberg, Lawrence. 1958. The development of modes of think- communication dynamics. ing and moral choice in the years 10 to 16. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Chicago. Conclusion Kramarae, Cheris. 1981. Women and men speaking: Frameworks for analysis. Rowley, Mass.: Newbury House. The gendered conversational dynamics identified by re- Maltz, Daniel, and Ruth Borker. 1982. A cultural approach to searchers are generalizations that do not apply to all male-female miscommunication. In John Gumpertz, ed., women and men everywhere and do not represent absolute Language and social identity, 196–216. Cambridge: Cam- dichotomies between the sexes. Research is continuing, bridge University Press. and is increasingly focused on on-line discussions, which Mischel, Walter. 1966. A social learning view of sex differences in take place all over the world. (Herring, 1999, is an example behavior. In Eleanor Maccoby, ed., The development of sex of such research.) differences, 93–106. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press. See Also Noller, Patricia. 1986. Sex differences in nonverbal communica-

COMMUNICATIONS: SPEECH; DIVISION OF LABOR; tion: Advantage lost or supremacy regained? Australian Jour- ESSENTIALISM; FAMILY: POWER RELATIONS AND POWER nal of Psychology 38; 23–32. STRUCTURES; GENDER CONSTRUCTIONS IN THE FAMILY; Piaget, Jean. 1932. The moral judgment of the child. New York: LANGUAGE; SILENCE Free Press. Puka, Bill. 1990. The liberation of caring: A different voice for Gilligan’s different voice. Hypatia 5:59–82. References and Further Reading Ruddick, Sara. 1989. Maternal thinking: Towards a politics of Aries, Elizabeth. 1987. Gender and communication. In Phillip peace. Boston: Beacon. Shaver and Clyde Hendrick, eds., Sex and gender, 149–176. Schaef, Anne Wilson. 1981. Women’s reality. St. Paul, Minn.: Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage. Winston. Bandura, A., and R.H.Walters. 1963. Social learning and person- Swain, Scott. 1989. Covert intimacy: Closeness in men’s friend- ality development. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. ships. In Barbara Risman and Pepper Schwartz, eds. Gender

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and intimate relationships, 71–86. Belmont, Calif.: In many cultures, there are specific situations in which Wadsworth. men assume the task of cooking normally done by women. Tannen, Deborah. 1990. You just don’t understand: Women and Some religions prohibit women from handling and eating men in conversation. New York: Morrow. certain foods; among the Northern Athabaskan Indians, for Tavris, Carol. 1992. The mismeasure of woman. New York: Simon example, women avoid bear meat, which is prepared and and Schuster. eaten by men. Men participating in rituals may cook spe- Wood, Julia T. 1993. Enlarging conceptual boundaries: Research cial meats to prevent women’s ritual impurity from con- in interpersonal communication. In Sheryl P.Bowen and taminating it. Military and hunting groups usually have Nancy J.Wyatt, eds., Transforming visions: Feminist cri- designated male cooks. In modern western society, men tiques of speech communication, 19–49. Cresskill, N.J.: typically preside at outdoor barbecues that imitate the Hampton. meatcentered meals of hunting parties. ——. 1994. Who cares: Women, care, and culture. Carbondale: The male-dominated kitchen based on a military model Southern Illinois University Press. remained intact in Europe throughout the nineteenth cen- ——. 1998. But I thought you meant…: Misunderstandings in hu- tury. In 1898, the French chef and culinary writer Auguste man communication. Mountainview, Calif.: May-field. Escoffier instituted a hierarchical system called the “bri- ——. 2000. He says, she says. In Dawn O.Braithwaite and Julia gade” for food preparation, which was soon imitated T.Wood, eds., Case studies in interpersonal communication, widely by professional cooks. American restaurant and 93–100. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth. elite cooks of the time were usually from Europe and im- ——. 2001. Gendered lives: Communication, gender, and culture, ported the brigade system to North America. The brigade 4th ed. Belmont, Calif: Wadsworth. system, still utilized in many large kitchens, is one in which the hierarchical structure is similar to that of the military. A Julia T.Wood typical brigade would include chef, sous chef, and numer- ous chefs de cuisine (line chefs) as well as a pastry chef and a saucier. Women’s entrance into professional cooking in the West COOKING came primarily through cookbooks and the establishment of cooking schools in the late nineteenth century. Fannie The ethnologist Claude Lévi-Strauss wrote, “The role of Farmer, whose Boston Cooking School Cookbook appeared fire in transforming food from raw to cooked…marked… in 1896 and eventually sold more than four million copies, the emergence of humanity” (1993:36–37). Women, less has been credited with developing consistency in measure- mobile than men while pregnant and raising young chil- ment and uniformity of instructions in recipes. The twenti- dren, became specialists in the preparation of food at the eth century’s most popular cookbook, The Joy of Cooking, hunter-gatherers’ hearth. They also specialized in gather- was written originally by Irma Rombauer. These and other ing plant and small animal foods and eventually in cultivat- female cookbook writers enhanced women’s reputation as ing crops. When human societies stopped roaming and cooks and encouraged them to improve their skills, but built permanent shelters, the hearth—which eventually be- women nevertheless were excluded from professional came a separate room, the kitchen—was the domain of kitchens until the latter half of the century. mother and wife. After Farmer opened her Boston Cooking School, a This is still true, around the world, but male cooks have number of cooking schools were founded by women. The come to dominate in certain elite, industrial, and ritual set- most notable is the Culinary Institute of America in New tings. The ancient Egyptians and Roman emperors em- York, which opened in 1946 under the direction of Frances ployed men as cooks, and this practice was continued by Roth and Katherine Angell. It was established to retrain medieval European kings, who hired cooks from the armies, male World War II veterans funded by the GI Bill, however, where they had learned to feed large groups. By the elev- and did not graduate a woman until 1970. In the United enth century, royal cooks, bakers, caterers, and butchers had States and England, cooks who were female were generally formed guilds that excluded women and admitted members regarded as domestic servants (the U.S. Department of through patrilineal descent or payment of fees. In medieval Labor designated all cooks as domestics until 1976) rather China and Japan, such elite cooks were males from the than professional workers. lower classes. Only in Africa did women normally cook at In the 1960s a wave of innovative female chefs and au- ruling courts, but they were usually the king’s wives. thors, led by Julia Child and her now classic Mastering the

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Art of French Cooking, swept over the culinary scene. for girls, however, has long included cooking instruction. Child’s television cooking show debated in 1963 and in- European convents taught young girls to cook in prepara- spired women to take up “serious” cooking, first at home tion for domestic life, and missionary schools used culinary and eventually as caterers and restaurant chefs. By 1992, instruction as a way to acculturate indigenous populations Food Arts magazine had presented “Women Chefs: Role to European consumption habits. In the eighteenth and Models for the 1990s” and the James Beard Society had nineteenth centuries, schools for upper-class girls in Britain held “A Salute to Women Chefs in America,” with Alice and Europe trained students to plan menus, administer Waters named “best chef” and her influential restaurant, kitchens, and instruct their cooks about elite food prefer- Chez Panisse, named the United States’ “best restaurant.” ences. In the United States, high schools instituted “home Today, women graduate in large numbers from culinary economics” classes, in which students—until recently, academies and work alongside men as peers in most of only females—were taught the principles of nutrition and North America’s and Great Britain’s fine restaurants, food preparations; before 1960, most girls in public though they continue to be a smaller presence in profes- schools were required to take at least one “home ec” class. sional kitchens elsewhere in the world. Although 43 per- These institutional systems reinforced the view that women cent of all chefs and cooks in the United States are women, belong in the domestic sphere as well as mainstream cul- less than 15 percent are executive chefs. tural views of “proper” eating habits (many of which have Many facets of home cooking have recently been stud- now been rejected by nutritionists), but they also served as ied by sociologists, anthropologists, historians, and gender an entry point for young women to pursue higher education theorists. Some commentators see the kitchen as a place and careers in the food industry. where women exert more social and economic control than they may be permitted elsewhere; others (for example, See Also McIntosh and Zey, 1982) point out that even though AGRICULTURE; DIVISION OF LABOR; DOMESTIC LABOR; women enact the role of cook, men may still order it. Social EDUCATION: DOMESTIC SCIENCE AND HOME ECONOMICS; scientists study women’s role as “gatekeepers” controlling FOOD, HUNGER, AND FAMINE; HOUSEHOLD WORKERS; family nutrition and eating habits, a perception that leads HOUSEWORK; NUTRITION, I and II; WORK: OCCUPATIONAL government programs to target women in attempts to fight SEGREGATION hunger and poor nutrition. Economists look at how reduc- ing the demands of domestic cooking can free women to References and Further Reading make other contributions to a society’s production. Cooper, A. 1998. A women’s place is in the kitchen: The evolution Acquiring food by gathering, cultivating, or shopping of women chefs. New York: Wiley. can consume much of women’s time in nonindustrialized Counihan, Carole M., and Steven L.Kaplan, eds. 1998. Food and societies. In countries where homes lack refrigerators, gender: Identity and power . Amsterdam: Harwood Aca- fresh foods must be purchased almost daily—an activity demic. that may require women who live in rural areas to walk Fitzgerald, Thomas K., ed. 1977. Nutrition and anthropology in long distances to market. Moreover, these women may action. Assen, Netherlands: Van Gorcum. have to provide fuel for cooking by gathering wood or Goody, Jack. 1982. Cooking, cuisine and class. Cambridge: Cam- dried animal dung. More hours may be spent in garden bridge University Press. plots. Until recently, the processing of many staple foods Lévi-Strauss, Claude. 1993. The raw and the cooked: An introduc- was done laboriously in the home; ethnographers estimate tion to a science of mythology. Trans. John Weightman and that it took two to eight hours a day to prepare the maize Doreen Weightman. New York: Harper and Row (originally (corn) consumed by a traditional Mesoamerican family. In published 1969). most of these tasks, women are assisted by their daughters, McIntosh, Alex, and Mary Zey. 1998. Women as gatekeepers. In who may be less likely to obtain education because their Carole M.Counihan and Steven L.Kaplan, eds., Food and labor is needed at home. The demands of cooking thus be- gender: Identity and power, 125–144. Amsterdam: Harwood come a social and development issue, and aid agencies are Academic. now paying attention to projects that will lighten women’s Wheaton, Barbara. 1983. Savoring the past: The French kitchen cooking-related work. and table from 1300 to 1789. Philadelphia: University of Through most of history and still today in most of the Pennsylvania Press. world, women have learned to cook in the home from their mothers and other female relatives. Institutional education Ann Cooper

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appearance. Messages from partners, employers, and the COSMETIC SURGERY media, as well as real discrimination against certain groups of people, can all have an impact on a woman’s aesthetic Cosmetic plastic surgery, sometimes called aesthetic sur- sense of her own body that may coerce her—subtly or ex- gery, alters the appearance of a person who has normal plicitly—to think that she needs surgery. body functioning. It differs from reconstructive plastic sur- Cosmetic surgeons claim that they should not act as ar- gery, which corrects an injury or disfigurement. In some biters of what is acceptable by denying surgical body cases, the distinction between reconstructive and cosmetic changes to those who wish to conform to a cultural ideal. surgery is not sharp, but the focus here will be on the cos- They also assert that by providing bodily changes, they in- metic aspects, from a mainly feminist, critical standpoint. crease a persons life choices. In response, however, it can Other, more positive views can be found, of course, in certainly be argued that by advocating cutting and reshap- many media; but it is important to be aware of the issues— ing the body as a reasonable first option in addressing a theoretical and practical—surrounding such surgery. Most woman’s dissatisfaction with her physical appearance, cosmetic surgery is done on women. cosmetic surgeons actually reinforce the cultural status quo. In particular, they make age, weight, and ethnic and Motivations racial differences less visible. If the range of acceptable Cosmetic surgery is a medical “solution” for a purely social looks becomes narrower, the choices available to problem—self-perceived ugliness, low self-esteem, inse- women—in friendships, love, and work—become more curity in relationships, or, in some cases, lack of access to limited. In this way, then, surgery itself shapes standards jobs. Cosmetic surgeons are, in a sense, selling dreams: the as doctors replace a natural range of looks with an artificial dream of attaining a culturally defined image of beauty, of- sameness. ten based on the young, thin, northern European ideal; the dream of success in love and life. These fantasies are re- lated to—and reinforce—the belief that physical beauty is Risks and Outcomes more important for women than for men. The expected improvement in attractiveness and selfesteem Until the late twentieth century, only rich people could from cosmetic surger is supposed to occur painlessly and afford cosmetic surgery, and for this reason it was associ- effortlessly. In fact, one reason many women are willing to ated with high social status. Today it has become more undergo cosmetic surgery is that it is made to seem easy. widespread, as the number of cosmetic surgeons has in- Both the media and the surgeons themselves present the creased, necessitating an increase in the number of surger- surgery in ways that minimize the risks, so that clients often ies performed to support these surgeons. This has increased do not realize what chances they are taking with their the pressure for surgical procedures to become part of a health. woman’s “normal” pursuit of “improving” her looks, like The risks, however, are significant, including a loss of hairstyling or makeup. Cosmetic surgery can also be physical functioning from nerve or muscle damage, as viewed as “job insurance” that can help women enter, suc- well as rare cases of paralysis or death. The device used ceed in, and remain in certain careers; and in fact women for liposuction, for example, rips up the underpinnings of who meet the cultural ideal of beauty often are rewarded the skin and then vacuums them away. Yet descriptions in with higher status and access to more money. the popular literature of most of the cosmetic surgeries minimize the association with surgery and present the Cosmetic Surgery and Women’s Role risks as if they were on a par with those involved in Cosmetic surgery reinforces the role of women as objects coloring hair or applying makeup. Terms used in the for men’s use rather than as people who can be accom- United States for some of the procedures reflect how the plished in their own right. It upholds and strengthens polar, risks are downplayed: a face-lift is described as a “fresh- stereotypical images of male and female by reshaping the ening”; an abdominal rearrangement of muscles and skin, body to make it more “feminine” or “masculine.” The so- a major operation, is given the infantilizing name “tummy cial endorsement of reshaping women to fit a certain image tuck.” When the results of a procedure are unacceptable, leads directly to the concept of woman as commodity. To the subsequent corrective surgeries are called “revisions” the extent that women see themselves as “improvable” ob- or “touch-ups.” Women usually do not hear much about jects, the female body comes to be seen as isolated, change- complications until after they have decided to go ahead able, mechanical parts, subject to evaluation based on with the surgery.

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The Practice of Cosmetic Surgery the diversity of women’s appearance, and to love their own bodies as they are. Cosmetic surgeons may relabel normal bodies as “patho- logical,” as in a statement by the American Society of Plas- See Also tic and Reconstructive Surgeons in 1982 describing small ADVERTISING; BODY; COSMETICS; ETHICS: FEMINIST; breasts as “deformities [that] are really a disease which in FASHION; IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; SURGERY most patients result[s] in feelings of inadequacy, lack of selfconfidence, distortion of body image and a total lack of References and Further Reading wellbeing due to a lack of self-perceived femininity”—a American Society of Plastic Surgeons. 2000. Plastic Surgery In- definition that ignores the question of whether, or how formation Service, well, a woman’s breasts function sexually or for nursing, Anderson, Lenora Wright. 1989. Synthetic beauty: American not to mention the changing fashions in “ideal” breast size. women and cosmetic surgery. Unpublished PhD thesis avail- Nearly twenty years later, the message, though perhaps able through University Microfilms International, 300 North more subtle, was basically unchanged: the American Soci- Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Mich. 48106–1346, United States, ety of Plastic Surgeons used the slogan “Life is what you order number 9012773. make it” in a national media campaign “to educate patients Cash, Thomas F., and Thomas Pruzinsky. 1990. Body images: on the value of plastic surgery,” with advertisements in Development, deviance, and change. New York and London: magazines like Cosmopolitan and Allure (American Soci- Guilford. ety of Plastic Surgeons, 2000). Dull, Diana, and Candace West. 1991. Accounting for cosmetic Cosmetic surgery is an unusual branch of medicine and surgery: The accomplishment of gender. Social Problems surgery in that its chief benefit is psychological, yet cos- 38(6):54–70. metic surgeons have rarely done serious studies on Zones, Jane Sprague. 1992. The political and social context of sili- whether or how a particular procedure changes the client’s con breast implant use in the United States. Journal of Long- psychological state. They argue in support of the effective- Term Effects of Medical Implants 1(3):225–241. ness of their work by citing their own clinical impressions and testimonials from clients, often in the form of poorly Esther Rome designed self-evaluation questionnaires. Follow-up of cli- ents usually lasts only for a few months, though the effects of the surgery may last a lifetime. In addition, the surgeons pay little attention to how undesirable results affect their COSMETICS clients. Cosmetic surgeons are not always well regulated. In the Cosmetics are salves, face paints, and chemicals used to United States, for instance, any person with a medical de- change a person’s natural appearance, usually to improve it gree can legally perform cosmetic surgery. Because most according to current standards of beauty. Their use is prac- of these surgeries are prepaid and are performed outside of tically universal, throughout the world and throughout a hospital, there is usually no quality oversight by peers, time. For most women with free choice in the matter (that hospital boards, or insurance companies. is, women who are not constrained by religious, societal, family, or economic considerations), the use or nonuse of makeup is a statement. How or whether we wear makeup Cosmetic Surgery and Feminism tells others something about the kind of people we are: From a feminist perspective, it is important for women to practical, too busy, down-to-earth, shy, conservative, tradi- find ways of increasing self-esteem that do not depend on tional, narcissistic, free-spirited, wild. The use or avoid- altering their appearance through cosmetic surgery. ance of cosmetics—the choice to blend in with the majority Women can reconceptualize how they view and describe of women in a peer group or purposely not to look like its their bodies, so that “droopy eyelids,” for example, are members—is particularly telling in women outside that transformed into “wisdom curves,” “unsightly wrinkles” group. For example, “lipstick lesbians” may be making a are seen as “experience lines,” and breasts that “sag” after statement about who they are by differentiating themselves nursing become, instead, “relaxed and flowing.” Work- from lesbians who don’t want or feel the need to spend shops and support groups can help women learn to be more their time and energy on cosmetics—or maybe they just assertive, to change negative patterns of thinking, to accept like the way they look in makeup.

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Historical and Cultural Background Race and Cosmetics The use of makeup as a means of self-expression may al- If even white-skinned women were trying to make them- most be a primal instinct; Neanderthals are believed to selves paler, what were brown-skinned women living in so- have used body paints (though perhaps more for religious cieties dominated by Caucasians trying to do? Many were or tribal reasons than for the sake of mere appearance). also trying to make themselves paler. Because the influence Among the ancient Egyptians and Romans, both men and of European colonialism reached around the world by the women, particularly aristocrats, certainly took a great deal second half of the nineteenth century, so did the European of care over their appearance; however, among the ancient ideal of beauty. During and after the years of slavery in the Greeks, heavy makeup was associated more with prosti- United States, black women were often considered pre- tutes than with women of the upper classes. Throughout sumptuous if they tried to look more like white women; but western history, much could be gleaned from a woman’s in cartoons exaggerated characteristics of African-Ameri- or girl’s appearance: whether she was married or unmar- cans (such as hair, nose, or lips) were used to promote the ried, chaste or unchaste, rich or poor (and a woman’s mari- idea that whites were evolutionarily superior. Small wonder, tal and reproductive status is revealed, overtly or then, that products which promised to straighten hair and implicitly, in her jewelry, makeup, or clothing in societies lighten skin were used by African-Americans, even as early all over the world). And although the poetic ideal of wom- as the 1850s. However, the African-American women anhood (aspired to by those who had the time and money whose names are most closely linked to such beauty prod- to spare for the pursuit) has generally been unpainted, ucts—Annie Turnbo Malone and Madam C.J.Walker natural loveliness, the reality of infrequent bathing, poor (Sarah Breedlove)—never sold skin bleaches and promoted health, poor nutrition, and tooth decay even among the their hair products as hair growers and “glossines” rather upper classes meant that women who wished to appear at- than straighteners. Even at that time there was awareness, tractive had no choice but to resort to artifice. Men may and criticism, of the fact that many beauty products for Afri- have been naive about the reality of what it took for can-Americans had as their goal a European appearance, women to be such visions of loveliness—in 1770, the Eng- but the aim of these two entrepreneurs was to increase their lish parliament passed a law to protect men who had been customers’ dignity and sense of womanhood. Walker’s tricked into marriage by women using “scents, paints, cos- stance is beautifully summarized in a speech she gave to the metic washes, artificial teeth, false hair,…high-heeled National Negro Business League in 1912: “I am not shoes and bolstered hips” to snare them. The women were ashamed of my past; I am not ashamed of my humble begin- to be punished as if for witchcraft and the marriages ren- ning. Don’t think because you have to go down in the wash- dered null and void. (There is no evidence, however, that tub that you are any less a lady!” In addition to deliberately the law was ever enforced.) not trying to mold their customers into copies of white This attitude probably accounts for the acute distinc- women, both she and Malone promoted, and were finan- tion that was once made in advertisements between im- cially supportive of, the social wellbeing of blacks. Only af- proving the skin and masking it. Starch and rice powders ter Walker’s death did her company produce a skin bleach. protected the skin and were usually socially acceptable; With regard to race, the most obvious criticism of the idea tinted makeup and lead-based powders, which whitened of cosmetics is that they are generally used to make the wearer the skin, were considered “paint” and were not. This is more closely resemble an ideal—in many cases a European not to say that lead-based powders were not used: they ideal. There are now cosmetics specifically designed for were, and their dangers are obvious to us now. Women women of color, but the widespread availability of these is have died for beauty. Although cosmetics, at least in the relatively recent. It is worth pointing out in this context that United States, are fairly safe today because the Food and on occasion white women have tried to give themselves an Drug Administration (FDA) has established manufactur- “exotic” look: the “Sheba type” or the “Cleopatra type” or a ing guidelines, tests of a makeup’s safety do not have to dark-haired Spanish beauty. However, unlike those “exotic” be reviewed by the FDA before the product is sold. It is types, African-American women were almost never held up also interesting to note that the law does not require a as an ideal in advertising aimed at white women. cosmetic’s performance to live up to the manufacturer’s claims. Moreover, animal rights groups have pointed out Current Trends that animals have paid the price for humans’ beauty by The use of cosmetics by women can have implications for suffering through painful or even fatal safety testing of racial identity, social status, ageism, and other social issues. cosmetics. (It also can be no more than a response to advertising or a

242 COURTSHIP desire to fit in with one’s peer group.) For most men, it is a COSTUME nonissue. Today, only at the extremes of society do men See DRESS. have to deal with the question of whether to wear obvious cosmetics: in the cultures reached by advertising or other media, it is almost unthinkable for all but the most out-of- the-closet gay men, cross-dressers, or transvestites, and COURTSHIP when they wear makeup in public they are most definitely making a statement about who they are. This is not to say Heterosexual courtship can be defined as “the institutional that men do not go under the surgeon’s knife or spend long way that men and women become acquainted before mar- hours at the gym to improve their appearance, but vanity riage” (McCormick and Jesser, 1991). Courtship should be rarely extends to wearing obvious makeup. distinguished from a related term, dating. Whereas court- Whether or not we intend or even want to convey any- ship refers to the selection of a potential mate, dating in- thing by our appearance, others respond to it. Thus, it is un- volves a more casual interaction between women and men, derstandable that many women, including feminists, are without a chaperone and without specific commitment deliberate about the image they present to the world; a (Cate and Lloyd, 1992). woman politician, for example, shouldn’t be too pretty or she won’t be taken seriously, but she’d better not be too plain, Traditional Courtship either. It need hardly be pointed out that politics is full of In societies where boys and girls are kept apart as much as men at one end of the attractiveness spectrum, even though possible during puberty and the early adult years, courtship men who are considered to be at the other are not hurt by is a way of introducing young men and women to their pro- being thought handsome. Makeup itself is not the issue; Wolf spective mates. Traditional courting behavior consists of (1991) writes “The problem with cosmetics exists only when formal visits between young women and men, with paren- women feel invisible or inadequate without them…. When a tal consent, either in the presence of a chaperone (a parent woman is forced to adorn herself to buy a hearing, when she or some other adult) or with parental consent and approval needs her grooming to protect her identity,…when she must and with strict limitations on the quantity and nature of time attract a lover so that she can take care of her children, that is spent together. Sexual self-control in courtship is valued, exactly what makes ‘beauty’ hurt…. Many mammals and there are severe restrictions as to whom one can court groom, and every culture uses adornment. The real problem and what takes place during courtship. Supervision and pro- is our lack of choice” (1991:272–273). tection of daughters form the basis of traditional courtship. A double standard prevails, however, whereby women are See Also expected to be virgins but men are allowed sexual indiscre- ADVERTISING; BEAUTY CONTESTS AND PAGEANTS; COSMETIC tions. As noted by Humphries (1988), for example, formally SURGERY; GAZE; IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; MEDIA: courting couples in Edwardian England could engage in sex, MAINSTREAM whether it was forced by the man or mutually agreed upon; but if a pregnancy followed and a marriage could not be References and Further Reading arranged, the shame was primarily carried by the woman. Etcoff, Nancy. 1999. Survival of the prettiest: The science of In the traditional pattern of courtship, parents are exten- beauty. New York: Doubleday. sively involved. Such courtship usually ends in marriage, Foulke, Judith E. 1994. Decoding the Cosmetic Label. FDA Con- with parents exercising power over the selection of a suit- sumer Magazine. Department of Health and Human Serv- able mate. Parental power over courtship is often used as a ices. Rockville, Md.: U.S. Government Printing Office. means of forging or perpetuating economic or political alli- Gunn, Fenja. 1973. The artificial face: A history of cosmetics. ances between families. The courtship that follows be- New York: Hippocrene. tween the future bride and groom contributes to Peiss, Kathy. 1998. Hope in a jar: The making of America’s community stability. Once such a courtship is initiated, beauty culture. New York: Metropolitan. cancellation or interruption is not customary. Scranton, Philip, ed. 2000. Beauty and business: Commerce, gen- Traditional courtship is still somewhat prevalent in der, and culture in the United States. New York: Routledge. southern Europe, especially in those countries where Ca- Wolf, Naomi. 1991. The beauty myth: How images of beauty are tholicism is the dominant religion. It is also normative in used against women. New York: Morrow. large parts of Asia and the Middle East. In India and in Brinlee Kramer Muslim societies, for example, courtship may be fairly

243 CRAFTS short in duration, involving a few formal visits between the old norms. Sexually experienced women are more likely to families of the future marital partners, during which the fu- be independent and to take the initiative in dating and sex. ture bride and groom have a chance to see each other face The double standard seems to have been diminished, allow- to face. In some areas where traditional courtship is ing women to use strategies previously reserved for men. practiced, such as in southern Africa, it is increasingly pos- Men’s traditional power in relationships is often ex- sible for the young men and women themselves to indicate pressed in physical violence and sexual aggression. Even whom they would prefer as a potential mate, but the final when physical violence is reciprocal, men’s greater decision still rest mostly with their parents (Mullan, 1984). strength means that women are more likely to be victims of violence. Sexual aggression is defined as sexual interaction Dating as a Pattern of Courtship gained through the force, arguments, pressure, threats of As pointed out by McCormick and Jesser (1991), force, or the use of alcohol, drugs, or one’s position of au- intergenerational power is an integral part of courtship. thority. When this takes place in a dating relationship, it is With industrialization and urbanization, kin and the imme- called date rape. It is estimated that in the United States 15 diate family lose some of their control over young people, to 28 percent of women may have experienced date rape. and unmarried people themselves gain the power to deter- (Care and Lloyd, 1992). mine their courtship patterns. Dating then becomes impor- tant. With the relaxation of controls on sexual behavior in See Also the latter part of the twentieth century, sexuality and inti- HETEROSEXUALITY; MARRIAGE: OVERVIEW; ROMANCE; macy became more accepted parts of young people’s lives. VIRGINITY Today, it is assumed in many societies that dating partners will become lovers. References and Further Reading Dating is practiced in western countries and is presumed Albas, Cheryl, Daniel Albas, and Douglas Rennie. 1994. Dating, to have begun in North America after World War I. Dating seeing, and going out with: An ethnography of contemporary also developed around the same time in northern and west- courtship. International Journal of Contemporary Family ern Europe as well as in Australia and New Zealand. andMarriage 1(1):61–81. Intergenerational conflicts may arise over dating, particu- Care, Rodney M., and Sally A.Lloyd. 1992. Courtship. Newbury larly in ethnically diverse societies where mainstream val- Park, Calif.: Sage. ues are adopted by young people while their parents hold Dhruvarajan, Vanaja. 1996. Hindu Indo-Canadian families. In onto norms of courtship (Dhruvarajan, 1996). Marion Lynn, ed., Voices: Essays on Canadian families, Unlike courtship, dating assumes that young people se- 301–328. Toronto: Nelson Canada. lect their own marital partners and that marriage should be Humphries, Steve. 1988. A secret world of sex: Forbidden fruit: based on romantic love. Dating becomes a way of finding The British experience 1900–1950. London: Sidgwick and potential partners without committing oneself from the be- Jackson. ginning. In addition to being a form of selection, dating can Kurian, George. 1979. Cross-cultural perspectives on mate selec- also be a form of recreation or of socialization. Dating is tion and marriage. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood. casual; boyfriends and girlfriends can have fun together in McCormick, Naomi B., and Clinton J.Jesser. 1991. The courtship a relationship that involves flirtation or a sequence of ver- game: Power in the sexual encounter. In Jean E. Veever, ed., bal and nonverbal behaviors that create intimacy Continuity and change in marriage and family, 134–151. To- (McCormick and Jesser, 1991). ronto: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Dating is also called going out with or seeing someone. Mullan, Bob. 1984. The mating trade. London: Routledge and Albas, Albas, and Rennie (1994) describe dating, going Kegan Paul. out, and seeing someone as a three-step process in which Vappu Tyyska dating refers to the initial, less serious phase of finding out about someone, and going out and seeing someone indicate a more serious intent that can be a step toward marriage. McCormick and Jesser’s research (1991) suggests that CRAFTS traditional gender roles still prevail in dating relationships in that men are more likely to take the initiative, including Craft is a term that denotes the products of human skills asking a woman for a date or initiating first sexual inter- that are manual and involve varying degrees of experien- course. However, there are also observable challenges to tial knowledge and apprenticeship or training, directed by

244 CRAFTS different categories of intention. The products are re- are responsible for the associated ritual items, including ferred to in a general way as artifacts, and the categories woven artifacts. This led them to undertake the weaving of of intention on the part of the maker, together with dis- objects for daily use as well. Nevertheless, it is the general tinctions in the mode of consumption, provide for conno- case that textile crafts are predominantly practiced by tative definitions of the term. women. Crafts are functional objects which may receive aes- thetic appreciation but which blossom fully in use. The act Mechanization and Leisure Crafts of consumption involves understanding and knowledge of Concurrent with the professionalization of some crafts in the symbolic and material conditions of the object. Some the late nineteenth and the twentieth centuries has occurred crafts, however, have been placed into categories of art, as the mechanization of many. Together, those phenomena for example during the European Renaissance, when the have changed the economic and cultural position of tradi- economic and ideological demands of early capitalism tional crafts. Artifacts made from fibers, glass, clay, metals, transformed some artisanal work into “art.” Here the inten- wood, and so on are produced more quickly, cheaply, and tion of the work was to refer beyond society’s general use in greater quantities than has ever been possible by hand. and valuation, to account for the subjective or aesthetic de- They are standardized and often more reliable than those mands of the dominant leaders. The internationalization of made by hand. Mechanization removed the necessity for culture in the latter part of the twentieth century placed the creation of handmade objects and, particularly for similar strains on definitions. In this case the export of women, fostered an increased practice of such skills as a craftwork into alien cultures, often through consumption leisure activity. by tourists, does not necessarily allow proper understand- Crafts have been embraced as leisure activities not only ing and knowledge of the artifact, which in such circum- because they are pleasurably creative but also because they stances will function only as art. Such movements in the have a utility value, fufilling the moral injunction on valuation and consumption of categories of crafts over time women to be industrious. The case has been made by have created shifting hierarchies among the various medi- Rozsika Parker (1984), for example, that for several hun- ums. Higherstatus crafts are those which have been dred years since the seventeenth century, women of the lei- professionalized; these tend to require long training to- sured classes in Great Britain have been socialized into the gether with professional practice for local or official recog- ideal of the feminine through embroidery. Through this nition of expertise. An example of such a craft is pottery, craft women learned submissiveness, patience, persever- which has long hovered on a border between art and craft. ance, and the habit of selfless service to others. A similar Today, some pottery, such as that by the Pueblo Indians of syndrome was apparent in Great Britain in the 1920s and New Mexico or the “artistpotters” of Europe, is an artifact 1930s when married women were increasingly confined to which demands aesthetic response before functional use. unpaid work in the home. The prevalent requirements of upward mobility demanded that works of craft be produced Sexual Division of Crafts in quantity for the maintenance of family and home. There are no inherent differences between the crafts of Women as homemakers were measured by their industry in women and those of men. At different times in most socie- the production of such artifacts as clothing and home fur- ties crafts will have been practiced predominantly by one nishings of various kinds. gender or the other, depending on the sexual division of labor. Among the Suni peoples of New Mexico, for in- Personal and Political stance, women are by tradition responsible for all matters In the work of feminist cultural theorists during the last connected with the home. They are the builders and make twenty years of the twentieth century, women’s crafts were all clay products; they make the adobe blocks for their considered traditionally representative of female popular buildings and also practice associated skills, such as brick- culture. Carrying personal and political meanings, craftwork laying and plastering. In addition, these women produce is often perceived by women as providing a vehicle for femi- functional and decorative pottery of great beauty. nine values as well as for creative expression. One example In some societies a general craft category may be was the work of grandmothers, mothers, and wives of the practiced by both genders. Among the Australian Aborigi- “disappeared” in Chile. In a clandestine act of subversion, nals of Arnhem Land, although it is the women who are women used a traditional South American craft—patchwork responsible for fiber crafts, men are the weavers. This has and embroidered pictures—to communicate the violations arisen because men perform ceremonial rituals, and thus of human rights in their country. Their example inspired the

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Sisters of Soweto in South Africa to work together in simi- of reports of oral tradition: folklorists and ethnographers lar fashion on a variety of crafts in protest against apart- may have been influenced by ideological currents of their heid. And in the 1980s the women of Greenham Common time, and informants—native intellectuals—sometimes in Britain initiated a renaissance of banner-making in a col- produced idiosyncratic versions of stories. lective enterprise of peace and protest against nuclear weap- Modern science has challenged the myths and empirical onry. In these ways, groups of women have been enabled observation on which these earlier creations stories were by public, sisterly recognition to use crafts as carriers of based. It is now evident that the cosmos is far older (10 to political messages beyond local boundaries. 15 billion years) and far larger than ancient people realized. New poets are perhaps needed to take new scientific knowl- See Also edge and write it in language that can inspire religious awe ART PRACTICE: FEMINIST; FINE ARTS: OVERVIEW and ethical responsibility for the interdependency that links humans with one another and the rest of the cosmos. References and Further Reading Elinor, Gillian, et al. 1987. Women and craft. Virago. Eastern Mediterranean Fan Craft. 1988. 2(6). Christianity inherited creation stories from three traditions: Koplos, Janet. 1992. Considering crafts criticism. Haystack the monotheistic creation of the Hebrews, recounted in Mountain School of Crafts. Genesis 1–2; the Sumero-Babylonian myth complex; and Parker, Rozsika. 1984. The subversive stitch: Embroidery and the the Greek philosophical cosmology expressed by Plato in making of the feminine. London: Women’s Press. the Timaeus (Jowett, 1937). Early Christians read the bibli- ——, and Griselda Pollock. 1981. Crafty women and the hierar- cal story through the lens of Greek thought. chy of the arts. Old mistresses: Women, art, and ideology. The classic text of the Babylonian creation story is the London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Enuma Elish of the second millennium B.C.E. In it, the di- Women’s Art Magazine. 1991. (Special issue 43 on women’s crafts). vine is plural, multigenerational, and both male and female. The cosmogony is the account of the generation of the gods Gillian Elinor from the monstrous mother goddess Tiamat and her con- sort, where strife reigns among the divine parents, children, and grandchildren and defines the struggle between chaos CREATION STORIES and cosmic order. In the climax of the story, a battle ensues between Tiamat and her grandchild, Marduk, the champion Most human cultures have produced myths that recount of the younger gods. He repels Tiamat’s attack, slays her, how the world and its creatures originated; these are called and treads her body underfoot. Marduk splits the body in creation, origin, or primal stories. The technical term for half to make heaven and earth. He then mixes the blood of the creation of the universe is cosmogony. In recent decades Tiamat’s slain consort with clay and from it makes humans women scholars have investigated these stories in search of to be “slaves of the gods.” information about earlier matricentral social systems, the This story suggests a more ancient matricentric society role of women in intellectual cultures, and the development that is overthrown to create the new world of patricentric of present patterns of gender relations. Such studies are states out of military battle and death. The matricentric necessarily speculative, and it is crucial that they utilize re- world was gestated, but the new world is made out of the liable primary evidence and analyze it in the light of a dead matter of the old by a warrior-architect. The gods are broadly contextualized knowledge and understanding of masters of their human slaves, the immortal counterpart of the cultures that generated it. The discussion that follows the earthly, military aristocracy ruling a slaveholding centers on the presence or absence of female creators in economy. only a few of the world’s mythologies; for more informa- The Hebrew priestly account in Genesis banishes plural- tion, the reader should consult the works cited. ity of gender and generation in the divine: God is one, When one draws on reported myths, one must bear in male, disembodied word, above the swirling chaos and in mind that written sources give only one of several or many serene control of it. Only a hint of Tiamat remains in the versions that were present in oral tradition over the centu- formless void and dark waters. For the Hebrews, the mas- ries. Moreover, the writers are likely to have selected and ter-slave relation was also a metaphor for that of God to reinterpreted elements to serve religiopolitical agendas or creatures; however, Adam is not a slave but a viceregent to reflect their private philosophical views. This is true even who represents his lord by caring for the creation. God both

246 CREATION STORIES works and rests, and he commands this pattern for all hu- the Prophet Muhammad. God—single, male, without ante- mans, animals, and land. Although the primal human is de- cedents—created heaven, earth, and humanity with the fined as both male and female, in Hebrew law the collective command “Be!” He made all this in six days and ordered human community is represented by the patriarchal male, the elements in hierarchical fashion. Unlike Genesis, the ruling women, children, and slaves. Yet because this was Qur’an does not mention the separate creation of male and not spelled out explicitly, Genesis 1:26–27 has been read in female humans. modern times as an egalitarian text in which women as well Attempts have been made, notably by the poet and as men are created in God’s image and share the govern- scholar Robert Graves (1955), to reconstruct from frag- ance of creation. mentary sources an ancient, female-centered cosmogony The highly intellectualized version of classical Greek believed to have existed in Asia Minor and Greece before cosmogony reported in the Timaeus (Jowett, 1937) defines the Homeric age. In Graves’s version, the goddess the primal nature of reality as a split between mind and Eurynome arises alone from primordial chaos, conceives matter. The demiurge (demiourgos), or creator, looks to the after intercourse with a serpent, and lays an egg from which eternal ideas for a model by which to shape matter into a all creation hatches. She then banishes the serpent to the spherical and hierarchical cosmos. He mixes the power of underworld and creates the secondary deities and the first life or soul and infuses it into the cosmic body to put it in (male) human. motion. The residue of this cosmic soul is divided up to make human souls and is sown in the stars, where these Pre-Christian Europe souls gain a preincarnate vision of truth. Then they are in- In the eighth century B.C.E., the Greek poet Hesiod drew carnated and placed on earth, which is seen as the lowest on tradition to compose the Theogony (origin of the gods), level of the cosmic hierarchy. in which creation begins with four spontaneously arisen Christianity adopted several key ideas from Plato. One deities, one of whom—Gaea or Ge (Earth)—is female. was that earthly life was not the true state of the soul, but From her marriage with Ouranos (Heaven) descends the rather a fallen state from which the soul must extract itself complex lineage of the Greek gods. Mortal humans, we to return to its true home in the heavens. This idea, how- learn from Hesiod’s Works and Days, were created by the ever, contradicted the Hebrew belief in the resurrection of gods (specifically, male gods) in several cycles, which the body and a blessed, transformed earth. Christian escha- have become known as the golden, silver, bronze, and iron tology (thought about the afterlife) tried to bridge the two ages. The present “fifth race” was made by the patriarchal ideas with the concept of a “spiritual body” that would deity Zeus. someday rise in a new creation redeemed from mortality. An alternative Greek cosmology seems to have been es- Western Christian thinkers rejected Greek and Hebrew poused by the Orphic cults, which drew from sources to the ideas of preexistent matter from which the creator shapes east and are known only from fragments. Their primal de- the world in favor of a belief that God created the world ity, Phanes, was bisexual, born from an egg. Phanes created from nothing. This led to an ongoing debate about whether a daughter, Nyx (Night), and with her begat Gaea, Ouranos, created matter, mortal and finite, is a substance alien to that and the earth-lord Cronus. of god, or whether creation proceeds out of the substance When Rome rose to dominate the Italic and Etruscan of God and is therefore to be identified with God’s body, or peoples, indigenous religious beliefs were syncretized with sacramental self-manifestation. the traditions of the Greeks, who dominated Mediterranean Christianity also rejected the Platonic idea of the intellectual life. By the time from which written documen- preexistent soul, and so eliminated its explanation for gen- tation has come down to us, this process of assimilation der and class hierarchy. Each soul was created separately at was pervasive. We know many names of pre-Roman deities the time of conception for one existence on earth, to be and some of their associations, but not their stories. continued in an immortal future. Female subjugation was Early Celtic cosmogony, reconstructed from evidence in explained by reference to ideas in Genesis that woman was archaeological finds and Roman writings, seems to have created after Adam and was primarily responsible for diso- resembled that reported by Hesiod. Earth was the female bedience to God and expulsion from paradise. member of the primal couple, mother of the succeeding The Qur’an, the holy book of Islam, does not contain a gods. Early Scandinavians, too, imagined a genealogy in unitary creation myth like that found in Genesis, but state- which the first female seems to have been the sun; the first ments in separate suras (chapters) offer ideas similar to mortals were a man, made by the sky gods from an ash tree, those of the Hebrew Old Testament, which were familiar to and a woman, from an elm.

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These related mythologies are Indo-European, but India alongside them existed the western Finno-Ugric peo- The eastern Indo-Europeans created Hinduism from their ples. The Kalevala, an eighteenth-century C.E. compila- polytheistic tradition. Its earliest documents, the Vedic tion of folk tradition, depicts the creator as a female, the hymns, refer to the creation of the universe from chaos by Mother of Waters. Like Graves’s reconstructed creator- Prajapati, a male primal god. His descendants create the goddess, she lays eggs from which the rest of creation present world from the dismembered parts of Parusha, a hatches. primeval man. The role of the creator in scriptures created some centuries later is assigned to the asexual Brahman, an Ancient Egypt egg-born entity which wills all subsequent creation into ex- The religion of ancient Egypt was not monolithic; in- istence. Brahman creates the masculine Brahma, a stead, it was syncretized from various local mythologies, demiurge responsible for the differentiation and ordering which remained to some extent discrete through Egypt’s of the universe. The other great religions of India—Jainism long history. The two primary theologies, called and Buddhism—reject the Hindu cosmogony and envision Memphite and Heliopolitan from their leading cities, had an eternal, uncreated universe. different cos-mogonies. Both posited a male primal crea- tor: Ptah in Memphis, Atum in Heliopolis. Atum, thought Eastern Asia by some scholars to be androgynous, achieved creation through masturbation, while Ptah worked through lan- Known ancient Chinese creation myths involve the combi- nation of the principles yin (masculine, sky) and yang guage. Both created divine offspring, male and female, (feminine, earth), arisen out of chaos, to produce the ele- who assumed specific divine responsibilities related to the primal elements. The ordering of the universe took ments and a primal human male. In some versions, this man acts as a demiurge; in others, he is sacrificed and creation place through both cooperation and conflict among the stems from his parts. This conception was borrowed and gods, in which goddesses were often as active as their male counterparts. combined with native Shinto beliefs in Japan, where more anthropomorphic deities, both male and female, appear as Sub-Saharan Africa active myth personalities. African origin myths often posit a primal couple. Their acts Other Asian traditions have been recorded much more recently and reflect borrowings from Buddhism, Orthodox and those of their divine children, which often mirror fa- Christianity, Islam, and Iranian sects. Male creators and miliar human activities such as war and the use of technol- ogy, form the world known to humans. These myths tend to male primeval humans predominate. depict humans not as the result of a specified act of crea- The Americas tion; instead, they come to the earth from the heavens or emerge from below earth’s surface or from water, already The creation myths of Native Americans are as varied as differentiated by gender. their societies and language families, but some overarching Recorded African creation myths display great variety. themes are apparent. The physical world exists before the The Bushongo (Congo) recount how a single male god “action” of peopling and ordering it begins, often after a produces the universe by vomiting its first elements; his great flood. The creator is envisioned as male and often has three sons, in the role of demiurges (secondary creators), a semidivine male helper whom he provides with a woman, refine and order its contents. In a Ngombe story, humans the mother of all succeeding humans. (In Hopi myth, the first reach earth when a woman annoys the creator-god male demiurge has his own demiurgic helper, Spider and is lowered from heaven with her son and daughter. Woman, who in turn makes humans; some South American The Dogon (Mali) told how differentiated creation arose cultures recognize a primal couple.) Incest often figures from the copulation of a male god with the earth, which significantly in creation stories—perhaps reflecting atti- the god had rendered unequivocally female through a pri- tudes of small migrating groups who were unable to prac- mal act of genital excision. Some myths trace human an- tice exogamy—and female participants in incest may cestry to primal male-female twin pairs, and some to become important deities, such as the sun. Earth, when per- androgynous persons. In general, the active creators are sonified, tends to be female. Anthropomorphized animals, male, though the Fon (Benin) tell of an androgynous pri- mostly presented as male, are prominent actors in differen- mal deity; women tend to appear as receptive earth-moth- tiating the world and establishing customs. The only pre- ers and as agents of conflict. Columbian American societies that left written records

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were the Maya and Aztec peoples of Mesoamerica. The Lovelock, James. 1979. Gaia: A new look at life on earth. Oxford: Quiché Maya book, the Popol Vuh, records a cosmogony Oxford University Press. with male primal creators who have both male and female Mendelsohn, Isaac. 1955. Religions of the ancient near east: helpers; they make male and female humans at the same Sumero-Akkadian religious texts and Ugaritic epics. New time but of different substances. The elaborate and violent York: Liberal Arts. Aztec cosmogony actually begins with a female deity who Ruether, Rosemary. 1992. Gaia and God: An ecofeminist theology gives birth to further gods; a salient episode in the ordering of earth healing. San Francisco: Harper. of the world is the overthrow of an evil goddess by a hero- Sproul, Barbara C. 1991. Primal myths: Creation myths around god, Tezcatlipoca. the world. San Francisco: Harper.

Australia and Oceania Rosemary Ruether The widespread Australian Aboriginal creation myth called the Djanggawul cycle recounts the ordering of a preexistent world by a man and his two sisters; the sisters gave birth to a great many beings. The women were more active until CREATIVITY their objects of power were stolen by their brother and other men, who then further limit the women’s power by Creativity has many meanings, but one common thread in excising their originally large genitals. In another Aborigi- the various definitions, descriptions, and analyses is nal myth, a male creator gives birth to animals and male uniqueness: what is created is in some way new. Thus, ac- humans from his navel and armpits. In contrast, the Kakadu cording to Clarissa Pinkola Estés (1994:316): people of northern Australia told of creation by a fecund female who left her consort and traveled alone. Creativity is the ability to respond to all that goes on Female creators are reported from the Malay Peninsula around us, to choose from the hundreds of possibilities (a divine couple) and West Ceram in eastern Indonesia of thought, feeling, action, and reaction and to put these (three goddesses). Pacific Island cultures posit male or together in a unique response, expression, or message asexual creators, though Maori myth offers a primal cou- that carries moment, passion, and meaning. ple, Heaven (male) and Earth (female), whose rebellious offspring choose to remain closer to their mother. Tahi- A consideration of women’s creativity can reasonably tians believed that the first human created was male and draw attention to feminist issues, such as the status and role wicked, but he was given a semidivine wife whose good- of the body in women’s consciousness, and the extent to ness rescued worldly order, though she could not keep her which women can borrow existing patriarchal concepts husband from condemning people to mortality. The without colluding in and perpetuating their own and other Kamulipo, a creation poem from Hawaii, records the si- women’s colonization. Should women try to fit in? Or is multaneous, spontaneous generation of male and female creativity a key to women’ survival and health, and to femi- progenitors. nist interventions?

See Also Contexts of Women’s Creativity CHRISTIANITY: FEMINIST CHRISTOLOGY; CHRISTIANITY: Women’s history as producers of knowledge and agents of STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE CHURCH; GAIA HYPOTHESIS; social transformation—sustaining and maintaining rela- GODDESS; HINDUISM; MYTH; RELIGION: OVERVIEW; tionships and domestic, social, and ecological systems— WOMANIST THEOLOGY testifies to their ability to integrate creativity within day-to-day living. Their creativity may also have symbolic References and Further Reading and mythic signficance, as in the concepts of the “goddess” Berry, Thomas, and Brian Swimme. 1992. The universe story. San and the “wild women,” archetypes recurring in stories and Francisco: Harper. myths across diverse cultures and eras: Bird, Phyllis. 1992. Male and female he created them. In Karri Borresen, ed., Image of God and gender models, 11–34. Earth-centred, not heaven-centred, of this world not Oslo: Solum. otherwordly, body-affirming not body-denying, holis- Jowett, Benjamin, ed. and trans. 1937. Timaeus. In The dialogues tic not dualistic,…the Goddess was the life force. of Plato, 3–70. New York: Random House. (Gadon, 1989:xii)

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The Wild Woman carries the bundles for healing: she Creativity and Politics carries everything a woman needs to be and know. She From this perspective, feminism as a form of creativity in- carries the medicine for all things. She carries stories volves working with the materials of women’s internalized and dreams and words and songs and signs and sym- oppression, such as their deep-seated self-doubt. If regard- bols. She is both vehicle and destination. (Pinkola ing genius as the “female male,” or making creativity a Estés, 1994:12) male domain, can be said to be a patriarchal reversal, crea- tive feminism must in turn reverse that reversal: it must There is widespread evidence that women’s creativity has deprivatize creativity by developing contexts in which been seen as a process of healing and becoming—“identi- women can collaborate, form networks, and engage in co- fying our pain and imaginatively constructing maps for creativity. This is a politics of becoming, in which women healing” (hooks, 1993:ii)—and of connecting the self, imagine and create not just social forms and cultural arti- others, and the environment. In India, for example, Pra- facts but themselves and each other. kriti is understood as “a living and creative process…from Such a process is not academic; it cannot be simply an- which all life arises,…nonviolence as power,…an em- other method, an approved professional activity, or certain bodiment and manifestation of the feminine principle” kinds of products. Instead, it moves toward something that (Shiva, 1989:xviii, 1, 40). Both integration and expansion is described as feminist poetics-politics, which realizes characterize creativity as a process of self-maintenance women’s potential for loving and living: their confidence and healing: in, and their attentive listening to, both the inner self and other women. This entails recognizing nonverbal and bod- My fullest concentration of energy is available to me ily phenomena as central to feminist consciousness, crea- only when I integrate all the parts of who I am, openly, tivity, and politics—a recognition, however, that goes allow power from particular sources of my living to against academic norms and conventions which put lan- flow back and forth freely through all the different guage and displays of authority and power in a privileged selves, without the restriction of externally imposed position. definition. (Lorde, 1984:120–121)

Obstacles to Feminist Identity and Community Creativity and Patriarchy The western patriarchal concept of genius incorporates Feminist analysis often sees a conflict between patriarchy “professionalism” and specialization, such as art and sci- and women’s creativity. Thus the Enlightenment, the sci- ence. The roots of women’s creativity are often said to lie entific revolution, and colonialism devalued women’s elsewhere, in diversity, mutliple identities, and integrated creative heritage as primitiveness, prehistory, or magic engagement with life-sustaining processes. If male “gen- that had been superseded by civilization, modernity, and ius” is a function of privilege, women’s creativity can be rationality: seen as a function of necessity. If western rationality and professionalism require a denial of bodily processes and Activity, productivity, and creativity which were as- identification, one result may be that women are embar- sociated with the feminine principle are expropri- rassed by the history of the “goddess” and the “wild ated as qualities of nature and women, and woman” and their meaning as symbols of “the core self, the transformed into the exclusive qualities of man…. instinctual self” (Pinkola Estés, 1994:472). From being the creators and sustainers of life, nature Women’s creativity, in this kind of feminist analysis, is and women are reduced to being “resources.” (Shiva, necessarily a struggle for liberation, an intensification and 1989:6) an enactment of women’s femaleness and wildness, not a fixed identity but a process. That concept is rendered con- In this regard the western concept of “genius” as “the tentious, if not taboo, by some western postmodern theory, famale male” (Battersby, 1989:107) is also significant, which opposes any identification of women with nature or making the idea of women as creative seem paradoxical. nature with women and rejects “woman” as a subjective When “femaleness” is taboo, women face a crisis—if position from which to speak. creativity cannot be embodied in women, then creative Consequently, creativity and intellectuality may-persist women are forced into self-denial and disguises, trying to as opposites within women’s studies. Women can “adopt” be men. intellectuality (identified with masculinity and language)

250 CREED without feeling overly compromised; but the western pa- CREED triarchal concept of creativity—sexualized and colonial— In Christianity, a creed (from the Latin credo, “I believe”) becomes a site of struggle, both among women and is a significant part of religious identity, marking the between women and men. Feminist creativity, in particular boundary between true and false belief. Brief, creedlike interdisciplinary methods and transdisciplinary goals, may formulas may be found in the New Testament—for exam- be stereotyped as “entertainment”: turbulent, exotic, and ple, Martha’s “confession” in John 11:27: “I believe that associated with women who are lower down in the social thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into and academic hierarchy. By identifying some women with the world.” More characteristically, both in the New Testa- the intellect, rationality, the mind, and culture while “the ment and in second- and third-century writings of the others” are identified with creativity, emotionality, the Christian era, a three-part pattern emerged, as a result of body, and nature, women’s studies may perpetuate patriar- question-and-answer preparation of candidates for bap- chal hierarchies and women’s fear of themselves, of one tism, and in order to distinguish true from false teaching. another, and of community. Alienating women from their The pattern reflects “trinitarian” belief—that is, God as female biographies, then, curtails their potential for femi- “three in one.” nist creativity and perpetuates their subjugation to patriar- The titles of Christian creeds may be misleading—for chal values. example, the Apostles’ Creed developed, not from the original apostles, but from a creed used in the church in See Also Rome in the middle of the fourth century. The Nicene Creed was agreed on at the Council of in AESTHETICS: FEMINIST; ARCHETYPE; ART PRACTICE: 381, extending the formula of the Council of Nicea in 325. FEMINIST; COMMUNITY; FINE ARTS: OVERVIEW; GODDESS; From the earliest days, confessions of belief of varying LITERATURE: OVERVIEW; PATRIARCHY: FEMINIST THEORY; lengths have proliferated. PERFORMANCE ART; POETRY: OVERVIEW The major issue that arises for feminists of both sexes with respect to the Christian creeds is the language used for References and Further Reading the divine. An important theological rule is that God tran- scends both sex (biological differentiation) and gender Battersby, Christine. 1989. Gender and genius: Toward a (cultural meaning associated with sex). God is ultimately feminist aesthetics. London: Women’s Press (reprinted mysterious and beyond “saying.” The creeds used in Chris- 1994). tian worship and other statements of belief manifestly do Gablik, Suzi. 1991. The reenactment of art. London: Thames and not “say” God in humanly inclusive ways, though much Hudson. spirituality and prayer has used gender-inclusive language Gadon, Elinor W. 1989. The once and future goddess: A symbol for God and has more adequately reflected the cultural di- for our time. Wellingborough: Aquarian. versity and richness of gender differences. This is no hooks, bell. 1991. Yearning: Race, gender, and cultural politics. merely “verbal” matter; it is arguable that the value or de- London: Turnaround. valuation of women and the “feminine,” as well as of men ——. 1993. Sisters of the yam: Black women and self-recovery. and the “masculine,” are at stake, not only as co-procrea- London: Turnaround. tors of human life but also as expressed in and through all Lorde, Audre. 1984. Sister outsider. Trumansberg, N.Y.: Crossing. realms of experience. Pinkola Estés, Clarissa. 1994. Women who run with the The dynamics of tradition require attention to markers wolves: Contacting the power of the wild woman. Lon- of truth and identity and to responsibility for those markers don: Rider. in widely differing contexts. It does not therefore follow Raven, Arlen. 1988. Crossing over: Feminism and the art of social that no sense may be made of the language of divine father- concern. Ann Arbor and London: University of Michigan hood if God in the Christian sense is believed to be both Research Press. given and apprehended in gender-inclusive ways. Nor can Shiva, Vandana. 1989. Unbounded women? Feminism, creativity, there be any ultimate justification for refusing to explore and embodiment. In Ghaiss Jasser, Margit van der Steen, and the way in which divine motherhood may express the tran- Mieke Verloo, eds., Feminism in Europe: Cultural and politi- scendence of God. cal practices. Utrecht, Netherlands: Women’s International Also, Christian understanding of divine humility, God’s Studies Europe (WISE). commitment to humanity expressed in “taking flesh” in the Val Walsh sexual and gendered life of Jesus of Nazareth through the

251 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT body of his mother, may represent the promise of gender encompasses increasingly punitive responses to nonviolent reconciliation when that promise is associated with Spirit, offenders, a harsh “punishment tax” inflicted on women given and giving. The trinitarian language of the creeds and their children, and the psychological, physical, and may well be capable of yielding creative compassion and sexual abuse of incarcerated women. Equally important but the seeking of justice in human relationships, though there often ignored are the links between structural inequality, is to date no interchurch creed that has assimilated what is punitive social policies, and the victimization, crime, and after all very recent feminist criticism. It will probably be punishment of women. most productive both to explore what the tradition may yet A monumental obstacle to the feminist analysis of crime have to offer, given the extraordinary variety of contexts in and punishment is the lack of systematic data and research which Christianity is to be found, and to accept the neces- on which to base that analysis, policy recommendations, or sity of theologically imaginative experimentation with new collective actions. There is a paucity of comprehensive data statements of belief. regarding worldwide crime and justice, and those data that do exist commonly ignore issues of gender. For example, in See Also the United Nations Global Report on Crime and Justice of CHRISTIANITY; CHRISTIANITY: FEMINIST CHRISTOLOGY; 1999, women are invisible. International and national data DEITY; FAITH; PRAYER that are available must be scrutinized carefully, for they re- flect not just women’s criminality but, rather, the combina- References and Further Reading tion and confluence of women’s behavior, responses by the La Cugna, Catherine Mowry, ed. 1993. Freeing theology: the criminal justice system, and the power structures in which essen-tials of theology in feminist perspective. New York: both occur. HarperCollins. Leith, John, ed. 1973. Creeds of the churches: A reader in Chris- “Unnatural” Criminals tian doctrine from the Bible to the present. Oxford: On the basis of existing information, it is clear that crime Blackwell. and violence (corporate, political, and street crime) are Young, Frances. 1991. The making of the creeds. London: SCM; overwhelmingly the province of men and boys. But, al- Philadelphia: Trinity. though women participate in illegal behavior far less than men, those who do are commonly portrayed as exception- Ann Loades ally deviant, supercriminals, or inhumane monsters. Im- ages of women offenders as singularly and uniformly violent, “unwomanly,” “unfit mothers,” and “unnatural criminals” have been pervasive historically and are still CRIME AND PUNISHMENT powerful in the contemporary world. The majority of women become enmeshed in criminal Arguably, the social control of women involves the inter- justice systems because of drug-related offenses and locking spheres of economic exclusion, domestic violence, offenses against property or public order. Worldwide, and punishment within criminal justice systems. Daily women are far more likely to be victims of violence than to struggles with poverty, violence against women, and im- perpetrate it. Relatively few women are arrested for violent prisonment are interrelated forms of punishment, and they crimes, and those few arrests often reflect desperate acts by can all be seen as dimensions of social control integrally violated women, including assaulting or killing abusive related to women’s reproductive capacities and societal male partners. In the many countries where drug use is roles. Historically, the most poignant and entrenched forms criminalized, drug-related offenses account for much of the of social control for women have been within the institu- increase in the arrest, conviction, and incarceration of tions of the family and the economy: gendered violence, women. Accordingly, women’s involvement in criminal poverty, and marginalization. In the contemporary world, justice systems is a direct result of increasingly punitive re- social control exercised through criminal justice systems is sponses to drug use and related crimes to support drug hab- becoming central to this matrix of domination. its, such as prostitution and, especially, theft. In this age of Major feminist concerns include the criminalization of increased surveillance and punishment, the greatest in- women’s behaviors, the demonization of women offend- creases have been in the number of incarcerated women ers, and the gendered and excessive forms of punishment to and the length of their incarceration. The massive rise in which women are subjected. In many countries, punishment women’s arrest and imprisonment in numerous countries

252 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT reflects changes in social policy far more than increases in exacerbated, an effect that includes the long-term conse- women’s criminality. quences of the disruption and destruction of countless International monitoring agencies, such as Human families. Rights Watch, suggest that many women are often arrested, Women’s imprisonment presents a microcosm of the detained, or incarcerated because of either discriminatory myriad controversies surrounding both contemporary sys- laws or the discriminatory application of laws. Although it tems of punishment and women’s place in society. Incar- is not the focus of this article, it also must be acknowledged ceration intensifies and perpetuates the degradation of that women worldwide are held as political prisoners and, women, and involves multiple systematic ways in which even when women are arrested for “ordinary street they are stripped of their identity as women, mothers, and crimes,” the criminal justice process is deeply imbued with contributing members of society. Policy changes surround- power struggles. The very definition of what constitutes ing punishment and prisons are evidence of contradictory crime, the decision-making processes related to criminal and conflicting responses to women’s needs and life situa- prosecution, and the rise of a global prison industrial com- tions. Some feminists advocate equity or parity in response plex are issues of urgent concern to feminists, as is the fact to stereotypic treatment and markedly inferior services that that throughout the world indigenous women and women perpetuate the subservient status of women. Yet superficial from racial and ethnic minorities are overrepresented or nominal equity for women leads to unacknowledged ad- among those who are charged with and punished for ditional punishment, because “equality” inevitably means crimes. This punishment goes particularly to the heart of inferiority when the context and standards are inherently their existence as women and, for the vast majority, as male-oriented. mothers. For example, equity in sentencing means relatively harsher punishment for countless women because of the Gendered Punishment acutely painful nature of their separation from their chil- Specific forms of punishment vary throughout the world, dren. Likewise, the isolation experienced by most prisoners but widely used sanctions include fines, probation, im- is heightened for women. Especially when prisons are de- prisonment, parole, and, in some countries, capital pun- signed as massive, centralized institutions, many women ishment. Many feminist issues are involved in this, are incarcerated at significant distances from their homes. including the punitive and gendered nature of much pub- Control and discipline are frequently harsher for women lic policy, especially the long-term confinement of than in men’s facilities, as well as disproportionate to the women for drug-related offenses; the long-term confine- less serious nature of most women’s offenses. For example, ment of women for killing abusive partners; the multiple research in the United States suggests that, even though ways in which experiences within criminal justice sys- they are less violent than their male counterparts, women tems are determined by gender, race, and class; the exclu- receive a greater number of disciplinary citations for less sion of women offenders and their children from cultural serious infractions, are subjected to harsher standards of emphases on family integrity and the preeminence of parole, and have fewer opportunities to be housed in mini- “family values”; and exploration of the potential for mum-security facilities. change within jails and prisons through feminist activism Equally important, because women’s numbers are small and the advancement of women’s rights within the global compared with men and because of the masculinist orienta- community. Especially crucial are the isolation, the lack tion of prisons, there is a grave lack of services tailored to of services, and the harsh, often abusive, conditions of the specific needs of women, including education and vo- women’s punishment, as well as the multitude of ways in cational and career training. This is often legitimated in the which they are affected by offenders’ complex status as name of organizational expediency and the security needs stigmatized women. of prisons, but it also has become an explicit strategy in the The punitive measures applied against women offenders political demonization of prisoners as “undeserving of take specific forms that subject these women to intensified privilege.” Increases in public funding are used primarily punishment that is especially virulent for women. While for the construction of more jails and prisons; far less is the policies and practices of a few nations incorporate allocated to hiring and training staffs, and prison budgets women-centered approaches, in most instances there is an are characterized by deep cuts in funding for academic or added punishment—a “gender tax”—inflicted on women vocational education. The resulting lack of educational offenders. The abridgment of their reproductive and human services is especially consequential for the future of poor rights and their exclusion from mainstream society are and imprisoned women and their children. In turn, the

253 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT inability of these women to provide for their children may Despair is especially pronounced for imprisoned moth- be used to justify efforts to expedite the termination of their ers who do not have a supportive family and must leave parental rights. their children with unreliable persons, and for women Another critical area of concern is health care. Women whose children are placed in foster care or adopted. In the clearly have specific needs for health care, but the care best circumstances, imprisoned women feel powerless to provided varies greatly depending on the social and eco- provide the nurturance and support their children need; in nomic policies of specific societies. Where imprisonment worse situations, they may not even know where their chil- is synonymous with deprivation and degradation, the dren are or whether the children are being subjected to ne- gendered penalties of prison are clearly evident in the glect or abuse. Imprisoned women feel anguish concerning unavailability and poor quality of health services. The se- their children, but they also often live in fear that they will riously inadequate care for poor women in many societies not be able to regain custody when released from prison. is epitomized by the neglect of imprisoned women’s re- Reunit-ing is more likely when children are cared for by productive needs, including general gynecological serv- the incarcerated woman’s parents, sisters, or other rela- ices, prenatal and postpartum care, safe and unharassed tives, but the loss of children becomes imminent when no childbirth, and medical counsel during menopause. The relatives are acceptable to authorities, so that the children availability and quality of gynecological care vary become wards of the state and are placed in foster homes, greatly, including access to regular exams, Pap smears, often separated from brothers and sisters. In some situa- and mammograms, as well as women-specific drug treat- tions, the imprisonment of women results in homelessness ment and comprehensive services for women living with and abject poverty for their children. physical disabilities or HIV and AIDS, and those who are Tremendous disruption, and sometimes permanent dis- terminally ill. solution, of their relationships with their children is a well- Few societies address the specific needs of pregnant documented aspect of women’s imprisonment, a hidden prisoners, such as appropriate diets, prenatal care, or lighter and unacknowledged aggrandizement of women’s punish- work assignments. Nor do most prisons have the resources ments. But perhaps the ultimate, most overwhelming pen- to deal with miscarriages, premature births, or even routine alty for imprisoned women is the enormous guilt that deliveries. In most cases, prisoners’ experiences during accompanies their frequent or perpetual sense of inability pregnancy and childbirth are far removed from public view to control their children’s lives. Feminist analysts have and scrutiny, but available reports depict degraded and in- suggested that a state of permanent guilt is integral to humane conditions. Because few prisons have facilities for women’s experiences within patriarchal society, but giving birth, woman are transferred to local hospitals, and heightened guilt and self-condemnation are prevalent after giving birth most are immediately separated from among imprisoned women. These feelings are intensified their child and returned to prison. Prison guards are sta- further by the contradiction of being responsible mothers tioned near hospital rooms, prisoners’ newborns are taken while subjected to the infan-talization of prison life, where immediately or within two days, and most frequently women are routinely treated like children devoid of deci- women give birth without support from friends and family. sion-making ability. Indeed, a vivid symbol of the prioritization of punishment over mothers and children is the vision of women shackled Abuses against Women in Custody during childbirth. Throughout the world, women in custody lack physical se- curity and dignity, and they are highly vulnerable to emo- Punishing Mothers and Children tional, physical, and sexual abuse. Although few There are unacknowledged surplus penalties for women systematic data are available, investigations and reports prisoners, and the experiences of all incarcerated mothers such as those conducted by Amnesty International docu- give reason for feminists to be concerned. Obviously, in- ment official mistreatment ranging from humiliation and carceration severely damages women’s relationships with harassment to rape and torture. The specific country or cul- their children, often irreparably. Primary issues include tural context greatly influences these conditions and possi- who cares for the children of incarcerated women; the lack ble remedies. of support services for incarcerated women’s children, in- The increased surveillance of contemporary prisons is cluding transportation to jails and prisons for visitation; accompanied by gender-specific dangers for women. The and the general lack of cooperation between foster parents constant surveillance and denial of privileges—particularly and incarcerated mothers. in maximum control units—heighten women’s vulnerability

254 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: CASE STUDY—WOMEN IN PRISONS IN THE UNITED STATES to sexual harassment and abuse. These are the extreme of research and the extensive exclusion of women offenders everyday experiences of many imprisoned women where from feminist communities. prison architecture and policies purposefully deny privacy and subject them to surveillance during even their most See Also personal moments, for example, when showering and using CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: CASE STUDY—WOMEN IN PRISONS the toilet. Strip searches are commonly conducted in the IN THE UNITED STATES; CRIMINOLOGY; DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; name of security or in search of contraband but also as DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE; PROSTITUTION preparation for visitation. Imprisoned women are subjected to harassment, abuse, References and Further Reading and rape by guards, and this emotional and sexual abuse Cook, Sandy, and Susanne Davis, eds. 1999. Harsh punishment: perpetuates the domination of many women who have been International experiences of women’s imprisonment. Boston: abused prior to incarceration. Societal indifference to Northeastern University Press. crimes against women, in the home and on the street, is Howe, Adrian. 1994. Punish and critique: Toward a feminist mirrored in the disregard for the violation of imprisoned analysis of penality. London and New York: Routledge. women. This is most evident in the minimalization of Stern, Vivien. 1998. A sin against the future: Imprisonment in guards’ accountability or punishment for abusing women the world, chapter 7. Boston: Northeastern University prisoners. Despite guards’ tremendous power over the day- Press. to-day well-being of prisoners, women’s sexual involve- Peg Bortner ment with guards, in exchange for privileges or goods from Jolan Hsieh their keepers, is commonly viewed as “consensual” rather than exploitive and abusive. Brutal rape and terror are often met with indifference. Violation of imprisoned women—as of women in soci- ety—is often not treated as a true crime; this attitude is CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: Case Study— similar to the pervasive response to domestic violence. Women in Prisons in the United States When abuses occur, there may be no grievance process; if there is a process, women often are uninformed regarding The United States currently has the highest rate of incar- it; offenses are commonly handled as internal administra- ceration in the world, exceeding the rates of the former So- tive (rather than criminal) matters, with minor sanctions; viet Union and South Africa (Irwin and Austin, 2001). In there is a high possibility of retaliation from abusive offic- the United States crime control became increasingly puni- ers; and women’s grievances are rarely investigated by ex- tive in the latter half of the twentieth century. At the end of ternal, independent review boards. Degradation and the century, federal, state, and local authorities came to rely mistreatment, even rape and torture, become part of wom- more heavily on incarceration as a means of punishing peo- en’s punishment. ple who violate the criminal code. Incarceration, as used here, refers to the use of institutionalized supervision in ei- Conclusion ther a jail, for short-term confinement, or prisons for sen- Economic exclusion, domestic violence, and punishment tences of more than one year. within criminal justice systems are significant aspects of While women offenders represent a numerical minor- the social control of women throughout the world. Each ity in the overall prison population, they also represent the provides brazenly overt as well as insidious avenues to pa- fastest-growing portion of incarcerated people. Popular triarchal subjugation and domination of women. The pu- explanations for the increased number of women in nitive role of criminal justice systems has become prison often cite increases in women’s criminality or especially pre-eminent in many countries and requires growing violence among female offenders. Such accounts close feminist scrutiny. The criminalization of women’s fail to reflect accurately the political, social, and eco- behaviors, the demonization of women offenders, and nomic variables that contribute to the environment in highly gender-determined forms of punishment merit our which women commit crimes and are punished with careful attention and highest commitment. In order to prison or jail terms. Regardless of the means by which challenge women’s fate within these structures of power women enter prison, once they are incarcerated there is and ideology, feminists must confront and counter both little intervention to increase the likelihood that they will the lack of systematic women-centered information and return to society as law-abiding cit-izens and remain

255 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: CASE STUDY—WOMEN IN PRISONS IN THE UNITED STATES law-abiding. Given the high incarceration rates and the of prisoners along racial and ethnic lines is comparable in growing population of women prisoners, this article will men’s institutions, where black and Hispanic prisoners are focus entirely on incarceration and women imprisoned in the numerical majority. The disproportionate the United States. overrepresentation of people of color, including women of color, in prison is important to address but exceeds the Increased Numbers of Women in Prison scope of this article. Often these same women are finan- The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS, 1991, 1999) reported cially and emotionally responsible for the care of depend- a 200 percent increase in the women’s prison population ent children. Many are survivors of physical, emotional, during the 1980s. The men’s prison population increased and sexual abuse that took place either during their child- 112 percent during the same period. Through the mid- hood or when they were adults. The overall portrait of in- 1990s, the women’s population continued to increase by an carcerated women is a dismal one that has led some annual average of 11.2 percent while men’s numbers grew researchers to suggest that criminal behavior may be the 7.9 percent. Signs show that the growth of the prison popu- only avenue open for women with marginal employment lation is slowing, but the number of women prisoners is still skills, few resources, and the responsibility to provide for increasing at nearly 6 percent annually while the popula- their children (Chesney-Lind, 1997). tion of men averages less than 5 percent annual growth. Once women have been brought into the criminal jus- The numbers may indicate that more women are enter- tice system, there are few options to help them address ing prison, but the statistics do not impart why more women their needs in addition to serving their punishment. The are being incarcerated. The majority of women offenders growing movement in the United States toward harsher are incarcerated for nonviolent property offenses (36 per- penalties includes changes in sentencing structures. For cent) or drug crimes (39.1 percent). The largest portion of example, mandatory minimum sentences require a set property crimes committed by women offenders consists of number of years to be served in prison before a prisoner larceny theft and fraud (Ditton and Wilson, 1999). Al- becomes eligible for parole. “Habitual offender” statutes though these same categories of offenses also apply to men, enhance penalties for repeat offenders. Finally, truth-in- differences in the damages caused by women are distinct. sentencing policies require that prisoners convicted of vio- Women are reportedly more likely than men to engage in lent crimes and certain types of drug offenses serve shoplifting (larceny theft), welfare fraud, and writing bad approximately 85 percent of an incarcerative sentence be- checks—crimes that produce low profit for the offenders fore consideration for parole. All of these changes in sen- and relatively small economic damage to the victims tencing structures channel more women offenders toward (Chesney-Lind, 1997; Feinmen, 1994). Many of the institutionalized punishment where few opportunities exist women arrested for drug crimes are cited for possession to receive counseling or job training that would enable only. Women who are sentenced for drug distribution or them to live crime-free (Owen, 1998). trafficking are generally small-time dealers who engage in In addition to the deprivations of prison life, women multiple transactions and are caught because of their vis- prisoners are also at risk of further victimization. The ibility on the streets. When women do commit violent Human Rights Watch report All Too Familiar: Sexual crimes, the offenses are often the result of an ongoing vio- Abuse of Women in U.S. State Prisons (1996), provided lent relationship in which women have been abused by an in-depth study of the sexual victimization that women partners or other family members, and their abusers be- prisoners experience at the hands of correctional officers come the targets of violence. Patterns of women’s and staffs. Despite policies that prohibit sexual contact criminality are reported to have remained stable since the between staff members and prisoners, day-to-day prison early 1980s. If this is true, it invalidates the claim that operations provide many opportunities for guards to be women are more involved in crime and violent acts now present while women prisoners are disrobed and to touch than in the past (Belknap, 1996). the prisoners through pat-downs and body searches. Some women offenders may not be exercising free Women prisoners have few legal channels through which choice but, rather, may have been pushed into criminality. to pursue their assailants, and so the cycle of sexual vic- Those who are sentenced to prison or jail are dispropor- timization continues. The physical and emotional dam- tionately women of color, poor, and undereducated, with age done to these women by abusive staffers only few legitimate employment skills. Approximately 67 per- compounds their troubled personal histories and further cent of the women held in local jails and state and federal diminishes their potential for rehabilitation and reinte- prisons are women of color (BJS, 1999). The distribution gration into society.

256 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: CASE STUDY—WOMEN IN PRISONS IN THE UNITED STATES

Separation from Children children and the subsequent behavior of the children must BJS (1994) reported that about 66 percent of women in continue. prison have at least one child under the age of 18. Prior to Children are not the only ones negatively affected by being incarcerated, 72 percent of these mothers were living separation. Mothers in prison report feeling guilt, anxiety, with their children. In many cases the fathers of the chil- fear, and sadness stemming from the loss of contact with dren are not present; only about 25 percent of mothers in their children (Synder-Joy and Carlo, 1998). More research prison report that their children are living with their fathers. is needed on how the feelings of the mother, combined with In comparison, only about 50 percent of incarcerated men the stress of incarceration, may contribute to emotional and are fathers, and the majority of fathers (90 percent) re- behavioral problems during institutionalization and after ported that their children were living with their mothers. release from prison. In most U.S. women’s prisons, mothers are not permit- ted to keep infants with them who are born during the in- Life in Women’s Prisons carceration or to bring children with them to the institution. The pain of separation from children is not the only conse- Two notable exceptions to this general policy are the Bed- quence of incarceration. Life in women’s prisons is charac- ford Hills Correctional Facility in New York and the Ne- terized by many losses, mainly the loss of freedom and braska Center for Women in York, Nebraska. Each of these autonomy. Incarcerated women are removed from society facilities operates nursery programs that enable women and placed in institutions that often do not provide mean- prisoners who have given birth in prison to keep their in- ingful ways for women to occupy their time or prepare for fants with them for one to two years. These options are gen- return to outside society. Barbara Owen’s book In the Mix erally reserved for women who are serving short sentences (1998) provides an in-depth study of life in California’s and will be released from prison at the same time that their women’s correctional facilities. Owen reports that the pu- children would be required to leave the nursery program. nitive focus of prisons does little to address the needs of Researchers who have studied the mother—child connec- women offenders. As noted earlier, women enter prison tion note the importance of maintaining contact between with low employment skills, few resources, and histories of mothers and their offspring. These relationships are viewed physical, emotional, and substance abuse. The program- as crucial to the health and well-being of both mother and matic offerings in prisons do not include the in-depth child. Research regarding the impact of a parent’s incar- counseling necessary to help women cope with their own ceration on the child has found that children of imprisoned experiences of abuse or patterns of addiction. Instead, parents often have emotional and behavioral problems many of the women who enter prison directly or indirecdy linked to loss of contact with their parent, including anger, as a result of their own social and emotional needs will depression, poor school performance, and night-mares leave prison having gained very little to help them change (Johnston, 1995). Often caregivers for the children are un- for the better (Belknap, 1996). willing to address truthfully where the mother is or what is Vocational training and education programs are also happening to her while she is away. Rather than comforting lacking in women’s prisons. Women prisoners are trained the child, the lack of communication about where the primarily for work as cosmetologists, seamstresses, secre- mother is and when she will be back can produce confu- taries, and filing clerks, and other low-paying, low-status sion, anger, and anxiety. occupations (Belknap, 1996). If women do manage to se- These behavioral and emotional problems of children cure employment in these fields after their release, the pay can escalate to the point where the children could come they receive will probably not move them out of poverty under social control, as a result of such matters as truancy, and will probably not provide sufficient income to care for running away from home, or criminal behavior. While re- their families. Without legitimate employment skills, the search does not identify a direct causal relationship be- women may well feed again the financial and social pres- tween a parents incarceration and the misconduct of a sure to engage in criminal activity to care for themselves child, some researchers have reported that as many as and their children. Thus, a cycle of poverty, powerlessness, one-third of juvenile offenders have one or more parents and incarceration can be maintained. who are or have been in prison (Muse, 1994). Factors con- tributing to criminality and incarceration are numerous Summary and complex, and this brief overview is not intended to The future for women brought into the U.S. criminal justice suggest that there are crime-prone families. Rather, re- system is uncertain. The emphasis on strict state social con- search on the links between separation of parents from trol through incarceration does little, if anything, to intervene

257 CRIME FICTION

in or change the conditions that contributed to the women’s Muse, Daphne. 1994. Parenting from prison. Mothering (Fall): contact with the state to begin with. The social problems of 99–105. domestic violence, substance abuse, and poverty are not Owen, Barbara. 1998. “In the mix”: Struggle and survival in a addressed on a structural level. Rather, individual-ization women’s prison. Albany: State University of New York of criminality results in punishment for women—primarily Press. institutionalization—which does little to change their situa- Snyder-Joy, Zoann, and Teresa Carlo. 1998. Parenting through tion or their behavior. Added to the needs of women are the prison walls: Incarcerated mothers and children’s visitation needs of young children separated from their mothers. programs . In Susan Miller, ed., Crime control and women, For women brought into the criminal justice system, 130–150. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. intervention rather than incarceration is needed to provide Zoann Snyder viable options to empower women in society and reduce the need for formal social control. Community-based pro- grams designed to help women address histories and pat- CRIME FICTION terns of abuse, provide legitimate job skills to earn a See DETECTIVE FICTION and LESBIAN WRITING: CRIME living wage, and enable women to remain connected or to FICTION. reconnect with their children are central issues for the new century.

See Also CRIMINOLOGY ABUSE; CHILD ABUSE; CRIME AND PUNISHMENT; CRIMINOLOGY; DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; HOUSEHOLDS: FEMALE- The academic study of criminology is often confused with HEADED AND FEMALE-SUPPORTED; POVERTY; TORTURE (or overlaps) criminal justice studies, which offer practical preparation for careers in criminal justice. In western na- References and Further Reading tions, women generally constitute less than 20 percent of Austin, James, and John Irwin. 2001. It’s about time: America’s criminal justice workers (apart from office workers and imprisonment binge. 3rd ed. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth/ women’s prison staffs), just as women make up about 20 Thompson Learning. percent of the international American Society of Criminol- Belknap, Joanne. 1996. The invisible woman. Belmont, Calif.: ogy (close to 2,500 total). Women are also a distinct minority Wadsworth. among people criminalized (that small proportion of law- Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). 1999. Prisoner and jail inmates breakers processed, labeled, and punished as “criminal”). at midyear 1998. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Globally, women are convicted of between 5 and 20 per- Justice. cent of all criminal offenses; because their crimes are gen- ——. 1991. Women in prison. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Depart- erally minor and nonviolent, women compose only ment of Justice. between 2 and 10 percent of adult prison populations. ——. 1994. Women in prison. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Depart- ment of Justice. Feminist Revision of Criminology Chesney-Lind, Meda. 1997. The female offender. Thousand Oaks, Since the 1970s, feminist scholars in criminology have Calif: Sage. given attention to women as subjects (rather than objects) of Ditton, Pamela, and Doris James Wilson. 1999. Truth in sentenc- research, and power relations with regard to sex and gender, ing in state prisons. Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Re- social class, race, ethnicity, and so on. Criminology invites port, U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, critical, sociolegal investigation of social control mecha- CJ 170032. nisms, such as political economy, medicine and psychiatry, Feinman, Clarice. 1994. Women in the criminal justice system. family and welfare law, social service and judicial agencies, West Point, N.Y.: Preager. the military, the media, and education. These and other Human Rights Watch. 1996. All too familiar: Sexual abuse of channels of coercion or force, all considered “gendered,” women in U.S. state prisons. New York: Human Rights constitute the discursive links that make up the state. All af- Watch. fect and are affected by criminal justice agencies. Johnston, Denise. 1995. Effects of parental incarceration. In Research on women in criminal justice professions Kristin Gabel and Denise Johnston, eds., Children of incar- has focused primarily on their effectiveness in a cerated parents, 59–88. New York: Lexington. “masculinist” environment; generally women perform at

258 CRIMINOLOGY a high standard—including tasks requiring physical against sex workers, and to the rising incidence of child and stamina, strength, and quick reflex. Policewomen are often female sex slavery in Asia, for example. Other women, in more effective than men in working with victims (usually fe- Europe, the Commonwealth, and the United States, organ- male) of rape, battering, or other physical and sexual abuse. ize to defend adult prostitution as a “chosen job” in socie- Cesare Lombroso, the late-nineteenth-century Italian ties characterized by limited choices and by class and “father of criminology,” recycled the theory that the “born gender stratification. criminal” woman was more evil and dangerous than the worst of men because of her biological inadequacy. In 1973 Sameness and Difference Dorie Klein published her pathbreaking critical analysis of A key feminist analysis in both criminal and civic disputes early theories on the “female offender,” starting with involves the question of whether to plead Lombroso. Interest in this area rapidly increased. Other or gender specificity. When do women plead equality on early researchers, from three continents, included Meda the grounds of sameness with men (specifically property Chesney-Lind, Estelle Freedman, Nicole Rafter, Freda owners, in whose interests most laws were written), and Adler, Nancy Stoller, Zelma Henriques, and Darryl when do women plead for special treatment on the grounds Steffensmeier in the United States; Marie Andrée Bertrand, of differences? Disadvantaged victims cannot be perceived André LaChance, J.M.Beattie, and Constance Backhouse as equal, but achieving equity requires recognition of sub- in Canada; Christine Alder, Naffine Ngaire, Suzanne Hatty, ordination. For example, historically, rape was a property and in Australia; and Frances Heidensohn, crime, the violation of one man’s daughter or wife by an- Carol Smart, Mary McIntosh, Allison Morris, Pat Carlen, other man; the victim’s suffering was of no consequence. Elizabeth Stanko, Susan Edwards, R.Emerson Dobash, and The issue of “sameness or difference” relates to the issue of Russell P.Dobash, in the United Kingdom. These were biological essentialism. For example, blaming crime on among the first women and men to advance scholarship on premenstrual syndrome or on postpartum depression per- women, crime, and punishment. Many other feminist re- petuates the notion that women’s bodies harbor dangerous, searchers and activists continue to “deconstruct” criminol- uncontrollable impulses. ogy, exposing what they identify as misogynist myths, and they examine gender, race, and class in the social construc- Prison tion of crime, criminals, criminal justice agencies, and in- As noted, between 2 and 10 percent of all adult prisoners stitutions, as well as the androcentricity of criminology are women, a lower per capita rate than in the late nine- itself. There is also an enormous literature on criminal vio- teenth century, when Elizabeth Fry began her reform work lence against women and children. in the United Kingdom. Early twenty-first-century issues include separating children from their mothers; inadequate The Sex Factor health care education and job training; the internationaliza- Age, color, and sex (young, minority, male) are the signifi- tion of women’s imprisonment, primarily as a result of the cant factors in predicting who will be convicted of street jailing of drug couriers (“mules”) in the countries where crime (which is much more likely to be prosecuted than they are arrested; accelerated construction of women’s white-collar crime). Mary Eaton and Kathleen Daly, prisons in the 1980s and 1990s (attributed to the United among others, have found that the sentencing stage follow- States’ “war on drugs”); and disproportionate representa- ing conviction, for both males and females, is positively tion of the lowest economic stratum. Universally, women’s influenced by a defendant’s demonstrated commitment to prisons are mainly occupied by unemployed single moth- meeting parental responsibilities. ers, with a disproportionate number from colonized or per- Embodying modern western cultural attitudes toward secuted minority groups. women (which are changing in many societies), prostitu- Boys are seldom locked up for status offences. The van- tion epitomizes the duality between good girl (madonna) guard research of Meda Chesney-Lind, beginning in the and bad girl (whore). The prosecution of prostitutes in the early 1970s, shows how girls innocent of any crime have nineteenth century revived the sexualization of female been sent to reformatories to “protect” them from sexual crime and the criminalization of female sex. Scientists, fol- immorality. “Female offenders” of all ages, whether jailed lowing Freud, look for the causes of prostitution in women’s for minor offenses or sent to prison for a long term, follow bodies and psyches. Feminists point to the objectification this “victimization-criminalization continuum.” For exam- and commodification of female bodies, as promoted by por- ple, research in North America suggests that most adult nography and prostitution, to the pervasive violence street prostitutes ran away from abusive homes in their

259 CRIMINOLOGY

youth. Abolitionists or decarcerationists (who would limit Brock, Deborah R. 1998. Making work, making trouble: Prostitu- prisons to violent people) argue that it is economically tion as a social problem. Toronto: University of Toronto wasteful and destructive to invest in institutions of punish- Press. ment for such women. What is needed is services and job Carlen, Pat. 1998. Women’s imprisonment at the millennium. Lon- training to assist women recovering from abuse, and over- don: Macmillan. all reduced violence. Chesney-Lind, Meda. 1997. The female offender: Girls, women and crime. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. The Crimes Comack, Elizabeth. 1996. Women in trouble. Halifax: Some mass media in the mid-1970s trumpeted the myth Fernwood. that emancipated women become “like men,” with the pre- Cook, Sandy, and Susanne Davies, eds. 1999. Harsh punishment: diction that “women’s lib” would produce more violent International experiences of women’s imprisonment. Boston: crime by women. This has not occurred. In most western Northeastern University Press. nations, women are convicted of between 10 and 20 per- Daly, Kathleen. 1994. Gender, crime and punishment. New Ha- cent of crimes against the person, a historical constant. In ven, Conn.: Yale University Press. homicides by women, the victim is often a man who has DeKeseredy, Walter S. 2000. Women, crime and the Canadian abused the woman; some defendants are receiving acquit- criminal justice system. Cincinnati, Ohio: Anderson. tals or eventual clemency on grounds of “battered woman Dobash, R.Emerson, Russell P.Dobash, and Leslie Noaks. 1995. syndrome,” a term coined by Lenore Walker. Gender and crime. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. Historically, women have been executed or imprisoned Eaton, Mary. 1993. Women after prison. Buckingham: Open Uni- for a wide array of offenses: witchcraft, scolding their hus- versity Press. bands, infanticide, adultery, working as midwives, assist- Faith, Karlene. 1994. Unruly women: The politics of confinement ing with abortion, distributing information about birth and resistance. Vancouver: Press Gang. control, using bad language in the street, demonstrating for Feinman, Clarice. 1994. Women in the criminal justice system. the vote, and otherwise challenging “women’s place.” In Westport, Conn.: Praeger. Canada in the 1990s, women were convicted of up to a Fishman, Laura. 1990. Women at the wall. Albany: State Univer- third of minor property crimes, including shoplifting and sity of New York Press. welfare fraud (with increases attributed to a steady rise in Fletcher, Beverley, Lynda Shaver, and Dreama Moon. 1996. the “feminization of poverty”). They were charged with Women prisoners: A forgotten population. Westport, Conn.: less than 15 percent of drug crimes, and less than 8 percent Praeger. of robberies and breaking and entering, both considered Gelsthorpe, Loraine, and Allison Morris, eds. 1990. Feminist per- “masculine” crimes. Overall, on both sides of the law and spectives in criminology. Buckingham: Open University in every country, criminal justice is substantively and sig- Press. nificantly a world of men. Hampton, Blanche. 1993. Prisons and women. Sydney: Univer- sity of New South Wales Press. See Also Hannah-Moffat, Kelly, and Margaret Shaw, eds. 2000. An ideal CRIME AND PUNISHMENT prison? Critical essays on women’s imprisonment in Canada. Halifax: Fernwood. References and Further Reading Heidensohn, Frances. 1996. Women and crime, 2nd ed. Adelberg, Ellen, and Claudia Currie, eds. 1993. In conflict with Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan. the law: Women and the Canadian justice system. Vancouver: Howe, Adrian. 1994. Punish and critique: Towards a feminist Press Gang. analysis of penality. London and New York: Routledge. Allen, Judith. 1990. Sex and secrets: Crimes involving Austral- Maden, Tony. 1996. Women, prisons, and psychiatry. Oxford: ian women since 1880. Melbourne: Oxford University Butterworth-Heinemann. Press. Maher, Lisa. 1997. Sexed work: Gender, race, and resistance in a Belknap, Joanne. 1996. The invisible woman: Gender, crime and Brooklyn drug market. London: Clarendon. justice. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth. Mann, Coramae. 1993. Unequal justice: A question of color. Boyd, Susan. 1999. Mothers and illicit drug use: Transcending the Bloomington: Indiana University Press. myths. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Messerschmidt, James W. 1993. Capitalism, patriarchy and Boritch, Helen. 1996. Fallen women: Female crime and criminal crime: Toward a socialist feminist criminology. Totowa, N.J.: justice in Canada. Scarborough, Ont.: Nelson. Rowman and Littlefield.

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Miller, S.L., ed. 1998. Women: Feminist implications of criminal of femininity (and masculinity) are inscribed within the justice policy. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. language and images of everyday life, at the point where Moyer, Imogene L. 1992. The changing roles of women in the society and the self mesh. More narrowly, culture is also criminal justice system: Offenders, victims and profession- composed of the artistic and literary creations that particu- als, 2nd ed. Prospect Heights, N.Y.: Waveland. lar societies prize and that help to tell their members who Muraskin, Roslyn, and Ted Alleman, eds. 1993. It’s a crime: they are. Women’s contributions to and exclusion from this Women and justice. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Regents-Prentice realm, as well as the way they have been represented and Hall. represent themselves there, have all been abiding concerns Owen, Barbara. 1998. In the mix: Struggle and survival in a wom- of feminist cultural theory. en’s prison. Albany: State University of New York Press. Naffine, Ngaire, ed. 1994. Gender, crime and feminism. Aldershot, Approaches to Feminist Cultural Theory U.K.: Dartmouth. A range of approaches emerged in the course of these femi- Pollock-Byrne, Joycelyn M. 1999. Criminal women. Cincinnati, nist explorations: critical analysis of the male, or mascu- Ohio: Anderson. line, bias of mainstream culture and its related denigration Price, Barbara Raffel, and Natalie J.Sokoloff, eds. 1995. The of all that is coded “feminine” or associated with women; a criminal justice system and women, 2nd ed. New York: bringing to visibility of women’s previously marginalized McGraw-Hill. cultural creations; a celebration of either a different femi- Rafter, Nicole, and Frances Heidensohn. eds. 1995. International nine culture, newly retrieved, or a woman-centered one, yet feminist perspectives in criminology: Engendering a disci- to be invented. Both equality and difference are important pline . Buckingham, U.K.: Open University Press. in these approaches, which generally operate within an op- Rock, Paul. 1996. Reconstructing a women’s prison: The position between women and men, feminine and mascu- Holloway Redevelopment Project 1968–1988. Oxford: line. They may broadly be classified as modernist, as Clarendon. opposed to recent postmodern strategies aiming to subvert Simon, Rita J., and Jean Landis. 1991. The crimes women commit, such oppositional thinking, whose very structure is now the punishments they receive. Lexington, Mass.: Lexington. deemed phallocentric. Stanko, Elizabeth. 1995. Everyday violence: How women and men Postmodernists also emphasize the cultural diversity, experience physical and sexual danger. London: Pandora. rather than the universality, of women, as well as the pre- Watterson, Kathryn. 1996. Women in prison: Inside the concrete cariousness and heterogeneity of feminine identity. Al- womb. Boston: Northeastern University Press. though culturally innovative, such tactics seem paradoxical Wiebe, Rudy, and Yvonne Johnson. 1998. Stolen life: The journey in light of feminist concerns about a generalized patriarchal of a Cree woman. Toronto: Knopf. culture and a woman-centered alternative developed col- Zedner, Lucia. 1991. Women, crime and custody in Victorian Eng- lectively by women whose shared oppression yields a com- land. Oxford: Clarendon. mon identity and a basis for political solidarity. Yet in See also the scholarly journal Women and Criminal Justice considering difference, feminists find themselves obliged (Haworth Press). Editor Donna Hale. to consider more explicitly their own cultural interventions regarding location and context: questions arise as to who is Karlene Faith speaking or listening to, or about, whom and from what position, and about where authorship and authority are in- terwoven. From all these perspectives, cultural theory is concerned with the exercise of power in and through cul- CRITICAL AND CULTURAL THEORY ture and is therefore thoroughly political. Feminists have always drawn attention to the ways in From the beginning, feminists have taken an intense but which patriarchal culture constructs norms of femininity critical interest in culture. It is within the cultural domain into which women are then socialized and within which that gendered subjects are socialized. Culture also yields a they are disciplined. For early liberal and Marxist femi- public domain of shared (and competing) meanings and nists, femininity was imposed on women through poor edu- values, wherein norms and symbols of sexual difference cation and trivial, domestic pursuits; it meant a generally are reproduced. Alongside more materialist strands of impoverished personality from which equal rights would feminism concerned with women’s socioeconomic condi- emancipate women for full participation in human (male) tions, cultural theory investigates the ways in which ideas culture. However, there were others who considered

261 CRITICAL AND CULTURAL THEORY femi-nine traits superior and anticipated their culturally that patriarchy has marginalized. Both representations of transformative effects, once women were free to express women’s experiences and representations by women them- themselves publicly. A similar dialectic, between those selves have been silenced within mainstream culture. who seek gender equality within an androgynous ideal and Feminists have retrieved many cultural creations by a non-sexist culture on the one hand, and on the other hand women, which had simply been denied a public or ascribed those who value women’s difference and its cultural radi- male authorship, thereby establishing their predecessors’ calism, has persisted through the twentieth century, where virtuos-ity. However, because women have generally been it is interwoven with debates concerning whether gender is denied space for what is considered high culture, scholars contingent or essential. On the whole feminists have seen have also emphasized women’s own skills and crafts, such gender unfolding within culture, rather than being ascribed as embroidery or quilting, which mainstream (male) cul- by nature. This is why they have been so concerned with ture had dismissed. Others have pursued new genres in cultural theory. writing, or new artistic symbolism associated with a femi- nine imaginary or the female body, suggesting an alterna- Simone de Beauvoir and “” tive feminine (or feminist) aesthetic. It is difficult to overemphasize the contribution of Simone de Beauvoir’s study of women as the second sex (1972). A Woman-Centered Culture Women, she declared, are made, not born, but their com- Although this approach sometimes seems to court essen- mon fate is to be constituted as man’s “other.” Examining tialism, feminists have on the whole insisted that feminine myths, biographies, scientific theories, and life cycles, de expressions are associated with skills and orientations Beauvoir concluded that women had been excluded from learned within culture. Besides a feminine aesthetic, they history and culture, where their status as goddesses, explore the notion of a different epistemology and vision— wives, and mothers relegated them to otherworldly or pas- a gendered way of knowing and seeing the world—and eth- sive roles and to uncreative and repetitive tasks, as op- ics. To avoid charges of essentialism, feminists sometimes posed to men’s active engagement in cultural projects and argue that these radical alternatives are only conventionally practices of freedom. Both a pervasive cultural symbol- labeled “feminine” and could in principle be adopted by ism and a sexual division of labor excluded women from women or men, or that they are feminist rather than femi- acting as subjects. To a large extent, de Beauvoir’s solu- nine. Emphasis on a woman-centered culture to be con- tion was cultural—socialize women like men and grant structed, rather than on a feminine culture to be retrieved, is them the same opportunities for active subjectivity—but important here, although this still leaves open the question she doubted that liberated women would create a different of what it is that women, or feminists, share. Recent cul- culture specific to themselves. Despite subsequent femi- tural analysis reveals acute awareness of the dangers of nist criticism of de Beauvoir’s conclusions—for example, overgeneralizing. In line with trends toward her negative evaluation of motherhood, her acceptance of postmodernism, feminists are eager to point out the rich male norms of the humanly valuable, and her neglect of variety of women’s creativity and the cultural diversity of women’s particular cultural traditions—her approach to feminine identities and feminist aspirations. Nevertheless, analyzing the way mainstream culture denigrates the im- there is often tension between such emphases and the ages of women it constructs has remained central to femi- project of an alternative, woman-cen-tered culture. Central nist critical theory. ’s Sexual Politics (1977) is to the latter is a refusal to evaluate women’s culture accord- a good example of early radical feminist cultural analysis, ing to male norms, and to a large extent it is only this logic tracing misogynist currents through fashionable social that lesbian or African-Ameri-can women (for example) scientific and literary works into everyday culture. Subse- deploy when they establish their own criteria and voices, quent studies in this critical genre have excavated more accusing feminism of universalizing certain culturally profoundly the foundations of western culture and subjec- privileged norms of its own. Thus African-centered femi- tivity, to argue that fantasy, desire, and language are thor- nist analyses describe a specific maternal culture and mode oughly encoded with sexual difference, misogyny, and of being in the world, and such examples of woman- phallocentrism. centered cultures, with their own images of femininity, ide- als, and oppression, abound. This emphasis on differences Restoring the Neglected Feminine as well as difference, on the empowerment of previously The other side of the coin is a feminism that aims to make marginalized voices, and on the location of audiences and visible the neglected feminine, or woman-centered culture authorities within broader structures of power leads

262 CRITICAL AND CULTURAL THEORY feminist cultural studies, almost inevitably, in a mirror, or lack (phallic-nonphallic). Difference without op- postmodern direction. position is pursued instead. In this context a distinction must be made between thinkers like Julia Kristeva, for Postmodernism and Poststructuralism whom women and the feminine are only contingently re- A considerable amount of cultural theory in the last decade lated and interventions are primarily negative, and those of the twentieth century fell under the broad heading of like Luce Irigaray, for whom there is a specific relationship postmodernism, although this term is both contested and a mediated by the mor-phology of the female body and a general category subsuming various dimensions. The idea Utopian vision of feminine countersymbolism. For all of of postmodernity suggests a significant historical shift in them, however, the feminine emerges not as a specific or the ways that, for example, production and consumption authentic identity, but as a heterogeneous, complex, and take place within a context of rapid technological innova- open process that defies the rigid either-or sexual opposi- tion, where processes of economic and cultural globaliza- tion imposed by patriarchy and phallocentrism. tion are accompanied by fragmentation of previously While this excursion into the foundations of language relatively stable structures such as the nation-state, family, and the unconscious may appear abstruse, there are other gender, and class. These sorts of change are more readily levels on which postmodernism has inspired intervention amenable to social scientific study, although within popular culture to great effect. The way discourses postmodernism itself stresses cultural approaches and this name, define, and construct groups profoundly affects their orientation is followed by most of its feminist adherents. identity and efficacy, especially among those such as Poststructuralism, which is closely, if not women who have been designated “other” and silenced ac- unproblematically, associated with postmodernism, rein- cordingly. Postmodern concerns with culture simultane- forces this cultural focus. Although such an approach was ously yield political strategies that empower these others already common among radical feminists, ideas of wom- and celebrate difference. The way images of women are en’s liberation as an escape from and destruction of patriar- represented, as well as the structure of the male gaze, also chal power are now displaced by notions of an ongoing suggest a politics of representation and of vision. struggle in a mobile context where (patriarchal) power is Postmodernists insist not merely that these representations constantly reproduced yet also contested. Politically, the are degrading or misrep-resentative of something more aim is not merely to expose the gender bias of mainstream valid, but that they actually construct and reproduce both culture or to make visible women’s suppressed activities gendered subjects and a culture thoroughly inscribed with there, but to engage directly in cultural practices that sub- sexual difference. Because this form of power operates be- vert the foundations of western, and especially modern, low the level of reflection, through bodies and symbols, it is modes of representation themselves. often more amenable to aesthetic, rather than rational and For poststructuralists, reality is in principle unknow- analytical, strategies. Thus postmodern feminist aesthetic able because language, rather than communicating some- practices—for example, in films or paintings that disrupt thing “out there,” constructs meaning. It is in the way such the opposition between the active male gaze and the pas- meaning unfolds that feminists detect profound processes sive female object, or in art that resists representations of of privilege and exclusion that operate according to sexual the female body designed to satisfy male fantasies, or in difference. The structures of syntax; the quest for stable contests over terminology—are perceived as politically ef- definitions and a language that conceptually mirrors, or ficacious. To deconstruct, or transgress, binary oppositions masters, reality; the binary but hierarchical oppositions is to render phallocentric culture unworkable. The central (such as masculine-feminine) that structure meaning; the question that divides feminists is what, if anything, will re- deployment of the feminine as a metaphor for all that is place it. What is certain is that for feminism, cultural theory unruly, nonrational, and a threat to orderly significance; the and political practice are indissoluble. repression of desire and of preoedipal bodily rhythms and their pleasures in discourse—all these aspects of (western) See Also symbolism render it phallocentric. The feminine, excluded CULTURE: OVERVIEW; CULTURAL CRITICISM; CULTURAL and literally unrepresentable within it, thus emerges as a STUDIES; ESSENTIALISM; FEMININITY; FEMINISM: CULTURAL; subversive force that shatters language and destabilizes the FEMINISM: EXISTENTIAL; FEMINISM: POSTMODERN; quest for mastery (e.g., through avant-garde poetry, moth- FEMINISM: RADICAL; FILM THEORY; GAZE; IMAGES OF erhood, or écriture féminine), while transgressing the op- WOMEN: OVERVIEW; PHALLOCENTRISM; REPRESENTATION; positions that had defined woman only as man’s other, SEXUAL DIFFERENCE; WOMAN-CENTEREDNESS

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References and Further Reading analysis, semiotics, deconstruction, and psychoanalytic Alcoff, Linda. 1988. versus poststructuralism: theory. Cultural criticism paved the way for a number of The identity crisis in feminist theory. Signs 13(3):405–437. nonliterary areas of discourse to become “respectable” Beauvoir, Simone de. 1972. The second sex. Harmondsworth, fields of academic debate, leading to the growth in popular- U.K.: Penguin (originally published 1949). ity—in the 1970s and early 1980s—of sympathetic, ana- Bonner, Frances, Lizbeth Goodman, Richard Allen, Linda Janes, lytical studies of television, soap opera, shopping, comic and Catherine King, eds. 1992. Imagining women: Cultural strips, housework, and horror films. Although the terms of representations and, gender. Cambridge: Polity. cultural criticism initially remained tied to the literary Butler, Judith. 1990. Gender trouble. London: Routledge. analysis of discourse, these terms soon broadened to take Collins, Patricia Hill. 1990. Black feminist thought. London: into account all kinds of diverse areas of nonliterary texts Unwin Hyman. and aesthetic experiences, which could then be analyzed Dean, Jodi, ed. 1997. Feminism and the new democracy: Resiting according to their own individual sign-systems, ideas, cer- the political. London: Sage. emonies, techniques, codes, conventions, and stylistic dis- hooks, bell. 1991. Yearning: Race gender, and cultural politics. course. London: Turnaround. Cultural Criticism and Cultural Studies Hutcheon, Linda. 1989. The politics of postmodernism. London: Routledge. The popularity of cultural criticism was partly responsible Millett, Kate. 1977. Sexual politics. London: Virago. for the development of cultural studies as a field of aca- Moi, Toril, ed. 1986. The Kristeva reader. Oxford: Blackwell. demic interest in universities, especially in the United Rose, Jackqueline. 1986. Sexuality in the field of vision. London: States and western Europe. It continues to be one of the Verso. most popular courses among students. For women academ- Squires, Judith. 1999. Gender in political theory. Cambridge: Polity. ics in this field, the important work of Janice Radway Weedon, Chris. 1987. Feminist practice and poststructuralist (1984) on popular romance fiction and of Judith theory. Williamson (1978) on advertising suggests that this might be an area in which critics and thinkers could define a space Diana Coole to theorize about the special meanings of women’s lives apart from the patriarchal discourse of the academic liter- ary establishment. Cultural criticism allowed for the analy- CROSS-DRESSING sis of women’s texts and women’s experiences of cultural See BUTCH/FEMME and TRANSGENDER. processes to become “acceptable” areas of theoretical de- bate and conceptual study. This situation provided a back- CULTS ground to the important work of women academics such as Ien Ang (1985) on Dallas, Angela McRobbie (1990) on See SECTS AND CULTS. girls’ subcultures, Dorothy Hobson (1982) on Crossroads, and Tania Modleski (1982) on romance fiction. In Britain, Australia, and the United States, women writers and critics such as Helen Taylor, Deirdre Pribram, Valerie Walkerdine, CULTURAL CRITICISM Meaghan Morris, and Elspeth Probyn have continued to produce important and influential work. Theoretical per- Cultural criticism is an extremely broad term that is gener- spectives in these studies include the writing of women’s ally used to refer to the analysis of both “elite” and popular histories and the establishment of “traditions,” reevaluating culture using the theoretical tools of literary and critical texts, notions of class and audiences, ideologies of mass theory. This method of study gained special popularity in a culture, the female imagination, the popular audience, number of mainly western academic establishments in the mass marketing, and criticisms of the cultural “divide.” 1950s and early 1960s, when judgments regarding the aes- Whereas structuralism and semiology were fashionable, thetic “value” of the literary text were increasingly called influential, and central to debates in cultural criticism into question. Many writers and critics began to cast into within European academia in the late 1970s, by the mid- doubt the primacy of the written text over other, equally 1980s the focus had turned to how women can make their interesting forms of process and experience to which it also own meanings of pleasure out of popular texts inscribed might be relevant to apply critical tools, such as discourse within a patriarchal discourse.

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In western Europe and the United States, however, cul- of its own. It is both a project that resides in the academy— tural criticism remains a male-oriented field of academic borrowing methods and analytical frameworks from the tra- study, closely engaged with structuralist hermeneutics and ditional disciplines—and a way of doing academic work the shifting paradigms of capitalism, heavily influenced by that is steadfastly critical of disciplinary demarcations. This Marxism and the “seduction” of the text’s rhetorical and critical focus has not inhibited the more “traditional” aca- semiotic devices. Feminist cultural critics—particularly demic disciplines from staking a claim to the name of cul- those working within nonwestern traditions such as tural studies, however; scholars from sociology, Kobena Mercer, Fatmagül Berktay, and Bhikhu Parekh— anthropology, literary studies, history, media studies, and have essentially been marginalized by the lasting influence comparative literature each have at different times, with dif- of male-based, Marxist-oriented criticism on the one hand ferent degrees of investment, recast their disciplinary and early French semiotics on the other. What began as a projects as cultural studies. Without a doubt these academic radical means of theoretical progression from a narrow pa- disciplines could also offer histories of the development or triarchal academic canon is increasingly being reabsorbed appropriation of the term cultural studies. What follows, as an orthodox component of the very tradition it was de- instead, is a situated account of the institutional evolution veloped to attack. of the identity of cultural studies as a specifically interdisci- plinary and critical enterprise. This brief review also de- See Also scribes the rich engagement between cultural studies and COMMUNICATIONS: AUDIENCE ANALYSIS; CRITICAL AND feminist studies since the late 1970s—an engagement that CULTURAL THEORY; CULTURAL STUDIES; FEMINISM: CULTURAL; has been structured, from the very beginning, around two LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM; POPULAR CULTURE important projects: (1) the development of multidisciplinary, critical frameworks of analysis and (2) an investigation of References and Further Reading the politics of academic work. The best way to begin the Ang, Ien. 1985. Watching “Dallas”: Soap opera and the melodra- work of defining cultural studies is to approach it histori- matic imagination. London: Methuen. cally, which is to say that there is no essential definition of Hobson, Dorothy. 1982. Crossroads: The drama of a soap opera. cultural studies. This article considers definition to mean a London: Methuen. project of historical mapping, and in this sense could be McRobbie, Angela. 1990. Feminism and youth culture: From understood to address the broad coordinates of a such a map. “Jackie” to “Just Seventeen.” London: Macmillan. The four sections roughly sketch out the shape of the his- Modleski, Tania. 1982. Loving with a vengeance: Mass-produced torical evolution of the engagement between feminist stud- fantasies for women. Hamden, Conn.: Archon. ies and cultural studies from the late 1970s to the 1990s in Radway, Janice. 1984. Reading the romance: Women, patriarchy the service of describing the development of what has come and popular literature. Chapel Hill: University of North to be known as “feminist cultural studies.” Carolina Press. Williamson, Judith. 1978. Decoding advertisements: Ideology and The Early Work meaning in advertising. London: Marion Boyars. The term cultural studies is inherited from early work by scholars associated with the Centre for Contemporary Cul- Mikita Brottman tural Studies (CCCS) in Birmingham, England. Annual re- ports from the CCCS, beginning in the mid-1960s, use the CULTURAL FEMINISM term “cultural studies”—set off in quotation marks—to See FEMINISM: CULTURAL. identify a specific cross-disciplinary project: the critical analysis of the ideological work of English Studies. As the study of English literature became institutionalized in the United Kingdom, scholars began to investigate the ideo- CULTURAL STUDIES logical impact of such educational efforts to bring “high” culture to working-class students. Cast as the “literature- By the mid-1990s, the term cultural studies had been used society” debates, this critical project combined the meth- to describe a wide range of scholarship, intellectual prac- ods and analytical frameworks of sociology and literary tices, and political projects. Although this open-endedness criticism; from the outset the point was to investigate the is one of the abiding strengths of cultural studies, it obscures social effects of certain educational practices—“teaching” the fact that the term has a specific, albeit contested, history the canon of great books to bring “culture” to the working

265 CULTURAL STUDIES class and to instill a particular nationalistic identity. Al- try to understand how such meanings are implicated in the though literature was the first “mode” of “culture” construction of subjectivity in everyday life. How, specifi- analyzed in this way, scholars soon expanded their studies cally, does “meaning,” which circulates in popular texts to investigate other aspects of everyday life such as televi- and forms of discourse, determine or influence the con- sion, music, popular literature, and sports—cultural forms struction “subjectivity”? This also requires attention to the that were also seen as operating ideologically to create a ways in which “meanings” inform other cultural produc- certain effect in the reader, listener, or audience member. In tions and are transformed in the process, thus asserting that these studies, cultural studies borrowed sociological meth- the construction of meaning is a dynamic cultural process ods such as participant observation and ethnography as which involves agents of production and agents of recep- means of investigating the social phenomenon of identity tion who, although often displaced in space and time, are construction and group (subculture) formation. These criti- engaged in a mutual project: constructing reality. Texts, ac- cal projects, as well as those in social history more gener- cordingly, are treated as productive cultural forms not only ally, grew out of a long-standing engagement with an by the agents who are their authors (or, for that matter, by earlier tradition of British Marxism that was in need of re- the cultural “moment” from which they emerge) but also construction and reinvention. by the agents who are situated as readers, audiences, and The trajectory that describes the further development of viewers. cultural studies is neither smooth nor unidirectional. Al- though cultural studies continues to show traces of an early Feminism and Cultural Studies Marxist influence, in that these projects seek to understand Feminist engagement with cultural studies takes shape first the interrelations among cultural processes, social rela- in Britain as part of the evolution of British socialist femi- tions, and institutional formations, and to constitute “cul- nism. One of its beginning points is the work associated ture” as a terrain of struggle and power relations, Marxism with the feminist historians who were part of the “history is only one of the bodies of cultural theory that inform cul- workshop” movement begun in the 1960s (Davidoff and tural studies. Indeed, in the service of developing a formu- Hall, 1987; Turner, 1990). The influence of historicist cul- lation of how the abstract (culture) was related to the tural materialism is marked by the commitment, in feminist particular (concrete social practices), cultural studies en- cultural theory, to resist the temptation of grand theorizing gaged, in turn, most of the key intellectual movements of in favor of developing a model of study that produces his- the past two decades: structuralism, poststructuralism, psy- torically specific cultural analyses. Another beginning can choanalysis, social history, feminism, postcolonialism, be traced to the influence of British socialist feminists who, queer theory, and postmodernism. This is to say that the although they rely on Marxist theory, marked their critical development of cultural studies proceeded most signifi- difference from it because of its economic determinism and cantly through a series of engagements with other forms of its inadequate treatment of the role of women under capi- cultural theory and less through its encounters with institu- talism. Although the encounters among members of these tionalized academic disciplines. In this sense, one can trace sometimes overlapping intellectual communities and their how cultural studies articulates its projects or engagement with the central figures of cultural studies “problematics” through various cultural theories, while it (Marx, Althusser, and Williams, among others) have their borrows from the academic disciplines for its methods of own interesting history, what was shared and passed on was description and analysis—that is, close reading, encoding a commitment to investigate the material conditions of and decoding, historiography, ethnography, and semiotics. women’s lives under capitalism (Barrett, 1988; Barrett and At the broadest level, cultural studies is centrally con- McIntosh, 1982; Brunt and Rowan, 1982; Coward, 1983; cerned with the complex ways in which subjectivity and Kuhn and Wolpe, 1978). consciousness are shaped and inhabited; this leads to a pre- One of the first books to explicitly address the intersec- occupation with language, signification, and discourse tions between feminist studies and cultural studies is the (Johnson, 1987). But it is important to note here that this edited collection Women Take Issue: Aspects ofWomen’s does not translate into a narrow focus on textual artifacts— Subordination (Women’s Studies Group, 1978), which in- which is what distinguishes cultural studies from literary cludes essays and an introduction written by members of studies more generally. On the contrary, one of the key con- the Women’s Studies Group at the CCCS. In the introduc- tributions of cultural studies has been to insist on the notion tion, the editorial group “takes issue” with the “invisibility” of the circulation of meaning that occurs through the pro- of women not only in relation to the articles in the early duction and reading of various textual forms. The aim is to volumes of Working Papers in Cultural Studies but also in

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“much of the intellectual work done within the Centre.” the organization of social relations and the disposition of Consequently, Women Take Issue illuminates two impor- power at a specific historical moment. To summarize, the tant aspects of the cultural formation that would later be impact of these essays is to focus on both women’s subor- called feminist cultural studies. On the one hand, the work- dination and class subordination and how the interconnec- ing group explicitly attempted to construct a descriptive tions between them determine: (1) “women’s structural statement about the process of “doing” feminist intellectual position within the production and reproduction of material work, both in relation to the CCCS and within the broader life,” (2) “how this is understood and represented politi- context of the British women’s liberation movement (see cally, and ideologically,” and (3) “how women live their Lovell, 1990). As a result, from early on, feminists inter- lives within and through these terms” (Women’s Studies ested in cultural studies demonstrated a reflexive mode of Group, 1978:23). Like cultural studies more broadly, this analysis that took seriously the responsibility to elucidate feminist work takes up the issue of the social construction its own conditions of possibility in an academic institution, of subjectivity and the role this plays in practices of every- as well as its political accountability to a broader social day life. These three levels of analysis are characteristic of movement. A second equally important contribution of this the projects that emerge during the 1980s as feminist cul- early engagement was to address the structured absence of tural studies turns to psychoanalysis and poststructuralism feminist work and “woman” from the theoretical frame- to elucidate the relations between gendered and class works and problematics that animated scholars at the subjectivities and everyday life. CCCS at the time. This is to stress that the early feminist engagement with cultural studies was already defined as a Ethnography and Autobiography: critical intervention in a field that was itself an emergent The Practice of Writing Cultural Criticism formation. In addition to establishing a feminist presence in The relationship between culture and the subject was a pre- the work of the CCCS, the book represents a characteristic occupation of much feminist cultural studies during the move or stance that will become more pronounced in the 1980s, either implicidy in the work of feminist literary and later development of feminist cultural studies, by including film critics or more explicitly as part of the work that theo- a range of diverse feminist perspectives that explicitly take rizes the practices of autobiography and ethnography. “culture” to be a focal point of the production of feminist These practices all concern the process of “doing research criticism. on women” and consider at great length the politics of rep- Two issues, however, are conspicuously missing from resenting those who are usually denied self-representation. this collection: (1) a sustained analysis of race and racism For example, Angela McRobbie takes issue with the mas- within those same feminist projects, and (2) an account of culine focus of the CCCS tradition of ethnographic study the construction and bias of nationalist or imperialist femi- of British youth, arguing not only that girls’ subcultures nist identities. These absences are telling in that they mark have a specificity of their own, but also that methods of a characteristic blind spot of feminism more broadly during subculture research need to be scrutinized for relations of the late 1970s. Even with these notable absences, the power and exploitation. One of the major contributions Women Take Issue collection is an important event in the from this line of feminist cultural studies is attention to the development of feminist cultural studies for several rea- politics and practices of writing cultural criticism. sons. In the first place, these essays employ a more inclu- Angela McRobbie argues that the ethnographic ac- sive model of culture and subcultures that emphasizes the counts produced in the process of doing subcultural re- importance of everyday life and domestic space in the re- search necessarily provoke tension between the “anarchy production of relations of power. The contribution was of talk and the order and formality of written work” more than a shift of emphasis to what superficially might (1983:50). In reflecting on her own research on women’s be recognized as the private sphere of collective life. Draw- and girls’ subcultures, McRobbie points out that the re- ing on the wisdom of the women’s movement more search situation includes social relations and practices that, broadly, and feminist historians more specifically, this shift left unexamined, threaten to undermine crucial feminist reflected a slightly different understanding of the feminist political commitments. It is clear that feminist ethnogra- slogan “The personal is political.” Taken together, the es- phers rely on women’s talk and their willingness to share says describe the many ways in which the “private” sphere personal stories. The ethnographer, for her part, interviews, is determined and constrained by structures of power. Sec- listens in, asks questions—all in the attempt to generate ond, these essays contribute to the development of an un- more talk. From there she orders the talk, summarizes it, derstanding of the articulation of sex, gender, and class in selects from it, rephrases it, surrounds it with theory, and

267 CULTURAL STUDIES finally, but never simply, represents it; in constructing a dominant narratives of gender, race, and class identity representation of women’s talk, the ethnographer offers an (see Wallace, 1990). This emphasis on the theoretical interpretation that is unavoidably partial and political be- elaboration of the practices of reading culture and writ- cause of the talk that was left out, ignored, and transformed ing cultural criticism continued to distinguish much of through the process of transcription and transcoding itself. feminist cultural studies in the 1990s. In this sense, the best ethnographies can produce only par- tial truths that are always politically inflected. Far from Feminist Cultural Politics closing off ethnography for feminist cultural studies, these One of the key issues to emerge from the engagement be- insights reinforce the understanding that all knowledge, tween feminism and cultural studies has been the investiga- both the kind that is fiercely personal and the kind that is tion of the politics of culture. Early attempts to theorize contoured according to more public sensibilities, is discur- about the politics of representation enabled a discussion sively constructed and culturally determined. among feminists who themselves were wrestling with is- Another very different project of feminist cultural stud- sues of identity construction and the politics of “differ- ies contributes to a broader theoretical understanding of ence.” Taking the lead in structuring these discussions were how everyday life is constructed mutually from the stuff of both activists and scholars of black identity, postcolo- biography as well as of history. In relying on psychoanaly- nialism, and queer theory. As these discussions expanded, sis and poststructuralism to provide models by which to so too did the notion that cultural studies needed to be situ- understand the cultural determination of subjectivity and ated in a global context. This has led, more recently, to ef- biography, Frigga Haug and the Frauenformen Collective forts to engage work by scholars and activists in various (1987) invented a new method of feminist ethnography. In national contexts: Africa, Asia, Australia, Canada, Japan, the process, they drew attention to the writing practices and South America. involved in the construction of cultural criticism. Memory In their editorial “Challenging ,” work, the term they use for their ethnographic practice, Valerie Amos and Pratibha Parmar remind their readers focuses on the act of writing as an investigative strategy. that “it is the autonomous activities of Black women Each member of the collective contributed a written ac- which have forced the white women’s movement away count of a memory or “body story” that represented a from a celebration of universality and sameness, to be moment of learning a sexualized interpretation of the fe- concerned with the implications of differences among male body. Through a laborious process of remembering, women’s experiences and understanding the political fac- writing, reading, and rewriting, the collective began to tors at work in those differences” (1984:7; see also Intro- identify ways in which women as individuals construct duction to Barrett, 1988). The critique initiated and most themselves into already existing or determined social struc- fully developed by black feminist critics and postcolonial tures, cultural narratives, and power relations. Simultane- scholars establishes two broad objectives for feminist cul- ously, they were uncovering the production of individual tural studies. One is to challenge the often implicit as- consciousness out of the stuff of culture and everyday life. sumption that there is general consensus among feminists Through collaborative writing and self-interrogation, the regarding the appropriate political aims of critical feminist collective worked to uncover the status of truth and authen- work. A second challenge requires the development of ticity that operates in women’s subjectivity by focusing on more complex criticism of the oppression inherent in the how cultural narratives get “taken up” in the construction of gendered and class relations within a racist society. The the “self.” issue, according to Hazel Carby, will be one not of simply Both of these projects, by McRobbie and by the making visible the invisible “black woman,” but, rather, of Frauenformen Collective, investigate the role of writing redefining the “central categories and assumptions of practices in the production of feminist cultural criticism. mainstream feminist thought” to take account of the inter- In so doing, they illuminate a model for feminist cul- connection of class, gender and race and of the “existence tural politics that is not just vaguely determined by the of racism…as a structuring feature of our relations with general political aims of the women’s movement, but, white women” (1982:213–14; see also Carby, 1987). The more important, is concerned to show specifically how importance of this work for the development of feminist subjectivity is produced (that is, through writing, cultural studies rests with its attention to the articulation of through close reading); how subjective changes can be a politics of location that means, in Chandra Mohanty’s empowering (that is, through the construction of a words, attention to “the historical, geographical, cultural, speaking position); and, finally, how one can revise psychic and imaginative bound-aries which provide the

268 CULTURAL STUDIES ground for political definition and self-definition for U.S. to critique the politics of science and technology in the feminists” (1987:31). name of an “essentialist” identity of “woman,” they are not, A second thread of work in feminist cultural studies is she argues, innocent reflections of some transhistorical re- the cultural politics of science and technology. An earlier ality of gender identity. Rather, in Haraway’s cyborg cos- feminist criticism that condemned science and technology mology, identity (feminist, woman’s, or something else) is as masculinist cults of rationality has given way to a serious always partial, recombinant, implicated, and in process. engagement with a cluster of related questions that concern Drawing inspiration from all of this work, feminist cultural not only the development of new sciences and the deploy- studies involves the production of cultural criticism that ment of new technologies (genetic engineering, for exam- explicitly accounts for the construction of fragmented, ple) but also the philosophical frameworks that structure fluid identities. In the process, it also identifies specific cul- the social organization of the production of truth and tural sites for feminist intervention, infiltration, and recon- knowledge. This refers to a range of feminist work that ad- struction. dresses such issues as the methodological frameworks of the social sciences, epistemological questions about scien- See Also tific discourse, and the close reading of scientific “find- CRITICAL AND CULTURAL THEORY; CULTURAL CRITICISM; ings” that support culturally determined and ideological FEMINISM: SOCIALIST; HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES: theories of sexual difference (Bleier, 1984; Harding, 1986; FEMINIST CRITIQUE; LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM; Harding and Hintikka, 1983; Jacobus et al., 1990; Keller, POPULAR CULTURE 1985; Rothschild, 1983; Zimmerman, 1983). Many of these projects consider the relation of women to the dis- References and Further Reading courses of science and technology, in terms of their partici- Amos, Valerie, and Pratibha Parmar. 1984. Challenging imperial pation in its production as well as their subjugation to its feminism. Feminist Review (Autumn): 3–19. “truth.” While the technophobia of earlier feminist criti- Balsamo, Anne. 1991. Feminism and Cultural Studies. Journal cism has been displaced, much of this feminist work re- of the Midwest Modern Language Association 24(1: mains critical of the aims of contemporary science and Spring): 50–73. technology. One of the consequences of this feminist cul- Barrett, Michele. 1988. Women’s oppression today: The Marxist/ tural criticism is an expanding argument for the transfor- feminist encounter, 2nd ed. London: Verso (1st ed. 1980). mation of scientific and technological practices. ——, and Mary McIntosh. 1982. The anti-social family. London: One of the most influential critical feminist cultural Verso. analyses to emerge in the 1980s is outlined in Donna Har- Bleier, Ruth. 1984. Science and gender: A critique of biology and away’s essay “A Manifesto for Cyborgs: Science, Technol- its theories on women. New York: Pergamon. ogy, and in the 1980s” (1985), in which Brunt, Rosalind, and Caroline Rowan, eds. 1982. Feminism, cul- she develops a broad-ranging analysis of the contemporary ture and politics. London: Lawrence and Wishart. scene of multinational science and technology in the inter- Carby, Hazel V. 1987. Reconstructing womanhood: The emer- est of developing a framework for a socialist, materialist gence of the Afro-American woman novelist. New York: Ox- feminism that would be equipped to critically engage that ford University Press. scene (see also Haraway, 1990). Haraway argues that social ——. 1982. White woman listen! Black feminism and the bounda- responsibility will not be well served by an “anti-science ries of sisterhood. In Centre for Contemporary Cultural Stud- metaphysics [or] a demonology of technology” or by an ies, The empire strikes back: Race and racism in ’70s Britain, equally problematic belief in technological progress or the 212–235. London: Hutchinson. benign deployment of scientific knowledge. Rather, Coward, Rosalind. 1983. Patriarchal precedents: Sexuality and Haraway maintains that science and technology, as dis- social relations. London: Routledge. courses, as social relations, are cultural productions that Davidoff, Lenore, and Catherine Hall. 1987. Family fortunes: Men cannot be ceded to a hegemonic ruling bloc. It is simply not and women in the English middle class 1780–1850. London: tenable, therefore, for feminists to write off those produc- Hutchinson. tions because they institutionalize masculinist values—ra- Grossberg, Lawrence, Cary Nelson, and Paula Treichler, eds. tionality, conquest, domination. Haraway also suggests that 1992. Cultural Studies. New York: Routledge. the notions of woman that inform many feminist “stand- Hall, Stuart, Dorothy Hobson, Andrew Lowe, and Paul Willis. point” arguments are similarly constructed cultural repre- 1980. Culture, media, language: Working papers in Cultural sentations. Although these representations enable feminists Studies 1972–1979. London: Unwin Hyman.

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Haraway, Donna. 1985. A manifesto for cyborgs: Science, tech- CULTURE: Overview nology, and socialist feminism in the 1980s. Socialist Review 80(2):65–108. Culture, as Raymond Williams noted, “is one of the two or ——. 1990. Primate visions: Gender, race, and nature in the three most complicated words in the English language” world of modern science. New York: Routledge. (1976:87). It is a term at the center of several scholarly de- Harding, Sandra. 1986. The science question in feminism. Ithaca, bates among advocates from distinct academic disciplines N.Y.: Cornell University Press. that seek to establish the right to determine its meaning. ——, and Merrill Hintikka, eds., 1983. Discovering reality: Since the late 1980s, the word also has been used to de- Feminist perspectives on epistemology, metaphysics, scribe the political ferment generated by changes in college methodology and philosophy of science. Dordrecht: curricula in the United States. Dubbed the “culture wars” Reidel. by the mass media, this political ferment has been pro- Haug, Frigga, and the Frauenformen Collective, eds. 1987. Fe- voked (in part) by the success of teachers and students of male sexualization: A collective work of memory. London: women’s studies in calling for a reexamination of tradi- Verso. tional programs of study and pedagogical practices. In par- Jacobus, Mary, Evelyn Fox Keller, and Sally Shuttleworth, eds. ticipating in these debates, whether as members of 1990. Body politics: Women and the discourses of science. academic disciplines or as contributors to reports of these New York: Routledge. debates in the mass media, feminist scholars have asserted Johnson, Richard. 1987. What is cultural studies anyway? Social that any discussion of culture also must take into account Text 6(1):33–80. issues of gender and race. Sometimes this means arguing Jordon, Glenn, and Chris Weedon. 1995. Cultural politics: for the centrality of gender and race within disciplinary Class, gender, race and the postmodern world. Oxford: definitions of culture; at other times, it means attending to Blackwell. the role played by gender and race in establishing the pa- Keller, Evelyn Fox. 1985. Reflection on gender and science. New rameters and the consequences of the debates. The term Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press. describes a dynamic concept both maddeningly imprecise Kuhn, Annette, and AnnMarie Wolpe, eds. 1978. Feminism and because of its cross-disciplinary usage and powerfully de- materialism. London: Routledge. scriptive for naming a critically important dimension of Lovell, Terry, ed. 1990. British feminist thought: A reader. Oxford: collective social life. Blackwell. McRobbie, Angela. 1983. The politics of feminist research: Be- Culture in the Disciplines tween talk, text, and action. Feminist Review 12:46–57. Mohanty, Chandra Talpade. 1987. Feminist encounters: Williams details the historical development of the term Locat-ing the politics of experience. Copyright 1 (Fall): culture along two lines: (1) as a noun of process that 30–44. means, in an agricultural sense, to cultivate something, Rothschild, Joan, ed. 1983. Machina ex dea: Feminist perspectives and (2) as a synonym for the word civilization (1976:89). on technology. New York: Pergamon. Over time, the two senses of the term began to refer to Turner, Graeme. 1990. British cultural studies: An introduction. each other in that the notion of being cultured was also Boston: Unwin Hyman. what was implied by the notion of being civilized. This Wallace, Michele. 1990. Negative images: Towards a black femi- semiotic blending of the notions of being cultured and nist cultural criticism. In , ed., Invisibility being civilized invokes connotations of breeding and so- blues: From pop to theory. London: Verso. cial class, so that the word now carries with it a more Women’s Studies Group. 1978. Women take issue: Aspects of modern sense of something that has high social value. women’s subordination. London: Hutchinson. This use in turn implies another sense, one in which “cul- Zimmerman, Jan, ed. 1983. The technological woman: Interfacing ture” is the product of those who are “cultured.” Thus, we with tomorrow. New York: Praeger. inherit (according to Williams) three senses of the word culture: (1) as a process of the cultivation of human char- Anne Balsamo acteristics, (2) as a name for the collective life of human beings, and (3) as the term for highly valued human prod- ucts and expressive practices. CULTURAL THEORY Theses three senses are emphasized to different degrees See CRITICAL AND CULTURAL THEORY. within different academic domains. In the humanities, the

270 CULTURE: OVERVIEW meaning of culture connotes highly valued human prod- Zora Neale Hurston was dismissed as a “black writer” ucts and expressive practices: music, literature, and visual whose use of dialect and stories about black characters had and performing arts. In the social sciences, the term is little, if anything, to say about the “universal human condi- used most often to refer to the collective life of human tion.” Joanna Russ was accused of writing from personal beings within particular, bounded social arrangements. experience with a sense of feminist outrage that disquali- Common across the disciplines is the specification of fied her work as serious literature. taxonomies of types of cultures or types of cultural prac- More recently, feminist literary scholars have pro- tices. Although different disciplines begin with different voked a wide-ranging disciplinary reconsideration of the understandings of the term culture, they are united in their division between high and low culture. Joined by black attempts to create categories of practices or products as a studies and cultural studies scholars, feminist literary way of making sense of cultural differences. These disci- critics have examined the social and racial class biases plinary taxonomies can be seen as an attempt to impose built into the notion of culture when it is used as the basis order on inherently dynamic and unwieldy human phe- for creating a taxonomy of literary value. In this way, a nomenon. critical examination of the use of the term culture Cultural studies scholars have developed a theory of cul- grounds debates about the formation of canons. This ex- ture that seeks to merge the insights of the humanities and amination argues that the works that belong to the cat- the social sciences to forge a concept incorporating both egory of “high” culture often reflect the values of an the material and symbolic-expressive senses of the term. elite, white, privileged class of people who have had, his- Although they, too, attempt to categorize cultural differ- torically, the social power to determine what gets institu- ences, they have focused more intently on the temporal di- tionalized and idealized as “universal” values in literature mension of cultural transformations. In addition to and in other expressive cultural practices. This critique attending to the way in which cultural phenomena change sets the stage for a wide range of feminist studies of over time, they also have focused on what they consider women’s writing and has stimulated the study of the way debased or devalued cultural categories of the traditional in which cultural values are implicitly expressed in other disciplines. For example, where literary studies was preoc- discipline-specific textual genres, such as ethnography cupied with works of “high culture,” cultural studies exam- and science writing. ined the significance of popular forms of mass culture. Culture, in an anthropological sense, names the collec- There were several reasons for this interest, not the least of tive social life of a group of people who share geographic which was the fact that cultural studies was built on a foun- location, national traditions, or a particular ethnic iden- dation of Marxist social theory and feminist theory—theo- tity. Cultural taxonomies are based on either national and retical traditions that call for the critical examination of geographic boundaries or types of culture. For example, systems of demarcation that establish differential value for some anthropologists distinguish between traditional or practices and forms of expression. folk culture on the one hand, and urban or industrialized culture on the other. Central to the traditional anthropo- Disciplinary Taxonomies and Frameworks of Analysis logical project is a focus on comparative studies of the In the field of literary studies, literature is considered a secular process of human development. Culture is the form of cultural expression that often has been categorized term used not only to name the production of material according to a taxonomy opposing high and low culture. artifacts and arts but also for the structures and practices Although the aesthetic quality of a work of literature evalu- of collective life, including social arrangements such as ated as “high culture” is assessed according to different kinship networks, expressive practices such as value categories, one of these is based on an evaluation of mythmaking, and social habits and conventions. This use how well the literary text illuminates universal human char- of culture is more encompassing than its use among liter- acteristics. Literary works that belong to the category of ary scholars, because it refers to the entire ensemble of “low culture” include popular forms of fiction such as ro- human practices, both expressive and material. This is not mance and detective novels, as well as science fiction. For a to say that the anthropological use of the term eclipses its significant period in the history of literary studies, litera- literary sense; on the contrary, anthropologists (following ture written by women (with a few notable exceptions) was the work of Paul Ricoeur and Clifford Geertz) often em- dismissed summarily as low culture. The reasons for this ploy interpretive theories (borrowed to a great extent dismissal differed. For example, Kate Chopin was identi- from literary studies) to make sense of the structured pat- fied as a “regional writer” who wrote novels of local color. terns they uncover. In this case, cultural practices are

271 CULTURE: OVERVIEW themselves considered a text to be read and interpreted culture by analyzing patterns of social interaction among according to an analytical framework. The “interpretive people who belong to particular groups but who may never term” in anthropology has spawned a vigorous theoretical interact in a shared embodied space. Taxonomies used to debate about the relationship between practices or actions divide people into cultural groups are sometimes based on and textual representations (see Clifford and Marcus, socioeconomic indicators such as income level—that is, 1986). But it is also the case, following the work of sev- working class versus middle class—or on generational dis- eral feminist anthropologists, that the ethnographer’s tex- tinctions such as those that distinguish the “baby boomers” tual accounts and representations of other people’s from their “generation X” offspring. An earlier classifica- cultural practices also are subjected to interpretive scru- tion that set up an opposition between “mainstream” cul- tiny. This work focuses attention on the practices of con- ture and “deviant” subcultures has been replaced with a structing and interpreting meaning on the part of the less normative one, which differentiates dominant cultural anthropologists themselves. In this way, feminist anthro- groups from oppositional subcultures. pologists call for a self-reflexive analysis not only of how The “turn to culture” in sociology has been driven by the they construct interpretations of the cultural practices of work of three groups of sociologists: (1) those who study others but also of their own cultural practices. the structural organization of the culture industries, (2) More recently, cultural anthropologists have turned those who work in the tradition of symbolic interac-tionism their attention to site-specific cultures that are not delim- to investigate the ways in which people negotiate cultural ited by national or geographic boundaries. For example, contexts, and (3) those who have taken up the issue of the some feminist anthropologists have begun to study the so- “body” within a sociological framework. Whereas the cial patterns and meaning-making practices of people who scholars and researchers who study the culture industries work in particular industries, such as the culture of scien- employ traditional methods of structural analysis to de- tists and technologists in the laboratory (see Traweek, scribe the institutional organization of the mass media, 1988). These ethnographic investigations rely on a notion symbolic interactionists borrow methodological ap- of culture as something that is produced by people who in- proaches from anthropology and literary studies to investi- teract in a common space of daily life but who may not gate the social accomplishment of cultural meaning share anything that looks like “traditional” cultural charac- (Becker and McCall, 1990). Employing techniques of par- teristics, such as national identity, geographic location, or ticipant observation and interpretive analysis, these soci- material practices. These cultural markers of group identity ologists analyze the process of constructing meaning at the become even more elusive to track for those anthropolo- level of everyday life. gists who are moving away from the study of actual social The issue of human embodiment has recently emerged sites to the study of virtual environments. The question from the shadows of sociological thinking as a topic of they ask in these situations is: What counts as a shared cul- study and debate. This interest in the body is due in part to ture when all that is shared is textual exchanges in a growing sociological interest in a broader culture—spe- cyberspace? Although it is common for advocates of cifically postmodern culture, where the body plays an im- cyberspace to claim that communication networks are race- portant role as a key symbolic resource and an expressive and gender-blind spaces of human interaction, feminist medium (see Featherstone et al., 1991). Feminist sociolo- ethnographers of on-line communication investigate the gists have taken up the issue of the body in various ways. way that gender continues to influence social interactions, For example, Virginia Olesen (1992) studies the embodied even when these interactions are limited to the disembod- self and the cultural construction of health and illness. A ied textual exchanges mediated through electronic commu- tradition of feminist studies of “deviant” bodies that in- nication technologies. One of the consequences of such clude Janice Raymond’s study of transsexuality (1979) studies is that the notion of culture is broadened not only to and Jennifer Terry and Jacqueline Urla’s investigation of name the interactions among people who share geographic queer bodies (1995) ironically reclaims the term deviant to spaces or ethnic traditions but also to identify the sense of describe bodies that transgress social and cultural norms. community and the framework of cultural meanings that The important contribution offered by these feminist emerge among people who may never interact within em- “body studies” is that culture must be understood as an bodied space. embodied phenomenon even when it emerges in disem- A similar notion of culture is also invoked to describe bodied spaces (see Balsamo, 1995). Thus, these feminists the cultural sensibility of groups of people who are catego- assert that although discursive interpretive frameworks of rized by demographic characteristics. Sociologists study analysis are a useful way to investigate the construction of

272 CULTURE: OVERVIEW cultural meaning and prac-tices, a robust understanding of stressed the importance of a historical sensibility. Writing culture also must take account of its material, embodied, about the process of cultural reproduction, he uses the and institutional foundation, which includes but is not lim- terms dominant, residual, and emergent to name different ited to taking account of the gendered, racial, and sexual domains of cultural practice (1981). Dominant forms of identities of participants in the culture. cultural production are usually seen as “natural and neces- sary” (204), set in place by a well-organized, institutional- Culture As a Signifying System ized system of power and knowledge. Residual cultural Early in The Sociology of Culture (1981), Raymond practices include “work made in earlier and often different Williams summarizes the history of the concept of culture, societies and times, yet still available and significant” putting in place an understanding of the term that reflects (204). Emer-gent cultural forms include new work and the convergence of its discipline-specific meanings. Cul- practices of various sorts. To elucidate the complex interac- ture includes both: tions among dominant, residual, and emergent cultural forms at a particular historical moment requires making (a) an emphasis on the “informing spirit” of a whole connections between practices and formations, between way of life, which is manifest over the whole range of forms of symbolic expression and institutional arrange- social activities but is most evident in “specifically cul- ments, and between specific manifestations of culture and tural” activities—a language, styles of art, kinds of in- broad forms of ideological reproduction. In more practical tellectual work; and (b) an emphasis on “a whole social terms, this means working to elaborate the connections be- order” within which a specifiable culture, in styles of tween forms of expression (such as specific works of litera- art and kinds of intellectual work, is seen as the direct ture) and the institutional arrangements that structure the or indirect product of an order primarily constituted by reception and evaluation of such forms. It means specify- other social activities. (12) ing the relations between cultural myths that circulate in the mass media and the way in which these myths inform This passage delineates both an “idealist” sense of culture the individual practices of identity construction. It means and a “materialist” position on culture. Offering a synthesis situating practices of representation within broader cultural of the term, Williams suggests that culture is the “signify- patterns of signification. ing system through which necessarily…a social order is This brief overview of the term culture implicitly argues com-municated, reproduced, experienced and explored” against seeing culture as an “object of study” isolated from (13). This meaning combines the anthropological and so- a historical, social, or material context. As is evident in the ciological senses of the term and “the more specialized if broad body of work in feminist cultural studies, culture is a also more common sense of culture as ‘artistic and intellec- complex dynamic quality of human existence. This under- tual activities’” (13). Thus, Williams puts in place a notion standing illuminates some of the reasons for the recent ten- of culture as the term for a range of signifying practices that sion surrounding debates about culture that have been include “not only the traditional arts and forms of intellec- identified in the media as the “culture wars.” What began as tual production but also all the ‘signifying practices’— a discussion about the criteria of inclusion on the list of from language through the arts and philosophy to “great books” in the U.S. literary canon has expanded into journalism, fashion and advertising” (13). a debate about cultural literacy and the type of knowledge In this sense, cultural studies borrows widely from dif- that should be taught in U.S. educational systems. Whereas ferent disciplines to forge an understanding of the term cul- dictionaries of cultural literacy implicitly define culture as ture that captures the ways in which its various senses are a decontextualized collection of facts and historical trivia, interrelated. Not only do cultural studies scholars seek to cultural studies scholars understand that it is a multifaceted investigate material cultural practices and actual cultural system for the construction of meaning. forms (that is, literature, film, advertising), but they also study the institutions and formations within which such See Also forms are produced. The aim is to produce analyses of the ANTHROPOLOGY; CLASS; CRITICAL AND CULTURAL THEORY; relations between moments of cultural signification and the CULTURAL CRITICISM; CULTURAL STUDIES; CULTURE: structural relations that give rise to those moments. WOMEN AS CONSUMERS OF CULTURE; CULTURE: WOMEN AS Instead of working with taxonomies of cultural types, PRODUCERS OF CULTURE; CYBORG ANTHROPOLOGY; cultural studies has focused more specifically on the dy- LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM; POPULAR CULTURE; namic nature of cultural transformation. Williams himself SOCIOLOGY

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References and Further Reading reinforce their integration into patriarchal culture, a look at Balsamo, Anne. 1995. Technologies of the gendered body: Read- the research about women’s reading and viewing practices ing cyborg women. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press. shows that women use popular culture in a variety of ways. Becker, Howard, and Michal McCall, eds. 1990. Symbolic inter- Women actively consume popular culture, and they can just action and cultural studies. Chicago: University of Chicago as actively construct meanings for themselves out of it. Press. Women find pleasure in such socially condoned activities Clifford, James, and George E.Marcus, eds. 1986. Writing culture: as book-reading groups, in such less socially acceptable The poetics and politics of ethnography. Berkeley: University fanship practices as reading romance novels or watching of California Press. soap operas, and in such masculine-defined activities as Featherstone, Mike, Mike Hepworth, and Bryan S.Turner, eds. punk rock slam dancing or watching professional wres- 1991. The body: Social process and cultural theory. Newbury tling. A number of women’s consumption practices are Park, Calif.: Sage. highlighted here with an emphasis on the tension between Hall, Stuart, Dorothy Hobson, Andrew Lowe, and Paul Willis. their relationship to patriarchal ideologies of femininity 1980. Culture, media, language: Working papers in cultural and feminist notions of strength and independent thinking. studies 1972–1979. London: Unwin Hyman. Femininity and Social Norms Olesen, Virginia. 1992,. Extra-ordinary events and mundane ail- ments: The contextual dialectics of the embodied self. In Elizabeth Long (1987) has studied organized reading Carolyn Ellis and Michael G.Flaerty, eds., Investigating sub- groups, looking at how they choose books and interpret jectivity: Research on lived experience, 205–220. Newbury their reading. She found that women’s, men’s, and mixed- Park, Calif.: Sage. sex reading groups all “use their readership to mark a Raymond, Janice. 1979. The transsexual empire. Boston: Beacon. boundary between themselves and their neighbors, and the Shiach, Moraq. 1999. Feminism and cultural studies. Oxford: Ox- elite among such reading groups distinguish themselves ford University Press. from people who ‘only read trash’” (306). Even the exclu- Terry, Jennifer. 1999. An American obsession: Science, medicine sively women’s book groups she investigated defer to es- and the place of homosexuality in modern society. Chicago: tablished authorities and traditional academic hierarchies University of Chicago Press. when choosing books. For example, their choices range ——, and Jacqueline Urla, eds. 1995. Deviant bodies: Perspec- from the classics, at the top of the hierarchy, to other “seri- tives on difference in science and popular culture. ous” works but never include formula novels. Cultural au- Bloomington: Indiana University Press. thorities like academics were consulted for the selection of Traweek, Sharon. 1988. Beamtimes and lifetimes: The world of books, but once they read the books the women in Long’s high energy physics. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University groups analyzed them in decidedly nonscholarly ways. The Press . discussants gave a wide variety of interpretations, often Triechler, Paula. 1999. How to have theory in an epidemic: Cul- linked to personal experiences. They often viewed charac- tural chronicles of AIDS. Durham, N.C.: Duke University ters as though they were real and were generally “playful” Press. in their discussions of a particular text. Williams, Raymond. 1976. Keywords: A vocabulary of culture and Oprah Winfrey’s book club has succeeded in breaking society. New York: Oxford University Press (rev. ed. 1983). down the reliance on academic hierarchies in choosing ——. 1981. The sociology of culture. New York: Schocken. books. Winfrey selects books according to her own value system. Her choices have given her, and by extension other Anne Balsamo women, a heightened awareness of the credibility of their choice of what to read, and also their interpretations of these choices. Debra Grodin (1991), in a study of readers of self-help books, a largely feminine genre, found that her CULTURE: readers sought commonality and connectedness from their Women as Consumers of Culture reading experience in order to assure themselves that what they were thinking and feeling fell within the boundaries of A broad continuum of women’s consumption practices in- the “normal.” The readers’ concerns seemed to indicate the cludes formally organized reading groups and informal uncertainties women feel in adjusting to hegemonic power fanship networks. While it may seem that women’s con- relationships. The readers in her study were largely middle- sumption of popular culture, particularly the media, would class and college-educated.

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Music videos have been found to encourage female they watched, and in general watched what they pre- fans to push against cultural definitions of femininity. ferred to watch when they wanted to watch it. Morley Lisa Lewis (1990) points out that female fans of rock stars describes women viewers as uninterested. The inatten- such as Cindy Lauper and Madonna sometimes create tiveness of these women may be due to the fact that, for visible signs of female significance and formulate new some women, home is a place not of leisure but of work. responses to gender inequality. In the 1980s Lewis found Hence, it is difficult for women to concentrate on and that “female address videos” were made by women rock uncomplicatedly enjoy television viewing. In the case of artists to appeal to young women who identified them as a group of Korean families living in the United States, representations of their own cultural experience. This Lee and Cho (1990) found that “women rarely do what meant that girls refocused their attention and adoration they want to do for themselves [in the home], and this is from male to female rock stars. Angela McRobbie (1984) most evident in television watching” (32). However, theorizes similarly about dance, noting that it allows girls both in these Korean families and in the British families to experience power through the use of their bodies. This observed by Morley (1986) and Gray (1987), the women power is in their control and is female-centered even found a way to enjoy television and films on videotape though dance is often seen as existing for masculine vo- despite their husbands’ disapproval. Some formed what yeuristic pleasure. the Korean women called video clubs in order not only to watch what they wanted to watch but to watch it in an Readership, Class, and Ethnicity atmosphere where they could talk and do as they Andrea Press (1991) has drawn distinctions between how pleased. working-class and middle-class women in the United Sexually and racially subordinated groups frequently States relate to television texts. Working-class women, she make use of what culture has to offer through “cultural found, valued realism in their television viewing more than poaching” (Jenkins, 1992)—using a cultural artifact in middle-class women. They also judged television’s depic- ways that were not intended. Cultural poaching may occur tion of middle-class life unrealistic. Since the working- when artifacts produced in dominant cultures fail to speak class women were more likely to accept televi-sion’s to certain groups, so these groups simply use the available version of middle-class life as normal in our society, Press cultural resources for their own ends. For example, Cathy felt that they were, to some degree, alienated from their Griggers (1993) suggests the possibility of an “aberrant” own material experience and that this alienation accentu- reading that essentially makes fun of a text, including par- ated their social oppression. Her middle-class subjects tial identifications and nonlinear rewriting of the narrative. were more likely to identify with characters on a personal This process, she maintains, is particularly apparent in, level, and to fall prey to television’s portrayals of physical though not necessarily confined to, gay camp readings. or behavioral ideals of womanhood. From this research, it Lesbian feminist audiences often apply interpretive strate- appears that class differences may influence how women gies that reject or alter the representational practices of construct meanings in relation to their personal lives. Other Hollywood cinema (Ellsworth, 1990). research about women’s television viewing in the context Female soap opera fans also use their viewing to estab- of families supports this conclusion while emphasizing lish group networks in which they talk, not only about soap gender differences in viewing styles within class and ethnic operas, but also about relationships, families, social possi- differences. bilities, and the way they can conceptualize life in general. David Morley (1993), looking at a group of working- Even though watching soap operas can be a soli-tary expe- class British families, concluded that men and women rience, most often the experience is discussed with others watched television in fundamentally different ways. The who form a community of viewers of particular soap op- women described television viewing as a social activity eras. Discursive networks constructed around soap operas that involved ongoing conversations and sometimes the can work as a spoken text. The constant, active, and playful performance of some other domestic activity like iron- discussions about soap operas that take place in women’s ing. The men had a clear preference for viewing in si- oral networks are an integral part of the cultural experience lence, attentively, and without interruption. Not only did of the text (Brown, 1994). the men and boys watch more television than the women Another segment of the population that engages in ac- and girls, but the men usually checked the newspapers or tive interpretation of cultural texts is the women in the sci- other guides to plan their viewing, operated the video ence fiction fan community. Although the science fiction recorders, sat in possession of the remote control when fanship community is predominantly male, the fanzine

275 CULTURE: WOMEN AS CONSUMERS OF CULTURE community is more than 90 percent female—editing and positioning as passive or against their “looked-at-ness,” writing stories, poems, songs, and vignettes, and producing or even to construct alternative systems of distribution artwork, photographs, and videotapes about the characters that fly in the face of capitalism. Women’s consumption who populate Star Trek, Blake’s 7, Star Trek: The Next of popular culture is replete with the contradictions that Generation, Doctor Who, and other television and film make up the lives of women and other oppressed groups. source products. Between 1977 and 1988 10,000 commu- For these groups, pleasure is not simple but complex. nity members from both English-speaking and non-Eng- The pleasure women find in consumption of popular lish-speaking countries produced more than 34,000 items culture may come not only from absorbing the dominant (Bacon-Smith, 1992). Besides its literary output, the ideology but also from conscious resistance to that fanzine community also supports close-knit friendship cir- ideology. cles that produce and distribute the fanzines and gather the work produced by other circles. Although there are large See Also conventions of all types of Star Trek and science fiction COMMUNICATIONS: AUDIENCE ANALYSIS; LEISURE; POPULAR fans, the core groups within the fanship community are the CULTURE; ROMANTIC FICTION; SCIENCE FICTION; SOAP circles, usually of not more than 15 women who range in OPERAS; TELEVISION age from late teenagers to women in their seventies. Their work is issued on-line or is still sometimes produced on 8 1/ References and Further Reading 2-by-11-inch paper, photocopied, and distributed to their Bacon-Smith, C. 1992. Enterprising women: Television fandom circles free or exchanged for the work of other circles (Ba- and the creation of popular myth. Philadelphia: University of con-Smith, 1992; Jenkins, 1992; Penley, 1991). This alter- Pennsylvania Press. native literary network not only indicates a vast community Bobo, J. 1993. Reading through the text: The black women as au- of women taking part in a non-vertical network in which dience. In M.Diawara, ed., Black American cinema, 272– there is no head, focus, or center, but is also one in which its 287. New York: Routledge. participants are consciously outside the consumer Brown, M.E. 1994. Soap opera and women’s talk: The pleasure of economy. resistance. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. Ellsworth, E. 1990. Illicit pleasures: Feminist spectators and Race and the Oppositional Reading Personal Best. In P.Erens, ed., Issues in feminist film bell hooks (1993) argues for an oppositional gaze, or the criticism, 183–196. Bloomington: Indiana University right to look, on the part of black female spectators. Slaves Press. were punished for looking, and the gaze has subsequently Gray, A. 1987. Behind closed doors: Video recorders in the home. become a site of resistance mainly concerned with race and In H.Baehr and G.Dyer, eds., Boxed in: Women and televi- racism. Because racial domination of blacks by whites has sion, 38–54. London: Pandora. overdetermined representation, black looks were rarely Griggers, C. 1993. Thelma and Louise and the cultural generation concerned with gender. This is why a film like The Color of the new butch-femme. In A.Collins, J.Collins, and H. Pur-ple (1982) which, on the surface, told a black women’s Radner, eds., Film theory goes to the movies. London: story, but structurally created a negative depiction of black Routledge. women harking back to earlier stereotypes, was read posi- Grodin, D. 1991. The interpreting audience: The therapeutics of tively by many black women. According to Jacqueline self-help book reading. Critical Studies in Mass Communica- Bobo (1993), many black women responded sympatheti- tion 7:117–128. cally because this film connected them to a strong tradition hooks, b. 1993. The oppositional gaze: Black female spectators. In of black women writers. Their gaze defied evaluations by Manthia Diawara, ed., Black American cinema, 288–302. professional film critics and instead was a matter of reso- New York: Routledge. nance in their own lives. Jenkins, H. 1992. Textual poachers: Television fans and participa- tory culture. London: Routledge. Thus, although a vast range of women consume popular Lee, M., and C.H.Cho. 1990. Women watching together: An eth- culture, their responses to it are not all uniform or pre- nographic study of Korean soap opera fans in the US . Cul- dictable. The pressure to conform to social expectations tural Studies 4:30–44. regarding beauty and behavior cannot be ignored. How- McRobbie, A. 1984. Dance and social fantasy. In A.McRobbie ever, women and girls often use popular culture either to and M.Nava, eds., Gender and generations, 130–162. Lon- assert themselves or to struggle against their ideological don: Macmillan.

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Lewis, L.A. 1990. Gender politics and MTV: Voicing the differ- extreme wealth, beauty, and romance. Clemencia ence. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Rodriguez describes the impact of such productions on the Long, E. 1987. Reading groups and the postmodern crisis of cul- women themselves as a process of identity deconstruction, tural authority. Cultural Studies 1:306–327. personal and group empowerment, demystification of Morley, D. 1986. Family television: Cultural power and domestic mainstream media, reversal of power roles, and increasing leisure. London: Comedia. collective strengths (1994). ——. 1993. Television, audiences and cultural studies. London: In developed countries, women’s cultural production Routledge. can take place alongside and within the mainstream cul- Penley, C. 1991. Brownian motion: Women, tactics, and technolo- ture of music, art museums, publishing, and film or televi- gies. In C.Penley and A.Ross, eds., Technoculture. sion presentations. Even though there are constraints and Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. difficulties because economic power resides with the Press, A.L. 1991. Women watching television: Gender, class and dominant groups, women have been able to explore topics generation in the American television experience. Philadel- relevant to masked, suppressed, or nondominant construc- phia: University of Pennsylvania Press. tions of culture.

Mary Ellen Brown Women and Science Fiction Language is the basis of culture. Arguably, the producers of language dictate its implications, its issues, and its use in the recording of history. On this view, language, especially CULTURE: in western civilization, is gendered and male. For women to Women as Producers of Culture write in a way that can be understood by their readers is an important part of why women seek access to the production The possibility of access to media technology and expertise of culture. Women science fiction writers, for example, has often shifted the position of women from consumers to present speculative narratives, opening up for fictional producers. When women become producers of culture women the possibilities of alternative environments where rather than consumers, a variety of possibilities emerge. they live independently of men. Many women sci-fi writers Women musicians, artists, writers, media producers, and also create new languages for their women characters. Internet activists who make decisions to create as well as These languages have evolved, and readers have added consume culture are in a position to shape new possibilities words, ideas, and new meanings to old concepts through for themselves and for other women. When they work in fanzines: low-budget on-line or photocopied publications groups, they become part of a collective experience that not that are produced by fans and distributed to other fans. The only involves the celebration of women’s lives, histories, roles of producer and consumer overlap here. One popular processes, and emotions, but also fosters criticism of and mode of resistance among consumers is to refuse to con- reflection about the status quo. sume cultural artifacts in the socially prescribed manner, as In developing countries, many forms of collective activ- when some women watch soap operas without buying into ism have been used by women: print, small-format media, the ideology they embody (Brown, 1994). In science fic- drama, and, particularly since the 1960s, radio. Radio is tion, a whole new discourse about romantic relationships available in rural environments and adapts well to oral between some of Star Trek’s male characters has been cre- forms of transmission. Oral transmission can take the form ated through fanzines (Penley, 1991). of speaking through loudspeakers, recording cassettes, or Pamela Sargent (1995) notes that women have main- establishing clandestine radio stations (Rodriguez, 1994). tained a stronghold within the various divisions of science Women in developing countries have also gained access to fiction, from traditional narratives to cyberpunk. Some video production via art and community centers. From the work by Ursula K.Le Guin and Margaret Atwood falls into Far East to South America, all across North America and the category of Utopian science fiction. The British writer Europe, individual women, as well as collectives of Gwyneth Jones writes about postholocaust matriarchy in women, have produced visual diaries, social documenta- her book Divine Endurance (1984). Also in this category is ries, and commentaries on their own life situations. When Suzette Haden Elgin, whose books Native Tongue (1984) aired on local cable stations, the faces of community activ- and Native Tongue II: The Judas Rose (1987) illustrate how ists, elders, neighbors, and family are inserted into a space some female science fiction women writers have created a previously reserved for consumer-driven images of distinct language for their female charac-ters, a language

277 CULTURE: WOMEN AS CONSUMERS OF CULTURE that exists outside of that used by the male occupants of the give themselves names like Queen Latifah and Nefertiti as specific planet or arena about which they write. With re- a means of “naming” which, according to O’Brien, “coun- gard to feminism and women sci-fi writers, Sargent (1995) tered anonymity, the legacy of women silenced through quotes the critic Joan Gordon, “[recent female science fic- slavery” (p. 313). She also found that female rappers tion writers] don’t neglect feminist thought: they assume, “evolve their own cast of characters, from fly girl to earth apply, subsume it in their texts” (1995:19). mother to mackstress to black-sista” (p. 300). These women are producing culture through the deconstruction Women Musicians and Performers and rewriting of history, articulating what their mothers From rock to performance art, from country to gospel, and grandmothers may have been unable to speak. women have used their positions as performers, songwrit- Just as science fiction writers deal with complex issues ers, and producers to tell about the multifaceted aspects of of racism, sexuality, and violence within their fictional women’s lives. Whether it be protest rock or rap, women landscapes, female musicians often use lyrics that articu- musicians have used the words of their own anger, personal late similar concerns. The country music singer Mary experiences, and political causes—as well as the words of Chapin Carpenter, for example, often inserts the desires women novelists—in their music as a means of infiltrating and fantasies of her enormous female audience into tradi- the music industry, which has been traditionally seen as tional country narratives. One song in particular, “He exclusionary and male. As in the case of authors and read- Thinks He’ll Keep Her,” is about the liberation of a woman ers of women’s science fiction, women’s music fanzines from the assumptions of her husband, suggested by the sex- and gatherings continue and elaborate the discussions ism inherent in the words of the title. The Dixie Chicks at- opened on the stage. tack violence against women in their song “Good-Bye The most successful fanzine, , can be loosely Earl,” released on CD in 1999. Similarly, performance art- described as a punk rock feminist movement and is easily ists like Laurie Anderson, Karen Finley, and Diamanda accessible on the World Wide Web. Through these fanzines Galas use their music and narratives as cultural and politi- women musicians network and encourage other women to cal activism, deconstructing notions of what music is and create bands. Lucy O’Brien (1996) writes in her book She which music should be heard. Bop, “It was as much about speaking out, decoding verbal expression and manipulating visual images as it was about Women Novelists playing in bands” and quotes the Riot Grrrl Chia Pet as stat- In addition to Morrison, Walker, Shange, and Bambara, ing, “Music is an integral part of youth culture that makes it women novelists including Kathy Aker, Amy Tan, Louise possible for girls to infiltrate male-dominated society” Erdrich, Jamaica Kincaid, and Sandra Cisneros have used (1996:160). The most commercially successful women’s generational and societal influences to express individual music festival was Lilith Fair, a summer tour celebrating and collective identities. Their narratives dethrone man as by presenting all female soloists and the central figure in women’s lives and give recognition women-fronted bands. The festival was originated by the to grandmothers, mothers, aunts, sisters, and daughters as singer Sarah McLachlan in 1996 and produced summer powerful figures in changing their desires or in creating tours until 1999. the identities they aspire to. These writers produce female O’Brien found that African-American female rappers characters who resist uniformity and represent the pano- frequently include in their songs narratives by well-known ply of personalities of real women. They are given dia- African-American women writers including Toni logues that celebrate what is often referred to as Morrison, Alice Walker, Ntozake Shange, and Toni Cade “non-sense”: intuition, spirituality, dis-cernment, and Bambara. These African-American writers, O’Brien states, women’s knowledge based on experiences outside mas- “showed a reinvention of language through jive talk, folk- culine authorship. lore, and literary metaphor. Female rappers continue in this tradition, articulating their generation’s experience through Visual Artists the bold originality of their own language” (1996:312). The production of art that dispels the mainstream notion of O’Brien notes that rap lyrics, like the characters in Toni woman as passive and as desired objects replaces this no- Morrison’s book Beloved (1987), utilize “re-memory,” a tion with works by women artists which bridge the bina- reclamation of the “dis-remembered” in the history of Afri- ries woman-nature and man-culture. In western society, can-Americans, res-urrecting them as positive, strong role women have traditionally been products for male con- models for the community at large. Female rappers often sumption rather than producers of culture. Their bodies

278 CULTURE: WOMEN AS CONSUMERS OF CULTURE have been idealized, and their intellectual identity has and progressive precisely because she calls attention to as- been systematically appropriated. The fragmentation of pects of black female identity that tend to be erased or over- women’s bodies for male pleasure and the constant dis- looked in a racist, sexist culture. Her work counters the semination of such ideals has had a devastating effect on stereotype” (1995:97). women, which has led to depression, anorexia, bulimia, self-loathing, and suicide. The perfect body is not swollen Women Filmmakers with pregnancy or vulnerable to disease, and it never ages. The feminist film critic Annette Kuhn defines a feminine It is a body or text coded in terms of pleasure and posses- text within women’s film as one that depends on an inter- sion. Women artists have produced works countering these play between the text and the reader. Kuhn states, “This phallocentric concepts. challenging relationship is one in which, in the act of read- Two such artists, Jo Spence and Hannah Wilke, decode ing, meanings are grasped as shifting and constantly in while resignifying the female body. By photographing process, and the subject-reader is placed in an active rela- their own cancer-stricken nude bodies, they reveal the hid- tionship to those meanings” (1982:12). den. They claim possession of their own bodies, casting There is not just one fixed meaning conveyed by a film. aside preconceived concepts of beauty. Spence wrote that Particularly in a feminine text or film—which is con- her work represents “not merely a history of victimization structed in such a way that its very narrative conventions and injury, nor a shift into a Utopian world of ‘positive im- go against accepted notions of how a film should be con- ages,’ but [rather] the continuous struggle to speak, to rede- structed—the film can open the way to unconventional fine, to name, [to come] into being” (1995:163). Wilke s meanings. For example, the classical Hollywood narrative photographs of her illness are especially startling when begins with stability, the stability is disrupted, the story of contrasted with those taken of herself in the early 1970s. the film is about reestablishing the world of the story, and These early images utilize her youthful and beautiful nude in the end that world is stabilized. However, this classical body pictured in such a way as to parody the traditional use narrative is disrupted when the ending is ambiguous or the of women’s bodies in art. Collectively, Wilke’s photo- chronological sequence is out of order. The narrative of graphs document the evolution of the female body through this type of film does not attempt to speak to a certain type youth, aging, disease, and, ultimately, death. Jean Dykstra of viewer; rather, it addresses any number of types of (1995) writes that “autobiographical photographs of bodies viewers. marked by disease signify a forceful challenge to codes of Women filmmakers like Julie Dash, Chantal Akerman, representation and cultural ideologies about the female and Trinh T.Minh-ha use the floating signifiers or open body” (1995:12). Similarly, the work of the Mexican artist meanings of feminine texts. Their films are in contrast to Frida Kahlo represents the fragmentation of the female those of classical Hollywood cinema that position women body not by the male gaze but by injury and illness. characters (with a few exceptions) as saints, victims, or Whitney Chadwick writes, “Kahlo used painting as a whores. Dash’s film Daughters of the Dust (1992) breaks means of exploring the reality of her own body and her narrative, linguistic, and cultural conventions. In this film, consciousness of that reality” (1990:295). Dash confronts the audience with a history outside of uni- Women artists such as Mary Kelly, Jenny Holzer, Carrie versity textbooks, a history of black slaves and descendants Mae Weems, and Lorna Simpson couple the written word of slaves on the coast of South Carolina who remember and with the visual image as a means of positioning a feminine try to understand their historical past—even that part which text within their art. This feminine text articulates what has does not fit the images explained in written history. This is traditionally been censored within the modern art world. a reclaiming of the “dis-remembered” similar to that of Kelly and Holzer challenge patriarchal notions of female black women authors discussed earlier. The film challenges subjectivity, from motherhood to consumerism. Holzer’s the audience not to dismiss what they have borne witness to “truisms,” such as the work of art entitled “Protect Me from through viewing it. What I Want,” speak of the rejection of a product-driven Several films by the Dutch filmmaker Chantal Akerman society. Weems and Simpson combine counter-hegemonic draw on the mundane. Out of this mundaneness, however, or socially unacceptable images dealing with black identity emerges a poetry of the ordinary, the daily, and the routine and fragments of language, stating concepts which could that excludes no one and therefore decenters the protago- be developed only after the period of history when rich na- nist or star figure. Akerman’s work also deconstructs con- tions colonized poor ones, bell hooks writes, “Lorna cepts and ideals of gender that are often encoded into Simpson’s images of black female bodies are provoca-tive language, society, and film.

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The Vietnamese-American filmmakerTrinh T.Minhha Rodriguez, Clemencia. 1994. A process of identity intends to break down the language of conventional anthro- deconstruction: Latin American women producing video sto- pological films. Her “subjective documentary” style has ries. In Pilar Riano, ed., Women in grassroots communica- the effect of repositioning or eliminating the voyeuristic tion: Furthering social change. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. gaze of the viewer and the filmmaker. Producing cinematic Sargent, Pamela, ed. 1995. Women of wonder: The contemporary collages of female imagery accompanied by the female years. San Diego, Calif.: Harcourt Brace. voice, whether speaking or singing, Minh-ha counters tra- Spence, Jo. 1995. Cultural snippings. London: Routledge. ditional ethnographic depictions of third world women as Mary Ellen Brown “other.” Susan Dyer Within or outside the mainstream, women construct and produce culture. They disseminate their language and ico- nography across an international network both consumed CURRICULUM and maintained by the audience. Sherry Ortner writes that a See EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS. woman is “a full-fledged human being endowed with hu- man consciousness just as man is; she is half the race, with- out whose cooperation the whole enterprise would col-lapse…. Having consciousness, she thinks and speaks; CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION she generates, communicates, and manipulates symbols, MOVEMENT categories, and values” (1974:76). By challenging the sta- tus quo, women as producers of culture can carve out a In women’s studies, the term curriculum transformation space to communicate as women. refers to efforts in the United States to develop a curriculum that includes the experiences, perspectives, and scholarship See Also of women in all their diversity. By the end of the 1970s, after some 300 women’s studies programs had been estab- ART PRACTICE, FEMINIST; CREATIVITY; CULTURE: OVERVIEW; lished, feminist academics began to turn their attention to CULTURE: WOMEN AS CONSUMERS OF CULTURE; FILM; integrating the new scholarship on women into the curricu- LANGUAGE; MEDIA: OVERVIEW; MUSIC: ROCK AND POP; lum as a whole. During the 1970s and 1980s, scholars PERFORMANCE ART working in women’s studies and, as it was then called, black studies began to document the absence of women of References and Suggested3 Reading all ethnic groups and men of color, as well as lesbian Brown, Mary Ellen. 1994. Soap opera and women’s talk: The women, gay men, and working-class people, from the cur- pleasure of resistance. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage. riculum and scholarship. Early efforts were often referred Chadwick, Whitney. 1990. Women, art and society. London: to as “curriculum integration projects” and had as their goal Thames and Hudson. the integration of missing women into the traditional cur- Dykstra, Jean. 1995. Putting herself in the picture: Autobiographi- riculum, which was understood to be narrowly white, bi- cal images of illness and the body. Afterimage 16 (Septem- ased in favor of males, Eurocentric, and heterosexist. In ber-October). spite of their good inten-tions, many early curriculum ef- hooks, bell. 1995. Art on my mind. New York: New Press. forts were faulted for failing to reflect the scholarship and Kuhn, Annette. 1982. Women’s pictures. London: Verso. the experiences of women of color, who were often Minh-ha, Trinh T. 1991. When the moon waxes red: Represen- marginalized in women’s studies much as women in gen- tation, gender and cultural politics. New York: eral had been marginalized within black studies and tradi- Routledge. tional scholarship. O’Brien, Lucy. 1996. She bop. New York: Penguin. As women’s studies and feminist scholarship continued Ortner, Sherry B. 1974. Is female to male as nature is to culture? In to develop, it became clear that adding previously excluded Michelle Zimbalist Rosaldo and Louise Lamphere, eds., voices to the curriculum raised serious questions about the Woman, culture and society. Palo Alto, Calif.: Stanford Uni- ways in which the disciplines themselves had been con- versity Press. structed. “Curriculum transformation,” in contrast to “cur- Penley, C. 1991. Brownian motion: Women, tactics, and technolo- riculum integration,” challenges the basic assumptions, gies. In C.Penley and A.Ross, eds., Technoculture. models, paradigms, and language used throughout the dis- Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. ciplines and works toward a transformed understanding of

280 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION MOVEMENT what constitutes knowledge and reality. Because knowl- Center, organized by Peggy McIntosh; and the Black Stud- edge is understood to be socially constructed, close atten- ies/Women’s Studies Project, directed by Johnnella But- tion is paid to the position and values of the knower, and the ler, then at Smith College, and Margo Culley, University of necessity of having a diverse community of knowledge- Massachusetts, Amherst. Other important projects include seekers is recognized. As Patricia Hill Collins and others the Project to Incorporate Black Women’s Studies into the have observed, women in the academy in general, and Liberal Arts Curriculum at Spelman College, directed by women of color in particular, because of their status as Beverly Guy-Sheftall; projects at Memphis State Univer- “outsiders within,” are uniquely suited to reflect on the sity and at Towson State University in Maryland; and the ways in which the traditional disciplines have been con- Project on the Status and Education of Women at the Asso- structed. ciation of American Colleges and Universities. In 1986, Curriculum transformation projects at different institu- the New Jersey Project: Integrating the Scholarship on tions and in different regions of the country have been Gender became the first such statewide project in higher shaped by the special needs and specific resources of those education. who participate. Some institutions have created large fac- Second-generation projects have been designed to em- ulty development projects that seek to transform the entire phasize the incorporation of the scholarship and perspec- institution and rely on visits from national scholars who tive of women of color into the curriculum, to encourage lecture and consult on a regular basis. They offer the resi- curriculum projects at two-year institutions, and to inte- dent faculty release time to revise course offerings and en- grate international perspectives into women’s studies. courage both junior and senior scholars to participate. Funding for these initiatives has come from internal fund- Other projects, with less funding or less faculty or adminis- ing by individual institutions, government agencies such trative support, have created smaller initiatives that focus as the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Edu- on selected disciplines or courses and rely primarily on the cation (FIPSE), the National Endowment for the Humani- expertise of their own faculty members, who meet on a ties (NEH), and the Women’s Educational Equity Act regular basis to rethink the curriculum and scholarship. (WEEA), and from private foundations such as the Ford While some projects have targeted introductory courses for Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and the Carnegie En- revision, others have focused on general education or core dowment. requirements; still others have sought to revise electives or During the early 1980s, some members of women’s create new courses, some of which are interdisciplinary in studies faculties expressed the fear that curriculum trans- nature. Some projects do all three. formation or “mainstreaming” projects would divert fund- In addition to providing a range of faculty development ing and energy from women’s studies departments and experiences and opportunities during the regular academic programs that were already underfunded and understaffed. year, many curriculum transformation projects have cre- By 1983, plenary speakers at the National Women’s Stud- ated, or arranged for the faculty to participate in, summer ies Association’s annual conference agreed that the dual institutes where participants have an opportunity for inten- strategies were complementary, not antagonistic, reflecting sive study. In addition to focusing on curriculum and schol- the view that long-term change would require both involv- arship, curriculum transformation projects examine issues ing a broad spectrum of faculty members in transformation of pedagogy and classroom process, seeking to transform efforts and simultaneously strengthening women’s studies these relations in the course of rethinking content. Projects and ethnic studies departments. In practice it has turned out collect, create, and disseminate bibliography, syllabi, films, that the more successful curriculum projects have been and other teaching resources, and many have published the those carried out under the direction of a strong “core” results of their efforts in book or pamphlet form. Materials women’s studies faculty. During the 1990s, many feminist generated by these projects are being collected by the Na- academics became involved in campuswide curriculum tional Center for Curriculum Transformation Resources on transformation initiatives to create broadly interdiscipli- Women at Towson State University, Towson, Maryland. nary “diversity” requirements or specific courses combin- Among the early and best-known curriculum projects ing the study of race and ethnicity, class, gender, and were those at Montana State University, directed by Betty sexuality. Schmitz; Southwest Institute for Research on Women (SIROW), directed by Myra Dinnerstein; the Wheaton See Also College Project on Balancing the Curriculum, directed by EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS; ETHNIC STUDIES; Bonnie Spanier; the Mellon Seminars at the Wellesley LESBIAN STUDIES; WOMEN’S STUDIES, specific entries

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References and Further Reading Sumero-Babylonian deity, she was incorporated into He- Fiol-Matt, Liza, and Mariam Chamberlain, eds. 1994. Women of braic tradition as Adam’s first wife. When Adam tried to color and the multicultural curriculum: Transforming the force her to lie beneath him during sex, she cursed him, college classroom. New York: Feminist Press. flew away, and coupled with demons. The curse of Lilith Friedman, Ellen, Wendy Kolmar, Charley Flint, and Paula came to be used to explain men’s nocturnal emissions; Rothenberg, eds. 1996. Creating an inclusive college cur- “wet dreams” were caused by this she-demon copulating riculum. New York: Athene. with men in their sleep. Through the Middle Ages, Jewish, Hull, Gloria, Patricia Bell-Scott, and Barbara Smith, eds. 1982. Catholic, and Muslim traditions continued to use Lilith- All the women are white, all the blacks are men, but some of like figures (lilim, night hags, succubae) to represent a us are brave: Black women’s studies. Old Westbury, N.Y.: curse imposed on those who would reverse the divinely Feminist Press. sanctioned male-superior sexual position. Rothenberg, Paula. 2000. Race, class, and gender in the United Women’s status as cursed and women’s ability to invoke States: An integrated study, 5th ed. New York: St. Martin’s. calamity or suffeirng by cursing evildoers have been pri- Schuster, Marilyn, and Susan Van Dyne, eds. 1985. Women’s marily associated in many cultures with female powers: place in the academy: Transforming the liberal arts curricu- menstruation, childbirth, and “mother right.” lum. Totowa, N.J.: Rowman. The Curse of Menstruation Spanier, Bonnie, Alexander Bloom, and Darlene Boroviak, eds. 1984. Toward a balanced curriculum. Cambridge, Mass.: The religious association of menstrual blood with the curse Schenkman. (Includes Peggy McIntosh’s classic essay “In- of evil or pollution reflects an inversion of an earlier cul- teractive Phases of Curriculum Re-vision.”) tural association of power with the sacred, “wise,” or magic Women’s Studies Quarterly 1990. Special issue: “Curricular and blood of women. Thus, in the Talmud it is said that if a institutional change” 18 (1–2: Spring-Summer). menstruating women walked between two men, one of the men would die. Persian religion shared a belief with many Paula Rothenberg of its Middle Eastern counterparts that to lie with a men- struating woman would cause a man to be cursed in various ways: he would beget a demon, he would fall sick and die, and so on. Ancient myths in general held that a menstruat- CURSE ing woman was capable of invoking a variety of evils. For the Greeks, the glance of a menstruating woman could A curse is a form of divine punishment for violating reli- paralyze a man like the glance of a Gorgon. Pliny said a gious or moral law. When an individual, rather than a deity, menstruating woman’s touch could blast the fruits of the curses another person, it is a form of calling down a spiritu- field, sour wine, cloud mirrors, rust iron, and blunt the ally powerful external retribution in the name of the sacred edges of knives. law that the cursed one has transgressed. The strength and This view of menstruating women as cursed can also be power of a curse depend on the cursed person’s internaliza- found in Judaism. Rabbinical tradition says that Eve began tion of the moral or religious law she or he has violated. To to menstruate only after she had copulated with the serpent be cursed is to feel a profound sense of guilt, shame, and in Eden. Orthodox Jews refuse to shake hands with a damnation, which provokes submissive and even suicidal woman because she might be menstruating. Jews also seem behavior. to have adopted a warning from Hesiod never to wash in The curse has long been used by patriarchal social and the same water as a woman because it might be tainted by religious systems to dominate and control women. In this menstrual blood. way, it has served as a form of religious violence. As patri- Christianity, too, inherited the ancient patriarchs’ view archal religious systems overthrew older matrifocal socie- of menstruating women as cursed. St. Jerome wrote: ties, they effected an ethical inversion, whereby women, “Nothing is so unclean as a woman in her periods; what she formerly associated with the principle of life, became touches she causes to become unclean.” From the seventh cursed as the origin of evil and death. to the eleventh centuries, many church laws forbade men- In patriarchal religions, women’s cursed status can struating women to take communion or even to enter a serve to justify their divinely sanctioned inferiority and church. The extension of menstrual pollution to the condi- sexual submission to men. One example of this process can tion of being a woman in general is reflected in the Ancrene be seen in the mythical figure of Lilith. Originally a revered Wisse, a Middle English guide for female ascetics: “Are

282 CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY you not come of foul slime, are you not a vat of filth?” tell various versions of the Adam and Eve story. In one ver- (White, 1993:129). The Catholic church has used the no- sion, God is a villain who cursed Adam and Eve and ex- tion that a menstruating “priestess” would pollute the altar pelled them from paradise out of jealousy. In other as an argument against the ordination of women. versions, Eve reprimands Jehovah, curses him, or casts him Medical authorities of the sixteenth century still be- into the abyss because he arrogantly pretended to be the lieved that demons were produced from menstrual blood. sole creator (Pagels, 1979:57–59). Nineteenth-century doctors gave a more modern scientific Another important example of a mythic tradition in gloss to the curse of menstrual blood, maintaining that men which a female principle curses those who violate or ignore contracted gonorrhea and other diseases from copulating the more ancient matrifocal blood ties is to be found in the with menstruating women. Greek Erinyes (Furies), defenders of ancient “mother This is the tradition from which the contemporary right.” The blood of a slain mother caused the murderer to woman’s slang reference to her period as “the curse” is be tainted with the mother’s curse, called miasma, a spir- derived. itual pollution that would lead the Furies to pursue the mur- derer’s clan for generations. Aeschylus’s trilogy The The Curse of Childbirth Oresteia dra-matizes the Furies pursuing Orestes for killing Orthodox Judeo-Christian tradition holds Eve responsible his mother, insisting on their right to punish him for violat- for God’s cursing the human race with death, a curse that ing the more ancient maternal-bloodline clan system. can be removed only by the spiritual death and rebirth of the Savior. As Mary Daly (1973:69) has put it, Eve’s curse See Also is fundamental in masculinist Christian theology: “Take the MENSTRUATION; MISOGYNY; MYTH; SIN; TABOO snake, the fruit-tree, and the woman from the tableau, and we have no fall, no frowning Judge, no Inferno, no everlast- References and Further Reading ing pun-ishment—hence, no need of a Savior.” Eve’s sin Briffault, Robert. 1927. The mothers. New York: Macmillan. also brought a sex-specific curse on all women: “I will Bullough, Vern. 1973. The subordinate sex. Chicago: University greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you of Illinois Press. shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your Daly, Mary. 1973. Beyond God the Father. Boston: Beacon. husband and he shall rule over you” (Genesis 3:16). Pagels, Elaine. 1979. The Gnostic gospels. New York: Random While Eve is perhaps the example most often cited, the House. idea that women’s bodies before, during, and after child- Rich, Adrienne. 1986. Of woman born: Motherhood as experience birth are unclean and capable of bringing divine retribution and institution. New York: Norton. on others is not simply a western cultural bias. As Adrienne Sharma, Arvind, and Katherine Young. 1999. Feminism and world Rich (1986:163) notes, “The idea of birth as defilement is religions. Albany: State University of New York Press. widespread. Indian village midwives are usually of the ‘un- Spretnak, Charlene. 1982. The politics of women’s spirituality. touchable’ caste, and in some parts of India the mother is New York: Doubleday. supposedly ‘untouchable’ during birth and for ten days af- White, Hugh, trans. 1993. Ancrene Wisse: Guide far anchoresses. ter.” Chinese and Japanese religious tenets have also held New York: Penguin. pregnant women to be “defiled”: in Japan, “if menstruating Young, Serinity, ed. 1999. Encyclopedia of women and world reli- or pregnant, a woman could not walk through the torii, or gion. New York: Macmillan. arches, of shrines” (quoted in Rich, 1986:137). Ivone Gebara Mother’s Curse Cathy Peppers Many cultural traditions reflect a great fear of being cursed in vengeance by the matrifocal traditions overthrown by patriarchy. In ancient Asian belief, a mother’s curse meant certain death. Post-Vedic holy law held that “the houses on CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY which female relations, not being duly honored, pronounce a curse, perish completely, as if destroyed by magic” As we enter the twenty-first century, information technol- (Bullough, 1973:232–33). ogy is becoming pervasive. Digital information and com- The orthodox Christian justification of Eve’s curse is munication networks are linking up, producing a global turned back on God the Father in some Gnostic texts which web of connections. This web is unevenly distributed but

283 CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY increasingly dense, and it is coming to define a new—and everyday life in many countries. Mapping this activity is sometimes exclusionary—sense of the global. Cyberspace important. It provides evidence of a new—and more posi- is the name given to a new kind of space located “within” tive—engagement between women and technology. these networks. Some women have produced women-only services. An Cyberspace is more than cables and computers. It early example was Women’s Wire, launched in 1994, which emerges as humans use computer networks and as they rep- proclaimed itself “an information clearing house” and resent these activities, this new space, and this new connec- “conversational on-line gathering place.” Other women are tion with technology—to themselves and to each other. active in all kinds of open forums on the Internet. These are Cyberspace is thus partly an imagined space and also a public spaces in which sexual difference might be irrel- shared one. As Margaret Wertheim (1999:304) puts it: “the evant, given the anonymity of the Net, which produces a ‘production of space’—any kind of space—is necessarily a degree of gender confusion. With bodies “hidden” behind communal activity.” The science fiction writer William texts (or avatars), women are free to conceal their gender Gibson (1986:67), who coined the term cyberspace in the (and age, race, and class). For these reasons the Net has novel Neuromancer, expressed this by describing been celebrated as a new public space which is gender- cyberspace as a “consensual hallucination.” blind and which may foster new and more equal forms of Today millions of people contribute to this hallucina- participation for women in civil society. tion. Cyperspace is becoming a significant new sphere of Gender switching as part of a wider identity is a com- human action. It may also be a place where something as mon phenomenon on some parts of the Net, particularly in basic as “what it is to be human” is being substantially re- multiuser domains (MUDs) and chat rooms. Women have thought. Life on the screen might involve the production of been involved in these fantasy spaces, which might be un- new kinds of subjectivities and identities, adapted to suit a derstood as laboratories for the production of new kinds of virtual world. selves, possibly even multiple selves (Stone, 1995). Re- For all these reasons, it is important that women are in- searchers such as Sherry Turkle (1996) have studied how volved in the development of cyberspace. Lamis Alshejni users create partial, multitasking, and fluid identities on- (1999), a Yemeni woman, articulates this when she states line, cycling through identities depending on which “win- that Arab women need to contribute to the developing dow” they are operating within. Turkle has argued that “Net” culture, in order that they can be “subjects not ob- these postmodern forms of subjectivity might come closer jects of a shared cyberculture.” Similarly, Dale Spender to feminist concepts of the self than they do to masculinist (1996:168) fears “the marginalization of women at that concepts of autarky of the subject. place where increasingly ‘we make sense of the world.’” Finally, some very visible female celebrators of “Being there,” contributing to cyberculture, might be cyberspace are geekgirls. These are (young) women who more problematic for women than men in that technology identify strongly with information technology. Geekgirls and the use of technology are gendered; in most societies regard access to the Net, and technological competence, technology is “coded masculine.” A central issue not as a gender transgression but as an essential component cyberspace raises for women, therefore, is whether what of modern womanhood, linking grrrl power with geekgirl Judy Wacjman (1991:159) has characterized as the “close power, as one activist, Rosie X, put it in “Grrrls Need Mo- connection” between men and machines still holds in this dems” (Wakeford, 1997:61). Other activists who have con- new sphere. The promise of cyberspace for many women, tributed to a feisty female presence on the Net include the particularly for those who have a feminist constructivist Australian artist collective VNS Matrix, which used the view of technology, lies in its potential to disturb that con- metaphor of viral contagion to argue that the Net may be nection. Wacjman has argued that “the correspondence be- productively “infected” with feminine values. tween men and machines is…neither essential nor immutable, and therefore the potential exists for its trans- The Pleasures of Connection formation.” There are implications here not only for how The geekgirls’ central assertion is that the pleasures of an societies “think” technology but also for how they under- intimate relationship with technology can be feminine as stand gender and sexual difference. much as masculine. A growing body of theoretical and fic- tional writing by women explores this possibility. Cyber-Enthusiasm Cyberspace has been widely celebrated in male science Many women participated in the wave of popular enthusi- fiction, and in much writing about the Net, as an escape asm for getting on-line that launched the Internet into from the “meat,” an escape out of nature. In contrast, many

284 CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY technophile women writers have understood the potential are understood to have already arrived. Women are already of cyberspace to be located not in transcendence but rather “in the process, turned on with the machines” (Plant, in connection. The allure of the virtual, for women, can be 1996:182). The cyborg future, speculative for Haraway, has understood not in terms of what William Gibson called the here arrived. Commentators such as Judith Squires “bodiless exaltation of cyberspace” (Wertheim, 1999:23), (1996:209) have noted that this leaves open the possibility but rather in terms of fusions and leakages between bodies that not only gender, but also the need for feminism of any and machines. kind, might have expired in the matrix. An important theoretical reference point is Donna Haraway’s influential Cyborg Manifesto (1991), which can Situating Cyberspace in Social Relations also be understood as a response to ecofeminists’ Many commentators, while applauding the energy of the technophobia. Some ecofeminists hold that technology, geekgirls and the rhetorical power of cyberfeminism, argue understood as masculine in essence, is inimical to feminine that these are elements of a more complex weave, with values, and that women should therefore resist technologi- other more problematic threads. As Rosie Braidotti cal “progress.” A Cyborg Manifesto accepts that informa- (1996:20) has put it, “There is a strong indication…that the tion technologies are bridging divisions between nature shifting of conventional boundaries between the sexes and and culture, human and nonhuman. Against these the proliferation of all kinds of differences through the new ecofeminists, however, Haraway argues that the blending technologies will not be nearly as liberating as the of those categories, which underpin—and naturalize— cyberartists and internet addicts would want us to believe.” sexual difference, can have productive possibilities for Most basically not all women have a similar stake in the women and other subordinated groups. system. While in the United States increasing numbers of This potential is explored through the cyborg, an imagi- Net users are women, in other parts of the world connection nary creature, simultaneously flesh and machine, and rates in general are likely to remain low. Globally, most therefore beyond those dualisms that determine gender and women are excluded from the Net. sexual difference. The cyborg raises the possibility of a new Many women find cyberspace a hostile environment. kind of information society, one not defined in terms of the Among the problems documented are “flaming” and other culmination of masculine strategies of domination over na- exclusionary tactics deployed by males in public spaces, ture. This is also expressed in terms of a contest for lan- harassment, male-dominated content—including guage, the embodied cyborg standing against the pure logic pornography, which is increasingly prevalent—and the of cybernetic code. Haraway defines cyborg politics as “the poverty of interactions in disembodied, nonaccountable struggle for language and the struggle against perfect com- chat rooms. Women-only areas, seen in this light, might be munication, against the one code that translates all meaning understood as defensive. perfectly, the central dogma of phal-logocentrism” Finally, while gender switching is widespread on-line, (1991:176). gendered identities on the Net are often very traditional. Haraway’s cyborg politics have been influential. Later Without real bodies in evidence, normative notions of the writers, however, have developed different—often more feminine might actually be said to operate in a heightened essentialist—versions of technophilia, in their writings way in cyberspace, as gender is reduced to a stylized set of about the Internet. stereotypical injunctions (Bassett, 1997). As Margaret A leading exponent of this new writing in the United Morse (1997:27) has put it, “interactions and subjectivities Kingdom is the cyberfeminist Sadie Plant (1996:170). on-line are caught up in the same dualisms which structure Plant understands the Internet as an emergent system twist- the outside world; values [including those of sex and gen- ing beyond the control of its makers. For her, der] encoded in the symbolic system prevail in the minds cyberfeminism is the revolt of this emergent system—a of users.” system that includes women and computers—against the Women’s experiences of cyberspace are uneven. Some worldview and material reality of a patriarchy that seeks to argue that it tends to flatten out gender difference. Others subdue them. Plant’s cyberfeminism is about the identity of have found sexual difference reinforced and gendered hier- women with emergent machines. For Plant, technology is archies reintroduced in this new space. Does this under- thus revealed as feminine. mine claims made for cyberspace as a place that might The rhetoric of cyberfeminism is at once defiant— facilitate new kinds of relationships between women and promising infiltration and corruption—and triumphalist, in the technologies? Perhaps it complicates this picture rather that the necessary conditions for the overthrow of patriarchy than destroys it. Many feminists are cautious about

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accounts which focus on such absolute categories as Melanie Calvert, eds., Processed lives: Gender and technol- “women” and “technology,” arguing that they tend to ig- ogy in everyday life, 51–66. London: Routledge. nore differences between women. Dale Spender (1996), for Wajcman, Judy. 1991. Feminism confronts technology. Cam- one, has called for assessments of cyberspace that start by bridge: Polity. understanding both information technology and women as Wertheim, Margaret. 1999. The pearly gates of cyberspace. Lon- embedded in existing social relations. From this situated don: Virago. perspective, a more complex and less total account of the Caroline Bassett possible significance of cyberspace for different women emerges. This new picture might underscore the continued necessity for feminist interventions—activist, theoretical, political, artistic—in this new sphere. CYBORG ANTHROPOLOGY See Also COMMUNICATIONS: OVERVIEW; COMPUTER SCIENCE; A cyborg (shorthand for “cybernetic organism”) is a sym- COMPUTING: OVERVIEW; CYBORG ANTHROPOLOGY; biotic fusion of human and machine. Humans have always INFORMATION REVOLUTION; INFORMATION developed technologies to help themselves survive and TECHNOLOGY; INTERNET POLITICS AND STATES; thrive, but in recent decades the rapid escalation and inten- MEDIA: OVERVIEW; FEMINIST PHILOSOPHIES; sification of the interface between humans and technology FEMINISM: POSTMODERN; SEXUAL DIFFERENCE; have exceeded anything heretofore known. From satellite TECHNOLOGY: OVERVIEW communications to genetic engineering, high technology has penetrated and permeated the human and natural Reference and Further Reading realms. Indeed, so profoundly are humans altering their Alshejni, Lamis. 1999. Unveiling the Arab woman’s voice through biological and physical landscapes that some have openly the Net. In Wendy Harcourt, ed., Woman. London: Zed. suggested that the proper object of anthropological study Bassett, Caroline. 1997. Virtually gendered. In Sarah Thornton should be cyborgs rather than humans, for, as Donna and Ken Gelder, eds., The subcultures reader, 537–551. Lon- Haraway (1991) says, we are all cyborgs now. don: Routledge. Braidotti, Rosie. 1996. Cyberfeminism with a difference. New Cyborg Anthropology As a Formations 29 (Summer): 9–25. Subspecialty of Anthropology Gibson, William. 1986. Neuromancer. Harmondsworth: Penguin. Anthropology, the study of humans, has traditionally con- Haraway, Donna J. 1991. A cyborg manifesto: Science, technol- centrated on discovering the process of evolution through ogy, and socialist-feminism in the late twentieth century. In which the human came to be (physical anthropology) or on Simians, cyborgs and women: The reinvention of nature, understanding the beliefs, languages, and behaviors of past 149–181. London: Routledge. or present human groups (archaeology, linguistics, cultural Morse, Margaret. 1997. Virtual identity. In Jennifer Terry and anthropology). Cyborg anthropology is a recent Melanie Calvert, eds., Processed lives: Gender and technol- subspecialty launched at the Annual Meetings of the ogy in everyday life, 23–36. London: Routledge. American Anthropological Association (AAA) in 1993. Plant, Sadie 1996. On the matrix, cyberfeminist simulations. In Within the AAA, cyborg anthropology is associated with Rob Shields, ed., Cultures of Internet: Virtual spaces, real the Committee for the Anthropology of Science, Technol- histories, living bodies, 170–183. London: Sage. ogy, and Computing (CASTAC). From the start cyborg an- Spender, Dale. 1996. Nattering on the net. Toronto: Garamond. thropologists have located themselves within the larger Squires, Judith. 1996. Fabulous feminist futures. In Jon Dovey, transdisciplinary field of science and technology studies ed., Fractal dreams, new media in social context, 194–216. (STS); they have attended the annual meetings of the Soci- London: Lawrence and Wishart. ety for the Social Studies of Science (SSSS) and have ap- Stone, Allucquere Rosanne. 1995. The war of desire and technol- plied cyborgian perspectives to a wide research spectrum ogy at the close of the mechanical age. London: MIT. ranging from the culture of physicists in Japan (Traweek, Turkle, Sherry. 1996. Life on the screen. London: Weidenfeld and 1988) to organ donation in Germany (Hogle, 1999) to ex- Nicolson. tended work on the new reproductive technologies. Wakeford, Nina. 1997. Networking women and grrrls with infor- Both the transdisciplinary nature of cyborg studies and mation/communication technology. In Jennifer Terry and their strongly feminist orientation were established by

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Donna Haraway with her famous article “Cyborg Mani- drugs, and forceps is generally considered unsafe, despite festo: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the the demonstrated safety of midwife-attended out-of-hospi- Late Twentieth Century” (1986), which is included in her tal births. The mothers and children whose lives are struc- book of essays Simians, Cyborgs, and Women (1991). Fol- tured and whose bodies and development are altered by lowing Haraway’s lead, despite the breadth of its inquiry— birth technologies can be fruitfully analyzed as cyborgs which encompasses all aspects of the human-technology who demonstrate the full range of ambiguity and possibil- interface—cyborg anthropology has retained a focus on ity this concept encompasses. Various chapters in Cyborg feminist issues and women’s concerns, intervening directly Babies (Davis-Floyd and Dumit, 1998) probe these ambi- in the long-standing problem of women’s relationship to guities, asking whether the sense of control provided to technology. Technology often provides choices that were not women and practitioners by the routine application of such available before and extends the abilities of humans—em- technologies compensates for the very real physical dam- powering, for example, many women with disabilities to live age they often do. better lives. But technologies are embedded in their socio- Other exemplary ethnographies in the wider arena of economic and cultural contexts and can equally well be used cyborg studies include Emily Martin’s work on immuno- to constrain, survey, and disempower. A feminist cyborg an- logical science, Deborah Heath’s work on the science and thropology is always attentive to which women benefit from activism regarding Marfan’s syndrome, Diana Forsythe’s a specific technology and which women do not. studies of artificial intelligence and expert systems, Joseph Dumit’s studies of brain imaging practices, and Karen-Sue The Implications of New Diagnostic Technologies Taussig’s work on genetics clinics in the Netherlands. As New diagnostic technologies, from genetic tests to brain the location of these studies makes clear, however, much imaging, and new therapeutics, from antidepressants like work needs to be done to expand cyborg anthropology to Prozac to organ transplants, create new ways of living and address non-middle-class and nonwestern issues such as deciding that are at once exciting and troubling. For in- the multiple effects of pollution, pesticides, and bioengi- stance, testing for the breast cancer gene BRCA-1, which neering in agricultural production and racial and gendered identifies an increased risk of cancer in some women, often exclusions from access to cyborg technologies. The restructures a woman’s relationship to the health care sys- strength of cyborg anthropology is its ability to combine tem, to her family, and to herself. Taking the test can lead to attention to scientific practices and working technologies losing insurance coverage and to accelerated treatment with critical analyses of technophilia (cultural fascination choices like prophylactic mastectomy; in other words, with high technologies), social control, and hegemonic and identification of genetic risk can result in a women’s being popular appropriations of technology. Its weakness is that treated as if she already had breast cancer. This test thus the same fascinating lure of science and technology keeps creates a new cyborgian category—the presympto- its practitioners focused on the “cyberdazzle” of the newest matically ill—and a new set of risks posed by the “prophy- technologies, “big science,” and western market power. lactic” treatments prescribed for its members. See Also Cyborg Anthropology and Women’s Studies ANTHROPOLOGY; CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY; ETHICS: The most developed cyborg anthropological work in wom- SCIENTIFIC; GENETICS AND GENETIC TECHNOLOGIES; en’s studies concerns reproduction, addressing everything REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES from technologies of conception and prenatal diagnosis and treatment (Rapp, 2000) to the technologization of birth References and Further Reading to the commodification of disability and pregnancy loss Davis-Floyd, Robbie, and Joseph Dumit. 1998. Cyborg babies: (Layne, 2000). For example, Rayna Rapp’s long-term From techno-sex to techno-tots. New York: Routledge. fieldwork among genetic counselors and her attention to Downey, Gary Lee, and Joseph Dumit, eds. 1997. Cyborgs and racial, class, and religious differences in how women make citadels: Anthropological interventions in emerging sci- choices given uncertain information about amniocentesis ences, technologies and medicines. Seattle: SAR/University constitute outstanding examples of simultaneous attention of Washington Press. (Includes essays by Joseph Dumit, to technology, its mediators, and its implications for Deborah Heath, and Rayna Rapp.) women. In the contemporary developed world, there is al- Forsythe, Diana. 2001. Toward an anthropology of informatics: most no such thing as “normal” birth: giving birth without Ethnographic analyses of knowledge engineering and artifi- prenatal testing, hospitals, electronic fetal monitoring, cial intelligence. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press.

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Gray, Christ Hables, ed., with Heidi J.Figueroa-Sarriera and from the days of polio to the age of AIDS. Boston: Beacon. Steven Mentor. 1995. The cyborg handbook. New York: Rapp, Rayna, 2000. Testing women, testing the fetus: The so- Routledge. cial impact of amniocentesis in America. New York: Haraway, Donna. 1991. Simians, cyborgs, and women: The Routledge. reinvention of nature. London: Free Association. Taussig, Karen-Sue. Forthcoming. Just be ordinary: Normalizing Hogle, Linda F. 1999. Recovering the nation’s body: Cultural the future through genetic research and practice. Berkeley: memory, medicine, and the politics of redemption. New University of California Press. Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. Traweek, Sharon. 1988. Beamtimes and lifetimes: The world of Layne, Linda, ed. 2000. Transformative motherhood: On giving high energy physicists. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univer- and getting in a consumer culture. New York: New York Uni- sity Press. versity Press. Martin, Emily. Flexible bodies: Tracking immunity in America Robbie Davis-Floyd

288 D

DANCE: Overview accessible to study than dance because a text or a score can The activity that is recognized as dancing in the West takes be consulted and the work reconstructed or reinterpreted. a number of different forms and can be found in a variety of No commonly accepted system of notation for recording or different social contexts, covering the spectrum from high preserving dance exists, although there have been a number art to popular culture. In dance—as a performance art, as of notable attempts to generate a system of movement nota- light entertainment, or as a leisure activity—the body is the tion over the centuries (Guest, 1984). However, two sys- primary instrument and means of expression. The word tems developed in the twentieth century have been used to dance, however, must be used with caution. Anthropolo- record western theater dance: the Benesh system of gists have found that the term dance is “essentially ethno- choreology, and Labanotation. The Benesh system was de- centric or culture specific” (Blacking, 1983:89), being veloped in the 1960s to record ballet and is used by the based on common concepts of dance in western cultures British Royal Ballet, among other classical companies. (Buckland, 1999). A number of societies have no generic Labanotation was developed from a system devised by the word for dance as it is understood in the West but subsume dancer and theorist Rodolf Laban (1879–1958), who was similar kinds of movement activities under other categories, also a major influence on central European modern dance. such as play, music, or worship. This point is exemplified Modern dance choreographers such as Mary Wigman by the work of pan-African dance ensembles such as (1886–1973) in Europe and Doris Humphrey (1895–1958) Adzido, where drumming and dancing are inextricably in the United States had some of their dances recorded in linked. Some anthropologists (Kaeppler, 1991:12) consider Labanotation. The system has been used to notate and re- that in order to take a wider view of “structured movement construct many forms of dance: ballet, folk, modern dance, systems” the term human movement should be used rather and nonwestern dance forms. The Dance Notation Bureau than dance. As this article is focused primarily on providing in New York was founded by Ann Hutchinson, among oth- an overview of women’s roles in western performance or ers, in 1940, with the express aim of advancing the art of art dance, however, the term dance is deemed appropriate. dance through the use of a notation system. Although dance history and dance aesthetics lag behind History of Recording Dance the analysis of other art forms, they too have developed It is difficult to review dance as an art form because, unlike within the context of the western humanist tradition of other arts such as painting, literature, or sculpture, a dance thought, and their discussions have been overwhelmingly tradition does not leave behind it a large body of artifacts to directed toward the analysis of western theater art dance, be examined and reassessed by contemporary or future which, until the 1930s, meant ballet. Ballet, as it is known generations. As a performance art, dance has a transient today, is the codified system of movement formulated on quality: as it is seen, so it has gone. This makes the study of the classical style or danse d’école which was developed by dance more elusive than that of literature or art. Although French, Italian, and English professional dancing masters drama and music are also performance arts, they are more and dancers over a long period beginning in the latter part

289 DANCE: OVERVIEW of the seventeenth century. The form had its roots in the and in 1956 she became the director of the Royal Ballet. French and Italian courts of the sixteenth century. As other Also in 1931, Rambert, with her playwright husband, es- dance genres have developed in the twentieth century, such tablished the Ballet Club at the Mercury Theatre in Lon- as modern dance and, later, postmodern dance, the discus- don; the company was later renamed Ballet Rambert. sions have been widened to take account of shirts and Where de Valois had a talent for organization, Rambert’s breaks within and across the various dance genres. gifts lay in discovering and nurturing talents in dancers and It is also important to note that performance or art dance choreographers. Most of the latter were men, with a few is not restricted to the West. Many societies in south Asia, exceptions such as Andrée Howard (1910–1968). Thus the east Asia, and southeast Asia have strong performance creative and organizational mantle of British ballet was dance traditions that reach back farther in history than clas- passed to male choreographers and directors, with women sical ballet. To provide a wider perspective, this article will retaining their traditional role as dancers. also draw attention to the role of women in Indian classical dance and to the concerns of certain contemporary women Postmodern Dance dancers and choreographers from that tradition. Postmodern dance began to emerge in the early 1960s in the United States as a reaction to what dancers such as Contribution of Women Yvonne Rainer (b. 1934) and Trisha Brown (b. 1936), who The history of western theater dance, from ballet to modern were members of the Judson Dance Theater in New York (a dance to postmodern dance, reveals that women have made collective dance venture that included artists, composers, considerable contributions to the development of dance, as and writers), perceived to be the failure of modern dance to performers, as choreographers, and as prime advocates in fulfill its radical potential (Banes, 1987). Whereas modern the institutional development and establishment of certain dance was primarily a women’s movement in its formative dance genres. For example, dancers and choreographers stage, postmodern dance was forged by both women and such as Isadora Duncan (1878–1927) and Ruth St. Denis men. Rainer, however, was by far the most polemical of this (1879–1968) were a source of inspiration as well as a point group of choreographers and dancers, and her work, like of departure for dancers of the next generation, such as that of a number of others, was influenced by the feminist Martha Graham (1894–1991) and Doris Humphrey (1895– concerns that began to come to the fore in the 1960s. 1958), who in turn were key figures in the formation and Rainer used the term “post-modern” (as opposed to establishment of American modern dance from the late postmodern) to indicate that she was part of a generation 1920s to the 1950s. It should be noted, however, that there that came after modern dance. There is some dispute were a number of other contributors to the movement who among dance critics and historians as to whether the work have been left out of the story of modern dance (see Graff, of the Judson Dance Theater corresponds to what is now 1997). Once modern dance was established, it lost its generally agreed to be postmodernism in the other arts (Jor- avant-gardist edge, and it too became subject to disman- dan, 1992:4–5). Although aesthetic postmodernism defies tling just as ballet and the interpretive dance of St. Denis a fixed definition, it may be characterized by pastiche, and Duncan had been before. irony, a mixing and matching of styles and genres, and a Although dance writers have noted the primacy of collapsing of the distinction between high art and popular women in the formation and the early development of mod- culture (see Thomas, 1995:14–20). Postmodern dance (the ern dance as dancers and choreographers, this has not gen- hyphen has now been dropped generally), like its predeces- erally been the case with regard to ballet. Until recently, sor, modern dance, constitutes a large body of diverse work histories of mainstream ballet focused primarily on wom- from the 1960s to the 1980s, some of which appears to fit in en’s contribution as performers, to the neglect of the other more with the canons of modernism than postmodernism. aspects indicated here. There are exceptions to this general Unlike the United States, Great Britain did not have a overview. For example, Dame Marie Rambert (1888– strong tradition of contemporary or modern dance to react 1982) and Dame Ninette de Valois (b. 1898) were innova- against in the 1960s. In the mid-1960s, “the Graham tech- tive figures in the development of British ballet. Both nique of contemporary dance became the first established women had worked with Serge Diaghilev (1872–1929) alternative to ballet in Britain” (Jordan, 1992:1) as a result whose Ballets Russes revolutionized and revitalized ballet of the creation of the London School of Contemporary in the early twentieth century. In 1931, with the assistance Dance (1966) and the London Contemporary Dance Thea- of Lillian Baylis (1874–1937), de Valois founded the Vic- tre (1967) and the shift of direction of Ballet Rambert to a Wells Ballet, which later became the Sadler Wells Ballet, contemporary dance company. What is commonly thought

290 DANCE: OVERVIEW of as postmodern dance in the United States and Canada feminist perspectives is very recent among Indian classical resonates with experimental work or new dance in the dancers. Manjusri Chaki-Sircar, a contemporary Indian United Kingdom, which emerged in the late 1970s and dancer, sees the history of classical Indian dance as a re- 1980s. In its early stages the majority of new dance chore- pressive system which has exploited women (Hanna, ographers and performers were women (see Adair, 1993:119, 132). She draws on and integrates a number of 1992:182–198). One of the forces of this alternative dance styles of Indian classical dance, martial arts, and yoga movement in the United Kingdom was the X6 Collective poses, incorporating the traditional footwork of classical (1976–1980), founded by Jacky Lansley, Maedée Duprès, dance but rejecting the symmetry and the centering of the Emilyn Claid, Mary Prestige, and Fergus Early. Concerned body. In the brochure of her Dancers’ Guild of Calcutta, with working in new ways, the Collective was influenced Chaki-Sircar states: “The contemporary dancer here by the politics of feminism and western Marxism. The X6 wishes to develop an ethos that questions the traditional Collective founded New Dance magazine to explore alter- one of Brahmanic par-triarchy creed so deeply enmeshed native attitudes toward dance and social issues. Like in Shastric classicism” (Hanna, 1993:119). postmodern dancers, New Dance choreographers such as Another contemporary choreographer, Shobhana X6 abandoned traditional ideas of technique, dance Jeyasingh, has gained acclaim for her work in the United clothes, and the star image of the choreographer and per- Kingdom. She challenges the traditional divide in dance former in favor of different collective ways of working. between Ease and West. Jeyasingh collaborates with con- temporary western composers such as Michael Nyman and Feminist and Cultural Influences combines Bharatha Natyam technique with the techniques The influence of feminist theory and cultural studies on of contemporary dance, intentionally blurring the bounda- dance research since the mid-1980s has contributed to a ries between the forms (Roy, 1997:68–86). critical reappraisal of the place of women in the tradition of classical ballet, and a reevaluation of the influence of femi- See Also nism on the founders of modern dance and on postmodern DANCE: CHOREOGRAPHY; DANCE: CLASSICAL; DANCE: or new dance (see Adair, 1992; Banes, 1998; and Manning, MODERN; DRUMMING; POSTMODERNISM: LITERARY THEORY 1993). Central to these developments in dance research has been a consideration of the ways in which women have References and Further Reading been represented in dance through their bodies (Cooper Adair, Christy. 1992. Women and dance: Sylphs and sirens. Lon- Albright, 1997; Daly, 1995). Several leading ballet danc- don: Macmillan. ers—Gelsey Kirkland—(b. 1952) for example, call atten- Banes, S. 1988. Dancing women: Female bodies on stage. Lon- tion to the ways in which women’s bodies in ballet were don: Routledge. disciplined and subjugated to the demands of the system ——. 1987. Terpsichore in sneakers: Post-modern dance. Boston: and choreographers’ concerns (Kirkland, 1987). Other Houghton Mifflin. choreographers, such as Pina Bausch (b. 1940), challenge Blacking, John. 1983. Movement and meaning: Dance in social an- and explore the conventions and contradictions of male-fe- thropological perspective. Dance Research 1 (Spring: 1): 89–99. male sexuality in dance and in culture. Buckland, T.J., ed. 1999. Dance in the field. Basingstoke: Black dancers and choreographers in general, and espe- Macmillan. cially black women, have had to struggle to achieve a place Burt, R. 1998. Alien bodies: Representations of modernity, “race” in the western dance canon, particularly in ballet (see Burt, and nation in early modern dance. London: Routledge. 1998; Emery, 1988). Some black dance companies seek to Cooper Albright, A. 1997. Choreography difference: The body combine the possibilities of contemporary dance and Afri- and identity in contemporary dance. Hanover, N.H.: Univer- can dance traditions. For example, the contemporary cho- sity Press of New England. reographer Jowole Willa Jo Zollar, through her all-female Daly, A. 1995. Done into dance: Isadora Duncan in America. company Urban Bush Women, seeks to challenge the con- Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ventions of the western aesthetic of the female dancing Emery, Lynne Fauley. 1988. Black dance from 1619 to today, 2nd body by combining her African heritage with her American ed . London: Dance Books. experience (Cooper Albright, 1997, 150–217). Graff, E. 1997. Stepping left: Dance and politics in New York City, As with classical ballet in the West, the choreography, 1928–1942. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press. the teaching, and the production of classical Indian dance Guest, Ann Hutchinson. 1984. Dance notation: The process of re- have traditionally been controlled by men. The influence of cording movement on paper. London: Dance Books.

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Hanna, Judith Lynne. 1993. Classical Indian dance and women’s 1931 to 1963 and established the standard for ballet in Brit- status. In H.Thomas, ed., Dance, gender and cultures. ain. The Swedish choreographer Birgit Cullberg (1908– Basingstoke: Macmillan. 1999) directed the Cullberg Ballet from 1967 to 1981 and Jordan, Stephanie. 1992. Striding out. London: Dance Books. pioneered the fusion of classical dance with modern that Kaeppler, Adrienne. 1991. American approaches to the study of today pervades the form. dance. Yearbook of Traditional Music 23:11–21. Other important artists include Bronislava Nijinksa Kirkland, Gelsey, with Greg Lawrence. 1987. Dancing on my (1891–1972), who experimented with a modernist aes- grave. New York: Jove. thetic in the 1920s, creating Les Noces and Les Biches Manning, S.A. 1993. Ecstacy and the demon: Feminism and na- (called the first feminist ballet) for Diaghilev’s Ballets tionalism in the dances of Mary Wigman. Berkeley: Univer- Russes; and Agnes de Mille (1905–1993), whose work sity of California Press. blended classical dancing with American rhythms. Her Roy, S. 1997. Dirt, noise, traffic: Contemporary Indian dance in the choreography for the Broad-way musical Oklahoma! in western city: Modernity, ethnicity and hybridity. In H. Tho- 1943 used dancing to further the plot, a development that mas, ed., Dance in the city, 68–87. Basingstoke: Macmillan. changed the nature of musical theater. Thomas, Helen. 1995. Dance, modernity and culture: Explora- tions in the sociology of dance. London: Routledge. Modern Dance Isadora Duncan (1878–1927) and Ruth St. Denis (1880– Helen Thomas 1968), two U.S. dancers working separately during the first decade of the twentieth century, laid the foundation for modern dance. Duncan was seeking natural ways of mov- DANCE: Choreography ing, challenging tradition not only in dance but also in sexual mores, clothing, and women’s roles. St. Denis’s in- In western dance, women’s contributions to choreography fluence was seen in the development, with her husband Ted have varied according to the form. Modern dance, from the Shawn, of Denishawn, a school and company that, from beginning a genre concerned largely with the expression of 1915 to 1930, provided a training ground for the next gen- experience and emotion, was pioneered largely by female eration of modern dancers. Whereas Duncan’s impact artists. Ballet, a form stressing line and bursts of explosive stemmed from her life and philophical writings, St. Denis energy, has historically been choreographed and directed is credited with developing a nonclassical touring company by males. This dichotomy may account for the aesthetic and an approach to dance education that developed the and philosophical division between the two; or perhaps the mind as well as the body. reverse is true and the differences explain why women have Doris Humphrey (1895–1958) and Martha Graham been ascendant in some areas, men in others. (1894–1991), the revolutionary choreographers of the next generation, were students of St. Denis and Shawn; both re- Ballet belled against the eclecticism of the Denishawn repertoire. Traditionally, women have gained influence in ballet as Each experimented with developing an American form of performers, with a notable few rising to prominence in cho- dance and sought ways of moving that expressed life in reography or as company directors. Several have guided contemporary times. Graham worked with the contraction the development of choreography as company directors and release of breathing that carried her into powerful, with power to select and produce the work of others. emotion-packed movement. Humphrey experimented with Among these have been Lucia Chase (1907–1986), gravity to devise a theory and style based on fall and recov- codirector of the American Ballet Theater from 1945 to ery. Though rivals, these two created movement that re- 1980; Marie Rambert (1888–1982), who directed the Bal- veals weight and effort and built modern dance into a credo let Rambert in London from 1931 until her death; and the of individualism and social relevance, a point of view that Cuban ballerina Alicia Alonso (b. 1921), who, in the 1940s, prevails today. began a long career as choreographer and ballet director Other notable choreographers of the time included when she founded the company now called the Ballet Mary Wigman (1886–1973), a German artist of somber in- Nacional de Cuba. tensity whose work often portrayed the primitive drives Those considered significant choreographers as well as that exist in civilized people; and her protégée, Hanya directors include Ninette de Valois (b. 1898), the architect Holm (1898–1992), who, being sent to the United States in of London’s Royal Ballet. She headed the company from 1931, developed the Wigman style for American bodies

292 DANCE: CLASSICAL and tem-peraments. During the 1940s, Katherine Dunham initially a male art form, soon after its professionalization (b. 1912) and Pearl Primus (1919–1994) became important ballerinas took center stage, with the first appearing in influences. They were black, university-trained anthro- 1681. Key figures in the public perception of its history pologists, as well as choreographers, and each worked with include Marie Sall and Marie Camargo in the eighteenth African, Caribbean, and African-American themes and set century; romantic-era dancers such as Marie Taglioni and the stage for today’s black dance. Fanny Elssler, whose names became household words; Since the 1960s, choreographic authority in the field has the cult figures of Russia’s golden age of ballet in the late shifted to male artists, although some women do stand out. nineteenth century; the mythologized Anna Pavlova; Brit- Yvonne Rainer (b. 1934) and Trisha Brown (b. 1936) were ain’s Margot Fonteyn and the contemporary athletes of leaders in the Judson group, which pioneered the pedes- Europe, North America, and the Far East. Spreading trian, task-oriented choreography of the 1960s. Pina across Europe from its origins in France and Italy, the art Bausch (b. 1940) of Germany and Meredith Monk (b. form today is practiced and, through modern media, dis- 1943) and Kei Takei (b. 1946) in the United States are im- seminated to a worldwide audience. Codified syllabi and portant for their imagistic movement-theater works. Twyla their concomitant performance values, traditions, and dif- Tharp (b. 1941) has successfully blended high and popular ferentiation between the training of the male and female art through an inventive fusion of styles. Today her work is dancer now form the international basis of the dancer’s produced by both ballet and modern dance companies. experience. Since the 1960s male dancers have tended to achieve high, even glamorous, status; but wherever ballet See Also is performed, it is still synonymous with women. DANCE: OVERVIEW; DANCE: CLASSICAL; DANCE: MODERN However, womens contribution as creators or directors has been less well recorded in historiography. Before the References and Further Reading twentieth century the ballerina often choreographed her own Adair, Christy. 1992. Women and dance. New York: New York solos, but in public documentation this work was subsumed University Press. under the name of the ballet master. In the twentieth century Anderson, Jack. 1992. Ballet and modern dance: A concise his- Bronislava Nijinska, best known for her work with the Bal- tory. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Book. lets Russes, was a rare exception as a named choreographer. There were others—among them Andre Howard for the Bal- Jan van Dyke let Rambert—but some of their names are now lost. More prominent were women such as Ninette de Valois (Royal Ballet), Marie Rambert (Ballet Rambert), and Lucia Chase DANCE: Classical (American Ballet Theater), who directed large companies; some also choreographed or encouraged the creative In its general sense, the term classical may be used to de- endeavors of others. However, it is rare, either historically or scribe a variety of dance activities in a wide range of his- in contemporary theater, for women to hold key positions of torical, geographic, and cultural contexts. For example, the authority or power. Generally, women have become known dance of ancient Greece and its aesthetic legacy in the work through the role of performing muse of a male creator. of Isadora Duncan are considered classical. Even modern dance works that emphasize structure, clarity of spatial de- Feminist Perspectives on Ballet sign, and dance itself over expressive content may be de- This image has provided a fruitful source of investigation scribed as classical in their values. The term is also applied for feminist scholarship, but the reputation of classical bal- to certain forms of dance from south Asia, but its most let as elite or specialized practice and the ephemeral nature popular usage is in relation to ballet. Although ballet is a of dance in general have hindered the extensive scrutiny broad genre that embraces styles such as romantic and accorded to other forms of art or popular culture. As the modern, which in a strict sense can be distinguished from body is the prime site for the construction of gender, dance classical, the term classical tends to be applied to popular offers a rewarding field for analysis, but the relationship concepts of all styles of ballet. between ballet and feminism has been an uneasy one. The narratives of nineteenth-century classics such as Giselle Women as Dancers and as Creators of Dance (Perrot/Coralli, 1841) and Swan Lake (Petipa/Ivanov, Dance is one of the few art forms where women, as execu- 1895) are seen to support the dichotomous categories of tants, have far outnumbered men. Although dance was women’s perceived essential nature as chaste or impure,

293 DANCE: MODERN good or evil. A similar duality is seen in the ballerina and the members of the corps de ballet, which rarely has a place DANCE: Modern in historiography. By the nature of the codified vocabulary Although modern dance does not constitute a single system itself—which is based on, among other key elements, turn- or style of dancing, it can be defined in general as western out and full exposure of the body to the audi-ence—the performance art dance that is not founded on the principles dancer has been seen as femininity objectified, the embodi- of the European tradition of ballet, romantic or interpretive ment of patriarchal ideology (Daly, 1987/1988; Adair, dance, or various forms of “popular” dance entertainment 1992). For example, it is argued that the pas de deux, for the (Thomas, 1995). Women were dominant in the foundation ballerina and her lead male partner, embodies the tradi- of modern dance in the first decade of the twentieth century tional attributes of femininity and masculinity. She appears and in its development. Like modernism in the other arts, to be supported, manipulated, by him; he displays her to the modern dance has taken on a variety of “-isms”: expres- spectator. Concealing her strength, she gives the appear- sionism, cubism, absolutism, and so on (Martin, 1965). Its ance of fragility and moves within her own kinesphere, the history, similarly, has been characterized by rapid cyclical private space around her body. In contrast, he demonstrates changes: “revolution to institution; institution to revolu- his strength and power with soaring virtuosic leaps across tion” (Banes, 1980:5). As modern dance became estab- the public space of the stage. lished in the 1950s, a number of men became well-known Feminist writing has drawn on critical and cultural theo- choreographers. However, it was a woman, Martha ries from film studies, semiotics, or psychoanalysis, thus Graham, whose name became almost synonymous with the adding new perspectives to the symbolic construction of term modern dance. women in ballet. While these methodological tools have enhanced both dance and feminist scholarship, the human Historical Background agency of the dancer and her human identity have tended to be lost. This difficulty is discussed by Aalten (1995), who, The history of modern dance is best understood as a “point using her own experience as a case study, explores the of view” (Martin, 1965:20) that was pioneered and devel- problematic nature of the ballerina in relation to the gender oped in the late 1920s and 1930s through the highly indi- ideologies of ballet. It is a challenge for women’s studies to vidual work of iconclasts: Martha Graham (1894–1991); explore the personal and creative contribution of women in Doris Humphrey (1895–1958) and her partner, Charles classical ballet without losing sight of their function in a Weidman (1901–1975); and Helen Tamiris (1905–1966) in patriarchal society. the United States. Although modern dance is generally as- sociated with the United States, a similar form—central See Also European modern dance—evolved independently in Ger- DANCE: OVERVIEW; DANCE: CHOREOGRAPHY; DANCE: many ten years earlier through the work of Mary Wigman MODERN; DANCE: SOUTH ASIA (1886–1973), Harold Kreutzberg (1902–1968), and Kurt Jooss (1905–1978). References and Further Reading Wigman was a central figure in central European mod- Aalten, Anna. 1995. Femininity as performance/performing femi- ern dance for fifty years. She established branches of her ninity: Constructing the body of the ballerina. Border tensions: school in Germany in the 1920s, and the Wigman New Dance and discourse, 118. Guildford: University of Surrey. York School was set up in New York in 1931 with her Adair, Christy. 1992. Women and dance: Sylphs and sirens. Lon- former student Hanya Holm (1898–1992) as the principal. don: Macmillan. The influence of central European modern dance was cur- Banes, Sally. 1998. Dancing women: Female bodies on stage. tailed by the rise of the Nazi movement and World War II. London: Routledge. Wigman did not publicly detach herself from the Nazi re- Carter, Alexandra. 1999. Dying swan or sitting duck? A critical gime in Germany in the 1930s. In light of the growing op- reflection on feminist gazes at ballet. Performance Research position in the United States to fascism in Europe, Holm 4(3):9198. came to see Wig-man’s form of expressionalist dance, Daly, Ann. 1987/1988. Classical ballet: A discourse of difference. which was bound up with the idea of humanity and its fate, Women and Performance (2) 5767. as inappropriate for U.S. dancers. In 1936, she set up her Foster, Susan Leigh, ed. 1995. The ballerina’s phallic pointe. Cor- own school and company and evolved her own style. Holm porealities. London: Routledge. became one of the “big four” of U.S. modern dance when Alexandra Carter she, along with Graham, Humphrey, and Weidman, was

294 DANCE: SOUTH ASIA invited to participate in the Bennington College School of Dunham (b. 1912) and Pearl Primus (1919–1994), at- the Dance in the 1930s (Lloyd, [1949] 1974). tempted to create a space for black performers by fusing Graham, Tamiris, and other modern dancers worked to black dance and modern dance. create new dance forms that reflected the twentieth-century A number of the early figures in the second generation urban scene in the United States. Following Loie Fuller of modern dance, such as José Limon (1908–1972), Anna (1862–1928), Isadora Duncan (1878–1927), and Ruth St. Sokolow (b. 1915), Sophie Maslow (b. 1910?), Jane Denis (1879–1968), they set out to establish modern dance Dudley (b. 1912), Erick Hawkins (1917–1994), and Merce as an art form in its own right. They abandoned the received Cunningham (b. 1919), developed their own choreography ideas and images of western theatrical dance of the day while performing in the companies of the big four, contrib- and, like those earlier revolutionaries, choreographed and uting further to the diversity of modern dance. performed their own images. This contrasted with the tradi- By the 1950s, however, the aesthetics of modern dance tional convention whereby the ballet master and choreogra- had become established in concert halls and colleges and pher created the dance for the female dancer. universities in the United States. With the exception of Graham, most of the acknowledged choreographers of the Dance as “Significant Movement” next generation were men, and that has continued to the Fuller, Duncan, and St. Denis had been instrumental in present. Graham’s technique has become almost as estab- helping to promote new attitudes toward women’s bodies lished as that of ballet. and in freeing the body of the modern dancer from the con- This orthodoxy was challenged by a few modern danc- straints of pointe shoes and the traditional attire of the fe- ers, such as Cunningham and Ann Halprin (b. 1920); and male ballet dancer. Duncan and St. Denis relied on music such challenges influenced the subsequent emergence of and drew their inspiration from the past cultures of Greece what came to be called postmodern dance in the 1960s. and Asia, respectively. Graham, Humphrey, and Tamiris Postmodern dance has been characterized by difference discarded the romantic or interpretive tradition of dance and heterogeneity. A significant number of postmodern that had come through Duncan and St. Denis. They turned inno-vators have been women, such as Yvonne Rainer (b. inward to their own bodies to discover the first principles of 1934), Simone Forti (b. 1935), Trisha Brown (b. 1936), dance, which they found in “significant movement,” that is, Deborah Hay (b. 1941), Lucinda Childs (b. 1940), and movement expressing an idea or an emotion. They insisted Twyla Tharp (b. 1941). that movement take precedence over all other elements of theatrical performance. See Also Modern dance began by rejecting aesthetic formalism. DANCE: OVERVIEW; DANCE: CHOREOGRAPHY; DANCE: The various techniques that emerged in its name were CLASSICAL; DANCE: SOUTH ASIA created out of the requirements of the individual choreographers. This is in contrast to ballet, in which the References and Further Reading choreographer works with an impersonal, abstract, Banes, Sally. 1980. Terpsichore in sneakers: Post-modern dance. prescribed technical system that has evolved for four Boston: Houghton Mifflin. hundred years (Banes, 1980). Lloyd, Margaret. 1974. Borzoi book of modern dance. New York: Some modern dancers, such as Tamiris and the left-wing Dance Horizons. (Originally published 1949.) dancers who performed under the auspices of the Workers’ Martin, John. 1965. The modern dance. New York: Dance Hori- Dance League (formed in 1932), stressed that politics and zons. (Originally published 1933.) art are inseparable and that dance should make a social Thomas, Helen. 1995. Dance, modernity and culture: Explora- comment. The New Dance Group (formed in 1932 by tions in the sociology of dance. London: Routledge. members of the Wigman New York School) wanted dance Helen Thomas to be a vehicle for the masses, not just for themselves as artists. While the left-wing dancers performed for mass au- diences in trade union halls, Humphrey and Graham, whose eyes were firmly set on establishing modern dance DANCE: South Asia as a serious art form, generally performed for small, dedi- cated audiences. The Workers’ Dance League provided the India has seven main classical styles: bharatha natyam, first challenge to the emerging modern dance establish- kuchipudi, mohini attam, and kathakali from the south and ment (Lloyd, 1974). Other performers, such as Katherine the kathak, manipuri, and odissi styles from the north.

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Apart from these classical forms, there are hundreds of folk exposition (abhinaya). It differed from kathakali in that the styles and tribal dance forms. Each state in India has its female roles were predominant—for example, the role of own folk dances—for example, tamasha in Maharashtra, Satyabhama. The male dancers dressed as women; this ex- bhangra in Punjab, and ottamthullal in Kerala. aggerated the sensuousness of the form. Men had more free- dom to be explicit in their erotic sentiments than females The Classical Styles performing the same narratives in other styles. Some of the Classical dance styles in India are based on the theoretical ribald humor in the style derived from the use of transves- treatise Natya Sastra (second century B.C.E to third century tite characters, such as Madhava-Madhavi in the famous C.E)—in Sanskrit, “the theory of theater.” Some styles use traditional dance drama “Bhamakalapam.” In its evolution later commentaries and discussions on Natya Sastra, such from an all-male style to one that has both a male and a as the Abhinaya Darpana. All the classical styles are mytho- female dance vocabulary, kuchipudi has an interesting his- logical in their narrative content and use the rich tapestry of tory. In the 1960s, Vempati Chinna Satyam left the village the stories of gods and demons from Hindu mythology. and brought this form to Madras, the center for dance in The major performers in most styles, with the exception south India. He opened up the style to women, and some of of kathakali, are female. However, the artists who have re- his early students, such as Yamini Krishnamurthy, were vived most of the styles and are the “gurus” of many of highly skilled performers who popularized kuchipudi. these performers are males, usually descended from the When women first began performing the style, there was original performing and teaching lineage associated with a much criticism of its un tempered, “vulgar” sexuality. Since particular style. For example, Vempati Chinna Satyam, then, Satyam’s choreography has deliberately moved away who is credited with the revival of kuchipudi, belongs to from the modes still practiced in the village of Kuchipudi to the family of Brahmans originally chosen many genera- create a style that is urban and middle-class in its sophisti- tions ago by Siddhendra Yogi to perform kuchipudi. Al- cated restraint. Satyam has also turned the tables by casting though his female students, such as Sobha Naidu, have female dancers in male roles—for example, the role of been the instruments of his genius, it is interesting to note Krishna or even that of the fiery male god Siva. He has de- that his son, Vempati Ravi Shankar, is the “chosen” one to veloped a strong male vocabulary, which was missing in carry on his lineage. the form’s original emphasis on female roles. Vempati Almost all styles of Indian dance have significant gen- Chinna Satyam’s center in Madras, the Kuchipudi Art der issues involved in their transition from temple dances Academy, remains the main training institute for this style. into self-conscious “art” modes. The exceptions are kathak Kathakali is a very theatrical dance style with a highly and mohini attam, which were court dance styles. evolved, complex movement vocabulary. It was an exclu- Of all the styles of dance, bharatha natyam is the most sively male style, but the state of Kerala now has an all- popular. It was originally practiced by devadasis, or temple female kathakali dance company. The training is long, dancers, in the region now predominantly covered by the rigorous, and physically demanding; it includes many mas- state of Tamil Nadu. During the British rule in India, the sage techniques, and some argue that these are not safe for devadasi system was outlawed, as it was narrowly seen as a a woman’s body. Women are still a rarity in kathakali. system of prostitution. It was Rukmini Devi Arundale, a Lesser known dance forms include chau, a vigorous all- highly respectable Brahman woman, who spearheaded a male form from the northeast of India, which has been revival of bharatha natyam. She worked with Anna Pavlova taken up by a significant number of female exponents. and brought back to the Indian style some of the ensemble techniques and slickness of western ballet styles. She es- The “New Dance” Movement tablished “Kalakshetra” in Madras, which is one of the In the growing movement for “new dance” in India, some major centers of bharatha natyam in India. This revival was dancers and choreographers use their formidable knowl- very conscious of respectability. The dance form was now edge of the traditional forms to create a more modern dance in the hands of middle-class, urban Brahman girls, and its vocabulary. Foremost in this endeavor in India is Chan- devadasi origins were discussed and acknowledged only in dralekha. One of the first dancers to take this path, Chan- a historical context. dralekha has, for thirty years, created work, such as Kuchipudi was originally practiced by male Brahmans “Praana” and “Angika,” that has challenged some of the in the village of Kuchipudi in Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi traditional parameters of classical styles. She fought a hard derived from dance drama and, hence, gives equal impor- and often lonely battle for a contemporary voice in Indian tance to pure dance (nritta) and to emotional and narrative dance, a movement away from the repetitious mythological

296 DAUGHTER narra-tives and toward something more integral and essen- DATING tial to a modern Indian. Her efforts gained more recogni- See COURTSHIP. tion overseas than in India.

Conclusion DAUGHTER Although Indian dance has a large number of male per- formers, it is dominated by female practitioners. Neverthe- The kin term daughter refers to female offspring of bio- less, in terms of their influence on the choreographic logical genitors, although the relationship of daughter to evolution of the various styles, the male “gurus” of Indian parent often connotes social obligations—filial respect and dance are still more powerful than the women. The various responsibility for the emotional and financial needs of par- “schools” of any traditional dance style are still controlled ents. Although not all women become sisters, wives, moth- by men, usually from families that have been practicing the ers, or grandmothers, all women are, or once were, an forms for several generations. Exceptions—such as daughters. The rights and obligations common to the role Padma Subramaniam, who has used her research of theo- are various, starting in earliest childhood, when parents retical texts to transform Bharatha Natyam and establish typically begin investing in children, both economically her own school of dance, which she calls Bhaaratha and in terms of training for adulthood. Daughters in many Natyam or the dance of India (“Bhaarath”)—are becoming societies are household helpers, providing female house- more common. hold members with invaluable assistance in economic tasks Indian forms have influenced dance forms elsewhere in and, often, in extradomestic responsibilities as well. A south Asia. Bharatha Natyam is prevalent in Sri Lanka, par- common assignment for daughters is the care of younger ticularly among the Tamils. Kandyan dancing takes various siblings, which serves to socialize young women for future forms, including some male forms. In Bangladesh, varia- motherhood. Another common form of parental investment tions of the styles taught in Shantiniketan in West Bengal in daughters is dowry, which is actually a woman’s inherit- and other forms, such as Kathak and Bharatha Natyam, are ance, received at the time of marriage. practiced. Rites of Passage for Daughters See Also The period of adolescence is often accompanied by initia- DANCE: OVERVIEW; DANCE: CHOREOGRAPHY; DANCE: tion rites or rites of passage for daughters, which are pre- MODERN; HINDUISM; MUSIC: SOUTH ASIA requisites for the passage into adulthood. In industrialized societies the educational system, the military, and marriage References and Further Reading ceremonies normally serve this function, but many Bharucha, Rustom. 1995. Chandralekha—Woman dance resist- nonindustrialized societies stage coming-of-age rituals ance. New Delhi: Indus/HarperCollins. specifically for this purpose. Among the Apache, the Devi, Ragni. 1953. Dances of India. Calcutta: Gupta. Ghosh, nai’es, the ritual of “getting her ready” for adulthood, fer- Manomohan, trans. 1975. Nandikesvara’s Abinaya tility, and motherhood (also known as the sunrise dance) is darpana: A manual of gesture and posture used in ancient a demanding coming-of-age rite for girls that incorporates Indian dance and drama. 3rd. ed. Calcutta: Manisha the entire community and celebrates the curing powers of Granthalaya. this “changing woman” (Basso, 1970). The elima, or pu- Kismore, B.R. 1998. Dances of India. Surrey, Canada: Asian. berty ceremony, for girls among the Mbuti of Zaire is, simi- Natyasatra. 1996. Trans. Adya Rangacharga. Columbus, Ohio: larly, an announcement of a girl’s readiness for Coronet. (This work, attributed to the legendary Bharatha motherhood and lasts from one to two months (Turnbull, Muni, is also available in other translations and in the original 1960). Victor Turner (1967) speaks of adolescence as a Sanskrit.) liminal phase—that is, an ambiguous stage between the Note: Marg Publications, Mumbai: (Bombay), has issued a series clearly demarcated periods of childhood and adulthood. of books on Indian dance. Coming-of-age rituals usher the individual from one phase to the next and often mark the beginnings of sexual activity. Padma Menon Preference for Male Offspring DARWINISM In the West, adolescence for both genders is generally much See BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM; and EVOLUTION. more protracted than in most other societies, in part because

297 DAWN MOVEMENT the interval of schooling is correspondingly prolonged. In the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Islands). The some societies daughters are perceived as more costly than network promotes alternative approaches to development sons. In societies with patrilocal residence rules, a daughter as well as stimulating the building of coalitions and plat- goes to live with her in-laws upon marriage, and parents forms for articulating the perspectives of poor women from often justify the harsher treatment of daughters relative to these regions. An analysis (Jain, 1983) of the impact of de- sons with the rationale that they are raising their daughters velopment on poor women found that whatever the region for someone else—that is, for a future husband’s family. and whatever the thrust of a project, it seemed to worsen Patrilineal societies, those in which descent is organized poor women’s position and simultaneously deepen the cri- through the father’s line, take this even further, because the sis in that locality. This paper was circulated to individual daughter’s children will belong to her husband’s women who had been participating in international forums patrilineage and not to her natal kin group. This fact serves for development as feminists, who were receptive to the as a disincentive to treat female children as equal to male findings and enthusiastically translated this analysis into a children, who will remain with the family of origin. Tradi- framework for dissemination. Thus was born the first meet- tional Chinese, Indian, and Islamic societies organized kin- ing of women that converted itself into the DAWN net- ship, descent, and postmarital residence rules in this manner. work. Following this initial meeting in Bangalore, India, in A further justification for the preference for sons over August 1984, on the eve of the Third United Nations Con- daughters in traditional China and India was that daughters, ference on Women, the network prepared a platform docu- unlike sons, could not perform funerary rites for parents. ment that was used as the basis of a series of panels and Female infanticide, the killing of female children, and workshops at the NGO (nongovernmental organization) selective neglect, the withholding of food or other necessi- Forum in Nairobi in 1985. The network was formally ties of life, are extreme examples of the outcome of the ten- launched the following year in Rio de Janeiro, where a sec- dency to favor sons over daughters. In India, the high cost retariat was established. of dowries also increases pressure on parents to terminate As a feminist organization, DAWN has consciously pregnancies selectively with the aid of amniocentesis test- avoided building up a formal structure or establishing a ing; in adulthood, a new bride may be an object of abuse by permanent secretariat or location. Thus it was located in her husband’s family, sometimes to the point of death, be- India at its inception in August 1984, but the secretariat— cause of an insufficient dowry. the focal point—shifted to Latin America (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) after the UN World Conference on Women, held in See Also Nairobi in 1985. In 1990 the focal point shifted again, this ADOLESCENCE; DOWRY AND BRIDEPRICE; FAMILY: RELIGIOUS time to the Caribbean (Barbados). Since 1998, DAWN has AND LEGAL SYSTEMS, specific regions; FEMICIDE; GENDER been based in Fiji. CONSTRUCTIONS IN THE FAMILY; GIRL CHILD; INFANTICIDE; DAWN’s specific contribution to the achievement of a INITIATION RITES; SISTER model of development that is people-centered, holistic, and sustainable, and that empowers women, has been to serve References and Further Reading as a catalyst for debates on key developmental issues. To Basso, Keith. 1970. The Cibecue Apache. New York: Holt, provide a voice for women of the developing world, DAWN Rinehart and Winston. works in a consultative role to create platform documents Turnbull, Colin. 1960. The elima: A premarital festival among the and carry them to national, subnational, regional, and inter- BaMbuti Pygmies. Zaire 14:175–192. national forums. Currently the network has approximately Turner, Victor. 1967. The forest of symbols. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell four hundred members. It generates its activities through University Press. regional focal points, usually individuals located in already established institutions who are interested in DAWN’s ac- Maria Ramona Hart tivities and willing to take responsibility for them. In seeking paradigms for development, DAWN’s aim is to develop a framework based on an analysis of the issues DAWN MOVEMENT from the perspective of women in the “South.” DAWN’s analysis attempts to reflect the diversity of regional experi- DAWN—Development Alternatives with Women for a ences and to relate the experience of women at the New Era—is an expanding network of women, researchers, microlevel of the household and community to an under- and activists from the economic “South” (Latin America, standing of macroeconomic policies and global trends.

298 DEATH

The women who participate in DAWN believe that lo- between economic and social categories that impinge on cating analysis and affirmative action in particular political the human being. contexts is crucial to their success. Thus, DAWN partici- The current work of DAWN includes responding with pates in world coalitions of women, whether on issues of alternative economic frameworks to the general disillu- the environment, health, employment, leadership, or any sion-ment with global management, to widespread distress other matters related to justice and peace. among poor nations and poor people, and to widespread Through a process of consultation, DAWN developed a doubts about the efficacy of the international financial in- platform document (Sen and Grown, 1987) that was of- stitutions. fered for discussion in several panels at Nairobi. In this document, a shift was made in frameworks of development See Also analysis, particularly in relation to poor women. The key DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW; DEVELOPMENT, specific regions; innovative element of this shift was that it located the ECONOMY: OVERVIEW; POVERTY “woman issue” in the context of macrocrises, differentiated according to region—for example, food in Africa, debt in References and Further Reading Latin America, cultural cross fire in the Arabic region, and Correa, Sonia, in collaboration with Rebecca Reichmann. 1994. poverty and unemployment in Asia. Population and reproductive rights: Feminist perspectives DAWN has developed other platform documents, which from the south. London: Zed. sometimes evolve into books (for example, Correa, 1994), Jain, Devaki. 1992. Can we have a women’s agenda for in response to global discourse on specific subjects such as global development? Keynote address at Five Years the environment, population, social policy, and global eco- after Nairobi Conference, 1990. Development: Jour- nomic management. DAWN also reflects the perspectives nal of the Society for International Development. of, and advocates on behalf of, poor women of the “South” Rome: SID. through participation in numerous forums across the globe, ——. 1983. Development as if women mattered; or, Can women including UN structures and the preparatory committees build a new paradigm? Lecture given at OECD/ DAC meet- for world conferences, as well as the national and regional ing, Paris. committees for such events. ——. 1993. The leadership gap: A challenge to feminists. Address In its quest to substantiate feminism, DAWN has hes- to the Sixth National Conference of the Indian Association itated to define feminism or to build any single model, as for Women’s Studies, New Delhi. the movement is continually evolving, acting as a recep- Sen, Gita, and Caren Grown. 1987. Development, crises and alter- tacle for ideas from its constituency and recycling these native visions: Third world women’s perspectives. New York: ideas. One idea that has persisted, however, is sustaining a Monthly Review. method and process that will allow space for evolution, Wiltshire, Rosina. 1992. Environment and development: Grass- for accommodating difference, for converging and dis- roots women’s perspectives. Barbados: DAWN. persing, for engaging in dialogue and collective decision Devaki Jain making. Platforms are built on issues that cut across dif- ferences and on viewpoints or quests that seem to echo widespread anxiety or an inspiration. This approach— DAY CARE echoing a widespread common concern and building that See CHILD CARE. concern into papers and books for joint advocacy—has continued to be an underlying pattern and one ethic of DAWN’s work. A second ethic that runs through DAWN’s quest for DEATH understanding is that poor women, no less than men, are capable, creative, and thoughtful, and that develop- Feminists have written a great deal about death. For exam- ment needs to spring from these women; or, in more ple, they have studied infant and child mortality and ma- objective terms, that poverty does not mean ignorance ternal death, death in refugee camps, wars, “bride or incapacity. burning” in India and elsewhere, starvation, violence of A third ethic is the rejection of dichotomies, such as everyday life, stalking and death threats, rates of breast those between research and action, between intellect and and cervical cancer, septic abortions around the world, and practice (Jain, 1993), between ethics and development, and the spread of HIV.

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Women, in general, are less likely than men to roman- stories from around the world echo this organic under- ticize death in war. Many women and children die as a cor- standing of a necessary link between life and death, of the ollary of wars, and the deaths of boys and men in war often necessity of death to make place for life. have catastrophic effects on women and children. Immortality is a concept that is important in dualistic Women are the chief caregivers for the sick and dying; patriarchal religions, which base justice systems on obedi- they cook and help feed, clean, and monitor those in their ence to structures in the here and now. Feminist writings care, often in addition to their other work. In western coun- have argued that such concepts are manifestations of self- tries, the responsibility for taking care of ill and dying rela- perpetuation beyond death, an egotistic mind-set in contra- tives often falls on single women, who are thought to have distinction to a value system of rationality and the time for it. life-affirming views. In the cosmology of many cultures there has been a Mourning realm of death, an underworld where the dead live—fig- In many religions and societies women wash and watch ured variously, for example, as Xibalba for the ancient over a body until burial and are active in mourning rituals. Maya, Amenti for the ancient Egyptians, or the nether- Often death rituals differ for women and men. For example, world presided over by Ereshkigal in ancient Sumer. In pre- in the Belize Black Caribs religion (a composite of African, and nonpatriarchal religions, this underworld is often Amerindian, and Roman Catholic elements) traditionally understood as the cosmic womb of an Earth mother or god- women have done the mourning while men and children do dess. In cosmologies where living and dying are seen as not formally mourn. In Black Caribs communities (where complementary aspects of the same cycle, human birth, women are the religious leaders), as well as in many other death, and rebirth are parallel to birth, death, and rebirth groups, death rituals involve much food preparation by fe- cycles in nature. male kin and neighbors. This vision of the realm where the dead live as a place of regeneration is different from the Judeo-Christian vision of Implications of Death heaven and hell, in which hell is a place for punishing those Death, the “great leveler,” is of crucial importance to reli- whose lives made them unworthy of heaven. In the history gions that preach a dualistic values: self-denial in the here of the Jews, especially in the experience of the exile and of and now will be made good and crowned by high favors God’s promises to an obedient people, views of regenera- and achievements in the hereafter. The biological fact of tion shifted to a different concept, the awakening from annihilation of the living organism is recognized by the le- death. And when Greek philosophical thought of the im- gal concept that death cancels a contract. In both instances mortal spirit soul flowed into Christianity, the immor-tality the understanding of death is that it is an event which closes of the soul was purchased by baptism. Death as the gateway a person’s life. to the underworld became death as the gateway to either Precisely when death has happened is a matter of con- eternal life or eternal damnation. siderable debate and speculation for physicists and ethi- This traditional Christian view of welcoming death as cists. Death was once defined as taking place when the the harbinger of a redress of injustices suffered on Earth heart stopped beating, but now it is often defined as the end is contrasted in feminist theology with a revaluing of of activity in the brain stem. With ever more sophisticated one’s mortal life. If there is celebration of life in the here precision instruments, “brain death” in turn no doubt will and now, there is no need to console the living with a vi- be overtaken by another measurement. sion of a glo-rious afterlife. But life is often a cheap com- For many people with financial means, the ebbing modity; women, men, and children are murdered by away of life has been sanitized and largely put into the warfare, callous neglect, and man-made disasters. This, hands of medical experts, so that dying takes place away according to feminists, was a reason for patriarchal reli- from relatives or friends. (Religious and medical prac- gions to envision a “reward in heaven” and to encourage tices are often closely linked. For example, in the United another attitude—enduring injustice, not complaining, States, many medical centers have histories of religious and “offering the other cheek,” in the sure knowledge that affiliation.) after death one will have a place in paradise and a reunion But death is not just a measurable event. Death, for of the just. many, is connected with renewal. The rupture death brings In a feminist theological interpretation, death no is often accompanied by a theme of resurrection, analogous longer ushers in eternal condemnation or happiness. Once to the cycle of nature, leading to a renewal of life. Creation the crutches of dualism—punishment and reward—are

300 DEITY removed, one need no longer see death in the guise of the great leveler. The cyclicality of life and death gives way to DEITY a wavelike movement of life, with ups and downs. The Deity refers to divine beings or powers believed to underlie task of making life in all its facets endurable, enjoyable, and sustain all reality. In human religions deity has been and enriching becomes more important. In women-led re- thought of in many ways, as impersonal and as personal, as ligions, such as the Shakers, notions of a life hereafter are single or as plural, as male or female or both. Christians, as often present, but ideas of a hell (with eternal suffering) well as Jews and Muslims, assume that a personal male are generally absent, as are other dualistic notions such as monotheistic God is the normative view of deity; all other cosmic wars between good and evil. In Christian Science, views that are more impersonal, are plural, and include the founded by Mary Baker Eddy, there is no judgment after female are wrong—either idolatrous worship of false death—no heaven or hell. In the religion called Witch- “gods” or “primitive” views that have been surpassed by craft, Old Religion, or simply the Craft—a religion whose the fullest and highest view. origins go back before Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Bud- This article will discuss the development of the male dhism, and Hinduism—death is merely the end of the monotheistic concept of deity in relation to earlier plural physical form that allows the spirit to prepare for a and dual-gender views, as well as the challenges to the ex- new life. clusively male view of deity from contemporary feminist The metaphor “dying to the world,” which, from early theologians. It will also argue that underneath the official Christianity onward, has been associated with sexual re- Jewish and Christian views of God as a single male lurk nunciation, has had disastrous effects on women in particu- remnants of ideas of deity as complex and as including fe- lar. Their bodies came to be seen as in need of control, male and male. including public control by clergy. This has, arguably, warped the understanding of the body and of sexuality. The concept of death as the great leveler, as an equaliz- Ancient Deities ing mechanism, or as retributive justice can be seen as a construct that keeps people dependent and obedient, de- Ancient Near Eastern and Greek religious myths and cults, spite the crippling effects of unjust structures. Many femi- as well as some found in most tribal and early urban socie- nists place more emphasis on relationality (equitable ties, assumed that the divine was plural and could be of relations), which can overcome the social death of uncaring both genders. Sometimes the divine is seen as existing on and unsharing egotism. several levels, with the ultimate level being more imper- sonal, gender-neutral, or androgynous. Some paleoanthro- See Also pologists have suggested that the earliest human concept of LIFE CYCLE; MEDICINE: INTERNAL I; MEDICINE: INTERNAL II; the divine was female, such as a great mother or a womb MYTH; SUTTEE (SATI); THEOLOGIES: FEMINIST that encompassed all things, from which heaven and earth and gods and earth creatures came forth. The oldest reli- References and Further Reading gious images, widespread in ancient cultures from Europe to Asia, show female figures, either pregnant or slim, with Brown, Peter. 1990. The body and society: Men, women and uplifted arms. sexual renunciation in early Christianity. London and Bos- Since we have no texts from this period, we can only ton: Faber and Faber. guess how such figures were understood theologically. By Clinton, Sally. 1997. Lifting the taboo: Women, death, and dying. the time we have religious texts from the third millennium New York: New York University Press. B.C.E. from Egyptian or Sumerian and Babylonian civili- Ruether, Rosemary Radford. 1983. Sexism and God-talk: Towards zations, deity is assumed to be plural, multigenerational, feminist theology. London: SCM. and consisting of both males and females in each genera- Sölle, Dorothee, and F.Steffensky. 1983. Nicht nur Ja undAmen. tion. However, in several of these stories, such as the Van Christen in Widerstand. Reinbek: Rowohlt Rotfuchs Babylonian creation story, the Enuma Elish, there is a sug- TB 324. gestion that deity evolved from a dominant female in the Starhawk. 1979. The spiral dance: A rebirth of the ancient religion most ancient stage to a dominant male with subordinate fe- of the great goddess. San Francisco: Harper and Row. (2nd males in the later stages. Thus, these stories may them- ed. 1989). selves suggest a religious development from a matricentric Dorothea McEwan to a patriarchal view of deity.

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Monotheism recovered earlier concepts of divine androgyny. Utopian The Jews particularly gave to world culture an insistence groups, such as the Anglo-American Shakers, built on these that God is one and transcendent and that humans should traditions to insist that God is both Mother and Father and “have no other gods before Me.” All other deities are re- that redemption must be manifest in both a male and a fe- jected as idols. Both Christianity and Islam accepted this male messiah. The Shakers thought of their founder, concept of deity as single, male, and transcendent, as well Mother Ann Lee, as a female messiah who was the mani- as the exclu-sivist rejection of gods from other religious tra- festation of the Mother or Wisdom aspect of God. ditions. Through military colonization and evangelization In the second half of the twentieth century to the first years these two progeny of Hebrew monotheism have often sought of the twenty-first, as increasing numbers of women obtained to spread this view throughout the world and to suppress a theological education and became ministers or theological the worship of other deities. Yet other views have not died teachers, the maleness of God became a central issue. Femi- but persist as the religions of more than half of humanity. nist theology argues that the exclusive male concept of God Although Hebrew monotheism imagined God as a patri- exalts the male as the representative image of God and sug- archal male, standing outside and above creation and ruling gests that females are inferior, representing the body and the over it with sovereign authority, the more sophisticated created world but unable to be an image of God. thinkers of the tradition do not see God as literally male. Some women (and men) desire female images of God to For them, God is not human and has neither a body nor provide the loving and nurturing aspects of God that they gender but is an all-encompassing spirit. Theologians have feel have been denied in concepts of God modeled after stressed that all artistic and verbal “pictures” of God are patriarchal males. Other theologians stress that God is be- mere metaphors drawn from human experiences with other yond gender and consider it idolatrous to think of God as realities and so are not to be taken literally. To take such literally male, female, or even human. We may need to ex- pictures literally is itself idolatry. pand our images of God to include all aspects of transform- Although the images used for God in Hebrew scripture ing goodness in a way that can help both males and females favor male-identified, powerful roles, such as lord and to become whole persons. The patriarchal concept of God king, there is an implicit recognition that such names are is sometimes said to be blasphemous because it associates not to be taken literally and that it is sometimes appropriate God with unjust domination and violence. These argu- to imagine God as like a female. Some texts (for example, ments over gender imagery for deity represent a profound Isa-iah 42:13–17) compare God with both a warrior and a conflict in the understanding of God and of human gender woman giving birth. The “wisdom literature” of the later relations. Hebrew Bible develops the female-identified figure of Sophia, who is the immanent expression of the transcend- See Also ent God in the work of creation, revelation, and redemp- CREATION STORIES; GODDESS; MYTH; SACRED TEXTS; tion. “Wisdom” imagery also appears in the New SHAKERS; THEOLOGIES: FEMINIST Testament as a way of speaking about the divine reality manifest in Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 1:23–24). References and Further Reading Jewish mysticism continues the female metaphor for di- Bynum, Caroline. 1982. Jesus as mother. Berkeley: University of vine immanence in the figure of the Shekinah, or divine California Press. presence, that accompanies Israel in its historic journey and James, E.O. 1959. The cult of the mother goddess. New York: brings reconciliation with the transcendent God. The image Barnes and Noble. of Sophia for both the Holy Spirit and the divine person of ——. 1963. The worship of the sky god. London: Athlone. Christ continues in early and medieval Christianity. Sec- Johnson, Elizabeth. 1993. She who is: The mystery of God in femi- ond-century Syriac Christianity favored an image of the nist theological discourse. New York: Crossroads. female Wisdom as the divine power present in baptism, fer- Ochshorn, Judith. 1980. Female experience and the nature of the tilizing the womb wherein Christians are reborn. Medieval divine. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. women mystics, such as Julian of Norwich, stressed the Patai, Raphael, 1967. The Hebrew goddess. Philadelphia, Pa.: motherhood of Christ. KTAV. Protestantism Ruether, Rosemary. 1993. Sexism and God-talk: Toward a femi- nist theology. Boston: Beacon. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries Protestant mys- tics, such as Jakob Böhme and Emanuel Swedenborg, Rosemary Ruether

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state, they have also fought for economic, social, and cul- DEMOCRACY tural rights in society, the market, and the family, and have done so through an ever-increasing role in autonomous or- “For feminists, democracy has never existed; women have ganizations in civil society. Feminist theory and interna- never been and still are not admitted as full and equal mem- tional women’s movements have expanded not only the bers and citizens in any country known as a ‘democracy’” sphere to which democracy should apply but also the fun- (Pateman, 1989:210). damental understanding of what democracy should consti- Democracy is most simply defined by its Greek root tute in everyday life. words demos (“people”) and kratos (“rule”), meaning rule by the people. What exactly constitutes “rule by the peo- Definitions of Democracy ple” has caused much debate and even bloodshed for centu- ries. From the ancient period when democracy was Definitions of democracy usually break down into three associated with mob rule by the poor, to the modern period categories: (1) direct versus indirect; (2) procedural versus of bourgeois revolutions establishing representative gov- substantive; and (3) political versus socioeconomic. Direct ernment in the United States and western Europe, to con- democracy, in the spirit of the city-state or temporary nationalist and socialist revolutions striving to , is based on the direct participation of all members of achieve self-government, autonomy, and economic devel- the political community. As such, direct democracy is usu- opment, democracy has undergone numerous theoretical ally associated with a model of discourse and deliberation conceptualizations and practical experiments. Many inter- in which the whole is seen as greater than the sum of its national struggles have occurred throughout the course of parts. This notion is best understood through the modern history in the name of “freedom,” “equality,” “fraternity,” political thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778), and “social justice,” most people claiming that all of these in which the will of all, the sum of individual private inter- concepts have something to do with democracy. ests, is seen as distinct from the general will, or the public The role of women in democracies around the world and interest, discerned through participation, communication, the impact of feminism on both the theory and the practice and consensual decision making. The contemporary theory of democracy have become important aspects of study. of Jürgen Habermas is also based on a communicative Throughout history, democracies have consistently denied ethic, which stresses discourse and deliberation. Direct de- women, as well as people of color, the right to participation mocracies are often assumed to be limited to small commu- as full citizens. In the ancient Greek city-state, women— nities. Proponents of direct democracy are usually along with slaves and resident foreigners—were not con- supporters of a more substantive definition of democracy, sidered citizens and thus did not have the rights of which connects political participation with economic democratic citizenship. In the United States, where the equality and social justice. founding fathers worked hard to preserve “the spirit of Indirect democracy—also known as representative de- form” of popular government without codifying “pure de- mocracy—has become the accepted definition of democ- mocracy”—which they associated with majority tyranny— racy in the contemporary period of large nation-states. It only property-owning white men had the right to vote until relies on a procedural understanding of democracy as the property qualifications were dropped in the 1830s, racial creation of political institutions, which protect people’s ba- qualifications in 1870, and, finally, gender qualifications in sic civil rights and political freedoms—most important, the 1920. In South Africa, where blacks constituted a majority right to vote. Representative government gives citizens the of the population living under the minority white system of opportunity to elect representatives who will make substan- apartheid, men and women waited in line for days to vote in tive decisions based on either their perceptions of the de- the country’s first democratic elections in 1994. mands of their constituencies; the demands of the strongest Women have been active participants in struggles for voting members of their constituencies; the demands of the democracy around the world, from the suffrage movements most powerful interest groups supporting their campaigns; in the nineteenth century to the anticolonial wars in Africa or their assessment of what is in the “public interest.” On and the antiauthoritarian struggles in Latin America in the the basis of the work of Joseph Schumpeter (1942), repre- twentieth century to the fall of the Soviet Union in Russia sentative democracy is expected to include the following and eastern Europe in the 1980s. Although women have minimal characteristics: (1) a government based on the rule fought to guarantee the basic political and civil rights of of law; (2) a written constitution; (3) free, fair, competitive, liberal capitalist democracy in the public sphere of the multiparty, periodic elections; (4) universal suf-frage; and

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(5) basic political and civil rights. These are the minimal Democracy and Feminism standards that have become accepted today around the Most of the dominant literature on democracy (for exam- world as the necessary components of liberal capitalist de- ple, Schumpeter, 1942; and Stephens, and Stephens, 1992) mocracy. has been willing to ignore gender qualifications for voting, Many scholars and activists, however, feel that while defining universal suffrage as (male) suffrage or democ- these minimal standards may be necessary for establishing racy as “one man, one vote,” and thus, it is argued, reveal- democratic government, they are not sufficient for estab- ing the gendered nature of the very concept of lishing democracy as a political system in its fullest sense. “democracy.” The first struggle for feminism, then, has Proponents of a more substantive definition of democracy been simply to include women in the minimal standards of are concerned not just with setting up a democratic process liberal democratic citizenship by guaranteeing that univer- but with ensuring democratic outcomes, particularly in sal suffrage is truly universal. terms of social and economic justice. Many theorists and The first country to grant women the right to vote was practitioners around the world have argued that a meaning- New Zealand, in 1893. Only 33 out of 174 countries in ful definition of democracy as the exercise of political the United Nations Human Development Report, or 19 rights cannot exist without a connected notion of economic percent, had granted women the right to vote by 1930; 40 rights. The social democracies of Western Europe have percent, or 70 out of 174 countries, granted women’s suf- been more concerned than the United States with establish- frage by 1950. By 1970, women had the right to vote in ing an economic safety net through various welfare state 88 percent, or 153 out of 174 countries, around the models based on granting economic rights to workers spe- world. Women did not get the right to vote in France until cifically or citizens universally. The revolutions in the na- 1944, or in Canada until 1950. Women secured the right tions of the developing world have sought to establish to vote in Portugal in 1976; in Switzerland, in 1971; in “People’s Republics,” which have included various models Namibia, in 1989; in the United Arab Emirates, in 1997. of state-run socialisms, anticolonial and antiimperialist na- At the time of this writing, women still did not have the tionalisms, and mixed economies. right to vote in Brunei Darussalam, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi One example of a revolutionary regime in the develop- Arabia, or Oman. ing world that attempted to link political and economic Global feminism has brought a great deal to the discus- aspects of democracy is Sandinista Nicaragua. According sion of democracy. Not only have feminists focused on the to Katherine Hoyt (1997), the Sandinista revolution in more substantive dimensions of democracy as social jus- Nicaragua attempted to combine three essential aspects of tice, but they have demanded the full participation of democracy: (1) political, or representative, democracy— women, people of color, the poor, and other marginalized which establishes a republican form of government based groups in the struggles to achieve democratization around on periodic elections and universal suffrage; (2) participa- the world and to decide what that vision of democracy tory or mass democracy—which incorporates citizen par- should look like. In addition, by challenging the dichotomy ticipation through mass organizations in civil society; and between the public and the private and insisting that “the (3) economic democracy—which attempts to establish a personal is political,” feminists have begun to demand the more equitable distribution of wealth and more demo- democratization not just of the state and the market but of cratic control of the people over the resources and eco- civil society and the family as well. When democracy is nomic decision making of the nation. In Nicaragua at the viewed through a feminist lens, it becomes not just a politi- turn of the twenty-first century, after the electoral defeat cal system or a form of government but a way of life that of the San-dinistas in 1990 and again in 1996, many peo- transforms the actual functioning of power in all spheres of ple argue that while there is greater political democracy everyday life. given the decreasing role of the state and the party and the Some feminist theorists have challenged the accepted increasing role of autonomous organizations in civil soci- definition of democracy as representative government and ety, there is less economic democracy because of the de- suggest new conceptualizations from a feminist perspec- creasing commitment of the state to an equitable tive. Jane Mansbridge (1980) has argued that the concept of distribution of wealth and the increasing privatization of democracy as electoral representation, majority rule, and the market. Democracy seen only as representative gov- “one citizen one vote” by secret ballot presupposes that the ernment would not produce such a nuanced understand- interests of citizens are in constant conflict, and, therefore, ing of the political and economic forces that shape she calls this concept of democracy adversary democracy. people’s everyday lives. Mansbridge has offered another concept of democracy,

304 DEMOCRACY based on the experiences of a town-meeting government increased proportionately. Women are still expected to and a participatory workplace, which she calls unitary de- perform the unpaid “reproductive” labor of food mocracy. Unitary democracy involves face-to-face partici- preparation, child rearing, cleaning, and subsistence pation and consensual decision making among equals, agriculture in most cultures and societies. Jane Jaquette has presupposes common interests among citizens, and is argued that for women, democratic political participation closer in practice—many would argue—to European forms actually produces “a triple burden of housework, income of consociational democracy or revolutionary one-party generation, and community organizing, and they may also states in the developing world. pay the price of male resentment and even domestic abuse” Other feminist theorists have challenged the division (1994:226). between public and private, which reserves democracy for What all of these arguments have in common is their the public sphere, keeping intact various inequalities that assertion that women need to be included equally in the exist in the private sphere. Carole Pateman (1989) argues constructions of the individual, the person, and the citizen, that the separation of the public and the private in liberal and that if these categories are constructed from the Enlightenment values precludes democracy for women, perspective of women’s daily lives, democratic citizenship because the mere extension of liberal values to women in will look very different. Many feminist scholars have the public sphere does not address unequal power relations argued that identity differences such as sex, gender, race, between women and men in the private sphere of the sexuality, ethnicity, and culture must be acknowledged family. Making a similar argument based on class rather within any kind of democratic theorizing. Much of the than gender inequality, Ellen Meiksins Wood (1995) holds canon of democratic theory and political theory in general that the separation between public politics and private has apparently assumed genderless, raceless, and classless economics in liberal capitalist democracy allows human subjects. For most of the modern period, the nature capitalism to privatize political power. For Meiksins Wood, of man has been analyzed from the perspective of unequal capitalist private power manifested through private European property-own-ing men, as if these men were ownership prevents the possibility of equal democratic representative of a universal human experience. Even in public power. contemporary theory, ignoring the identity of human Many feminist theorists have argued that the sexual di- subjects or hiding identity behind a “veil of ignorance” has vision of labor around the world and women’s unequal been proposed as a desirable way to construct norms of roles within the patriarchal family have prevented the de- fairness, equality, and justice (Rawls, 1971). velopment of democracy for women. According to Carole Instead of considering practical political norms and Pateman, who has examined the marriage contract, the democratic values from behind a “veil of ignorance” as slave contract, and the wage labor contract and maintains John Rawls does, many feminists have argued that we must that a sexual contract of women’s subordination underlies examine democracy from the perspective of human sub- all social contract theories, “A patriarchal family with the jects who do indeed have gender, race, and class. As Iris despotic husband at its head is no basis for democratic Marion Young argues (1995), the group precedes the indi- citizenship; but nor, on its own, is an egalitarian family vidual. We are all born into identity categories and larger (1989:217). For Pateman, “Democratic ideals and politics systems of oppression, which shape the way that we will be have to be put into practice in the kitchen, the nursery and treated and the decisions that we will make as individuals. the bedroom…. A democratic theory and practice that is Much work has been done within critical theory, not at the same time feminist merely serves to maintain a postmodern theory, and feminist theory regarding the con- fundamental form of domination and so makes a mockery cept of radical democracy. Radical democracy, first articu- of the ideals and values that democracy is held to em- lated by Laclau and Mouffe (1985), recognizes that all body” (1989:222–223). Participation in a variety of insti- individuals occupy multiple subjective positions simulta- tutions and spheres, then, is necessary for women and neously, and identifies as its goal the eradication of all rela- men to become fully functioning participants in a demo- tionships of domination and subordination within society, cratic polity. which prevent the development of actual democracy. The result for women globally, however, has become the The most interesting work being done at the turn of the double burden of labor. As women’s participation in the twenty-first century in the area of international women’s public sphere of politics and paid, “productive” labor in the studies is on issues of . Third world femi- market has increased, men’s participation in the unpaid nism and writings by women of color from the perspective of labor of the private sphere of household and family has not women located at the intersections of multiple oppressions,

305 DEMOCRATIZATION including gender, race, class, sexuality, nationality, and postcolo-niality—to name a few—have had a tremendous DEMOCRATIZATION impact on the theory and practice of democracy. Since the 1970s, the world has witnessed the so-called third See Also wave of democratization. Beginning in the Iberian penin- sula in the mid-1970s, and continuing in much of Latin CITIZENSHIP; DEMOCRATIZATION; POLITICAL PARTICIPATION; America in the 1980s and in eastern Europe and parts of POLITICAL REPRESENTATION; POLITICS AND THE STATE: Asia and Africa in the late 1980s and 1990s, there was a OVERVIEW; SUFFRAGE; WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES widespread movement toward competitive electoral poli- References and Further Reading tics. Democratization is therefore seen by many political scientists as one of the most significant trends of the late Alexander, M.Jacqui, and Chandra Mohanty, eds. 1997. Feminist twentieth century. Avast literature on democratization has genealogies, colonial legacies, democratic futures. New been produced since the mid-1980s. But this large political York: Routledge. science literature has so far made very little mention of Cohen, Cathy, Kathleen B.Jones, and Joan Tronto, eds. 1997. gender or more specifically women, despite the evidence of Women transforming politics: An alternative reader. New the significant role women and women’s movements have York: New York University. played, for example, in the return to democratic politics in Dean, Jodi, 1997. Feminism and the new democracy: Resiting the Latin America. The process of democratization has been political . London: Sage. subdivided into three phases: the initial breakdown of au- Hoyt, Katherine. 1997. The many faces ofSandinista democracy. thoritarian rule, the transition to competitive electoral poli- Ohio: Ohio University Center for International Studies. tics, and the consolidation of competitive electoral politics. Jaquette, Jane, ed. 1994. The women’s movement in Latin The majority of the literature on gender and all phases of America: Participation and democracy. Boulder, Col.: transitions has focused on Latin America. Up until the mid- Westview. 1990s it has concentrated on the extent of women’s mobili- Jones, Kathleen. 1993. Compassionate authority: Democracy and zation under authoritarianism, examining the different the representation of women. New York: Routledge. types of women’s movements that directly and indirectly Laclau, Ernesto, and Chantal Mouffe. 1985. Hegemony and so- challenged the military, demanding greater participation cialist strategy: Towards a radical democratic politics. New and rights as citizens. The role played by women’s move- York: Verso. ments in the subsequent phases of the transition to and the Mansbridge, Jane. 1980. Beyond adversary democracy. Chicago: process of the consolidation of democratic rule has only University of Chicago Press. just begun to be considered in the same depth. Meiksins Wood, Ellen. 1995. Democracy against capitalism: Re- To develop a framework for the analysis of both the role newing historical materialism. New York: Cambridge Uni- played by women in the process of transition and the im- versity Press. pact of democratization and democratic consolidation on Pateman, Carol. 1989. The disorder of women: Democracy, femi- gender relations, five key questions emerge. These ques- nism and political theory. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univer- tions can be used to explain the very different processes of sity Press. transition and outcomes—for example, in Latin America ——. 1970. Participation and democratic theory. Cambridge: and eastern Europe, where women’s movements played an Cambridge University Press. important role in the former and a minimal role in the latter. Phillips, Anne. 1991. Engendering democracy. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press. To Organize or Not to Organize Rawls, John. 1971. The theory of justice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. The first question is, therefore, why women choose to or- Schumpeter, Joseph A. 1942. Capitalism, socialism and democ- ganize or not to organize in different contexts. The con- racy. New York: Harper and Row. trasting cases of eastern Europe and Latin America Trend, David. 1996. Radical democracy: Identity, citizenship and demonstrate that, whereas some “political space” existed the state. New York: Routledge. for women’s organizing under authoritarian regimes, very Young, Iris Marion. 1995. Justice, gender and the politics of dif- little existed under state socialism as civil society was com- ference. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press. prehensively suppressed. The attempts by military regimes in the “southern cone” to abolish male-dominated politics, Jennifer Disney shutting down or restricting the activities of congresses,

306 DEMOCRATIZATION political parties, and trades unions, shifted the locus of their children. The Madres were well known for their dem- whatever political activity (widely defined) could take onstrations on Thursday afternoons in the Plaza de Mayo, place away from these institutions of the conventional po- the main government square in . They would litical arena to the community, where women often found it march in a circle wearing white kerchiefs embroidered easier to participate. The identification of women as apo- with the names of their missing children or grandchildren; litical, and therefore of women’s activities as not being po- later, they carried pictures of these missing relatives, de- litical, initially gave women some room to maneuver (room manding that they be returned alive. that was unavailable to men) before their activities where Popular organizations also emerged in primarily poor seen as subversive. The repression of the conventional po- urban working-class districts; they focused on the “politics litical arena, therefore, created a “political space” that al- of everyday life,” particularly consumption issues, and lowed women’s activities to achieve a relatively high were organized on a neighborhood basis. The majority of profile outside of it, while the impact of the debt crisis and the members of these organizations were women, often op- the resulting “structural adjustment packages” pushed erating under the auspices of the church and NGOs in the women into adopting collective survival strategies. face of repression and recession. Many popular organiza- tions implemented collective survival strategies either by The Nature of Women’s Movements providing necessities such as soup kitchens or through in- The second question considers the nature of these move- come-generating projects, such as producing marketable ments where they exist. Despite the attempts of the military goods and services. The Chilean soup kitchens were seen to depoliticize society in the southern cone of Latin by many of the women involved as an important visible America, the late 1970s and 1980s saw the emergence of protest, because their existence demonstrated the extent of strong and heterogeneous women’s movements operating hunger and unemployment, whereas the military judged outside the conventional arena, in part a combination of any collective activity in poor districts to be subversive. authoritarianism and economic recession. Three main After a period of “feminist silence” that followed the types of oppositional women’s movements can be dis- suffrage movements active earlier in the century, feminist cerned, although the sometime shifting boundaries be- groups began to form in the 1970s and 1980s, engaging in a tween them makes clear delineations difficult. Two of variety of activities focused on women’s inequality and these, human rights groups and urban popular movements, subordination. Women’s centers were set up, and feminist had women as the majority of their members and pressed publications were produced. Umbrella organizations were primarily social and economic demands. Women entered also established to coordinate the activities of the various the public sphere on the basis of the politicization of their groups into national movements. Feminist movements ar- social roles, that is, as mothers and household providers; gued that authoritarian power relations were not simply this led to some politicization of the private sphere. The confined to the public sphere but were present in the house- period of military rule also saw the reemergence of feminist hold and family as well. The slogan of the Chilean move- movements comprising women organizing together to ment was “democracy in the country and the home.” press gender-based demands. Popular feminism, which saw itself as distinct from this The human rights groups grew out of the experiences of predominantly middle-class feminism, also emerged in this relatives trying to ascertain the whereabouts of family period from the experience of poor women organizing and members who had disappeared as a result of the activities campaigning self-consciously as women in the community of military regimes or associated paramilitary groups. The organizations described above. Madres of the Plaza de Mayo, formed in Argentina in April 1977, are the best-known group. Similar groups, such as The Role of Popular Movements in Political Change AFDD in Chile, Comrades in El Salvador, and GAM and The third question looks at the interaction between wom- CONAVIGUA in Guatemala, were formed in other parts of en’s political activities and the process of transition. What Latin America. Human rights groups such as the Madres prompts change in coercive regimes, and what is the role of are renowned for the innovative forms as well as the con- popular movements, particularly women’s movements in tent of their protests. The Madres used the military’s very promoting that change in very different contexts? It is clear traditional notions of a women’s proper role, that they that during the initial phase of the breakdown of authoritar- should be at home with their children, as the pivot of their ian rule, the political initiative often lay outside the largely protests. They argued that the disappearances prevented inoperative conventional political arena. Women’s move- them from fulfilling this role and forced them to search for ments such as the Madres played a key role in bringing

307 DEMOGRAPHY about an “end of fear” and creating the initial opening. Chile, feminists active in the political parties of the center- Military governments were often prompted by mass left before the return to competitive electoral politics man- mobilizations to begin negotiations with civilian elites aged to get a plan for a women’s ministry incorporated into about the return to competitive electoral politics. the election manifesto of the center-left coalition that won the first election. Servi-cio Nacional de la Majur (SERNAM) The Impact of Democratization was established in 1990 to oversee government policies on The fourth question shifts the focus to the outcomes of women and has had some limited impact on policy making. transition and asks about the impact of democratization and Although women have frequently played a key role in initiat- democratic consolidation on gender relations. Before ing transitions, however, they have not often translated this analyzing outcomes, it is necessary to establish what im- into influence over conventional political activity during the pact the form taken by the previous regime and the nature consolidation of competitive electoral politics. of the transition to competitive electoral politics has on structuring not only the politics of the subsequent regime See Also but also gender relations and women’s activities. The DEMOCRACY; LIBERATION MOVEMENTS; POLITICS AND THE premise is, first, that institutional democratization does not STATE: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA; POLITICS AND THE necessarily entail a democratization of power relations in STATE: EASTERN EUROPE society at large, particularly between men and women; and, second, that there is no necessary connection between References and Further Reading playing an important role in any stage of the process of de- Alvarez, Sonia. 1990. Engendering democracy in Brazil: Women’s mocratization and having any particular role during the pe- movements in transition politics. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton riod of consolidation. Many commentators have argued University Press. that women’s movements, which played a key role in the Friedman, Elisabeth. 2000. Unfinished transitions: Women and breakdown of authoritarian rule, have found it hard to con- the gendered development of democracy in Venezuela 1936– vert their activities into political representation once con- 1996. Philadelphia, Pa.: Penn State University Press. ventional political activity has resumed. Next, one must Jaquette, Jane, ed. 1994. The women’s movement in Latin therefore examine what happens to the various women’s America: Participation and democracy. Boulder, Col.: movements that were active before democratization: Can Westview. they sustain their activities? Some women’s movements, Jaquette, Jane, and Sharon Wolchik, Sharon, eds. 1998. Women primarily some middle-class feminist groups, have opted and democracy: Latin America and eastern Europe. Balti- for a strategy of critical negotiation with the state and po- more, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press. litical parties and have had some limited success in achiev- Waylen, Georgina. 2000. Gender and democratic politics: A com- ing their aims. Other groups, however, primarily popular parative analysis of consolidation in Argentina and Chile. movements, autonomous feminists, and human rights or- Journal of Latin American Studies 32:3. ganizations, have tended to stay outside the conventional ——. 1994. Women and democratization: Conceptualizing gender political arena and have been less effective; often, their ac- relations in transition politics. World Politics 46(3): 327–353. tivities have declined. Georgina Waylen Political Structure and Women’s Participation The role of women in the new institutional politics also must be explored. Thus a fifth question is whether different types DEMOGRAPHY of political structures have differing effects on women’s par- ticipation. There is some evidence from Chile that, although Few feminists take any serious interest in the academic resistant to change, an institutionalized party system can field of demography. This is curious because one of de- make it easier for women activists both inside and outside mography’s central concerns—the long-run decline in fer- political parties to exert pressure for institutionalized tility since the nineteenth century—has shaped women’s changes than a weak party system. In contrast, more arbi- lives today in immeasurable ways. The major decline in trary populist political systems or high levels of numbers of children born, the increasing proportion of the presidentialism make institutionalized change harder to world’s women with access to birth control, and the separa- achieve. Finally, “women’s issues,” particularly the extent to tion of sexuality from reproduction have, in differing de- which they enter policy agendas, must also be considered. In grees, assisted women to gain emancipation from their

308 DEMOGRAPHY narrow roles within the household. Questions of population More radical approaches have come from anthropologi- growth (or lack of it) are vital for women, who have often cal demography. Susan Greenhalgh’s collection Situating been pawns in gov-ernment-backed schemes to increase Fertility (1995) argues strongly for “a reconceptualization births at times of national need, such as war or a high de- of… fertility of reproduction…and new thinking on four mand for labor. At the beginning of the twenty-first century aspects of reproductive dynamics: culture, history, gender these issues claim more attention as populations of devel- and power” (5; see also Sen and Snow, 1994). Those four oped nations stabi-lize or drop, owing to declining birth- aspects are part of any argument that places women at rates (Teitelbaum and Winter, 1998). In all probability center stage. pointed out in 1983 that shifts in those nations will look to immigration to restore their num- bargaining power between men and women were crucial in bers. Where immigration is less desired politically, they reproductive decision making. Historians have demon- might revert to pronatalism. The example of countries strated in countless studies the contextual factors that have where access to contraception and abortion has been cur- influenced this bargaining power, from participation in the tailed (Obermeyer, 1994) leaves us in no doubt that such a labor market (for example, Gittens, 1982) to the impact of reversal is possible, if politically less probable, in the West. education (Mackinnon, 1997; Gillis et al., 1992). Demog- The importance of these questions alone should alert us to raphy has moved toward acknowledging the primacy of the ongoing significance of demographic research. cultural factors, recognizing the importance of gender eq- A small band of feminist researchers have taken up these uity for maintaining fertility (McDonald, 1997), and issues, usually from disciplines such as social and women’s putting more emphasis on context. These trends and the in- history (Gittens, 1982; Mackinnon, 1997), economics creasing numbers of female graduate students asking per- (Folbre, 1983), anthropology (Greenhalgh, 1995; Riley, ceptive new questions and using mixed methodologies, 1997), population and development studies (Sen and Snow, offer considerable hope for a fruitful engagement between 1994), and even demography itself (Federici et al., 1993; demography and feminism. Mason, 1997; Watkins, 1993). A major stumbling block, as many of these writers point out, is demography’s reliance on See Also num-bers—on positivist, large-scale aggregate studies from GEOGRAPHY; POLITICAL ECONOMY; POPULATION: OVERVIEW; which it seems unlikely that any sense of individual lives POPULATION CONTROL; REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS; SOCIAL positioned within rich social contexts can be gained SCIENCES: FEMINIST METHODS (Scheper-Hughes, 1997). For many feminists, qualitative and interpretative methods have won the day, and a deep- References and Further Reading seated suspicion surrounds studies with endless tables and Federici, Nora, Karen Oppenheim Mason, and Solvi Sogner, eds. sophisticated statistical techniques. Further, such studies 1993. Women’s position and demographic change. Oxford: have often been linked to conservative agendas, unrespon- Clarendon. sive to women’s needs (Scheper-Hughes, 1997). As Nancy Folbre, Nancy. 1983. Of patriarchy born: The political economy of Riley points out, demography is in the early stages of creat- fertility decisions. Feminist Studies 9. ing intellectual space for gender studies (1997:115). As a Gillis, John, Louse Tilly, and David Levine, eds. 1992. The Euro- pragmatic social science where little interpretative or pean experience of declining fertility: A quiet revolution deconstructive work is done, demography is less hospitable 1850–1970. Cambridge: Blackwell. to new frameworks and epistemological challenges. Gittens, Diana. 1982. Fair sex: Family size and structure 1900– Nevertheless, challenges have begun. Within the field of 1939. London: Hutchinson. demography Susan Watkins (1993) threw down the gaunt- Greenhalgh, Susan, ed. 1995. Situating fertility: Anthropology and let in an aptly titled piece, “If All We Knew About Women demographic inquiry. Cambridge: Cambridge University Was What We Read in [the journal] Demography, What Press. Would We Know?” An important collection, Women’s Po- Mackinnon, Alison. 1997. Love and freedom: Professional women sition and Demographic Change (Federici et al., 1993), at- and the reshaping of personal life. Cambridge: Cambridge tempted to bring together two major transformations of the University Press. twentieth century—demographic transition and change in ——. 1995. Were women present at the demographic transition? women’s position. While much helpful work was included, Questions from a feminist historian to historical demogra- the editorial introduction reveals an inability to accept the phers. Gender and History 7(2). finding of a link between the two phenomena, largely, it Mason, Karen Oppenheim. 1997. Gender and demographic seems, because it cannot be quantified. change: What do we know? In Gavin Jones, Robert Dou-glas,

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John Caldwell, and Rennie D’Souza, eds., The continuing Adam’s first wife Lilith, who left her husband to couple demographic transition. Oxford: Clarendon. with demons; Adam’s second wife Eve and the serpent in McDonald, Peter. 1997. Gender equity, social institutions and the Genesis; Scylla, Charybdis, and the Sirens in Homer’s Od- future of fertility. Working Papers in Demography 69. Can- yssey; the gorgon Medusa; the wicked stepmother who berra: Australian National University. threatens Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, or Obermeyer, Carla Makhlouf. 1994. Religious doctrine, state ide- Rapunzel; the Baba Yaga; the bad girl of detective fiction ology, and reproductive options in Islam. In Gita Sen and and film noir; the militant feminist of modern western sat- Rachel Snow, eds., Power and decision: The social control of ire and caricature; the real women murdered in crimes of reproduction. Boston: Harvard Series on Population and In- passion and honor killings; and the European women ex- ternational Health. ecuted during the witch-hunts of the thirteenth to seven- Riley, Nancy E. 1997. Similarities and differences: Anthropologi- teenth centuries. cal and demographic perspectives on gender. In David Kertzer and Tom Fricke, eds. Anthropological demography: Witchcraft Executions and the Malleus Maleficarum Towards a new synthesis. Chicago: University of Chicago During the witchcraft trials, male judges and priests used Press. the full power of church and government to save their souls Scheper-Hughes, Nancy. 1997. Demography without numbers. In and their communities from women accused of intimate David Kertzer and Tom Fricke, eds., Anthropological demog- partnerships with demons and devils. raphy: Towards a new synthesis. Chicago: University of Chi- Authorized by Pope Innocent VIII in a papal bull dated 5 cago Press. December 1484, the rules governing the witchcraft inqui- Sen, Gita, and Rachel Snow. 1994. Power and decision: The social sition and holocaust were codified by the fifteenth-century control of reproduction. Boston: Harvard Series on Popula- theologians Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger into a tion and International Health. judicial volume called Malleus Maleficarum (“hammer of Teitelbaum, M., and J.Winter. 1998. A question of numbers: High witches”). Included among its many topics were how infi- migration, low fertility and the politics of national identity. delity, ambition, and lust are female vices; why ambitious New York: Hill and Wang. women are more deeply infected by filthy lusts than women Watkins, Susan Cotts. 1993. If all we knew about women was without ambition; how midwives steal babies and are more what we read in Demography, what would we know? De- wicked than other women; how women’s feeble minds and mography 30(4). bodies leave them more vulnerable than men to the spell of witchcraft; how women copulate with devils; how abortions Alison Mackinnon harm men; how women have special methods to injure men and steal their sexual organs; how the devil prevents women from being hurt during “ordeal by red-hot iron”; and up- DEMONIZATION ward of 350,000 additional words of (male) religious and judicial wisdom based on the principle that “when a woman The demonic female is a recurring archetype in western thinks alone, she thinks evil” (Malleus Maleficarum, 1971: cultures. Women who possess or are possessed by evil spir- Part I, Question 6). Malleus Maleficarum also describes how its play leading roles in patriarchal drama, myth, metaphor, men may become involved with demons and witchcraft, but religion, military campaigns, and judicial systems. A de- scholars estimate that upward of 80 percent of witchcraft monic tale often tells the story of a good male who is exe-cutions targeted women (Ehrenreich and English, 1973; harmed by an evil female who uses unfair power to upset Noddings, 1989). the status quo. The demonic story may lead to the male us- ing heroic violence against the female to defeat her evil Feminist Scholarship about spirit and restore the earlier balance of power, which favors the Demonization of Women the male principle (patriarchy). In most versions of the Many academic disciplines offer evidence that story, demonization of women is a prerequisite to violence demonization of women by men is a consistent pattern against women, as primal fear of evil replaces individual throughout recorded history, with philosophy, psychology, acts of reason, conscience, and judgment. In some versions anthropology, sociobiology, theology, and jurisprudence of the story, the hero receives a good female as an addi- all offering theory and explanation. tional reward for eliminating the evil female. Examples of The criminologist Anne Campbell (1993) traces how the demonic females in the western cultural tradition include pattern identifies aggression as an acceptable rule-gov-erned

310 DEPRESSION male norm but a female anomaly that threatens the social from its right and proper position (male-female equity). order. The theologian Wendy Doniger (1999) offers evi- Because this is a feminist article, however, violence is not dence that the pattern pervades Indo-European cultures and part of its story line. Recognizing that demonic content be- religions and can be linked to a “double standard” in biologi- longs in myth and metaphor but not in government and so- cal sciences and sexual politic. The philosopher and educator ciety could go a long way toward reducing violence by men Nel Noddings (1989) links the pattern to a “morality of evil” against women and girls, still perhaps the most pervasive and to efforts to control women’s sexuality. The journalists violation of human rights in the world today. Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English (1973) show how demonization of women healers and midwives in medieval See Also Europe contributed to the sexism that pervades modern ARCHETYPE; FAIRY TALES; IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; medical practice. Perhaps the most useful insights come MYTH; WICCA; WITCHES: ASIA; WITCHES: WESTERN WORLD from psychology, which links the archetypal demonic fe- male to the Freudian concept of displacement of men’s in- References and Further Reading stinctual wishes and to the Jungian concepts of the shadow, Campbell, Anne. 1993. Men, women, and aggression. New York: the repressed anima, and the content of the collective uncon- Basic Books, scious (Harding, 1971), particularly evident in the fairy tales de Waal, Frans. 1996. Good natural: The origins of right and told to children during their developmental years (Jacoby, wrong in humans and other animals . Cambridge, Mass: Kast, and Riedel, 1992; von Franz, 1993). Primate studies Harvard University Press. (for example, de Waal, 1996; Wrangham and Peterson, Doniger, Wendy. 1999. Splitting the difference: Gender and myth 1996) confirm the stability of male violence against females in ancient Greece and India. Chicago: University of Chicago as an ongoing pattern of male-dominated cultures (although Press. alpha male chimpanzees and gorillas presumably spend less Ehrenreich, Barbara, and Deirdre English. 1973. Witches, mid- time anthropomorphizing evil spirits than human males do), wives, and nurses: A history of women healers. New York: but also offer intriguing new evidence that female-domi- Feminist Press. nated ape cultures (bonobos) can thrive by using sexuality Harding, M.Esther. 1971. Woman’s mysteries ancient and mod- rather than violence to resolve conflicts. ern: A psychological interpretation of the feminine principle Women are not the only representatives of demonic con- as portrayed in myth, story, and dreams. New York: Harper tent in the collective unconscious of western patriarchy. and Row. Bats, cats, goats, sharks, snakes, and gorillas often repre- Jacoby, Mario, Verena Kast, and Ingrid Riedel. 1992. Witches, sent evil spirits in story and myth, and demonic males (Sa- ogres, and the Devil’s daughter: Encounter with evil in fairy tan, Lucifer, Mephistopheles, Dracula, Dorian Gray, Dr. tales. Boston: Shambhala. Jekyll’s Mr. Hyde, Darth Vader) also form a common cul- Malleus Maleficarum of Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger. tural motif. Demonization of minority men by majority 1971. Ed. and trans. Montague Summers. New York: Dover. men contributes to racism, homophobia, and wars of ethnic Noddings, Nel. 1989. Women and evil. Berkeley: University of cleansing and genocide. California Press, Nor, of course, are women always demonized; sanctifi- von Franz, Marie-Louise. 1993. The feminine in fairy tales. Rev. cation of women is also a recurring pattern. This version of ed. Boston: Shambhala. mythic material focuses more on the madonna side of the Wrangham, Richard, and Dale Peterson. 1996. Demonic males: madonna-whore dyad. The female may be a wise and kind Apes and the origins of human violence . Boston: Houghton mother (Mary of the New Testament, Sophia of Greek tra- Mifflin. dition, the nurse Florence Nightingale, the good mother of Faye Zucker Victorian-era Britain), or she may be the mating female whom the male pursues. The sanctified woman also is a patriarchal archetype, resulting in a failure of equity in male-female power structures. Once the good female ac- cepts her placement on the metaphoric pedestal, she can DEPRESSION no longer reach for male rights, privileges, and responsi- bilities. Depression is a pervasive and sustained emotional state Women demonize men, too. This article, for example, characterized by feelings of sadness, despondency, dis- uses “patriarchy” as the evil spirit that shifts power away couragement, pessimism, and despair. Other terms that are

311 DEPRESSION often used to characterize this state are: melancholia, blues, due to the precipitous hormone changes that a woman ex- sorrow, neurosis, doldrums, or dumps. Depression is often periences after giving birth. accompanied by a decrease in activity level, motivation, or With every form of depression there is a heightened risk emotional responsiveness. Physical problems such as heart of suicide. However, all forms of depression are known to palpitations, stomach pains, or headaches also may be be treatable and over 80 percent of people who receive symptoms of depression. The overt manifestations of de- treatment report an improvement. Unfortunately, only pression can be highly variable, as are the methods of man- about 3 out of every 10 people suffering the effects of de- aging depression. Different cultures throughout the world pression seek out professional assistance. have widely disparate characterizations for depression. For The classifications for depression are made in the Diag- example, in many cultures, depression frequently mani- nostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders—Fourth fests itself only as somatizations, for example, physical Edition (DSM-IV) and by the International Classification symptoms with no apparent physical cause. There also are of Diseases and Related Health Problems—Tenth Revision cultures that have no concept of or language for depression, (ICD-10). It is important to consider, however, that these such as the Kaluli of New Guinea and the Hopi of North definitions are dominated by Eurocentric considerations. America. Therefore, in some cultures, depression is viewed as ill- There are many situations in which depression may be a ness, a conceptualization that follows from the medical normal state, including bereavement, life changes, or unex- model. In many other cultures, the classic western symp- pected reversals of fortune. When feelings of depression toms of depression are viewed more from a cultural, spir- persist for long periods of time and interfere with life func- itual, or religious perspective. From a historical tions and personal vitality, however, it becomes a condition perspective, the characteriza-tion of depression has always that should be attended to by others. been a competition between scientific and religious per- spectives. When various world cultures are examined, this Forms of Depression dichotomous approach can be clearly seen. Individual experiences of depression can range from mild to severe. The specific indications of depression include Cultural Differences feelings of sadness; noticeably diminished interest or Cultures use different constructs to convey a sense of loss, pleasure in most, if not all activities; significant changes in grief, or personal distress. The Tuareg, a nomadic people of body weight; marked changes in sleeping patterns; dimin- the central and western Sahara, describe individuals who ished ability to think, concentrate, attend, or make deci- are listless, withdrawn, and avoidant. They believe loss, sions; feelings of worthlessness; and inappropriate guilt. adversity, or a disruption in one’s social routine causes For a diagnosis of depression these symptoms should be these symptoms. They consider the cure for this condition present for at least two weeks and should represent a to be music, jokes, and noise (Leff, 1994). Eastern cultures marked change in the previous level of functioning. This are more likely to see depression in terms of somatic symp- characterizes a major, unipolar depression. Another form toms. Bodily expressions of depression often include prob- of depression, dysthymia, involves a chronically depressed lems such as heart, stomach, or head pains. The Chinese mood but usually involves less severe symptoms. A study refer to these symptoms as shenjing shuairuo, and when by the World Organization (WHO) found that worldwide, this is diagnosed it also would meet the diagnostic criteria anxiety is one of the most prevalent forms of depression. for depression or anxiety in western medicine. In west Af- Bipolar disorder, often called manic-depression, is also rica, symptoms such as these are called “brain fag.” So- a form of depression. This condition involves cycles of matic complaints, usually of pain in the head and neck, as highs (mania) and lows (depression). These mood swings well as blurred vision and sensations of burning accom- can be gradual or sudden and dramatic. Features of the pany brain fag. manic cycle include inflated self-esteem, increased talka- In Mexico, depressive symptoms are often treated by a tiveness, reduced impulse control, racing thoughts, curandera, or folk healer. Curanderas often facilitate re- distractibility, and agitation. lief for the sufferer by enacting culturally expected roles Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a periodic form of that validate the individuals sense of what has caused the depression that seems to be connected to reduced daylight depression. The curandera thereby eliminates any cultur- during the winter months. Women may also suffer from ally caused stress before seeking other methods of inter- postpartum depression. It is estimated that 7 out of 10 new vention (Javier and Herron, 1998). People with mothers experience depression. This depression may be depressive symptoms were compared in Indonesia and

312 DEPRESSION

Germany. In Indonesia the research subjects described culture to culture, however. For example, in a study done their symptoms as somatic and in Germany the symptoms in 10 countries, rates of depression ranged from a low of were described as “guilt and suicidal ideas” (Pfeiffer, 1.5 percent in Taiwan to a high of 19 percent in Lebanon 1968). In cultures that follow Indian practices based on (Weiss-man, 1996). Numerous studies in developing the Vedas or Upanishads, chakras are considered at the countries have found depression rates of close to 30 per- center of life force energy. Although chakras themselves cent for women versus 12.6 percent for men (World Health are not physical entities, it is believed that they have a Organization, 2000). A study across nine European coun- strong impact on the body and an integral relationship to tries has also found that in depression among the elderly, physical functioning. It is thought that depression arises rates for women predominate over those for men from a deficiency in the third chakra, where the energy of (Copeland et al., 1999). the body is literally depressed. This represents a very There are many theories about why women are more close tie between the function of the mind and the body prone to depression. A negative, stereotypic view of de- and acknowledges that emotions can and do affect physi- pression dates back to the early Greeks, who theorized that cal states. women have “weaker constitutions.” Modern science as In the West, depression is more often seen as an illness. well as feminist thinking and research has refuted this. As such, it is often treated with antidepressant medica- There are, however, some interesting physiological or tion—for example, Prozac, Celaxa, or Zoloft—and psy- physiobiological theories. Researchers have studied the ef- chotherapy. Many individuals also “self-medicate” through fects of neurotransmitters, sex hormones, stress hormones the use of natural substances such as St. John’s wort or with such as cortisol, and thyroid hormones on gender and de- alcohol or other drugs. By combining medication and psy- pression. These studies suggest that a woman’s chemical chotherapy, mental health professionals can address both makeup predisposes her to depression. Researchers at the physiological and the psychological causes of depres- McGill University studied the synthesis rate of serotonin in sion. One way psychologists have treated depression is to men and women. They found that men synthesize serotonin consider how people react to life experiences. People gen- at a rate that is 52 percent higher than women. Other studies erally tend to react in one of two ways: either they interpret have shown that serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)— the experiences as the result of external forces or they for example, antidepressant medications that keep serot- blame themselves. Self-blame is often a faulty attribution onin available in the nervous system for longer periods of that can induce depression. This explains depression as time—relieve depression. Unfortunately, it is not known “learned helplessness” (Abramson et al., 1978). If the so- how serotonin itself contributes to depression or how inter- ciocultural climate represses individuals, they easily learn actions with other neurotransmitters may affect depression. to blame themselves for their circumstances. Science seems quite far from understanding the complex Aaron Beck, a leader in cognitive therapy, attributes de- physiological causes of depression. pression to distorted views of self, unexpressed beliefs, and The biological underpinnings of depression also seem to logical errors (Beck, 1976). Beck suggests that if a thera- be supported by studies of adolescents. At around age 11, pist works with patients to uncover cognitive distortions which is often the onset of menses for girls, there is a sharp and articulate underlying beliefs and assumptions, the pa- drop in girls’ psychological resilience. Puberty seems to be tients can restructure their minds and relieve their depres- the onset of the marked differences between female and sion. This view also must be considered within the male rates of depression (Seligman, 1991). But the social sociopolitical environment that a patient occupies. changes that occur for many girls around this age also may Given the varied experiences of depression across cul- contribute to the changing rate of depression. tures, it is important to consider the cultural constraints that Sociocultural influences are another explanation for produce these differences. high rates of female depression. In most cultures women are considered to be second-class and inferior to men. This Women and Depression discriminatory position has a devastating impact on the The most significant risk factor for depression is being a psychological well-being of women. Depression rates are woman. In every country of the world where research has higher among lower socioeconomic classes, and women been conducted, women are two to three times more at risk generally have a lower socioeconomic status than men. of depression than men are. Worldwide, women’s risk of Women continue to experience significant stress within so- depression throughout the life span is 7.4 percent, whereas ciety as a result of discrimination, abuse, and their multiple the risk for men is only 2.8 percent. The risk varies from roles as caregivers and breadwinners. Many studies have

313 DEPRESSION: CASE STUDY—CHINESE MEDICINE

cited the socialization of women as an explanation for the Weisman, M.M. 1996. Cross-national epidemiology of major de- high rate of depression. pression and bipolar disorder. Journal of the American Medi- Women are much more likely than men to experience cal Association 276:293–299. physical and sexual abuse. Cultural tolerance of this vio- World Health Organization. 2000. Women and mental health. Fact lence has a major impact on the stress women suffer and the Sheet No. 248. depression that follows. Joan E.Huebl These biological and sociocultural factors are paired with psychological states. Women are more likely to re- spond to stress by developing low self-esteem, self-hate, inwardly focused anger and aggression, and ego helpless- ness. These states are all known to contribute to depression. DEPRESSION: Case Study— But it is difficult to determine whether these factors are Chinese Medicine inherent in women’s psychological composition or a result of cultural forces. The biological, psychological, and so- Depression is perhaps twice as prevalent in women as in ciocultural factors that cause depression are so intertwined men (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987). The conventional approach that it may be erroneous to disregard any one. to its treatment is psychotherapeutic or pharmacologi-cal. Depression is a complicated emotional state, and re- Principles of Chinese medicine provide alternative and com- search is just beginning to grasp the complexity of the fac- plementary treatment modalities—for example, acupunc- tors that may be involved. Research, however, has dispelled ture—integrating psychological and physiological factors. the notion that depression is the individual’s fault. Depres- In Chinese medicine, the depressed person is considered sion is not the result of a character flaw; contemporary ap- a body-mind continuum; thus somatic and psychological proaches to depression consider it a serious condition that symptoms are equally important. By focusing on detecting negatively affects a woman’s life. energetic imbalances rather than on diagnosing and treat- ing disease, Chinese medicine relates physiological (so- See Also matic) and psychological events—which tend to be considered as separate phenomena in the western medical DEPRESSION: CASE STUDY—CHINESE MEDICINE; MENTAL model—thereby helping to close the gap between soma HEALTH I, MENTAL HEALTH II and psyche. Furthermore, Chinese medicine provides a framework for understanding distinct syndromes and treat- References and Further Reading ing each pattern with an individually tailored therapy Abramson, L.Y., M.E.P.Seligman, and J.D.Teasdale. 1978. (Schnyer and Allen, 2001). Learned helplessness in humans: Critique and reformula- tion. Journal of Abnormal Psychology 87:49–74. Qi, Yin, and Yang Beck, A.T. 1976. Cognitive therapy and emotional distress. New Chinese medical theory is based on the concept of qi (pro- York: International Universities Press. nounced “chee”), or “vital energy,” which represents the Copeland, J.R., et.al. 1999. Depression in Europe: Geographical capacity of life to maintain and transform itself distribution among older people. British Journal of Psychia- (Kaptchuk, 1987). Life is manifested as an interaction be- try 174:312–321. tween two complementary forces, yin and yang, which Javier, R.A., and W.G.Herron, eds. 1998. Personality development represent the totality of the dynamic equilibrium and psychotherapy in our diverse society: A sourcebook. (Beinfield and Korngold, 1991). Health is defined as a Northvale, N.J.: Aronson. balance between yin and yang, which is sustained by the Kleinman, A., and B.Good, eds. 1985. Culture and depression. proper circulation of qi along energetic pathways, or me- Berkeley: University of California Press. ridians. The meridians form a network that connects the Leff, J. 1994. Cultural influences on psychiatry. Current Opinion surface of the body with the internal organs; the organs in Psychiatry 197–201. are defined by their functions and interrelations rather Pfeiffer, W. 1968. The symptomatology of depression viewed than by structure or anatomical location. Organs represent transculturally. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 5: a complete set of functions that reflect energetic relation- 121–123. ships among physiological and psychological events and Seligman, M.E.P. 1991. Learned optimism. New York: Random are referred to as “organ networks.” Meridi-ans and organ House. networks both work in pairs, with one yin and one yang

314 DEPRESSION: CASE STUDY—CHINESE MEDICINE function interconnected; each organ network is consid- pathway of the meridian that corresponds to this organ tra- ered to have a yin (storing, nourishing, cooling) compo- verses the pelvis, abdomen, breasts, throat, gingiva, and nent and a yang (activating, protective, warming) ver-tex of the head. In addition, the cyclic flow of qi de- component (Seem, 1987). Yin confers rest, tranquillity, scribes the rise and flow of hormones in the body. Signifi- and quiescence as well as a capacity to unfold gracefully cantly, the physical and emotional changes that while being content and quiet. When yin is deficient, we characterize premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and other lack receptivity and contemplation and become agitated, symptoms at specific phases of the menstrual cycle corre- unset-tled, or nervously uneasy. Yang, by contrast, causes spond to symptoms that arise from the stagnation of qi transformation and change, providing us with the capac- along the pathway of the meridian (for example, ity to engage life, to react, and to respond. When yang is dysmenorrhea, abdominal bloating, breast distension, and deficient, we find ourselves paralyzed with fear, con- headache), or they are associated with one of the functions fused, indecisive, hopless, and unable to express what we of this organ network (for example, menopathy, increased want (Kaptchuk, 1987). or decreased appetite, and emotional lability). It is also in- teresting that a number of women experience some PMS implications for Depression symptoms consistent with depression, or an aggravation of A relative deficiency (hypoactivity) or excess (hyperac- existing depressive symptoms, during the week preceding tivity) of either yin or yang precipitates personal pat- the onset of menses (Schnyer, 1995). Furthermore, some terns of reaction. If, when a person is confronted with an symptoms of depression correspond to PMS: for example, emotional stressor, the metabolic response is increased emotional lability, persistent anger or irritability, depressed in preparation for “fight or flight,” activating a response mood, lack of interest or enthusiasm, lack of energy, and in the sympathetic nervous system, yang becomes ex- changes in appetite and sleep. cessive and yin deficient (Seem, 1987). In this case, de- pression is characterized by anxiety, agitation, and See Also insomnia. If a persons tendency is to withdraw from ex- DEPRESSION; ENERGY; HOLISTIC HEALTH; MENSTRUATION; ternal activity, allowing the organism to “rest and di- MENTAL HEALTH; PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS); gest,” yin becomes relatively excessive and yang is TRADITIONAL HEALING: EAST AND SOUTHEAST ASIA; ZEN deficient. Depression of this type is characterized by lethargy, decreased motivation, loss of appetite, and an References and Further Reading excessive desire to sleep. Allen, J.J.B., and R.N.Schnyer. 1998. Depression and acupunc- The relationship between yin and yang is further di- ture. In E.A.Blechman and K.Brownell, eds., Behavioral vided into stages that describe the process of change. medicine for women: A comprehensive handbook. New York: These stages correspond to a set of meridians, a set of or- Guildford. gan networks that, in turn, each have physiological and Allen, J.J.B., R.N.Schnyer, and S.K.Hitt. 1998. The efficacy of psychological functions as well as specific associated acupuncture in the treatment of major depression in women. emotions. Emotions are expressions of qi, and any emo- Journal of Psychological Science 9:397–401. tion that finds no release through verbal expression or Beinfield, H., and Korngold, E. 1991. Between heaven and earth: physical activity becomes stagnant energy—or noxious A guide to Chinese medicine. New York: Ballantine. energy—that does not circulate properly (Hammer, 1990). Flaws, Bob. 1991. PMS: Its cause, diagnosis, and treatment ac- Stagnation of qi combines with the tendency toward ex- cording to traditional Chinese medicine. Boulder, Col.: Blue cessive or deficient yin or yang, adding complexity to this Poppy. picture. The experience of a disorder and the nature of the Hammer, L. 1990. Dragon rises, red bird flies: Psychology and symptoms, as well as the protocol and outcome of the Chinese medicine. New York: Station Hill. treatment, will vary greatly depending on which organ net- Kaptchuck, T.J. 1987. Chinese herbal medicine course; personal works are weak, which ones are most affected by stagna- communication. tion, and how much the individual’s organizing force has ——. 1987. Jade pharmacy clinical manual. (Available from been disrupted. Crane Enterprises.) The organ network responsible for the smooth flow of qi ——. 1983. The web that has no weaver: Understanding Chinese is also responsible for regulating the storage and distribu- medicine. New York. Congdon and Weed. tion of blood (that is, menstruation), as well as for diges- Larre, C., and E.Rochat de la Vallée. 1991. The heart in lingshu. tion, evenness of emotion, and consistent behavior. The Cambridge: Monkey.

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Noelen-Hoeksema, S. 1987. Sex differences in unipolar depres- and private, notably in the psychological thrillers of writers sion: Evidence and theory. Psychological Bulletin 101:259– like Patricia Highsmith and Ruth Rendell; in the way fe- 282. male “networks” might replace of the male protagonist, Schnyer, R.N., and Allen, J.J.B. 2001. Depression and mental ill- whose mythic social status is acquired through his uncanny ness. In C.M.Cassidy and M.Micozzi, eds., Contemporary knowledge or physical superiority; and in the use of female practice of acupuncture and oriental medicine. Philadelphia, stereotypes to challenge the codes used in the representa- Pa.: Saunders. tion of male investigators. Christie’s Miss Marple, the eld- Schnyer, R, N., J.J.B.Allen, S.Hitt, and R.Manber. (Forthcoming.) erly gentle-woman whose brilliantly incisive detecting Acupuncture in the treatment of depression: A manual for re- skills are masked by her apparently haphazard arrival at a search and practice. (Manuscript.) solution of the crime, is one example. Schnyer, R.N., and Bob Flaws. 1988. Curing depression naturally with Chinese medicine. Boulder, Col.: Blue Poppy. Contemporary Writers Seem, M. 1987. Bodymind energetics: Toward a dynamic model of health. Rochester, Vt.: Thorsons. Perhaps ironically, the highly coded nature of detective Wiseman, N., and F.Ye. 1998. A practical dictionary of Chinese fiction has made it very attractive to contemporary medicine. 2nd ed. Brookline, Mass.: Paradigm. women writers. Freed from the constraints of realism, they are able to hypothesize alternative realities that im- Rosa N.Schnyer plicitly or explicitly criticize their own culture, while at the same time reconsidering the form and potential of the genre. A popular mode, however, must conform to the conventions of the genre; thus such writers run the risk DETECTIVE FICTION that their radical politics will be absorbed by the conven- tions they seek to challenge. Nevertheless, feminine and Detective fiction has been significantly influenced since feminist strategies of reading and writing are forms of the early 1980s by the entry of feminist authors into the cultural resistance, and detective fiction offers plenty of field and by feminist critics’ historical and literary analysis. scope for serious or parodic reworkings of its strict for- That analysis is the focus of this article. mulas as well as for disruptive humor. An example is The genre began with Edgar Allen Poe’s invention of Sarah Paretsky’s female private eye, V.I.Warshawski, the first fictional detective in Murders in the Rue Morgue whose name gives her an androgynous identity; she is so- (1841), then Conan Doyle’s creation of his archetypal de- cially aware but often physically and emotionally vulner- tective hero, Sherlock Holmes. Although detective fiction able, and she relies on women friends for professional and is sometimes said to be inherently masculine, women have personal advice. She represents an alternative to the male been writing it almost from the start. Dead Letter (1866), fantasy of the private eye, a lone individual who lives by North American Seeley Register, is now considered the hard, confronts overwhelming odds, and always tri- first detective fiction by a woman; the golden age of classic umphs. Another example is Barbara Neely’s black detec- detective fiction is usually dated from the publication of tive, Blanche—a housekeeper who succeeds as a sleuth Agatha Christie’s first novel in 1920 to Dorothy L.Sayers’s partly because her white employers undervalue her talent last in 1937. Christie, England’s biggest-selling author, and commitment to justice. perfected the form of mystery narrative in which the reader For feminist critics and writers, patriarchal control over joins the detective in solving the crime. A shift occurred in women is embedded in detective fiction, which characteris- the 1920s in North America, with the increasing dominance tically represents women either as threatening seduc- of hard-boiled pri-vate-eye fiction; Raymond Chandler’s tresses, sexualized victims, or generalized targets of male Philip Marlow was a typical hero. violence. Feminist crime fiction is dedicated to undermin- Contemporary feminist critics see a recent overt ing these modes of representation. Contemporary women feminization of detective fiction and contend that actually writers are also often less concerned with the traditionally it was taking place covertly since women began using the palliative function of crime fiction, the discovery and solu- genre. Earlier infiltrations were strategically subversive. tion of crimes, than with the socially disruptive effects of They are evident in the creation of independent women in- crime: the suffering it inflicts on communities and indi- vestigators like Sayers’s Harriet Vane as models of female viduals, and the compromised or corrupt nature of systems agency; in rendering of crime and its solution as domestic of justice.

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See Also also argued that a preoccupation with economic relations FICTION; LESBIAN WRITING: CRIME FICTION precludes recognition of caring, loving relationships asso- ciated with the private sphere and the world of women. References and Further Reading See also: Carr, Helen, ed. 1989. From my guy to scifi: Genre and women’s writing in the postmodern world. London: Pandora. DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE; Irons, Glenwood, ed. 1995. Feminism in women’s detective fic- ECONOMICS: FEMINIST CRITIQUES; ECONOMY: HISTORY OF tion. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION; FEMINISM: MARXIST; FEMINISM: Merivale, Patricia. 1996. An unsuitable genre for a woman, Con- RADICAL; SOCIALISM; WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES temporary Literature 37 (4) 1:693–700. References and Further Readings Messent, Paul, ed. 19979. Criminal proceedings: the contempo- rary American crime novel. Chicago: Pluto . Beasley, Chris. 1994. Sexual economyths: Conceiving a feminist Munt, Sally R. 1994. Murder by the book? Feminism and the economics. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. crime novel. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Lerner, Gerda. 1986. The creation of patriarchy. New York: Ox- Reddy, Maureen T. 1988. Sisters in crime: Feminism and the ford University Press . crime novel. New York: Continuum. Marx, Karl. 1904. A contribution to the critique of political Slung, Michele. 1975. Crime on her mind. New York: Random economy. Chicago: Kerr. House/Pantheon. O’Brien, Mary. 1983. The politics ofreproduction. London: Routledge. Delys Margaret Bira Cora V.Baldock

DEVELOPING COUNTRIES DETERMINISM: Economic See THIRD WORLD.

Economic determinism is a concept derived from Marxist social theory (for example, Marx, 1904) that explains the human condition in terms of the material circumstances DEVELOPMENT: Overview and the economic structures (for example, feudalism or capitalism) that human beings invent to ensure their liveli- Mainstream development theories conceptualized “devel- hood. Such economic structures, according to economic opment” through a male lens. This ignored women’s link deter-minists, are the cause of all other facets of life, in- with economic, social, and environmental issues in the de- cluding family structure, religion, ideology, and culture. velopment process in countries of the “South” (also called The concept when applied to the position of women would developing or third world countries). The women’s move- explain women’s subordination in terms of economics and ment in the 1970s and the recognition given to the ideas of social class. This implies, for example, that the position of feminism, women, and development during the United Na- women would improve if and when socialism replaces tions (UN) Decade for Women 1976–1985, have resulted in capitalism. It also suggests that women’s involvement in the inclusion of women in development programs to vari- paid work is central to their politicization and liberation. ous degrees. Policy approaches to women and development Although some feminists have attempted to work within have evolved from a focus on welfare to issues such as eq- the context of this theory, most have resisted such eco- uity, antipoverty, income generation, and empowerment. nomic explanations, concentrating more on the impact of Each of these approaches is based on a particular under- noneconomic factors on the condition of women. Some standing of women’s role in development. There is a sub- (for example, O’Brien, 1983) have argued that an exclusive stantial literature both examining the effects of these focus on productive relations ignores the importance of re- strategies on women and challenging the assumptions on productive processes (life is not only about finding food which they are based. and shelter but also about reproducing offspring); others (for example, Lerner, 1986) have argued that patriarchal Theoretical Concepts relations precede and override changes in economic or- Although the term women in development (WID) was ganization. Feminists (for example, Beasley, 1994) have first used by the Women’s Committee of the Society for

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International Development in Washington, D.C., it was development focused on minimizing the disadvantages of Esther Boserup, from Denmark, who provided the con- women in the productive sector, as well as adjusting the ceptual foundation for the field with her book Women’s imbalance of education and technological training between Role in Economic Development in 1970. This was one of men and women. It was assumed that expansion of educa- a series of three books on economic development in re- tion and health services would ultimately reach women, but lation to agriculture, women, and population that were they were not considered separately in this linear vision of stimulated by her research in India. In examining the development. global sexual division of labor in agrarian economies, Soon it was clear that (1) educational enrollments of fe- Boserup was the first to point out the differential impact males were lower at all levels, but especially at the second of modernization and technology on the work of men and third levels; (2) women were in the lowest-paying jobs and women. Boserup argued that women’s contribution because of lower education and the supplementary nature was substantial in family production in subsistence of their work; and (3) the new technologies were being in- economies. The problem of women’s unequal participa- troduced to men. tion arose with the shift to specialized production of The focus of women in development (WID) was how to goods and services when women’s work was replaced equalize educational and employment opportunities for by economic activities outside the home—activities, to women within existing development programs. This did which their access was limited. Modernization benefited not involve taking historical and cultural factors and class men much more than women. In agriculture women’s differences into account. It meant that development traditional economic roles were displaced by technol- projects tended to “add on” women’s issues in a welfare ogy, which became the realm of men. Industrialization approach focusing on income generation and training in increased job opportunities for women in urban areas, crafts, or in child care and health science. The assumption but women were seen as surplus labor in the lowest-pay- was that income generation would solve women’s prob- ing jobs. Modern land reforms changed the practice of lems without consideration of who controls that income. common cultivation in which both men and women The focus was exclusively on the productive aspects of worked. Through the introduction of private property, women’s lives, with no recognition of their reproductive land titles were transferred to men, making only men eli- roles. While production refers to making goods and serv- gible for loans and agricultural extension services. ices that have economic value, reproduction not only Women thus became unpaid family workers. Economic means producing children but also involves the daily tasks development changes women’s work, their fertility, and of the household, such as cooking, cleaning, and care of their role in the family and society. Although Boserup children and the elderly, which have no economic value has been criticized for not capturing all the complexities when performed within the family. of women’s lives, she was the first to use gender analysis By the mid 1970s, neo-Marxist feminists and depend- on generally available data. ency theorists turned their focus away from strategies for During the colonial period from the last quarter of the the integration of women (women in development, WID) to nineteenth century up to the mid-twentieth century, wom- look at the relationship between women and development en’s position deteriorated further. Colonial administrations (WAD), especially in terms of class. The unequal position favored the education of boys, and women were excluded of women was linked to a framework of global and class from the economic sphere of work. With independence, the inequalities, but the emphasis on class grouped oppressed major change for women was the spread in opportunities women with oppressed men, disregarding women’s subor- for education and paid work. dination by patriarchy, and other differences such as race The concept of development arose after decolonization, and ethnicity. Women’s work in the family and the from western notions of linear economic development that economy was recognized as essential to society, but only were based on ideas of rationality, individuality, and patri- work that had economic value was recognized. Thus WAD, archy. The idea of integrating women into development like WID, focused on the productive, not the reproductive, (women in development) was closely aligned to the mod- sector, so that interventions were aimed at income genera- ernization and human capital theories of the 1950s–1970s. tion and equity policies (for greater participation in the eco- Boserup’s analysis of women’s work in agriculture legiti- nomic sector) without consideration of the double burden mized a focus on women in the development process and of work for women. Development projects were to aim at argued that development assistance should reach women as developing skills, and women’s work was recognized as well as men. The call for better integration of women into being in the public domain. Western biases and a lack of

318 DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW understanding of women’s work in developing societies priorities for women in different parts of the world: “Equal- reinforced a false but sharp division between the public and ity, Development, and Peace.” The first of these concepts private spheres, so that household work and care of chil- represented the priorities of women in the West; the second dren and the elderly were given no economic value. represented women in the socialist bloc; the last repre- The gender and development approach (GAD) of the sented women in the third world. By the end of the decade 1980s was influenced by and postmodern (Nairobi Conference, 1985), it was realized that equality, postcolonial theories. It combined aspects of culture, peace, and development were inextricably interrelated be- power, hegemony (dominance maintained by power and cause there can be neither peace nor equality without eco- ideology), and patriarchy (dominance of men over women) nomic justice. More important, a global perspective was in defining women’s position in the political process that is needed to address the universal subordination of, and vio- development. It was a holistic approach that took into ac- lence against, women. The growth of indigenous women’s count the totality of women’s lives (inside and outside the movements throughout the developing world, along with home) and rejected the dichotomy between public and pri- the merging of women’s perspectives on development, vate that has been used to devalue women’s work at home. gave rise to global feminism. Feminist theory sees women’s oppression as intersecting While different feminist perspectives still exist, there is with class, race, and culture, and as being embedded in his- a general consensus now about rethinking the very concept tory. While class distinctions are important, patriarchy is of development. The assumption of WID and WAD was seen as cutting across class lines. The family (power rela- that development and growth were in themselves the ideal tions and work distribution inside the home) was outside within which women were to be integrated. The call for the framework of WID and WAD, but GAD saw oppression “another development” (Dakar seminar on “Another De- of women in the family as significantly related to develop- velopment with Women,” 1985) to replace dependent de- ment. There was a fundamental recognition of the social velopment emphasized interdependence among people at construction of gender relations in productive and repro- all levels and rejection of existing structures of domination ductive roles, and this was seen as the basis of women’s at the international, national, and household levels. Em- oppression. powerment and the need for women to define themselves Feminist scholars have started questioning the predomi- was further reiterated by Development Alternatives with nantly male understanding of development and offering Women for a New Era (DAWN; see Sen and Grown, 1987), women’s perspectives on development through a different which focused on the need for ethical and nurturing aspects “voice.” This is central to the identity of women as “sub- of women’s lives to be incorporated in the concept of de- jects” rather than as “objects” of development, as agents of velopment. A new vision of development means depicting change rather than as recipients of welfare. The focus is on it in feminist terms because of the close relationship be- the process through which different forms of knowledge tween women’s subordination and socioeconomic and po- are prioritized and valued as development even when they litical aspects of society. lead to oppression and violence; on what development An important aspect of a new vision of development is means in terms of justice and values, and as an aspect of a the environment. Ecofeminists from industrialized and culture in the process of human evolution; and on the rela- third world countries have developed theoretical insights tionship between power and consciousness and human dig- linking women’s intimate relationship with nature to their nity (Freire, 1970). According to this analysis, it is the daily lives. Western-style progress based on unrestrained power of women that we must focus on if women are to exploitation of the earth’s finite resources not only has en- move from the margin to the center (hooks, 1989). Empow- dangered our planet’s existence but has been especially erment for women is a sense of control over their lives. detrimental to the majority of women who live in rural ar- eas and are involved in getting food, fuel, water, and medi- Feminism and Development cine, as well as in activities such as farming and raising Initially, western feminists did not include imperialism, co- animals. Environmental degradation causes droughts and lonialism, or racism in their analysis of women’s situations. imbalances in the ecosystem, which particularly affect the Nor were they sensitive to differences in the economic re- health of women for whom nature is a vital source of suste- alities of women’s lives in developing countries, to the or- nance. Women in some areas (such as desert and dry re- ganization of family and kinship groups, or even to the gions) spend considerable energy and time gathering food values regarding these institutions. The slogan for the UN and fuel and collecting water. Several indigenous women’s Decade (Mexico City, 1975) symbolized the differences in environmental movements have shown that women are a

319 DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW source of power and creativity in the concept of sustainable Program introduced the Human Development Index in an development—the type of development that sustains and attempt to capture both social and economic indicators protects the environment and biological diversity. Agenda such as life expectancy, education, and income. However, 21 of the UN Conference on Environment and Develop- qualitative factors are not easily measured. For example, ment (Rio de Janerio, 1992), which brought together the capacity development is a participatory process, and self- values and ideas of 1,500 women from the “North” and the confidence, empowerment, and consciousness raising are “South,” recognized women’s integral role in environmen- significant aspects of development for women. tal management and outlined ways to achieve a sustainable world with the help of women. Patriarchy While emphasis on the daily needs of women is very im- Women’s Issues portant in development projects, there is a danger of over- What constitutes women’s issues in development? This is look-ing structural and strategic issues and neglecting not a list of concerns; rather, it is a political perspective on women’s interests. Endorsement of equal rights is not suf- women’s lives that links the themes of their roles, image, ficient for prevention of discrimination, because oppres- and the desirable society. Women tend to have a differing sive practices are passively tolerated. The total life worldview, a more humane economics. For example, some experiences of women—their work in bearing and rearing studies have found that women in small enterprises in south children and caring for the sick and elderly, and their Asia often use profit to improve family nutrition and edu- household chores, on the one hand, and their paid labor in cate their children rather than simply reinvest it (Tinker, the public sphere, on the other—cannot and should not be 1987). Women’s responsibilities vary by class and involve separated. Even though they are often overworked, a complex balance of wage and nonwage activities. While women are less valued economically than men; their there are class and regional variations, the majority of daughters are put to work in the house and are less valued women in poor countries work up to 12 to 14 hours a day in than their sons. Quite often their work in microenterprises the home as well as being farmers, food processors, provid- (such as food processing in rural areas and street vending ers of water and fuel, craft makers, weavers, and potters. in cities) is perceived as an extension of their domestic ac- And none of this is considered work. One reason is that a tivity. Moreover, if women’s ventures are successful, men key factor in measuring development has been statistics— tend to take them over. aggregate data that ignore differences based on gender, The structural causes of women’s subordination (class class, geographical region, and age. Disaggregated statis- and patriarchy) are complicated by religion, ethnicity, and tics create “illusions” of growth and development. For ex- caste (in India). Patriarchy is maintained through moderni- ample, development and modernization create conflict and zation because households are characterized by patriarchal commodification, which devalue women, resulting in, for bargains (that is, conflicts and cooperation) that are struc- example, female infanticide, trafficking in women, and an tured along gender lines. These shape women’s conscious- increase in dowries in India (although this is forbidden by ness of inequality, conditioning them for control of their the constitution). labor (Sen, 1990). Female mortality rates and skewed sex ratios are linked to (1) availability of services in health care Indicators and education and (2) intrahousehold power and allotments If development is measured only by economic indicators of food and care. such as income of women, then the important goal of well- Structures of subordination reinforce one another being is missed. However, economic indicators are a means through the family, the media, and the education system. to an end. The importance of income and an increasing With modernization there has been a disappearance of cer- GNP should not be underestimated, not only because of the tain traditional norms that protected women from some obvious link to prevention of diseases and death, but also forms of sexual aggression. Religious revivalism and fun- because a sound economy enables the provision of better damentalist movements restore the power of patriarchy in social services. new forms. On the whole there is an increase in media re- The shift from purely economic factors in the concept of ports on new forms of violence against women within as development to human factor led, in the 1970s and 1980s, well as outside the home. Reducing violence is as related to to the “basic needs” approach in development indicators. development as is the notion of equality. The hope is that This included data on education, health, nutrition, housing, since inequality and violent behavior are socially con- safe water, and sanitation. By 1990, the UN Development structed and learned, they can be unlearned.

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Education distribution and calorie intake are linked to women’s eco- nomic power. Changes in women’s position (especially in higher educa- tion) took place over the last decades of the twentieth cen- Work tury in most developing countries. But inequality in There is general agreement that paidwork is a necessary but education and employment is still pervasive. While there not a sufficient condition of high status for women. How- are fewer visible constraints, social norms, role conflict, and discrimination in the home and employment (often ever, the form of earning and who controls the earning are important because in some cultures men appropriate wom- subtle) prevent equality of opportunity. Education of girls en’s wages. Ironically, increasing women’s opportunity to at all levels of the system continues to be a problem be- cause availability of educational opportunities does not en- work often results in overwork, with no accompanying im- provement in status. sure their utilization. Class is an important determinant of In most cases, women’s ability to do skilled work out- educational and professional opportunities for females. With a large percentage of the population in extreme pov- side the home enhances their social standing and the care they receive within the family. When women have more erty, the value of work which must be given up to educate money to spend, they usually have a greater say in deci- girls (a course that is seen as risky), and cultural disparities, enforce a legacy of limited opportunities for girls in the sions regarding family welfare, which affects intrahousehold distribution and the nutritional status of education system. The real beneficiaries of legislation re- children. However, with economic development, there has garding education and equality have been urban middle- class women, who constitute a small minority. Purdah and been a shift from time-intensive traditional foods to time- saving foods, which are often less nutritious. the related concept of female chastity and honor remain factors in early withdrawal from school and in the fear of Economic Liberalization and Its Impact on Women coeducational institutions, particularly in rural areas. There is a ongoing debate on the probable positive and Technology negative impact on women of newly introduced economic liberalization programs in many third world countries. The The sociopolitical context of technological change results issues are (1) the complex area of women’s work, both pro- in differential access to training in technology, and, there- ductive and reproductive work (such as children’s suste- fore, a decline in women’s status. Technology and educa- nance and upbringing); (2) women’s health, education, and tion perpetuate social relations of gender, but access to training; (3) their employment opportunities; (4) their time them is a necessary if not a sufficient condition for im- and leisure; and (5) the amount of stress and bargaining provement in women’s status. Has technology improved power created in family cooperation and conflict. Eco- women’s lives and given them more leisure? What are the nomic Liberalization refers to economic and industrial re- sociocultural, economic, and political barriers to training in structuring along the lines of capitalism, in which private technology for women? While the development of appro- ownership, profit, and a market framework regulate activ- priate technology built indigenously has indeed helped ity. In both private and state-run enterprises there has been women in some countries of the “South,” too much reli- a change in the nature of employment that has led to more ance on such technology may ghettoize women in the midst flexible hiring of casuals and temporaries. These policies of wider technological changes. result in a decline in wage employment of both male and female members, leading to a decline in total household Health income. All south Asian countries are “female-deficit” countries as There is much literature examining economic liberaliza- indicated by mortality and ratios of females to males. The tion policies in developing countries from a gender per- female deficit in India alone, as calculated by Sen (1993), spective, mostly at the societal (macro) level. There are means that 37 million women are missing if 1.02 is used as increased job opportunities due to feminization of the the average ratio. Sen found that women in south Asian workforce, but it is generally agreed that during the liber- countries have to be more seriously ill than men to be taken alization period women bear the cost of transition. This is to a hospital and that calorie intake is far less for females because market processes undervalue anything not directly than for men. The male household head is the most favored, calculable in terms of money. Overall, the effects of poli- and young female children receive the least in nutrition. cies on women’s roles lead to increased demands on wom- The factors that influence patterns of intrahousehold food en’s already overstretched time and have adverse effects on

321 DEVELOPMENT: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND women’s nutrition and health. Evidence from Latin increase women’s earning capacity (practical need) while America, sub-Saharan Africa, and southeast Asia indicates simultaneously empowering them (strategic need). that during structural changes there is usually a sharp re- duction of budget-fiscal deficit, requiring a reduction of See Also subsidies for activities not valued by the market, and lead- DAWN; ECOFEMINISM; ECONOMY, specific entries; FAMILY: ing to cutbacks in public-sector jobs. POWER RELATIONS AND POWER STRUCTURES; First, restructuring in public services transfers work MODERNIZATION; TECHNOLOGY: WOMEN AND from the paid to the unpaid economy. Cutbacks in health DEVELOPMENT shift the burden of care to the community and household, and thus to females. Second, opening domestic markets to References and Further Reading competition leads to sharp increases in consumerism that, Another development with women. 1982. Development Dialogue combined with patriarchal structures, restrict females’ free- 1:2. dom. Third, privatization reduces women’s social as well Boserup, Ether. 1970. Women’s role in economic development. as collective rights as citizens in terms of economic assets. New York: St. Martin’s. Fourth, inflation and devaluation of national currency (usu- Elson, D, ed. 1991. Male bias in the development process. Man- ally a component of economic restructuring) result in rising chester: Manchester University Press. prices. Higher food prices affect nutritional levels of Freire, P. 1970. Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Con- women, who, traditionally, keep the worst for themselves. tinuum. This results in time pressures on women because they hooks, bell. 1989. Feminist theory from margin to center. Boston: spend more time looking for cheaper prices and preparing South End. food. Finally, greater economic integration of the global Krishnaraj, M., R.M.Sudarshan, and A.Shariff, eds. 1998. Gender, economy is changing the structure and conditions of em- population and development. Delhi and New York: Oxford ployment (more part-time, nonunionized labor). University Press. Economic liberalization policies and liberating market Sachs, C.E. ed. 1997. Women working in the environment. Wash- forces consider only the productive economy (paid labor), ington, D.C., and London: Taylor and Francis. not unpaid labor. They are, therefore, structurally biased Sen., A.K. 1993. Economics of life and death. Scientific American against women, since it is women who undertake most un- 268 (5: May):40–47. paid work. Relationships that are not intrinsically ——. 1990. Gender and cooperative conflicts. In I.Tinker, ed., gendered, such as monetary and commercial relations, be- Persistent Inequalities. Oxford: Oxford University Press. come unequal between males and females (Whitehead, Sen, G., and C.Grown, 1987. Development, crisis, and alternative 1979) because of the sexual division of labor. The subordi- visions. New York: Monthly Review. nation of women constrains their choices, and overwork Tinker, I. 1987. The human economy of micro-entrepreneurs. Pa- can bring them to the breaking point (Elson, 1991). per presented at the International Seminar on Women in Mi- cro- and Small-Scale Enterprise Development, 26 October, Conclusion Ottawa, Canada. Changes in women’s position result from development ef- Whitehead, A. 1979. Some preliminary notes on the subordination forts that perpetuate their subordination by responding to of women. IDS Bulletin 10 (3). their practical (work) and material (money) needs, rather Ratna Ghosh than their strategic interest (empowerment). Wage work, literacy, and education tend to improve the overall status of women. Literacy and education raise women’s conscious- ness, and working outside the home exposes women to the world and empowers them to challenge the traditional so- DEVELOPMENT: cioeconomic order. A distinction must be made between Australia and New Zealand the condition of women and their position. Condition refers to their material state (poverty, lack of access to education, Similarities between Australia and New Zealand were few technology, and credit, burden of work); position refers to before European settlement in the eighteenth century. their social and economic location in society relative to Since that time, however, a common Anglo-Celtic ancestry men. The politics of location (their powerlessness) influ- of the white populations, together with location and other ences women’s strategic interests. What is needed is to geo-graphical similarities, has dominated the socioeconomic

322 DEVELOPMENT: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND development of both countries. In particular, the period that a new integrated taxation and welfare system should since the early 1970s has been one of parallel socioeco- be put in place to provide a minimum level of income sup- nomic and political change, which has generated a com- port to all adults, irrespective of their circumstances, and mon set of socioeconomic problems for the women of both abated progressively as additional income is earned countries. Indigenous and ethnic subgroups in each coun- (Hyman, 1994). try face additional problems arising from racial and reli- Except for the issues facing indigenous and ethnic sub- gious intolerance in the face of an increasing desire for the groups, the socioeconomic changes affecting women in maintenance or reestablishment of their cultural identity. Australia and New Zealand are similar to those affecting The economic issues arising from these changes are women throughout the developed world. The most impor- associated with the need for women of all ethnic and tant of these are the rise in the number of sole-parent fami- class backgrounds to be treated equitably in the lies, the aging of the population, and the increasing workplace and under the taxation and welfare systems. participation of married women in the labor force. Equity in the workplace involves equal access for all Women represent more than 80 percent of all sole par- women to the full range of available work within the of- ents and an increasing proportion of the aged population. ficial market sector of the economy; equal access to pro- Poverty and the attendant problem of socioeconomic isola- motion for those who are working; access to appropriate tion are the major issues these women must face. The in- education and training in order to place women in a po- creasing feminization of poverty in Australia and New sition where they can reasonably expect to have access Zealand is due largely to the dominance of women in these to the full range of jobs and promotions opportunities; two expanding population subgroups. More than 70 per- equal pay for work of equal value; and extension of the cent of Australian and New Zealand female sole parents are full range of nonwage employment conditions and pro- receiving government-funded income support. These visions, including superannuation, security of tenure, women also have high rates of joblessness and low rates of holiday, sickness, and parental leave, to women in all home ownership, which contribute to their increasing pre- sectors of the workforce. dominance at the bottom of the income distribution for all Equity under the taxation and welfare systems involves families. a restructuring of these systems to eliminate distortions that Female sole parents, together with all Australian and lead to socioeconomic deprivation, in particular for those New Zealand women, face a labor market distorted by in- women with responsibility for the care of children. This dustrial relations structures that operate against women, restructuring involves the elimination of poverty traps; pro- particularly women with responsibility for children. Of vision of sufficient, good-quality, subsidized child care; more urgent concern for sole parents, however, is the ineq- and provision of sufficient financial support for low-in- uitable treatment they receive under the taxation and wel- come mothers, including those without partners. fare systems. The level of income support they receive is typically insufficient to provide them with an acceptable Welfare Systems standard of living. More important, the interaction of the Unlike the social insurance schemes common in Europe taxation and welfare systems generates high effective mar- and the United States, which rely on the contributions of ginal tax rates that in some circumstances result in workers’ individuals from their market earnings, the welfare sys- losing more than 100 percent of any increased income they tems in Australia and New Zealand are categorical and gain from other sources, usually market work. (High effec- funded out of general taxation revenue. As such, they are tive marginal tax rates occur because of an overlap between relatively more equitable, with a common set of regula- pension losses and taxation payments. For example, in tions and income support applying to all in the targeted Australia pension recipients lose their pension at a rate of group irrespective of previous market earnings and taxa- 50 cents for every dollar earned above $300 per week. Be- tion contributions. This is advantageous for women, espe- fore all of the pension income is lost, the pension recipient cially those who spend relatively small amounts of time in also reaches a point where income from all sources is work. The disadvantages are (1) the relatively low levels of taxed. With a tax rate of, say, 20 cents on the dollar, the income support available and (2) use of the household in effective marginal tax rate becomes 70 percent. At the point assessing eligibility for support, rather than the individual, where all pension income is lost because of increased in- as is done in both countries for taxation purposes. Femi- come from other sources, the pension recipient also loses nists have argued that either the existing system should be the Pensioner Fringe Benefits Card, which entitles the changed to evaluate eligibility on an individual basis or bearer of reductions on things such as public transportation,

323 DEVELOPMENT: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND entertainment, telephone and electricity charges, and phar- for aged women is the progressive withdrawal of govern- maceuticals. The loss of these entitlements also represents ment support for residential care. This is worsening the so- an effective loss of income that, in some circumstances, is cioeconomic deprivation of the aged, in particular aged high enough to raise the effective marginal tax rate to more women, whose powerlessness also is often made worse by than 100 percent. Poverty traps are generated by similar increasing physical or intellectual feebleness. The severe conditions in New Zealand.) These high effective marginal neglect within which many aged women pass the final days tax rates generate poverty traps for women in that they of their lives is a pressing social issue that is intensified by make it impossible to improve one’s economic circum- the increasing aging of the population. stances through paid employment. Poverty traps, together with an insufficient level of income support from official Women’s Position in Paid Work welfare programs, are a potent force keeping women in The growing workforce participation of all women, and in poverty. Poverty traps have also been largely responsible particular married women, has emerged from, as well as for the recent increase in imprisonment of women with contributed to, women’s changing perceptions of them- children. Being unable to alleviate their poverty through selves and the changing status of women within the com- official means, these women often work in the unofficial munity and the family. In 1947, 24.9 percent of Australian market (which is often termed the underground economy) women were in the official labor market. By June 1994 this without reporting their earnings to the government depart- figure had more than doubled, to 52.3 percent. These fig- ment administering the income support program. Increas- ures for Australia include all women who worked for at ing expenditure by these departments on the surveillance of least one hour each week or were looking for either full- welfare recipients has led to many women’s being discov- time or part-time work. The closest comparable figures for ered in this practice and subsequently imprisoned. New Zealand are for 1945, when 28.5 percent of all New The distorting effect of poverty traps in reducing partici- Zealand women worked at least 20 hours each week or pation in the workforce is reinforced for women with chil- were looking for either full-time or part-time work. In dren because of the financial and other costs associated 1994, 54.4 percent of all New Zealand women worked at with the provision of childcare. The cost of child care is least one hour each week or were looking for either full- also a major factor inhibiting sole parents from engaging in time or part-time work. education and training programs and taking part in other The increase in married women’s participation in the activities that would alleviate the socioeconomic isolation official labor market has been even more spectacular. In suffered by many of these women. 1947, 6.5 percent of Australian married women either In general, a lack of commitment by government in both worked or wanted to work. The closest figure for New Zea- countries to the provision of adequate income support for land is for 1945 when, 7.7 percent of married women either low-income families and the provision of adequate child worked or wanted to work. By 1994 these figures had in- care facilities disadvantages all women. In this regard, Aus- creased to 53.4 percent for Australia and 58.8 percent for tralian women are somewhat better off than their New Zea- New Zealand. Over these same periods, married women’s land counterparts, because a universal allowance for share of the total female labor force increased from 15.3 caregivers was instituted in Australia in 1994 to provide in- percent to 59.4 percent in Australia and from 23.2 percent come support to low-income women who remain at home to 63 percent in New Zealand (Lambert and Petridis, 1994; to care for their children. A scheme similar to this was abol- Statistics New Zealand, 1993). ished in New Zealand in 1990. For all working women, workplace equity is a major is- The growing aged population in both countries has sue. There has been significant progress in this regard in heightened awareness of both the needs of an aged popula- both countries in terms of equal pay and policies toward tion and the costliness of meeting these needs. Income sup- equal employment opportunity. Equal pay for equal work, port is provided in both countries from general revenue, equal pay for work of equal value, and antidiscrimination although the structure of the New Zealand system is prefer- legislation were established progressively in Australia over able in that it provides an independent income for all aged a decade and a half from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s. In individuals regardless of their family circumstances. In New Zealand equal pay for equal work was established in Australia, although wives receive their pension allowance the public sector in 1960 and in the remainder of the independently from their partners, this allowance is paid at economy progressively between 1973 and 1977, with a lower married-couple rate to couples who live together in antidiscrimination legislation enacted in 1977 and its scope de jure or de facto relationships. However, the major concern extended in 1993. Less progress has been made in New

324 DEVELOPMENT: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

Zealand on equal pay for work of equal value and compul- within individual enterprises. Women who have gained en- sory equal employment opportunity plans; legislation cov- try to the male-dominated sectors of the economy may ben- ering both was passed by Labour government in 1990 but efit from such a change. However, the vast majority of was repealed by the incoming National government in the women are likely to suffer losses, both in pay and in work- same year. ing conditions, because of their lower levels of unioniza- Women’s increasing share of total employment is also tion in the private sector, their concentration in small indicative of an improvement in the economic circum- workplaces and service industries, and the casual or part- stances of many women. However, earnings differentiated time nature of much of this employment. This is exacer- by gender, persistent high levels of occupational segrega- bated by high levels of unemployment, arising from tion, and relatively lower levels of workplace training sug- recession and a drive for increased productivity, which gest a continuing lack of workplace equity in both have given employers more power in negotiations. countries. Women in both countries are concentrated in Moreover, the industrial relations structures of both part-time employment and in small workplaces where countries have evolved under the domination of men and earnings and other conditions of work such as superannua- therefore contain little consideration of the particular tion, vacations, sickness and parental leave, and job secu- workforce issues relevant to women. For example, few in- rity are limited to the minimum code, which may itself not dustrial awards contain provision for parental leave or any be strongly enforced. Although some married women are other consideration for workers with the care and responsi- moving into well-paid full-time work, an increasing major- bility of children. The move to a system of enterprise bar- ity remain in the traditional female sectors, where employ- gaining significantly weakens women workers’ ability to ment outcomes are poorest. In Australia this is particularly change the industrial relations structures to reflect their true for young women in full-time employment. In 1983, need for work-based child care, parental leave, or further the gender earnings differential for ordinary-time hourly education and training. Without family-friendly earnings (that is, without overtime) stood at 76.3 percent workplaces and more equal sharing within households, for Australia and 79 percent for New Zealand. By 1993, women are inclined to suffer a double burden and have this had improved only slightly, to 79.8 percent in Australia fewer opportunities in paid work. and 81 percent in New Zealand (Hyman, 1994; Lambert The politically fashionable ideology of the free market, and Petridis, 1994). from which the deregulation policies have evolved, is also affecting the ability of women, in particular older women, Economic Changes to gain the education levels necessary to compete on an Politically generated economic changes, some of them equal basis with men for the full range of better jobs. The arising surprisingly from populist labor governments in Australian federal government has reduced its per capita both countries, are continuing to have a major impact on real spending on all forms of tertiary education and, at the the economic circumstances of Australia and New Zealand same time, has directed the tertiary sector of the educa- women. From the early 1980s both economies have been tional system to give preference to recent graduates over engaged in a process of restructuring through progressive older applicants for places in their institutions. This will deregulation in the financial sector, the overseas sector, have an impact on the participation of older women in and the labor market. This deregulation has been accom- higher education. In both countries, measures such as in- panied by privatization of government enterprises and creased fees and a loan system where repayment favors the instrumen-talities and a reduction in staffing levels in the higher-paid are likely to deter many women from entering remaining sectors of government. Falling employment in tertiary education. These measures were introduced on the the public sector and deregulation of the labor market have basis of arguments that emphasized the private gains, in been particularly important for women, for whom the pub- terms of higher earnings, resulting from higher education. lic sector has been an important source of high-quality Other arguments, emphasizing the public benefit associ- employment. In Australia in particular, reduced employ- ated with higher education, were given little weight. In both ment opportunities in the public sector are forcing more countries these changes are likely to reduce women’s cur- women into less stable, less well remunerated private sec- rent relatively high levels of education, placing women at a tor employment. further disadvantage, relative to men, in the labor market. Labor market deregulation is progressing through re- They will also further decrease participation in higher edu- ductions in centralized wage determination and a move- cation by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, ment toward bargaining between employers and employees Maori women, and other disadvantaged groups.

325 DEVELOPMENT: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

Impacts on Indigenous Women official language; in the very successful development by While the issues discussed above operate to disadvantage Maori women of Kohango Reo, that is, Maori immer-sion all women, it is unfortunately true in Australia and New kindergarten education; and in the arguments by many Zealand, as it is elsewhere, that the most disadvantaged are Maori groups for devolution of funding and provision of those from indigenous or non-English-speaking back- services such as education and health to tribal and extended grounds. These women must carry the additional burden of family groups (the iwi and whanau). In addition, Maori racial intolerance as they strive to maintain or recapture women have taken a claim to the Waitangi Tribunal to se- their cultural identity, while seeking to establish them- cure access to decision-making bodies of all types. More selves as equal members within the wider socioeconomic recently, the position and needs of other ethnic groups, par- community. Both the New Zealand Maori and the Austral- ticularly Pacific Islanders, some of whom have automatic ian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders fare badly on all immigrant rights, have been receiving attention. socioeconomic measures, including earnings, education, In Australia, multiculturalism has been of greater im- and rates of imprisonment, morbidity, and mortality. Issues portance; it is recognized that the diverse immigrant com- of self-determination, land rights, and other means of re- munities have both shared and varied concerns that dress-ing these and other long-standing grievances are cru- require social and political expression. The Mabo decision cial to the indigenous peoples of both countries. in 1994 was a major policy shift in the path to full recogni- The European patriarchal structures that have been im- tion of and reconciliation with the indigenous peoples of posed on indigenous peoples in both countries are particu- Australia. larly inappropriate in the case of the Australian Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders. In particular, they have forced Conclusion indigenous Australian women to bear the major burden of Although there have been important legislative changes responsibility for support of their families and, thus, the aimed at reducing economic discrimination against major burden of the overall socioeconomic disadvantage women, in particular in the workplace, many Australian suffered by these people. and New Zealand women still face considerable socioeco- Maori, the tangata whenua (indigenous people) of nomic hardship. Moreover, current political and economic Aotearoa-New Zealand, form a larger proportion of the changes are having the effect of increasing this hardship population than do Australian Aboriginal and Torres through reducing the incentives and opportunities for Strait Islanders: about 14 percent against 3 percent. This women to engage in further education and by bringing is largely a consequence of the relatively poorer treatment about changes in the labor market that further reduce the of indigenous peoples that occurred in Australia after Eu- ability of women to eliminate the industrial relations biases ropean settlement. There, numbers of indigenous peoples that operate against them. were severely depleted, partly because of their isolation These changes, together with the increasing on reserves and the removal of many of their children. feminization of poverty, indicate a growing disparity not Such experiences were not shared to the same extent by only between men and women but also among women the New Zealand Maori. The relatively better treatment of themselves, with relatively few women gaining signifi- the Maori by the colonizing Europeans is partly responsi- cantly, while the majority are becoming increasingly eco- ble for the earlier progress on the Maori claims for recog- nomically disadvantaged through increasingly poor and nition and compensation than has been the case in insecure employment and high rates of welfare depend- Australia. The Treaty of Waitangi, signed with the British ence. Economic theory, systems, and policies inevitably crown in 1840, and the Waitangi Tribunal have also been reflect philosophies and values. Recent trends toward de- important in this regard. The Waitangi Tribunal has been regulation and a reliance on the operation of markets place crucial to the settling of Maori claims over the past 10 an emphasis on individual choice without due considera- years, whereas in Australia claims progressed very slowly tion of the systematic differences in constraints, power, and without official recognition before the Mabo decision and resources possessed by different groups. This can only in 1994, which granted land rights to Aborigines and emphasize existing biases against women, ethnic minori- Torres Strait Islanders. ties, and those of lower socioeconomic status. The goal of In New Zealand, biculturalism, through recognition of economic independence for all, including women, on the Maori people as the indigenous ethnic minority, has which voluntary and community systems of interdepend- been given priority over multiculturalism. This is evi- ence can be built, is still a long way off in Australia and denced in the recognition of Maori alongside English as an New Zealand.

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See Also life have had negative effects on many women. As in the ENVIRONMENT: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND; FEMINISM: case of men, the impact on women of the reintro-duction of AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND; INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S the market and of efforts to create democratic political in- RIGHTS; POLITICS AND THE STATE: AUSTRALIA, NEW stitutions has depended on other factors. Women who are ZEALAND, AND THE PACIFIC ISLANDS younger, are better educated, and live in urban areas have been better positioned to take advantage of the new oppor- References and Further Reading tunities that the end of communist rule has created. Older, Briar, Celia, Robyn Mumford, and Mary Nash, eds. 1992. less well educated women have suffered more hardships. Superwomen, where are you? Social policy and women’s ex- Elderly women and single mothers have been particularly perience. Palmerston North, N.Z.: Dunmore. vulnerable to the economic disruptions the move to the Else, Anne. 1996. False economy: New Zealanders face the con- market has created. flict between paid and unpaid work. Birkenhead, N.Z.: Tan- Women and the Shift to the Market dem. Hyman, Prue. 1994. Women and economics: A New Zealand femi- With the end of communist rule, political leaders in central nist perspective. Wellington, N.Z.: Bridget Williams. and eastern Europe began the complicated process of re- Kelsey, Jane. 1999. Reclaiming the future: New Zealand and the creating a market economy. In certain countries, such as global economy. Wellington, N.Z.: Bridget Williams. Poland and Hungary, leaders were able to build on the ear- Lambert, Sue F,. and Ray Petridis. 1994. Occupational segrega- lier efforts of communist party leaders to introduce ele- tion and female employment over the trade cycle. Canberra, ments of the market. In others, such as Czechoslovakia, Australia: Women’s Policy Section, Department of Employ- Bulgaria, Albania, and Romania, economic life was almost ment, Education and Training. entirely in the hands of the state prior to the end of commu- O’Donnell, Christine, and Philippa Hall. 1988. Getting equal: La- nist rule, and the introduction of the market required bour market regulation and women’s work. Sydney: Allen greater effort. and Unwin. Women can now form private businesses or work in pri- Sharp, Rhonda, and Ray Broomhill. 1988. Shortchanged: Women vate-sector enterprises. They can also practice their occu- and economic policies. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. pations without the ideological interference that was a Statistics New Zealand. 1993. All about women in New Zealand. common feature of the communist era. Survey research Wellington, N.Z.: Statistics of New Zealand. conducted in several of these countries indicates that women Statistics New Zealand and Ministry of Women’s Affairs. 1999. are less supportive than men of the move to the market (see New Zealand now—Women, 1998 edition. Wellington, N.Z.: Jaquette and Wolchik, 1998). However, women are enter- Statistics New Zealand. ing the private sphere as both entrepreneurs and workers. The shift to the market has also brought benefits to Sue Lambert women as consumers. In contrast to the situation during the Prue Hyman communist era, when shortages of basic goods needed to run a household were frequent in most countries, a wide variety of goods and an increasing assortment of services are now readily available for those who are able to pay for them. DEVELOPMENT: Women have encountered problems in both of these ar- Central and Eastern Europe eas, however. The period immediately after the end of com- munism saw many women as well as men react to the The situation of women in central and eastern Europe re- pattern of changes in gender roles that had occurred under flects the impact of the transition from communist rule in communist rule. Under communism, the proportion of both the political and the economic realm. Women’s roles women in the labor force increased dramatically in all of and opportunities also continue to be conditioned by the the countries in the region. Women’s educational levels legacy of communist rule as well as by values, attitudes, also increased markedly. But while women’s employment and practices that predate the communist era. outside the home became an accepted fact during the com- The end of communist rule in central and eastern Eu- munist period, many inequalities remained in the rope has brought many new opportunities for both women workplace. More women entered technical fields than and men in the region. At the same time, the transition to previously, but there was still a good deal of occupational the market and the effort to reintroduce democratic political segregation by gender. This situation in part reflected the

327 DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE different educational specializations of men and women, as forms of discrimination in the workplace. These range girls and boys chose and were channeled into different ar- from lower wages for women to degrading requests for eas of education. Women’s wages were generally 60 to 70 sexual services. It is common for job advertisements to percent less than those of men, and women were far less specify the gender of the prospective employee, and older likely than men to hold leading economic positions, even in women in particular are vulnerable to being replaced by areas of the economy in which they predominated, such as younger women who are presumed to be more attractive. education and medicine. Women’s wages continue to be lower than those of men After the end of censorship, many voices in these coun- with similar education in similar occupations. Foreign cor- tries called for women to return to the home. Many women porations appear to contribute to these practices. Many hire activists also felt that women’s levels of employment were young men for management training positions while hiring too high and called for women to have a choice concerning young women with comparable educational background paid employment. Survey research suggests that many and qualifications primarily as clerical workers. women in the region are ambivalent about their jobs. Most Women face increased competition from men in areas of women indicated, as men did when asked similar ques- the economy that were largely women’s preserves because tions, that they worked primarily for economic reasons. they offered lower-than-average wages, such as services, However, many, particularly those who were younger and banking, tourism, and financial management. As these better educated, also said that they would continue to work fields become more financially attractive, more men are even if it were not necessary. Similar attitudes have been entering them. The situation of older women is particularly documented by survey research conducted after the end of difficult. Although pensions have increased to account for communism in the region (see Wolchik and Rueschemeyer increased prices of food and most other goods and services, entries in Rueschemeyer, 1994). many older women live in poverty. In practice, financial considerations prevent most The decline in the standard of living of the population women from withdrawing from the labor force voluntarily. that accompanied the introduction of the market also has As in the communist period, two incomes are necessary for had a disproportionately negative impact on women. Be- most families to survive. Economic uncertainty and other cause it is still women who care for the home and family, elements of the move to the market, such as the closing of the need to stretch the family budget to cover the increased unprofitable enterprises, have increased the importance to expense of goods and services necessary for running a fam- families of having two incomes. Women’s labor force par- ily has fallen largely on women’s shoulders. Improvements ticipation has declined in most countries of the region, but in economic performance in many of these countries sug- this decline has occurred largely as the result of worsening gest that living standards should soon improve, but many unemployment rather than choice on the part of women. families will continue to find it difficult to meet their needs Women are more likely to be unemployed in all of these for some time to come. countries with the exception of Hungary. This situation has Changes in the organization of services have also com- been particularly difficult in the former East Germany, plicated women’s lives. The need to make a profit has led where overall unemployment rates are particularly high. some factories to close their child care facilities; lack of Women who become unemployed also have a more diffi- funds has prompted many municipal governments to do the cult time than their male counterparts in finding new posi- same. The decline in public spending on other services and tions and are more likely to become “discouraged the shift to a needs-based system of providing social ben- workers,” those who no longer actively seek new jobs. efits has also had an impact on family budgets. Women also face new demands at the workplace and, in many cases, increasingly open discrimination. In the first Social and Psychological Issues area, women have come under pressure to work more effi- Raised by the Transition ciently, work longer hours, and improve their skills. These In addition to dealing with economic change, women have demands affect men as well, but many of the new kinds of had to cope with the uncertainty and other social and psy- expertise and the nature of the work required of employees chological costs of the transition. Men have also been af- disadvantage women, given the lack of change in gender fected by these factors. However, in these as well as other roles in the home. Women are no longer able to use working societies, women continue to be primarily responsible for time to take care of family business, as many were able to the emotional well-being of the family and so must help do during the communist era. other family members cope with the disruptions caused by The end of communism has also seen increasingly open the large-scale changes that have occurred.

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The opening of borders and the end of tight political con- that brought about the collapse of communism in East Ger- trol have exacerbated many existing social problems and cre- many, Czechoslovakia, and Romania, women’s representa- ated new ones. Drug abuse and violence against women have tion in the national legislatures dropped significantly in all increased. Pornography and prostitution have also increased, countries. This decline in the number of women legislators as have other forms of sexual exploitation of women. does not signify as large a decrease in women’s exercise of In the former Yugoslavia, the end of communist rule has political power as it might seem, because the women who had devastating consequences for most women outside of served in the governmental and party elites under commu- Slovenia. As a result of the civil war, many women became nism differed in important ways from their male counter- refugees or died. Others were forced to endure dislocation, parts and exercised little real influence. Though fewer in hunger, rape, and other forms of violence. These were par- numbers, women leaders now have educational back- ticularly severe in Kosovo, where much of the Albanian grounds and career patterns that more closely resemble population was forced to leave the country in the first half those of their male colleagues. The small number of of 1999 as the result of Serbian ethnic cleansing policies. women leaders is important, however, because it is one of Most refugees returned to Kosovo after an intensive NATO the factors limiting women’s ability to use the political bomb-ing campaign forced Serbian leaders to agree to the process to raise issues of particular concern to them. presence of international peacekeeping forces. However, Since the end of communist rule, women have been able daily life still bears the marks of dislocation and ethnic vio- to organize independently. Numerous women’s groups lence. Although the impact on women has not been as great have formed in all of the formerly communist countries. as in the former Yugoslavia, women in a number of other Most do not consider themselves to be feminist, and many countries in the region have also been subjected to nation- deny that they are political at all. Instead, many of the new alist rhetoric and mobilization. groups focus on women’s roles as mothers and wives, which they see as having been neglected during the com- Women and Politics in Postcommunist munist period. Nonetheless, these groups provide women Central and Eastern Europe with a forum to articulate their views and meet with others The elimination of censorship and end of the Communist who share similar interests. Many organize lectures and Party’s monopoly on power were followed by a rapid plu- discussions for women that relate to political issues or as- ralization of political life in central and eastern Europe. pects of the move to the market. Others have organized Women as well as men have been able to take advantage of demonstrations to call attention to public problems such as these new opportunities to be active in political life—to ar- the lack of safety of the food supply in Czechoslovakia and ticulate their preferences, organize with others who share problems with water shortages in Bulgaria. similar views, and pressure political leaders to take action Feminist groups also exist. These are small and gener- on issues of concern to them. They also have new opportu- ally consist of educated women professionals in large cit- nities to run for political office themselves. ies. However, although they have had little impact on the However, as in the economic realm, the re-creation of making of public policy, these groups play an important democratic political life has led to difficulties for women. role in their societies. In Poland, for example, women’s During the communist era, women in rural areas became groups organized to fight the restrictive abortion law. In aware of being part of a larger political community. Most Slovakia, women intellectuals who publish a feminist jour- women, as well as men, voted in the single-candidate elec- nal have succeeded in getting gender issues into public dis- tions that were typical during the communist period, be- course among intellectuals for the first time. cause voting was required in all countries except the former In the near future, it is unlikely that there will be signifi- Yugoslavia. As many women as men participated in the cant changes in women’s situation in these countries. Po- symbolic demonstrations of support organized by the re- litical leaders will not be likely to take action to remedy gime on important anniversaries and holidays. Women existing gender inequalities without pressure from women, were well represented in the symbolic or governmental and most women do not appear to be willing to engage in elites, but they formed a smaller proportion of Communist such action at present. Women are more likely to partici- Party members than men and were far less frequently found pate in nonpartisan activities, and many are involved in in the top party leadership. nongovernmental organizations. Few, however, are in- After the end of communist rule, women’s volved in positions of leadership in political parties or hold marginalization in politics continued. Although women political office. However, continued experience with the participated in large numbers in the mass demonstrations workings of a market economy, coupled with increased

329 DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN contact with the rest of the world, can be expected to in- Its social indicators on infant mortality and illiteracy vary crease support for women’s movements. Such experiences widely; illiteracy, for example, is almost negligible in Ar- may also lead to the development of a feminist agenda, par- gentina but reaches 47 percent in Haiti (UNDP, 1993). As ticularly among young women. a whole, the region has a diversified economic produc- tion, with the participation of all three sectors (agricul- See also: ture, industry, and service), yet it has the most uneven EDUCATION: EASTERN EUROPE; ENVIRONMENT: CENTRAL income distribution in the world. AND EASTERN EUROPE; FEMINISM: EASTERN EUROPE; The region is increasingly urban; as of the year 2000, POLITICS AND THE STATE: EASTERN EUROPE. about 77 percent of the population lived in cities. Although the region embarked with much optimism on an import- References and Further Reading substitution development model (which emphasized na- Einhorn, Barbara. 1993. Cinderella goes to market: Citizenship, tional industrialization) in the early 1960s, today it has gender and women’s movements in East Central Europe. declined in the global economy, having been surpassed by London: Verso. the growing production of several Asian countries. The Funk, Nanette, and Magda Mueller, eds. 1993. Gender politics failure of the strategy of industrialization for the purpose of and postcommunism. New York: Routledge. creating a self-sustaining market in many countries, the en- Jancar, Barbara Wolfe. 1978. Women under communism. Balti- dorsement of a free trade economic system, and the endur- more, Md.: John Hopkins University Press. ing burden of foreign debt have led to the restructuring of Jaquette, Jane, and Sharon Wolchik, eds. 1998. Women and de- the economies of most Latin American and Caribbean mocracy: Latin America and central and eastern Europe. countries. This restructuring has often been characterized Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press. by reduced government participation in, and greater priva- Moghadam, Valentine M., ed. 1993. Democratic reform and the tization of, the productive sectors. These changes have had position of women in transitional economies. Oxford: negative effects on the Latin American working class and, Clarendon. in particular, on women in low-income groups. Renne, Tanya. 1997. Ana’s land. Boulder, Col.: Westview. Economic hardships continue to be serious in this re- Rueschemeyer, Marilyn, ed. 1994. Women in the politics of gion. By 1994, fewer than 33 percent of the countries of postcommunist Eastern Europe. Armonk, N.Y.: Sharpe. Latin America and the Caribbean had regained the income Wolchik, Sharon L., and Alfred G.Meyer, eds. 1985. Women, per capita they had in 1980 (Inter-American Dialogue, state, and party in eastern Europe. Durham, N.C.: Duke Uni- 1994). In Venezuela, which used to be one of the wealthiest versity Press. Latin American countries, the proportion of households in extreme poverty (that is, having an income less than would Sharon L.Wolchik purchase the “basket” of staple goods needed for survival) went from 11 percent in 1982 to 20 percent in 1987 (Benería, 1992). In Peru in 1994, 50 percent of the popula- DEVELOPMENT: Central and tion were classified as poor (of these, 20 percent were cat- South America and the Caribbean egorized as extremely poor). Some countries have had economic success, such as Chile, Brazil, and Mexico (be- Occupied by Spain and (in the case of Brazil only) Portugal fore the devaluation of the peso in 1995). However, econo- for about 300 years and formally independent for over 170 mists have observed that this economic growth has years, Latin America still bears the imprint of a strongly benefited at most 50 percent of the population, or 70 per- male-dominated culture and endorses racial distinctions cent in places with “economic” miracles, such as Chile and prejudices, which are reflected in its social classes. (Benería, 1992). Most of the Caribbean was under British control until the Indigenous and black women suffer the most in terms of mid-twen-tieth century. This fact and the long-lasting ef- access to remunerated work, education, and other public fects of slavery on the family have produced weaker male- benefits. Women of these minority groups usually occupy centered norms in the Caribbean. the lowest jobs: they constitute a large number of those in Latin America and the Caribbean make up a diverse domestic work, an area where workers’ benefits—despite region in terms of population and economic development. some legislation to protect them—are practically nonexistent. It ranges from highly industrialized areas such as São Latin America is a predominantly Catholic region. Yet, Paulo to survival agrarian economies such as that of Haiti. in defiance of church precepts, societal norms about birth

330 DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN control have been changing, with the result that the fertility and Costa Rica in the early 1980s, but since there were rate had decreased in 1990 by about 50 percent compared more workers than jobs, the formal unemployment of with that in 1960 (UNDP, 1993). This is facilitating wom- women increased sharply. In rural Mexico, the decreased en’s access to the labor force and to further schooling. purchasing power of wages has obliged women to with- Unmitigated political violence in Central America, first draw children from school and make them work in agricul- in Nicaragua and later in El Salvador and Guatemala, has ture (Chinery-Hesse et al., 1989). caused substantial population shirts. Large migratory According to household survey data gathered in 14 movements to the United States have substantially in- Latin American countries and Jamaica, the average rate of creased the Latino population of that country. Migration participation in the labor force for women in the late 1980s from the Caribbean has been steady, with mostly men was 31 percent, and women’s pay was 71 percent of that of moving to Canada and the United States. Latin America men. The early increase in the employment of women is has also seen considerable internal migration, as rural considered the result of expansionary government policies, populations, impelled by poverty and fear of armed vio- since the governmental sector is a larger employer of lence in the countryside, have gone to the cities. Migration women than the private sectors (Psacharopoulos and has resulted in a high degree of family fragmentation, pro- Tzannatos, 1992). Despite the increased role of women as ducing a steady rise in the number of female-headed workers and heads of families, institutional resources such households. as technical assistance and bank credit still favor men. This is especially true in the agricultural sector. General Economic Conditions While the number of women in the labor force increased In the past few decades there has been considerable eco- substantially in the past decades, they have taken a higher nomic slowdown in Latin America. One-third of the coun- tries have shown negative growth since about 1970, and another third at most a 1.6 percent growth per year Female Participation Rate (Psacharopoulos and Tzannatos, 1992). During the import- and Female Pay Relative to Male Pay (F/M) substitution phase, women participated in industry, espe- cially in textiles and food production. In recent decades there has been less demand for industrial labor, so women have moved into commerce, services, and self-employ- ment. Women’s unemployment is two to three times higher than that of men in the same age groups. Women’s salaries are lower than those of men in all the countries in the region (see the table). More than half of all women receive salaries below the minimum wages established by their countries (Kirsch, 1975). The informal sector of the economy (jobs characterized by very low pay and outside the framework of workers’ rights and protections) is prominent today, and the family has become a site of collective action for eco- nomic survival. The number of female-headed households is growing, in part because of younger, unpartnered mothers and in part because of the increased number of widows or displaced women and children. Although there are conceptual prob- lems in the definition and measurement of “head of house hold,” there is agreement that the category of female- Notes: Participation of prime-age women (aged 20 to 60 years). headed households is expanding and that women are be- Weekly earnings in Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, Jamaica, coming less dependent on male income. Hondura, Chile, and Bolivia, and monthly earnings in all other With the globalization of the economy and the concomi- countries. Participation: Constructed from ILO (1990), table 1. Rela- tant emergence of low-paying industrial jobs for women, tive pay: based on information provided in the companion volume. more women entered the labor force during economic con- Source: Psacharopoulos and Tzannatos, 1992:5. The trends indi- traction in Chile and Uruguay in the 1970s and in Brazil cated by these figures have continued.

331 DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN proportion of subordinate positions compared with men, work in economically decaying textile industries. In Bra- whether in the industrial sector or the informal sector of the zil women have a sizable representation in industry, most economy. And women are becoming members of the labor of it in São Paulo, where young women are employed in force without being released from their domestic responsi- nontraditional sectors such as metalwork, steel, plastics, bilities and their reproductive functions. The reduction of so- and electrical appliances, and in more traditional sectors cial services by the state has further affected women, as they such as garments, shoe manufacturing, and, though de- have had to provide social services no longer supplied by creasingly, textiles. In the entire region there is a tendency public agencies. Men, on the other hand, tend to be more ac- to recruit young, single, and more educated women for cepted into the formal sector of the labor market than women. nonmanual occupations and industrial employment, while older or uneducated women prevail in domestic Agriculture work and informal activities. Latin America is usually described as a “male farming sys- tem” (where men do most of the agricultural work). How- Services ever, microstudies show a trend toward “feminization of Women’s involvement in the service sector of the economy farming,” as men emigrate, become seasonal migrants, or is manifested primarily in the informal sector, domestic engage in off-farm labor. It is estimated that women gener- work, and governmental services. By endorsing starkly dif- ate on average one-third of the household cash derived ferent gender roles, the patriarchal family contributes to the from small-scale marketing and the feeding and selling of subordination and exploitation of women in the labor small animals (Ashby and Gomez, 1985). Research com- force. As a result (except as noted above), most economi- paring men and women has focused on field operations cally active women work in the service sector, where the (land preparation, planting, cultivation, harvesting) but has largest category is domestic work. According to data for neglected types of crop. There is some gender selectivity in 1992 from the United Nations (UN) Economic Commis- these activities; for instance, women participate much more sion for Latin America and the Caribbean, about 30 percent in the production of tobacco than maize crops. of the women in the labor force are in domestic service, and Macrostatistical data reporting women’s low participa- this figure constitutes more than 90 percent of low-income tion in agriculture have been found to be misleading be- women working in the tertiary sector. In Brazil, domestic cause of conceptual problems of measurement, such as work involves one of every three female workers. It has women’s self-description as “housewife,” census defini- been observed that the importance of remunerated domes- tions of what constitutes economic activity by unpaid fe- tic work increases in inverse relation to family income. The male workers, and time reference periods of census need for economic survival among low-income women has interviews that do not capture the seasonal nature of wom- led to the development of extensive kinship networks and en’s work. Reviewing census data for several Latin Ameri- neighborhood organizations that give one another assist- can and Caribbean countries, Recchini de Lattes and ance. The growth of popular kitchens and neighborhood Wainerman (1982) estimate that census data, in contrast to dining halls in Peru, Colombia, Chile, and Argentina is an more precise household surveys, underestimate women’s example of the increased economic role of women. Not agricultural work by between 14 and 33 percent and that of surprisingly, women in Buenos Aires have been found to men by 2 to 6 percent. Moreover, statistics continue to con- face working days of 13 to 14 hours (Feijóo and Jelín, fuse domestic tasks with unremuner-ated family labor, par- 1987). Similarly heavy schedules have been observed ticularly agricultural production and processing. among poor women in São Paulo. Their days become longer as they seek stores with the cheapest food prices, Manufacturing and Industry work in community self-help groups, and conduct at-home The participation of women in the industrial sector is low services for others that during better times would have been compared with their involvement in services and in the bought in the marketplace. informal sector. But their participation in manufacturing Most of the women who work as maids rely on unwrit- is increasing in the free export zones (FEZs). In Mexico, ten contracts; this allows arbitrary control by patrons— where many women work in export-processing plants, usu-ally women from middle and upper social classes. there is a clear intersection between gender and age in hir- Domestic workers earn low salaries, since they seldom have ing patterns. Unmarried women who have completed pri- the leverage to negotiate. Their labor earns neither workers’ mary schooling, or more, work in maquiladora benefits nor related legal protection. The prevalence of (assembly) plants, while older and less-educated women women in domestic work and the inequities associated with

332 DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN such work are one of the strongest obstacles to class-inte- Women earn less because they enter a limited number of grated feminism in Latin America. occupations and generally work overtime less than men, Studies of the informal sector in six Central American but there are also other reasons. In Venezuela, where countries have found that women engage in mostly subsist- women earn 71 percent of men’s wages, the rather slight ence activities with little possibility of economic improve- differential has been explained in terms of several factors, ment. The women thus engaged face a heavy double work such as a larger number of Venezuelan women with tertiary day. Most of their participation in the informal sector ena- education compared with men (10 versus 6 percent). The bles them merely to make ends meet rather than to accumu- country also has acute shortages of managerial personnel, late capital for future investment. In the case of men, skilled workers, and technicians; equal pay legislation was self-defined objectives and limited responsibilities for do- enacted in the 1970s, which may have encouraged more mestic duties enable them in some cases to involve them- egalitarian salaries. selves in “dynamic informality” (meaning profit-making Psacharopoulos and Tzannatos found that on average participation and concomitant management in the informal only 20 percent of the wage differential in the region could economy). In the case of women, domestic and family obli- be explained by differences in the amount of learning and gations limit economic progress (Pérez Sáinz and Larín, training men and women have acquired. They found that an 1994:447). additional 20 percent could be attributed to women’s se- Current structural adjustment programs in Latin lecting (or being in) lower-paying jobs than men. The un- America and the Caribbean, which have reduced public explained 60 percent was attributed to discrimination social services, have led to increased participation by (1992:23). Discrimination operates in several ways: women in the informal sector of the economy. These jobs women must have more education and experience to are marginal and poorly remunerated. In the absence of qualify for the same jobs; women receive lower wages for government efforts to provide these women with training the same work; or—the most common pattern—women and some capital, it will be very difficult for them to move enter a gender-segregated labor force, where jobs defined beyond the subsistence level. as feminine pay less. Another important aspect of women’s participation in the The full impact of the liberalized economies of Latin service sector involves those working for public agencies America is yet to be documented, but some economists and state-owned enterprises. It has been found that women (such as, Benería, 1992) hold that opening markets has re- are better paid in all types of jobs in the public sector, earning sulted in moving wages toward the lowest common de- about twice what they would receive in the private sector. nominator. With women working for survival, it is difficult With structural adjustment programs now in effect, most of to imagine that they will have the time to work for their which include a decrease in government expenditures as social and economic improvement. A contrary view holds well as the privatization of industries, state bureaucracies that the severe economic crisis and the presence of authori- have been drastically downsized. Consequently, many tarian governments in Latin America in the 1970s created women have lost relatively well-paying jobs. an unintended social space for women that enabled them to With regard to labor statistics, it has been noted that leave the house and emerge as new social subjects. Accord- women’s strong participation in informal-sector services ing to this view, women have gained valuable economic still underestimates their involvement in productive work and political experience and have become able to address (Fort et al., 1994). and interact with the state on issues regarding material sur- vival and ethics (human rights). Wage Differentials A negative view of the economic realities in Latin America Labor Unions and the Caribbean sees a growing deterioration in the Although women workers in the formal sector constitute a standard of living, with many men and women suffering smaller group than men, they are supposed to receive sig- from this. A more sanguine view sees an emergence of eco- nificant economic and legal benefits; their membership in nomic dualism, with some areas becoming highly industri- labor unions is assumed to ensure the defense of their rights alized and others remaining backward and exploited. as workers. There are few studies of what labor unions do Amid this uneven economic panorama, strong gender for women. Cortina’s study of teachers’ unions in Mexico differentials in wages have been detected. The lowest gender (1992) found that women teachers did not participate in differentials have been observed in Mexico and Colombia decision making, and thus union policies did not take their and the highest differentials in Uruguay and Jamaica. needs into account.

333 DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

On the other hand, it has been noted that protective increases in electricity and transportation and other goods legislation for women in many Latin American countries and services. This situation will generate greater survival prohibits women from certain deleterious activities and needs among low-income sectors, which are likely to result allows long periods of absence for reasons related to ma- in greater demands made on female labor in the home and ternity. There is an increasing consensus among social elsewhere in order to compensate for increased family ex- scientists that these requirements may perpetuate sex penditures. stereotypes and result in discrimination against women Women’s integration into the global market will gener- during employers’ recruitment and promotion of work- ate more income for women and will probably facilitate ers (Feijóo and Jelín, 1987; Psacharopoulos and their adoption of individualistic norms. With increased fi- Tzannatos, 1992). nancial autonomy and assertiveness, women may counter the oppressive practices of parents and husbands. Some Work and the Domestic Sphere evidence for such a trend was presented by Fernández- Benería and Roldáno (1987) have observed that while sev- Kelly (1983), who noted that Mexican women working in eral studies of female industrial workers exist for some maquiladora plants were gaining new social spaces such as countries, the examination of the relationship between gen- women’s bars. Mummert, conducting research in Mexico der and class factors within family, factory, and trade union several years later, also found that young women working settings has been weak thus far. in export agricultural firms felt less obliged to obey their Women continue to face the old problems of occupa- fathers’ proscriptions (1992). tional segregation, inadequate income, and differential wage distribution compared with men. Particularly as a re- Conclusions sult of structural adjustment programs, low-income women Women are now participating to a greater extent in the continue to experience double and triple burdens every day economy, and this has the positive result of giving them (Benería, 1992; Chinery-Hess et al., 1989). These prob- access to an independent income, however limited. Unfor- lems may be difficult to resolve because women are absent tunately, the concurrent implementation of structural ad- from spaces where public policies are decided. (Their justment programs has debilitated the state, which has cut power is expressed mainly through demonstrations and oc- social services and thus augmented women’s domestic casional lobbying.) Some changes, however, are taking labor. Under these conditions, women in Latin America place. More women are staying in the labor force despite and the Caribbean may see their capacity to question patri- having children, unlike the situation in the 1970s. As a re- archal rules reduced. sult of the crisis, but also reflecting their desire, more women are now entering the labor force. See Also Benería (1992) remarks that the household now faces EDUCATION: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE many tensions—between men and women, and between CARIBBEAN; ENVIRONMENT: CARIBBEAN; ENVIRONMENT: brothers and sisters. She sees the main strategies for in- CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA; FEMINISM: CARIBBEAN; come generation taking place through the interdependence FEMINISM: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA; POLITICS AND of family members. In her view, this is creating a forced THE STATE: CARIBBEAN; POLITICS AND THE STATE: CENTRAL unity within the family as well as perpetuating patriarchal AND SOUTH AMERICA. rule. There is evidence that the economic crisis is affecting family composition. Glimpses from Ecuador—a median References and Further Reading country in per capita income for the region—reveal that the Ashby, Jacqueline, and Stella Gomez, eds. 1985. Women, agricul- number of nuclear and extended families has remained ture and rural development in Latin America. Cali, Colom- constant, but the composition of extended families has bia: Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical. changed, with more married sons and daughters and their Bauer, Werner. 1994. Privatization in Latin America. World income-earning partners remaining at home (Moser, 1993). Economy 17 (4):509–28. This arrangement has been increasingly observed in sev- Benería, Lourdes. 1992, (February). Contextualizing wom- eral other Latin American countries as well. en’s struggles for livelihood: The household, the market, Bauer (1994) and others predict that privatization is and beyond. Paper presented at the conference on Learn- likely to increase concentrations in the distribution of in- ing from Latin America: Women’s Struggles for Liveli- come: it may cause large layoffs as new owners try to im- hood. Los Angeles: University of California at Los prove the efficiency of their firms. This may lead to price Angeles.

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Benería, Lourdes, and Martha Roldáno. 1987. The crossroads of class and gender: Industrial homework, subcontracting, and DEVELOPMENT: China household dynamics in Mexico City. Chicago: Chicago Since coming to power in 1949, the Chinese Communist University Press. Party (CCP) has instituted various measures aimed, on the Chinery-Hesse, Mary, et al. 1989. Engendering adjustment for the one hand, at maximizing the use of women’s labor for eco- 1990s. London: Commonwealth Secretariat. nomic development, and, on the other, at ensuring that the Cortina, Regina. 1992. Gender and power in the teachers’ union of benefits of economic development are shared equally by Mexico. In Nelly P.Stromquist, ed., Women and education in women and men. After a brief section providing a historical Latin America. Boulder, Col.: Lynne Rienner. perspective to the modern period, this article outlines the Feijóo, Maria del Carmen, and Elizabeth Jelín. 1987. Women ways in which the CCP’s aims have been pursued and the from low income sectors: Economic recession and democra- extent to which they have been achieved. While the situa- tization of politics in Argentina. In UNICEF, eds., The invis- tion of women in general is covered, the focus is on rural ible adjustment: Poor women and the economic crisis, women, because they constitute between 70 and 80 percent 27–54. Santiago: UNICEF. of the female population. Fernández-Kelly, Patricia. 1983. For we are sold: I and my people. Albany: State University of New York Press. Historical Perspective Fort, Lucia, Mona Danner, and Gay Young. 1994. Gender in- equality around the world: Comparing fifteen nations in five Before 1949, women’s involvement in the economy was world regions. In Gay Young and Bette Dickerson, eds., circumscribed by Confucian ideology, which deemed Color, class, and country: Experiences of gender, 131–153. women inferior and subservient to men. Fundamental to London: Zed. this system was a concern for the maintenance of the patri- Inter-American Dialogue. 1994. The Americas in 1994: A time for lineal family. Marriages were arranged by the older genera- leadership. Washington, D.C.: Inter-American Dialogue. tion and were usually patrilocal and exogamous, which Kirsch, Henry. 1975. La participación de la mujer en los mer- meant that on marriage, a woman most commonly joined cados laborales latinoamericanos. In CEPAL, ed., Mujeres her husband’s household in a different village. This system in America Latina. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Eco- meant that women were treated as temporary residents in nómica. their natal family and as outsiders to the family and village Moser, Caroline. 1993. Adjustment from below. In Sarah Rad- after marriage. Daughters were considered less valuable cliffe and Sallie Westwood, eds., Viva: Women and popular than sons, and fewer resources were devoted to raising protest in Latin America, 173–196. London: Routledge. them because doing so was seen as “watering another Mummert, Gail. 1992 (February). Rural Mexican women’s man’s garden.” After marriage, women were expected to struggle for family livelihood. Paper presented at the con- serve and submit to the authority of their parents-in-law. ference on Learning from Latin America: Women’s Strug- Women’s power was decreased further because they could gles for Livelihood. Los Angeles: University of California not own or inherit property or get a divorce. at Los Angeles . Confucianism taught that women should not take part in Pérez Sáinz, J. and Menjívar Larín. 1994. Central American men public affairs and that their work should be confined to the and women in the informal sector. Journal of Latin American home. This ideal was, to some extent, enforced in reality Studies 26:431–147. through the practice of foot binding, in which a young Psacharopoulos, George, and Zafiris Tzannatos. 1992. Women’s girl’s feet were wrapped tightly to prevent them from grow- employment and pay in Latin America: Overview and meth- ing beyond three-inch stumps. This meant that for the rest odology. Washington, D.C.: World Bank. of the girl’s life, walking would be slow and painful. Recchini de Lattes, Zulma, and Catalina Wainerman. 1982. Confucian ideals could not always be maintained, how- Female workers undercounted: The case of Latin Ameri- ever. The degree to which women were confined to the can and Caribbean censuses. New York: Population home, for example, differed according to class and accord- Council. ing to the economic necessities of the time and place United Nations Development Program. 1993. Human develop- (Davin, 1976:117–122), but it was only the women of the ment report 1993. New York: United Nations Development gentry who led truly secluded lives. In peasant families, Program. women devoted most of their time to domestic work, but this included activities such as fetching firewood and water Nelly P.Stromquist and going to mar-ket, which involved travel and contact

335 DEVELOPMENT: CHINA with outsiders. Women often did their domestic tasks to- rough pattern in which CCP policies related to women’s gether, forming valuable friendships and support networks work swung from an emphasis on women’s participation in in the process. paid labor, in one period, to a deemphasis on their paid Women also undertook spinning and weaving at home, labor and a greater stress on their domestic labor in the and poorer women often worked as peddlers, prostitutes, next. Thus, the years 1949–1952, and 1957–1965 were pe- and servants, although this work was not considered re- riods in which women’s participation in paid production spectable (Pruitt, 1945). In agriculture, women’s participa- was deempha-sized. This pattern corresponded roughly to tion rates varied between regions, but on average they changes in the economy and, more particularly, to changes performed only about 13 percent of field labor (Davin, in overall economic and political strategies. 1976:116–118). The greatest efforts to fulfill Engels’s requirements for The early stages of industrialization in China, as in Eu- women’s liberation were made during the “great leap for- rope, drew heavily on young women from the countryside. ward” (GLF) period of 1957–1960. GLF was a develop- Consequently, by the 1920s, although they constituted only ment strategy that aimed to overcome problems due to lack a small proportion of the population, the absolute number of technology, expertise, and capital through mass mobili- of young women working in factories, especially textile zation of China’s one plentiful resource: human labor. factories, in coastal Chinese cities such as Shanghai and In rural areas, collectivization was undertaken at a rapid Tianjin was quite large. For most, factory work was a mis- pace. An important result for women was a loosening of the erable experience, characterized by exploitation and ap- authority of the (usually male) head of the family over palling living and working conditions. However, these other family members. Under the collective system, the women did gain some independence from their families production team leader, rather than individual male heads and were exposed to new ideas; many participated in the of families, made the important decisions concerning the labor movement (Croll, 1978:102–6). use of women’s labor. In many places this played an impor- Among the wealthier classes the 1910s and 1920s saw tant role in improving the situation of women, since party an improvement in women’s education and political par- policy put pressure on production team leaders to treat ticipation. In the 1930s the Nationalist Party passed laws women and men equally. giving women and men equal rights in marriage and di- In addition, large numbers of women were drawn into vorce, ownership of property, and employment (Croll, paid production, and the income they earned helped to im- 1978:155–56). However, little effort was devoted to imple- prove their status in the family. As a result of GLF, from this menting the laws, even in the cities, and few people heard time on, even though the proportion of women employed about them in the countryside. It was not until after com- would not increase at a constant rate, it was generally ac- munism that legislation such as this was successfully trans- cepted, indeed expected, that women would work in paid lated into substantial improvements in women’s lives on a production. broad scale. A further aspect of GLF was that for the first, and to date the last, time in the history of the CCP, large-scale efforts The Period 1949–1976 were made to socialize domestic work. Each com-mune ran After coming to power, the CCP initiated a program for several nurseries and kindergartens, and families were development that drew heavily on that of the Soviet Union. urged to eat in communal dining halls. Other services that This program included a commitment to gender equality developed on a wide scale during this period included sew- and efforts to achieve both economic growth and a reduc- ing workshops, grain mills, and health services. tion in class inequality, through the redistribution of land However, the GLF period also revealed limitations and from the minority gentry class to the peasants, followed by problems associated with Engels’s approach to women’s collectivization and the nationalization of industry. liberation. One problem was that the program for the The key principle underpinning CCP approaches to socialization of domestic labor ran into difficulties because gender issues was Friedrich Engels’s argument (1977:74) it was considered too costly. After GLF a large proportion that women will be liberated only once they are involved of communal services in rural areas were closed, although in paid production and their domestic duties are reduced they fared somewhat better in urban areas. to a minimum. Other limitations stemmed from the failure to challenge However, over the years, the degree to which this princi- the continued practice of patrilocal marriage in rural areas. ple was acted out in practice varied according to the per- This practice led to the mistreatment of young daughters ceived needs of the economy. In fact, after 1949 there was a and a reluctance to teach them skills that would be lost to

336 DEVELOPMENT: CHINA another family, and—resulting from this and from the fact the countryside to the policy of one child per family. This is that, on marriage, they were moved into an alien en- in part because more labor means more income in a peasant vironment—an inability on the part of many young women family, and in part because, with no old-age pension sys- to participate in production outside the home and in the tem, parents depend on children for support in their later political affairs of the village. years. Particularly, they depend on sons, because under the Another phenomenon that remained largely unchal- patrilocal marriage system, which continues to prevail in lenged during GLF was the gender division of labor in paid the countryside, daughters leave their natal family when work. Women were concentrated in the least prestigious they marry. Where the one-child policy has been success- areas of the economy, and despite a policy of “equal pay for ful, women have benefited from a reduced workload and equal work,” it was common, especially in rural communes less strain on their health. However, women have also and small collective industries, for women to receive less borne the brunt of the conflicts over reproduction that have pay than men, even for performing the same tasks (Croll, become common between peasant families and state offi- 1978:285–286). cials. Some have been forced by local officials to have late The obstacles to women’s liberation made apparent dur- abortions, while others have been beaten and abused by ing GLF received some attention during subsequent years their families for giving birth to daughters. There have also and especially in the years just following the Cultural been reports of female infanticide in some provinces. Con- Revolution, that is, from 1969 to 1976. During these years cern over these issues led the government to modify the campaigns were run in rural areas to persuade men to share one-child policy in the late 1980s, so that rural couples who housework with their wives, matrilocal marriages were gave birth to a girl would be allowed to have another child. promoted, and women’s participation in political affairs This has led to a decline in the violence against women as- was encouraged. In most areas, however, the campaigns sociated with the one-child policy, but at the same time the were short-lived and not very effective. new concessions reinforce the perception that females are inferior to males (Davin, 1990). Contemporary China In terms of production and employment, reforms intro- After the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, the CCP insti- duced in rural areas spurred a growth in agricultural pro- tuted a set of radical reforms aimed at increasing eco- ductivity, a diversification of the rural economy, and very nomic growth through modernization and the rapid industrialization. These changes affected women and development of a market economy. The reforms engen- men rather differently. Thus, one of the most striking trends dered rapid economic development and improvements in to have emerged in recent years is the “feminization” of living conditions, but also increases in inequalities, in- agriculture, a corollary of industrialization noted in many cluding those between women and men and between rural other countries besides China. With the development of and urban women. nonagricultural employment opportunities, farming has In rural areas communes were dismantled in the late come to be seen as the least desirable form of employment. 1970s and early 1980s and a form of household farming Rural men, and, to a lesser extent, young rural women, once more became the norm. In addition, a number of have been the first to leave the farm, while married women measures were taken to encourage diversification and have taken over responsibility for agriculture (Judd, 1994; commercializa-tion of the rural economy, and in 1979 a Jacka, 1997:120–142). one-child family policy was introduced in both rural and Cottage industries and household-based animal hus- urban areas in order to curb population growth. bandry have become a major avenue for rural women’s These reforms had some serious negative consequences employment. Their work in this sector has been promoted for women. For example, the introduction of household by the government as a way of reducing the demand for farming resulted in declines in collective funds available industrial employment and maximizing the use of a flex- for education. This led to increases in school fees, so that ible, cheap workforce. At the same time, women them- numerous poor families could no longer afford to send all selves have sought such work, in some cases because they their children to school. Many families kept their sons in have no alternative but in others because, although it usu- school but withdrew their daughters. This resulted in an ally generates only a low income, this type of work is more erosion of earlier gains in rural , with an easily combined with domestic duties and offers women alarming rise in illiteracy among young girls. more autonomy and scope for self-development than em- In contrast to urban areas, where one- or two-child families ployment in large-scale industry (Jacka, 1997:143–161; were already the norm, there has been enormous resistance in Judd, 1994:153–163).

337 DEVELOPMENT: CHINA

While industry employs fewer rural women than men, new workers. As a result, women constitute about 70 per- during the 1980s and 1990s increasingly large numbers of cent of the urban unemployed. In addition, within the urban young, unmarried rural women were drawn into industrial workforce, the average female worker receives only 42 to employment. The majority work in local township enter- 55 percent of the wages earned by the average male worker. prises. There they constitute about 33 percent of the These figures are comparable to those reported in other east workforce, on average, but as much as 95 percent in some Asian economies and are due in large measure to the con- textile factories (Duan Daohuai et al., 1988). centration of women in the poorest paying occupations and With the development of a market economy, previously sectors of the economy (Rawski and Zhang, 1999). very strict restrictions on rural-urban migration have been These trends in employment are reinforced through considerably relaxed, although it is still extremely difficult gender typing in education and the media. During the for a peasant to obtain permanent residence in an urban 1970s it was claimed that “what men can do, women can do area. It is estimated that there are currently some 100 mil- too,” and women were portrayed in the media as industrial lion peasants living temporarily in cities or towns. Of these, workers and peasants, almost indistinguishable in appear- approximately 30 percent are women, although the propor- ance from men. Today, however, physiological differences tion varies from one region to the next. A large proportion between women and men are stressed, as is the desirability work as domestic servants in urban households, while oth- of a traditional division of labor between the sexes, and the ers are employed as temporary laborers in unskilled jobs in most common images of women in the media are mothers, textile industries and in private street stalls and restaurants housewives, and sex objects (Honig and Hershatter, 1988; and as prostitutes. These are all jobs that urban women Hooper, 1999). shun as low-paid, low-status, unpleasant work. Young rural women also form the majority of the Conclusion workforce in the manufacturing industries of the Special In the 1960s and early 1970s, Communist China was Economic Zones, which were first established at the end of hailed enthusiastically by feminists across the world as a the 1970s to attract foreign investment and technology model of how concerns for gender equality could be suc- with tax incentives and cheap labor. The situation of cessfully incorporated into development strategies. Today, women in this sector of the Chinese economy is similar to the achievements of the Communist Party and of women in that of the female workers in the export-processing zones China are still impressive. Women are no longer consid- of southeast Asia, and, sadly, is also reminiscent of the ex- ered men’s chattels, almost all women work in paid em- ploitation of women in industrial employment in the early ployment, and outstanding improvements have been made part of the twentieth century. Women are drawn to such in female education. work because of the scarcity of income-generating work Yet, since the 1970s, outside observers have spoken, on the farm and because of the lure of high wages and a more often than not, of the “unfinished” liberation of modern lifestyle. Yet reports abound of women, many of , and Chinese women themselves believe them below age 16, working very long hours in dangerous, that China is still a long way from achieving gender equal- unhealthy conditions for below-subsistence wages (Lee, ity, especially in the countryside. As in other parts of the 1998:109–136). world, Chinese women continue to suffer a heavy “double Urban women today, as previously, are considerably burden” of domestic and nondomestic work; they are con- better off than their rural counterparts, but recent reforms centrated in the lower-paid, less prestigious sectors of the have also brought them problems. In particular, these economy; and they frequently face discrimination. reforms have contributed to increases in discrimination against women in employment. See Also In state-run industries, managers have been given more EDUCATION: EAST ASIA; ENVIRONMENT: EAST ASIA (CHINA); autonomy as a result of urban reforms and have been put FEMINISM: CHINA; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: EAST ASIA; under more pressure to maximize profitability. Conse- POLITICS AND THE STATE: EAST ASIA quently, many have tried to “streamline” production by re- ducing their workforce. Women have been the first to lose References and Further Reading their jobs, in part because the requirement for paid mater- Croll, Elisabeth. 1978. Feminism and socialism in China. London: nity leave makes women workers more expensive in em- Routledge and Kegan Paul. ployers’ eyes. There have also been frequent reports of Davin, Delia. 1976. Woman-work: Women and the party in revolu- direct discrimination against women in the recruitment of tionary China. Oxford: Clarendon.

338 DEVELOPMENT: CHINESE CASE STUDY—RURAL WOMEN

Davin, Delia. 1990. Never mind if it’s a girl, you can have another rural industrial structure and the changes in the rural indus- try. In Jorgen Delman, Clemens Stubbe Ostergaard, and trial system as well as the rapid emergence of township en- Flemming Christiansen, eds., Remaking peasant China: terprises, many male laborers have turned to Problems of rural development and institutions at the start of nonagricultural work or have moved to urban areas for em- the 1990s, 81–91. Denmark: Aarhus University Press. ployment. Women have, therefore, become a key factor in Duan Daohuai, Jin Zhenji, Zhang Zhunying, and Shi Suoda. 1988. agriculture. In some areas, the number of female laborers Building a new countryside: Chinese women in rural enter- has exceeded 70 percent. According to 1998 statistics pro- prises. In Noeleen Heyzer, Daughters in industry: Work skills vided by the All China Women’s Federation (ACWF), rural and consciousness of women workers in Asia. Kuala female laborers had reached 21 million, accounting for Lumpur: Asian and Pacific Development Centre. 65.6 percent of the total rural labor force, and their contri- Engels, Friedrich. 1977 [1884]. The origin of the family, private butions were responsible for 50 to 60 percent of the total property and the state. Moscow: Progress. value of agricultural production. As a more localized exam- Honig, Gail, and Emily Hershatter. 1988. Personal voices: Chi- ple, 4.5 million women in Shan-dong farmed 60 percent of nese women in the 1980s. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univer- the total farmland in the province, and 2.8 million women sity Press . in Hebei Province have been responsible for the production Hooper, Beverley. 1999. Researching women’s lives in contempo- of 65 percent of the cotton fields in the province. Approxi- rary China. In Antonia Finnane and Anne McLaren, eds. mately 12 million women in China voluntarily take part in Dress, sex and text in Chinese culture, 243–262. Australia: tree-planting and watershed projects every year. Monash Asia Institute, Monash University. Women are also actively involved in multibusiness ac- Jacka, Tamara. 1997. Women’s work in rural China: Change and tivities. It has been determined that among 187 township continuity in an era of reform. Cambridge, New York, and markets in Songhuajiang District, Heilongjiang Province, Melbourne: Cambridge University Press. 80 percent of the business has been conducted by women. Judd, Ellen. 1994. Gender and power in rural North China. Fifty-two thousand women in Nanzhao County, Henan Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press. Province, market agricultural and sideline products, and at Lee, Ching Kwan. 1998. Gender and the South China miracle: least 200 of those women were believed to hold an average Two worlds of factory women. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and of one million yuan in assets. Fifty million women workers London: University of California Press. in Guangdong Province provide 43 percent of the total Pruitt, Ida. 1945 A daughter of Han: Autobiography of a Chinese labor force in township enterprises. working woman. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press. These figures lead us to the conclusion that rural reform and development in China have created new opportunities Tamara Jacka for women’s full participation. Although women’s active participation has accelerated and facilitated the smooth re- form of the development process, and has opened new doors to employment, Li (1999) examined women’s criti- DEVELOPMENT: Chinese Case Study— cal issues and found that those opportunities have brought Rural Women about serious challenges to women who have to confront growing social and psychological stress. China is a large agricultural country with a rural popula- Economic development in China has created imbal- tion that has reached 900 million, accounting for 75 per- ances for a variety of natural, physical, social, economic, cent of the total population. Since the early 1980s, because and historical reasons. Major problems encountered by ru- of rural economic reform, steady development in China’s ral women can be examined from the following vantage agricul-ture—especially food production—has provided points: a solid foundation for national economic growth. It is as- tounding but true that, in China, cultivation of 7 percent 1. Heavy physical labor: Rural women engaged in farming of the worlds farmland feeds 22 percent of the world’s are subject to heavy physical demands because of the population. extreme need for agricultural productivity, the use of The rural women of China are an immense human re- heavy and out-of-date farm tools, and the conventional source and have played a key role in agricultural develop- farming system. Women often suffer from contagious ment in China since the establishment of the Household and gynecological diseases caused in part by their ex- Responsibility System in 1978. With the establishment of hausting physical labor.

339 DEVELOPMENT: CHINESE CASE STUDY—RURAL WOMEN

2. Lower education level: The ACWF reported in 1998 that Liu (1997) points out that women lack self-help groups among 21 million rural female laborers, those who have at the grassroots level as well as local aid organizations to a primary or middle school education are most preva- provide technical service. Therefore, informal face-to-face lent. There are still 20 million illiterate females aged 15 interactions are considered by women to be their most pre- to 40 in rural China. Women’s cultural position has ferred, reliable, economic, and effective way to gather in- sometimes prevented them from acquiring information formation and exchange ideas. Credit is necessary for and using agricultural science and technology or re- women to do efficient farming or to embark on diversified sponding to the challenge of a market economic system. activities. This is especially true for the women who con- 3. Poor access to technological information: Women’s ac- tinue to strive just for survival. It continues to be difficult cess to technological information is affected by male- for women to obtain the credit they need. dom-inated cultural traditions, a poor extension service Zhang (1999) determined that 20 million people and 20 system, weakness in communication and information million head of large livestock lacked adequate drinking networks, poverty, and a lack of credit. water in 592 poor counties in China. The poor population is mostly located in scattered harsh mountainous areas, desert Women have less access than men to technical training, or plateau areas, and remote minority-nationality regions. community activities, and connections to the outside world It is estimated that 35.6 percent of the poor inhabit central owing to their inferior social, cultural, and economic status China and 56.7 percent inhabit western China. Poor relative to men. Women face the pressure of triple roles: women, comprising over half of the population, are the reproduction, production, and community management. most underprivileged, impoverished, and vulnerable group. Traditionally, women have been confined at home and ex- Zhang (1999) attributed difficulty in generating family pected to perform the full reproductive role including income to three major factors: the falling price for agricul- childbearing, child care, looking after a husband and the tural produce because of abundant market supply; a declin- old, preparing food and clothing, cleaning the house, and ing need of township enterprises for surplus labor; and so on. In the late twentieth century, the Chinese govern- decreased wages and job opportunity caused by an increas- ment advocated only one child per couple. ing number of laid-off urban workers. Understandably, there is a strong desire to raise a Participation by rural women in work and development healthy and clever child, and this is of primary importance opportunities is encouraged and supported by both the to each family. Women are required to shoulder child rear- family and the society. Government policy makers, women ing duties, in addition to farming and other income-produc- workers, researchers, and practitioners from public, pri- ing activities. The stress and challenge of these multiple vate, or voluntary sectors—including national and interna- roles often prevent women from finding time to attend tional NGOs—it is hoped, will gain a better awareness of training or to obtain current technical information. gender issues, developing good strategies, designing ap- The ACWF (Urban and Rural Department, 1998) re- propriate policy approaches, and initiating effective inter- ported that there are still about 10 thousand townships in vention programs to best respond to women’s needs. rural China without an agricultural extension system. Even with the existence of an extension system in some areas, See Also Liu (1997) argues that women’s specific needs tend to be AGRICULTURE; DEVELOPMENT: CHINA; DIVISION OF LABOR; ignored. EDUCATION: EAST ASIA; ENVIRONMENT: EAST ASIA (CHINA); Gao (1999) assessed women’s organizations in China. MEDIA: CHINESE CASE STUDY The ACWF is recognized as the biggest women’s organiza- tion. It has networks at provincial, county, township, and References and Further Reading village levels. Women’s federations represent and protect Gao Xiao-xian. 1999. Assessment and rethinking of rural women women’s rights, promote gender equality, and facilitate and rural development. Chinese Women’s Movement 3. women’s participation at all levels by organizing nation- Li Xiao-yun. 1999. Current status and prospects for women and wide campaigns and training activities, implementing pov- rural development. Chinese Women’s Movement 3. erty alleviation projects, and so on. Their commitment and Liu Feng-qin. 1997. Information transfer and rural women’s de- contributions are highly valued; however, the method of velopment—with reference to women in rural China. Unpub- conventional top-down and supply-driven management has lished MA dissertation paper. been considered to be a negative influence in the attempt to Urban and Rural Department, ACWF. 1998. A report on China’s stimulate more effective work. rural women and agricultural development. Unpublished.

340 DEVELOPMENT: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES

Zhang lei. 1999. A report on tasks and current status of China’s educated than men, constituting over half of the students in poverty alleviation. higher education and more than 60 percent of all skilled workers with higher or secondary specialized education. Feng-qin Liu According to the Soviet modernization strategy, edu- cated and technically trained women were necessary to ex- pand the Soviet labor force. As a result, for most of the post-World War II period women represented approxi- DEVELOPMENT: mately half of the Soviet labor force. Women’s involve- Commonwealth of Independent States ment in the labor force, however, varied across the republics. In the 1980s, Latvian and Estonian women con- The joint demise of communism and the Soviet Union have stituted approximately 55 percent of the workforce in their had an important effect on the status of women in the Com- republics, while women in central Asia, where traditional monwealth of Independent States (CIS). In the Soviet Un- cultures were most resistant to Soviet mobilization efforts, ion, communist commitment to gender equality translated constituted less than 40 percent of workers. into significant privileges and advancements for women. At Women’s high education levels, their substantial pres- the same time, communism hardly resolved the question of ence in the workforce, and Soviet law, which guaranteed equality between men and women. Contrary to communist equal pay regardless of sex, did not mean there were no dif- ideals and Soviet accounts, women experienced systematic ferences between Soviet men and women in the economic discrimination in the workforce and by the Communist and political spheres. Despite the image of Soviet women as Party. Female workers suffered from lower wages and less tractor drivers and scientists, most female workers were professional mobility, and relationships between men and found in the education, medical, and trade sectors of the women were characterized by the latter’s subordination economy. “Horizontal divisions” such as these meant that and obedience rather than equality and partnership these “feminized” sectors of the economy received less pay (Malysheva, 1992). The continued transformation of this and little prestige compared with the industrial and military region and the establishment of independent states with sectors, dominated coincidentally by male workers. distinctive gender policies presents women in the CIS with Horizontal divisions of the workforce only partially ex- tremendous challenges and uncertainty. plain the reason for women’s lower salaries, as women re- mained highly concentrated in low-paying, “nonproductive” The Position of Women in the Soviet Union spheres of the economy. Further insight into women’s status The trends affecting women in the CIS have been condi- can be gained by examining the “vertical divisions” of the tioned by communist ideology and patterns of economic Soviet labor force, which left female workers at lower and development and political authority that developed during mid-level positions. Consequently, even within sectors of the the Soviet era. According to socialist theory, if women economy, there were substantial differences between wom- could work outside the home while child care facilities, en’s and men’s salaries and their ability to reach positions of communal kitchens, and other means of socializing house- authority. In the late 1980s, Soviet women represented well work were available, their oppression would be eliminated, over half of all engineers, economists, and medical workers, and communism would bring about equality between the yet they represented less than 10 percent of the country’s sexes. Studies conducted in the 1950s confirmed that de- top administrators (Fong, 1993). In theTran-scaucasian re- spite differences in cultural traditions and levels of eco- publics and in central Asia, the number of female directors nomic development across the 15 republics and among the or women in positions of authority was negligible over 100 ethnic groups, communism both improved wom- (Pilkington, 1992). en’s status and influenced their role in similar ways While communist theory strongly supported the mobili- throughout the Soviet Union. zation of women into the labor force, many communists The position of Soviet women was affected by three believed that women’s participation in paid labor was sepa- main factors: increased access to education, the govern- rate from women’s involvement in politics. Lenin himself ment’s desire to move women into the paid labor force, and recognized that most male communists regarded agitation the establishment of generous social welfare programs and and propaganda work among woman with suspicion, either child care facilities (Lapidus, 1978). Free, universal pri- because they considered specific women’s sections unnec- mary education was introduced in the Soviet Union in the essary or because they felt that women’s work had nothing 1930s. Within 40 years, Soviet women were slightly better to do with party goals (Heitlinger, 1979). Compared with

341 DEVELOPMENT: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES many industrialized countries, the Soviet Union boasted a conducted in the last years of the Soviet Union and in post- large percentage of women in political office. Yet, accord- Soviet Russia and Ukraine confirm that female workers ing to Joel Moses’s research (1977), women in the Soviet will predominate among the unemployed in the CIS. In the Union were most often recruited for positions involving ei- last phase of communist rule, the marginalization of ther indoctrination or issues related to health or education, and their return to the home be- but they were virtually denied access to important political came the unofficial answer to the need to scale back the posts. All studies conducted conclude that despite the sig- labor force and combat social ills. From 1985 to 1987, for nificant presence of women in the workforce and public example, more than 80 percent of all labor cutbacks were life, they were virtually absent from high-level decision- made at the expense of female workers. In 1989–1990 this making bodies. trend intensified, and women constituted over 60 percent of those who had lost their jobs. The Position of Women in the CIS In most cases, the Soviet state and post-Soviet govern- The economic, political, and social destabilization follow- ments have discouraged women from working by extend- ing the collapse of the Soviet Union has been tremendously ing maternity leave for new mothers or by replacing difficult for all citizens living within its former boundaries. full-time work with part-time positions with flexible hours. Economic restructuring and growing social conservatism, Initially, many women were attracted to the notion of extra however, have proved particularly damaging to the status time for their families and the opportunity to shop for af- of women in Soviet society. Although gender equality was fordable products. However, the liberalization of prices, the never fully realized in the Soviet Union, the division of this move toward the market, and the rising number of female- country into independent states, none of which have articu- headed households have together made the contribution lated an interest in women’s equality and all of which are provided by women’s labor an economic necessity for moving rapidly toward the uncertainties of market econo- most families in the CIS. mies, is, indeed, ominous. At present, economic and politi- Economic reasons to terminate female workers are ex- cal changes have left women in the Commonwealth facing acerbated by post-Soviet societies’ desire to throw off the high unemployment, fewer political opportunities, and tre- vestiges of communist thinking in all spheres. Indeed, as mendous pressure to embrace traditional feminine roles. Commonwealth states establish their own economic and Women in the former Soviet Union are most threatened social welfare policies, many of their citizens, men and by economic restructuring, as these states seek to become women alike, have begun to question the Soviet commit- more economically efficient and productive. The future of ment to gender equality. To varying degrees, the appropri- CIS economies relies on strong, expanding private sectors, ate position of women in society and their role in the and women (far more than men) are both less able and workforce have come under intense scrutiny. In some more reluctant to participate in this high-risk sphere. Data states, such as Russia, the backlash against the Soviet ex- thus far indicate that while Commonwealth states do not periment with egal-itarianism has resulted in calls both for prevent women from starting their own businesses, women women to return to the home and to their “natural” role as are more fearful of getting involved with what were not so wife and mother, and for the “resexualization” of society. long ago considered “black market” activities. In addition, Women, thus, not only suffer from higher unemploy- women lack business connections or have little access to ment but also are less likely to find employment in the start-up capital to move independently into the private sec- emerging market economies. According to all reports, the tor (McMahon, 1994). “typical” unemployed CIS citizen is a middle-aged, profes- In theory, ongoing structural changes in the economy sional woman with higher or at least secondary education. could prove beneficial to women, as the emphasis on heavy These women have a difficult time finding suitable em- industry is replaced by the development of a service sector. ployment, especially in an environment where foreign and Females in these “nonproductive” sectors of the economy domestic firms advertise job openings according to gender would, thus, have much to gain from the increased need for and age. Newspapers are filled with job advertisements and prestige of white-collar positions. In reality, however, seeking “young and pretty girls” to become secretaries and women are being forced out of positions in previously personal assistants, and on occasion sexual relations with feminized sectors, such as banking, economics, and finance, the boss are implied. Without the threat of reprisal from the which are attractive and lucrative in capitalist systems. Communist Party, and with the virtual elimination of af- Detailed statistics on women’s unemployment in all of firmative action policies in post-Soviet states, women have the commonwealth states are not available, but studies lit-de protection against such discrimination.

342 DEVELOPMENT: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES

During the Soviet period, women’s obligations in the Reasons for Optimism paid sector were made more bearable by a generous system Despite the difficulties facing women in the CIS, recent of paid maternity leave, extended leave for mothers with changes have not been wholly negative. Although unem- young children, and other compensations. However, the ployment, the elimination of political quotas, and the con- collapse of the Soviet government transferred the responsi- servative backlash present women with significant bility of financing such benefits to individual states’ con- challenges, women have not been mere observers of trol. In an effort to increase economic efficiency, many of change. The emergence of civil societies has already trans- the Commonwealth states have, in turn, placed the respon- lated into a proliferation of independent women’s organi- sibility of welfare entitlements and child care facilities on zations, such as economic networks, research institutes, local enterprises. As these companies face the pressures of and consciousness-raising groups. Economic and political a competitive marketplace, the attractiveness of employing changes are, thus, seen by some women as an opportunity women is further diminished. to confront ongoing threats to women’s status and to make Democratization of the political sphere promises equal genuine advances in gender equality. For those who feel opportunity for all citizens. Yet in the former Soviet Union that communism forced radical, alien concepts on their so- this promise has translated into a further marginalization of cieties, thereby yielding more burdens than benefits, the women in the official political sphere. Since the late 1980s transformation of these societies is viewed with concern and the elimination of political quotas, which appropriated but also relief. Their activities emphasize women’s roles as a certain number of political positions for female candi- wives and mothers and seek to promote women’s tradi- dates, there has been a steady drop in the number of women tional values in society. in political office. Given these societies’ reactions against Women in the CIS are faced with both obstacles and Soviet demands for women’s involvement in politics and opportunities. At present, the enormousness of these obsta- the lack of genuine changes in perceptions of gender roles, cles tends to overshadow any potential benefits. However, many voters see female politicians as the least desirable the numerous women’s organizations and a growing con- candidates for political office. Consequently, every sciousness among women of the problems affecting their postcommunist government in the region has witnessed a gender are positive signs that, despite different decline in the number of women elected to political office. orientations, women are beginning to assert an independent Moreover, few of the CIS governments have nominated voice. With women slowly but steadily realizing that they women to become cabinet members or high-level advisers. alone have the power to define the future role they will play The dearth of women in political office and as party in post-Soviet life, communism’s demise and the emer- leaders does not mean that they have not taken advantage gence of independent, democratically oriented states of the new political environment. Mary Buckley (1992) should perhaps be seen as a potential blessing in disguise. and others point to the important role that women’s organi- zations played in many of the movements for national lib- See Also eration during the last stage of the Gorbachev era. In DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW; EDUCATION: COMMONWEALTH Lithuania, for example, the Popular Front Movement cre- OF INDEPENDENT STATES; POLITICS AND THE STATE: ated “women’s sections” because many female activists COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES believed that independence from Soviet control was a nec- essary step toward the liberation of Lithuanian women. References and Further Reading Today, the intersection of nationalism and women’s Buckley, Mary. 1992. Perestroika and Soviet women. Cambridge: rights is most prevalent in Commonwealth states with high Cambridge University Press. percentages of ethnic Russians, such as Kazakhstan and Berry, Ellen E. 1995. Postcommunism and the body politic. New Estonia. Russian women are finding that many of the rights York: New York University Press. they took for granted as Soviet citizens, such as a woman’s Einhorn, Barbara. 1993. Cinderella goes to market. London: Verso. right to self-determination through the control of her body, Fong, Monica. 1993. The role of women in rebuilding the Russian are threatened by growing religious fundamentalism and economy. Washington, D.C.: World Bank. social conservatism. Russian women living in central Asia, Funk, Nanette, and Magda Mueller, eds. 1993. Gender politics for example, started women’s organizations and support and postcommunism. New York: Routledge. groups, lobbied their respective central Asian governments, Heitlinger, Alena. 1979. Women and state socialism: Sex inequal- and appealed to then-President Yeltsin to support the rights ity in the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia. London: of Russian women. Macmillan.

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Lapidus, Gail Warshofsky. 1978. Women in Soviet society. Patriarchal Ideology Berkeley: University of California Press. Patriarchy in Japan originates in the prewar traditional fam- Malysheva, Marina. 1992. The politics of gender in Russia. ily system in which the male head exercised power over Women in Literature and Society, Occasional Bradford Voca- women. The traditional family system, while inheriting tional Papers, no 7:74–85. Confucian ethics of the feudal era and the imperial power McMahon, Patrice. 1994. The effect of economic and political re- of the Meiji era, empowered the father to control his daugh- forms on Soviet/Russian women. In Nahid Aslan-beijui, ters life. Although there was not a sharp gender division of Steven Pressman, and Gale Summerfield, eds., Women in the labor in the household and family business, the daughter age of economic transformation. London: Routledge. was confined mainly to domestic work and was expected to Moses, Joel, C. 1977. Women in political roles. In Dorothy be married and become a wife and mother (Fukutake, Atkinson, ed., . Stanford, Calif.: Stanford 1989). Patriarchy put women in secondary roles in the University Press. economy. The nuclear family replaced the traditional fam- Pilkington, Hilary. 1992. Russia and the former Soviet republics. ily system in contemporary Japan. But patriarchal ideology In Chris Corrin, ed., Superwomen and the double burden: has remained, in the form of a clear-cut gender division of Women’s experience of change in central and eastern Europe labor between men and women in the capitalist nuclear and the former Soviet Union. London: Scarlet Press. family. The gender division of labor in the home sustains Renee, Tanya, ed. 1997. Ana’s land. Boulder, Col.: Westview. and reinforces gender inequality in the economy. The gen- Rueschemeyer, Marilyn, ed. 1994. Women in the politics of der division of labor is the primary cause of women’s sec- postcommunist Eastern Europe. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E.Sharpe. ondary status in the labor market; but other institutions like Patrice McMahon the enterprise system and the state have played a role, too.

Gender inequality in the Enterprise System DEVELOPMENT: Japan Institutional changes brought women into the mainstream of the labor force during the 1980s and 1990s. Fifty-one Women have always played a vital part in the Japanese percent of the total female population aged 15 and older economy, contributing to social and economic develop- were in the labor market in 1992. More women (40 percent ment through paid and unpaid labor. Until the 1950s of female high school graduates) than men (36 percent of women were engaged in farming and family businesses, male high school graduates) went on to colleges and uni- largely controlling their own work. Drastic changes in versities and entered the labor market with more education. women’s work came with changes in the Japanese In 1992, 80.4 percent of women college graduates and 79.7 economy in the 1960s and 1970s as women took paid em- percent of their male counterparts were employed. A labor ployment outside the home. Women’s employment shortage and corporate restructuring toward a more flexible changed again by 2000 from an emphasis on manufactur- economy increased the demand for female labor. Equal ing to the service sector. Today, about 80 percent of em- employment legislation and other government measures ployed Japanese women are in white-collar jobs and about helped women balance family and work. 20 percent in blue-collar jobs. As more educated women These institutional changes have led to growing seg- enter the labor force, they are taking more diverse work, mentation within the female labor market. The wage gap ranging from traditionally male-only jobs to new jobs in between regular and part-time women workers has wid- emerging fields (Ministry of Labor, 1999). Employment ened, and wage inequality between men and women has has become the norm for women as more women balance also increased. The segmented female labor market has not paid and unpaid labor. however changed the general pattern of Japanese women’s Women nonetheless still have secondary status in the participation in the labor force, indicating that gender itself labor market. Their salaries equal only 60 percent of those continues to play an important role in women’s disadvan- of male workers. Promotion is limited. Only a few women taged position in the economy. occupy managerial positions. About 37 percent are en- Women have moved into the enterprise system, filling gaged in part-time work (less than 35 hours per week). labor shortages and occupying strategic functions. Corpo- Women constitute about 67 percent of the part-time labor rations have created new forms of employment and person- force. Their secondary status in the economy can be attrib- nel policies to accommodate the influx of women. Some uted to this gender inequality in the workplace. corporations have gone beyond the clerical and managerial

344 DEVELOPMENT: JAPAN dual-track system and are now offering women multicareer When Japanese women return to the labor market in paths. Others have totally abolished gender disparities. But their early forties, they tend to take part-time jobs, simply as long as corporations retain the enterprise system, women because the enterprise system makes it impossible to bal- will have to work like men. In this sense, the elimination of ance family and full-time regular work. During the eco- gender disparities does not offer much to women. An old nomic expansion of the 1960s and 1970s, female part-time problem remains. When a woman decides to have a child, workers did mostly unskilled and semiskilled production she must drop out of the labor market. Abundant child care work. Employers used women to adjust their business to centers (more than 20,000 in Japan) and the child care cyclical ups and downs in the economy, defining them as leave system are not sufficient to support the longer work- peripheral employees (Fujita, 1988). ing hours that the enterprise system requires of women. The entry of women college graduates into the The inadequate support system for working women makes parttime labor market in the 1980s and 1990s changed it difficult for them to have simultaneous involvement in women’s employment structure. Women are no longer the family and workplace. functioning primarily as economic cushions but are staff- The enterprise system is characterized by long working ing expanding businesses and filling restructured corpo- hours, employment for life, seniority-based wages and pro- rate positions. The most striking change is the emergence motion, and on-the-job training (Dore, 1987). These char- of female parttime professionals, particularly in the infor- acteristics conflict with a woman’s life cycle. The mation industry. Employers are using women part-time enterprise system requires women to keep working without professionals not as cheap labor but as strategically cru- interruption of employment and is therefore probably the cial, flexibly specialized employees. This new type of de- strongest institutional support for patriarchal ideology. Un- mand for female part-time professionals makes women’s der the enterprise system, working women must be com- paid work more compatible with their preference for per- pany women devoted to the firm and in need of a sonal autonomy while meeting employers’ requirements “househusband” if they are to combine child rearing and for a flexible labor pool. Many women are refusing full- work. In the absence of a househusband, women have no time work, seeing it as limiting the realization of their choice but to quit work to care for their children. Thus, the potential (Fujita, 1991). enterprise system creates a rigid gender division of labor between workplace and home. The Rigid Gender Division of Labor in the Home The enterprise system is harsh on women because it The enterprise system compounds a gender division of has been created by and for men and supported by wom- labor in the home. Having a “company man” turns a en’s unpaid labor in the home. The male-only club of the woman into a “worker bee” primarily responsible for the enterprise environment also discourages women’s career family. Men primarily value the enterprise community, aspirations. When they face their life cycle choice, where they work in a web of human relations. The welfare women pursue their desire to have a family, deliberately of the family is less important than their devotion to the choosing their autonomy over the enterprise system. enterprise. Women thus take primary responsibility for the Women prefer their life plan over total devotion to the family and take part in the community where the family enterprise. lives. They, too, live in a web of social relations, but in Japanese women’s participation in the labor force thus much wider and looser terms. They are mothers, wives, takes the shape of an M-shaped curve, which may be attrib- daughters, sisters, caretakers for their parents, friends, vol- utable to the patriarchal enterprise system. Women’s first unteers in recycling campaigns, members of health food peak (75.6 percent) in their participation rate is in their co-ops, members of peace and environmental movements, early twenties (20–24). Women continue to work until their members of parent-teacher associations, and activists in lo- early thirties, when they have a child. The early thirties(30– cal politics. In Japan, where smooth relations with others 34) is the bottom (52.7 percent) of the Mshaped curve. are stressed, the internal and external pressures to fill these When the children enter school, women go back into the roles are quite high. When women quit work to have a labor market, creating the second peak (72 percent) of the child, they tend to give priority to child care, but still aspire curve in their forties (45–49) (Ministry of Labor Women’s to a career. Placing paid work in a secondary position, Bureau, 1999). In some advanced societies, women’s labor many women play multiple roles. force participation describes either a much milder M curve The linkage of the nuclear family to the enterprise or a continuous pattern, indicating that women keep work- system thus leads to a rigid gender division of labor in ing during their reproductive years. Japan. Men are confined to the workplace while women

345 DEVELOPMENT: JAPAN extend their activities communitywide. Women commu- Conclusion nicate with and support one another through horizontal Employers need women’s labor power. Labor shortages networks that are the obverse of the vertical enterprise and restructuring in the economy require women’s paid system. labor. The family needs women’s unpaid labor. Men in the The State as Orchestrator of Patriarchal Ideology home, accustomed to the gender division of labor and the enterprise system, cannot conceive of taking family re- The state has launched several policies to keep women in sponsibility, whether child rearing or nursing elderly par- the labor market. A leave system was enacted in 1992 to ents. The state meets employers’ and men’s needs. It makes ease the burden of child care for men and women. The state women’s paid labor available to employers through social also enacted leave so that employees could attend to elderly policies like the equal employment opportunity law and the parents. childcare leave system and by mobilizing women to take Although these laws address both sexes, men working in employment through campaigns touting the ideal woman the enterprise system are less likely to use them. The laws as both homemaker and worker. The state also assures men are really aimed at women. Women are expected to take of unpaid housekeeping at home and eases their anxiety employment while simultaneously caring for children and about having women as job competitors by keeping women elderly parents. Arguably, the state, far from liberating in secondclass status in the economy. In addition, the state women or giving them equal opportunity to compete with uses women as primary caregivers to the elderly to keep men, keeps women in secondary roles in the labor market. welfare expenditures to a minimum. If the state is serious about gender equality, the Japanese Women are aware of all this, yet they choose to go along enterprise system must be changed to accommodate wom- with their state, employment, and family roles—partly to en’s interests. As yet, there is no sign that the state is intent get the most out of their current limited situation and partly on changing the enterprise system; on the contrary, the because they believe they are engaged in a process of social state supports it with every available means. change no matter how trivial their community activities The Japanese state is “developmental,” engineering the are. Women’s way may be the future model for the Japa- country’s economic development. It also engages in reach- nese enterprise system and for Japanese society as a whole ing consensus about the future direction of Japanese soci- (Iwao, 1993). At least one survey conducted by the prime ety (Hill and Fujita, 1995). Yet it is remarkably minister’s office supports this future model: it found that gender-blind in its economic policies, none of which ad- more men now consider home and family important in their dresses women explicitly. Women exist in the state’s blue- lives and that they would like to shift their lifestyle from a print, along with the aged, as a secondary labor force business orientation to a family orientation (Nuita, 1994). available in times of labor shortage. Otherwise, women do not appear except as part of the state’s emphasis on a See Also healthy and sound family to reproduce male labor power and the next generation’s labor force. The state shares re- EDUCATION: EAST ASIA; ENVIRONMENT: EAST ASIA (JAPAN); sponsibility for gender inequality in the labor market be- HOUSEHOLDS: POLITICAL ECONOMY; PATRIARCHY; POLITICS cause of its failure to intervene in the labor market on AND THE STATE: EAST ASIA: WORK: OCCUPATIONAL behalf of women’s interests. Gender-blind policy has rein- SEGREGATION forced male dominance in the enterprise system, the References and Further Reading workplace, and the home (Fujita, 1987). Facing an aging society, the state uses women to keep its Dore, Ronald. 1987. Taking Japan seriously. Stanford, Calif.: welfare program to a minimum. In the Japanese welfare Stanford University Press. system, the family is the primary caregiver for elderly par- Fujita, Kuniko. 1987. Gender, state and industrial policy in Japan. ents. But it is women who actually take responsibility for Women’s Studies International Forum 10 (6):589–597. aged parents, often quitting work to take care of them. By ——. 1991. Women workers and flexible specialization: The case using women in this way, the state achieves a low-cost wel- of Tokyo. Economy and Society 20 (3: August):260–282. fare policy. The state’s failure to provide alternatives such ——. 1988. Women workers, state policy, and the international as nursing care facilities for the elderly reveals the pre- division of labor: the case of silicon island in Japan. Bulletin sumption that women, as primary homemakers in the fam- of Concerned Asian Scholars 20 (3):42–53. ily and secondary workers in the labor market, can assume Fukutake, Tadashi. 1989. The Japanese social structure. 2nd ed. the burden of caring for the elderly as well. Tokyo: Tokyo University Press.

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Hill, Richard C., and Kuniko Fujita. 1995. Product cycles and in- and 30 percent of the total population in the late 1980s ternational division of labor: Contrasts between the U.S.A. (Hijab, 1988). Reasons for the relatively small labor force and Japan. In David Smith and Jozsef Borocz, eds., A new include the youthfulness of the population and the fact that work order? Global transformation in the late 20th century. women constitute a very small proportion of the labor New York: Greenwood. force. A World Bank report in the 1990s estimated labor Iwao, Sumiko. 1993. The Japanese woman: Traditional image and force participation by women from a high of 34 percent in changing reality. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Turkey and Israel to only 8 percent in Saudi Arabia (World Press. Bank, 1994). In Israel, only 15 percent of Arab women Ministry of Labor Women’s Bureau. 1999. Hataraku fujin no jit- were in the labor force compared with 45 percent of Jewish sujo (Working ). Tokyo: Ministry of Finance women (Semyonov and Lewin-Epstein, 1994). But the Printing Bureau. small proportion of women in the labor force does not Nuita, Yoko. 1994. Survey. Japanese Women 72:3. mean that few Middle Eastern women work, or even that few earn money. Official statistics rarely reflect the real Kuniko Fujita number of economically active men and women. They tend to define work as labor for wages. This means that most working women in rural areas and urban slums are not cat- egorized as working. DEVELOPMENT: For example, national statistics in Egypt in 1970 re- Middle East and the Arab Region ported that only 3.6 percent of the agricultural labor force were women, but a study in 1970 of women in rural house- The Middle East and the Arab region includes Turkey, Iran, holds throughout the country revealed that half the wives Israel, Jordan, Iraq, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Kuwait, plowed and leveled the land in Lower Egypt, and between Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, 55 percent and 70 percent participated in agricultural pro- Yemen, Mauritania, Somalia, Sudan, Djibouti, Morocco, duction activities (Hijab, 1988). Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, and Ethiopia. There are A report on Moroccan peasants (cited in Hijab, substantial differences in the levels of economic develop- 1988:73) found that the population was divided into five ment among the countries in the region, making compari- categories: (1) actively employed, (2) unemployed, (3) son of women’s status between countries difficult. For students, (4) housewives, and (5) other inactive people. example, a comparison of the position of woman in Saudi As noted by Mernissi (cited in Hijab, 1988:73), 92 per- Arabia and Sudan would be strongly influenced by the cent of the women classified as housewives and other in- vastly different levels of economic development of these active people would hardly have recognized themselves two countries. This would make it difficult to ascertain the from this description. Anyone who took a walk through a effect of other parameters. It is also necessary to acknowl- Moroccan village would see women engaged in indispen- edge that the Middle East and the Arab region include sev- sable tasks. eral different religions and that religious differences have Despite the widespread recognition of the influenced women’s status and participation in economic unreliability of official statistics on the rate of female development. participation in the labor force and the limited value of Development policies in most countries of the region these statistics as indicators of the economic status of have displaced women from their traditional roles in sub- women, they are still used as major indicators of the eco- sistence activities and yet limited their opportunities to en- nomic status of women in the Middle East and the Arab gage in nontraditional economic activities. Various case region. The traditional view among commentators and studies have been chosen to examine the role of women in policymakers has been that women would find them- economic development and their status in different selves in a better position if their labor force participa- countries. tion rates were similar to those of men. Youssef (1976), for example, argues that participation in the economic Women’s Participation in the Labor Force system is a prerequisite to women’s eventually recogniz- It is well known that the total labor force as a proportion of ing their own economic power. the population in the Middle East and in the Arab region is The determinants of women’s official labor force par- low (except in Israel and Turkey). The participation rate has ticipation in the Middle East are discussed in a consider- variously been estimated as ranging between 20 percent able number of studies. For example, Abu Nasr, Khoury,

347 DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION

Table 1: Status of women in selected countries of the Middle state and local levels. At the state level, need refers to a East and the Arab region: General indicators (percent) country’s staffing requirements, opportunity refers to offi- cial efforts to create the proper environment for employ- ment (through planning and legislation), and ability refers to the government’s efforts to train people in required skills. At the local level, need refers to a family’s or an indi- vidual’s requirements for income, opportunity refers to so- cial obstacles to women’s participation in paid work, and ability refers to an individual’s skills. There is a tendency to blame the low participation of Middle Eastern women in the formal labor force mainly on sociocultural factors, but these factors are not always the main determinants of low participation rates. The Note: Data for Israel are not included in United Nations situation differs with changing economic needs and op- Development Program (UNDP 1994). portunities. Hijab gives the example of labor migration in Source: United Nations Development Program (1994:138, 162, the Arab region as one of the factors creating a need and 174). an opportunity at state and local levels for the involve- ment of Arab women in the wage labor force. In some Azzam, and Moskoff use data from different countries in cases, women have been encouraged to join the the Middle East (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, Tur- workforce as replacements for male migrants. In other key, and Iran are included) to estimate the determinants of cases, a rise in the cost of living, partly the result of mi- female labor force participation. The variables they used gration, has created a need for women to work in the paid are crude birthrate, age at marriage, and the female illit- labor force. In Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Yemen, officials eracy rate (Abu Nasr et al., 1985; Moskoff, 1982). Crude attributed the increase in women’s participation in the birthrates per thousand of population in most countries of paid workforce during the 1970s to the gap left by the the region are well above 30, which is quite high. The number of men who had migrated to the oil-rich states of World Bank report estimated crude birthrates from a high the region for better-paying jobs. of 38 in Jordan to only 21 in Israel (1994). Traditionally, a In Egypt, Khafagy’s study in 1977 (cited in Hijab, woman gains power and status when she has children, par- 1988:79) of a village south of Cairo where male villagers ticularly sons, and establishes control of her own house- worked abroad found some evidence of a change in wom- hold. Associated with high birthrates is the early age at en’s roles. Emigrant workers’ wives, who had stayed at which women marry. More than half of all women between home, managed the remittances sent back by their hus- the ages of 18 and 22 are married in Middle Eastern coun- bands. In addition they dealt with individuals and institu- tries. Very few reach the age of 30 without being married. tions outside the household, such as merchants or the Education is another determinant of women’s official village agricultural cooperative, and sometimes they hired labor force participation. There is a negative correlation workers and negotiated the workers’ wages. Although the between women’s participation rate and the illiteracy rate. wives’ workload had increased, most of the women did The literacy rate for females varies among the countries of not mind this and viewed labor migration in a positive the region. For example, the highest adult literacy rate (72 light. The husbands were seen to have become more de- percent) is found in Turkey and Jordan and the lowest (35 pendent on their wives’ advice and turned more frequently percent) in Egypt (see the table). to them during decision making. It was concluded that Most of the literature focuses on the impact of social women were doing more than filling the gap until their factors restricting women’s participation in the formal husbands’ return, and that this was likely to have some labor force. Hijab (1988) discusses the factors keeping lasting effects. women’s participation rate low in most of the Middle East- In Turkey—in contrast to Egypt—Kandiyoti (1977) ern countries. She argues that there are three conditions to points out that when wage labor jobs took Turkish men be met before women can be integrated into the wage labor away from depressed areas and offered them a fixed regular force: need, opportunity, and ability. If any one of these wage, their absence placed the responsibility of agricul- conditions is not met, then women’s participation rates will tural production on women, who were left with a double continue to be low. These conditions must be met at the burden. Women were left without husbands for long periods

348 DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION of time and had to act as heads of households. But this situ- As regards the patterns of women’s paid employment, ation did not enrich women or allow them more room to Middle Eastern and Arab women are concentrated in pro- negotiate their own needs or rights with the men of their fessional occupations. The high incidence of women work- families. This was not only because women had to work ers in professional and technical occupations in most twice as hard, but also because they did not usually control countries may be the outcome of occupational segregation the cash flow from their fathers, sons, or husbands, as was prevalent in the region, where women cluster in specific the case in preindustrial rural Turkish society. jobs such as teaching and nursing (Moghadam, 1993). It Looking at a different aspect of the changing role of may also be a function of the relationship between class, women, El Solh’s study in 1985 (cited in Hijab, 1988:79) income, and work participation, in that women from elite examined the lives of Egyptian settlers in Iraq to assess families are most likely to be those who are in paid em- changes in the role of women. Women settlers coming from ployment, especially in the Gulf countries. In terms of oc- rural Egypt were involved in marketing activities, which cupational distribution, all countries have few women in meant mixing with male strangers. The women explained administrative and managerial occupations. There also ap- the changes by saying they were in a foreign country where pears to be a marked disinclination for women to enter no one knew them, or that their situation differed, since sales work or even clerical work, except in Israel their husband could not rely on anyone else. As El Solh (Moghadam, 1993). Mujahid (cited in Moghadam, noted, when ideals and reality clashed, economic self-inter- 1993:51) explains women’s avoidance of such jobs in est came first, although the fiction of adhering to customs terms of cultural norms, because these are occupations and tradition was upheld. with the highest likelihood of indiscriminate contact with In Israel, as mentioned earlier, the participation of Jew- outsiders. ish women in the paid labor force has steadily increased The kinds of occupations open to women varied among and is much higher than for women in other countries in the the countries of the region. For example, in Israel, 28.9 per- Middle East (except Turkey). In Israel, women’s participa- cent of the workforce in the professional, technical cat- tion is determined by a number of factors. It is positively egory were women, while in agriculture, forestry, fishing, correlated with level of education and is negatively corre- and hunting only 1.6 percent were women. In Turkey, the lated with number of children; these are relationships that female participation rate ranged from a high of 69 percent are found in other countries. Not surprisingly, the presence in agriculture and hunting to only 0.1 percent in adminis- of preschool children exerts the greatest influence against tration and managerial workers (Moghadam, 1993:51). women’s working, while older children exert the least in- fluence (Moskoff, 1982). Women, Work, and Ideology It is interesting that Israeli women born in either Africa In the Middle East and in the Arab region the majority of or Asia have a lower participation rate than women born in people are Muslims (except in Israel). Religion-based ide- North America or Europe. This reflects several things. ology and culture have influenced women’s economic po- First, the culture they were brought up in has an impact. sition and role in development. However, Islam is only one Also, African- and Asian-origin women are likely to have of the many contributory factors that shape the lives of married younger. However, the most important factor may women in the Middle East, and therefore it cannot be seen be that their level of education is likely to be lower than that as the primary causal element that has led to the low level of other groups of Jewish women. of female participation in the paid labor force. It is essential Asian or African origin is not the only factor militating to recognize the different historical and cultural contexts in against Israeli women’s labor force participation. A severe which the laws of Islam have been interpreted, as altera- constraint on women’s labor market activity is the dual tions and adjustments to these laws have arisen from socio- labor market. Moskoff (1982) argues that female participa- economic and political needs. tion is dependent on expansion of the tertiary sector of the There is a widespread belief that the ideology of Islam is economy, since women’s admission to traditional male oc- hostile to women’s participation in the paid labor force. cupations is quite limited. He concludes that there is a lack Some empirical studies (for example, Moskoff, 1982) have of institutional support for working women. Most schools used simple statistical comparisons to argue that female close at noon, which necessitates that mothers be home in labor force participation rates are lower in Muslim coun- the afternoon to care for their children. This suggests that tries and, therefore, a strong case has been made that a part-time work is the only alternative for married women number of elements within Islamic culture combine to pro- with children. duce a low female participation rate. However, it is not

349 DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION clear whether this relationship is a result of supply factors considerable number of managers perceived benefit (Muslim women being unwilling to participate) or demand from employing women. factors (Muslim employers being unwilling to hire women) 4. On the other hand, there were also a number of firms or some other set of factors common to Muslim countries that were reluctant to consider hiring women in various but unrelated to religious values. capacities. The firms that perceived disadvantages to There is a considerable body of literature that has used hiring women mentioned factors such as unsatisfactory interviews with Muslim women to assess their attitudes to levels of education and training. Again, religious objec- work. For example, a study by Sanad and Tessler (1988) tions appeared relatively unimportant. considered the attitudes of a random sample of Kuwaiti women. This study was typical of a large number of studies With regard to attitudes of employers to the employ- that did not find general opposition to the idea of women ment of women in Islamic countries, it is worth men- working. Sanad and Tessler also developed indicators of tioning an extensive statistical study carried out by religiosity and concluded that Islam did not appear to be an Anker and Hein in 1986 (cited in Afshar, 1993:113). important independent contributor to the economic con- This research focused mainly on the reasons for labor servatism of older Kuwaiti women. In other words, what- discrimination in developing countries. Anker and Hein ever was causing the negative attitudes toward working found the following: wives in Kuwait, it did not appear to be Islam. Although there is considerable literature dealing with 1. The main complaint made by employers against women the effect of Islam on women’s attitudes to employment, was high absentee rates, and the authors found this com- there are very few studies that examine the attitudes of em- plaint to be justified by the evidence available. ployers in Islamic countries. Al-Meer (1988) administered 2. The possibility of pregnancy was also mentioned fre- a questionnaire to a small sample of western, Asian, and quently as a reason for not hiring women. Saudi men in a variety of companies in order to assess their 3. Employers provided a long list of jobs for which women attitudes toward women as managers. Although he found were considered less suitable than men. Only teaching that western men had more positive attitudes toward was mentioned as a job for which women would be women as managers, he found no significant difference be- more suitable than men. tween Asians and Saudis. While this is only one study with 4. Women were considered less suitable than men because a small sample, these results are remarkable, since Saudis they were considered to have less muscular strength and are among the most conservative Muslims. Al-Meer com- to lack supervisory skills, and because some jobs were ments that negative attitudes seem to be a function of the considered to be male jobs. level of development of the country. A study on women, work, and ideology was conducted Most of the information cited above concerns Muslim Arab by the World Bank in four countries (Jordan, Egypt, Mo- countries. In the case of Iran, no study had been undertaken rocco, and Turkey) in 1990. It examined the attitudes of as of this writing that examined the role of religion in wom- women and employers in these countries. The main find- en’s economic status although, according to many schol- ings of this study (cited in Afshar, 1993) can be summa- ars, a principal objective of the leaders of the present rized as follows: Iranian regime had been to restore women to what they considered women’s primary role in society: domestic re- 1. The study was consistent with the existing literature, sponsibility (Moghadam, 1988). A woman’s religious duty which generally found little independent direct effect of requires her to concentrate on fulfilling her “real” tasks as an Islamic ideology producing hostile attitudes to wom- wife and mother. en’s paid employment. Turkey replaced the Islamic personal status laws with a 2. The major constraint that women perceived on their civil law code regulating personal and family relations and employment outside the home was the lack of satis- equalizing the duties and responsibilities of the sexes. In factory arrangements for the care of their children. the 1920s, Turkey introduced secular legal codes based on They did not feel constrained by the attitudes of their western models. Such legal codes provided an important men-folk. basis for changing the status of women, and of women’s 3. Employment opportunities for women in firms surveyed work, in Turkey. seemed to be relatively favorable. Women were rela- In Israel an ideology concerning “the primacy of men’s tively overrepresented in the higher grades, and a role as chief provider and women’s role as family-tender

350 DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION has been strongly reinforced by the powerful religious es- suggests a link between the deterioration of women’s po- tablishment and is embodied in the social policy of both the sition and their preexisting dependence on men. Her inter- welfare service and the National Insurance” (Bernstein, views with Moroccan women working in various craft 1983:284). industries (such as weaving, textiles, and rugs) indicate The effect of ideology had not (at the time of this writ- how dependent women are on men as intermediaries, a ing) been included in assessing women’s participation in situation that worsens their precarious economic position. the paid labor force in most of the Middle East and the Arab She concludes that the increasing capitalist penetration of region, yet its effect could be dramatic. For example, in such industries has had the consequence of further de- Saudi Arabia women are forbidden to work outside the grading women. home in the company of men, but in Egypt many women The complex and contradictory nature of the relation- must work to support families, though social customs ship between development and women’s status has been might hinder them. explored by a number of Turkish and Iranian researchers. Kandiyoti’s research conducted in the 1970s (cited in Women and Development Moghadam, 1993:64) comparing the status of Turkish in the Middle East and the Arab Region women in nomadic tribes, peasant villages, rural towns, Before about 1970, it was thought that the development and cities found that the influence of the patrilineal ex- process affected men and women in the same way. Produc- tended household—where the father dominates younger tivity was equated with the wage economy, and so most tra- men and all women, and there is a hierarchy by age among ditional women’s work was ignored. When it became the women—was pervasive in all sectors, but less so in the apparent that economic development did not automatically towns and cities because of smaller (unextended) family eradicate poverty through trickle-down effects, the prob- groups and the diminished importance of elders. Compared lems of distribution and equality of benefit to the various with peasant and nomadic women, urban women played a segments of the population took on major importance in reduced role in the productive process, even though they development theory. were more likely to head their own households. But peasant The role of women in development in the Middle East and nomadic women did not receive recognition for their has rarely been acknowledged and has often been misun- own labor. derstood. One reason for this has been western ethnocen- Esther Boserup (1970) was one of the first scholars to trism (Fernea, 1986). suggest that ethnocentric western-style development The “general good” assumption about development is plans, particularly in agriculture, ignored the realities of one found in the West. It is an ethnocentric view of the women’s participation, and that this myopic view had a world in which it is believed that only when third world negative impact not only on women but on the overall de- countries implement development patterns and industrial veloping economy. One of her examples involved Af- patterns common in the West will they triumph over pov- rica—and is applicable to north African Arab erty. As for women, the assumption is that only when countries—where western-style agricultural development Middle Eastern women cast off their cultural backward- plans were drawn up in which men were allotted land and ness, their traditional homebound roles as wives and given tools and seeds. The plan totally ignored the previ- mothers within the family unit, and participate in the pub- ously existing situation in the African countries, in which lic world of production will their difficulties cease. Such a women, not men, were the actual cultivators. Men in these view ignores the realities of what women are doing today countries had not farmed before, and thus, not surpris- and have done in the past in Middle Eastern society. These ingly, the agricultural plan failed. The lesson of Boserup’s realities include the fact that women always participated work seems clear: ethnocentricity hinders, not helps, de- in many different ways in the preindustrial labor market; velopment plans. women were already laboring in local industries, both pri- Ethnocentricity also clouds the definitions of labor and vately and publicly owned; and women continue to pro- production on which development plans are based. Labor vide domestic labor as they have always done, not only in and production, according to western criteria, are defined the home, but in what is called the informal sector of the as work performed outside the home for fixed wages. This old economy, without which labor in the modern definition probably accounts for more confused western economy could not proceed. Mernissi (cited in pictures of men’s and women’s labor in Middle Eastern Moghadam 1993:63) argued that modernization reduces, societies than any other single idea. Defining labor as marginalizes, and devalues women’s work. Her research wage labor outside the home ignores the paid and unpaid

351 DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION labor of women and men in agriculture in every Middle In Iran during the 1980s, development plans concen- Eastern country. Women, men, and children also engage trated on the role of women in society in terms of their in domestic production. In addition to housework and domestic responsibility and their real tasks as wife and child rearing, many other economic activities take place mother. The same approach has been applied in Saudi in the domestic sphere, such as raising animals; managing Arabia. and serving in small shops; performing medical, social, and religious roles such as midwife, matchmaker, and Government Policies and Women’s Status mullah (religious adviser); and producing small craft Since the 1960s, state expansion, economic development, items such as clothing, rugs, and pottery. These domestic oil wealth, and increased integration within the world sys- production activities, sometimes called informalsector tem have combined to create educational and employment production, do not feature in official statistical analyses of opportunities favorable to women. labor force participation. Hence, official analyses and re- During the 1970s the large countries, such as Egypt, ports on which national and international development Iraq, Turkey, and Iran, were importing machinery to run plans are based discuss only one layer of the society that local industries producing consumer goods. This strategy is being analyzed. Such analyses are based on western as- was associated with an economic system characterized by sumptions that the Middle East is merely replicating the central planning and a large public sector, and it opened experience of the West following the industrial revolu- some employment opportunities for women, mainly in the tion, and hence these informal-sector activities will soon expanded civil service but also in state-run factories or in- disappear. This assumption is basically false, for the area dustrial plants in the private sector receiving state support is changing in very different ways from the West and over and foreign investment (Moghadam, 1993). The rise of oil a much more extended time. What is actually happening prices in the early 1970s led to a proliferation of develop- to women in different parts of the Middle East and in dif- ment projects in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting ferent classes of these societies is ignored, particularly if Countries (OPEC). it contradicts western assumptions. A large percentage of male workers migrated from Since the early 1980s, a new approach has appeared, cap-ital-poor to oil-rich countries, and considerable criticizing the western-oriented development approach. intraregional investment and development assistance took Huda Zurayk (1979) and Sonia Ali (1979) discuss the place in the region as a whole. This was followed by in- shortcomings of the methods used in the measurement of creased male employment and an increase in the portion women’s economic participation. Carla Makhlouf of the labor force involved in industry and services. These Obermeyer (1979) sees a necessity for new definitions of changes also affected women, who were increasingly women’s work from within Middle Eastern society itself. brought into the paid labor force. For relatively well-edu- Nawal El Saadawi (1981) asserts that almost half the cated women, services (teaching, health, and welfare) of- labor force in Egypt is female, though this fact is not re- fered the greatest possibilities, while in the more corded in publications of international agencies. Rural developed Middle Eastern and Arab countries (such as versus urban experience is also important but, again, sel- Turkey and Egypt) women’s participation increased in dom included in the official statistics. Further, develop- commercial and industrial enterprises and public admin- ment plans in the Middle East have neglected the istration. phenomenon of households headed by women. Thus During this period of rapid growth, some governments plans assume that women are being supported rather than provided generous benefits to working women. Kuwait in supporting others and do not include women in work ben- 1976 and Jordan in 1978 instituted comprehensive social efit schemes, loan arrangements, and other supporting security systems for workers, including women. Iran mechanisms. adopted the International Labor Organization (ILO) Con- Most of the development plans in the Middle East and in vention No. 3, which applies to all women employed in the Arab region focus on urban development and industry. industrial and commercial undertakings and provides for Urban industrial development has had adverse effects on 12 weeks’ maternity leave, to be taken in two parts, one women’s lives and economic status in both urban and rural before and one after childbirth, the latter being compul- areas, because factories do not offer equal pay, decent con- sory. Legislation in nearly all Middle Eastern countries ditions, or reasonable working hours to women. Rather, protected a female employee from dismissal during preg- this kind of development gives women a double burden nancy or maternity leave, and in some cases (Jordan, (work at home and labor in the workplace). Syria, and Iraq) provided for the establishment of

352 DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION workplace nurseries and breast-feeding breaks have most influenced the economic status of women in the (Moghadam, 1993). Middle East and in the Arab region: level of development, In the 1980s all Middle Eastern and Arab countries economic crises (oil price fluctuations, inflation), men’s faced economic and political difficulties, which affected and employers’ attitudes toward women working, wom- women’s economic status and employment opportunities. en’s educational levels, and women’s class position. It is The economic crisis in the Middle East and Arab region necessary to stress the importance of appropriate economic occurred in the context of a worldwide crisis resulting in development, legal reform, and educational opportunities part from a drop in real prices of primary commodities, in- for women. These will have a significant impact on the role cluding oil. Austerity measures were introduced in Egypt, of women and their participation in development in the Jordan, Algeria, Morocco, and Syria, the availability of de- Middle East and the Arab region in the future. velopment aid decreased, and major development projects were reevaluated or suspended. The Iraqi invasion of Ku- See Also: wait in August 1990 raised the price of oil again, but the EDUCATION: MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA; damage had already been done. Arab countries in North ENVIRONMENT: MIDDLE EAST; FEMINISM: MIDDLE EAST; Africa experienced low or negative economic growth rates. ISLAM; POLITICS AND THE STATE: MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH Turkey was placed on the World Bank’s list of severely in- AFRICA; WORK: OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION debted middleincome countries. The livelihood of lower- middle-class, and working-class women was adversely References and Further Reading affected, especially in Iran, Egypt, Morocco, and Algeria. Abu-Nasr, J.Ulinda, Nabil F.Khoury, and H.T.Azzam. 1985. In Israel, the official state policy toward female employ- Women, employment, and development in the Arab world. ment saw women as a reserve of labor only after men were Berlin: Mouton. employed (Bernstein, 1983). Women were seen as second- Afshar, Haleh. 1993. Women in the Middle East: Perception, reali- ary providers; men are the heads of family. Policymakers ties, and struggles for liberation. London: Macmillan. perpetuated the existing division of labor within the family A-Meer, Abdulrahim. 1988. Attitudes towards women as manag- in order to maintain social stability and social order. Israel ers: A comparison of Asians, Saudis, and westerners. Arab received aid from the United States; but elsewhere, tough Journal of the Social Sciences 3 (1):139–149. economic reforms, along with poverty and unemployment, Ali, Sonia. 1979. Women in labor force data in Egypt. In The had a negative impact on the economic status of women. measurement of women’s economic participation: Report of Political pressures throughout the region have also discour- a study group, 51–55. Beirut, Lebanon: Population Council, aged women’s integration into the development process. West Asia and North Africa Region (October 12–13). Bernstein, Deborah. 1983. Economic growth and female labor: Summary The case of Israel. Sociological Review 31:263–287. In most Middle Eastern and Arab countries women remain Boserup, Esther. 1970. Women’s role in economic development. an underutilized human resource because of an ideology London: Allen and Unwin. stressing women’s family roles, and because of ambiva- Fernea, Elizabeth. 1986. Women and family in development plans lence on the part of governments toward the full participa- in the Arab East. Journal of Asian and African Studies 21 (1– tion of women in development. Women’s official labor 2):81–87. force participation in the Middle East and in the Arab re- Hijab, Nadia. 1988. Womenpower: The Arab debate on women at gion is still very low (except in Turkey and Israel). Islam is work. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. only one of the many contributory factors shaping the lives Kandiyoti, Deniz. 1977. Sex roles and social change: A compara- of women in the Middle East, and it cannot be seen as the tive study of Turkey’s women. Signs 3:57–73. primary causal element that has led to the low level of fe- Moghadam, Valentine. 1993. Modernizing women: Gender male participation in the paid labor force. Political forces and social change in the Middle East. London: Lynne and economic needs and opportunities have strongly af- Rienner. fected the level of female participation in this sector. The ——. 1988. Women, work and ideology in the Islamic repub- role of women in economic development has rarely been lic. International Journal of Middle East Studies acknowledged and has often been misunderstood. Defining 20:221–243. labor as wage labor outside the home ignores the paid and Moskoff, William. 1982. Women and work in Israel and the Is- unpaid labor of women in agriculture in every Middle East- lamic Middle East. Quarterly Review of Economics and ern and Arab society. In conclusion, the following factors Business 22 (4):89–104.

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Obermeyer, Carla Makhlouf. 1979. Some notes on women’s eco- Canada in culture, language, and civil law. In terms of reli- nomic participation in North Yemen. In The measurement of gion, most Quebecers of French origin officially claim to women’s economic participation: Report of a study group, be Roman Catholic (97 percent), whereas the British are 39–42. Beirut, Lebanon: Population Council, West Asia and mainly Protestant. In 1994, those of French ancestry in North Africa Region (Octorber 12–13). Canada made up about 31 percent and the British about 45 Saadawi, Nawal, El. 1981. The hidden face of Eve. London: Zed. percent of the nations population. Sanad, Jamal A., and Mark.A.Tessler. 1988. The economic orien- African Canadians first arrived with the Loyalists from tation of Kuwaiti women: Their nature, determinants and New England or the West Indies as slaves. Others arrived consequences. International Journal of Middle East Studies through the “underground railway” (a network to aid runa- 20:443–68. way slaves fleeing the United States). By 1996, Canadian Semyonov, Moshe, and Noah Lewin-Epstein. 1994. Ethnic labor blacks came from many diverse places and constituted markets, gender and socioeconomic inequality: A study of about 2 percent of the population. Arabs in the Israeli labor force. Sociological Quarterly Although migration to Canada was mainly from Eu- 35(1): 51–68. rope, more recently there has been increasing migration United Nations Development Program (UNDP). 1994. Human from Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, creat- development report. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ing what is called a “visible” minority. Canada has a policy World Bank. 1994. World development report: Infrastructure for of multiculturalism, which supports cultural diversity. It is, development . Oxford: Oxford University Press. however, still a hierarchy of ethnic groups, or, as the soci- Youssef, Nadia. 1976. Education and female modernism in the Mus- ologist John Porter (1965) referred to it, a “vertical mo- lim world. Journal of International Affairs 30(2): 191–210. saic.” Moreover, women have been and continue to be Zuryk, Huda. 1979. Measuring women’s economic participa- disadvantaged relative to men within this vertical mosaic. tion. In The measurement of women’s economic participa- tion: Report of study group, 5–38. Beruit, Lebanon: The United States’s Population, Population Council, West Asia and North Africa Region Size, and Brief Ethnic History (October 12–13). The United States is the fourth largest country in area, with the third largest population in the world (249 million). It Dalma Al-Khudairi has been a recipient country for both voluntary migrants and involuntary refugees since its inception; even the na- tive peoples migrated from Asia. Besides the Native Ameri- DEVELOPMENT: North America cans, blacks, and Hispanics, the largest migrant groups arrived from Germany, Ireland, England, Italy, France, Po- This article discusses the position of women in the econo- land, and the Netherlands. Before the 1960s the United mies of Canada and the United States. It briefly describes States was thought of as a “melting pot” where migrants populations, ethnic composition, and histories of migra- assimilated into the American way of life. The civil rights tion. It then discusses the nature of labor markets, the labor movement and the rise of ethnic consciousness in the 1960s force participation of women, the wage differences be- and 1970s changed this idea. Now, ethnic groups are proud tween women and men, the extent of unemployment and of their heritage and some have passed their original lan- poverty, and the increasing “feminization of poverty” in guages on to succeeding generations. This may be more the these two countries. case with the visible migrants who have more recently come in large numbers from Asia and South America. Eu- Canada’s Population, Size, and Brief Ethnic History ropean migrants have more successfully competed with Canada is the second largest country in the world in area, mainstream Americans, whereas migrants of color have with a comparatively small population (28 million). With met discrimination and have not been as successful in com- the coming of Europeans, the original 1 million (approxi- peting with whites. Rural blacks, especially black females, mately) native people rapidly declined to 125,000 by 1967 remain among the most economically disadvantaged owing to disease, starvation, and warfare. By 1994, they groups in the United States. Some regard this situation as a had increased to 586,000, or 2 percent of the population. continuing legacy of the southern slave and plantation The first European settlers in Canada were predomi- economy (Lichter, 1989). nantly of French and British origins. Quebec, where those Whites make up about 80 percent of the country’s popu- of mainly French origin settled, differs from the rest of lation. Blacks form the largest minority group (about 12

354 DEVELOPMENT: NORTH AMERICA percent); others are smaller minorities, such as Hispanics This type of occupational sex segregation has declined (1 percent), Asians (3 percent) and Native Americans (1 somewhat since women have begun to move into male pro- percent). As well as ethnic and gender stratification within fessions, managerial occupations, and even some manufac- the economy, there are also regional differences and differ- turing and high-technology jobs, but even in these ences between urban and rural areas. occupations women tend to meet a “glass ceiling” where it is difficult to gain promotion and reach positions at the top Nature of the Labor Markets (Reskin and Padavic, 1994). In the United States in 1990, Both these countries are highly developed industrially, and less than 0.5 percent of the highest-paid directors were most people have a high standard of material living. How- women (Fierman, 1990). In the field of law in 1990, one in ever, there is obvious inequality in the distribution of three associates in large firms was a woman, but only one in wealth among the various ethnic populations, and groups eleven was a partner (Epstein, 1993). of color suffer markedly more poverty overall. Labor markets are differentiated not only by occupation A historical overview of the Canadian and U.S. econo- but also by economic sector and geographical area. For ex- mies shows that at the end of the nineteenth century and the ample, women tend to fare better in the public sector than beginning of the twentieth, the factory system was replac- in the private sector, in the larger cities, and in the more ing the family as the main productive unit. Factory work prosperous states and provinces. Affirmative action strate- involved long hours, low wages, and often brutal working gies within federal, state, and provincial agencies have conditions. Jobs for women were limited in number, and made some difference to career mobility for women and there was strong sentiment against married women work- minorities. ing outside the home, motivated by fear of cheap female Services accounted for most new jobs created in the labor undercutting men’s wages. 1980s (70 percent of paid workers in both countries were in During World War I, women did men’s jobs; but they the service sector), but many were part-time jobs. With eco- received lower wages. At the end of the war, women were nomic restructuring, many full-time jobs are being con- strongly encouraged to leave the workforce. The expan- verted to part-time or to piecework done at home with sionary period of the 1920s was cut short by the depression, corresponding loss of income, benefits, and security and unemployment skyrocketed. With World War II, the (Connelly and MacDonald, 1996). Traditionally women economy recovered. Production expanded enormously and have been overrepresented in nonstandard forms of work, so did employment. When men went to war, single and then such as part-time, part-year, short-term, or temporary (in married women were again called to do men’s jobs, again Canada 31 percent women as opposed to 16 percent men). for lower wages. This time, however, many stayed and As fulltime jobs disappear, men’s percentage in nonstand- found employment in the expanding number of “female” ard forms of work increases. jobs in the service sector of the economy (Connelly, 1978; Milkman, 1987; Reskin and Padavic, 1994). Labor Force Participation The 1950s were a period of rapid economic expansion. In Canada in 1901 women made up 13 percent of the labor The shift from agriculture to manufacturing increased the force, and by 1951 they had increased this share to 22 per- amount of consumer goods. This, in turn, created a need for cent. Another two decades (by 1971) saw this figure climb services, such as marketing and advertising, and many of to 34 percent, and by 1981 women were 41 percent of the the new jobs created were in the “female” occupations of labor force. In 1986, women of Aboriginal origin had a teaching, nursing, sales, and clerical work. lower participation rate (40 percent) than non-Aboriginal Generally, women earn less than men because of their women (56 percent). By 1994, the majority (60 percent) of location in the labor market. The labor market has been de- Canadian women were working or looking for work out- scribed as dichotomized between primary jobs and second- side the home. ary jobs. Men are overrepresented in the primary jobs in The same dramatic increase after World War II was wit- core corporations, where they are in permanent positions nessed in the United States. In 1890, 19 percent of women with higher salaries, benefits, and opportunities for promo- were in the labor force. By 1950, there was an increase to tion, whereas women are overrepresented in the secondary 30 percent; by 1970 the figure had increased to 41 percent; jobs in the peripheral and smaller firms, where jobs are and by 1992, to 58 percent. At the beginning of the twenti- lowpaid, unstable, with few benefits and little chance for eth century, there was a large difference in labor force par- mobility (Armstrong and Armstrong, 1994; Connelly and ticipation between white (16 percent) and black (40 percent) MacDonald, 1990; England and Browne, 1992). women. By the end of the twentieth century, white women

355 DEVELOPMENT: NORTH AMERICA had narrowed the gap in their labor force participation so large proportion of poor Americans, more recent migrants that by 1987, 56 percent of white women and 58 percent of from Asia often live in poverty. A study of Indochinese black women were working (England and Browne, 1992). refugees (Jones and Strand, 1986) found that most house- holds (Vietnamese, Lao, Hmong, and Cambodian) were Wage Differences between Women and Men earning an income below poverty level, with Cambodians Despite increases in women’s labor force participation the poorest and Vietnamese somewhat better off. Not all over the past century, there remains a gap between the Asian-Americans live below the poverty line, however. wages of women and men. This is mainly because the Asian Indians (second to Japanese-Americans), as a minor- higher the percentage of females in an occupation, the ity, earn high salaries, though not commensurate with their lower its wages. It has been estimated that between 35 and education, and males earn on average twice as much as fe- 40 percent of the sex differences in wages in the United males (Barringer and Kassebaum, 1989). States is a result of occupational sex segregation. Over Just as there is heterogeneity among and within mi- time, the gap in annual earnings has narrowed, but there has grant groups, so there is among the black population. been little movement over the past few decades. The ratio There is a growing black middle class, but chronic prob- of women’s annual earnings to men’s was 46 percent in lems persist among the black “underclass,” and there are 1890, 55 percent in 1930, 64 percent in 1955, 64 percent in major differences between blacks living in rural and urban 1983 and 74 percent in 1997. African-American women areas. In rural areas, two out of every five blacks are with- earned only 86 percent and Hispanic women just 74 per- out jobs, cannot find a full-time job, or cannot earn cent as much as white women. African-American women enough to raise themselves significantly above poverty earned 63 percent as much as white men, and Hispanic thresholds. In the 1980s, more than 50 percent of young women earned 54 percent as much. In actual incomes, blacks in cities were jobless, working at part-time jobs in- though, white men earn the most, followed by black and voluntarily (wanting full-time jobs), or earning poverty- Hispanic men, then white, black, and Hispanic women level wages (Lichter, 1989). (England and Browne, 1992). Whether black or white, most families on welfare live In Canada, wages fell for the decade 1980 to 1990 and in poverty. The percentage of female-headed households workers were not able to bargain for higher wages in the is increasing, and more women have been categorized as current economic climate. Men’s wages decreased more poor adults, leading to the term feminization of poverty. In than women’s wages, and for this reason the gap between the United States, half of all female-headed families with female and male average wages narrowed to 70 percent in children under 18 are below the federal poverty line. Fe- 1991 (Armstrong, 1996). Women who are members of male-headed families are far more likely to be poor if they visable minorities earn the least. As in the United States, are black (56 percent) or Hispanic (55 percent) than if white men have the highest income, followed by nonwhite they are white (28 percent) (McLanahan, et al., 1989; men, then white women, and, only marginally lower, Northrop, 1990). nonwhite women (Li, 1992). Another group increasingly at risk of living in poverty is aged women. Close to three out of four older people who Unemployment, Poverty, and the Homeless are poor are women. Women who are widowed and other In 1994, 1.7 million people in Canada were unemployed, women living alone are among the poorest. Ann Hartman and there had been a sharp increase in long-term unem- argues that “aging is a feminist issue. The poorest segment ployment. Unemployment was significantly higher for Na- of American society is elderly Black women; 82 percent tive Canadians. As jobs become more difficult to obtain, were poor or near poor at the time of the 1980 census firms find it easier to reduce wages and extract other con- “(1990:388). One reason that women face a greater risk of cessions from workers. As a result, the conditions of work poverty is the wage gap between men and women, which are eroding, and the standard of living is dropping. Main- carries over into retirement, when benefits depend on in- taining a reasonable standard of living is a particular prob- come during their working lives. lem for the nearly one million Canadian families headed by Government cutbacks to welfare programs eventually single parents, of which 82 percent are headed by women. translate into increases in poverty rates. In both countries, According to Statistics Canada (1992), 62 percent of single governments are shedding many welfare responsibilities, mothers live on incomes well below the poverty line. more often than not, resulting in increased workloads for A number of groups in the United States live below the women. Working or not, generally women still do the bulk poverty line. Besides blacks and Hispanics, who form a of household management and domestic work.

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Homelessness in late twentieth-century North America ——, and Hugh Armstrong. 1994. The double ghetto: Canadian was a sign that “safety net” programs for the prevention of women and their segregated work 3rd ed.. Toronto: extreme destitution have diminished. It was estimated in McClellan and Stewart. 1987 that there were 194,000 homeless adults in large U.S. Barringer, Herbert, and Gene Kassebaum. 1989. Asian Indians cities. Although most homeless people are single men as a minority in the U.S.: The effect of education, occupa- (about 73 percent), there was a rise in the presence of tions and gender on income. Sociological Perspectives homeless families toward the end of the 1980s, and a large 32(4): 501–520. majority of these families were female-headed, single-par- Burt, Martha, and Barbara Cohen. 1989. Differences among ent households (Burt and Cohen, 1989). homeless single women, women with children, and single men. Social Problems 36 (5: December.):508–520. Strategies for Equality Clio Collective. 1987. Quebec women. Toronto: Women’s Press. In both countries, since the 1960s, women have been or- Connelly, Patricia. 1978. Last hired, first fired: Women and the ganizing to demand greater equality. The women’s move- Canadian workforce. Toronto: Women’s Press. ment raised consciousness and emphasized women’s Connelly, Patricia, and Martha MacDonald. 1996. The labor right to independence and control of their own lives. market, the state, and the reorganization of work: Policy Women joined unions and other organizations in greater impacts. In Isabella Bakker, ed., Rethinking restructuring: numbers. They debated issues such as wages for house- Gender and change in Canada. Toronto: University of To- work, affirmative action, equal pay, parental leave, ad- ronto Press. equate day care, reproductive rights, and protection ——. 1990. Women and the labor force: Focus on Canada. Ot- against sexual harassment and violence. In recent years tawa: Statistics Canada. women have begun to struggle against cutbacks in gov- England, Paula, and Irene Browne. 1992. Trends in women’s eco- ernment services. nomic status. In Sociological Perspectives 35(1):17–51. In the United States there was a spate of legislation that Epstein, Cynthia F. 1993. . Urbana: University of started with the Equal Pay Act of 1963, continued with Title Illinois Press. VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the Fierman, Jaclyn. 1990. Why women still don’t hit the top. Fortune Higher Education Act of 1972, and ended in the same year (30 July):40, 42, 46, 50, 54, 58, 62. with the passage by Congress of an equal rights amend- Hartman, Ann. 1990. Aging as a feminist issue. Social Work 35 (5: ment. Similar bills have been enacted in Canada. Each of September):387–388. these bills attempted to remove some barriers to equality. Jones, Woodrow, Jr., and Paul Strand. 1986. Adaptation and ad- Yet together they have had little discernible impact for justment problems among Indochinese refugees. Social Sci- women as a whole. Even the addition of affirmative action ence Review 71(1: October):42–46. and comparable worth has not brought anticipated gains. Kessler-Harris, Alice. 1985. The debate over equality for As Alice Kessler-Harris has suggested, “gender equality women in the workplace: Recognizing differences. In will be achieved only when the values of the home are Laurie Lar-wood, Ann Strombert, and Barbara Gutek, eds. brought to the work place where they can transform work Women and work: Annual review 1:141–161. Beverly itself. It opens the possibility that an ethnic of compassion Hills, Calif.: Sage. or tolerance, a sense of group responsibility to the world at Li, Peter. 1992. Race and gender as bases of class fractions and large (instead of to self), might in fact penetrate the work their effects on earnings. Canadian Review of Sociology and place.” (1985:157). Anthropology 29(4):488–510. Lichter, Daniel. 1989. Race, employment hardship, and inequality See Also in the American nonmetropolitan South. American Socio- DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW; DIVISION OF LABOR; ECONOMY: logical Review 54(June):436–446. HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION; ECONOMY: WELFARE McLanahan, Sara S., Annemette Sorensen, and Dorothy Watson. AND THE ECONOMY; WORK, specific topics. 1989. Sex differences in poverty, 1950–1980. Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 15(1):102–122. References and Further Reading Milkman, Ruth. 1987. Gender at work. Urbana: University of Illi- Armstrong, Pat. 1996. The feminizarion of the labor force: Har- nois Press. monizing down in a global economy. In Isabella Bakker, ed., Northrop, Emily M. 1990. The feminization of poverty: The de- Rethinking restructuring: Gender and change in Canada. mographic factor and the composition of economic growth. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Journal of Economic Issues 24(1: March):145–160.

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Porter, John. 1965. The vertical mosaic: An analysis of social women in these countries leads to considerable difference class and power in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto in their conditions. Press. Reskin, Barbara, and Irene Padavic. 1994. Women and men at Sri Lanka work. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Pine Forge. In terms of gender relations and the general status of Statistics Canada. 1992. Families: Number, type and structure. women, Sri Lanka occupies a special place among other Ottawa: Government Press. countries in south Asia. Sri Lankan women gained the right Janice Currie to vote as early as 1931, three years after women in Great Britain (Sastri, 1993). Women in postindependence Sri DEVELOPMENT: Postmodern Perspectives Lanka have achieved very high literacy rates, and they out- number men in some sectors of tertiary education. In 1960 See POSTMODERNISM AND DEVELOPMENT. Sri Lanka made history by becoming the first country to have a woman lead its democratically elected government. Demographic improvements are also apparent, such as a rise in the age of marriage, a sharp decline in fertility rates, DEVELOPMENT: South Asia and higher life expectancy. Most of these trends are unu- sual by third world standards, and Sri Lankan women can- This article discusses the position of women in five coun- not claim to face serious disadvantages compared with tries of the south Asian region. It looks at their social and women in other south Asian countries. Yet the majority of cultural status, marital status, education, and labor force women in Sri Lanka, like their sisters elsewhere in the re- participation; and the impact of capitalism and patriarchal gion, are confronted with many issues that contribute to the institutions; and issues that seem to affect their position deterioration of their overall quality of life. owing to the recent development processes. The protracted ethnic conflict in the north and the east South Asia has a disproportionate number of the devel- has resulted in substantial social dislocation and trauma, oping world’s poor. While 30 percent of the developing affecting on the lives of many women and their families. world’s population is concentrated in the region, it has 47 The increasing financial cost of the war has led to a deterio- percent of its poor. Nearly 51 percent of the population in ration in the quality of health and education services and in south Asia is considered to be below the poverty line, com- the quality of life of people in the country. pared with 33 percent of the total population of the devel- oping world (Human Development Report 1994). Bangladesh Women appear to share the major burden of this state of development; more than 70 percent of adult females were Bangladeshi women are usually seen as dependent and vul- illiterate in three out of five countries in the region (Table nerable. Although women contribute immensely to domes- 1). In countries like Banglaesh, India, and Pakistan, high tic labor and economic production, this is not maternal mortality rates indicate that women lack access to acknowledged (Women in Development, 1986). On the basic medical facilities; the rates also reflect malnutrition, other hand, they are subject to social ostracism if they fail anemia, and complications related to reproductive health. to produce sons or if they have sick children. It is the re- The position of women in these countries poses many con- sponsibility of the women to produce a son or sons to ac- tradictions. Powerful Hindu goddesses and female politi- quire status. If a woman’s marriage ends when she is young cal leaders coexist side by side with cultures of hierarchic or old with no son to support her, she may either return to male authority. In south Asia it is misleading to refer to her family of birth or live in poverty. The most noted social women as a class in terms of their economic position or as custom in Bangladesh is seclusion, or purdah. a group with shared interests and common problems. Al- India though women in general may be more oppressed than men, the nature and extent of their oppression will vary India inherits a caste-linked patriarchy. The system of kin- according to their class, caste, ethnicity, and religion. De- ship has been patrilineal and patrilocal throughout the sub- velopment issues concerning women in south Asia are also continent except among the Nayars and related castes in linked to the impact of imperialism and capitalism and the Kerala. With regard to seclusion, controls on women vary, influence of traditional patriarchal structures. The varying since lower castes allow women greater independence, impact of all these forces on the status and lives of the which is necessary to their work and survival. Traditions

358 DEVELOPMENT: SOUTH ASIA that allow child marriage, patriliny, and dowry deaths still Table 1. South Asia: Basic indicators remain, while androgyny and female power (shakti) exist only at the ideological level. The cultural reality for most Indian women is pativarta (one who worships her hus- band). Postcolonial economic development has increased the gap between the organized and the unorganized sectors as well as the gap between men and women. Capitalism in the form of commercial tree felling, large-scale construc- tion projects, mining development, and factories (espe- cially in the forest and mountainous areas) has invaded the traditional sources of livelihood for most tribal women. These developments have at the same time united poor women in protecting the environment, finding employ- ment, and fighting violence.

Nepal Nepal is one of the least developed countries in the world; the majority of the population is dependent on low-produc- tive agriculture. The legal status of women appears to be mixed. While the constitution of 1990 guarantees funda- Source: World Development Report 1999/2000:230; 232; 242. mental rights to all citizens without discrimination on the basis of caste, ethnicity, sex, or religion, there is no sup- portive leglislation. On the other hand, family laws that govern marriage, divorce, property rights, and inheritance determine a woman’s position within the family. Religious reinforce patriarchy and restrict women’s power over eco- values are used to provide guidance on relationships be- nomic resources (; 1999). Early marriage, tween the sexes, marriage, divorce, inheritance, and family high fertility rates, and lower life expectancy rates are more matters. At the same time they are used to restrict women the rule than the exception. Women also bear the risk of from openly participating in educational, economic, politi- early widowhood, owing to the practice of early marriage cal, and other activities. and to poor health facilities in the country. The female lit- eracy rate is low, and few women have been able to obtain Social and Cultural Status of Women higher education. Women’s participation in political and In the developing nations of south Asia, women’s access to administrative fields is marginal, with few employed at the power and positions of influence is determined to a large decision-making levels in the government sector. Acknowl- extent by traditional norms and religious values. The ma- edgement of women’s contribution to the national jority of women in south Asia belong to the religious tradi- economy is limited, because the majority are omitted from tions of Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism, with a minority labor force statistics. The predominance of the idea of of Christian groups. Stemming from these religious beliefs patrilineage and male superiority, the high value placed on are values about appropriate behavior for men and women. chastity, and the notion that women should not live inde- The social and cultural status of women in south Asia there- pendently all contribute to the low status of women in Ne- fore varies according to the nature and intensity of religious pal. influences, together with the social class position of women and the remoteness of a region from modernized Pakistan urban sectors. The low status of is one of the main On the Indian subcontinent women enjoyed many impediments to the achievement of developmental goals. privileges and religious rights in common with men dur- The extended family is a basic functional unit in Pakistani ing the Vedic era, but a gradual erosion of their status society, and for most people it is the only source of security. resulted after the laws of Manu were written down. Ac- Family structure is based on descent through the male line cording to these laws, a female must be subjected to her and acceptance of male authority. Early marriage and the father in childhood, to her husband during youth, and, ability to produce children after marriage, especially sons, when her lord is dead, to her sons; a woman must never

359 DEVELOPMENT: SOUTH ASIA be independent (Manu: V: 147, cited in Altekar a place in the priesthood and are often excluded from 1950:329). What was expected of a woman was unques- mosques. The majority of women in Pakistan and Bangla- tioning obedience to her husband and unlimited service desh are subjected to Islamic rules and are also influenced to him, however unfair his demands and however low he by local customs, traditions, and tribal laws. In the less may have been. In the classical texts such a woman was populated provinces of Baluchistan and Northwest Frontier called a pativarta, or one who worships her lord: the Province in Pakistan, a woman’s life is governed by a rigid ideal woman in Hinduism. In marriage a Hindu woman code of tribal beliefs and patterns of behavior, and any de- has to be chaste and bear sons for the performance of fu- viations from these codes may have grave consequences neral rites for her husband. During the early periods, ex- (Shaheed, 1989). Thousands of Pakistani women and girls cessive practices—such as suttee (sati), or the burning of are stabbed, burned, or maimed every year by husbands or a widow on the funeral pyre of the husband—were car- other male relatives, who think the women have brought ried out. Even in modern times widows are expected to them dishonor. The most common reasons for such assaults follow strict codes of conduct such as wearing plain are for being unfaithful, seeking a divorce, eloping with a clothes, disposing of jewels and ornaments, and behav- lover, or refusing to marry a man chosen by the family. If ing in ways that reflect Hindu renunciation. These beliefs the victim dies, the crime is interpreted as a “,” are internalized by women and passed on to younger gen- an action that is seldom punished by law. erations. From early childhood females are taught to play Although women’s status is closely linked to their class subservient roles, to be docile, submissive, and passive. in Islamic countries, women are generally considered sub- They are socialized to expect that they will spend their ordinate to men both in their families and in society. In Pa- lives as mothers and housewives and will have responsi- kistan, even the position of the former prime minister bility for child care and housework. In the Hindu tradi- (Benazir Bhutto) was threatened by religiopolitical parties tion, women derive their status from fertility in the which argued that a woman cannot be a head of state in exalted status of mother goddesses, while infertility is Islam. The trend toward politicizing religion and toward considered a curse (Kasarda, Billy, and West 1986). Islamization has adversely affected the position of women However, women have no control over their own fertility. in countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh. In these coun- Childbirth and lactation force women to withdraw from tries women are also conditioned by such notions as gender active economic work and make them dependent on their segregation and honor, and by the prescriptions of purdah men. Religious notions have reinforced patriarchal val- (that is, female seclusion). ues, which have shaped the lives and behavior of the ma- Purdah, female seclusion, creates a sexually segre- jority of women in south Asia. gated world that identifies men with the public or social In Sri Lanka the majority of women are followers of sphere and women with the private domestic sphere. Its Buddhism, and to a great extent their lives are influenced outward symbol is the purkah, a concealing garment that by Buddhist values. Although Buddhism as a liberal reac- women don when they leave the household and enter the tion against orthodox Brahmanism elevated the status of “male space.” Along with other elements of the system at women, in practice it tends to favor men. For instance, the both ideological and structural levels, purdah sets and Buddha allowed women into the order under the “eight maintains the limits to women’s access to power and au- high ordinances,” yet the first one asked nuns, even those tonomy. In Bangladesh purdah is practiced by middle- ordained a hundred years ago, to show respect to a monk and upper-class women, while poor women do not con- just ordained. There is still no possibility for women to be- form to these controls, because they are pushed out to come ordained as Buddhist nuns, and in Sri Lanka there seek contractual forms of wage labor (Women in Devel- have been heated discussions on this issue. The idea of opment, 1986). Customs related to purdah have prevented mother as a self-sacrificing and benevolent figure is very women’s mobility, access to information and education, much present in Buddhist thought. Yasodara, the devoted skills, and work opportunities. Purdah often leads women wife of Prince Siddharta, Amara in Ummaga Jataka, and to withdraw from institutions at puberty and discourages Kinneri in Sandakinduru Jataka are religious images that them from attending schools at any distance from their have made a great impact on Buddhist women, like the in- homes. Rural areas in Baluchistan and Northwest Fron- fluence of Sita on Hindu women. tier Province, which have the most extensive purdah re- Islam and Christianity both have ruling male gods (Al- strictions, also record the lowest literacy levels. In the lah and God the Father), male prophets (Muhammad, Je- long term these practices create barriers to women’s par- sus, John the Baptist), and male priests. Women are denied ticipation in all spheres of activity, including the political

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Table 2. Indicators of marital status and place of birth (whether up-country or low country) were important considerations in a marriage, dowry tended to assume greater importance. At present, with the impact of commercialism, marriage and dowry have assumed new dimensions, and capitalistic attributes such as class back- ground, occupation, education, wealth, and in extreme cases foreign exchange (for dowry payment) play an im- portant role. Social, cultural, and religious traditions affect women’s reproductive role. With the exception of Sri Lanka, women in the region are married, on average, by age 19 (Table 2). Men tend to marry later, and in countries like Bangladesh men are on average seven years older than women who marry for the first time (World’s Women 1970–1990, 1991). This gap would increase women’s dependence on their Source: The World’s Women 1995: Trends and Statistics, page 36. husbands even if women contribute to the family income. It

*The World’s Women (1979–1990) Trends and Statistics; 1991 pages 28–29. further indicates that because of their responsibilities for child care few women complete secondary school or work outside the home. In most countries of the region a woman fulfills her most important responsibility and acquires sta- and legal spheres that could help to promote their rights tus when she produces a son. To fulfill this obligation fe- and status. males are married off at puberty and then are locked into high-fertility patterns. Failure to produce a son may some- Marriage: Customs and Practices times lead to desertion or divorce. that Affect Women’s Status The status of women in any society can be gauged by the Education and Training forms of negotiation involved in marriage. In south Asian Despite broad progress in education, there is a huge dis- countries it is considered the duty of the family to get fe- crepancy in literacy between men and women, especially males married, whether they be daughters or sisters. This rural women, in south Asian countries (Table 3). Second- focus on marriage tends to distract parents from concen- ary and tertiary education have also been limited com- trating on important areas such as the education and train- pared with countries in Latin America, the Carribean, and ing of girls for the labor market. Originally the dowry other parts in Asia (World’s Women 1995: 92). As in the meant that the marriage of a daughter was often accompa- countries of subSaharan Africa, generations of educa- nied by small gifts, including cash, clothing and jewelry tional neglect have left high illiteracy rates among older that the bride kept as her personal property. In India, al- women, with more than 70 percent of women aged 25 and though the dowry was banned by the Dowry Prohibition over being illiterate (World’s Women 1995: 88). In this Act of 1961, it is easily evaded because gifts made at the gloomy scenario Sri Lanka’s performance is unique in time of the wedding are not included in the legal definition achieving high literacy rates. The impressive educational of dowry. Today it has become a form of extortion, with achivement in Sri Lanka is attributed to the interventions young brides being harassed, beaten, tortured, and in ex- in education in the early years of this century and to the treme cases murdered if the husband’s family considers the availability of free education immediately after independ- dowry inadequate. ence. In the rest of the region it will take many years to In Sri Lanka during early times, marriage between reduce the gender gap in literacy due to the historical defi- cross-cousins was considered the ideal, and marriages be- cit in women’s education. This literacy gap is paralleled tween families of the same caste in the same or neighboring by an educational gap at every level of the educational villages were common. In these marriages the dowry was system. In secondary enrollments girls lag behind, and more of a gift to the daughter in the form of jewelry or one reason could be early childbearing in countries like property. Later, arranged marriages through a matchmaker Bangladesh and Pakistan. Except for Sri Lanka, the coun- (kapuwa) became the accepted norm, especially among the tries in the region enroll fewer than 40 women per 100 middle classes. Although caste, family, religion, horoscopes, men in higher education.

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Table 3. Indicators of education families. Women from the landowning classes in the ru- ral sector often have control over the labor of poor peas- ant women and others who work in their households. In the urban areas women professionals have different working lives from factory workers, construction work- ers, casual laborers, and vendors. In countries in south Asia, women who are at the bottom of the socioeconomic hierarchy are the landless poor who work as casual workers in rural and urban informal sectors. Two-fifths of all working women in India are low-paid casual laborers, and of this group, the majority are tribal and outcaste women. This phenomenon could be attributed to patterns of economic development such as logging of forests, which have forced tribal people out of their forest- based subsistence (Bhadran, 1991). In Bangladesh, although women are restricted by pur- dah, poor women work outside the home as low-paid domestics in rich households, construction workers, and daily laborers in unskilled rural nonfarm work (Feldman, Source: (a) Human Development Report 1998 1993). In urban areas a small percentage of women hold (b) United Nations Development Fund for Women-Targets and professional jobs, in fields such as teaching, medicine, Indicators 2000 and social welfare. In recent years, with the creation and (c) The World’s Women 1995: Trends and Statistics, 1995. expansion of garment factories, there has been an in- crease of women in the manufacturing sector. Segrega- tion of women in lower categories of work leads to problems of unemployment, underemployment, insecu- Women and Work rity, and irregularity of jobs, as well as lower remunera- The ability to participate in economic activities and gain tion. This is also true in Pakistan, where increasing control over one’s income is an important indicator of numbers of women are employed in factories and produc- women’s status in general. The extent of women’s par- tion units such as electronic industries and garment in- ticipation in the labor market and the nature of the ac- dustries. In the unorganized or nonformal sector the tivities performed would reveal women’s status as well activities of women are not recognized and go unre- as the variations of status across socioeconomic classes ported. For example, women working in quarries, al- (see Table 4). though forming 50 percent of the labor force, are not Developmental processes have differential impact on recognized as laborers, and their wages are paid to the women in south Asia. For example, domestic work, male head of the family. which is often considered the second shift of women’s In Sri Lanka, the majority of women are engaged in ru- work, is class-differentiated. The availability of cheap ral agriculture, the so-called informal sector, where women female and child labor as low-wage domestic servants laborers, especially those engaged in paddy cultivation, are provides time for middle-class women to enter the pro- paid less than men for performing the same tasks. Women fessions and participate in political decision making. employed in the formal sector are governed by labor legis- The availability of cheap domestic service may also ex- lation, and in 1985 women public-sector employees gained plain the lack of a female middle-class voice demanding the right to three months’ maternity leave for the first two that males share domestic labor. Apart from class, patri- live births, as well as social security benefits available to archy and caste are also interactive elements in deter- male public-sector employees. According to the socioeco- mining women’s work. In India, for example, women’s nomic surveys carried out by the Central Bank in Sri work is stratified and determined by norms of appropri- Lanka, there has been an increase of 1.4 percent in the ur- ate work related to one’s class or caste position ban sector, which could be attributed to the increase of the (Bhadran, 1991). Casual, low-paid, and laboring jobs service and manufacturing industries, particularly those in will not attract women of upper-class and upper-caste the free trade zones

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Table 4. Indicators of economic activity Bhadran, Kalpana. 1991. Women and feminism in a stratified soci- ety: Recent developments in India. In Sally J.M. Sutherland, ed. Bridging worlds: Studies on women in South Asia. Berkeley: University of California Press. Feldman, Shelley. 1993. Contradictions of gender inequality: Ur- ban class formation in contemporary bangladesh. In Alice Clark ed., Gender and political economy: Explorations of South Asian systems, 215–43. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Human development report 1994. (1994. United Nations Human Development Report 1998. UNDP; New York Oxford Uni- versity Press Development Program.) New York: Oxford University Press. Karsada, John. D, John. D.G.Billy, and Kirsten West. 1986. Status enhancement and fertility. Academic Press Inc. New York. Sastri, Amita. 1993. Women in development and politics: The changing situation in Sri Landa. In Alice Clark, ed., Gender and political economy: Explorations of South Asian systems, 246–41. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Shaheed, Farida. 1989. An analytical description of women in Pa- kistan (NORAD). Islamabad: Royal Norwegian Embassy. Source: (a) World Development Report; 2000. The state of world population. 1994. New York: UNFPA. Women (b) Human Development Report 1998 or 2000. in development: Country briefing paper. 1986. Asian Devel- opment Bank. Women in Nepal: Country briefing paper, 1999. Asian Develop- ment Bank. South Asian women in general are subject to considerable World development report: Infrastructure for development. 1994. pressure to conform to the domestic roles of wife and World Bank. New York: Oxford University Press. mother, as well as to religious ideologies, which empha- World development report: Entering the 21st Centry. 1999/2000. size female inferiority. Arranged marriages, the dowry World Bank. New York: Oxford University Press. system, purdah, and new patterns of economic develop- The world’s women 1970–1990: Trends and statistics. 1991. New ment all contribute to reinforce women’s social and eco- York: United Nations. nomic dependence. Although these discriminatory The world’s women 1995: Trends and statistics. 1995. New York: conditions have been identified, few steps have been taken United Nations. to address them. Thalatha Seneviratne Gaps in policy, development, and income deprive many south Asian women of the long overdue recognition for their work in the home, labor force, and services to the community. DEVELOPMENT: See Also Sub-Saharan and Southern Africa BUDDHISM; COLONIALISM AND POSTCOLONIALISM; DOMESTIC LABOR; FEMINISM: SOUTH ASIA; HINDUISM; Women today play a prominent role in the economic de- POLITICS AND THE STATE: SOUTH ASIA, I and II; SHAKTI velopment of Africa. Since prehistoric times, as reflected in instructional myths of origin, women have generated References and Further Reading and sustained life. They have contributed substantially to Altekar, A.S. 1950. The position of women in Hindu civilization the economic welfare of African societies as the main pro- from pre-historic times to the present day. Delhi: Motilal ducers of staple foods; they have processed the food crops Baranarsidas. and provided the daily sustenance of extended families.

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Women’s status has similarities throughout the continent, plants and initiated their cultivation (Swantz, 1985:25–27). though there are also variations based on historical experi- Where cultivation was the basis for subsistence, settle- ence and modes of livelihood in different ecological ments had a degree of permanency. In the woodlands, shift- zones. Differences in precolonial histories and cultures, ing slash-and-burn cultivation required men to cut forests the history of the slave trade, the impact of religion, colo- for fields while women took care of family sustenance. nial occupation, rule by different foreign powers, varying Women managed all domestic work, as they have contin- national struggles for independence, the political and eco- ued to do in rural areas until today, even if the nature of the nomic systems the countries adopted, and increasing pres- work has changed. sure from the world economic systems are all factors that Together with men or alone, women cleared felled trees have influenced women’s contributions to and potential and prepared fields for sowing; they hoed, weeded, and for development in different parts of southern and sub-Sa- harvested; they processed the crops, cooked the meals, and haran Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa consists of all the coun- carried water and firewood. Women bore and nurtured chil- tries within and south of the Sahara: Angola, Zambia, and dren and cared for the general well-being of their families. Tanzania are the northern border countries of southern Af- Where plows were in use, men’s share of the work was rica. North Africa includes Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mo- larger. Similarly, where the skill of weaving was developed, rocco, and Tunisia, which thus fall outside the men were the weavers, as in west Africa and Ethiopia and geographical area of this article. in a few other parts of Africa. Scattered groups—the !Kung San (“Bushmen”) of Bot- Patterns Inherited from Precolonial African Society swana and Namibia, the Hadzapi and Tindiga of Tanzania, In the woodlands and mountains of precolonial African so- and the Efe or Mbuti (“Pygmies”) in the borderlands of ciety there was a division of work between men and Congo and Uganda—chose to remain hunters and gather- women. This division allotted men the task of hunting ers until the changes that have recently been forced on game for food and skins for clothing, felling and hauling them. Women gathered wild grasses, roots, leaves, fruits, trees for constructing houses, making weapons and tools, and nuts, occasionally benefiting from a swarm of locusts and carving utensils. In order to stalk prey and acquire ma- or flying ants, while men tracked their prey deep in unin- terials, men had to veer outside the domestic area. Women habited terrain. Even here territorial distances conditioned tended the hearth and food stores; they gave birth and nur- the division of work. These groups have been pushed out to tured offspring. Male young people were initiated into wil- survive in marginal lands; they have collided with modern- derness survival, while females were initiated into izing national policies in Tanzania; and they have suffered regenerative domestic tasks. The border between the hu- from wars in their territories, especially in southern Africa, man habitat and wilderness demarcated the division of where South African troops exploited their skills of orienta- work between men and women, as it later did between pub- tion and survival in deserts and forests. lic life and the domestic sphere. This is the historical basis Herding in arid lands created a cattle-based culture with for the division of labor even in changing societies. seasonal migration to better grazing grounds. Among per- Men claimed the right to mobility for clan, tribal, or in- sistent pastoralists, the basic life pattern has remained un- terstate politics and trade, much as they have done until to- changed since precolonial times. Women have tended day. Occasionally women have become chiefs. In Tanzania small stock near the home kraals, milked cows, and the hereditary Mwami of the Nyiha, Mangi Mayanka of the worked with beads and leather. Moving the kraal has been Chagga, elected because of her personal qualities, led her seasonal or has followed weather conditions in years of subjects to war against neighboring chiefs (Swantz, 1985). drought. Indigenous methods of spacing children were im- The Rain Queen of the Lovedu maintained authority by re- posed for the sake of mobility. A child had to walk before maining invisible to her subjects. another was born; a mother could not carry two children. Women were healers, shamans, diviners, and, in gen- Even today, women remain with a child until he or she eral, central actors in ritual celebrations. For the most part, walks and “can take a gourd of milk” to the father. Polyga- however, large state celebrations for kings, rulers, and mous marriages permit time for the mother to recover after tribal elders constituted the men’s domain. Women were childbirth. precluded from defending themselves or even from partici- Many traditionally nomadic herders have until recent pating in public proceedings. times seldom engaged in cultivation. However, the vast The myths of origin of domestic plants among the arid lands in Sahel, where precipitation is concentrated in Zaramo of Tanzania explain that women discovered edible one relatively short season a year, have lent themselves to

364 DEVELOPMENT: SUB-SAHARAN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA extensive plow cultivation. Suitable weather conditions slavery is an important piece of women’s history on which created areas for combined cattle herding and cultivation most other history books are mute (1975, 1993). Many in countries like the Hausaland of northern Nigeria, slave girls were bought by missions or they themselves es- Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali, or in northern Tanzania, caped to freedom. Since they had no kinship ties to sur- to mention a few. Neither extensive plow cultivation nor rounding communities, they were the first women to herding has been principally women’s work. Since trac- receive an education and to become helpers in mission sta- tors have replaced the plow here, both the work and con- tions or teachers of children and other women. trol of the produce for cash crops have slid into the hands Christianity and Islam, as historical religions based on of men. In general, extensive agriculture and the use of written traditions, have old roots in the northern parts of the plow, and later the tractor, have kept much agricul- Africa. The Orthodox church gave shape to the culture of tural work in the hands of men. When herders began cul- Ethiopia; Islam spread from the northeast over the Saharan tivating, they not only hired labor but also preferred states and through large parts of west Africa. tractors to oxen for fear that their livestock would suffer Since the early centuries of the second millennium (ac- if they were turned into beasts of burden. Nonetheless, cording to the western calendar), traders and craftsmen women’s participation in weeding, harvesting, and from Persia (Shiraz), the Arabian peninsula, India, and processing is greater than commonly recognized. The even China and Indonesia came with their boats to the east change from extensive to more intensive cultivation of coast of Africa. They traded, invaded, intermarried, and set- groundnuts, as an export crop to Europe from Senegal tled on the islands of Lamu, Zanzibar, Pemba, and Kilwa, and Burkina Faso, increased women’s workload, but, and on the shores of the mainland. Their penetration to in- here as elsewhere, women were usually obliged to give land regions began later with long-distance trade. Africa the cash to their husbands. was a land not only of slaves but also of ivory, animal tro- Cattle herding has been male-dominated, even if cattle phies, and, above all, gold. On the islands and along the are transferred from one family or lineage to another coastline flourishing settlements were created. The chroni- through women. For example, in the Parakuyo of Tanzania, cles and ruins of extensive stone structures of palaces and head of cattle are counted as a man’s property even if he mosques tell of the wealth of the black women who, as holds the stock in the name of his wives. The man controls early as the Middle Ages, bathed in palace pools and the herd, but he cannot dispose of such cattle without the dressed in silk gowns and golden ornaments. Engravings permission of the particular wife. The herd symbolizes so- on centuries-old gravestones indicate that the towering cial relationships in the kraal. Women’s dependence on tombstones were erected in honor of notable women as men’s authority has gradually decreased, however, as well as men. Moreover, old Swahili poetry records women women discover their de facto economic power. poets whose manuscripts have been preserved in family Prehistoric penetration of pastoralists into the areas of chests as heirlooms. Islam also changed African traditional sedentary cultivators in the regions of central African lakes architecture; women’s seclusion became more pronounced created differentiations between cattle owners and seden- than earlier because houses that had been on open ground tary cultivators, the latter becoming servants, even slaves, became fenced in (Weule, 1909). Islamic social practice on to the wealthier cattle owners. Male-dominated feudal class the eastern coast has influenced women’s economic activi- societies were born among the peoples around the lakes. In ties differently in west Africa. It has kept women away the 1980s and 1990s the world witnessed a sequence of from the markets and other public places. In western Af- bloody internal wars in this region. rica, in Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal, women control the The slave trade, which was carried out from the western market trade with their tightly organized yet flexible infor- coast of Africa to the Americas, and from the eastern coast mal systems. to Asia and Arabia as well as to the French-ruled islands of the Seychelles and Mauritius in the Indian Ocean till the Colonial Africa latter part of the nineteenth century, reached the heart of Only the fortresses of Mombasa and Kilwa remain as inland Africa and had a devastating impact on social rela- physical reminders of the 200-year-long Portuguese occu- tions. Along the slave route women were traded as pawns pation—from the end of the fifteenth century—of the Tan- or concubines, valuable for the labor and sexual services zanian and Kenyan coast. But in Angola and Mozambique they could render for internal and intertribal power strug- and to a certain extent in Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, gles as well as for external transactions. Marcia Wright’s Portuguese rule left behind traumatic development and se- studies on redeemed women slaves after the abolishment of vere national birth pains.

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The era of accelerated long-distance trade had caused After World War II women began to be trained as teachers, movement of peoples and goods, including the sale of nurses, and clerks and started looking for employment as women, as already indicated. It whetted the appetite of the domestic servants and industrial workers. The accompany- powerful nations of Europe: Britain, France, Belgium, and ing changes affected local cultural and social systems pro- Germany. In Berlin in 1885 representatives of European foundly. Women did not always gain a better position governments sat around a table and sliced the map of Africa within the household in monogamous marriages as male into sections for colonization. Subsequently, these coun- rule persisted, and the institutional churches also created tries sent emissaries to usurp the designated lands. This new male hierarchies. marked the beginning of the colonial era in Africa. The increased need for labor in public works, for agri- The introduction of Christianity to sub-Saharan Africa cultural workers on plantations, and for mining industry in the middle of the nineteenth century through foreign led to extensive labor migration. The colonial governments missionaries, and to a greater extent through indigenous recruited laborers through imposition of head and hut evangelists and Christians, coincided to a large degree with taxes. To pay the taxes, men were forced to migrate to the colonial period. Where the mission agencies were ac- towns and plantations for wage employment, or men were tive, Christianity influenced women’s position. Women in introduced to cotton, coffee, or tea production for cash subservient social situations could experience new forms crops. Labor migration reinforced the gender-based divi- of personal freedom (Larsson, 1991); hospitals and clinics sion of work, which to a great extent has remained until provided health services especially for parturient women today, even if the lifestyles of the people have changed. and infants, and elementary schools were established for Men’s long absences and extramarital relations in towns girls as well as boys. Christian churches also introduced had grave consequences for family life and the health of monogamous marriage rules, which changed the social women and children who were left behind to care for their fabric. Women’s workload increased in single-wife mar- own well-being. On the other hand, when women had to riages, as did the number of children borne by one mother. assume greater responsibility for the management of Women received elementary education in mission and households and cash crops, the construction of houses, and church schools, but institutions of higher learning were the education of children, their management skills and eco- opened later for young women than for men. The pattern of nomic independence increased, even when men controlled education varied in different colonial systems. In the cash earned from crops. francophone Africa a selected number of highly competent The male-dominated urban centers attracted women students, eventually including a number of women were whom the social system could not accommodate: widows integrated into the French educational system. Some stu- or divorced women with no land for cultivation and women dents from Africa were welcomed at the Sorbonne and in search of more personal freedom (Larsson, 1991). When other academic institutions in France, but the majority of wages improved, whole families could accompany the the people received little or no education. Most women re- man. Town life also dramatically changed the pattern of mained illiterate under French rule, as they had been under women’s daily lives. Portuguese rule. The primary concern of all colonialists was to secure After Independence the workforce required for lower posts within the colonial African countries gained their independence over a period administrative system. First the Germans, then the British of 35 years. Ghana was the first in 1957; the French colo- aimed at building a broad-based system of primary and nies were granted independence by de Gaulle in 1960; and middle schools but few secondary schools. A few top stu- Tanzania became independent in 1961, a few years before dents were sent to the academic institutions of Britain. In other east African countries. Independence has meant a the 1920s the number of girls in government schools was strong emphasis on development in all the African coun- negligible, though the church schools provided rudimen- tries, with mixed results. Women have played an increas- tary education to children of both sexes. With the help of ingly central role in sustainable development. voluntary agencies, above all Christian churches and mis- Women’s central role in sustaining life has always been sions, the number of schools grew substantially. They of fundamental importance in Africa, and it is even more were eager to educate the wives of men who had become important today, though during the first decades of devel- Christians. opment the international community hardly recognized Employment opportunities later opened for educated their contribution. African political leaders, intent on mod- , the church, and other institutions. ernizing and developing, treated women as traditionalists

366 DEVELOPMENT: SUB-SAHARAN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA who had to be admonished to come out from their kitchens. economic decline, having invested in large construction Internal and external development agents similarly treated and industrial projects that depended on external funding. women at first as passive beneficiaries of development; The expansion was too fast, and too little thought was given they were invisible as long as the thrust of development was to operating expenses or maintenance costs. Aid money on technological modernization. Little acknowledgment was gradually decreased or totally withdrawn, and many was given to the role women played as producers and pro- large projects could no longer be sustained. viders of family sustenance. As in developing countries elsewhere, African countries In the 1970s two approaches to women’s issues became south of the Sahara became heavily indebted. The interest common. The one-sided emphasis in development rhetoric payments alone consumed a large portion, up to 30–40 per- on economic growth and technological modernization was cent, of their export earnings. Policymakers did not recog- balanced by “basic needs” policies. When women’s heavy nize that the production of export crops in order to gain workloads were acknowledged, public discourse turned foreign currency depended on the work of women cultiva- women into victims requiring salvation from excessive tors. If they were unable to produce enough, the countries labor, ignorance, ill health, and illiteracy. In general, the were unable to pay the interest or to reimburse the debt that gender imbalance was beginning to be recognized, as was the industrial sector had incurred. The problem was exacer- the fact that women were often deprived of basic rights. bated when young people went to school or moved to town Another approach, which women themselves began to pro- in search of a better life, leaving most of the agricultural mote through national and international women’s move- work to older and fewer women in the rural areas. Droughts ments, and which was first stated in 1970 in an in the late 1960s and early 1970s, especially in the Sahel international forum in the Second International Develop- countries, in the 1980s in east Africa, and in the early 1990s ment Decade United Nations document, was to “integrate in the southern parts of Africa, imparied the productive ca- women into development” (Joekes, 1987). The interna- pacity of African countries even more. tional community began to realize that women are not only Under considerable pressure, the countries began one targets of action or beneficiaries and victims of welfare; by one to concede to implement a “structural adjustment they are also actors in their own right. Women have increas- program” (SAP), which the International Monetary Fund ingly become conscious of the great significance that their (IMF) jointly with the World Bank demanded as a precon- productive, reproductive, and nurturing work has always dition for further loan money. The SAP measures hit had, not only for their own families and communities, but women in charge of families the hardest. Radical cuts in for the economic development of their countries in general. health and educational expenditures affected women and International Women’s Year was declared by the United children most acutely, because they were the prime users of Nations General Assembly in 1975. The Women’s Decade, social services. With rapid inflation, wages lost buying which the first World Conference on Women initiated in power as food prices rocketed. This resulted in a rapid Mexico City in that year, had a great influence on women’s growth of the informal economy, nontaxable gray work, positions all over the world (Pietilä and Vickers, 1994). The black markets, and smuggling of goods across borders. fact that women had their own International Year and a sub- Since women were the providers of daily food and other sequent Women’s Decade became a general topic of dis- basic needs for the family, they also became involved in cussion at all levels of society. National preparations for the manifold ways of producing, processing, or exchanging four international women’s conferences that followed goods for sale and trading them and in providing a variety Mexico—the second in Copenhagen in 1980, the third in of services. Liberalization of trade also legalized transac- Nairobi in 1985—became international events that perma- tions that earlier were out of legal bounds. This develop- nently established women on the development agenda both ment has also helped women find legal, albeit informal, nationally and internationally. The conference in Nairobi forms of microentrepre-neurship and has lifted them, espe- adopted a document entitled “Forward-Looking Strategies cially in urban centers, from inactive consumers’ roles to for the Advancement of Women,” which the United Na- become major economic actors. Women have gained new tions General Assembly later legitimized, thus obliging all economic opportunities especially within the informal member governments to implement it. This document has market but also in the formal market system during the re- played an important role in establishing women’s issues in cession and the economic crisis of the late 1980s. subsequent development policies in Africa as elsewhere. In precolonial society women had no separate economic The 1980s were referred to as the “lost decade” for Af- role apart from the generation of life and the maintenance rica because most countries on the continent suffered steep of family livelihood in general. Today we are conceptually

367 DEVELOPMENT: SUB-SAHARAN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA returning to that same situation: women at the grassroots linkages that enable individuals to fulfill their economic have retained the complex pattern of everyday living out of and social obligations. necessity. Women continue to combine their domestic and The continental economic crisis has placed huge de- economic roles. Economic life cannot be partitioned into a mands on women. It has loaded them with heavy work, but separate domain. the increased economic responsibility has also afforded Although it is widely recognized today that women, af- them more personal freedom and social authority. Women ter the economic crisis of the 1980s, emerged from their play a central role in the economies of the African countries hidden domestic role as the main economic actors in large through their income-earning activities and entrepreneur- parts of Africa, official statistics do not acknowledge their ship. Their activities are often informal and small in scale, work as economically significant. Statistics are able to in- and this provides women the flexibility required to manage clude women’s work only in situations where products are their manifold daily tasks. Another notable aspect of wom- exchanged at the marketplace and given added value. Gross en’s economy is the readiness and ability to combine serv- domestic product (GDP) includes only produce that is as- ice with income generation. By necessity, women operate signed monetary value in national statistics. Until today by standards other than the profit motive that mainstream women have been accorded credit only in rhetorical dis- economics prescribes. Their businesses do not always aim course about development. Yet women’s work within the at growth; rather, they represent an opportunity for family informal economic sphere has grown to such proportions members and neighbors whom they feel responsible for to that in countries like Tanzania it now covers more than one- earn a living (Tripp, 1997). They multiply horizontally, half of the national economy. Of the household incomes in making room for many small enterprises, instead of grow- Dar es Salaam at about the time of this writing, between 80 ing in size. The economy thus remains manageable by and 90 percent was earned by women through their women as well as men and serves as a model for economies “projects” (Tripp, 1997). of the poor in general. Health problems have always affected women even Future Perspectives more than men because of their reproductive tasks and their Women’s situation in today’s Africa is radically different primary responsibility for children. Many parts of Africa from what it was 50 years ago. The dismantling of colo- have suffered droughts and wars, which have had dire con- nial societies, the often painful process of building inde- sequences for the food situation. During the 1990s the HIV pendent states, and the onslaught of the world economic virus became an even greater killer of women than of men, system have changed the structures of societies and influ- and its spread still continues, with very few success stories enced the status of women profoundly. Each country has in arresting it. built its politics on its own history, some achieving inde- In dealing with women’s issues there has been a shift pendence since the early 1960s through a relatively from a discussion of “basic needs” to a focus on “human peaceful struggle. Other countries, like Mozambique, An- rights. This has accompanied a shift from women’s devel- gola, and Zimbabwe, and later Namibia and South Africa, opmental issues emphasizing income generation and wel- have gone through prolonged wars and bitter political fare concerns to questions of how women could attain processes. political power. There have been some homogenizing forces at work Women’s political participation in Africa increased dra- through multi- and bilateral development agencies. Multi- matically over the 1990s as new actors claimed political and bilateral organizations specializing in issues of health, space. As a few African countries moved toward electoral work, family planning, and women’s rights have also democratization in the 1990s, most remained basically au- gained influence through international conferences, which thoritarian or semiauthoritarian but incorporated some have passed recommendations for the improvement of democratic innovations. Thus, the rules for authoritarian women’s plight. National governments have signed con- regimes changed in some fundamental ways, so that such ventions and have agreed on strategies that have given regimes differed markedly from the autocracies of the ear- women opportunities for their own action. Women have lier postindependence period. been organized in national movements often controlled by The nature of women’s political activities underwent parties and governments, but more recently by self-initi- transformation as a result of these political openings. ated women’s organizations. Through these organizations Whereas earlier organizational efforts focused on income and movements women are beginning to influence decision generation, in the 1990s women’s organizations began to making on different levels. Through them they also form focus more intensively on formal political power. Women

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politicians and organizations began to lobby actively for Wright, Marcia. 1975. Women in peril: A commentary of the life constitutional and legislative reforms to improve the status stories of captives in nineteenth-century east-central Africa. of women. Nonpartisan women’s organizations made con- African Social Research 20 (December.):800–819. certed efforts to increase female representation in parlia- ——. 1993. Strategies of slaves and women: Life stories from ments. For the first time, women began to aspire to the east/central Africa. New York: Lillian Barber. presidency in countries like Tanzania, Nigeria, and Kenya, Marja Liisa Swantz and women started and led political parties. On the elec- toral front, women’s associations and women politicians were beginning to question the political manipulations of ethnicity. In Tanzania, women’s efforts to develop nonpar- tisan, nongovernmental associations sparked conflict and DEVELOPMENT: Western Europe debate over the nature of politics and citizenship and the limits of the right to organize. Similar struggles over The Meaning of “Women and Development” associational autonomy intensified throughout Africa in the European Context (Tripp, 2000). The concept “women and development” is relatively new to western Europe. It has evolved from consideration of the See Also developing world rather than of Europe itself. At the inter- DEVELOPMENT: MIDDLE EAST AND THE ARAB REGION; national summit in Rio de Janeiro (1992), an undertaking EDUCATION: SOUTHERN AFRICA; EDUCATION: SUB-SAHARAN was announced that the industrial world would increase as- AFRICA; ENVIRONMENT: SUB-SAHARAN AND SOUTHERN sistance for development to over 0.7 percent of national AFRICA; POLITICS AND THE STATE: SOUTHERN AFRICA; budgets. In fact, only a few countries (Denmark, Norway, POLITICS AND THE STATE: SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA Sweden, and the Netherlands) have done this. In all other western European countries (as well as in the United References and Further Readings States), the contributions to bilateral and multi-lateral Boserup, Esther. 1970. Woman’s role in economic development. agreements have declined since 1992. Furthermore, the New York: St. Martin’s. strict monetary and fiscal policies necessary for joining and Bryceson, Deborah, ed. 1995. Women wielding the hoe. Lessons remaining in the European Monetary Union (EMU), which from rural Africa for feminist theory and development prac- was launched on 1 January 1999, have constrained national tice. Oxford/Washington: Berg. budgets so that future increases are unlikely. In addition, Joekes, Susanne. 1987. Women in the world economy: An recommendations at the Fourth Women’s Conference in INSTRAW study. New York: Oxford University Press. Beijing in 1995 about improving gender equality in pay Larsson, Birgitta. 1991. Conversion to greater freedom? Women, and working conditions began to be seriously considered church and social change in Northwestern Tanzania under by the European Union (EU) only in 2000. colonial rule. Uppsala: Almqvist and Wicksell. In European eyes, there is a need to maintain levels of Pietilä, Hilkka, and Jeanne Vickers. 1994. Making women assistance to ex-communist and developing world coun- matter: The role of the United Nations. Updated and ex- tries even if only about 5 percent of the world’s asylum panded ed. with a foreword by Gertrude Mongella, Sec- seekers and refugees come to European countries. Of all retary General of the Fourth Conference on Women. industrialized nations, New World countries such as London: Zed. Canada, Australia, and the United States continue to take Swantz, Marja Liisa. 1985. Women in development: A creative role proportionately higher percentage per capita of refugees. denied? The case of Tanzania. London: C.Hurst; New York: Overall, the western European record of accepting refugees St. Martin’s. has been poor. Some agreements now exist to encourage Tripp, Aili Mari. 1997. Changing the rules: The politics of liber- asylum seekers and economic refugees to return to their alization and the urban informal economy in Tanzania. home countries by providing short-term financial incen- Berkeley: University of California Press. tives. Sweden has the highest per capita intake of refugees ——. 2000. Women and politics in Uganda. Madison: University of all western European countries (1 refugee per 62 inhab- of Wisconsin Press; Oxford: James Currey and Kampala: itants), followed by Denmark (1:173), Norway, (1:175), Fountain. and France (1:263). By far the poorest per capita intake in Weule, Karl. 1909. Native life in east Africa. New York: western Europe occurs in Germany (1:782), Spain (1:993), Appleton. and Great Britain (1:3, 108) (Aktuell ’95, 1994). In

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Scandinavian countries and in the Netherlands, the intake Whereas the low earners in Europe are the Balkan coun- of refugees (particularly the intake of Vietnamese in Nor- tries, parts of southern Europe and all eastern bloc coun- way) has been managed by an integrative community ap- tries have standards of living not unlike those in South proach that has generally avoided the worst ravages of American and some African countries. Even within west- displacement. In other countries, refugees often suffer the ern Europe, however, there are wide variations in income. ill effects of a generally hostile reception, with concomitant Western Europe is heavily populated, with some 380 mil- lack of work, lack of money, limits to access the social in- lion people, and much of the continued population growth frastructure, and even racial attacks, adding to the pool of is among the poorer nations. For instance, in 1998, the Europe’s poor. The dramatic increase in the number of overall birthrate of the EU nations was 1.44, but Ireland’s refugees seeking asylum caused by ethnic conflict in the rate was 1.92, while Turkey’s was 4.36. Such population former Yugoslavia has created domestic pressure to limit pressures continue to exert themselves most selectively on immigration and cut back on the acceptance of refugees. those groups that are already in vulnerable positions. Even though the issue of “development” is meant to re- fer to the developing world, the term is by no means irrel- Causes and Symptoms of Underdevelopment evant to European countries. There are several main factors in Western Europe to support the concept of women in development within Although absolute poverty is rare, relative poverty can be Europe itself. One is that economic development amongst widespread and substantial. Relative poverty refers to the European nations has remained very uneven and there are situation of households having less than half of the na- wide variations in gross national product (GNP). The sub- tional average wage at their disposal. In western European stantial differences between European countries, with con- countries, there are a number of causes of Underdevelop- comitant variations in living standards, are elucidated by ment. Although these are extremely complex, it is at least examining per capita GNP figures (Table 1): possible to identify some key elements. The firmness of the class structures and the relatively limited income mo- bility in some countries (especially pronounced in some Table 1. West European national incomes southern European countries) have contributed to per- (GNP) per capita per year (1999) petuating an underserviced, underprivileged, and underprovided group, the main sufferers being women. There are areas in western Europe that are without water and electricity and have few or no health services and few of any of the modern amenities to which the western world in general has grown accustomed. Beggars, home- less occupiers of public park benches (called clochards in Paris), are a familiar sight in western Europe. Entire sub- sections of the population live by sifting through garbage cans or by petty thievery. These are not just people rav- aged by drug and alcohol abuse but also those ravaged by poverty, class-based, and work-based structural inequali- ties. In recent times, these groups have been joined by refugees and asylum seekers who spend their time in the limbo of rootlessness and unemployment. Youth unem- ployment is high in some areas of western Europe; at times gangs form and turn to violence, mainly against vic- tims of another kind, such as the old, the gay, the foreign, or women. Income distribution plays a role in living standards as well as in the social and service infrastructure. Lack of so- cial infrastructure and limited opportunities for education have been particularly detrimental for women. These dif- ferences exist not only because of national differences in Source: UN, 1999. economic success but also because of social attitudes. For

370 DEVELOPMENT: WESTERN EUROPE example, depending on how much or how little power the widely, between 2 and 76 for Europe as a whole and be- church or the military (seen as pillars of a misogynist past) tween 2 and 46 for western Europe. According to this re- manage to exert on state affairs, women’s rights can be sup- port, Canada had the highest rating (1) and other ported or severely curtailed. The western European exam- non-European countries were among the first 20 ranks, ple suggests that the more secular and “civil” a country is, for example, Japan (3), Australia (7), the United States the more progressive its social practices are in terms of gen- (8), New Zealand (18), and Israel (19). There was a weak der justice and freedom of expression for women. relationship between education, labor force participation, Furthermore, a rising number of female-based house- and wages. holds has severely affected living standards. In pockets of Now that most women receive some form of education, the population, illiteracy has remained a problem, even the continuation of low earnings for women is a new issue. within Europe. In 1990, about every third women in the For every 100 males who are employed full-time, there are world was unable to read and write. Whereas nearly 80 per- only 52 women in full-time employment. Sweden has the cent of all illiterate women were to be found in 10 countries largest percentage of women in the workforce, with 68.7 of the developing world, Europe (including the former So- percent employed in 1999, followed by Denmark (67.4 viet Union) had nearly 20 million illiterate people, of percent) and the United Kingdom (62.3 percent). The na- whom 64 percent were women (data from UNESCO’s tions with the lowest percentage of women in the World Education Report). In western Europe, the propor- workforce were Spain (32.2 percent), Italy (36.1 percent), tion of single-parent households headed by women in the and Greece (38.5 percent). Many women in western Eu- lower-income bracket is three times the number in the gen- rope cite family commitments as the main reason for not eral population, and in the United Kingdom and Ireland the seeking employment. Some 97 percent of women who number is five times higher. were not seeking employment in Germany and 95 percent Infant mortality, reflecting the general health of women of cited family obligations as preventing and the level of health services available, is generally low them from taking non-home-based jobs (EU, 2000). Aver- in Europe. Indeed, Europe has the lowest infant mortality age monthly earnings for males outweighed wages for rates in the world (except Japan). The countries with the women in all of the EU nations. The largest differences lowest infant death rates are Sweden (3.6 per 1,000) and were in the Netherlands and Belgium. This confirms that Austria (5 per 1,000); the highest number is in Portugal (7 change must encompass far more than mere formal change per 1,000). All other western European countries are below in policies and legislation. 10 deaths per 1,000 live births. In contrast, Turkey’s rate is 42 deaths per 1,000 births and Romania’s is 22 deaths per 1,000 births. Compared with developing countries, which may have over 200 deaths per 1,000 live births, these fig- Table 2. West European unemployment rates (1999) ures are deemed negligible. The situation is different for measures of schooling and labor force participation. In general, school attendance of females even in poorer western European countries im- proved dramatically over the last two decades of the twenti- eth century, and the gaps between males and females are beginning to close. This is not yet true of university educa- tion, although here the differences are related not necessar- ily to the wealth or poverty of the country concerned but to social attitudes. Hence, wealthy Switzerland still has a low level of women attending universities, while Greece, a much poorer country, has relatively high levels of enrollment of women at universities. The Human Development Report (1994) indexed countries according to some of these basic measures, in- cluding education, labor force participation, and life ex- pectancy. Whereas western European countries were amongst the highest-ranking, they were also distributed Source: EU, 2000.

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Overall, countries with ailing economies that joined the that more often than not work against women. In most of European community now find themselves increasingly western Europe the rural sector has declined sharply, now better off. often constituting no more than 1 to 3 percent of the labor market in a given country. By contrast, Portugal and Greece Developments in Southern Europe are still today overwhelmingly rural nations, a fact that is The term development has a more hopeful sound in poorer reflected in female employment in western European countries than in some of the developing (35.4 percent) and in Portugal (27.3 percent)—the highest countries. In the 1950s and 1960s, all four southern Euro- figures in all of western Europe (EU, 1999). Their develop- pean nations (Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece) were the ment must overcome an extreme lack of mobility. poor cousins of the rest of western Europe. They also shared In Portugal, before the revolution in 1974, social im- a dismal record of oppression and dictatorships, lasting mobility was extreme. The upper class, a semifeudal oli- longer than anywhere else in western Europe. The garchy, was a small, rich, and separate entity that postdictatorial phases in these countries set in motion a controlled most of the country’s economic fortunes. hasty restructuring of the economy and a transformation of Eighty percent of the national economy was in the hands social life. Political turmoil followed such restructuring. of eight families. The bulk of the population was proletar- Portugal had no less than nine governments in three ian—chiefly agricultural (over 80 percent of the popula- postrevolutionary years; Italy had 31 governments in less tion lived in rural communities). Every third women and than 25 postwar years. The Greek form of government vac- every fifth man was illiterate. In rural and semirural com- illated between a military junta and a parliamentary democ- munities, the figure might have been as high as 80 percent racy, and Spain suffered a fate similar to that of Portugal. for women (Kaplan, 1992). Women were the property of Until rather recently, the economies of most southern their husbands in reality if not in name; the husband could European countries were predominantly based on agricul- determine every aspect of family life. By law, domestic ture and steeped in the preindustrial manufacturing mode work was compulsory for women after marriage. The pe- of highly exploitative rural home-based labor, which typi- nal code went so far as to implicitly permit a husband to cally fell to women and, sometimes, children. Women thus kill his unfaithful wife, because the crime did not incur a had few if any rights, and they were often not much better prision sentence; the law merely stipulated that he had to off than slaves. Rarely, if ever, had they any reprieve from leave his province for three months. Contraceptives were total paternal-patriarchal supervision, from childbearing unknown and in any case unavailable. Abortion was a seri- and low-paid or unpaid work. Topics such as sexuality or ous crime, punishable by at least eight years’ imprison- any form of birth control were entirely taboo, and a large ment. General ignorance was worsened by the number of women, mostly in rural areas, received little or unavailability of newspapers, of books, and often of radio no medical attention. With the exception of Italy, death and television. Social security provision hardly existed. rates of mothers in childbirth and infant mortality rates Schools, hospitals, and medical services functioned only were high well into the 1970s. Changing the social infra- in some of the largest cities. Basic services such as trans- structure has been at the forefront of social policies, but the portation, electricity, and water often were lacking in rural rate of change required to improve the worst positions of and semirural areas. The rural sector was depressed, and women is enormous and often beyond the capacity of the hardly any change—either technological or social—had country in question. occurred in Portugal over centuries. Portugal had the low- As a result of the violent political conflicts, however, the est per capita income in western Europe, together with the postdictatorial constitutions of these four countries are now highest rates of illiteracy, infant mortality, and infectious among the most progressive in Europe, enshrining women’s diseases (Kaplan, 1992). rights in work, marriage, and education. Moreover, two of Figures show, however, that Portugal has begun to the southern European countries have experienced important climb out of its social and economic ills. Moreover, the economic successes: Italy now belongs among the leading national constitution of 1976 was a milestone in Portu- industrialized nations of the world, and Spain has moved to a guese women’s history. Women regained the vote and comfortable middle-level position within western Europe. were declared equal in all aspects of life. In 1980, Portugal ratified the United Nations convention on the elimination Rurality of any discrimination against women. At the same time, Rurality is one of the chief factors in low levels for devel- the government began to create the social infrastructure opment, poor infrastructure, and the survival of customs that Portuguese society has almost totally lacked. In 1986,

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Portugal joined the European Communities as its young- themselves. In some families a new bride is still judged by est and poorest member, and pledged to improve the posi- the mother-in-law in terms of whether she is likely to be tion of women, along with a multitude of other obligations willing to accept the mother’s regime. In some mountain and rules. regions, the chief criterion for approval or disapproval of Acquiring standards of education, health, and social the new bride is how much weight she can carry on her services to which most other western European countries back (Kaplan, 1992). had been accustomed for some time has necessitated dras- Spain and Italy have made impressive economic ad- tic steps. The great need for educating the population, even vances in the post-World War II period, although here, too, at the most basic level, can be beyond the scope of available certain regions—usually rural—are very depressed. In resources. In many areas primary school classes, for in- Spain during the Franco regime in the 1960s, 2.9 percent stance, may accommodate up to 100 students. Teaching of landowners owned 80 percent of all pasture lands in may be done in shirts and school buildings are often used Spain, and 18 percent of the upper echelon of Spanish so- until 11 P.M. for routine instruction of students. There have ciety collected well over 50 percent of the nation’s total been drastic shortages of teachers at all levels of school- GNP. Illiteracy rates for women stood at 18.3 percent in ing—trade and postsecondary education—especially in 1950 (Seager and Olson, 1986) and have now dropped to southern European countries, as the constant brain drain to below 5 percent. The legal provisions that affect women the richer nations continued. Nevertheless, illiteracy rates most in their family life and in reproduction, however, are falling steadily, although in 1988 it still stood at about have remained very limited and of dubious efficacy. Rape 11 percent for men and 21 percent for is severely punished in Spain (by 12 to 20 years’ imprison- and averaged 7 percent in Greece in 1992. ment), but it is rare that a sentence can be pronounced on a Changes in Greece have followed patterns similar in rapist, because of one important clause: the victim has the Portugal. Over the last two decades of the twentieth cen- “power” to pardon the rapist. In small communities—as tury, developments were perhaps even more remarkable, in well as in cities—the mechanisms of “persuading” the vic- terms of the rise in general living standards and in terms of tim to let the rapist go free are extremely powerful and women’s issues. For example, in the controversial area of rather unsavory. reproduction and sexuality, Greece is among the most pro- As in all countries, it is difficult to describe the status of gressive countries in Europe. Contraceptives were made women overall. In pockets of rural Spain, it was reported available cheaply and readily. In June 1986, one of the most in the late 1970s that water was in short supply and needed advanced laws in Europe was passed, allowing abortion on to be carted from wells. This was done only by women, demand for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and up to 19 to irrespective of whether they were old, pregnant, or sick. 24 weeks in case of rape or for any medical reason related Electricity was often nonexistent. The entire burden of to the mother or fetus. Abortion, moreover, is low-cost or raising children and looking after a rural household with- covered by health insurance. out appliances fell exclusively on the women. In addition, Greece, perhaps more clearly than any other western women very often had to help with the harvest or cook in a European nation, lives at least on three levels of tradition family restaurant or sell goods in a family-owned store. and modernity. Large segments of the urban population are Women in rural Spain worked for well below the national western in outlook, progressive, and even radical. Another minimum wage, worked longer hours than elsewhere (12- stratum lives in a state of tension between traditional values hour days), and were given no holidays to which were le- and some modern “imports.” In a third group, most often gally entitled, while they continued to be under the found in rural areas, there is little evidence of a change of strictest parental supervision. It is conceivable that these pace, lifestyle, customs, or views. One example is the observations may well hold true for pockets throughout prika—the dowry—which the government abolished along Europe, particularly in countries that have been identified with its family law reforms in 1982. In several parts of at the bottom end of GNP. Greece, the system of dowry has remained a social practice. Conditions for married women in rural areas have re- In families that adhere to the dowry system, a girl is an ex- mained problematic in many other ways. For instance, pensive item. Brothers usually cannot afford to marry until when wives were beaten by their husbands, there was no- the sister is married off, for they, along with the father, have where for them to turn for support, and the distance be- to save for her dowry. Arranged marriages are still being tween women’s centers remains a problem today. The practiced (although their numbers are declining steadily), conditions of childbearing in some customary rural areas and girls in many families are unable to move about by can only be described as “barbaric.” Even difficult births

373 DEVELOPMENT: WESTERN EUROPE often take place without the assistance of painkillers or 14.8 percent (EU, 1991). Women as heads of households anesthetics. To prevent some problems at birth, in the who live solely on unemployment benefits cannot do well, 1970s it still was common for the vaginal opening to be cut because in Germany, as in many other western European automatically while the woman was fully conscious—a countries, unemployment benefits are dependent on the practice, it is to be hoped, that is no longer possible. last income (that is, on previous active labor force partici- Women were often so traumatized by the experience of pation), and staggered as a percentage of income. As in- giving birth that they never wanted to have another child. In comes in the GDR were substantially below those in the 1984, however, only 26 percent of women used the Pill, FRG, benefits for women in the former GDR were usually and 10 percent of men used condoms. By the end of the below the poverty line. The feminization of poverty, al- 1990s, those figures had doubled, and the birthrate in Spain though contentious in some circles, gains new meaning in had fallen to 1.5 percent. the case of German unification. Women in rural areas usually remain unpaid labor in Another factor in povery is age, and most old people are family concerns, with a working day of 14 to 16 hours. women. German regulations, not unlike those in the United They are marginalized in jobs that carry no benefits. With States and elsewhere, make pension entitlements and un- the crumbling of old beliefs and practices, there also has employment benefits dependent on the active participation been an increase of loneliness, of isolation in old age, and in the labor force across the entire life span. Moreover, of the misery associated with the whole gamut of modern pension and unemployment entitlements are fixed in- urban living. comes, while the free market economy uses property and housing for speculation. East Germans are no longer pro- Women in Poverty in Rich Nations tected by stable rental costs. FRG law allows owners of Pockets of poverty for women also exist in the well-to-do real estate to increase the rent every three years by 30 per- countries and even in the richest countries of Europe. Al- cent of the final rent, widening the gulf between haves and though the matter is too complex to unravel here, there are have-nots. Women are in a precarious situation indeed, and several chief factors (rurality aside) that continue to foster women of the former GDR have shown a marked anxiety poverty. One is class. Class-based poverty is relatively about the future. fixed, and neither government nor population policies Central and eastern European countries have some ex- tend to be geared toward the permanent underclass. An- periences akin to the southern Europe decades earlier. The other factor is the rising number of female-headed house- transition to parliamentary democracies and capitalist mar- holds. A newer factor is the clash between free or mixed ket forces has not been entirely favorable to all women in market (capitalist) economies and state-run (socialist) Europe. It is also worth remembering that capitalist socie- economies. For example, when Germany was unified and ties in the West have played their role in creating and main- the five former states of the German Democratic Republic taining an underclass, as just one of the symptoms of the (GDR, East Germany) were incorporated into the new na- structured inequality on which the economic model func- tion, women saw their economic independence crumble. tions. Systemic poverty is present in even the richest coun- The GDR had maintained a high employment rate for tries of western Europe. Although homelessness is rare women (about 90 percent), as indeed was the case in most among women, the isolation and harshness of poverty re- other eastern bloc economies, upheld by an infrastructure tain all their force in certain regions and age groups, and that supported women’s work. Following unification, in- particularly among women. frastructure support was lost and unemployment rose sharply in the wake of rationalizations for purposes of See Also profit. Unemployment, therefore, was one of the first ex- DEVELOPMENT: OVERVIEW; EDUCATION: WESTERN EUROPE; periences of unification for a substantial number of HEALTH CARE: WESTERN EUROPE; HOUSEHOLDS AND women. Not only unemployment but also cuts in the FAMILIES: WESTERN EUROPE; POLITICS AND THE STATE: budget for creches and kindergartens hit female-headed WESTERN EUROPE households especially hard. Every third child in the former GDR was born out of wedlock; 2.2 million chil- dren were being raised by single mothers. By 1991, unem- References and Further Reading ployment in former GDR territories had risen to 56.1 Aktuell ’95. 1994. Dortmund: Harenberg Lexikon Verlag. percent. At the same time, the female unemployment rate European Commission. 1993. European economy: Social Eu- in the old Federal Republic (FRG, West Germany) fell to rope, 1993, reports and studies, No. 3, Commission of the

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European Communities. Brussels: Directorate-General for broken in this genre.) Because all these forms of personal Economic and Financial Affairs, Directorate-General for chronicle depend upon the ability to read and write, they Employment, Industrial Relations and Social Affairs. are primarily a product of literate societies. However, here ——. 2000. Eurozone Unemployment. Eurostat. Brussels, EU. too there are exceptions. ——. 1986. Women and development, 1986. Supplement No. 17 to Women of Europe . Brussels: Commission of the European Scribes and Slave Narratives Communities. Some women have used scribes to record their life stories. ——. 1991. Women in Europe, 1991. No. 69. Brussels: Commis- One example is Margery Kempe (an Englishwoman born c. sion of the European Communities. 1373), who called on two scribes to take down her account; ——. 1999. Women in the European Community. Eurostat. Brus- the manuscript—recorded in the hand of yet a third sels: Commission of the European Communities. scribe—was identified in 1934 and is held to be the first Kaplan, Gisela. 1992. Contemporary Western European feminism. autobiography in English. More recent examples are ac- New York: New York University Press. counts by American slaves who, prohibited from learning Netherlands, Ministry of Education and Science. 1993. Woman, to read and write, turned to a scribe or a white sponsor to set man and family: The division of labour within the family in down their narratives. southern European countries. Newsletter, no. 9. Zoetermeer: ENWS. Gatekeeping: Editorial Intervention Seager, Joni, and Ann Olsen. 1986. Women of the world: An inter- The use of scribes or editors raises a number of questions national atlas. London: Pan. about authorial versus editorial control. In her study of UN. 1994. Human Development Report, 1994. New York: United Harriet Brent Jacobs’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl: Nations Development Program. Written by Herself, Alice Deck (1987) points out that in ——. 1999. UN/ECE yearbook: Trends in Europe and North editing this manuscript for publication, Lydia Maria Child America. New York: United Nations. introduced her own values, with the result that it is possible ——. 1991. The world’s women 1970–1990: Trends and statis- to identify not one but two voices in the published text. In tics. New York: United Nations Statistical Office. fact, the issue of whose story it is arises frequently in rela- tion to diaries, memoirs, reminiscences, auto-biographies Gisela Kaplan (and of course, biographies), particularly when these are being prepared for publication and are edited by the author or someone else. One interesting example of the changes that can be DIARIES AND JOURNALS made in the editorial process is provided by the journals of Katherine Mansfield (1888–1923), who was born in New Diaries and journals are forms of personal writing—some- Zealand. Mansfield did not keep a regular diary during her times referred to as “personal chronicles”—generally asso- lifetime; her Journals were published posthumously and ciated with the regular recording of daily events and were the direct result of her husband’s efforts. A question frequently with only the writer as audience. Autobiogra- arising from John Middleton Murry’s piecing together of phies, memoirs, and reminiscences are related forms but the “scraps” (papers, notes, unmailed letters, and the like) are written in the first person (“I”), are usually a life story, is whether Katherine Mansfield can be the “author” of a are often “recollected” (or reconstructed from a diary or product that did not exist in her lifetime. notes) after the events have occurred, and are more likely to Editorial intervention is are not uncommon when diaries be intended for publication. A diary or journal can be a and journals—and letters—that were written in private are record of events, and, like all personal forms of writing, it made public after the writer’s death by people who have a can assist with self-development, self-analysis, or sanity. A vested interest in portraying the author in the best possible biography is also the story of a life, but it differs from dia- light and who may also be concerned to protect certain in- ries or journals in that it is told by someone other than the dividuals from embarrassing (or worse) revelations; on this subject and is generally written in the third person (“she” or basis damaging and incriminating material can be excluded “he”), though there are some exceptions. (For example, the or destroyed. So, for instance, passionate passages in the English writer Fay Weldon wrote a “biography” of letters of the American poet Emily Dickinson (1830–1886) Rebecca West in the first person, as if she were Rebecca to Sue Gilbert were omitted by the editor Martha Dickinson West—an indication that some boundaries are now being Bianchi, who was Emily Dickinson’s niece and Sue Gilbert’s

375 DIARIES AND JOURNALS daughter. And on the ground that it was their children and as authoritative historical documents, as in the case of not the writer whom he was protecting, Ted Hughes burned Samuel Pepys), whereas those of women have been sections of the journals of his former wife, the U.S. author treated as subjective, “confessional,” idiosyncratic docu- Sylvia Plath (1932–1963), including entries that she had ments that can make no contribution to the general pic- made just two days before her suicide. ture. Such a double standard is, of course, absurd; women In the interest of presenting a writer more positively, diarists (like women letter writers) have frequently com- some editors have gone so far as to add their own contribu- mented on the publicworld. An example is the Memoirs of tion to the original work. For example, not only did Ralph Ann Fanshawe (1632–1680), who wrote about the Civil Waldo Emerson, William E.Channing, and James Freeman War in England from a much more involved and exciting Clarke alter the prose of the U.S. transcendentalist perspective than that of Samuel Pepys. Women have had Margaret Fuller (1810–1850) and excise some passages; much to say about the private world as well and have they also inserted their own “better” commentary in her made observations about the discrepancies between it and Memoirs—as if it were her own words—in order to make the public world. her more “respectable.” When editors cut uninteresting parts to construct a “good story,” they can misrepresent a Diarists and Their Themes writer, particularly a woman whose purpose was to suggest Early diarists: There were women who could read and something of the boredom and tedium of a woman’s day. write before the sixteenth century in Europe: among others, The problem is not just that what might be uninteresting to Hypatia (370–415), who was born in Alexandria at the time an editor could be of great interest to a writer or reader, but of the Roman Empire; the German abbess Hildegard of that some women writers have definitely not wanted to Bingen (1098–1179); and Christine de Pizan in France (c. present their lives as a good story. 1364–1431). Still, it is interesting to note that within the Of course, all writing is to some extent filtered. Even English tradition diaries and journals are a relatively recent when there is no external editor, a process of self-editing, development. Among the first English diarists are Grace according to the purpose of the writing and the intended Sherrington Mildmay (1553–1620), who kept a diary from audience, is taking place. Theoretically, some diaries could 1570 to 1617; and Lady Margaret Hoby (c. 1571–1633), be written for the self alone and could therefore receive lit- whose diary entries run from August 1599 to July 1605 tle or no editing for any other audience, but perhaps no one (they were published in 1930). For both Mildmay and puts words on paper without acknowledging the possibility Hoby, devotional records are fundamentally important, al- that they might someday be read by someone else. though references are also made to law, household items, Also, there is nothing to prevent a writer from returning recipes, and cures, or “physic.” to a diary or journal and revising it, or from changing it at a Japanese examples: The personal chronicle flourished later date by using it as a basis for an autobiography, mem- in Japan during the Heian period, from 794 to 1185. The oirs, or reminiscences or even as a source for a work of diaries of noblewomen and ladies-in-waiting were often fiction. For example, the Australian-born writer Annabella cast in poetic form; were frequently concerned with roman- Boswell (1826–1916) “recast” her very early diaries for her tic affairs at court; and included quotations, personal com- children’s benefit, so that she sometimes retains her own mentary, and records of events. Although such a chronicle childish forms but sometimes overwrites them with mature was written by one individual, it would generally be passed polish and judgment. Given that it is possible for a writer to around for others to read, thereby crossing the boundary have more than one voice—at different times, in different between private and public. moods, at different stages in life—the definition of a single, Among the Heian diaries are Murasaki Shikibu’s Her “spontaneous” self as author is difficult to formulate and Diary and Poetic Memoirs and an anonymous work called not always useful to apply. The Gossamer Years: A Diary by a Noblewoman of Heian Japan, which spans a period of twenty-one years. Lady The Double Standard Daibu (born in 1157) left a poetic diary-memoir; and It is partly because women’s personal chronicles have Fujiwara no Nagako, lady-in-waiting to Emperor Horikawa long been excluded from the literary canon and from seri- (who died in 1107), also left a diary, which details court ous study and analysis that so many misapprehensions practices of the period. “Lady Sarashina” (b. 1058), whose about the form arise. In the past, a gender bias has oper- real name is unknown, wrote a diary, and her ated in relation to diaries: the personal chronicles of men reiminiscences, As I Crossed the Bridge of Dreams: Recol- have been seen as objective (and have become enshrined lections of a Woman in Eleventh-Century Japan (1971),

376 DIARIES AND JOURNALS document her life from ages 12 to 50. The Pillow Book of comfort, companionship, and consolation. Quite fre- Sei Shonagon covers the period 990–1000. The Confessions quently, a diary or journal, which might also serve as a se- of Lady Nijo (published in 1983) was written about 1308 ries of letters sent to those at home, was the only and covers the period 1271–1306, during which time Lady “confidante” available to these pioneers. For some women Nijo became (at age 14) the concubine of a retired emperor who went west in the United States, keeping a diary was a and, in her later years, a Buddhist nun. Karen Brazell, who form of conversation and a means of self-actualization. translated Lady Nijo’s autobiography, holds it to be “one of Age: Older women sometimes use a diary as an the finest works in classical Japanese literature.” aidememoire, and younger women as a means of creating Travel diaries: In recounting her wanderings as a nun, their own world. Although few girls’ diaries have been pub- Lady Nijo provides one of the earliest women’s travel dia- lished, the attraction of diaries for young women is widely ries, although she was not the first—even within the Japa- recognized. Many girls’ diaries come with a lock and key, nese tradition—to keep a record of her journeys: Nun indicating the importance of secrecy. These writings are Aktsu, who died in 1283, documented in a poetic diary her also a means of self-exploration, self-expression, rehears- trip from Kyoto to Kamakaru. ing identity, and responding to reality. As overseas travel expanded, and as women accompa- Today, as more girls set up their own Web sites and nied men who served as soldiers and administrators in co- “publish” their self-representations on the Internet, the se- lonial empires, the opportunity to provide tales of adventure cret diary might give way to the public personal chronicle in the form of diaries (as well as letters and novels) was (many such chronicles are being added each day). Another greatly extended. Some women of the nineteenth-century contemporary trend, increasingly common among women Victorian period chose travel as a way of life. Missionaries of all ages, is keeping and collating their E-mail as a record also wrote accounts of people and practices in places such of daily life. as Africa, India, South America, and China. To this day, in Self-improvement and religion: From the earliest fact, many of the published sources on India and China are records, women have used diaries for self-improvement; by western travelers rather than indigenous authors; the Quaker diaries are a notable example. Although some of writings of Toru Dutt (1856–1877) in India and the Chinese today’s diaries still serve this purpose, contemporary dia- soldier Hsieh Pingying (born in 1903), author of Letters of ries in the western world seem to focus more on self-analy- a Chinese Amazon (1930), are notable exceptions. sis, catharsis, or therapy than on spiritual perfectibility. As Isolation, loneliness, and hiding: In direct contrast to a conversation with the self, the diary does provide an op- travel writing, and more common, are the journals women portunity for self-reflection; and, of course, in the act of have kept (and the letters they have sent) when they were writing—of organizing and arranging thoughts—new isolated or immobilized. Sickness, for example, has often understandings can be reached and new connections prompted a woman to take up her pen as a way of overcom- forged. In letters, too, women can generate new meanings ing loneliness and pain, and of sharing her experiences in in the process of representing the everyday and familiar. the face of fear, despair, and danger. One of the most renowned diarists, Anaïs Nin (1903– There are also moving accounts by girls and women 1977), an American who was born in France, wrote that who were forced into hiding; Anne Frank’s diary, written in “life only became real when I wrote about it,” yet she was the Netherlands during the Nazi occupation, is one of the also extremely influential in having women’s diaries ac- most remarkable. There are the chronicles of women who cepted as an art form. In explaining the particular appeal of have been imprisoned, such as the Irish nationalist journal-keeping for women, Nin suggested that it was the Constance Markievicz (1868–1927), who was found guilty diary that allowed them to explore discrepancies between of treason and wrote many letters to her sister Eva Gore public (patriarchal) demands and the private (woman- Booth. There have been women who were prisoners of war centered) self; her own diary, she wrote, “helped me to make and women who were imprisoned in concentration camps. the separation between my real self and the role playing a Travel itself could, in effect, represent isolation. For woman is called upon to do.” That the “real” experiences many of the wives and daughters who accompanied their and values of women are encoded within their diaries and men to Dutch, Spanish, French, and British colonies, there represent their history (which is often at variance with the was no element of choice about their destination. And public records of men) is another argument advanced for many women who migrated permanently to new coun- the significance and status of women’s personal chronicles. tries—particularly those who left the old world for the It is precisely because they confound the categories of new—were in a sense isolated and turned to diaries for public and private—and because they provide a form of

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validation for women’s lives—that women’s diaries, jour- Isles, Teresa, ed. 1991. All sides of the subject: Women and biogra- nals, autobiographies, memoirs, and reminiscences have phy. New York: Athene, Pergamon. such continuing importance in women’s history. Jelinek, Estelle C. ed. 1980. Women’s autobiography: Essays in criticism. Bloomington and London: Indiana University See Also Press. AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL CRITICISM; AUTOBIOGRAPHY; Jelinek, Estelle C. 1986. The tradition of women’s autobiography: BIOGRAPHY; TRAVEL WRITING From antiquity to the present. Boston, Twayne. Jelinek, Estelle C. 1987. Disguise autobiographies: Women mas- References and Further Reading querading as men. Women’s Studies International Forum Addis, Patricia K. 1983. Through a woman’s I: An annotated bib- 10(1) 53–62. liography of American women’s autobiographical writings, Personal Narratives Group, eds. 1989. Interpreting women’s lives: 1946–1976. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow. Feminist theory and personal narrative. Bloomington and Benstock, Sheri, ed. 1988. The private self: theory and practice of Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. women’s autobiographical writings. Chapel Hill: University Robinson, Jane. 1991. Wayward women: A guide to women travel- of North Carolina Press. lers. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Blodgett, Harriet. 1988. Centuries of female days: Englishwom- Russell, Mary. 1986. The blessings of a good thick skirt: Women en’s private diaries. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers Univer- travellers and their world. London: Collins. sity Press. Schiessel, Lillian. 1982. Women’s diaries of the westward journey. Bloom, Lynn Z. 1987. Till death do us part: Men’s and women’s New York: Schocken. interpretations of wartime internment. Women’s Studies In- Smith, Sidonie. 1987. A poetics of women’s autobiography: Mar- ternational Forum 10(1):75–84. ginality and the fictions of self-representation. Bloomington Brazell, Karen. Introduction. 1985. In The confessions of Lady Nijo, and Indiana: University of Indiana Press. vii–xxvii. Trans. Karen Brazell. Middlesex: Zenith/Hamlyn. Spender, Dale, ed. 1987. Personal chronicles: Women’s autobio- Brodzki, Bella, and Celeste Schenck, eds. 1988. Life/lines: Theo- graphical writings. Special Issue. Women’s Studies Interna- rizing women’s autobiography. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell Univer- tional Forum 10(1). sity Press. ——. 1989. The writing or the sex? Or Why you don’t have to read Bunkers, Suzanne L. 1967. Faithful friend: Nineteenth-century women’s writing to know it’s no good. New York: Athene/ midwestern American women’s unpublished diaries. Wom- Teachers College Press. en’s Studies International Forum 10(1):7–18. Stanley, Liz. 1987. Biography as microscope or Kaleidoscope? Cline, Cheryl 1989. Women’s diaries, journals, and letters: An The case of “power” in Hannah Cullwick’s relationship with annotated bibliography, Garland Reference Library of the Arthur Munby . Women’s Studies International Forum Humanities, vol. 780. New York: Garland. 10(1):19–32. Culley, Margo, ed. 1985. A day at a time: The diary literature of Stanton, Donna C., ed. 1984. The female autograph: Theory and American women from 1764 to the present. New York: Femi- practice of autobiography from the tenth to the twentieth cen- nist Press, City University of New York. tury. Illinois and London: University of Chicago Press. Deck, Alice. 1987. Whose book is this? Authorial versus editorial Dale Spender control of Harriet Brent Jacobs’s Incidents in the life of a slave girl: Written by herself. Women’s Studies International Forum 10(1):33–40. DIETING Durova, Nadezhda. 1990. The cavalry maiden: Journals of a fe- See ANOREXIA NERVOSA and FOOD AND CULTURE. male Russian officer in the Napoleonic wars. Trans. Mary Fleming Zirin. London: Paladin/Grafton. Franklin, Penelope, ed. 1986. Private pages: Diaries of American women, 1830s–1970s. New York: Ballantine. DIFFERENCE I Huff, Cynthia. 1985. British women’s diaries: A descriptive bibli- ography of selected nineteenth-century women’s manuscript Difference is an important issue in contemporary feminist diaries. New York: AMS. debate. It refers to sexual difference and to discussions in Huff, Cynthia. 1987. Chronicles of confinement: Reactions to linguistics, philosophy, psychoanalysis, politics, and science. childbirth in British women’s diaries. Women’s Studies Inter- The term difference occurs in the work of the Swiss lin- national Forum 19(1) 63–68. guist Ferdinand de Saussure (1857–1913). In his Course in

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General Linguistics (1988), Saussure described language and psychoanalyst Julia Kristeva believes that the mono- as a convenient system we utilize to structure and transmit theism of western culture is sustained by differentiating our experience of the world. He argued that words do not between the sexes, since only by designating another sex contain meaning, but that meaning arises from the can patriarchy institute the “one law” on which it depends. compositional differences between words. The French The French critic and writer Hélène Cixous also takes this critic Jacques Derrida (b. 1930) developed Saussure’s view, and in her essay “Sorties” (1975) she argues that theory to suggest that meaning is also a process of deferral. women must inscribe their differences in order to shatter Linguistic meaning not only results from the differences the patriarchal state. between words but also is a ceaseless and unstable interac- This insistence that the exploration of difference will tion between both present and “absent” differences. provide an impetus for change has in turn been challenged. Derrida coined the term differance to denote this. He ar- Anglo-American feminism, with its background in the gued that language continually evokes different meanings grassroots women’s movements that emerged in the after- that exceed and disrupt any intended meaning. math of the U.S. civil rights campaigns in the 1960s and The French philosopher and historian Michel Foucault 1970s, has tended to promote sexual equality rather than (1926–1984) extended this notion that meaning is a result sexual difference. It has been suggested that the focus on of difference to explore its formative role in the construc- difference, and especially the view that linguistic revolu- tion of identity. Foucault suggested that perceptions of tion will instigate change, detracts from the struggle to end sameness and difference organize the way we think, speak, women’s legal and economic oppression. and define ourselves in relation to others. In the nineteenth There have been various attacks based on biological re- century, the German philosopher Georg Hegel (1770–1831) duction or essentialism. Essentialism refers to the belief provided a metaphor for the way difference is ordered that there are innate physiological differences between the through opposition and hierarchy in his model of a master sexes and that these give rise to different perspectives and and slave. The model refers to the procedure whereby a patterns of behavior. master defines himself in relation to his slave, good is des- Other critiques maintain that sexual difference can be ignated with reference to evil, white in contradistinction to understood only in the context of the differences that oper- black. The French feminist philosopher and writer Simone ate between women, such as the differences of race, class, de Beauvoir (1908–1986), in her pioneering study The Sec- wealth, education, political persuasion, and sexual prefer- ond Sex (1949), developed the paradigm to argue that man ence. The Indian critic Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak (b. has appropriated, negated, and made use of woman’s dif- 1941), for example, has criticized western feminism for its ference in order to guarantee his position as master. exclusion of black women, its insularity, and its assump- Psychoanalysis has contributed to the debate on differ- tions concerning those women it perceives as inhabiting a ence. The French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan (1901– “third world.” Spivak points out that these differences, too, 1981), drawing on the pioneering work of the Austrian have been appropriated or ignored. With regard to sexual Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), argued that language struc- orientation, critics such as the Italian-born Teresa de tures identity and that our perceptions of difference, includ- Lauretis (b. 1938) have argued that lesbianism must be con- ing sexual and gender differences, are culturally sidered in terms of its difference. Her view—that lesbian determined. sexuality constitutes an important source of identity—is in The issue of difference has been discussed by feminist contrast to broader definitions, such as that expressed by commentators. The feminist critics Hélène Cixous (b. the North American writer Adrienne Rich (b. 1929), who 1938), Julia Kristeva (b. 1941), and Luce Irigaray (b. 1930) argues for a “lesbian continuum” of relationships between insist that men have repressed or employed women’s dif- women. Other feminists have identified differences in ferences to establish patriarchal rule. In her study Speculum wealth, class, and education as crucial factors in distin- of the Other Woman (1974), the French philosopher and guishing between women’s experiences and opportunities. psychoanalyst Luce Irigaray argues that our conception of In science, difference is similarly an important issue. difference derives from a single, male view. She examines Recent research has suggested that the traditional alloca- the premises of western metaphysics and concludes that tion of X and Y chromosomes (whereby a woman has two our entire system of thinking has been determined with the X chromosomes and a man one X and one Y) is overstated result that women exist within it only as the inverted other and that sexual difference derives from a single gene of men. She argues that this bias is encoded in language, (SRY). This gene produces a protein responsible for trans- reducing women to silence. The Bulgarian-born linguist forming the otherwise female-destined embryo into a male.

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Breakthroughs in genetic, surgical, and hormone engineer- Feminists divide, roughly, into those who affirm and ing have further reduced the boundaries of difference. The those who deny the existence of difference in this sense. In realities of fetal implants, drug therapy, and the plastic con- general, feminists who deny difference argue that achiev- struction of sexual organs seem set to challenge our ideas ing equality is sufficient to overthrow oppression. Femi- of sexual difference. nists who affirm difference hold that there are intrinsic and essential facts about being a woman which would continue See Also to be a source of oppression even if equality was achieved BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM; DIFFERENCE II; ESSENTIALISM; in all the relevant socioeconomic categories. Difference LINGUISTICS; PATRIARCHY; FEMINIST THEORY; feminists argue that the aim of reaching equality is severely PSYCHOANALYSIS; SEXUAL DIFFERENCE limited as an object of feminism, since it is based on reach- ing equality with men; thus this goal implies and depends References and Further Reading on an assumption that men’s achievements and men’s val- Beauvoir, Simone de. 1949. Le deuxième sexe (The second sex). ues are the universally correct or best standards of measure- Paris: Gallimard. ment. Some feminists of difference also hold that since Cixous, Hélène. 1975. Sorties. In Hélène Cixous (with Catherine men are the dominant group in society, men’s experiences Clément), La jeune née (The newly born woman). Paris: Un- and values are encoded in reason and language in such a ion Générale d’Editions. way that women do not have access to them, but that reason Irigaray, Luce. 1974. Speculum de l’autre femme (Speculum of the and language have come to be regarded as universal vehi- other woman). Paris: Minuit. cles of expression rather than as gendered instruments for Kristeva, Julia. 1974. La Révolution du langage poétique (Revolu- privileged male expression. tion in poetic language). Paris: Seuil. Difference feminists claim that women are different Lauretis, Teresa de. 1987. Technologies of gender: Essays on theory, from men and, accordingly, women need to assert their film, and fiction. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press. own social values and priorities so that they stand inde- Rich, Adrienne. 1986. Compulsory heterosexuality and lesbian pendent of male standards of well-being and achievement. existence. In Bread, blood, and poetry: Selected prose 1979– The liberation of women is not entirely reducible to equal- 1985. New York: Norton. ity with men in certain socioeconomic categories: women Saussure, Ferdinand de. 1988. Cours de linguistique générale lack equal representation and power in the civil structures (Course in general linguistics). Reprint, Paris: Payot. (Origi- of society not just because they are “held back” by men and nally published 1916.) kept in positions of subservience (although this is true), but Sellers, Susan. 1991. Language and sexual difference: Feminist also because women, themselves, do not value institutional writing in France. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan. positions of power in the same way as men do. This, it is Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. 1987. In other worlds: Essays in cul- argued, is because women do not produce relations of tural politics. London: Roatledge. power in the way men do or in the way these positions exist within a patriarchal order. Susan Sellers Thus difference feminists hold that patriarchy and phallocentrism—not just sexism—are accountable for the oppression of women. Consequently, in the metaphysics of DIFFERENCE II feminism of difference, patriarchy is ontologically elevated as a source of oppression, because individual cases of sex- Difference is a philosophical concept that attempts to give ism in society, when considered collectively, are unable to the oppression of women an appropriate theoretical expla- account completely for why women continue to be op- nation by denying the existence of universal selfhood and pressed. “Patriarchy” and “phallocentrism” are terms ex- positing a specific female selfhood. The substantive claim pressing the contention that women have a different of “difference feminists,” or “feminists of difference,” is phenomenological experience of the world based on their that the female body not only determines the type of gender bodily differences from men, and these terms highlight the socialization a female child is likely to undergo but is also a belief of difference feminists that the reason men still find determinant of the structure of women’s consciousness. themselves holding most of the world’s wealth and power According to this concept, women have a form of con- has to do with what men want and value rather than with sciousness different from men’s, precisely because their any natural inferiority of women. Given that the usual so- bodily experiences are different from men’s. cioeconomic measures of equality reflect only the values

380 DIGITAL DIVIDE and priorities of men and are not universal indicators of words, difference feminists seek to discredit the theory that well-being or success, then, according to feminists of dif- women are a “nonsex” in order to provide an alternative ference, women who achieve equality with men achieve metaphysical view of women—the view required to give only material equality and cannot be said to be liberated the feminist project rational legitimacy. Historically, the from oppression—because participation in patriarchal textual point of departure for the debate between difference structures does not permit the expression of specifically fe- and equality begins with Simone de Beauvoir’s book The male ways of relating to the world that arise from the singu- Second Sex. lar female consciousness. This has raised an obvious problem: if feminists of dif- See Also ference are right, the oppression of women is more thor- oughgoing than it first appears and cannot be addressed DIFFERENCE I; ESSENTIALISM; FEMINISM: CULTURAL; solely by achieving equality with men. If femaleness can- FEMINISM: RADICAL; FEMINISM: SECOND-WAVE EUROPEAN; not be affirmed under current patriarchal societal arrange- GENDER; KNOWLEDGE; PATRIARCHY: FEMINIST THEORY; ments, and if human reason is not universal, then women PHALLOCENTRISM; PSYCHOANALYSIS must seek the necessary space outside the confines of patri- archal rule and phallocentric discourse in order to be able References and Further Reading to express “women’s thoughts” and to counterpoise “wom- de Beauvior, Simone. 1953. The second sex. Trans. H.M.Parshley. en’s rationality” against the dominant masculine norms and London: Picador. models of discourse. Fuss, Diana, 1989. Essentially speaking: Feminism, nature, differ- Another problem is essentialism: difference feminists ence. New York and London: Routledge. have often been accused of relying on a notion of “es- Gatens, Moira, 1983. A critique of the sex/gender distinction. In sence” to support their claims about the specificity of fe- J.Allen and P.Patton, eds., Beyond Marxism? Interventions male experience. This is an issue because, philosophically, after Marx, 143–160. Australia: Intervention. essentialist accounts of femaleness are at risk of establish- Grosz, Elizabeth, 1989. Sexual subversions: Three French femi- ing a psychological or biological fixity that may under- nists. North Sydney: Allen and Unwin. mine the goals of and, more Irigaray, Luce. 1985. This sex which is not one. Trans. Catherine important, may support a view that differences between Porter. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. men and women are ideologically more fundamental than Lloyd, Genevieve. 1984. The man of reason: “Male” and “fe- class or racial differences between women—a view which male” in western philosophy. London: Methuen. ignores the fact that difference is, to a large degree, con- Mitchell, Juliet, 1975. Psychoanalysis and feminism. New York: structed by politics. Vintage. Feminism of difference does cite examples—such as the Schor, N., and E.Weed, eds. 1994. The essential difference. menstrual cycle and childbearing—as evidence for its Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. claim that the female body structures reason, thought, and Young, Iris Marion. 1990. Throwing like a girl and other essays in language into specifically female configurations; however, feminist and social theory. Bloomington and Indianapolis: it should be noted that this claim really lies beyond the Indiana University Press. scope of empirical verification. In the face of this, some feminists have seen the concept of difference not as a fac- Melissa White tual statement about women but rather as a theoretical strat- egy required to give the political agenda of feminism the conceptual tools it needs if women’s intellectual empower- ment is to be independent of men’s. DIFFERENTLY ABLED WOMEN Feminism of difference has very complex origins but See DISABILITY AND FEMINISM. owes its existence largely to the response of French femi- nists to Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory. Freud constructs his psychoanalytic account of women’s psychic DIGITAL DIVIDE condition by positing a lack based on their envy of the male penis. Feminism of difference attempts to overturn Freud’s As computer technology becomes increasingly important picture of women as merely the negation of a “real sex” by to economic, political, and social success, part of humanity giving women a positive content of their own. In other finds itself in a digital chasm. Many developing countries

381 DIGITAL DIVIDE do not have access to the latest technology or Internet ac- does not easily stretch to villages in southeast Asia or sub- cess, unlike their affluent counterparts in the western Saharan Africa. Technical know-how, financial banking, world. Information technology has the potential to dra- electrical infrastructure, and telephone access are un- matically transform the ways in which the global commu- equally spread across the world. nity can interact. Around the world, the Internet is High costs make it difficult for many African countries becoming a tool for personal success and professional ad- to access the Internet. Furthermore, a lack of telephones vancement. People use it to find jobs, contact friends and and adequate electrical supply makes it impossible for most family, locate public information, and take courses on-line. people to go on-line. As most computers are manufactured Electronic commerce is increasingly helping small compa- in the West, developing nations usually incur the cost of nies and entrepreneurs, including those in remote areas, importing the computers and parts. In addition, lack of flourish. People in developing nations can make contact training and technological know-how hampers Africans with global markets, find products, or sell their products from “catching up” with technology. Increasing the digital worldwide. chasm, the content of the Internet is generally based on However, a “digital divide” hinders worldwide distri- North American culture. bution of information and communication technology. Gender roles further determine who has access to tech- This divide is the result of disparities in income levels, in nology. A woman’s place in African society is distinct from educational levels, among demographic groups, and be- that of men, and, as a result, women are generally poorer tween genders. The concept of information has broadened than men. Households without a male head—which make to include access to information services, and a consider- up one third of households in developing nations—are the able portion of commerce, communication, and research poorest of all. Women also rank among the least educated. takes place on the Internet. Access to computers and net- In many African countries more than half of women are works is today as important as access to traditional tel- illiterate. Even educated women tend not to pursue techno- ephone services. logical courses because of their cultural roles and expecta- In the United States, technology has created economic tions. For both illiterate and literate women, information change, which in turn has influenced social change. In- technology is often disconnected from their lives. come level is a strong determinant of an individual’s or On the other hand, African women are engaging in for- household’s Internet access. Minorities and women lag be- mal and informal entrepreneurial activities, and as econo- hind overall in the U.S. with regard to telephone penetra- mies become more and more information-driven, women tion and computer ownership. In rural areas, the difference may find a place in the world of information technology. is even more pronounced. Minorities and women have less access to the Internet at any location (home, work, school, See Also or library). COMMUNICATIONS: OVERVIEW; COMPUTING: OVERVIEW; Education levels also affect Internet access. The more COMPUTING: PARTICIPATORY AND FEMINIST DESIGN; education an individual has, the greater the likelihood that INFORMATION REVOLUTION; INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY; this individual has a phone, computer, or modem. Again, NETWORKS, ELECTRONIC; PUBLISHING; TECHNOLOGY this difference is even more distinct in rural areas. Family structure can also make a significant difference References and Further Reading in who has access to information. Very few women around At what price? Economic constraints to the effective use of tel- the world have professions based on information technol- ecommunication in education, science, culture and in the cir- ogy. Women are overall the least well paid and occupy the culation of information. 1988. CII-98/WS/2. Paris: least prestigious jobs. Therefore, a disparity in technology UNESCO. access across gender lines still exists. Households com- d’orville, Hans. 1996. Technology revolution study: Communica- posed of married couples with children are roughly twice tions and knowledge-based technologies for sustainable hu- as likely to own a computer and have on-line access as are man development. Report to the Assistant Administrator and single-parent households headed by a male. Single-parent Director, Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS). female households are the least likely to own a computer New York: United Nations Development Programme and have on-line access. (UNDP), 30 April. However, the digital divide among Americans pales next Ntalaja-Nzongola, Georges. 1996. Africa in the twenty-first cen- to the gap separating developing countries from the indus- tury: Confronting cultural, economic, and technological di- trialized West and Japan. The information super-highway versity. TransAfrica Forum 6(3, 4):71–76.

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National Telecommunication Information Administration— Driedger and Susan Gray in 1992 does include writings by NTIA. 1999. Bridging the digital divide, http://ntia.gov> women from developing countries. Disabled People’s In- UNESCO. 1997. The challenges of the information highways. 150 ternational (which has more than fifty national assembly Ex 15. Paris: UNESCO, 16 August. members from developing countries) and Disability Awareness in Action (an international public education Veronique Maingi-Dozier campaign) have each sought to promote the concerns of disabled women worldwide. Although a key text published by Michelle Fine and Adrienne Asch in 1988 (see also Begum, 1992) firmly DISABILITY AND FEMINISM claimed a place for disabled women’s experiences on the academic agenda, most feminist theory and research and Feminism is complex and multifaceted, yet one idea under- many feminist activists, have continued to ignore these ex- lies all its manifestations—that biology is not destiny. This periences. The exclusion of disabled women from main- assertion also underpins disabled people’s activism stream feminism means that the accounts of women’s throughout the world. Disability, like gender, is a social experiences per se are incomplete. Moreover, feminist construct: people who experience physical, sensory, or in- theory is the poorer for the lack of understanding of the tellectual impairment or difficulties related to mental health interactions between the two social constructs of gender are disabled by the social context in which they live rather and disability. than by their bodily characteristics in themselves. What little analysis there is of the lives of disabled This social model of disability involves focusing not on women appears as a “special” area of study and is often what is “wrong” with people’s bodies or minds but on what couched in terms of asking whether and how women with is wrong with the way society is organized—focusing on physical or sensory impairments or learning difficulties en- prejudice, inaccessible physical and communication envi- counter a “double disadvantage” because of their experi- ronments, the failure to put resources into enabling tech- ence of sexism and of disability. Such an approach has been nology, and other socially created barriers. Sexism and criticized as treating disabled women as passive victims of racism refer to oppression experienced by women and by oppression. In contrast, work that is informed by personal minority ethnic people; disability refers to oppression ex- experience of disability and that combines a feminist per- perienced by people with physical, sensory, or intellectual spective and a disability rights perspective is rooted in re- impairments or with mental or emotional distress. sistance to oppression. This work is part of the struggle The assertion that biology is not destiny—that the qual- against the discrimination and prejudice that disabled ity of life is determined not by impairment as such but by women experience and, as such, focuses not just on exclu- its social context—has been as liberating for disabled peo- sion but also on survival (Morris, 1991). ple as feminism has been for women. Gwyneth Ferguson Matthews’s Voices from the Shadows was groundbreaking Reproductive Rights in the way she brought her personal experience to bear on Disabled women’s right to reproduce and to parent is of- her research and analysis of the lives of 45 Canadian ten threatened by assumptions that they are unable to care women disabled by society’s reactions to their physical for others. Women with learning difficulties are perhaps impairments. Susan Hannaford’s Living Outside Inside particularly at risk. However, the most controversial aspect was similarly impelled by her own experience but was also of reproductive rights for disabled women is the way that a more deliberate attempt to bring together feminism and the debate over abortion tends to assume that a “handi- disability rights. Both are examples of the importance to capped fetus” inevitably means a poor quality of life for disabled women of the feminist principle of making the both child and mother. Genetic testing has, arguably, been personal political, a task that has also been undertaken by motivated by oppressive ideas of normality and what it is the more personal writings of disabled women like Anne to be human. There is an urgent need for a dialogue be- Finger (1990) and in anthologies such as With the Power of tween the feminist and disabled people’s movements on Each Breath (Browne, Connors, and Stern, 1985) and this issue. Mustn’t Grumble (Keith, 1994). Most published work easily available concerns the ex- Abuse and Violence periences of disabled women in the developed world, al- The naming of and response to domestic violence and though an international anthology published by Diane sexual abuse experienced by nondisabled girls and women

383 DISABILITY: ELITE BODY has been one of the most important achievements of west- References and Further Reading ern feminism. Feminist investigations of violence and Begum, Nasa. 1992. Disabled women and the feminist agenda. disabled women would highlight abuse in homes and by Feminist Review 40:70–84. perpetrators who are paid carers as well as those who are Browne, Susan E., Debra Connors, and Nanci Stern, eds. 1985. family members. Denial of autonomy is a daily feature of With the power of each breath: A disabled women’s anthol- many disabled people’s lives, and there has been some ogy. Pittsburgh, Pa.: Cleis. recognition, especially in the United States, of institu- Campbell, J., and M.Oliver. 1996. Disability, difference, discrimi- tional abuse. Feminist research and analysis have a key nation. Lanham, Md.: Rowman and Littlefield. role to play in putting these experiences under the same Conversations—Feminist research on disability: Newsletter of the kind of spotlight that has been brought to nondisabled Women’s Research Network. Ontario: Roeher Institute. women’s lives. Dreidger, Diane, and Susan Gray, eds. 1992. Imprinting our im- age: An international anthology by women with disabilities. Independent Living Charlottetown, Canada: Synergy. The international Independent Living Movement asserts Fine, Michelle, and Adrienne Asch, eds. 1988. Women with dis- that physical, sensory, or intellectual impairment does not abilities: Essays in psychology, culture, and politics. Phila- in itself mean that people cannot exercise choice and con- delphia, Pa.: Temple University Press. trol in their lives. However, campaigns for empowering Finger, Anne. 1990. Past due: A story of disability, pregnancy, and forms of personal assistance tend to focus on the public as- birth. Seattle: Seal; London: Women’s Press. pects of people’s lives—on employment and leisure. For Hannaford, Susan. 1985. Living outside inside: A disabled wom- women, giving personal assistance and support to others an’s experience—towards a social and political perspective. within the private world of the household is also important. Berkeley, Calif.: Canterbury. Disabled women want personal assistance that enables Keith, Lois, ed. 1994. Mustn’t grumble: Writing by disabled them to look after children, run a home, and look after par- women. London: Women’s Press. (Also published as What ents or others who need help themselves. While the public happened to you? Writing by disabled women, New York: world of work is of course important for disabled women, New Press.) independent living must also be concerned with the private Matthews, Gwyneth Ferguson. 1983. Voices from the shadows: world of the family and personal relationships. Women with disabilities speak out. Ontario, Canada: Wom- Disabled women in many countries have campaigned at en’s Educational Press. local, national, and international levels on all these issues. Morris, Jenny. 1991. Pride against prejudice: Transforming atti- To give just one example, in Britain, Nasa Begum initiated tudes to disability. London: Women’s Press; Philadelphia, a successful campaign by disabled and nondisabled women Pa.: New Society. to establish a refuge for women with learning difficulties ——, ed. 1996. Encounters with strangers: Feminism and disabil- who have experienced abuse. ity. London: Women’s Press. Feminism promotes the independence in women’s lives Silvers, Anita, David Hasserman and Mary B.Mahowald, eds. that is achieved by equal rights to housing, employment, 1997. Disability politics: Understanding our past, changing education, equal status under the law, and choice and con- our future. London: Routledge. trol over sexuality and reproduction. Feminism is also about feeling good about being a woman, recognizing the Jenny Morris worth and value of women. Choice and control, and the rights and access necessary to attain these, are also aims of disabled people’s movements. Disabled women also want DISABILITY: Elite Body to assert the value of their lives, to feel good about them- selves. An increasing number of disabled women are bring- The western concept of the body fragments into a number ing together feminist and disability rights perspectives in a of categorizations (abstractions) that are the province of liberating analysis of the oppression and injustice they ex- different specialists and “experts” (professionals): the perience (Morris, 1996). physical body (medical or aesthetic); the social body (“nor- mal” or “deviant”); the occupational body (useful or dis- See Also posable); the textual body (abstract and safe for DISABILITY: ELITE BODY; DISABILITY: HEALTH AND academics). These are coded as opposites sometimes called SEXUALITY; DISABILITY: QUALITY OF LIFE binaries: perfect-imperfect, ideal-flawed, intact-damaged,

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good-bad, right-wrong. Binaries are pure and conflicting hooks, bell. 1994. Teaching to transgress: Education as the prac- categories, unlike lived experience, where, for example, tice of freedom. London: Routledge. “we are not either ill or healthy, weak or strong” (Keith, Keith, Lois, ed. 1994. Mustn’t grumble: Writing by disabled 1994:6). Some commentators argue that patriarchal con- women. London: Women’s Press. sumer capitalism constructs a myth of an elite body—for- Morris, Jenny. 1991. Pride against prejudice: Transforming atti- ever young, male, heterosexual, white, superdeveloped, tudes to disability. London: Women’s Press. mobile, inexhaustible, nondisabled, and pain-free. Evi- Potts, Tracy, and Janet Price. 1995. “Out of the blood and spirit of dence of “inadequacy” (for example, femaleness, fatigue, our lives”: The place of the body in academic feminism. In aging) is accompanied by loss of “human” status: “having Louise Morley and Val Walsh, eds. Feminist academics: control” and “being human” are clearly, sometimes Creative agents for change, 102–115. London: Taylor and fiercely, connected. Feminists have highlighted the signifi- Francis. cance of the body (woman as sex or nature) and desire Val Walsh (straight or gay) as variously motivating or disruptive of men’s intellectual and cultural production and male-domi- nated institutions, and have tried to undermine the domi- nance of medical and academic models that separate to DISABILITY: Health and Sexuality control. But disabled women have often been overlooked within these debates and campaigns. The claim that “gen- The United Nations estimates that, worldwide, there are der and disability both inhabit all discourse” (Garland 500 million people with mental, physical, and sensory dis- Thomson, 1994:592) and intersect has been slow to win abilities. Over 80 percent live in developing countries, and acceptance. Western thought continues to see the body as more than half are women. As more people grow older, and an obstacle to rationality or mind, denying that theories, for more survive accidents and illness, the number of disabled example, are always a result of specific acts of labor or pro- women will continue to increase. Disability crosses all duction (Potts and Price, 1995:102–103). Disembodiment, boundaries; women with disabilities can be found in every even as prerequisite for an attribute of thought, is both a nation, every race, and every class. A disproportionate feminist and a disability issue: “We must return ourselves number of disabled women, however, live in poverty. to a state of embodiment in order to deconstruct the way Women with disabilities share the same health, repro- power has been traditionally orchestrated in the classroom, ductive, and sexual needs and concerns as other women. In denying subjectivity to some groups and according it to addition, disabled women face additional problems and others” (hooks, 1994:139). bring up particular issues related to health, reproduction, and sexuality. Around the world, women with disabilities See Also are raising their expectations for self-determination and BODY; DISABILITY AND FEMINISM; DISABILITY: HEALTH AND quality of life. Increasingly, disabled women are demand- SEXUALITY; DISABILITY: QUALITY OF LIFE ing the right to live independently, to be integrated into their communities, to set their own goals, and to make their References and Further Reading own choices. In so doing, they challenge their societies to Begum, Nasa. 1992. Disabled women and the feminist agenda. In be more accessible, supportive, and inclusive. Hilary Hinds, Ann Phoenix, and Jackie Stacey, eds. Working The phrase “independent living” is often used to de- out: New directions for women’s studies 61–73. London: scribe the guiding philosophy of the disability-rights move- Falmer. ment: the conviction that anyone, regardless of the nature Flax, Jane. 1992. Beyond equality: Gender, justice and difference. or extent of a disability, can function in the community as a In Gisela Bock and Susan James, eds., Beyond equality and free and equal participant. In this sense, “independence” difference: Citizenship, feminist politics, female subjectivity, does not mean complete self-sufficiency; rather, it denotes 193–210. London and New York: Routledge. having maximum control over one’s own life, using what- Garland Thomas, Rosemarie. 1994. Redrawing the boundaries ever resources are necessary and available. of feminist disability studies. Feminist Studies 20(3: Fall): Terminology—the language used to describe disabil- 583–95. ity—has been a topic of much discussion both within and Hawthorne, Susan. 1996. From theories of indifference to a wild outside the disability community. Phrases such as “handi- politics. In Diane Bell and , eds., Radically capped,” “crippled,” “wheelchair-bound,” “feeble- speaking: Feminism reclaimed. 483–501. London: Zed. minded,” and “imbecile” have been rejected by many as

385 DISABILITY: HEALTH AND SEXUALITY being loaded, stereotyped, and negative. Some have put and to maintain their health, women with significant dis- forward more “positive” descriptors, including “physically abilities may need personal assistance, mobility assist- challenged” and “differently abled,” as alternatives. Gener- ance, housekeeping support, monitoring or supervision, ally, disability-rights activists favor language that is skills training, or other services. Assistance should be straightforward and accurate—phrases such as “people available in different settings—home, school, work, with disabilities,” “people with intellectual (or cognitive) community—and should support a range of activities, disabilities,” “wheelchair users,” and so on. This article including personal care, menstrual care, sexual hygiene, will refer to “women with disabilities,” and “disabled employment, volunteer activities, study, socializing, women.” parenting, political activities, religious activities, and so on. Studies have shown that women who are able to avoid Disability and Health institutionalization and who can choose and control their Disability is a natural phenomenon that occurs in every so- own environment tend to live longer and stay healthier. ciety, in every generation. Disabilities may result from sev- • Assistive technology. Devices such as wheelchairs, eral causes: prenatal factors, birth injuries, disease, braces, crutches, walkers, canes, and shower seats— traumatic injuries, and physical or mental stress. sometimes called “durable medical equipment”—are Disability is not an illness, although some disabilities designed to aid disabled people in performing necessary are caused by illness. Rather, disability is a chronic or long- functions: moving around, personal care, and so on. In term condition that substantially limits an individual in per- addition, items such as adapted tools and utensils, forming one or more activities of daily living (ADLs). Braille writers, adapted telecommunications devices, ADLs include walking, seeing, hearing, learning, caring and modified computers can significantly increase the for oneself, breathing, lifting, and so on. health, independence, mobility, productivity, and qual- Disability is not necessarily incompatible with good ity of life of women with disabilities. Some assistive de- health. Many women with disabilities make it a high prior- vices are “high-tech,” using sophisticated electronic or ity to maintain or improve their health. Disabled women mechanical components. These kinds of devices can seeking health care may have both typical and special perform a range of complex functions, but they may be needs. These needs can include the following: expensive and difficult to acquire and maintain. Other devices are “low-tech,” involving relatively simple, • General health care and obstetrical and gynecological commonsense applications of ordinary materials. (ob/gyn) care. Disabled women have the same needs for Whether high-tech or low-tech, assistive devices should general and preventive health care as other women. be appropriate to the needs of the individual disabled When disabled women present health problems, practi- woman, and she should be offered training in utilizing tioners should not assume that these problems are re- the devices effectively. lated to the disability—or that the disability makes • Violence prevention and intervention. Women with dis- treatment impossible or unnecessary. Disabled women abilities are subject to a higher-than-average incidence should receive the same careful diagnoses and appropri- of violence, abuse, and neglect. This can create or ag- ate remedies as other patients. Like all women, disabled gravate health problems, including serious physical in- women should have regular breast and pelvic examina- juries, emotional stress, emotional illness, sexually tions, practice safe sex, and have access to family plan- transmitted diseases, unwanted pregnancy, poor hygiene, ning and birth control services. skin breakdowns, malnutrition, dehydration, and death. • Prevention of secondary disabilities. Some disabilities Disabled women are especially likely to be victimized can lead to additional, preventable health problems. For by people they know, including family members, example, a woman who spends much of her time in a spouses, and care providers. Women with disabilities wheelchair may be susceptible to problems such as poor need support in empowering themselves through assert- circulation or pressure sores. Some secondary disabili- iveness training, self-defense training, and independent ties can be serious, even life-threatening. Women with living skills and resources. In addition, disabled women disabilities should be taught techniques to prevent sec- who experience violence, abuse, or neglect need to be ondary health problems and should be assisted in taking able to obtain intervention and assistance from the crimi- these preventative measures. nal justice system, providers of victim services, battered • Services to support independent living. In order to live women’s shelters, rape crisis organizations, counseling independently, to fulfill family or work responsibilities, programs, and other appropriate services.

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Barriers to Health Care and community-based rehabilitation (CBR), is a major focus Women with disabilities often encounter physical, of disability-rights advocates in many countries. attitudinal, and policy barriers in seeking to meet their health care needs. Physical barriers include lack of trans- Disability and Sexuality portation; stairs and narrow doorways into clinics, doctors’ Women with disabilities experience a full range of sexual offices, and so on; written information, such as intake feelings, desires, needs, and problems. Prominent issues of forms and patient education materials, not available in al- sexuality and disability include the following: ternative formats (that is, Braille, tape, or large print); high examining tables that prevent transfer by women using • Sex education and information. Because of factors such wheelchairs; mammogram machines that require patients as social isolation, exclusion from mainstream schools, to stand; and lack of personal assistance during clinic visits negative assumptions about their sexuality, and barriers to women who need it. These barriers may be remedied to communication (that is, the unavailability of informa- through accessibility planning and modifications; avail- tion by sign language, in Braille, on tape, or in other ability of written materials in alternative formats; obtaining accessible formats), girls and women with disabilities “adaptable” equipment, such as tables that can be raised may not receive adequate education and information and lowered; and provision of trained, appropriate assist- about sexuality. Age-appropriate sex education should ance in mobility and other personal care needs. be available to all girls and women. When necessary, Attitudinal barriers arise from negative societal beliefs this information should be adapted for different commu- about the worth of women with disabilities. These barriers nication needs, learning styles, and abilities. Informa- may include disrespect or discomfort on the part of medical tion also should be available about the potential impact professionals; unwillingness to communicate with women on sexuality of different types of disabilities. whose speech or hearing is impaired; professionals’ lack of • Sexual self-determination. Independence is a prerequi- knowledge about particular disabling conditions; and a fo- site for making choices regarding sexuality. Women with cus on the disability to the exclusion of other health needs. disabilities who have access to resources that let them Some practitioners wrongly believe that disability inevita- live independently can define their own sexual identity bly diminishes a disabled woman’s value or quality of life. and desires and may lead full, satisfying sexual lives. By They may therefore fail to explore or offer all treatment contrast, disabled women who live in institutions, or with options, assuming instead that death is preferable to living their parents or other family members, may be severely with a significant disability. Doctors, nurses, and other clini- inhibited in exploring and expressing their sexuality. cal and hospital staff people may benefit from training and Limitations may be due to any of the following: lack of education in these areas. In addition, women with disabili- privacy; others’ discomfort with disabled women’s sexu- ties should be fully informed about their rights as patients. ality; homophobia; lack of access to information about Policy barriers may be imposed by hospital or clinic regu- sexuality; lack of access to sexual stimulation devices, lations, by insurance companies, or by other third-party pay- birth control devices, or safe-sex materials; and policies ers such as Medicare and Medicaid. Some insurance that explicitly restrict sexual activity. providers discriminate against individuals with disabilities • Body image and self-esteem. Girls and women with dis- by barring coverage for “preexisting conditions” or by cost- abilities, especially physical disabilities, often notice capping services that may be essential for managing a dis- that they do not conform to dominant cultural and com- ability. Another major barrier is that some necessary mercial images of feminine beauty. The mass media, as services—such as in-home personal assistance services, pre- well as individual interactions, seem to emphasize a par- scription medications, durable medical equipment, holistic ticular ideal of perfection, which disabled women may health services, assistive technology, preventive care, certain feel is unattainable. Women who are able to understand, therapies, and abortion services—may not be covered by pri- analyze, and reject those images may develop a stronger vate or government-funded insurance plans. Government sense of their own unique beauty. Disabled girls and and private policies also may have an “institutional bias”— women may benefit from counseling and other support that is, they offer services primarily in nursing homes, reha- services that help them to enhance and reinforce their bilitation hospitals, and other large long-term care facilities, self-concept as strong, attractive women. Role mod- but not in the disabled woman’s own home, where she can be els—other disabled women who convey strength and part of her family and community. Ending this institutional self-confidence—also can encourage personal growth bias, and securing more support for independent living (IL) and self-respect in girls and women with disabilities.

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• Relationships. Even for many healthy, confident same kinds of physical and attitudinal barriers that exist women with disabilities, difficulties may arise in initi- in society as a whole. In addition to offering contact ating and maintaining sexual and romantic relation- with potential partners, however, such communities can ships. Potential partners may have misconceptions be an important source of support and self-discovery. In about disabled women and their sexual potential, or order to make contact with these communities and form they may doubt the ability of disabled women to recip- relationships, some women with disabilities may need rocate pleasure, companionship, and love. In addition, assistance, including information and referral to events they may be unwilling to face the social stigma that and organizations, accessible transportation, attendant they fear would accompany a relationship with a disa- services, and interpreting services. bled woman. These feelings may prevent a relationship from beginning or may create conflict within a relation- ship. Many disabled women, however, do develop Reproductive Issues: Mothers with Disabilities healthy, mutually supportive relationships with their Reproductive choice is essential to the self-determination partners. As with most couples, qualities such as trust, of women with disabilities. Like other women, disabled self-esteem, mutual respect, shared interests, willing- women suffer when poverty, governmental restrictions, or ness to give and take, and good communication help to religious pronouncements deny them access to birth con- promote successful relationships between disabled trol and abortion services. Unlike most other women, how- women and their partners. Some disabled women pre- ever, women with disabilities also face restrictions on their fer partners who also have disabilities, finding in these right to have children. Involuntary sterilization of women relationships a sense of camaraderie, shared values, and with physical or mental disabilities continues in many common backgrounds. Other women with disabilities countries, including the United States. (Although most seek nondisabled partners, and still others assert that states in the United States have either amended or repealed they have no preference in this regard. their sterilization statutes, most of the remaining statutes • Sexual activity. The presence of a disability does not are based on negative presumptions about disabled wom- preclude sexual activity, although it may necessitate ad- en’s competence, or even their worth.) In addition, doctors, aptation to accommodate limited movement, fatigue, family members, and others routinely advise women with sensitivity to pain, lack of sensation, or other disability- disabilities to avoid or terminate pregnancy, even when related factors. Mutually satisfying sex is more likely if these women demonstrate the desire and the ability to bear the partners communicate honestly and clearly, discuss and raise children. their desires and barriers, and attempt to solve problems These legal and cultural pressures arise from persistent creatively. biases regarding the childbearing and parenting abilities of • Safe sex and birth control. Women with disabilities women with disabilities. Such biases arise from myths and should be as careful as other women in avoiding un- misconceptions, including the fear that a disabling condi- wanted pregnancy and in preventing the spread of sexu- tion may be passed on to a child; the assumption that disa- ally transmitted diseases. Women with all kinds of bled women cannot nurture, care for, or discipline children; disabilities should be fully informed about risks and the belief that mobility is essential for child rearing; and the prevention techniques. In order to take effective precau- notion that a mother’s disability would be a hardship to her tions, some disabled women may need assistance or children. support. A woman with limited movement, for example, All of these assumptions are inaccurate, misguided, or may require help in taking birth control pills or inserting both. Most disabilities are not inherited. Even in situations a diaphragm. If her partner is unable or unwilling to pro- where a woman’s disability may be passed on to her chil- vide this assistance, the woman may need help from an dren, she may choose to bear children anyway—and this attendant. may be a valid, responsible decision. The disabled woman • Sexual identity and sexual orientation. Women with dis- may know better than anyone else the value and quality of a abilities who are lesbian or bisexual may face double or life with her particular disability. triple discrimination, based on disability, gender, and Many disabled women are independently able to per- sexual orientation. These women sometimes find it diffi- form most or all of the tasks involved in raising children. cult to obtain information and resources to support their Even women with more significant physical or mental dis- sexual activities and relationships. Gaining access to abilities, however, can be effective parents, with the help of lesbian communities is often difficult, because of the support services. Such support may include the help of a

388 DISABILITY: QUALITY OF LIFE spouse or partner, friends, or family; attendant services; in- References and Further Reading home child care; accessible day care; assistive devices; and Browne, Susan E., Debra Connors, and Nanci Stern, eds. 1985. parenting classes. With the power of each breath: A disabled women’s anthol- ogy. Pittsburgh, Pa.: Cleis. Reproductive Rights: Children with Disabilities Fine, Michelle, and Adrienne Asch, eds. 1989. Women with dis- Just as disabled women want the right to bear children abilities. Philadelphia, Pa.: Temple University Press. without confronting antidisability bias, women who risk Rogers, Judi, and Molleen Matsumura. 1991. Mother to be: A giving birth to a disabled child also must have the right to guide to pregnancy and birth for women with disabilities. bear that child. With the growing use and sophistication of New York: Demos. prenatal testing techniques, women face increasing pres- Shapiro, Joseph P. 1993. No pity: People with disabilities forging a sure to terminate a pregnancy when a potential disability is new civil rights movement. New York: Times Books/Ran- detected. Pressure may come from doctors who warn that dom House. abortion is the only “responsible” decision; from friends Shaw, Barrett, ed. 1994. The ragged edge. Louisville, Ky.: and neighbors who may blame the mother for the child’s Advocado. disability; or, increasingly, from insurance companies that deny coverage for “preventable” conditions. Laura Hershey Pregnant women should be able to refuse tests that they do not want. Women carrying a fetus with a disabil- ity should be given accurate and complete information about that disability—not simply a medical prognosis but DISABILITY: Quality of Life also information about community resources, legal rights, and opportunities for people with disabilities to attain In many western European and North American countries, independence and a good quality of life. They should pregnant women routinely undergo prenatal tests such as have the chance to meet adults who have the disability amniocentesis. These tests are designed to show if a and parents of children who have it. Women should be woman is at risk of giving birth to a disabled child. When able to make their own decisions about bearing children there is such a risk, a woman is given the option of aborting with disabilities—decisions free of misinformation, co- the pregnancy. Disabled feminists have responded criti- ercion, or penalty. cally to prenatal testing. This has informed the position they adopt in debates on abortion and the genetic technol- Conclusion ogy that underpins prenatal testing. In particular, disabled The health rights, sexual rights, and reproductive rights of feminists have challenged the rationale behind prenatal women with disabilities are part of two large, multifaceted testing. This rationale assumes that the quality of life of a movements: the disability-rights movement and the femi- disabled child would be so poor that it is right to question nist movement. Both movements, at times, fail to recog- whether such a child should be born at all. A similar as- nize these rights as essential human rights issues. Both sumption about the poor quality of life of disabled people have yet to make disabled women’s access to health care, can be found in debates about euthanasia and nontreatment disabled women’s sexual self-determination, and disabled of disabled infants. women’s reproductive freedom high priorities on their Disabled feminists argue that assumptions about quality agendas. Disabled women themselves, however, are chart- of life are based on nondisabled people’s misconceptions ing new territory in human rights and taking control of of disability. Disabled people are often marginalized or their own destiny—through self-help and political advo- segregated from mainstream society; thus nondisabled cacy, through grassroots organizing and international net- people have little opportunity to know about disabled peo- working, and through changing attitudes and changing ple’s lives. Instead, disability is regarded as something out policies. of the ordinary. It is feared because it reminds people of their own vulnerability. Moreover, in many cultures, the See Also meaning given to disability is that it is a tragedy, with a ANTIDISCRIMINATION; DISABILITY AND FEMINISM; disabled person destined for a life of dependency and pain. DISABILITY: ELITE BODY; DISABILITY: QUALITY OF LIFE; The liberation movement of disabled people sees these EDUCATION: SPECIAL NEEDS; NURSING HOMES; WORK: EQUAL ideas as oppressive, limiting, and denigrating of the experi- PAY AND CONDITIONS ences of disabled people. Disabled feminists are part of this

389 DISABILITY: QUALITY OF LIFE movement and argue that “disability is socially state the “lifetime costs” of supporting a disabled child constructed,…so economic and social forces which now (Morris, 1991). restrict our [disabled peoples] lives can and will change” One difference between Nazi Germany and most gov- (Finger, 1984). It follows from this that a disabled person’s ernments today is that the former held a fascist ideology. quality of life is shaped by social circumstances. Having an Among other things, this meant that individual rights impairment may cause a person physical and emotional were totally disregarded. However, the point that disa- pain. But rarely does this completely determine the per- bled feminists make is that judgments about quality of son’s life. Moreover, if it does, the individual may not nec- life have a strong emotive appeal in political debate. essarily judge her life not worth living. Such a judgment is This may make societies less willing to spot or speak out personal and subjective. It will vary from individual to indi- against abuses of prenatal testing and its negative social vidual (Finger, 1991; Morris, 1991). effects. For these reasons, disabled feminists see assumptions Disabled feminists have expressed disappointment at about quality of life as invalid and nothing but a reflection the apparent readiness with which nondisabled feminists of society’s prejudices toward disability. They also argue have used arguments about quality of life. They feel the that these assumptions have a negative impact on the situa- reproductive rights movement has exploited fears of dis- tion of all disabled people. Alison Davies writes that prena- ability to argue for abortion on grounds of fetal impair- tal testing and subsequent abortion “denies us [disabled ment. Nonetheless, most disabled feminists support a people] an identity as equal human beings worthy of re- woman’s right to have an abortion, though with some im- spect, and calls into question the place in society of disa- portant qualifications. A woman must be given accurate bled individuals” (Davies, 1987). information about any impairment that her fetus has. In Assumptions about quality of life perpetuate the idea making a decision about abortion, a woman has to take that disability is only a medical problem. This encourages into account the resources she has to raise the child. But governments to think that they have no responsibility for there must also be an awareness of the discrimination disa- solving the problems faced by disabled people. It is argued bled people face and how this may affect the woman’s that if governments were wholeheartedly committed to pre- judgment and the advice she gets from people around her venting impairment, then they would tackle poverty rather (Saxton, 1984). than fund prenatal testing, particularly in developing coun- tries. That would do more to reduce disability and stop suf- See Also fering (Knudsen, 1995). An argument is also made that where the state funds prenatal testing, it may reduce serv- DISABILITY AND FEMINISM; DISABILITY: HEALTH AND ices to disabled children and their parents. It is believed that SEXUALITY; EUGENICS: REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS the governments’ reasoning would be: “We enabled a woman to ‘choose’ not to have a disabled child, but she References and Further Reading decided to have the child, and therefore it is her responsi- bility to raise the child” (Morris, 1991). Davies, Alison. 1987. Women with disabilities: Abortion and lib- The use of prenatal testing raises the fear of eugenics— eration. Disability, handicap, and society 2(3):275–284. that is, that governments will promote the use of prenatal Finger, Anne. 1984. Claiming all our bodies: Reproductive rights testing in order to eliminate disabled people because they and disability. In Rita Arditti, Renee Duelli Klein, and Shelly are considered “bad” for society. This point is made by Minden, Test tube women: What future for motherhood? drawing a parallel with Nazi Germany in the 1930s and London: Pandora. 1940s. There, 70,000 disabled people were killed under a ——. 1991. Past due: A story of disability, pregnancy and birth. “euthanasia” program. The Nazis were motivated in part by London: Women’s Press. thinking that it was a kindness to kill disabled people in Knudsen, Janne Sander. 1995. Danish women with disabili- order to prevent their suffering. This echoes the argument ties—Opening of the workshop at NGO-Forum, March made by some nondisabled commentators today that it is in 1995. In Eve K.Damm et al., eds., Perfect babies in a per- the interest of the disabled fetus not to be born. The Nazis fect world: Who has the right to life? Report from work- were also motivated by economics, by a desire to reduce shop in NGO—Forum, Valby, Denmark, on Danish women the cost to the state of providing facilities for disabled peo- with disabilities. ple. Again, this echoes the argument used in debates about Morris, Jenny. 1991. Pride against prejudice: Transforming atti- policy that preventing the birth of disabled people saves the tudes to disability. London: Women’s Press.

390 DISARMAMENT

Saxton, Marsha. 1984. Born and unborn: The implications of dismantled when disarmament agreements were signed reproductive technology for people with disabilities. In between the Soviet Union and the United States. It was Rita Arditti, Renee Duelli Klein, and Shelly Minden, Test also to “defend peace” that, in 1990, the great Western tube women: What future for motherhood? London: powers organized a coalition to wage war against Iraq and Pandora. prolong it by a blockade that killed or injured several thousands of people each month for the following years. Ruth Bailey The blockade was still in force at the end of the twentieth century. In both cases, women were in the vanguard of resistance. In 1981 British antimilitarist women organized the DISARMAMENT Greenham Common Camp next door to a military base where 96 American cruise missiles were to be deployed; Disarmament, in recent years, has been a response to women also organized peace camps around 20 other bases pressure from democratic movements, and to a per- where more missiles were to be deployed, but Greenham ceived need for the great industrial countries, mainly the Common was the most famous. There, women lived in former Soviet Union and the United States, to end the tents for five years enduring hunger, cold, disease, and dis- ruinous and dangerous arms race that developed during comfort and risking harassment and imprisonment by the the cold war and was accelerated after the fall of the authorities. This experience pointed up the importance of Soviet empire. organizing resistance to become efficient and the benefit of About two decades ago, the United Nations reported women-only groups to give women a space for freedom of that women composed 63 percent of the peace movement speech and feminine solidarity. It also suggested that par- throughout the world—recalling the early twentieth cen- ticipating in political parties was not an appropriate way to tury, when feminism was associated with antimilitarism raise British people’s consciousness about the dangers of and U.S. suffragists created the Women’s Peace Party the arms race (Jones, 1983). Greenham common was (Boulding, 1976)—and the theme of the International Dec- widely admired and drew support from women throughout ade of Women (1975–1985), organized by the United Na- the world. tions, was “Peace, Equality, Development.” The great Also in England, women started Women Oppose the military powers’ hostility to disarmament impeded the or- Nuclear Threat (WONT). This movement was based on the ganization of international peace conferences by non-gov- premise that feminism should not be limited to women’s ernmental organizations. However, women are still a problems, such as rape, abortion, or health; the women of crucial component of peace movements, with support from WONT held that there was a close relationship between the international community. nuclear arms and men’s domination of women, and that in The feminist movements that emerged in the western a pacifist society, this domination would be overcome more world in the 1970s included many antimilitarist women, easily (Jones, 1983). who joined with others and created new women’s move- In the United States, under the leadership of Helen ments for peace. They applied their considerable creativ- Caldicott (an Australian), Women for Action for Nuclear ity—which, they felt, had been made invisible in male Disarmament (WAND) gathered thousands of women for culture—to originate actions expressing their resistance to public antinuclear demonstrations and also mobilized them war. They rejected militarization as a means to make peace for educative action. WAND isued booklets based on the and solve conflicts, taking instead an innovative theoretical idea that prevention is the only defense. approach. Women Pentagon Action (WPA) organized symbolic activities that included civil disobedience (women encir- Women As Innovative Actors cled and blocked the Pentagon’s entrances) and distribut- in the Disarmament Process ing “awareness-raising” pamphlets to the Pentagon’s employees. Like their counterparts of Greenham Common, Most sociopolitical actors, particularly nation-states, some leaders of these actions were sentenced to jail for ten claim their commitment to peace even as they prepare, days or a month (Jones, 1983). provoke, or wage a war. It was in the the name of “peace In Germany, there was intense resistance to missile de- maintenance” that many cruise and Pershing missiles ployment under the leadership of Eva Quistorp and Petra were deployed in western Europe; these were partially Kelly (Kelly, 1992). In France, which was not a member

391 DISARMAMENT of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and justice, and disarmament—generally, women do not sepa- thus was not a site for missle deployment, resistance took rate these three goals. a different form (Danielsson and Danielsson, 1986). Solange Fernex, deputy to the European Parliament and Women As Innovative Thinkers on Disarmament president of Women for Peace, Marie-Laure Bovy (Stop- The prevention of armed conflicts by decreasing mili- Essais), Madeleine Briselance (SOS-Tahiti), and Marie- tary expenses and resisting arms production and deploy- Thérèse Danielsson mobilized women to end France’s ment must be reinforced by efforts to expose the nuclear tests in French Polynesia, where these tests were prejudices and stereotypes that lead people to leave their having a disastrous impact. François Mitterand declared a security in the hands of political and military powers, moratorium after several dozen tests had been conducted, socioeconomic formations called the military-industrial but his successor as president, Jacques Chirac, planned to complex. resume them, causing antimilitarist women to increase Preventing militarization and war requires rejecting their resistance. Similarly, indigenous women from is- arms as the sole way of solving conflicts among social lands destroyed or damaged by American and British nu- classes, regions, ethnicities, nations, states, or interstate clear tests (Bikini, Marshall Islands, Mariana Islands) conglomerates. Nonviolence, justice, and bargaining are toured England and the United States to inform people the best means to solve conflicts and prevent wars. If about the irreversible harm inflicted on women and chil- women are more numerous than men in peace movements, dren by nuclear testing in that part of the Pacific (Oxford it may be because more often than men, they reject the Green Line, 1987). proverb “If you want peace, prepare for war” and replace it Antiwar sentiment ins another aspect of disarmemant. with “If you want peace, prepare for peace.” In 1991, for example, according to public opinion polls, a Women have also discounted other widely held beliefs. majority of women in Japan (75%), the United States For instance, militarization is often perceived as a source of (73%), England, (59%), and France (54) opposed the war jobs and innovative technologies. But Marion Anderson against Iraq, though a majority of men approved it (Michel, and her associates (1986) reported that during Ronald 1995). More recently, the war in Yugoslavia mobilized Reagan’s first term as U.S. presisdent (1981–1985), when western women and in particular feminists against military military expenses reached a peak, more than 1.2 million violence toward women. Consequently, they obtained from jobs were lost, and 80 percent of them were women’s jobs the United Nations the creation of an International Tribunal (Anderson et al., 1986). on Violence toward Women to prosecute war criminals and Another idea—that low-level nuclear radiation is safe, crimes against humanity. was challenged by Alice Steward, a British doctor, whose There are many more instances of women’s actions re- report that these emissions were harmful led to the under- lated to disarmament and mobilization for peace in Asia, taking of studies by nongovernmental agencies and inde- Latin America, and Africa, where dozens of armed con- pendent scientists. flicts have taken place. Often, these efforts go unreported Rosalie Bertell (1988) wrote an exhaustive report on by the mass media and are identified only in alternative lit- victims of the military and civil use of nuclear power erature (International Peace Bureau, 1996). Before the throughout the world since Hiroshima and Nagasaki. She Gulf War, in November 1990, Arab women organized a argued that the nuclear industry, with its enormous concen- Boat of Arab Women for Peace (Al Sadoon, 1996). Gather- tration of financial and technological power, was interfer- ing women from Morocco, Indonesia, the United States, ing with the democratic process through its suppression or Sweden, and elsewhere, they sailed from Algiers to distortion of research findings, its politics of secrecy, its Bassora to demonstrate their desire to end the conflict in a neglect of human health, and so on. For instance, American nonviolent manner. At the African Conference on Women authorities did not register radiation levels of the geo- in Dakar, Senegal, in 1994, African Women’s Movements graphic zones downwind while nuclear tests took place in for Peace adopted a resolution demanding that African the Nevada desert, for fear that the results would raise re- states stop buying arms and suggesting that women become sistance to testing. Today, with cancer striking perhaps one peace ambassadors. In the second half of the 1990s, two woman out of eight in the United States, Women’s Envi- women, one from Latin America and the other from Asia, ronment and Development Organization (WEDO) has won the Nobel Peace Prize. These women represent thou- asked the government to start an epidemiological study on sands of invisible women who fight every day for peace, the environmental effects of radiation.

392 DISARMAMENT

Scilla McLean (1986) studied the “decision-making subordinate roles, as instruments of the patriarchal system power” of the nuclear arms complex and concluded that of which militarization is the main component. the civil nuclear industry is incompatible with democracy. The present author, Andrée Michel (1995), has argued She argued that in the presumably democratic societies that women are the main victims of violence generated (England, France, the United States), much decision- by armament and contemporary wars and should not making is done not by government but by the military- leave their security to the military industrial-complex or industrial complex—sociopolitical clans composed of give men the means to achieve security by military vio- high-ranking military men, politicians, bankers, business- lence. Michel believes that citizenship can be achieved men from the defense industry, and directors of defense only when men and women resist the military-industrial research laboratories. Most of them come from the same complex and work to achieve their own security. If social strata, and the same academic background: women are the victims of war, they also are the main “grandes écoles” (France) or elite universities (England, social actors who can prevent and resist it efficiently and United States). These men decide, for example, on mili- innovatively. tary expenses and on research and development for new, Women play a very important role in the disarmament sophisticated nuclear weapons. McLean also concluded process. Antimilitarist women, for example, promote disar- from her research that a similar military-industrial com- mament by challenging the notion that war is prevented by plex makes such decisions in China and the former Soviet armament and that militarization has a positive effect on Union as well. employment, the economy, and technology. Some women Resistance to militarization requires accurate informa- have been particularly innovative in opposing the deploy- tion concerning the level of military expenses in the world. ment of new nuclear or conventional arms. In the United States, well before the United Nations Devel- But women have rarely intervened when military opment Program (UNDP), Ruth Leger Sivard compared budgets are discussed in parliaments or among high offi- the level of military spending with spending on health and cials. It is important for more women to understand that education in various conturies. She was opposed by the preventing war and achieving security for all should be- Pentagon, which feared that this information would create gin with reducing military expenses and channeling resistance to military budgets. Hence, she set up her own these funds into health and education programs. The research foundation, World Priorities, and periodically re- Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom leases reports about military expenses in the world (Leger (WILPF, 1996) has created and disseminated a “wom- Sivard, 1993). en’s budget” to counteract the U.S. federal budget by Resistance to war requires convincing people that vio- converting the enormous military expenses into invest- lence is not a genetic characteristic of the human spe- ments in education, infrastructure, job training, and the cies—particularly of males—and that passivity is not a renewal of the federal guarantee of income support for genetic characteristic of females. In the United States and poor children. Europe, feminist researchers have argued that male vio- Women’s action for disarmament and peace does not lence and female passivity are not innate but result of entail submission to injustice, totalitarianism, or sexism; socialization. From an early age, they believe, males are in fact, quite the opposite is true. Algerian women’s re- socialized for violence and females for passivity (Brocke- sistance to violence is a well-known example. In spite of Utne, 1985; Reardon, 1985). Evelyne Accad (1999) ar- death threats and numerous assassinations, Algerian gues that the different reactions of men and women to war girls and women have continued to attend schools and are part of the gender structural relationships that charac- universities, to practice their occupations, and to refuse terize the patriarchal system. This system is a social crea- to be veiled. Simultaneously, they organized mass dem- tion, particularly strong in Middle Eastern societies, onstrations opposing the government’s bargaining with where male domination and female submissiveness are Muslim fundamentalists who want to apply the Shari’a characteristic. to women. Preventing militarization and war also implies convinc- These Algerian women—and many others like them— ing women that joining the army does not symbolize wom- prove to the world that women can risk their lives and that en’s emancipation or equality with men. Cynthia Enloe their love of peace and their rejection of violence are com- (1983) concluded that the military system is “the archetype patible with defending the universal values of freedom and of the patriarchal system” and that it accepts women only in respect for human dignity.

393 DISCIPLINE IN SCHOOLS

See Also Turpin, Jennifer, and Lois Ann Lorentzen. 1996. The gendered new order: Militarism, development, and the environment . ARMAMENT AND MILITARIZATION; MILITARY; NUCLEAR New York and London: Routledge. WEAPONS; PACIFISM AND PEACE ACTIVISM; PEACE West, Lois A., ed. 1997. Feminist nationalism. New York and Lon- MOVEMENTS, specific regions; WAR don: Routledge. Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. 1996. References and Further Reading Women’s budget. Special ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Women’s In- Accad, Evelyne. 1989. Sexuality, war, and, literature in the Middle ternational League for Peace and Freedom. East. New York: New York University Press. Andrée Michel Al Sadoon, Nasra. 1996. Le bateau des femmes arabes pour la paix. Paris: l’Harmattan. Anderson, Marion, Michael Frish, and Michael Oden. 1986. The empty pork barrel: The employment cost of the military buildup, 1981–1985. Lansing, Mich.: Employment Research DISCIPLINE IN SCHOOLS Associates. Bertell, Rosalie. 1988. No immediate danger? Prognosis for a ra- Discipline in schools is often defined as the maintenance of dioactive earth. London: Women’s Press. an orderly system that creates the conditions necessary for Boulding, Elise. 1976. The underside of history: A view of women learning. The term discipline also describes students’ through time. Boulder, Col.: Westview. behavior that is desired by and acceptable to teachers (and Brock-Utne, Birgit. 1985. Educating for peace: A feminist per- dominant power groups within society) and the practices spective. New York: Pergamon. and procedures applied by a school to achieve it. Caldicott, Helen. 1980. Nuclear madness. New York: Bantam. Danielsson, Bengt, and Marie-Thérèse Danielsson. (1986). Poi- Purpose of Discipline soned reign: French nuclear colonialism in the Pacific. While it can be argued that discipline is essential to the Harmondsworth, England: Penguin. creation of an orderly learning environment, it is important Enloe, Cynthia. 1983. Does khaki become you? Boston: South to note that within schools there are many disciplinary End. practices that have little bearing on providing the neces- Fernex, Solange. 1983. La vie pour la vie. Paris: Utovie. sary conditions for academic learning. Rather, these prac- International Peace Bureau (IPB). 1996. International Women’s tices are designed to socialize and control students in Day for Peace and Disarmament. Geneva: IPB. particular desired ways. Desirable conduct is determined Jones, Lynne. 1983. On common ground: The women’s peace by the values, ideology, and moral and cultural imperatives camp at Greenham Common. In Lynne Jonnes, ed., Keeping of a society. Acceptable behavior thus differs according to the peace, 79–97. London: Women’s Press. what is considered “desirable” behavior for students—fe- Kelly, Petra. 1992. Nonviolence speaks to power. Honolulu: Uni- males and males of a particular age, class, sector, or ethnic versity of Hawaii Press. or religious group. Leger Sivard, Ruth. 1993. World military and social expendi- tures 1987–1988. 12th ed. Washington, D.C.: World Pri- Discipline—A Gender Issue orities. McLean, Scilla. 1986. How nuclear weapons decisions are made. In its broadest sense, then, discipline often reflects values London: Macmillan and Oxford Research Group. that different societies see as being important to the quality Michel, Andrée, 1985. Le complexe militaro-industriel et les of their future. Within this context it is significant to note violences à l’égard des femmes. Nouvelles Questions that in western countries research on discipline problems at Féministes, 11–12:9–73. schools has focused predominantly on boys. As Adler ——. 1995. Surarmement, pouvoirs, democratic. Paris: (1988:61) points out, school is just as central to the every- Harmattan. day lives of girls, and yet this fact tends to be ignored in Michel, Andrée, and Floh. 1999. Citogennes militairement in explanations of delinquency and troublesome behavior. correctes. Paris: Harmattan. The preoccupation with boys’ more spectacular Oxford Green Line. 1987. Pacific women speak. Oxford: indiscipline is also of concern because little attention has Reardon, Betty. 1985. Sexism and the war system. New York: been given to the less “visible” ways some girls resist Teachers College. schooling (Davies, 1984; Wolpe, 1988). Discipline is thus

394 DISCIPLINE IN SCHOOLS an important factor in examining the outcomes of school- Such researchers argue that girls who break school rules ing for girls. are doubly punished because they are also seen as breaking with the rules of “nature.” Girls are expected to be passive, Disciplinary Traditions polite, and obedient. Girls who resist these constructions of femininity are likely to be labeled as “tarts,” “sluts,” or It is difficult to generalize about the differing models of “slags” (Lees, 1986; Wolpe, 1988). Such unfounded judge- discipline applied within schools throughout the world. ments about morality endangers a girl’s potential value in Taking a very broad perspective, it could be argued that dis- the heterosexual marriage market. cipline models reflect the way a society sees education as There are further concerns about the ways girls are meeting either collective or individual needs. For example, punished for transgressing the norms of adolescence, in China there has been a tradition that children should be femininity, sexuality, and schooling. Carrington (1993) socialized as early as possible to conform to cultural expec- describes how a number of girls fall into the hands of wel- tations. This meant that in China not only was attendance fare and juvenile justice authorities not so much for crimi- compulsory but so also was achievement (Cheng, nal activity as for sexual conduct. Cook and Slee (1993) 1990:164). Disciplinary practices have been undertaken in describe the same phenomenon in China. On their visits to a collectivist spirit with the intention of forming “good” Chinese gongdu schools (juvenile detention centers), they behaviors. In countries such as China and India there are found that the majority of boys were sent to these institu- strong masculinist traditions in the teacher-pupil relation- tions for crimes against property or crimes of violence, ship, and yet this field of research, school discipline and while girls had been sent for what their interpreter de- gender, is still to be fully developed. scribed as “sexual insults.” Arguably, this gender-differ- In countries such as Australia, Britain, and the United entiated policing of girls’ perceived “immorality” States, models of discipline have been strongly influ- constructs and perpetuates patriarchal gender relations. enced by behavioral psychology. Educational psycholo- Aboriginal, Afro-Caribbean, and African-American girls gists drawing on behaviorism argue that students’ are evidently subjected to even more intense surveillance, behavior can be modified by the use of rewards and pun- are often more severely disciplined, and are seen as being ishments. In this model of discipline misbehavior is seen more prone to “promiscuity” (Carrington, 1993). It is im- as an individual “defect” that needs remedial attention. portant to note the different ways in which race, gender, Some of the most popular models in this field include and class contextualize students’ experiences of discipline Glasser’s Control Theory (1985) and The Quality School in school. (1990); Canter and Canter’s Assertive Discipline (1976); Arguably too, dominant versions of masculinity and and Rogers’s “Decisive Discipline” (1991). Critics ex- femininity operate in tandem to produce a hidden “curricu- press the concern that these models are not underpinned lum” of the female body, one that is policed by both stu- by an educational theory of discipline; they are concerned dents and teachers (Fine and Macpherson, 1994). Particular primarily with the control or management of students constructions of masculinity and femininity dominate dis- rather than the educational value of a disciplinary regime ciplinary practices, and yet the nature of gender-con- (Knight, 1988; Slee, 1995). structed power and control in behavior-management policies, programs, and practices in schools has yet to be Gender and Discipline considered systematically. Another concern is the failure to conceptualize students’ behavior and school discipline in ways that address the sig- See Also nificance of gender (Slee, 1995). Research has found that EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT; CHILD DEVELOPMENT; girls and boys are disciplined differently in schools; and FEMININITY; SEXUALITY: ADOLESCENT SEXUALITY some researchers conclude that these differences reinforce patriarchal power relationships (Delamont, 1980; Robinson, 1992; Spender, 1982; Wolpe, 1988;). Boys’ References and Further Reading behavior or misbehavior is perceived by teachers (and oth- Adler, C. 1988. Girls, schooling, and trouble. In R.Slee, ed., Disci- ers) as a natural part of boys’ growing up—they are “natu- pline and schools: A curriculum perspective. Melbourne: rally” boisterous, competitive, and aggressive. The same Macmillan. behavior when exhibited by girls, however, is seen as prob- Canter, L., and M.Canter. 1976. Assertive discipline: A take lematic (Robinson, 1992). charge approach for today’s education. Calif: Canter.

395 DISCRIMINATION

Carrington, K. 1993. Offending girls: Sex, youth, and justice. Syd- or sexual orientation, or a combination of these and other ney: Allen and Unwin. attributes. Discrimination need not be intentional—it cov- Cheng, Kai Ming. 1990. The culture of schooling in east Asia. In ers actions or policies that have the effect of discriminating. N.Entwistle, ed., Handbook of educational practices. Lon- Three types of discrimination are usually distinguished: don: Routledge. direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, and systemic Cook, S., and R.Slee. 1993. Removing dust from flowers: A Chi- discrimination. The examples given here will focus on sex nese model for correctional education. In R.Semmens, ed., discrimination. Yearbook of correctional education. Calif.: Center for Study In the case of direct discrimination a woman is disad- of Correctional Education. vantaged or less favorably treated simply because she is a Davies, L. 1984. Pupil power: Deviance and gender in school. woman; because of characteristics associated with being a Lewes, U.K.: Falmer. woman, such as the capacity to have children; or because of Delamont, S. 1980. Sex roles and the school. London: Methuen. characteristics attributed to women, such as a propensity to Fine, M., and P.Macpherson. 1994. Over dinner: Feminism and value relationships over career achievement. Discrimina- adolescent female bodies. In H.L.Radtke and H.J. Stam, eds., tion can also occur when women fail to conform to gender Power/gender: Social relations in theory and practice. Lon- stereotypes. For example, a woman who displays the com- don: Sage. petitiveness or results-orientation expected of the senior Glasser, W. 1985. Control theory in the classroom. New York: staff within an organization may be judged as overly ag- Harper and Row. gressive or lacking in interpersonal skills. ——. 1990. The quality school: Managing students without coer- Another form of direct discrimination against women is cion. New York: Harper Perennial. sexual harassment. Legal acceptance of sexual harassment Knight, T. 1988. Student discipline as a curriculum concern. In as a form of sex discrimination largely stems from the work R.Slee, ed., Discipline and schools: A curriculum perspec- of the U.S. feminist Catharine MacKinnon (1979). Sexual tive. Melbourne. Macmillan. harassment is defined as unwelcome sexual conduct, par- Lees, S. 1986. Losing out: sexuality and adolescent girls. London: ticularly in employment or education, that creates a hostile Hutchinson. work environment for the victim and is associated with Radtke, H.L., and H.J.Stam. 1994. Power/gender: Social relations structural inequalities of power between men and women. in theory and practice. London: Sage. Women are also subjected to sexual harassment from Robinson, K. 1992. Classroom discipline: Power, resistance and coworkers, particularly when they are attempting to enter gender. A look at teacher perspectives. Gender and Educa- areas of work traditionally thought of as “masculine.” In tion 4(3):273–87. most jurisdictions employers have vicarious liability for Rogers, W. 1991. Decisive discipline. In M.N.Lovegrove and this as well as other forms of sex discrimination, unless R.Lewis, eds. Classroom discipline. Melbourne: Longman they can show that they took reasonable steps to prevent it. and Cheshire. Indirect discrimination occurs when policies or practices Slee, R. 1995. Changing theories and practices of discipline. Lon- that appear to be gender-neutral have the effect of discrimi- don: Falmer. nating against women and cannot be justified on grounds ——. 1988. Discipline in schools: A curriculum perspective. Mel- such as business necessity. The requirement of full-time bourne: Macmillan. hours of work for a woman returning from maternity leave, Spender, D. 1982. Invisible women: The schooling scandal. Lon- for example, has been found to constitute indirect discrimi- don: Writers and Readers. nation. The requirement of continuity of service in order to Wolpe, A.M. 1988. Within school walls: The role of discipline, be eligible for promotion would be another example of a sexuality, and the curriculum. London: Routledge. policy that has disparate impact, because women are more likely to have interrupted work histories. Indirect discrimi- Delia Hart nation also occurs when equal treatment compounds the effects of earlier discrimination—as when the “last on, first off” rule is applied to women who have only recently been DISCRIMINATION allowed into certain jobs. The concept of indirect discrimination was endorsed by Discrimination may be defined as the denial of equal en- the United States Supreme Court in 1971 in the case of joyment of rights. It can occur on the basis of sex, race, Griggs v. Duke Power Co. The acknowledgment that equal religion, political belief, caste, social class, disability, age, treatment (as in this case, the requirement of a high school

396 DISCOURSE ANALYSIS education) may be discriminatory has been an important communication and increases predictability of response. breakthrough in thinking about discrimination. It means Characteristics of the dominant group become incorpo- that treating people as if they were the same as a norm from rated into the way “merit” is construed in the organization. which they differ in significant ways is just as discrimina- This is one explanation of discrimination against those who tory as penalizing them directly for their difference are “different,” who might do a job in a different though (Hunter, 1992). equally effective way. Social similarity also makes it easier Some people have been concerned that the recognition for senior members of an organization to identify with of difference which underlies the concept of indirect dis- more junior ones and to act as mentors for them. crimination may result in the perpetuation of inequality. Another form of systemic discrimination that has re- One alternative that has been proposed is the “subordina- ceived increased international attention in recent years is tion principle” (MacKinnon, 1987). This judges both gen- the cultural tolerance of violence against women. Gender- der-neutral treatment and treatment based on based violence has been recognized by the United Nations accommodation of difference by the standard of whether as a form of discrimination that prevents women’s equal such treatment serves to maintain or overcome women’s participation in public and private life and contributes to subordination to men. their subordination. Systemic discrimination refers to the whole range of The concepts of indirect and systemic discrimination gender-based assumptions and expectations that form part are still unfamiliar to most people. Many believe that as of the socialization and education process. These give rise long as requirements are the same for everyone and there to the gender segregation of the labor market and are built is no explicit intention to discriminate, then everything into the structure and culture of organizations. For exam- that needs to be done in the name of equity has been ple, girls may be steered toward gender-appropriate sub- done—regardless of differential access to the enjoyment jects and occupations, with their careers being viewed as of human rights. subsidiary to their roles as wives and mothers. This systemic bias means that women are relegated to See Also the “secondary labor market,” including the part-time and ANTIDISCRIMINATION; EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES; EQUALITY; casual jobs deemed compatible with their familial respon- SEXUAL HARASSMENT; STEREOTYPES sibilities. It also shows up in the devaluing of “female” skills, including interpersonal skills, and the low work References and Further Reading value assigned to “female” jobs, such as those involving Australian Law Reform Commission. 1993. Equality before the responsibility for children. law. Discussion Paper 54. Sydney: Australian Law Reform Organizations may be designed around an assumed Commission. split between public and private life. There is often an ex- Hunter, Rosemary. 1992. Indirect discrimination in the pectation that employees in promotional positions can en- workplace. Annandale, New South Wales, Australia: Fed- gage in full-time and continuous work and that career eration. structures do not need to accommodate family responsi- Lipman-Blumen, Jean. 1976. Towards a homosocial theory of sex bilities. Women can rarely conform to these organizational roles: An explanation of the sex segregation of social institu- expectations. tions. In Martha Blaxall and Barbara Reagan, eds., Women Inflexible work hours and career patterns also prevent and the workplace: The implications of occupational segre- men from taking on a more active parenting or caring role gation. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. and from sharing the load of unpaid work more equally. MacKinnon, Catharine. 1987. Feminism unmodified. Cambridge, This failure of organizations to accommodate the realities Mass.: Harvard University Press. of parenting and other family responsibilities has achieved ——. 1979. The sexual harassment of working women. New Ha- legal recognition not only through the prohibition of indi- ven: Yale University Press. rect discrimination on the grounds of sex but also through Marian Sawer the more recent prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of family or carer responsibilities. Organizations are often characterized by homosocial re- production—that is, like recruiting like (Lipman-Blumen, DISCOURSE ANALYSIS 1976). Managers feel more comfortable with those who are See COMMUNICATIONS: CONTENT AND DISCOURSE like themselves, who “fit in.” Social similarity simplifies ANALYSIS.

397 DISEASE

workers, who have been hit hard by the AIDS epidemic, are DISEASE viewed not as victims of a male-borne disease but as carri- The human body is remarkably adaptable to a variety of ers of the disease to men. And women of all classes are living conditions. When the stresses of the environment, blamed for conveying mental disorders to their children, aging, or everyday life overwhelm our ability to accommo- whose problems are attributed not to absent fathers or an date, however, dysfunction may result. unsupportive society but only to bad mothering. The medical definition of disease focuses on the in- Within the medical system, many female disorders have terruption, cessation, or disorder of body functions, sys- been dismissed as psychogenic (emotionally caused): men- tems, or organs. In medicine, a disease entity must have strual pain used to be attributed to problems in accepting two of the following: recognizable causes, recognizable one’s feminine or maternal role; problems related to sili- symptoms, and consistent anatomical changes. While cone breast implants have for many years been dismissed the term disease is considered objective, illness refers to as emotional rather than physical. One outcome of this per- the patient in context: it encompasses the physical, so- spective is a paucity of research that examines physiologi- cial, cultural, emotional, intellectual, and philosophical cal processes in common women’s complaints. milieu in which the patient exists and is therefore a more Conversely, women have been targeted for unnecessary subjective term. and unethical medical and surgical interventions in order to There are diseases that exist primarily in certain cul- increase the market for health care services. In the United tures. Anorexia nervosa, for example, is mainly a disease States, the number of surgeries varies in proportion to the of modern western culture; there is a specific psychosis in number of surgeons, regardless of actual need, and many Malaysia called amok that involves running around wav- unnecessary cesarean deliveries, hysterectomies, and “pro- ing knives and threatening people (this is the source of the phylactic” mastectomies occur each year. As the number of term “running amok”). In cultures in which status rises physicians grows (and competition for medical funding with age, women have fewer symptoms that they attribute and income increases) the territory of what is considered to menopause. appropriate for medical intervention expands. In most parts of the world, women have different pat- Menopause, reproduction, the menstrual cycle, aging, terns of disease and death from men. In developed socie- and appearance have each been targeted as medical disor- ties, women have higher rates of chronic illness but also a ders. The medicalization of naturally occurring phenomena longer life span than men do. In developing countries, mal- generates great outlays of money for procedures and prod- nutrition, infectious diseases, and pregnancy-related mor- ucts to deal with concerns that are socially manufactured tality (both from complications of childbirth and, if rather than medical. Western society has tended to abortion is illegal or difficult to obtain, from complications medicalize normal processes from womb to tomb; women of unskilled abortions) greatly decrease a woman’s life ex- give birth in hospitals, hooked up to monitoring machines pectancy. during labor, often on their backs, the most inefficient posi- Sexism plays a significant role in what is considered dis- tion. Menopause is viewed as a hormone deficiency disease ease in women. A key sexist notion is that the female body rather than a normal part of a woman’s life cycle. is inherently weaker than the male body. The female body Self-hatred is a lucrative commodity: in 1982, the must be viewed as distinct from and inferior to male bodies American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons in order to provide a rationale for different treatment. stated that small breasts are a “deformity…a disease which Historically, women’s strength has been challenged on in most patients results in…a total lack of wellbeing due to the basis of physical accomplishments without regard for a lack of self-perceived femininity” (Porter-field, 1982). the ways in which females of higher social status have been It has become acceptable in preventive medicine to de- discouraged or prohibited from participating in exercise, crease the incidence of one disease while increasing the sports, or manual labor. Working-class or immigrant risk of another. For instance, at the time of this writing the women, on the other hand, are viewed as capable of physi- United States government was spending $68 million to cal work but are viewed as bearers of disease (Ehrenreich study whether tamoxifen, a drug used to treat breast cancer, and English, 1973). Typhoid Mary is probably the most fa- actually prevents breast cancer, even though it is known to mous disease-bearer in history; far fewer people have heard increase the risk of endometrial cancer. Such trials promote of Patient Zero, the handsome male flight attendant believed “disease substitution” rather than prevention. to have been responsible for infecting an inordinate number Women—as providers and consumers—have sought of men in the early days of AIDS. Female commercial sex holistic or alternative care in greater numbers than men, in

398 DIVISION OF LABOR part because of their alienation from a male-dominated specialization); mental, manual, and machine labor; and care system—and in part because holistic healing assumes even ethnic or caste origin. that the mind and body are integrated, that we are capable The sexual or gender division of labor involves “wom- of healing ourselves, and that any explanation of individual en’s work and “men’s work,” which are often complemen- health conditions is grounded in the physical and social tary, even though the specific types of work assigned to environment. men and women vary enormously cross-culturally. Each A true understanding of disease cannot be had without a society justifies the partition of tasks by gender on cultur- contrasting understanding of health, a state of optimal ally defined so-called natural differences based on sex. The physical, emotional, and spiritual functioning, which in- “naturalness” of the tasks assigned to men and women is volves not only one’s inner resources but the interrelation- reinforced by specific cultural explanations, which are then ships among humans, and between humans and their invoked to explain gender inequality. The age division of environment. labor usually means that lighter tasks are assigned to the very old and the very young. Although all societies have See Also ideas about those most able to fill particular labor require- ANOREXIA NERVOSA; BREAST; BULIMIA NERVOSA; CANCER; ments, very little is fixed by actual biological considera- EATING DISORDERS; ETHICS: MEDICAL; HEALERS; HEALTH: tions. The only firm requirement of the sexual or gender OVERVIEW; HOLISTIC HEALTH, I and II; MEDICINE: division of labor seems to be that women give birth to and INTERNAL, I and II; SURGERY; TOXICOLOGY breastfeed infants. Yet in many societies, subsistence activi- ties are fluid and cross both gender and age lines; it is References and Further Reading chiefly in more industrialized societies that increasing spe- Ehrenreich, Barbara, and Deirdre English. 1973. Complaints and cialization is prevalent. Such specialization is, according to disorders: The sexual politics of sickness. New York: Femi- Adam Smith (1723–1790), the basis of further subdivisions nist Press. of the labor process. Porterfield, H.W. 1982. Comments on the proposed classification of inflatable breast prostheses and silicone gel-filled breast Background: Division of Labor in Industrial Societies prostheses. American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Smith coined the term division of labor to refer to the fact Surgeons. that, with industrialization, people had become specialists rather than generalists. With the introduction of the factory Jane Zones system, people were now responsible for a specific task or Adriane Fugh-Berman series of tasks, rather than the entire production process, as in artisanal or preindustrial commodity production. The production of any item can be subdivided extensively. Ac- DISPLACED PERSONS cording to Smith, the specialists’ concentration on a single See REFUGEES. task leads to ever greater innovation through experimenta- tion because the time taken to complete each step is con- tinually reduced. Karl Bucher, a contemporary of Smith’s, DISTANCE LEARNING noted that the division of labor now included both those who operated machines and those who made them. See EDUCATION: DISTANCE EDUCATION. The division of labor can be applied to nations as well as individuals, according to Smith. Immanuel Wallerstein (1974) theorizes that the global division of labor among DIVISION OF LABOR nations originated in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century. There are marked differences between what The term division of labor refers to the separation of work Wallerstein terms the core, western Europe, and the pe- into component tasks to be executed by given social group- riphery, Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia, and Africa. ings divided by class, caste, age category, or gender. While The periphery produces low-profit, low-capital intensive all human societies practice a division of labor of some goods for the export market, earning only small profits for kind, industrial societies extend the more basic divisions those who provide the capital and bare subsistence wages based on class, gender, and age to include those divisions for the nonfree or coerced labor force that actually manu- based on skill; educational achievement; profession (craft factures them. The core, on the other hand, produces

399 DIVISION OF LABOR high-profit, highly capital-intensive goods and pays high With the solidification of the factory system, produc- wages to the free labor force that produces them. With tion was removed from the domestic sphere, and a separa- European expansion into the periphery, a deliberate proc- tion of work and residence was the result. European and ess of underdevelopment virtually ensured that cheap raw American women, who before were able to combine wage materials from the areas under European control (sugar, work with activities essential to the smooth operation of cotton, lumber, and tobacco, to name a few) would make the household, now had to work twice as hard in the labor their way to the European market and the European market and inside the home. Because of the persistence of consumer. a gender division of labor, women still found themselves In England, which underwent its first industrial spurt responsible for the reproductive activities of the house- between 1750 and 1850 and was the first European nation hold, that is, preparing and preserving food, cooking, to industrialize, the rise of the factory system was based sewing, mending, cleaning, and caring for children. By both on the ready availability of these cheap imported raw contrast, in many nonindustrial, agrarian societies, there materials from abroad, and on locally available cheap hu- is less of a dichotomy between work “in” the household man labor. With the replacement of precapitalist modes of and work “for” the household. In these societies, the production by industrial manufacture, free labor had be- home is most often the site of production, consumption, come cheaper than slave labor. Now that workers in the fac- and reproduction, and a more equal division of labor tories and towns were paid by the hour or by the piece (the sometimes exists. quantity produced), the housing, food, and clothing of the worker did not have to be paid for by the capitalist, as was Historical Changes in the Sexual Division of Labor typical in precapitalist modes of production. The social re- A large body of evidence links strategies for procuring production of the workforce was no longer the capitalists’ food with differences in the sexual division of labor. With concern. Families now had to feed, clothe, school, and care the changeover from a foraging-gathering-hunting or a for their children through the earnings of their members. horticultural subsistence base to intensive agriculture in Because of insufficient wages, the most common recourse many parts of the world, women’s contribution to cultiva- was to put all able-bodied family members to work, and tion decreased. At the same time, and especially among women and children began to enter the factory workforce better-off women, attention to domestic tasks increased. in ever-increasing numbers, until this was stopped by the This is true for several reasons. First, with the changeover advent of protective legislation in the twentieth century. to agriculture as a means of subsistence, cereal foods be- Ultimately harmful to women, so-called protective legisla- came more important than ever before. The time required tion in many countries began as an attempt to end the ex- for cooking and processing is proportionately greater for ploitative conditions inside the factories for women and cultivated cereal crops than for the root crops commonly children; however, such legislation permitted the continued found in horticultural systems. Unlike root crops (yams, exploitation of men. potatoes, manioc, and cassava), cereal grains (wheat, bar- Exploitative conditions often led to the alienation of the ley, corn or maize) must be processed prior to consump- worker from the labor process, owing to the endless repeti- tion. A Mayan woman in the Americas might spend tion of a limited number of steps. The harmfulness of re- several hours each day grinding maize into flour and shap- petitive motion to the worker’s mental and physical health ing flour into tortillas, using her hands constantly. The was noted by Smith, who was cognizant of its importance same kind of work is necessary in the preparation of bread, to capitalism but realized that it would lead to “stupidity pasta, and other grain-based staples. By contrast, a Mabuti and ignorance” on the part of the worker (1965). Émile woman in central Africa preparing manioc is able to leave Durkheim (1858–1917) theorized that specialization, or an the manioc to boil for hours in a pot that needs to be super- excessive division of labor, would lead to a state of vised only every once in a while. Because she spends less normlessness or anomie, and eventually to societal break- time in food preparation, the Mabuti woman may engage down. Georg Lukacs (1885–1971) argued that the expan- in a wider range of activities and may need to remain at sion of the division of labor unduly favored economic home less. relations while reinforcing unequal relations between hu- Since the fifteenth century, with the opening up of the man beings. Marx stated that the worker, stunted by the di- Americas, Africa, and Asia to European colonization, vision of labor in modern society, was a “crippled many indigenous lifeways, customs, and beliefs were al- monstrosity…riveted to a single fractional task,” and tered as new ideas influenced by European thought began hence, ripe for revolution. to penetrate and intermix with the old. Foremost among

400 DIVISION OF LABOR these were cultural definitions of the tasks appropriate for and, increasingly, injury to eyes, respiration, and hearing. men and women. Especially in areas where a mestizo, The justification for hiring women comes from women’s ladino, or mixed-blood group formed a dominant class, of- supposed affinity for such detail-oriented work as a result ten strongly influenced by Spanish, Portuguese, British, or of their traditional work on tasks such as sewing and cook- French customs, indigenous belief structures were pro- ing. In other words, cultural designations of women as foundly shaken. Women, who at times held preeminence workers in the home are often reinforced by high-tech in- in given areas of expertise in preindustrial, pre-mercantil- dustry. This is known as the “nimble fingers” hypothesis. ist, and precapitalist systems—for example, in religion Women are increasingly channeled into work in electronics and medicine, or in agriculture, as in much of Africa— assembly, food processing, and clothing production be- were often stripped of their duties as these tasks came to be cause these jobs are thought to be appropriately “femi- seen as more appropriately male. Among the Baule of the nine.” While men often work as tailors and designers, Ivory Coast, cloth production long epitomized the coop- women are far more likely to work in areas of production erative nature of the sexual division of labor. Women grew that do not lead to advancement. This segregation of cotton (as an intercrop between rows of yams, the staple) women leads to sex-specific abuses. Because women are and spun it into thread, while men wove the thread into often seen as a docile workforce, accepting harsh working traditional designs. When a demand for cash, introduced conditions and low wages, such expectations are then en- with taxes imposed by the French colonial government forced, often to the point of sexual and psychological (which had to be paid by men, considered the household abuse. heads by the French), the traditional sexual division of Export processing zones have proliferated throughout labor began to break down. Before this period the labor those parts of the world where wages can be kept artifi- division was in many respects balanced. Ironically, with cially low, and that are still accessible to cheap transport the introduction of foreign capital and means of control and shipping routes. Such areas include the northern Mexi- into Baule society, the raising of cotton, now a cash crop, can border state of Chihuahua, where they are known as was entrusted to men. Yet it is important to examine the maquiladora industry, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, changes due to foreign capital on a case-by-case basis. and the Caribbean. Increasingly, particularly in communi- Afonja emphasizes that capitalist production was not en- cations industries such as satellite-driven customer service tirely imposed on African society from the outside; rather, operations, peripheral European states like Ireland are “entrepreneurial Yoruba men were active in developing sought out for the development of new industry. Perhaps cash crop production and in controlling trade, and, as local the newest such site of operations is India, which, along enterprises grew, women’s marketing activities were re- with Ireland and the Caribbean, has a highly educated Eng- duced to a secondary place in Yoruba economy” (cited in lish-speaking workforce in a society beset by high unem- Leacock, 1981:489). ployment rates. The preference for hiring women in such More recently, the sexual division of labor has under- areas has led to artificially high unemployment rates for gone profound changes as a result of external influences in men, and means that women, rather than men, often be- many parts of Africa, Latin America, and Asia, most nota- come the household breadwinners (Safa, 1995). bly in the form of monetary aid for rural development Because notions of patriarchy—the control of women projects such as those underwritten by the International by men—are present, the hiring of women rather than men Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Often this means that has exacerbated already existing social problems such as women, traditionally horticulturalists and agriculturalists alcoholism in men. This combination of factors has also in much of Africa, are overlooked as loans and monetary often led to household dissolution, abandonment of wives, support are entrusted to men. Another recent development and migration by men in search of employment elsewhere. in the sexual division of labor is the advent of manufactur- Traditional household practices and beliefs are thus further ing jobs in multinational corporations throughout the upset even though women are empowered in some sense. world, especially in designated “export processing zones” The rise of such industries is a double-edged sword; al- of the so-called third world. Such multinational firms are though workers are paid wages that are far below those in often underwritten or explicitly financed by foreign capital, the developed world, pay scales are often proportionately especially U.S. capital, even when company management greater than in surrounding areas. Hence, the export is indigenous. To save labor costs, these jobs are given with processing zones have become a magnet for women who increasing frequency to women—jobs that are among the want a better life, and these zones have caused further mi- most tedious and painstaking, involving repetitive motion gration from and depopulation of rural areas.

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Patterns in the Sexual Division of Labor creating erectness or height, while female work involves bending and circular, dealing with soil or foliage. Among The sexual or gender division of labor has certain features the Beti, Guyer reports, men’s work includes tree cultiva- that can be observed cross-culturally. In most societies tion, yam-staking and harvesting, as well as tomato cultiva- men are usually responsible for hunting and trapping ani- tion with long-handled hoes. Women’s work centers on mals, both large and small; for procuring and cutting lum- tasks that can be completed with the short-handled hoe, ber; for mining; for constructing boats, musical cooking over the fire, building mud houses, and tending to instruments, and ornamental objects (of bone, horn, and the cultivation of the groundnut. After the harvest, women shell); and for engaging in combat. In many societies, men spread groundnuts out to dry in the sun; according to fish, herd, and tend large animals; collect wild honey; clear Guyer, the harvest has taken on increased importance be- land; prepare soil for planting; butcher animals; build cause it gives women some control over their lives The houses; make nets and rope; and are political leaders. Tasks groundnut has come to be seen as a “woman’s crop”—an which are assigned to either one gender for specific cul- interesting historical change related to the penetration of tural reasons, or to one or both indiscriminately, are col- capital into the countryside. This change also represents the lecting shellfish; caring for small animals; planting, process by which a task can come to be seen as natural to tending, and harvesting crops; milking animals; preserving one gender or the other. meat and fish; and preparing skins, leather, baskets, mats, clothing, or pottery. Cross-culturally, women usually Theories of the Sexual Division of Labor gather wild plant foods, care for children, cook, prepare foods (this includes cutting, grinding, smoking, or preserv- Many theories have been proposed to explain why every ing), launder cloth items, fetch water, collect fuel (usually society divides its work into male and female tasks. While firewood but also animal dung), and spin yarn. In addition, what is seen as appropriate for men and women differs in women almost always care for infants; this care includes almost all societies, there is very little agreement on what breastfeeding. these tasks actually are, and many theories have been de- One interesting fact about the sexual division of labor is vised to explain this variation. that work seen as appropriate for women in some cultures In the 1930s, George Murdock conducted a cross-cul- is more appropriate for men in others, and vice versa. In tural comparison of 224 societies and documented exten- addition to bearing and raising children and cooking, sive evidence to corroborate a cross-cultural sexual “women’s work” for Efe pygmies of Zaire includes agri- division of labor. Murdock argued that strength was an im- cultural work, chopping and carrying firewood, and carry- portant component of men’s activities, as was being away ing meat. Carrying heavy loads is so strongly associated from the home base for extended periods. Men’s tasks typi- with women’s work rather than men’s that when men kill cally involved a high degree of cooperation. According to an animal, especially a large game animal, they will walk Murdock, women’s activities required less strength and in- all the way back to camp in order to procure women to volved considerably less travel. carry the load for them. Women shoulder burdens even Another hypothesis has to do with “economy of effort.” when pregnant, although not as often. In addition, women It suggests why men produce the majority of manufac- cook, trade, and work as agricultural laborers for the Lese, tured goods in so many societies. Goods manufactured by their neighbors. When work is done by women, it tends to men range from simple objects, like eating utensils and be considered “easy”; when the same work is done by men, pots to more complex ones, like musical instruments, even it is likely to be considered “hard.” An example reported by though these items are small and portable and could as some observers is pulling and transplanting rice seedlings easily have been produced by women. According to this in India. theory, because men more often procure lumber (although The cultural explanations that are given for the division rarely firewood), it costs less in terms of time, effort, and of labor are normally made to seem natural and immutable energy for them to transform wood from its raw to its fin- to change. Guyer (1984) reports that among the Beti, a for- ished state, as a useful object, than it would for a woman to merly migratory population in Cameroon that now concen- finish the task. trates on the production of rubber and palm for export and Another theory, known as expendability theory, pro- on cocoa for the local market, male work may be perceived poses an explanation for men’s propensity to perform as involving vertical movement and dealing with wood, work that is commonly seen as perilous. According to this

402 DIVISION OF LABOR theory, such work is assigned to men because individual pygmies of the Congo (1968) indicates that the Mbuti men are more “expendable” than individual women. It is have almost no gender division of labor. The Mundurucu women who gestate the unborn while caring for young of Brazil (Murphy, 1974) have a marked gender division children who need protection. Because of the biological of labor, with men living in men’s houses in the center of requirements of sexual reproduction, fewer men than the village, and women living with their children in sepa- women are needed for the successful reproduction of the rate houses. In addition to separate living quarters, each group. This is evidenced by the many societies which are gender has separate working activities and spends the ma- organized polygynously, that is, in which men can have jority of its time apart. There is also a high degree of “gen- more than one wife. der parallelism” among the Yoruba of Nigeria. What has come to be called the child care compatibility Historically, women were chiefs and cult leaders and hypothesis, first put forth by Judith K.Brown in 1970, sug- could participate in royal councils and operate as market gests that women’s contribution to subsistence work de- officials or as heads of craft guilds. Among the Yoruba, pends on the compatibility of the subsistence activity with both women and men participated in every aspect of life, child care. Women are much more likely to be entrusted and this social structure still affects rituals, economics, with child care than men are, and thus are less mobile than politics, and the family. men. Small children can be carried only so far; thus women often concentrate on tasks such as cooking, food prepara- Class and Status Variables in the tion or storage, and agricultural work, which allow them to Sexual Division of Labor: The Andean Case remain close to home. Deere and Leon de Leal (1985) distinguish between pro- Another hypothesis explores the possibility that fertil- duction and reproduction in regard to the sexual division ity may be a factor in the sexual division of labor. Patricia of labor. They stress that while most women still do tend Draper has studied the !Kung San of southern Africa and toward human reproduction (defined as the reproduction the division of labor by gender among men and women of labor power on a daily basis and the reproduction of among this group of (former) gatherer-hunters. Draper labor power over time, as in child rearing), the sexual divi- reports that environmental conditions in southern Africa sion of labor in productive activities (that is, work) may are harsh, because of especially poor growing conditions vary by class, status, position, region, and time. In other and scarce water in the hottest months. The !Kung say words, the division of labor by sex is not merely culturally that a woman carrying a child on her back as well as in determined but is tempered by the material conditions of her belly has a “permanent backache” and that allowing production. this situation would be foolish. Draper argues that lactat- Examining three cases in Andean agriculture in high- ing women with small children rarely become pregnant, land Colombia and Peru, Deere and Leon de Leal found owing to the suppression of fertility brought about by differential results of the mode of production. In the first both breast feeding and amenorrhea, which is caused by case, a region of “noncapitalist” production, women pre- extensive physical activities. On the savannah, !Kung dominated in tasks centering on the care of animals and in women were constantly on the move in the search for services relating to agricultural production, such as cook- food and water, and, as a result, experienced extremely ing for field hands who did the actual agricultural work. low fertility. Hence, one explanation for women remain- Here, only half the women became involved in agricultural ing closer to home and walking less may be the increased processing activities themselves, and even fewer did any likelihood of conception. This is borne out by the much agricultural work. In the region of “advanced capitalist” higher fertility levels of agricultural societies relative to penetration—the second case—women were much more migratory ones. likely to market agricultural produce and it was even rarer for them to participate in agricultural work. In the region of Cross-Cultural Variation in the Sexual Division of Labor mixed capitalist and noncapitalist production—the third Some societies have practically no gender division of case—elements of both systems were present, with women labor at all or have fluid gender divisions. According to a involved in all kinds of productive work. Even when men one study of the Agta of the Philippines, women regularly and women ostensibly did the same things, there was a form hunting groups to track deer and wild pigs, and this technical division of labor within tasks. In planting, for ex- activity is an important part of women’s contribution to ample, men dug holes in the ground and women put in the group subsistence. Turnbull’s classic study of the Mbuti plants. As is often the case, both men and women placed

403 DIVISION OF LABOR most importance on men’s tasks rather than women’s. In See Also fact, both sexes considered women to be merely “helping AGRICULTURE; BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM; DOMESTIC out.” This contrasts with another agrarian society: Friedl LABOR; DOMESTIC TECHNOLOGY; ECONOMY: OVERVIEW; (1962) reported that in Vasilika, a Greek peasant commu- GLOBALIZATION; HOUSEWORK; PATRIARCHY: nity, neither men’s nor women’s work had any prestige. DEVELOPMENT; WORK: specific topics Both were regarded as “distasteful” but necessary, and ei- ther sex would do the work of the other with no shame References and Further Reading attached. Anker, Richard. 1998. Gender and jobs: Sex segregation of occu- The undervaluation of women’s labor highlights an pations in the world. Geneva: International Labour Organiza- ambiguity often present in the theoretical relationship be- tion (ILO). tween the sexual division of labor and women’s subordi- Blau, Francine, Mariane A.Ferber, and Anne E.Winkler, eds. nation. Is women’s lower position a result or a cause of the 1999. The economics of women, men and work. Upper Sad- division of labor by sex? Deere and Leon de Leal argue for dle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall. an examination of the material conditions of production in Deere, Carmen, and Magdalena Leon de Leal. 1985. Women in answering such a question. In the Andes, among groups Andean agriculture. 2nd ed. Washington, D.C.: engaging in capitalist relations of production, women are Internationation Labor Office. paid much less than men because they are segregated by Dex, Shirley. 1985. The sexual division of work: Conceptual revo- sex, in this case, in tobacco processing and textile produc- lutions in the social sciences. New York: St. Martin’s. tion. Giving women the most labor-intensive yet “low-pro- Friedl, Ernestine. 1962. Vasilika: A village in modern Greece. ductivity” jobs seems to justify paying them less. Hence, New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. capitalist relations of production put women and men in Guyer, Jane I. 1984. Family and farm in southern Cameroon. Bos- different economic positions. By contrast, poverty, espe- ton, Mass.: Boston University, African Studies Center. cially rural poverty, seems to be something of an equal- Kleinberg, S.Jay. 1998. Retrieving women’s history: Changing izer—when farming becomes less important as a family perceptions of the role of women in politics and society. New economic strategy, women seem to engage in it more. York: Berg. Thus poverty may be a factor in breaking down estab- Leacock, Eleanor. 1981. Myths of male dominance: Collected ar- lished sex roles. ticles on women cross-culturally. New York: Monthly Re- view. Conclusion Mies, Maria. 1998. Patriarchy and accumulation on a world Although the advent of new technology and ways of scale: Women in the new international division of labour. working has altered the kinds of work that men and London: Zed. women do, sometimes making it possible for women to Murphy, Yolanda. 1974. Women of the forest. New York: Columbia engage in strenuous and dangerous work formerly re- University Press. served for men, a gender division of labor to persists. Peoples, James G., and Garrick Bailey. 1996. Humanity: An intro- Advancing technology has not been a social leveler as duction to cultural anthropology. 4th ed., MinneapolisSt. is sometimes thought. Three decades of feminism and Paul, Minn.: West. as many cohorts of feminist anthropologists, sociolo- Safa, Helen. 1995. The myth of the male breadwinner: Women and gists, theorists, and activists have attempted to explain industrialization in the Caribbean. Boulder, Col.: Westview. why this is the case. The depiction of tasks as “natural” Smith, Adam. 1965. An inquiry into the nature and causes of the to one gender or another within cultural settings ac- wealth of nations. New York: Modern Library. (Originally counts for continued gender inequality in the workplace published 1778.) in many cases. However, continued differential pay Towery, Matt A. 1998. Powerchicks: How women will dominate scales for men and women in most societies are more America. Atlanta, Ga.: Longstreet. difficult to explain, though they suggest the differential Turnbull, Colin. 1968. The forest people. New York: Simon and worth of men and women in many advanced capitalist Schuster. societies. Such analyses leave many unanswered ques- Wallerstein, Immanuel. 1974. The modern world system. New tions but are critical for the eradication of persistent York: Academic. inequality. Maria Ramona Hart

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and family responsibilities, and financial inequality. Many DIVORCE women report being left for other women.

Divorce reflects societal changes in morality, economics, Consequences of Divorce mobility, and gender roles. The same issues appear world- wide: attribution of blame for ending a marriage, accept- Divorced women often suffer diminished returns on their marital investment as a result of legal, social, and economic able grounds for divorce, distribution of assets and policies. Children, too, are financial and emotional victims liabilities, spousal support, and responsibility for children. of divorce (U.S. Census Bureau, 1999). Once male parents Statistics are separated from their wives, they often avoid taking eco- nomic responsibility for their children. Child custody In the last decades of the twentieth century, the divorce rate agreements may become a battleground for former rose substantially in most western countries, with the high- spouses; the Hague Convention on International Child Ab- est rates found in the United States and the Scandinavian duction of 1986 establishes legal rights and procedures for countries, followed by Canada and the other western and the return of children abducted across national boundaries. eastern European countries. In Sweden and the United What distinguishes a marriage that lasts from one that States (according to some methods of counting) one of two does not is not how good or bad the marriage is but how marriages ends in divorce. In the Baltic states divorce is tolerable the partners find it. How a marriage ends affects a common; Estonia equals its Scandinavian neighbors; and woman’s assessment of her divorce. A woman who is left in some countries of the former Soviet Union more than by her husband against her wishes may see herself as hav- one-third of marriages end in divorce. In the Caucasus and ing lost a major opportunity because of divorce, whereas a the central Asian states, divorce is less common. woman whose ex-husband was abusive may feel that di- In the countries of southern Europe divorce has in- vorce has given her the opportunity to pursue a more ful- creased moderately since 1980. In Malta divorce is illegal; filling life. in Ireland it was legalized in 1995. In Greece and Portugal Despite the obstacles (social, religious, practical, and fi- divorce rates did not exceed 20 percent until the late 1990s. nancial), women continue to pursue divorce because In Albania, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia, changes in thinking must be accompanied by action to divorce rates are moderate and fairly stable—10 to 20 per- change reality. Wives today have options that were unavail- cent of marriages end in divorce—whereas in the former able to their mothers and grandmothers. Now, a woman in a Czechoslovakia, the former German Democratic Republic, difficult marriage can say, “No, I do not need to live this and Hungary, rates rose steadily from 1980 to 1990 before way, and I will not do it anymore. This is not right.” stabilizing at about 30 percent (United Nations, 1995). See Also Reasons for Divorce ADULTERY; DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; MARRIAGE: OVERVIEW; In general, women do not divorce casually or for trivial rea- MARRIAGE: REMARRIAGE sons. Although women’s economic status, family arrange- ments, educational attainment, cultural background, and References and Further Reading personal preferences vary greatly, their reasons for divorc- Boston Women’s Health Book Collective. 1992. The new our bod- ing can sometimes be traced to the hardships that contem- ies, ourselves. New York: Simon and Schuster. porary marriages cause women through the different Engel, Margorie. 1994. Divorce help sourcebook: Resources and pleasures, burdens, and duties husbands and wives experi- references for legal, financial, and personal issues. Detroit: ence in their roles. Some women are frustrated by their hus- Gale Research/Visible Ink. bands’ attempts to control their time, their friends, or their United Nations. 1995. The world’s women: 1995 trends and sta- work. Other women are angry that their husbands, who in- tistics. Social Statistics and Indicators, Series K, No. 12. sist on their own point of view, do not listen to their wives New York: United Nations. or value their opinions. Even women who do not directly United States Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce. experience violence in their marriages report being intimi- 1999. Child support for custodial mothers and fathers: dated by their husbands’ anger. Violence (physical and 1995. In Current Population Reports, Series P-60, No. 196, emotional) is a factor, and so are hard living (alcohol and March 1999. drug abuse, husbands’ “running around” and absenting themselves from the home), disproportionate child care Margorie Engel

405 DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION

DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION testifies to the fact that the family has not lost its productive See HOUSEHOLDS: DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION. functions under capitalism. Second, the studies have found that women continue to spend much more time engaged in domestic labor than men do, even when they also spend long hours in employment. Even when a broad definition DOMESTIC LABOR of domestic labor is used (encompassing traditionally mas- culine tasks), employed women still spend roughly twice as Domestic labor refers to unpaid work carried out by house- much time on domestic tasks as employed men. Time- hold members for themselves and one another. This can in- budget studies have shown unequivocally that the gender clude both routine work (such as cooking, cleaning, and division of domestic labor is far from equal. When it comes washing) and nonroutine work (such as gardening, do-it- to understanding women’s and men’s differing relationship yourself tasks, and car maintenance). However, the term to domestic labor, however, measurements in time of this domestic labor is frequently used to denote routine unpaid kind have a number of shortcomings, which obscure the work carried out by women for their families. The activities true extent of the domestic labor burden for women. First, commonly associated with domestic labor are found in all time-budget studies often do not take into account the pos- societies, with women being assigned to similar types of sibility that an individual will carry out two tasks simulta- tasks in all contexts. In preindustrial societies, however, al- neously. Undertaking multiple activities is a characteristic though a strict gender division of tasks may exist, produc- of women’s domestic labor (for example, a woman may be tive and reproductive tasks are not separated in time or recorded as at leisure even though she is minding the chil- space. Consequently, women’s domestic activities count as dren while watching television). Second, time-budget stud- work. It is only in industrial societies where the place of ies can measure an individual’s commitment in time only employment is separated from the household that women’s to a concrete activity. They cannot capture the time and ef- household activities have not been defined traditionally as fort involved in planning and managing one’s own and oth- work. Indeed, the concept of domestic labor was originally ers’ activities. This work often falls on the shoulders of developed within women’s studies and the feminist move- women. Third, women’s domestic labor cannot be meas- ment in the 1960s and 1970s in North America and Europe ured in time in the same way that employment can because as part of a strategy to emphasize both the practical signifi- a woman’s relationship to her family is not the same as an cance of women’s work in the home to the functioning so- employee’s relationship to his or her company. Employees ciety and the economy and, more important, the theoretical are financially compensated for specific tasks completed or significance of women’s responsibility for this labor in ex- for a specific amount of time spent “at work.” In contrast, plaining their oppression. women must be permanently available to their families and must fit their activities around their families’ needs. For a Methodological Problems Relating to Domestic Labor woman, even time not actually spent in the service of the The methodological problems relating to the study of do- family may still be constrained time. Fourth, women’s car- mestic labor concern how to measure and evaluate the ing and emotional work undertaken for the benefit of hus- quantity of this work and how to discover the nature and bands and children cannot be calculated in time alone. extent of the gender division of domestic labor. A principal Given the vast amounts of time devoted to domestic source of such information is the data produced by the labor, it is not surprising that the absence of any reference large-scale time-budget studies carried out sporadically in to this activity (and thus to the majority of women’s work) a number of European and North American countries, for in the models for national accounting has been questioned example, Britain, France, the United States, and Canada by some women researchers. In some third world countries (Gershuny and Jones, 1986). A time budget study is a tech- there have been attempts to calculate the importance of nique for data collection whereby the research participants “self-provisioning” work, which crosscuts women’s do- complete diaries chronicling the number of minutes spent mestic labor; but in the industrialized nations (as of this on a range of activities. From these diaries, it is possible to writing) only one study—conducted in France in the 1980s calculate time spent on domestic labor. Similar results have by Chadeau and Fouquet (1981)—has made a serious at- been found in all the countries concerned. tempt to evaluate domestic labor in monetary terms. More Two main results have come from time-budget studies. recent literature has taken up the call for domestic labor to First, these studies have found that at least as much time is be valued in this way (James, 1994; Luxton, 1997). spent on domestic labor as is spent on employment. This Chadeau and Fouquet tested three methods of calculation,

406 DOMESTIC LABOR which they applied to time-budget data collected for work on women in capitalism until that time was Engels’s France for 1975. Two methods are based on a principle analysis of the family (1972, originally 1884). Engels con- called “lack of necessity to spend,” and calculate what tended that the family was an anachronism that was mar- households would have to pay a third party if they substi- ginal to the survival of capitalism, because it was a part of tuted paid goods and services for their own domestic labor. the social superstructure and, therefore, had no material The first method applies the salary paid to a domestic serv- justification. Marxist feminists set out to explain that wom- ant to the time spent in all domestic tasks, regardless of en’s oppression within capitalism does indeed have a mate- their nature, while the second applies the salary rates of rial and not merely an ideological basis. That material basis different types of worker depending on the specific activi- is domestic labor. Indeed, the study of domestic labor in the ties undertaken. The third method uses “opportunity cost” early 1970s was very much a part of feminists’ struggle to model to calculate what household members could earn if find an identity apart from socialism and Marxist structur- they spent the time that they spend on domestic labor in alist analysis, which had sidelined women’s particular con- paid employment instead. cerns and problems. Although more time was spent on domestic labor in Marxist feminists argued that capital depends for its sur- 1975 in France than was spent on employment, when vival on the unpaid work performed within the family by evaluated in monetary terms, domestic labor was worth women, because the role of women as reproducers of the only one-half of the gross national product (GNP) accord- workforce and as a “reserve army of labor” is essential and ing to the first and third methods (which use women’s not marginal to the extraction of surplus value. Women’s wage rates as a basis of calculation) and two-thirds of GNP domestic labor is productive of certain goods and services according to the second method (which uses wage rates that are necessary for the maintenance and reproduction of current for men as well as women). One major problem labor power—that is, the clothing and feeding of the cur- occurs in all these methods of calculation: by using rent generation of workers for capital and the procreation equivalent values borrowed from the formal labor market and education of the next generation. to assess the “worth” of domestic labor, such calculations Within , however, there was a debate reflect the lowly status of women in the labor market and that took up much time and energy during the 1970s, con- the low value placed on their routine domestic activities in cerning whether women’s domestic labor was unproduc- society at large. tive or productive in a Marxist sense. Some argued that Until the early 1970s in North American and Europe, domestic labor is unproductive because, to be productive in not only was the economic importance of domestic labor the original Marxist sense, an activity must fulfill both of ignored, but the relationship between women and domestic two criteria: first, it must be exchanged on the market labor was deemed natural within mainstream sociology. against a wage; second, it must work directly with capital’s The dominant view of the family was Talcott Parsons’s, in means of production to produce commodities that have a which women’s role as homemaker was seen as functional, calculable exchange value from which surplus value is di- and thus indispensable, to the stability of society (1955). rectly extracted. Domestic labor fulfills neither of these cri- From the 1970s onward, the validity of conceiving of the teria. Domestic labor produces only “use values” for family in this way came under fire, particularly in feminist consumption in the home, not exchange values or surplus circles. From then on, it was argued that understanding value. Because housewives are not employed by capital, why women maintain the relationship they do to domestic their contribution to profit, though necessary, is not direct. labor was a key to understanding women’s oppression. In Women’s production of use values is outside the exchange the late twentieth century, the major debates surrounding of labor for wages, although it is economically part of the domestic labor have focused on explaining why women creation of surplus value (see, for example, contributions to have come to be responsible for it and what role domestic Barker and Allen, 1978). labor plays in the functioning of society. Other Marxist feminists realized, however, that labeling domestic labor “unproductive” relegated it to a place of Domestic Labor—Productive or Unproductive? secondary importance behind wage labor and consequently With the arrival of the feminist movement in the late 1960s once again made women’s oppression a side issue of the and early 1970s, Marxist-inspired feminist theories began class struggle. These women argued that domestic labor to question the lack of concern within orthodox Marxism was indeed productive. The initiators of the “productive for women’s oppression, and the inability of Marxism to ex- labor thesis” were Dalla Costa and James (1972), who con- plain women’s relationship to domestic labor. The principal tended that the main product of domestic labor, the human

407 DOMESTIC LABOR being, is no different in nature from any other commodity. this school of thought, the benefits derived from women’s Women’s domestic labor produces something that is sold unpaid work in the home by men as well as by capitalism to capitalists—namely, labor power—even if women have are a proper cause for concern. In this analysis women (and no legal ownership of it. Domestic labor is therefore pro- their domestic labor) belong to men first and capital sec- ductive. ond. Women’s confinement to the domestic role puts them Out of this “productive labor thesis” grew the “wages in their specifically disadvantaged position. Women’s re- for housework” campaign. This school of thought rejected sponsibility for domestic labor means that they are not free the idea of liberation through work (Dalla Costa and to sell their labor power on the market. Taken to its logical James, 1972), because it would mean that women should conclusion, capitalism would have freed women from the merely become wage slaves alongside men. Because the home in order to put men’s and women’s labor power into only difference between wage labor and domestic labor is complete competition. This did not happen because capi- said to be that domestic labor is unpaid, feminists instead talism had to accommodate the patriarchal social structure should demand wages for housework, which would show that predated it—for example, by paying “family wages” women’s oppression to be a function of capitalism. Wages and by introducing regulations regarding child and female for housework would place the burden of reproduction on labor and laws preventing wives from seeking employment the shoulders of the oppressors. The fight for wages for without their husbands’ consent (Hartmann, 1981, and housework was therefore intended to be a part of the class Kuhn and Wolpe, 1978). struggle because, in paying such a wage, the state and Many of these propositions are not questioned by a fur- capitalists would incur reproduction as a direct cost. How- ther school of thought that can be described as social ever, the “wages for housework” campaign never drew constructionist radical feminism. Its major exponent is the widespread support, because on a practical level it coin- French theorist (1984). Delphy’s theo- cided with right-wing proposals to entice women back into retical position derives from her political perspective, the home. which seeks to cast women’s struggle against patriarchy as independent of the proletarian struggle against capitalism. For her, domestic labor is not a mode of reproduction Women As Domestic Laborers— within the capitalist system, nor is patriarchy a historic Servants of Capitalism or Patriarchy? concept that has influenced the structure of capitalism. In- Other theoretical perspectives have questioned Marxism stead, patriarchy develops historically, having, like capi- further by asking whether domestic labor serves capitalism talism, a mode of production. Delphy calls this the or patriarchy or a combination of the two, and whether in domestic mode of production, in which women’s unpaid fact domestic labor is part of the capitalist mode of produc- labor for the family is exploited by men. The domestic tion, the “patriarchal” mode of production, or both. mode of production is embodied in the social institution of Not all socialist women argue that domestic labor is first marriage. It is through marriage that men appropriate and foremost functional to capital, nor do all agree that women’s domestic labor. The mechanism by which this there is only one mode of production—the capitalist mode. appropriation takes place is very different from that which In the middle to late 1970s, a school of thought developed exists within the capitalist mode of production, in that the that could be described as feminist-Marxist, which chal- wife’s time is appropriated as a whole by her husband. In lenged Marxist-feminist analyses to explain why it is return, the wife is “kept.” She is not given a set sum per women and not men who undertake domestic work. Marx- hour for her domestic labor, as an employee would be ist-feminist analysis tells us only that domestic labor is es- given for his or her wage labor. sential to capitalism, not why women should carry out that domestic labor. The feminist Marxists’ answer to this ques- Neoclassical Explanation of Women’s tion is that women’s oppression and domestic labor are Responsibility for Domestic Labor situated at the point of interaction between patriarchy and capitalism. All of the foregoing explanations of women’s relationship For this type of feminism, the fact that domestic labor to domestic labor can be termed structuralist in the sense does not fit into the criteria set out to describe wage labor— that they perceive society in terms of conflicting social and thus constitutes reproduction as opposed to produc- groups, the existence and relative power of which rest on tion—indicates that women’s domestic responsibilities and characterize a particular social structure. In contrast, need to be examined as part of the patriarchal system. In neoclassicists reject the view that domestic labor is the

408 DOMESTIC LABOR material basis of women’s oppression. Instead, they see determining their responsibility for domestic labor and, ul- women’s responsibility for domestic labor in terms of “ra- timately, their social and economic status. Within a neo- tional choices made under constraint” by couples who are classical framework, women’s role in childbearing is a attempting to maximize their “utility.” significant factor. Neoclassicists do not attempt to elimi- It was a member of the Chicago school in the United nate the physiological factor of having children in explain- States—G.S.Becker—who first developed a neoclassical ing women’s position. They see women as having an conceptualization of women’s responsibility for domestic absolute advantage over men in specializing in domestic labor. Before Becker’s new home economics theory, the labor because of their childbearing role. microeconomic model of the offer of labor had been based The various types of feminist analysis have sought to on the idea that an individual chooses between more work explain women’s relationship to the family as being purely and more leisure. Thus, women’s seeking employment in socioeconomic rather than biological, but not all these increasing numbers could be explained by microeco- theories actually manage to “erase” women’s identity as a nomists only as a change of preference for work as op- biological group in order to replace it with a socioeconomic posed to leisure. This seemed to contradict the social identity. One of the basic difficulties with which Marxist values of the time. To explain this phenomenon, Becker feminists have struggled is that it is easy enough to explain introduced the factor of “household production” to his the vital importance of the reproduction of the labor force analyses. The combination of market goods and house- to capitalism and the logic of carrying out this work within hold time is “household production.” Consequently, gen- the family, but how does one explain why capital needs der roles within the couple could be theorized as a division women and not men to perform this labor? The implicit of labor and a choice between market production or do- answer is that reproduction is compatible with the biologi- mestic production. cal role of childbearing. It is implied that biological differ- Applying Becker’s model, microeconomists analyze ences led to the exclusion of women from production and how couples choose rationally (or intentionally) to divide their confinement in the role of reproducers of the their combined time between professional work and do- workforce in the first place. mestic labor according to the economic circumstances in Feminist Marxists acknowledge that women constitute which they find themselves and their own abilities and a group economically exploited by men as well as by preferences. Becker asserts that women specialize in do- capital, but their analyses of women’s situation with re- mestic labor when their “opportunity costs” of working in gard to domestic labor still have some biological under- the market are too great—that is, when the cost of paying tones. They base their theories on the possibility of for market alternatives to their domestic production is not differentiating between those tasks and social relations adequately covered by what they could earn in a job. Hus- relevant to the production of goods and services and those bands and wives specialize in professional and domestic that concern the reproduction of human beings. What, labor respectively when the husband can earn more on the however, is reproduction as opposed to production if it is market than his wife and when the wife cannot cover the not those tasks and social relations that are the prolonga- costs of running the home with her potential salary. It tion of childbearing? should be emphasized that in this model it is assumed that Perhaps it is inevitable that, despite the considerable men and women have a common utility function. In other progress made in understanding the social relations of words, they have common interests to which end they spe- gender, “women” first and foremost is still perceived as a cialize in different forms of activity and exchange their spe- biological category, and the explanation of gender differ- cialized skills. All the while, they attempt to maximize the ence and a gender division of domestic labor cannot es- satisfaction derived from their efforts by mobilizing their cape this cultural assumption. However, Delphy’s radical forces in market and domestic production in the most effi- feminism perhaps comes nearest to escaping it. Delphy ar- cient way possible. gues that women’s difference must be discussed in mate- rial, historical, and political context. Then, difference is exposed as synonymous with women’s oppression. This is The Role of Biological Reproduction a theory of women’s oppression based on the notion of in Linking Women to Domestic Labor “sex classes” with men as a class benefiting from the op- The extent to which progress can occur in women’s situa- pression of women as a class. Delphy refuses to describe tion with regard to domestic labor depends on one’s assess- the situation of women as being based on their exclusion ment of the significance of women’s childbearing role in from the market and production because this would imply

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that women are something other than a socially con- Bittman, M., G.Matheson, and G.Meagher. 1999. The changing structed category—that is, a product of a certain set of so- boundary between home and market: Australian trends in cial relations. Just as the social class of the proletariat does outsourcing domestic labour. Work Employment andSociety not exist outside its relationship to the means of produc- 13(2):249–273. tion, neither does the gender class of women exist outside Chadeau, Ann, and Annie Fouquet. 1981. Peut-on mesurer le tra- its place in the patriarchal mode of production. Delphy re- vail domestique? Economie et Statistique 136:29–42. jects the dichotomy of production and reproduction, con- Dalla Costa, Mariarosa, and Selma James. 1972. The power of ceptualizing society instead as being composed of two women and the subversion of the community. Bristol, U.K.: separate modes of production. Falling Wall. Delphy, Christine. 1984. Close to home. London: Hutchinson. Delphy, Christine, and Diane Leonard. 1992. Familiar exploita- Is the Division of Domestic Labor Changing? tion. Cambridge: Polity. A crucial question of the contemporary period is to what Engels, Frederick. 1972. The origin of the family, private property extent women’s increased participation in the labor force, and the state. London: Lawrence and Wishart. (Originally and the relative financial power that this participation has published 1884.) given them within the couple, has led to a more equal gen- Gershuny, Jonathan, and Sally Jones. 1986. Time use in seven der division of domestic labor. It is clear that men’s in- countries 1961–1984. Shankill: European Foundation for the volvement in domestic labor has not increased to match Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. women’s involvement in the labor market. However, some Gershuny, Jonathan, Michael Godwin, and Sally Jones. 1994. argue that the small changes recorded in men’s domestic The domestic labour revolution: A process of lagged adap- activities are evidence of a “lagged adaptation” of the gen- tation. In Michael Anderson, Frank Bechhofer, and der division of domestic labor to women’s role in employ- Jonathan Gershuny, eds., The social and political economy ment (Gershuny, Godwin, and Jones, 1994). This of the household, 151–197. Oxford: Oxford University argument suggests that adjustment to work roles takes Press. place not through a short-term redistribution of responsi- Hartmann, Heidi. 1981. The unhappy marriage of Marxism and bilities but through an extended process of household ne- feminism. London: Pluto. gotiation (and perhaps reconstitution) extending over James, Selma. 1994. Women’s unwaged work: The heart of the many years and, indeed, across generations. Others argue informal sector. In M.Evans, ed., The woman question Lon- that the continued unequal division of domestic labor is a don: Sage. sign that patriarchy is now located more than ever in the Jarvis, H. 1999. The tangled webs we weave: Household strategies private sphere of the family. If patriarchy is viewed as a set to coordinate home and work. Work, Employment, and Soci- of social relations in which men dominate women, then ety 13(2):225–247. one way for patriarchy to adapt to women’s newfound in- Kuhn, Annette, and Anne M.Wolpe. 1978. Feminism and materi- dependence on the employment market is to ensure that alism: Women and modes of production. London: Routledge patriarchal relations persist within the home (Delphy and and Kegan Paul. Leonard, 1992). Luxton, M. 1997. The UN, women, and household labor: Measur- ing and valuing unpaid work. Women’s Studies International Forum 20(3):431–439. See Also Oakely, Ann. 1974. The sociology of housework. Oxford: Martin CAREGIVERS; CHILD CARE; DIVISION OF LABOR; ECONOMICS: Robinson. FEMINIST CRITIQUES; FAMILY STRUCTURES; HOUSEHOLDS: Parsons, Talcott. 1955. Family socialization and interaction proc- POLITICAL ECONOMY; HOUSEWORK; MARRIAGE: OVERVIEW; ess. Glencoe, Ill.: Free Press. MARXISM; WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES Riley, P.J., and G.Kiger. 1999. Moral discourse on domestic labor: Gender, power, and identity in families. Social Science Jour- nal 36(3):541–548. References and Further Reading Windebank, Jan. 1994. Explaining women’s relationship to do- Barker, D., and Shiela Allen, eds. 1978. Dependence and exploita- mestic labour: Structuralism, individualism, and empiricism. tion in work and marriage. Harlow, U.K.: Longman. Women’s Studies International Forum 17(5):499–509. Becker, Gary S. 1981. A treatise on the family. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. Jan Windebank

410 DOMESTIC TECHNOLOGY

DOMESTIC SCIENCE countries found that demands on women rose with the in- See EDUCATION: DOMESTIC SCIENCE AND HOME flux of technology (Wajcman, 1992). In general, domestic ECONOMICS. technology has not liberated women from housework. Technology or no technology, women world-wide, particu- larly poor women, have been the primary caretakers and homemakers, whether they have paid jobs outside the home or not. DOMESTIC TECHNOLOGY As noted above, technology has made some jobs, such as laundering and cooking, less labor-intensive. One need Domestic technology is the application of scientific princi- only look to the lives of many women in countries of the ples and engineering methods from industry to develop “South,” where technology and wealth are limited, to illus- mechanized tools for household work. It includes larger trate this point. In these countries, wood is one of the most appliances such as stoves, refrigerators, clothes washers important sources of renewable fuel energy, and women and dryers; smaller appliances such as vacuum cleaners, and children are primarily responsible for collecting it in coffeemakers, and food processors; and underlying tech- most of the countries of that region. As wooded areas in nology such as sewer systems, electricity, and indoor Africa, parts of Asia, and Latin America become increas- plumbing (Wajcman, 1992). Domestic technology was first ingly barren, owing to industry, collecting wood has be- mass-produced and distributed in the United States and come even more labor-intensive. In parts of Sudan, for Britain between 1890 and 1920 (Strasser, 1982). Although example, the time needed to gather firewood was multi- there have been technological developments for homes in plied by four in the 1980s, consuming the majority of one’s other countries, much of the technology adopted in the last day (Agarwal, 1992:267). While industry has contributed two centuries seems to be a result of the more industrial- to this problem, collaborative technological development ized, capitalistic influence of countries in the “North,” spe- has helped ease many women’s lives in villages of north- cifically the United States and Britain. west India. The woman of the house works with the builder The development and widespread influence of domestic to design a stove that meets her home’s unique needs. The technology have a much more complex and culturally em- result has been more efficient technology. bedded history than may at first appear. As the feminist This type of partnership in developing domestic tech- scholar Cheris Kramarae pointed out, technology includes nology has not happened in any commercially successful more than its products; it is a tool that regulates social rela- way in most industrialized cities and countries. For exam- tions (1988:2). Just as technology helped usher in major ple, in a study of clothing washing machine technology in social change with the industrial revolution in the United Barcelona, Spain, Carme Alemany Gomez found that States and Britain in the late 1800s to the 1900s, it also newer designs were guided more by production savings helped bring about major social change in the home, rede- than by any concern to ease the work involved in using the fining presumed ideal gender roles for women and men. machine, which required stooping, bending, and kneel- These changes had profound effects, particularly on ing—efforts a top loading design does not entail. In an ex- women assigned to the home by these gender roles; how- tensive study from 1988–1992 in eight European countries, ever, domestic technology is not commonly included in women researchers found an almost complete absence of historical accounts of technological development and the women among design engineers. There were no women in- industrial revolution because of its inferior social status volved in developing the food processor, washing machine, (Cockburn, 1997). or central vacuum system (Cockburn and Fürst-Dilíc, 1994). Technology originally intended for industry has The Promise of Efficiency typically been adapted for the home by men, and is not as When domestic technology is discussed, the emphasis is efficient as it might be if the women using the products had commonly on claims of efficiency and the liberation of been involved in the design. women from mundane tasks. Surveys from the United States, Britain, Canada, Norway, Denmark, and the Nether- The Selling of Predominant Social Ideology lands from the 1960s to the 1980s found that, in some Women have been involved in developing alternative do- cases, technology made work more efficient (e.g., cooking mestic technology, but most of these developments have and cleaning) but additional technology created new tasks not survived. For example, commercial steam laundries (e.g., ironing), and studies of child rearing in these were successful in Britain and the United States during the

411 DOMESTIC TECHNOLOGY later 1800s until the electric home washer was introduced many of the less privileged came to aspire. Furthermore, in 1914. As the cost of home washers decreased and house- what happened in the public sphere—technology and hold experts in women’s magazines cautioned women not capitalism—greatly affected women’s role in the home; to trust their delicate clothing to commercial laundries, the the home was never a haven from external influence. Not popularity of commercial laundries declined. The same only was domestic technology a tool designed in the problem occurred with attempts to run commercial laun- “public” sphere; it also designated the user (Cockburn dries where neighbors or paid workers did the work. Even- and Fürst-Dilíc, 1994) as well as the user’s gender iden- tually these laundries could not compete with commercial tity and sexual orientation. Moreover, the concept of pub- coin-operated laundries, and they were also criticized as lic versus private sphere imposed other images of being socialist (Cowan, 1983). necessary, complementary relationships: woman-man, It was well into the twentieth century before domestic wife-husband, and home-maker-breadwinner. These technology became affordable for working-class people. helped legitimize the unequal status of women. Today, U.S. kitchens contain from 12 to 20 motorized This emphasis on separate spheres and women’s place appliances, only one of which—the refrigerator—is was reinforced by advertisers and by household experts in used continuously (Wajcman, 1992). Advertisers helped popular advice literature. Susan Strasser, an American his- create a demand for such goods by selling new tasks for torian, argues in her classic book, Never Done: A History of women (such as family transportation), sentimentalizing American Housework (1982), that the advice literature re- housework (a “good” mother starches and presses all flects a predominant white middle-class social ideology clothes), and raising the standards of housework. Do- about housework, “a set of doctrines about women’s work” mestic technology became a status symbol, a sign of af- (xv). This trend in advice literature began in the 1800s and fluence and of a well-kept home (Cowan, 1983). continued through the 1900s in what is called the “domes- Families across social classes wanted to be the first in tic science movement.” Most notably, Christine Frederick, their neighborhood to own an electric washing machine, who wrote articles in women’s magazines and popular which promised convenience and independence for nu- books in the early 1900s, intertwined advice for women clear families. with the tenet that women’s place was in the home and that women should approach housework like a science and a Technology-Prescribed Gender and Sexuality business. Women were told to apply the business principles Household technology and the predominant social ideol- of time management, technology, and work scheduling to ogy accompanying it helped to solidify the idea that the create a loving home. proper place of women was in the home. Gender roles— These ideas of the home and women’s role in it re- prescribed expectations for women’s and men’s place in mained more or less intact into the 1960s and early 1970s society—became more dichotomous, rigid, and unequal. in the United States, where the isolated white middle-class Men belonged in the public sphere, where more valued, suburban housewife was still a common phenomenon better-paid production occurred. The private sphere was (Oakley, 1974). By the 1980s, women in the United States men’s leisure place and women, as heterosexual mates, and Britain were entering paid employment in greater were responsible for making this a haven. Women be- numbers than ever before, challenging the notion of public longed in the private sphere, where productivity was pre- and private spheres; yet their responsibilities in the home sumed not to exist, since food, clothing, and furniture were did not seem to be changing at the same rate. Gender- predominantly made by industry. The home, and thus stratified domestic technology was still occurring, as evi- women, became more dependent on others owing to the denced by the development of the microwave oven. This image of being a consumer only. invention originated in the male-dominated British mili- In reality, the public versus the private sphere was a tary; women had only minor roles in adapting the ovens false dichotomy. Minority and poor women around the for home use, though women were the targeted consumers world have a long history of working in both spheres. as the ovens became popular in the 1980s (Cockburn and Domestic workers’ paid employment (public sphere) is Ormrod, 1993). someone else’s private sphere (the home; see, for exam- In Australia in 1992 a national survey of 7,000 persons ple, Martens and Mitter, 1994). The split between public found that women did more of the unpaid labor in the and private life represented predominant stereotypes of home (133.3 million hours per week) than men (94.2 appropriate behavior for women and men, as defined by hours; Ironmonger, 1994). In the United States, by con- white middle-class U.S. and British standards, to which trast, as women have increasingly entered employment

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outside the home, standards for cleanliness have been re- Dodge, Susan. 1999. Men do their home work—sometimes. Chi- duced and men in heterosexual relationships seem to be cago Sun-Times, NWS (27 July): 1. doing more housework. A telephone survey of 10,000 Gomez, M.Carme Alemany. 1994. Bodies, machines, and male people in the United States found that men had increased power. In Cynthia Cockburn and Ruza Fürst-Dilíc, eds., their time cooking by 45 percent from 1965 to 1995 (1.6 Bringing technology home: Gender and technology in a hours per week) and cleaning by 240 percent (1.7 hours), changing Europe. Buckingham and Philadelphia, Pa.: Open and women had decreased their cooking time (50 percent, University Press. 4.6 hours) and cleaning time (7 percent, 6.7 hours). How- Ironmonger, Duncan. 1994. The value of care and nurture pro- ever, the comparative differences in workload in the home vided by unpaid household work. Family Matters 57, 46–51. are still substantial (Dodge, 1999). Furthermore, Judy Kramarae, Cheris. 1988. Gotta go, Myrtle, technology’s at the Wajcman (1992), a sociologist from Australia, has door . In Cheris Kramarae, ed., Technology and women’s pointed out that as with children, the presence of men in voices: Keeping in touch, 1–14. New York: Routledge and the home increases the time women spend on housework. Kegan Paul. In contrast, men living with women, regardless of the ages Leto, Victoria. 1988. “Washing, seems it’s all we do”: Wash- and number of children, do less housework than men liv- ing technology and women’s communication. In Cheris ing alone. Kramarae, ed., Technology and women’s voices: Keep- Thus, at a time when domestic technology is most af- ing in touch, 161–179. New York: Routledge and Kegan fordable, when more women are working in paid employ- Paul. ment, and more women are presumably gaining purchasing Martens, Margaret Hosmer, and Swatsi Mitter. 1994. Women in power in the home, domestic technology has not signifi- trade unions: Organizing the unorganized. Geneva: Interna- cantly improved women’s lives. Unequal gender relations tional Labor Office. continue to influence the development of technology, and Oakley, Ann. 1974. Woman’s work: The housewife, past and technology reinforces unequal gender relations. History present. New York: Pantheon. suggests that improvement would require a change in pre- Strasser, Susan. 1982. Never done: A history of American house- dominant white, capitalistic, patriarchal values. work. New York: Pantheon. Wajcman, Judy. 1992. Domestic technology: Labour-saving or See Also enslaving. In Gill Kirkup and Laurie Smith Keller, eds., In- venting women: Science, technology, and gender, 238–54. AUTOMATION; CHILD CARE; EDUCATION: DOMESTIC Cambridge: Polity. SCIENCE AND HOME ECONOMICS; DOMESTIC LABOR; ——. 1991. Feminism confronts technology. Cambridge: Polity. GENDER CONSTRUCTIONS IN THE FAMILY; FAMILY: POWER RELATIONS AND POWER STRUCTURES; HOUSEWORK; Victoria Leto DeFrancisco TECHNOLOGY; TECHNOLOGY: WOMEN AND DEVELOPMENT

References and Further Reading Agarwal, Bina. 1992. Cold hearths and barren slopes: The DOMESTIC VIOLENCE woodfuel crisis in the third world. In Gill Kirkup and Laurie Smith Keller, eds., Inventing women: Science, technology Domestic violence is a common term generally used to re- and gender, 255–265. Cambridge: Polity. fer to physical violence perpetrated by one adult intimate Cockburn, Cynthia. 1997. Domestic technologies: Cinderella and partner against another. the engineers. Women’s Studies International Forum 20 Domestic violence describes the threat or use of physical (3)361–371. force to coerce and control an adult intimate partner; it oc- ——, and Susan Ormrod. 1993. Gender and technology in the curs in intimate relationships regardless of sexual orienta- making. London: Sage. tion or marital status. “Two key aspects of violence are ——, and Ruza Fürst-Dilíc, eds. 1994. Bringing technology threat and control. That is, the effects of battering are seen home: Gender and technology in a changing Europe. Buck- not only in the actual physical assaults, but in how fear of ingham and Philadelphia, Pa.: Open University Press. being hurt is used to manipulate and control a [partner] via Cowan, Ruth Schwartz. 1983. More work far mother: The ironies threats” (Adams, 1994:12). of household technology from the open hearth to the micro- There are certainly other forms of abuse that occur wave. New York: Basic Books. within the immediate or extended family: the physical,

413 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE sexual, and emotional abuse or neglect of children by ment in the home; denial of access to money, education, or parents or caretakers, or of the elderly by adult children health care; and so on. or caretakers. It is not unusual to find these forms corre- 4. Destruction of property. While the destruction of lated with the abuse of the adult partner. However, these property is a common behavior for the abuser, it is not forms will not be discussed here. often identified as part of domestic violence. It is not a random destruction of property but rather the inten- Problems tional destruction of the victims possessions such as photos, books, family heirlooms, which were very im- Although the term domestic violence may describe the ge- portant to her. The message of this behavior is clear: ography of the violence (that is, within the “domestic” this time it is your property; next time it will be you. sphere of the family), from the perspective of a feminist Thus the destruction of property contributes to psycho- analysis its euphemistic tone presents at least two problems logical battering. (Jones, 1994). 5. Harm to animals. Again, this is not random harm to First, the term does not indicate agency: Who is doing animals (usually family pets) but harm directed at an ani- what to whom? As with the term battered woman, the agent mal who is important to the victim. The animal may be who chooses to use violence—in 95 percent of cases in the threatened, injured, or killed by the abuser. In a single act, United States a man (Adams, 1994:7)—is unidentified. then, the abuser may deprive his victim of a valued rela- Also, the term obscures the gender of the victim and per- tionship while also communicating that her safety, too, is in petrator so that the gendered nature of most domestic vio- jeopardy (Ganley, 1981:8; Adams, 1995). lence—the implementation of male dominance against a female partner—is not apparent. The value of these categories is the recognition of the inter- relatedness of different kinds of behavior and the identifi- A Feminist Analysis cation of phenomena that are not ordinarily perceived as A feminist analysis provides a behaviorally based typology domestic violence (such as destruction of property and of domestic violence (first developed by Anne Ganley, harm to animals). Understanding battering behaviorally 1981). For assessment purposes, five forms of domestic (that is, understanding that battering is behavior deliber- violence have been identified. ately chosen by the abuser) transforms the traditional un- 1. Physical battering. This is the most visible and life- derstanding of battering as a victim’s problem (and thus a threatening form of domestic violence and usually estab- private problem) to a recognition that it is the abuser’s lishes the basis for the coercive effect of psychological problem—and thus a community problem. As a commu- battering. Physical battering includes punching, kicking, nity problem, it requires aversive consequences for the grabbing, throwing a person against a wall or down the abuser, established and enforced by the community, espe- stairs, and the use of weapons such as guns, knives, bats, cially but not exclusively by the criminal justice system. acid, automobiles, and so on, in such a way that serious Consequences are discussed below. physical injury or death may result. In its impact, domestic violence is analogous to po- 2. Sexual battering. This is a subset of physical batter- litical violence. As Judith Herman demonstrates in ing. Sexual battering involves forced sexual activity or Trauma and Recovery, the consequences of domestic physical violence directed at the genital area or breasts. It is violence and political terror are very similar for the often referred to as “marital rape,” although the marital sta- victim. One similarity is that the victim may subse- tus of the individuals is not a determinative factor in the quently suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder. The definition. Sexual battering often follows a physical attack psychologist Alfred D. Biderman studied of brain- on a partner and can therefore be confused with “love mak- washed American soldiers and codified the results in a ing” or “making up.” chart of coercion that was published by Amnesty In- 3. Psychological battering. Psychological battering is ternational. In Rape in Marriage, Diana Russell ar- the pattern of psychological pressure used by an abuser to gued that Biderman’s chart could also be used to coerce and control the victim. Its efficacy is a function of understand the effects of torture on wives, as well as the real threat of physical harm already introduced into the those who are seen ordinarily as “hostages.” This intimate relationship by the abuser. Psychological battering chart of coercion is now used in battered women’s is analogous to brainwashing experienced by prisoners of shelters to help them identify the controlling tactics war or hostages and can include forced isolation; imprison- of their partners.

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Patriarchy and Domestic Violence that the man “wins” disputes and that the status quo in the It appears that domestic violence is a common behavior for relationship is maintained. men in every contemporary patriarchal culture. Wherever In response to domestic violence, the victim changes there is a history of male domination in politics, econom- something about herself in an effort to accommodate the ics, and religion, women report being abused by male part- perpetrator. Frequently, this involves restricting her ners. Feminists maintain that judicial, religious, and choices, ending relationships with friends or family to political leaders to respond very slowly articulations of whom he has objected (which is usually all of her friends women’s experiences of domestic violence and that this is and family, since they all pose a threat to his control), or a predictable result of these institutions’ patriarchal foun- even quitting her job. Often his behavior limits her access dations. It is true that relatively few men actually exercise to a car or her ability even to leave the house. Meanwhile, public power in class- and race-stratified patriarchal cul- she attempts to soothe and please the controlling man, tures, but men’s self-interest in sustaining these structures complying with his demands, agreeing with his opinions, is appealed to by the corresponding power permitted them denouncing his enemies. She accepts blame for things in the domestic sphere, where their violence is often exer- that are not her fault and squelches her anger for fear of cised with impunity. igniting his. She makes excuses for him—all to no avail. That domestic violence is an enacting of male domi- “When a woman tries to keep a partner calm by pleasing nance is suggested by evidence from batterers themselves. him, he gains exactly what he wants. He exercises his Professionals in the United States who work with men who power over her and gets his way on a daily basis. It is batter have observed that assaultive men believe stere- ironic that she thinks she is ‘managing’ best when in fact otypes about male and female roles, and overidentify with she is most under his control” (Jones and Schecter, the stereotypic male role. Because of this overidentification 1992:35, 36). they feel that they have a right to control anyone with less power or status (such as women, children, and animals). As Misconceptions about Causes of Domestic Violence a result, “husband-dominance is also a predictor of child abuse” (Adams, 1994:14). The inflexible adherence to tra- Stress? Stress does not cause men to batter. Many people ditional expectations for men in relation to women is one of who live stressful lives (battered women, for example) do the forces that make wives “appropriate victims” (Dobash not batter. Moreover, men who batter and attribute this to and Dobash, 1979:31–47). stress generally do not batter strangers, neighbors, or coworkers. Domestic Violence and Control Alcohol and drugs? Some men who batter drink or use When a man hits a woman he has not lost control of him- drugs; others do not. Of those who do drink or use drugs, self; rather, he achieves and maintains control of his part- some batter only when drunk or high; others batter only ner. It is not so much what is done but what is when sober. The majority of known alcoholics do not beat accomplished. Not only is he achieving and maintaining their wives, and the majority of wife abusers have not been control but he is reminding the woman of her subordinate diagnosed as alcoholics (Adams, 1994:14). Wife abusers, status in the world: however, may become intoxicated in order to carry out vio- lence. Abusive alcoholic or drug-dependent men have two Battering may be done intentionally to inflict suffering. problems: chemical dependency and woman-battering. So- For example, the man may physically punish a victim briety alone will not eliminate battering. for thinking/behaving in a way that is contrary to the Violence in family of origin? Until recently the theory perpetrator’s views. Or battering may be done simply that boys who were abused or witnessed abuse grew up to to establish control in a conversation without intending abuse others seemed convincing. But the research on which harm. Regardless of the intent, the violence has the this theory was based did not include control groups (more same impact on the victim and on the relationship. It than 90 percent of families in the United States believe that establishes a system of coercive control. (Ganley, corporal punishment of children is acceptable). “In fact, 1989:203) several studies indicate that an estimated 65 to 85 percent of adults who were abused as children do not grow up to Men who batter not only believe they have the right to use abuse their children” (Jones and Schecter, 1992:58). violence but receive a reward for behaving in this man- Brothers of batterers, who presumably witnessed the same ner—obedience from their partners. Battering guarantees abuse, do not necessarily grow up to become abusers.

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Anger? Domestic violence is not a matter of anger but a Domestic Violence and Accountability: matter of control. An abusive man chooses to lose his tem- Aversive Consequences per. He is already in control. His partner thinks, “If he The most effective way to stop domestic violence is to hold would only express his emotions,” but he already is ex- the abuser accountable. The most effective way to accom- pressing them, and quite effectively. What is needed for plish this is a coordinated, comprehensive community re- batterers is less self-expression of anger; giving vent to an- sponse that relies on a consistent response from all ger increases rather than lessens the persons angry state. institutions of the community. In its review of develop- “Therapists who encourage abusive people to ‘vent their ments in the law in response to domestic violence, the emotions’ give them what they want: authoritative support Harvard Law Review describes a coordinated community for their explosive tirades.” Such advice is “dangerous, response to controlling assailants through “stringently en- even deadly when it is handed out to controlling and per- forced protection orders and vigorous prosecution, com- haps violent men” (Jones and Schecter, 1992:65). bined with community education” (“Developments in the Victim’s provocation? This question presumes that the Law,” 1993:1522). In counseling sessions which are a part woman has control over her partner’s behavior. She does of such a community response, this means that focusing on not. The abuser’s violence is a consequence of his decision the man’s decision to act in a violent manner is essential. to control his intimate partner; it is not in any way caused Aversive consequences—especially arrest, accompanied by the woman. No matter what the woman’s behavior, he by court-mandated counseling and sometimes loss of his still chooses to be violent. While a batterer may claim that job, separation from his family, or time in jail—demon- his partner provoked him, no documentation exists to show strate that domestic violence does not work. Its rewards are that women are more verbally aggressive than men or that negated by the consequences. “Court-mandated treatment men hit only when women are verbally aggressive (Ganley, is necessary for many who batter. Due to their personality 1989). In fact, one study found that “physically abusive characteristics of denial, minimization, externalization, husbands were more verbally aggressive than their wives” and impulsivity, many batters will either avoid or fail to (Ganley, 1989:207). A man may be upset about his part- complete voluntary treatment programs” (Ganley, 1981:1). ner’s verbal response to him, but such as verbal response is The dropout rate for voluntary treatment continues to be not battering: “These men have not been assaulted by their high (Jones and Schecter, 1992:108), but court-mandated mates and they [the men] are not terrorized by them” treatment imposes a degree of accountability that allows (Ganley, 1981:13). for monitoring the batterer’s commitment to change, sup- A woman’s behavior may irritate or anger her partner. port for his efforts to change, and provides consequences if She may be intoxicated or assertive, or may even be having he does not change. an affair (which is rarely the case but is often assumed by While legal interventions such as probable-cause arrest the abuser); but none of these behaviors on her part justifies of batterers and unequivocal legal consequences are begin- his beating her. The only justification for the use of physi- ning to show some success in North American contexts, cal force is self-defense in the face of imminent threat of there are difficulties, particularly in minority communities. physical danger. It is very difficult for a woman to pose a The issue of domestic violence may be seen by some as yet physical threat to a man unless she has a weapon. another excuse for the dominant culture to patrol the lives Perpetrators may have multiple problems: they may be of minority people. In these situations, the police are not alcoholics, veterans suffering from post traumatic stress often seen as a resource and battered women may be fearful disorder, survivors of child abuse, or victims of racism, but to call on them for help and also anxious about what the these are not the reasons why they abuse someone else. The legal system may do to their male partner if he is arrested. abusive man’s behavior is the problem; explaining why he This is also an issue for immigrants, who may be afraid to is abusive will not bring about any change in his behavior call on any resource for fear of encountering immigration and usually contributes to his avoidance of responsibility officials. for his behavior. No matter how compelling the explana- In some communities, the police are not welcome under tions can be, identifying an explanation will not and cannot any circumstances. For example, in poor urban communi- stop the abuse (Jones and Schecter, 1992:49–73). This is ties in the Philippines, women community leaders are de- because abusive behavior is something that can be control- veloping alternative interventions that do not involve the led only by the abuser He exercises a great deal of self- police at all. In one community, the women gather around control in other situations where he experiences stress. He the home of the batterer and demand that he stop beating has to learn to do the same in his intimate relationships. his wife. Because of the close proximity of living units, it is

416 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE possible for the community to monitor his behavior and attempts to coerce his victim to return or retaliates against hold him accountable. Whether the intervention is highly her for leaving him. Up to 50 percent of men who batter organized and carried out by formal institutions such as the have sought out and continued to beat and otherwise terror- police and the judiciary, or whether it is informal and com- ize their wives after they have left. munity-based, the strategy is the same: a coordinated, com- What is often referred to as “stalking,” should instead, prehensive community response. This response according to Martha R.Mahoney, be called “separation as- “deprivatizes” domestic violence, gives support to the vic- sault.” This term identifies the struggle for control that oc- tim, and calls the batterer to account. Privacy and silence, curs when a woman decides to separate or when she begins then, no longer serve to protect the batterer from conse- to prepare to separate. Mahoney maintains, “Separation quences and to isolate the victim from support. assault is the attack on woman’s body and volition in which her partner seeks to prevent her from leaving, retali- “War Brides,” “Mail-Order Brides,” ate for the separation, or force her to return. It aims at over- Immigrant Women, and Minority Women bearing her will as to where and with whom she will live, Immigrant women who are being battered face extraordi- and coercing her in order to enforce connection in a rela- nary difficulties in finding safety. Whether they come to a tionship. It is an attempt to gain, retain, or regain power in a new country as wives of foreign military personnel who relationship, or to punish the woman for ending the rela- were stationed in their native country, as “mail-order tionship” (Mahoney, 1991:65–6). brides,” or as members of families immigrating together, they are particularly vulnerable and generally very iso- Self-Defense lated. War brides and mail-order brides are essentially de- One of the most difficult issues for many battered women is pendent upon their husbands economically and socially. If the situation in which the woman finally chooses to defend a husband chooses, he can easily control and manipulate herself and her children in the face of the brutality of her his partner by limiting her access to resources, to social abuser. If she kills her abuser, she most likely come up contacts, to learning a new language, and so on, and he can against the judicial system, and she may face a long prison literally hold her immigration papers in order to keep her sentence. Battered women and their supporters are waging with him. Documented and undocumented immigrant campaigns in many countries to bring about a recognition women are often fearful of immigration authorities and within judicial systems of the fact that battered women of- thus are unlikely to seek out community resources. Com- ten act in self-defense. Many campaigns focus on changing munity resources are not often available that provide a con- laws that have historically defined self-defense in terms of text where an immigrant woman can speak her own men’s experiences and neglected the particulars of wom- language and feel comfortable in her own cultural setting. en’s self-defense. Some battered women who have killed Any battered woman who is a member of a minority abusers are mounting successful defenses and being acquit- community faces the difficulty of disclosing her victimiza- ted. Others who have been convicted and are serving prison tion to anyone outside of her community. She is often time are campaigning for clemency, with some success. caught in a double bind. As a member of a minority com- munity that faces oppression from a dominant community, Terminology she has learned not to talk about community problems out- The terminology that is chosen to name domestic violence side of the community for fear of fueling the prejudice of and to name those who use it and those upon whom it is the dominant community. But she also is likely to avoid used is very significant. As indicated above, even naming disclosing her abuse within her own community for fear of the problem is difficult. But one particular linguistic dis- lack of support. Where does she turn? Whether she is Afri- tinction should be indicated here. Many who work on these can-American, Jewish, Aboriginal, Native Canadian, Mus- issues distinguish between “victims” and “survivors” or lim, or lesbian, she struggles with issues of loyalty to her between “battered women” and “formerly battered community versus her need for resources and support to women.” The purpose of these different terms is to indicate help her find safety. that at some point in time, an individual is in fact victim- ized—that is, made a victim—by the actions of an abuser. Stalking and Other Forms of Separation Assault But this condition is not permanent; that is, it is possible for The time of separation from an abuser and afterward is ex- the individual to find safety and no longer to be in that par- tremely dangerous for the battered woman. Violence often ticular situation of imminent danger. At this point (which is intensifies at the point of separation, as the batterer based on the victim’s own assessment of her circumstances)

417 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE she becomes a survivor or a formerly battered woman. Her been associated with the public (“civic,” “political”) experience of battering is an important part of her history, sphere. Those who are equated with the public sphere but it is not definitive in her future. (most frequently white men) are seen as having higher value, status, and so on, than those who are equated with Religious Issues the domestic sphere (women of all colors). Both the geog- Religious questions are common for battered women in raphy of violence (domestic rather than political or civic) many cultures. To the extent to which religious teachings and the usual victim of violence (female rather than male) promote a patriarchal agenda, they tend to reinforce the contribute to keeping domestic violence invisible. Until re- supposed patriarchal prerogatives of male intimate part- cently, violence in the “domestic” sphere was not closely ners. Some religious doctrines tend to support the attitudes scrutinized by the public sphere. The concept of privacy for and actions of men who batter; such teachings include the the domestic sphere also contributed to making domestic permanence of marriage (without the option of divorce), violence a nonissue by keeping it nonpublic, and thus un- the right of a husband and father to physically chastise his able to be scrutinized. In the absence of scrutiny and any wife and children, the sanctity of suffering, and the expec- accompanying consequences for violent behavior, domes- tation of forgiveness without justice. Unless religious lead- tic violence is left unchallenged. The idea of the division ers take the initiative to challenge these doctrines or the between domestic and public protects the private domain misinterpretations of doctrine on which they are based, re- from being the focus of certain ethical and philosophical ligious institutions are invariably complicit in the abuse of concerns—such as justice—which are often presumed to women and children. pertain only to the public realm. An ongoing aspect of feminism has been its insistance that ethical, religious, and Cultural Imperialism and Domestic Violence philosophical concerns are domestic as well as public, and The prevalence of domestic violence in most cultures raises that it is urgent to guarantee each woman’s serious questions for activists. For example, the protocol and safety. for researching the transnational issue of domestic violence is a concern. Euro-American women researchers have been See Also urged to restrict their research to their own countries, and ABUSE; BATTERY; PATRIARCHY: FEMINIST THEORY; SEXUAL thus allow their sisters in other countries to pursue their VIOLENCE; VIOLENCE, specific entries own research projects. Otherwise, research projects may be tainted by cultural imperialism. At the same time, it is cru- References and Further Reading cial that activists be in contact across national borders in Adams, Carol J. 1994. Woman-battering. Minneapolis: Fortress. order to share information, ideas, strategies, and critical ——. 1995. Woman-battering and harm to animals. In Carol feedback. The commitment from Euro-American activists J.Adams and Josephine Donovan, eds. Animals and women: should be to avoid imposing a framework upon the experi- Feminist theoretical explorations. Durham, N.C.: Duke Uni- ences of women in another culture and to avoid appropria- versity Press. tion of the work of activists in another culture. The ——, and Marie M.Fortune. 1995. Violence against women and common challenge is finding ways to communicate and children: A christian theological sourcebook. New York: The share resources that may be useful to the shared goal of Continuum Publishing Company. ending domestic violence in all cultures. Developments in the law—Legal responses to domestic violence. 1993. Harvard Law Review 106(7):1498–1620. Domestic Violence and the Concept of Dobash, R.E., and R.P.Dobash. 1979. Violence against wives: A the Private versus the Public case against the patriarchy. New York: Free Press. Conceptually, a reconsideration of the term domestic vio- Fortune, Marie M. 1987. Keeping the faith: Guidance for lence is necessary in light of feminist critiques of the divi- Christian women facing abuse. San Francisco: Harper sion between “public” and “private” in patriarchal culture. and Row. This distinction has kept domestic violence from being Ganley, Anne L. 1981. Court-mandated counseling for men seen as a public concern; according to feminists, it is inher- who batter. Washington, D.C.: Center for Women Policy ently gender-based and thus conceptually flawed. Histori- Studies. cally, in western culture, female gender-identified traits ——. 1989. Integrating feminist and social learning analyses of have been associated with the private (“domestic,” aggression. In P.Lynn Caesar et al., eds., Treating men who “home”) sphere, while male gender-identified traits have batter. New York: Springer.

418 DOWRY AND BRIDEPRICE

Herman, Judith. 1992. Trauma and recovery. New York: Basic In both systems problems arise at the time of re- Books. claiming because the manner in which the respective Jones, Ann. 1994. Next time she’ll be dead. Boston: Beacon. amounts have been spent, the nature of legal title to the Jones, Ann, and Susan Schecter. 1992. When loves goes wrong. wealth exchanged, and the degree of control over it are New York: HarperCollins. all variables. Mahoney, Martha R. 1991. Legal images of battered women. There is, however, one striking similarity between the Michigan Law Review 90(1). two systems. In neither system, at or after the dissolution of Russell, Evelyn. 1985. Chain chain chain: For black women deal- marriage, does the woman independently—without in- ing with physical and emotional abuse. Seattle: Seal. volvement of her maternal household, her conjugal house- hold, or the household of the male partner—have the right Marie M.Fortune to place a market value on herself, and offer herself, in the Carol J.Adams case of brideprice, or to decide on her own the amount pay- able in the form of dowry, if another alliance is being en- tered into. In marriage alliances the transactions and exchanges are finalized on the basis of criteria such as DOMESTIC WORKERS agreement about the amount of wealth that will be ex- See DOMESTIC LABOR and HOUSEHOLD WORKERS. changed or transferred. These variables include factors and determinants such as class, caste, social status of the fami- lies, definition, and customary value—all of which vary in DOWRY AND BRIDEPRICE turn with the society, the woman’s capacity to work, and her fertility. The woman’s status as an individual has not Dowry and brideprice (also known as bridewealth) refer to found any space within either dowry or brideprice. customs and practices involving material transactions be- There is considerable variation between societies in how tween two families (nuclear or extended) at the time of dowry and brideprice function, depending on region; pre- drawing up a marriage contract or alliance between the dominant cultural features (for example, whether a society partners and their respective families, covering both mov- is agrarian or industrialized); religion; legal codes pertain- able and immovable property. ing to property rights and inheritance; lineage patterns; One crucial difference between the two is the direction household forms; and finally, customary practices and of the flow of goods or wealth, which includes the woman changes taking place in the economy or polity. as part of the package. Dowry connotes movement of both There is a wide range of interpretations of the two sys- women and wealth in the direction of the household tems of transactions conceptually and practically, in rela- formed with the partner in marriage or the existing house- tion to their role and function in society. Both dowry and hold of which the male partner is a member. Brideprice brideprice are primarily considered at the time of marriage, involves movement of material goods or wealth and divorce, or separation. However, because payments may be women in the opposite direction. In brideprice transac- staggered in some societies, issues related to these pay- tions it is rare for control over this wealth to be exercised ments may persist for years. The issues and concerns in- either by the female, for whom the price has been paid, or volving the transactions at the time of marriage, or as the by the partners jointly. Control over the brideprice is the marriage continues, or when it is discontinued, are not re- perogative of the household from which the female part- stricted to the partners. They also become the concerns of ner came. the households of the partners and the society or commu- The other critical difference (theoretically speaking) be- nity; and they are affected by the economic and social sta- tween the two systems of transactions is operational at the tus of the two families and the law of the country. The time of divorce or dissolution of the marriage. In most in- system of dowry and bride-price is therefore not a matter of stances, if the female is the one to dissolve the marriage, individual choice or decision; it is a social matter. As a re- brideprice is expected to be returned by the parents, or by sult, the kind of questions that have become pertinent other members of the female’s maternal home on whom inslude these: Why is there a system of dowry and responsibility can be affixed in the absence of the parents, brideprice? How did the system evolve? In what ways is it or—if she should leave in order to marry someone else— related to the structure of the economy and society? Why is by the new male partner. In the case of dowry, in theory it it associated only with a marriage alliance and with devia- can be taken back by the female partner. tions from a particular alliance? Should dowry and

419 DRAMA brideprice transactions be defined as one-time gifts or as See Also continuous throughout the term of the alliance? Is a dowry CASTE; CLASS; FAMILY: RELIGIOUS AND LEGAL SYSTEMS, or brideprice an exchange of goods and wealth for either specific entries; MARRIAGE: REGIONAL TRADITIONS AND partner, or a fee for the alliance? How is it valued—as a PRACTICES; POLYGYNY AND POLYANDRY transfer of property rights separate from inheritance rights; as compensation for loss of inheritance (this question is particularly relevant in the case of dowry); as a purchase References and Further Reading price for the labor of the female partner, decided on by the Bleie, T. 1990. Dowry and bridewealth presentations in rural household concerned, according to the requirements of the Bangladesh: Commodities, gifts, or hybrid forms? Bergen: economy of that household (as the term brideprice indi- Christian Michelsen Institute. cates); or as a demand made by the maternal household of Dumont, Louis. 1970. Homo hierarchicus: The caste system and either of the two partners of a future alliance, (in which its implications. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson. case factors determining the nature and form of the demand Goody, Jack, and S.J.Tambiah. 1973. Bridewealth and dowry. become important)? Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. As both dowry and brideprice center on the female part- Gupta, Jayoti. 1990. Class relations, family structure, and bondage ner’s endowment, price, or enabling capacity, in various of women. In L.Dube, and R.Palriwala, eds., Structures and combinations and weights, an important related question strategies: Women, work, and family. Delhi: Sage. is: Who finally has control over the transacted amount? Is Meillassoux, C. 1981. Maidens, meal, and money: Capitalism and the wealth controlled by the female partner, the male part- the domestic community. Cambridge: Cambridge University ner, or their respective households, or is it held jointly by Press. the partners? What purpose is met by the transacted Sharma, U. 1984. Dowry in north India: Its consequences for amount? Who makes decisions, about the manner in which women. In R.Hirschon, ed. Women and property— women as the transacted amount is to be used? property. London: Croom Helm. The kind of goods or wealth that are exchanged un- der both systems vary in form and amount. Beyond the Jayoti Gupta form or the amount, it is important to unravel the ways in which the system or practice is affected by societal evolution, differentiation among classes, and other so- cial segmenations, and in what ways the systems redis- tribute property and are therefore linked with the DRAMA formation and economy of a state. Some examples of the nature of goods and wealth transferred may help to The history of women’s participation in drama is also a explain why the systems are linked with larger proc- history of banishment from the public stage. Nevertheless esses in a society. there have been few cultures in which women have not The goods and wealth include cattle, land (ownership or taken active roles, and none in which they are not present usufruct rights); gold, silver, and other precious metals; on stage as characters. It is possible that women per- clothes and utensils; furniture; houses; cash; vehicles; and formed in Greek drama earlier, though not later, than the so on. The form of these items changes with changes in sixth century B.C. However, Aeschylus, who wrote when agricultural practices, degree of industrialization, all performers were male, exploits the dramatic proper- technology, and consumerism. ties of gender difference, giving opposite sexual identi- Dowry and brideprice are not specific to any particular ties to chorus and protagonist. One problem is how to country or region historically. They have taken different retrieve women’s history and promote women’s future in forms, have performed different functions, and have been this field, and how to interpret the characterizations of linked with different stages of development of societies. women by male dramatists in cultures where only men Country-based studies become important for legislating, are actors. for raising specific demands, and for bringing about Women in religious communities in the medieval period changes in the existing practices. are known to have expressed both their learning and their Thus there are many variations in all aspects of both devotion in drama. Abbess Hildegard von Bingen (1098– systems, and there are also several interpretations of both 1179) wrote words and music for a play representing her systems. own visionary experience, Ordo Virtutem. The tenth-century

420 DRAMA nun Hrotswitha wrote Christianized imitations of the plays drama was coined to describe the reaction against drawing of Terence, and there is an extensive eye-witness account of room drama of the “angry young men” playwrights of the a passion play performed in the fourteenth century by the 1950s but this kitchen-sink theater did not always nuns of Barking Abbey in Essex, directed by the abbess. In concerned itself with the experience of the gender that is a secular context, some sixteenth-and early seventeenth- still more likely to inhabit kitchens. century Englishwomen wrote plays to be performed (or The concept of mimesis is significant here. Originally perhaps just read) by members of their own households (for denoting the representation of a platonic ideal, whether an example, Mary Sidney and Elizabeth Gary), and they prob- immortal figure or a quality (such as womanliness), ably also took parts in these. mimesis came to mean simply “imitation of life.” When Lucerne, Metz, and Saragossa provide evidence of women’s roles are circumscribed in real life, a realistic medieval women acting in the civic drama performed by theatrical aesthetic serves to reinforce oppression, the trade guilds. The first professional actors, the producing strongly normative gender stereotyping. For commedia dell’arte troupes from Italy, included female example, the incidence of rape in English plays increased performers who, since the genre is improvisatory, exponentially after actresses began to perform on the should also be regarded as creative artists. The same is public stage in 1660, as dramatists came to rely on the true of Jane, the female fool of Princess Mary Tudor’s physical allure of real, but helpless, women’s bodies court in the 1530s. (Howe, 1992). Late seventeenth-century adaptations of Theater is often a politically subversive activity, and Shakespeare, which held the stage until the mid-nineteenth many cultures have sought to control it under the guise of century, likewise weakened the female characters religion by characterizing it as morally subversive. Female according to notions of propriety and perceived “feminine” behavior is usually the first to be scrutinized in such traits. By contrast, a dislocation in gender between actor circumstances. The all-male kabuki theater of Japan was and character can set up a dialectic in the viewer’s mind actually invented in 1603 by a woman, Okuni, who played that calls social conventions into question. In the case of robust parts in male attire (Yoko, 1994). Women (and men playing women it can, as in the comedies of subsequently boys) were soon banned from performing, Aristophanes, enable the writing of much stronger necessitating the invention of the role of the onnagate. This language and behavior for female characters than the adult male actor presents an idealized masquerade of society for which the play was written would normally womanly charm and feeling that is more feminine than publicly countenance. real. Originally he was also required to live his personal Such variation in the representation of women can now life dressed as a woman, which must have set him outside be found in theater in the third world. In postcolonial of the society of both genders. During the Cultural francophone African culture, for example, performance by Revolution in China, women characters in drama (now women has, until recently, rarely progressed beyond played by women) were likewise given a politically displays of traditional dance for visiting dignitaries. determined identity as desexualized fighters for the Theater is, however, now being used in development revolution (Chen, 1997). programes as a palatable way to inculcate educational The women’s suffrage movement inspired a number of messages on matters such as health and nutrition. More plays, such as those written by the actor Elizabeth Robins radically, forum theater techniques empower real women, of the United States. Many other women in the first half of under cover of a character, to speak to their communities the twentieth century, however, wrote plays under male about their own lives in terms which would not be possible pseudonyms in order to get them performed and to attract in direct conversation with village elders. At the other impartial reviews. Ironically, the standard drawing room extreme, Werewere Liking, one of the very few female setting for plays of that period, compounded with the dramatists of Cameroon, has created a form of ritualistic notion of women’s domestic sphere, encouraged theater that incoroprates traditional African methods for disparagement and neglect (at the time by male theater training the body and the memory, in order to promote a critics and more recently in academic histories). There new concept of feminine identity (Orlando, 1998). were, nevertheless, nearly a thousand plays by women In the 1970s Caryl Churchill and the Joint Stock produced in the British commercial theater between 1918 Company pioneered a way of writing drama that is often and 1958, nearly 29 percent of which achieved runs of over described as “female” because it involves extensive, 50 performances, which is roughly the same percentage as collaborative “workshopping” of ideas with actors and for plays by men (Gale, 1994). The term kitchen sink directors. It is now a recognized way of developing

421 DRAMA: LESBIAN

works by playwrights of both genders. Churchill also Mlama, Peninan Muhand. 1991. Culture and development: The used cross-gender casting in Cloud Nine in order to popular theater approach in Africa. Uppsala: Nordiska question role stereotyping. Pam Gems, on the other Afrikainstitutet. hand, rejects being described as a feminist playwright Morgan, Fidelis, ed. 1981. The female wits: Women playwrights because the term implies polemic, and polemic involves on the London stage 1660–1720. London: Virago. changing things in a direct, political way. Drama is Orgel, Stephen. 1992. Impersonations: The performance of subversive (Goodman, 1993). gender in Shakespearian England. Cambridge: Cambridge The flowering of British women dramatists in the 1970s University Press. and 1980s has, according to Timberlake Wertenbaker, Orlando, Valerie. 1998. Werewere Liking: The development of given way to a new male dominance in British theater (in ritual Francophone theatre in Cameroon—Towards a new which she feels the violent plays of Sara Kane can be feminine theatre for Africa . In Kamal Salhi, ed., African included): “I don’t think women have ever been a welcome theatre for development: Art for self-determination. Exeter: voice…. Men judge the plays and, on the whole, run the Intellect. theatres” (Billington, 1999). Perkins, Kathy A. ed., 1999. Black South African women: An anthology of plays. New York: Routledge. See Also Soufas, Teresa Scott, ed. 1997. Women’s acts: Plays by women dramatists of Spain’s golden age. Lexington: University LESBIAN DRAMA; PERFORMANCE TEXTS; THEATER: Press of Kentucky. OVERVIEW; THEATER: WOMEN IN THEATER Stowell, Sheila. 1992. A stage of their own: Feminist playwrights of the suffrage era. Manchester: Manchester University References and Further Reading Press. Billington, Michael. 1999. In conversation with Timberlake Yoko, Takakuwa. 1994. Masquerading womanliness: The Wertenbaker. Men judge the plays, put on the plays, and run Onnagata’s theatrical performance of femininity in Kabuki. the theatres. Guardian, (25 November). Women: A cultural review 5 (2: Autumn). Case, Sue-Ellen. 1988. Feminism and theater. New York: Ros King Methuen. Chen, Xiao-mei. 1997. A stage of their own: The problematics of women’s theater in post-Mao China. Journal of Asian Studies 56(1):3–25. DRAMA: Lesbian Diamond, Elin. 1997. Unmaking mimesis. London and New York: See LESBIAN DRAMA. Routledge. Gale, Maggie. 1994. A need for reappraisal: Women playwrights on the London sage, 1918–1958. Women: A Cultural Review DRESS 5 (2: Autumn). Goodman, Lizbeth. 1993. Contemporary feminist theatres. Dress is a system of nonverbal communication that en- London: Routledge. hances human beings’ interaction as they move in space Howe, Elizabeth. 1992. The first English actresses: Women and and time. As a coded sensory system, dressing the body drama, 1660–1700. Cambridge: Cambridge University occurs when human beings modify their bodies visually or Press. through other sensory measures by manipulating color, Henderson, Jeffrey, trans. and ed. 1996. Three plays by texture, scent, sound, and taste or by supplementing their Aristophanes: Staging women. London and New York: bodies with articles of clothing, accessories, and jewelry. Routledge. Dress ordinarily precedes and facilitates or hinders verbal Laughlin, Karen, and Catherine Schuler, eds. 1995. Theatre and or other communication. Codes of dress set off cognitive feminist aesthetics. Madison, N.J.: Fairleigh Dickinson and affective processes, which result in recognition or lack University Press, Associated University Presses. of recognition by the viewer. Any system of body modifica- Meredith, Peter, and John E.Tailby, eds. 1983. The staging of tions and supplements can mark several identities of an in- religious drama in Europe in the later middle ages: Texts and dividual, such as age, gender, occupation, religion, documents in English translation. Kalamazoo: Western community, and ethnicity. Dress encompasses more than Michigan University, Medieval Institute Publications, Early either clothing or fashion, words that are often used as Drama, Art, and Music Monograph Series, 4. synonyms for dress.

422 DRESS

Designating gender by dress is common throughout the Thorstein B.Veblen’s theory of the leisure class, which world and has been associated with both prescriptive and focused on men displaying the dress of their wives and prescriptive behaviors. Items of dress protect men’s and children as status symbols for the family and the women’s bodies from the elements and from soil and enhancement of the man’s reputation. In addition, the study grime. Women have, however, more often than men either of dress, textiles, and home science was often devalued by chosen to or been forced to use garb for sexual protection, males, because practical work related to the home was seen to conceal their bodies from the gaze of others and from as less important than either work outside the home or male predators. This raises the issue of dress and its intellectual pursuits in academia. Some feminists claimed relationship to the definition of sexual allure for men and that differentiation by dress reinforced inequity in power women within a cultural context. relations between men and women and rejected the study Writers over the ages have been intrigued with the of fashion and the idea of “being in fashion” as superficial meaning of dress. In the nineteenth century, practical, concerns. They sought to display equity by wearing items philosophical, and academic views of dress were or complete ensembles of men’s clothing. Others claimed developed, with implications for the understanding of dress that women did not have to copy men and that dress defined and gender. Amelia Bloomer advocated a trousered outfit as feminine, including the use of cosmetics, was for women as a reform measure against corsets and other appropriate and even a sign of power, as signified by the constricting garments. Oscar Wilde and others pursued a statement, “Beauty is power.” philosophy of “aesthetic dress” that allowed freedom of Toward the end of the twentieth century, research on movement and freedom from the dictates of fashion. Both dress expanded to include marketing specialists as well as men and women scholars have written about dress since the academics. Concern with the body as the armature for late nineteenth century from the prevailing viewpoints of dress has increased, sometimes to a point where the their respective disciplines—anthropology, art history, importance of body coverings is neglected. Scholars of economics, psychology, and sociology—particularly dress recognize that varieties of styles exist not just within analyzing clothing and fashion. western fashion but worldwide. Simple descriptions of Cross-disciplinary analyses of dressing the body gender differences at a point in time ignore the ubiquity of developed in home economics and domestic science in the change and the variability in, as well as the complexity of, United States and Great Britain, beginning in the early the meaning of dress. twentieth century; this field was founded and dominated primarily by women. Early concerns in these disciplines See Also focused on the care and selection as well as the FASHION; FURS; TEXTILES construction of clothing, and on teaching these skills to those training to be teachers; later, the focus expanded to References and Further Reading include textile design and research on textile properties and Baizerman, Sue, Joanne B.Eicher, and Catherine Cerny. 1993. clothing practices. Women as well as men are prominent in Eurocentrism in the study of ethnic dress. In Dress 20: 19–32. high fashion in the twentieth and early twenty-first century; Barber, Elizabeth Wayland. 1994. Women’s work: The first 20,000 earlier, women occupied themselves in, and perhaps years. New York: Norton dominated, the practices of millinery, dressmaking, and Benedict, Ruth. 1931. Dress. In Encyclopaedia of the social tailoring. sciences. Vol. 5, 235–237. New York: Macmillan. Women have historically been significant in work Eicher, Joanne B., and M.E.Roach-Higgins. 1992. Describing and throughout the world related to farming and production of classifying dress: Implications for the study of gender. In many items of dress, particularly clothing, such as the Ruth Barnes, and Joanne B.Eicher, eds., Dress and gender: planting and harvesting of cotton and flax, the tending of Marking and meaning, 8–28. New York: St. Martin’s. sheep, spinning, weaving, crocheting, knitting, and felting Evans, Elizabeth, and Minna Thornton. 1989. Women and fashion: of cloth, as well as chewing and gnawing animal hides and A new look. London: Quartet. decorating garments and cloth with needle and beadwork. Polhemus, Ted. 1994. Streetstyle: From sidewalk to catwalk. With industrialization, women moved into weaving mills London: Thames and Hudson. and garment factories or contributed labor through Roach-Higgins, Mary Ellen, and Joanne B.Eicher. 1992. Dress and piecework in cottage industry production of apparel. identity. Clothing and Textile Research Journal 10(4):1–8. As interest in women’s studies grew, some feminists viewed the study of dress and fashion negatively, citing Joanne Eicher

423 DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE

There are many categories of drugs, encompassing a DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE broad array of psychoactive substances from legal, or licit, prescription drugs such as Valium or Prozac to illicit drugs Drug and alcohol use is reported in most countries through- such as heroin, cocaine, and marijuana. The category of il- out the world. Variations in use and abuse among licit drugs also includes synthetic, or “designer,” drugs. populations worldwide are most frequently attributed to re- These synthetic drugs are substances such as ampheta- ligious or political prohibitions, economic conditions, and mine-type stimulants (ATS)—for example, the general availability of these substances. methamphetamines or MDMA (methylenedioxy-metham- Drugs and alcohol comprise a broad category of sub- phetamine), known as ecstasy, and LSD (lysergic acid di- stances that cause changes in the central nervous system ethylamide). Synthetic drugs are the fastest-growing of humans by affecting particular neurotransmitters. They segment of abused substances. are often referred to as psychotropic or psychoactive sub- Inhalants are another category of drugs. Substances that stances. The changes caused in the functioning of the cen- are intentionally inhaled include glue, paint thinners, gaso- tral nervous system produce a wide range of effects. line, and aerosol sprays. Usage is prevalent in both devel- These range from pleasure (induced by stimulants), for oped and developing countries and is an increasing example, the exhilarating effects of alcohol, cocaine, or problem among young people. In many countries, usage is caffeine; to pain reduction (induced by sedatives), for ex- high among street children and indigenous young people ample, the numbing or calming effects of heroin or because inhalants are accessible and cheap and produce a Valium; to altered perception and euphoria, for example, rapid “high.” the hallucinogenic effects of cannabis (marijuana) or PCP Alcohol is a colorless, inflammable liquid that causes (phencyclidine). Individual users can have a wide range intoxication. Substances such as beer, wine, and distilled of reactions to these substances because of individual tol- spirits are considered alcoholic beverages. Worldwide, erance or the amount consumed. Reactions may range over 750,000 alcohol-related deaths are recorded annually. from a mild relaxing effect, which provides relief from Typically, about one-half as many women as men abuse the ordinary stresses of the day, to a substance-induced alcohol. stupor, which leaves the individual in a state of uncon- Nicotine and caffeine are two other psychotropic sub- sciousness. stances considered to be part of the overall problem of drug Alcohol and drugs have long been a part of social and abuse worldwide. Nicotine is most often consumed cultural history. Over time, they have had numerous cer- through tobacco products such as cigarettes and smokeless emonial uses. Examples include the Roman Catholic mass tobacco, which is chewed or used as snuff. Nicotine is now (in which wine is used), Native American rituals (which use known to be highly addictive, and its detrimental impact on peyote), and some Hindu marriage ceremonies (which use health is well documented. Over one-third of the global opium). Drugs and alcohol have also been culturally sig- population (1.1 billion people) use nicotine (World Health nificant by their absence, as in Muslim culture, which pro- Organization, 1996). Twelve percent of women worldwide hibits the use of alcohol. Their absence can also be use nicotine. In the United States, deaths related to nicotine politically significant, as during the Prohibition era in the use are the leading cause of cancer fatalities among women United States, when alcohol use was illegal. aged 55 to 74. Drugs and alcohol have a long economic and commer- Caffeine is found in many beverages such as coffee, tea, cial history as well. Alcohol has been an important source and carbonated soft drinks; foods such as chocolate and of commerce since the earliest known civilizations. Ar- yogurt; and many over-the-counter medications. Caffeine chaeological evidence shows that alcohol trading flour- is an addictive substance and, although it may not present ished around the Mediterranean and throughout China the serious problems seen with other drugs and alcohol, its before 2500 b.c.e The poppy trade (poppies are used to use is frequently associated with other substances and is make opium) has been recorded in prehistoric sites thought to foster a climate of drug acceptability. throughout central Asia. The worldwide economy contin- ues to profit from both licit and illicit alcohol and drug Substance Abuse commerce. For example, it is estimated that the annual in- Drug and alcohol abuse is generally referred to under the come from Colombian drug trafficking fluctuates between broad heading of substance abuse (SA). Abuse of any of U.S. $2 billion and $5 billion (United Nations International these substances occurs along a broad continuum of con- Drug Control Programme, 1997). sumption and behaviors. The least problematic forms of

424 DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE substance abuse are those that allow users to continue func- unborn children. A single drinking binge by a pregnant tioning in their everyday lives. However, such users func- woman can be enough to permanently damage the brain of tion with considerable impairments, most often seen in the her fetus—this is known as fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), following areas: (1) failure to fulfill major obligations, (2) and it is one of the leading known causes of mental retarda- substance use in physically hazardous situations, (3) legal tion. Children born to sub-stance-dependent women are problems, and (4) social or interpersonal problems (APA, known to suffer withdrawal symptoms following birth. 1994). The user has an increased tolerance for the sub- They also experience health problems at birth that are in- stance, which means that increasing amounts are needed to tensified by poor caretaking, stress, and chaos, because of achieve the desired effect or intoxication. Often, this is spe- the mother’s lifestyle as a drug abuser. Infants born to moth- cifically what is referred to as substance abuse. For exam- ers who smoke nicotine are three times more likely to die ple, a woman who consumes 12 alcoholic drinks per week from sudden infant death syndrome, SIDS (National is considered to be “at risk” of substance abuse. One drink Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information, 1999). is the equivalent of 12 grams of pure alcohol. This is the The intense guilt and shame that often accompany abuse amount found in 12 ounces (0.75 liter) of beer, 5 ounces and denial cause women to become even more isolated from (0.36 liter) of wine, or 1.5 ounces (42.5 grams) of distilled the social systems that could provide support. This phenom- spirits. enon is referred to as role engulfment (Stephens, 1991). The most severe form of substance abuse is called sub- The gradual emancipation and economic independence stance dependence or addiction. Usage at this level in- of women over the past three decades have also placed ad- cludes all the problems known to occur with abuse as ditional stresses on women, which may contribute to the defined above and, in addition, is causes physiological and increase in substance abuse. As gender stereotyping has psychological harm to the user (World Health Organiza- lessened, traditional protective attitudes toward women tion, 1992). Dependence or addiction is also characterized have eroded. These new freedoms have removed many of by withdrawal, which takes place when the substance is not the barriers to drug and alcohol access that formerly insu- used, because the user has developed a physiological need lated many women. for the substance. Cultures around the world have very dif- Family problems and other relationship problems, along ferent degrees of tolerance for substance use. Given these with psychological and physical problems, are often cited cultural differences, worldwide norms have not yet been as factors contributing more heavily to substance abuse established for defining deviant or abnormal substance use. among women than men. Studies in the Czech and Slovak republics have shown that the social upheavals of war, refu- Women and Substance Abuse gee status, and economic uncertainty all have contributed For many years, worldwide, research and survey techniques to a rise in substance abuse among women (World Health focused on substance use among men. More recent research Organization, 1993). Physical violence against women also methodologies, as well as a greater awareness of gender increases their susceptibility to substance abuse. One out of issues, have significantly changed the understanding of every three women worldwide has been beaten, raped, or women and substance abuse. These changing methods have seriously mistreated. Such injuries often cause the victim to found an alarming scenario for women. Women are in- turn to drugs or alcohol as a way to cope with her situation. volved with drugs in many ways, from their own use to their In the United States, as many as 75 percent of survivors of presence as nonusers in drug-abusing families or relation- abusive trauma report alcohol abuse (National Center for ships. Women are often subjected to a dual stigmatization PTSD). Similarly, female alcoholics are more likely to have when they are substance abusers. First, like all substance experienced sexual abuse, physical violence, or father- abusers, they are deviant in relation to the social norms; daughter verbal aggression than females in the general second, they are “doubly deviant” in not con-forming to the population. traditional role of mother, woman, and nurturer (Pagan, In addition to the tremendous social and personal losses 1999). Even though women’s traditional gender roles are substance abuse represents, there are even more serious changing around the world, women continue to be judged health issues. For example, the mortality rate for women more harshly than men for substance use. For many women, who are alcoholics is 5.2 times greater than the correspond- such stigmatization leads to denial of the abuse; and failure ing rate in the general public. Physiologically, women have to recognize and seek treatment for substance abuse leads a lower tolerance than men for these substances, which to more serious problems. For women of childbearing leads to earlier and more serious health issues, including age, substance abuse presents serious health issues for their damage to the liver, brain, and heart. Sub-stance abuse also

425 DRUGS: MEDICINAL

worsens any other health or mental conditions, such as con- methods to identify new measures of women’s drinking genital heart problems or depression. problems, Part I: The ethnographic stage. Addiction 91(6):829–844. Special Considerations for Women American Psychiatric Association (APA). 1994. Diagnostic and Women typically begin using substances at a later age than statistical manual of mental disorders. 4th ed. Washington, men. However, given their lower tolerance to substance D.C.: APA. abuse, they can experience more serious health conse- Dreher, D.M. 1995. Women and drugs: Case studies from Jamaica. quences in a shorter period of time. Women are more likely Drugs: Education, Prevention, and Policy 2(2): 167–176. to have a high rate of coexisting psychological problems, Fagan, J. 1999. Women and drugs revisited: Female participation in such as depression and anxiety. When women are sub- the cocaine economy. Journal of Drug Issues 24(2):179–225. stance abusers, they are more likely to abuse multiple sub- McCrady, B.S., and E.E.Epstein, eds. 1999. Addictions: A com- stances—most often prescription drugs. A North American prehensive guidebook. New York: Oxford University Press. study found that physicians prescribe psychoactive drugs Miller, B.A., W.R.Downs, and M.Testa. 1993. Interrelationships 2.5 times more often to women over 60 than to men of the between victimization experiences and women’s alcohol use. same age group (United Nations International Drug Con- Journal on the Study of Alcohol Supplement 11:109–117. trol Programme, 1997). Another study found that physi- National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse. Under the cians regularly mis-diagnose alcohol abuse among women rug: Substance abuse and the mature woman. On-line: over age 59 as depression and then prescribe sedatives or alcohol (National Center on Addiction and Substance National Center for PTSD. PTSD and problems with alcohol use: Abuse). Women may trade sex for drugs and thus be at risk A fact sheet. On-line: example, Thailand has a large commercial sex trade and a National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information. 1999. high incidence of drug abuse and HIV. Its government, Healthy women/healthy lifestyles: What you should know however, does not report statistics by gender, and so it is about alcohol and other drugs. Rockville, Md.: National difficult to determine the impact of drug abuse on the Clearinghouse. health of Thai women. Among substance abusers, women National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. 1999. Are are more likely to attempt suicide, and they have higher women more vulnerable to alcohol’s effects? Alcohol Alert mortality rates than men. 46. On-line: Although the symptoms and consequences of substance Stephens, R.C. 1991. The street addict role: A theory of heroin abuse are more severe for women, they seem to do at least addiction. Albany: State University of New York Press. as well as men when they receive treatment. This is true Study calls violence against women a global health issue. 2000. despite the fact that there are barriers making it difficult for Los Angeles Times (22 January): A19. women to enter treatment and pressures for them to drop United Nations International Drug Control Programme. 1997. out of treatment. Researchers have not adequately studied World drug report. Oxford: Oxford University Press. gender differences in health behaviors and cannot yet ex- World Health Organization (WHO). 1992. International classifi- plain these apparent paradoxes. As gender roles change cation of diseases and related health problems. 10th rev. ed . throughout the world, additional investment should be Geneva: WHO. made for the study, prevention, and treatment of substance ——. 1996. Trends in substance use and associated health prob- abuse among women. lems. On-line: ——. 1993. Women and substance abuse. Public Service An- See Also nouncement 93.12. CRIME AND PUNISHMENT; DEPRESSION; DISEASE; EATING Joan E.Huebl DISORDERS; HEALTH: OVERVIEW; HIV AND AIDS; MATERNAL HEALTH AND MORBIDITY; PHARMACEUTICALS; SAFER SEX

References and Further Reading Alcohol tied to unborns’ brain damage. 2000. Los Angeles Times DRUGS: Medicinal (11 February): A46. Ames, G., C.Schmidt, L.Klee, and R.Saltz. 1996. Combin-ing See PHARMACEUTICALS.

426 DRUMMING

from Sumer and then Mesopotamia. At least 95 percent of DRUMMING the performers depicted in all the ancient cultures were women, and most of these women were priestesses of vari- The drum is one of the oldest and most widespread musical ous goddesses and gods. The earliest named drummer in instruments. The first known drum was the frame drum, history was the spiritual, financial, and administrative head painted on a wall of a shrine room in the Neolithic city of (the en) of the Ekisnugal, a temple in Ur, around 2300 Catal Huyuk (present-day Turkey) in 5600 B.C.E. There are B.C.E. Her name was Lipushiau, and she was described as occasional representations of hourglass-shaped drums, bar- the player of the balag-di drum, a small, round frame drum. rel drums, and kettledrums, but the frame drum is by far the Many ancient goddesses are depicted playing a frame most prominent in the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia, drum with their hands. Although it was used in secular con- Egypt, Greece, and Rome. For at least 3,500 years, 3000 texts at banquets and festivals, the frame drum was prima- B.C.E. to 500 C.E., it was the primary percussive instrument, rily a sacred instrument used as a rhythmic support for the and it was played almost exclusively by women, with their chanted and sung liturgies of the ancient religions. The bare hands. During this period there are comparatively few drum is mentioned frequently in religious texts from representations of drums of any kind played with sticks. Sumer, Babylonia, Egypt, Anatolia, Israel, Greece, and The frame drum of the ancient Mediterranean cultures Rome. The references to the training of the temple musi- was usually hoop-shaped, with a diameter much wider than cians noted that it was thorough and took many years. the depth of its shell; however, some frame drums were square From the third millennium B.C.E., written records of the or rectangular. The common round frame drum was shaped Sumerians describe the goddess Inanna as the creator of the like a grain sieve and probably shared the same origin. frame drum, along with all other musical instruments. The Most often, the frame drum had a skin on only one side, scriptures tell of Inanna’s priestesses, who sang and although sometimes it had skins stretched across both chanted to the rhythms of round and square frame drums. sides. Bells or jingling and rattling implements may have Along with the written texts, numerous figurines of women been attached to the inside rim. Drums often were painted playing small frame drums have been found. These drum- red, the color of blood, or sometimes green, the color of ming rituals depicted in the texts and in visual representa- living vegetation. Mystical designs and symbols were also tions were carried into the later worship of Ishtar, Asherah, painted on the skin or the wooden frame. Ashtoreth, Astarte, and Anat in Babylonia, Phoenicia, Pal- Although the Mediterranean frame drum was similar in estine, and Assyria. appearance to the shaman’s drum found throughout Asia During the second millennium B.C.E., frame drums be- and North America, there was a major difference in how gan to appear in Egypt. During the Middle Kingdom, the they were played. The shamans drum was struck with a records show not only that the drummers were primarily bone, horn, or stick, whereas the Mediterranean frame women, but that most professional musicians of the courts drum was played with bare hands. This difference in stroke and temples were also women. These priestess-musicians technique led to differences in construction. The inner edge functioned as the composers and choreographers of the sa- of the rim of the Mediterranean frame drum was beveled, cred music and dance used on religious occasions in the and its skin was usually thinner, to enhance the sounds pro- temples. In the Cairo Museum there is an actual rectangular duced by fingers and hands. While striking a frame drum frame drum from 1400 B.C.E. that was found in the tomb with a stick gives a single, deep, resonant sound, finger of a woman named Hatnofer, the mother of the architect techniques allow more variety: a deep, open tone, a slap, a who built Queen Hatshepsut’s funeral complex. Also sur- high-pitched rim sound, a soft brushing sound. It is not viving from the Ptolemaic period is the skin head of a clear which technique is older: the shaman’s drum played frame drum on whose surface is painted a woman playing a with a stick or the frame drum played with bare hands. The frame drum in front of the goddess Isis. The drummers uses and basic constructions of the drums were so similar were always depicted playing with their bare hands; in fact that, without a doubt, they emerged from the same root there is no evidence of stick drumming from ancient Egypt. techniques of altering consciousness for religious or heal- The Old Testament of the Bible refers to the frame drum ing purposes. In many cultures from Siberia to China and as the toph, which has also been translated as the timbrel into Alaska, women have functioned and still do function and the tabret. Exodus 15:20 reads: “And Miriam, the as shamans, playing frame drums with sticks. prophetess, sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand, and Between 3000 and 2000 B.C.E., many representations the women went out after her with timbrels and with of frame drums begin to appear, the earliest of which were dances.” The frame drum was used in ancient Israel to

427 DYING celebrate joyous occasions and great feasts, in ritualized percussive element, the frame drum was the center of this welcomes and farewells of beloved people, and in the wor- music, and—significantly—it was played by women. ship of Yahweh, the biblical God. This drum was also After the frame drum was banned by the Christian played by important groups of women musicians as part of church, it survived as a folk instrument, still played today state rituals welcoming home victorious warriors. The by women and men in the villages of Italy, Spain, and Por- frame drum was prominent in rites of mourning, and fe- tugal. In north Africa and the Middle East it is used in reli- male drumming figurines have been found in grave sites. gious and classical traditions from which women are still In Greece some of the most beautiful representations of excluded, although there is evidence that women play the frame drum are found on the red-figured vase paintings frame drums and other types of hand drums in secular situ- from the fifth century B.C.E. It is theorized that the music ations within the community and usually within the con- and religion of Greece developed from Asian and Egyptian fines of the home. sources—both of which used the frame drum in ceremonial Stick drumming as a military enterprise entered Europe and secular contexts. The frame drum entered Greece from from Turkey during the Crusades in the twelfth and thir- several different directions—from Cyprus, one of the main teenth century C.E. as a completely male occupation. It centers of the cult of Aphrodite, where the frame drum was proved to be an extremely effective technique for organiz- prominent from at least 1000 B.C.E.; and also from Crete, ing for warfare and spread rapidly throughout Europe. By where it was used in the rituals of Ariadne, Rhea, and the Renaissance the military drum had been transformed Dionysos. into an instrument used in the world of courtly and classical Preclassical Greece also saw the introduction of the cult music, which appeared also to be a completely male pro- of the goddess Cybele, from western Anatolia. The tympa- fession. num, the for the frame drum, was used perva- In the twentieth century, black jazz players in the sively by the maenads (women initiates) in the worship of United States transformed the military marching drums Cybele and Dionysos and was also played by the priest- into the drum set. The drum set and classical percussion esses of , Demeter, Persephone, and Aphrodite. were rarely played by women in this century. Not until the Both single-headed and double-headed frame drums ap- 1970s did women begin entering into the profession of pear, once again played almost exclusively by women with drumming on a larger scale again. Although drumming as their bare hands. a profession is still male-dominated, more and more The Romans saw the last great flowering of these rites women are reaching new levels of visibility and success as when the religion of Cybele was brought to Rome in April performers and soloists. of 204 B.C.E. Cybele was described as “the All-Begetting Mother, who beat a drum to mark the rhythm of life.” Her See Also worship flourished until the Roman Empire officially ANCIENT NATION-STATES: WOMEN’S ROLES; MUSIC: NORTH adopted Christianity in the fourth century C.E. AFRICA AND THE ISLAMIC MIDDLE EAST; MUSIC: SOUL, In the first two centuries of our era, Rome was the cul- JAZZ, RAP, BLUES, AND GOSPEL; SPIRITUALITY: OVERVIEW tural center for the mystery religions of Cybele, Dionysos, Isis, and Dea Syria—all of which used the frame drum in References and Further Reading their ceremonies. With the ascendancy of Christianity, Blades, James. 1984. Percussion instruments and their history. Cybele’s great temple in Rome was destroyed, the Vatican London: Faber and Faber. was built on the site, and the new priesthood banned the Drinker, Sophie. 1995. Women and music. New York: Feminist priestesses, instruments, and music associated with her Press, City University of New York. rites. With the rise of the new religions of Judaism, Christi- Quasten, Jonannes. 1973. Music and worship in pagan and Chris- anity, and Islam, women were prohibited from functioning tian antiquity, Washington, D.C.: National Association of as priestesses or musicians in the new religious traditions, Pastorial Musicians. and this marked the beginning of their disappearance in Redmond, Layne. 1997. When the drummers were women. New history as professional drummers and musicians. York: Three Rivers Press. In these trans-Mediterranean cultures there is conclu- Layne Redmond sive evidence of the tradition of women’s performance en- sembles rooted in drumming, which also included singing and dancing and playing flute and lyre. The music of this DYING period was primarily rhythmically structured. As the main See DEATH.

428 E

EARTH which she conducted herself. Her work supports earlier scholarship on pre-Celtic cultures in northwestern Europe Ground of our being, matrix of all known life, Earth has and on pre-Hellenic Greece, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the been seen as a nurturing mother in many folk cultures Levant that describes a widespread cultural focus on Earth around the world for thousands of years. The most familiar and its powers associated with the feminine. (See, for ex- record of this ancient idea for Europeans and Americans is ample, Marshack, Nilsson, Drews, Harrison, Mellaart, , which begins with Gaia, or Earth, Kramer, Clark, Pagels, Patai, Piggot, Driver, and Gottlieb.) emerging from formless, undifferentiated Chaos. This fe- Most scholars of ancient Mediterranean, Mesopotamian, male deity is described as the “ever-sure foundation of all and Indo-European civilizations accept the general import the deathless ones” and in the “Homeric Hymn to Earth” is of Gimbutas’s assertion that cultures based on the worship called “Pan-mhteiran” and “HyUemeUlon” (“mother of of Earth goddesses were supplanted by patriarchal value all” and “most ancient of beings” (Evelyn-White, 1977:86– systems that focused on sky gods and on ideas of spiritually 87, 466). This Greek concept of Mother Earth descends transcending Earth. (See, for example, Lerner, 1986:146– from much older traditions all over the world, emerging out 153; Mallory, 1989:182–185 and 222–272; and Baring and of prehistoric ways of understanding the absolute depend- Cashford, 1991:447–546.) ence of all creatures on the living landscape. Glimpses of these origins can be caught in the twenty-five-thousand- Earth and Patriarchal Tendencies year-old art and symbols from the caves of northern Eu- As written languages developed in Mesopotamia, China, rope, in which images of plants and animals are associated and India, concepts of Earth as mother and female body with large female sculp-tures, often called Venuses, whose became part of the earliest literatures. However, patriarchal reproductive functions are suggested in their accentuated ideologies in China, Japan, and India erased or suppressed hips and breasts. In later (Neolithic and Bronze Age) cul- many early records of such thinking. What survive are frag- tures votive clay figurines of the female body, inscribed ments, as in Chinese references to the goddess Nü Kua with signs for water and growing plants, were produced by (Birrell, 1993:2–35), Dravidian folk deities and rituals rep- the thousands to indicate the idea of the common ability of resenting pre-Indic traditions of chthonic belief (that is, Earth and women’s bodies to produce new life and nourish- belief deities associated with Earth’s powers) on the Indian ment. In Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe (1982) and subcontinent; and linguistic traces of the archaic Indic su- The Language of the Goddess (1989), Marija Gimbutas has per-natural ancestress Áditi (Puhvel, 1987:47). Among the reproduced and discussed hundreds of the thousands of earliest literatures, remnants of early chthonic worship are such figurines and images recovered by archaeologists in clearest in Mesopotamian culture, particularly the literature the twentieth century. Although Gimbu-tas’s theories have of Sumer and Babylon. Four-thousand-year-old hymns to always been controversial, they are closely argued and the Sumerian goddess Inanna describe her body as synony- based on a vast body of archaeological fieldwork, much of mous with the fertile earth (Wolkstein and Kramer, 1983).

429 EARTH

The traditional associations of the goddess and Earth con- been chemically altered and poisoned. The seas have been tinue through the two thousand years of transmission of the raked and swept for food, devastating many marine com- Epic of Gilgamesh in Mesopotamia, even though by the munities. The air is full of sounds and currents of energy time of the Babylonians, the epic had come to express a that have changed the environment for migrating birds, masculine value system that moves the locus of authority and it has grown noticeably warmer since the industrial away from Earth and into the dominating figure of the revolution stimulated increasingly intense combustion of young king who makes his reputation by destroying a for- fossil fuels. est sacred to the goddess. Most tribal cultures around the Though humankind, particularly masculine industrial world continued to think of Earth as nurturing mother even culture, has dramatically changed the life of Earth with in- as the intellectual traditions of literate civilizations ab- ventions and interventions, American nature writers and stracted themselves further and further from earlier tradi- conservationists such as Henry David Thoreau, John Muir, tions of reverence and identification with Earth’s power. and Aldo Leopold established a countertradition to this ar- The historian Gerda Lerner (1986) has suggested that the rogant humanism. The environmental movements of the creation of patriarchal cultures grew out of the domestica- second half of the twentieth-century began to question the tion of animals and plants during the Neolithic era, leading industrial exploitation of Earth. With her book Silent men to consider themselves masters of all reproductive Spring (1962), Rachel Carson was the first to awaken at- sources—Earth, plants, domestic animals, and women. The tention to the devastation caused to Earth’s life by indus- classicist Page DuBois chronicles the intellectual evolution trial chemicals. Since Carson, environmental concern for of masculinist movement in ancient Greek culture away the health of Earth has steadily increased in the United from the respectful interrelation with the fertile landscape States and spread over the globe. Environmental organiza- and the feminine in her book Sowing the Body (1988). A tions such as the Sierra Club and Greenpeace have sup- similar evolution occurred in the Judaic scriptures, which ported an ever-increasing movement to restore reverence led to the erasure of most traditions of reverence for Earth for Earth. from the texts that came to form the Hebrew and Christian canons. Thus in Genesis, Earth and Eve are both cursed by The Challenge of Ecofeminism Yahweh for Eve’s initial disobedience in the Garden of By the end of the twentieth century, a multifaceted eco- Eden; nature is “fallen” and separate from mankind, just as logical feminism—or ecofeminism—had directly chal- woman is. Traces of the older Middle Eastern traditions of lenged the prevailing concepts of humanity’s separateness reverence, from which early stories of the Torah descend, from and superiority to an inert Earth. The term can be glimpsed in the Hebrew people’s tendency to wor- ecofeminism seems to have been coined by the French ship the Golden Calf when patriarchs, like Moses, are ab- feminist Françoise d’Eaubonne in a 1974 essay issuing a sent. The Golden Calf may be associated with worship of a scathing indictment of masculine industrial culture and a Palestinian goddess, Asherah, related to Ishtar, the later call for its overthrow by women worldwide. American form of Earth goddess Inanna; reversion to this older orien- ecofeminist thinkers such as Annette Kolodny, Carolyn tation was anathema to the patriarchs, who were strenu- Merchant, Mary Daly, Susan Griffin, Charlene Spretnack, ously defining a new order ruled by a transcendent, and Irene Diamond have defined the destructive misogyny immaterial father god (Johnson, 1988:304). Given the satu- that has accompanied the European conquest of the globe ration of European culture by Indo-European and Hebraic and the natural world from the Renaissance to the present, intellectual and religious traditions, it is clear why the an- cata-loging the ways that gendering Earth as female has cient honor for Earth as a female center of life was eroded. been used to justify devastating exploitation of landscapes Many folk traditions retain the older attitudes, but they and communities of plants and animals. They have shown have been consistently devalued and overlaid by ideas of how ancient traditions of reverence for a vast, nurturing human, and especially masculine, domination of nature. matrix of life have been turned upside down. Internation- As modern science and technology have advanced from ally many women activists and writers have initiated the Renaissance through the present, Earth has come to movements to restore health to devastated landscapes. One seem more and more a separate, inert object in the intellec- such movement is a tree-planting campaign in Kenya. An- tual tradition of the global human community. Miners and other is outlined in Vandana Shiva’s book Staying Alive engineers have dug deep tunnels and chasms, blown the (1998), which describes the disaster caused to the land- tops off mountains, changed the course of rivers, and built scape of India by the so-called Green Revolution of indus- ribbons of asphalt and concrete over the land. Soils have trial agriculture. Shiva urges a return to sustainable

430 EARTH farming that can restore life to the soil and bring back vital References and Further Reading forests and watersheds. Ecofeminism is a multifaceted Baring, Ann, and Jules Cashford. 1991. The myth of the goddess. movement that includes intense controversies, such as the New York: Viking. debate between “essentialists” and “constructionists,” as Birrell, Anne. 1993. Chinese mythology. Baltimore: Johns well as many different orientations toward other environ- Hopkins University Press. mental movements, for instance, “deep ecology.” Some Carson, Rachel. 1962. Silent Spring. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ecofeminists urge continued use of the female metaphor Clark, R.T.Rundle. 1978. Myth and symbol in ancient Egypt. for the planet, but others argue that the cultural gender London: Thames and Hudson. wars of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries indicate Drews, Robert. 1988. The coming of the Greeks: Indo-European how dangerous such a strategy can be. Most agree, how- conquests in the Aegean and the Near East. Princeton, N.J.: ever, in seeing profound relationships between mistreat- Princeton University Press. ment of Earth and of women. Driver, G.R. 1956. Canaanite myths and legends. Edinburgh: T. In fact, Earth is not a female animal but a huge living and T.Clark. planet orbiting around a star that energizes its life. Human DuBois, Page. 1988. Sowing the body: Psychoanalysis and beings live within Earth’s community, completely inter- ancient representations of women. Chicago: University of twined with all its life, as the philosopher Maurice Chicago Press. Merleau-Ponty spent his life explaining. The British scien- Eaubonne, Françoise d’. 1994. The time for ecofeminism. Trans. tist J.E.Lovelock developed a new paradigm for thinking Ruth Hottell. In Carolyn Merchant, ed., Ecology. Atlantic about Earth when he published Gaia: A New Look at Life Highlands, N.J.: Humanities. on Earth in 1979. Basing his hypothesis on the remarkable Eveyln-White, Hugh G. 1977. Hesiod, the Homeric hymns, and stability of Earth’s temperature and the chemical mix-ture Homerica. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. of normally unstable gases that make up the atmosphere, Gimbutas, Marija. 1982. Goddesses and gods of old Europe. Lovelock argued that Earth is an enormous living system Berkeley: University of California Press (originally that creates the proper conditions for its own life. Thus published as The gods and goddesses of old Europe, London: Earth’s living community continually adapts its many Thames and Hudson , 1974). processes to maintain the crucial temperature and atmos- ——. 1989. The language of the goddess. San Francisco: Harper phere for its survival. Lovelock explains that such adapta- and Row. tion does not necessarily favor any particular species but it Gottlieb, Freema. 1989. The lamp of God: Shekhinah as light. does maintain life itself in ever-evolving forms. Humans London: Aaronson. could be wiped out—or wipe themselves out—just as most Harrison, Jane Ellen. 1922. Prolegomena to the study of Greek forms of anaerobic bacteria did millions of years ago. Or a religion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. large meteor could so change the atmosphere for a time Johnson, Buffie. 1988. Lady of the beasts: Ancient images of the that most large creatures could, like the dinosaurs, be sud- goddess and her sacred animals. San Francisco: Harper. denly destroyed. Lovelock’s close associate the American Kramer, Samuel Noah. 1969. The sacred marriage rite: Aspects of biologist Lynn Margulis has supported his work in many faith, myth, and ritual in ancient Sumer. Bloomington: ways, among them her book Symbiotic Planet: A New Indiana University Press. Look at Evolution (1998), which argues that cooperation Lerner, Gerda. 1986. The creation of patriarchy. New York: among species is much likelier than simplistic Darwinian Oxford University Press. competition to have led to evolutionary change. New Lovelock, J.E. 1979. Gaia: A new look at life on earth. Oxford: thinking of this kind is beginning to have a profound influ- Oxford University Press. ence in many scientific disciplines and also in the social Mallory, J.P. 1989. In search of the Indo-Europeans. London: sciences and philosophy. Earth is once again being seen as Thames and Hudson. a living matrix within which humans have their being in Margulis, Lynn. 1998. Symbiotic planet: A new look at evolution. relationship with the whole of its mysterious and vital New York: Basic. community. Marshack, Alexander. 1971. The roots of civilization. New York: McGraw-Hill. Mellaart, James. 1967. Catal Huyuk: A neolithic town in Anatolia. See Also New York: McGraw-Hill. ECOFEMINISM; GAIA HYPOTHESIS; GEOGRAPHY; GREEN ——. 1965. Earliest civilizations of the Near East. New York: MOVEMENT; POLLUTION; POPULATION: OVERVIEW McGraw-Hill.

431 EATING DISORDERS

Merleau-Ponty, Maurice. 1962. Phenomenology of perception. 1974). Hence, disordered eating—such as bingeing, purg- Trans. Colin Smith. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. ing, and self-starvation—may be expressive of underlying ——. 1968. The visible and the invisible. Trans. Alphonso Lingis. inter- and intra-personal difficulties and may be experi- Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern University Press. enced as a pseudo solution to these problems (Bruch, 1974). Nilsson, Martin P. 1927. The Minoan- and its The intense control of eating and body weight in anorexia, survival in Greek religion. Lund: C.W.K.Gleerup. for example, may be a means of achieving the sense of con- ——. 1988. Adam, Eve, and the serpent. London: Weidenfeld and trol that a woman feels she lacks in the rest of her life. By Nicolson. exercising this control, she may feel that she is thereby de- Pagels, Elaine. 1980. The Gnostic gospels. London: Weidenfeld veloping a more autonomous identity for herself. Like other and Nicolson. women and girls, however, those diagnosed with eating dis- Patai, Raphael. 1990. The Hebrew goddess, 3rd ed. Detroit: orders are a heterogeneous group. It is not always helpful to Wayne State University Press. make universal or even broad generalizations about so- Piggot, Stuart. 1950. Prehistoric India. Harmondsworth: Penguin. called typical “anorexic” or “bulimic” personalities or about Puhvel, Jaan. 1987. Comparative mythology. Baltimore: Johns psychological difficulties. It is important to understand, Hopkins University Press. therefore, that in eating disorders the psychological mean- Shiva, Vandana. 1988. Staying alive: Women, ecology, and sur- ings of symptoms are neither fixed nor universal: they may vival in India. New Delhi: Kali for Women. vary between girls and women as individuals and in differ- Wolkstein, Diane, and Samuel Noah Kramer. 1983. Inanna: ent sociocultural contexts. Similarly, for any one individual, Queen of heaven and earth. New York: Harper and Row. symptoms may sustain many complex and even contradic- tory meanings, which also may vary over time. Louise Westling Diagnoses of eating disorders seem to have a quite specific historical, cultural, and demographic distribution (Swartz, 1985). Although eating disorders have existed as a EATING DISORDERS clinical category in the form of anorexia nervosa since the end of the nineteenth century, it is only since the 1960s that The term eating disorders refers to severe disturbances in diagnoses appear to have increased dramatically, at least in attitudes and behaviors related to eating, usually but not the West. Until recently, few studies examined eating exclusively experienced by girls and women. “Eating dis- disorders in nonwestern cultures, but research composing orders” is a broad clinical category, encompassing a prevalence has found considerably higher rates among number of diagnostic subtypes of disordered eating western girls and women. If prevalence is rising elsewhere, (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). The two princi- that may be due to a globalization of western culture. pal subtypes are anorexia nervosa, which is characterized The majority—approximately 90 to 95 percent—of by an intense fear of fatness, an extreme reduction in food those diagnosed with eating disorders are girls and young intake, and a refusal to maintain a minimally “normal” women, and traditionally, these disorders have been body weight; and bulimia nervosa, which is characterized considered more common among the middle and upper by cycles of binge eating followed by purging behaviors social classes and among white rather than black or Asian such as vomiting and abuse of laxatives. Other subtypes of women in Europe and North America (Hsu, 1989). disordered eating, including obesity, bulimarexia, compul- Research in the 1990s, however, suggested that disordered sive eating, binge-eating disorder (without regular purg- eating had become increasingly common among all social ing), and dietary chaos syndrome, have also been classes and age groups (Cosford and Arnold, 1992; Hill and suggested but remain contentious. Robinson, 1991) and among girls and women of all ethnic Many women diagnosed with an eating disorder also backgrounds (Edwards-Hewitt and Gray, 1993). experience disturbances in body image—that is, in their There is a vast body of literature providing numerous perception of their own bodies. Body size and weight may explanations of the possible causes of eating disorders be overestimated so that, for example, a woman may per- from a variety of different perspectives. Researchers have ceive herself to be fat even if she is actually emaciated. Eat- sought to explain eating disorders in terms of biological ing disorders also are associated with profound dysfunction, genetic predisposition, cognitive distortions, psychological distress, particularly with low self-esteem psychodynamic difficulties, dysfunctional family back- and a poorly defined sense of self; with feelings of help- ground (including but not confined to child abuse), and so- lessness; and with lack of control and autonomy (Bruch, ciocultural and gender-political factors (see Malson, 1998,

432 EATING DISORDERS for a review). Although much of this literature is valuable, issues about femininity and about feminism. But they can there is no conclusive evidence for any one etiology, and no also be interpreted as expressing cultural concerns about, for single perspective can adequately explain the complex example, individual competitiveness and personal display multidimensional aspects of eating disorders. It is, how- (Brumberg, 1988), the ethics of mass consumption, experi- ever, recognized more and more that women’s disordered ences of the body within contemporary consumer culture, eating must be understood within its sociocultural and gen- and the dilemmas created by the cultural requirement that we der-specific contexts (Fallon et al., 1994; Malson, 1998). inhabit the antithetical identities of self-controlled disci- The cultural idealization of the youthful, thin female body plined worker and self-indulgent consumer (Bordo, 1992, has been well documented, as has the high prevalence of 1993; Brumberg, 1988; Malson, 1989; Turner, 1992). body dissatisfaction, preoccupation with weight and food, “Eating disorders” can then be understood as manifesta- dieting, and bingeing and purging among western women tions of profound personal psychological distress expressed and girls. Within this context, the distinction between dis- through eating behaviors that cause serious physical dam- ordered and so-called normal eating becomes less clear, age and sometimes even death. At the same time, “eating and eating disorders are being viewed more often as part of disorders” are expressive of a range of sociocultural and a continuum that also encompasses women’s “normal”— political concerns about the body, control, and consump- yet often distressing—experiences of eating and dieting. tion and about gender, power, and identity (Bordo, 1993; The alternative term eating distress emphasizes this view Brumberg, 1988; Fallon et al., 1994; Malson, 1998). Con- by countering the concept of eating disorders as individual ceptualizing “eating disorders” in terms of individual psy- pathologies that might somehow be understood separately chopathology (see Malson, 1998) risks ignoring or from their sociocultural context. diminishing the importance of these multiple and complex In short, if we locate eating disorders within the contem- cultural-political contexts that shape girl’s and women’s porary cultural and gender-specific context in which so experiences of themselves and their bodies. many girls and women are dissatisfied with their bodies, wish to be thinner, worry about their caloric intake, and See Also habitually diet and engage in other weight-reducing ADOLESCENCE; ANOREXIA NERVOSA; BEAUTY CONTESTS AND behaviors such as purging and laxative abuse, then it be- PAGEANTS; BODY; BULIMIA NERVOSA; DEPRESSION; FASHION; comes impossible to see “eating disorders” as a pathologi- IMAGES OF WOMEN: OVERVIEW; PATRIARCHY: FEMINIST cal deviation from so-called normal women’s experience. THEORY; STRESS Instead, we can reconceptualize “eating disorders” as a col- lection of distressed and damaging experiences and body- References and Further Reading management practices that are a part of (rather than distinct American Psychiatric Association. 1994. Diagnostic and statisti- from) the gender ideologies and normative practices that cal manual of mental disorders, 4th ed. Washington, D.C.: shape and regulate the lives of all women in contemporary American Psychiatric Association. western cultures (Bordo, 1993; Malson, 1998). Bordo, Susan. 1992. Anorexia nervosa: Psychopathology as the The thin body as a cultural ideal of feminine beauty and crystallization of culture. In H.Crowley and S.Himmelweit, the accompanying pressure on girls and women to diet eds., Knowing women: Feminism and knowledge. Cambridge clearly form a very important aspect of the social context and Oxford: Polity Press in association with Open University from which “eating disorders” emerge. However, as numer- Press. ous feminist scholars have argued (for example, Chernin, ——. 1993. Unbearable weight: Feminism, western culture, and 1983; Katzman and Sing, 1997; Lawrence, 1984; Malson, the body. Berkeley: University of California Press. 1998; Orbach, 1993), a much wider array of social and gen- Bruch, Hilde. 1974. Eating disorders: Obesity and anorexia ner- der-political issues are also relevant in understanding how vosa and the person within. London: Routledge. “eating disorders” are culturally produced. Eating disorders Brumberg, Joan. 1988. Fasting girls: The emergence of anorexia can be understood not only as an intensified pursuit of a het- nervosa as a modern disease. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard erosexually attractive feminine body but also as a rejection University Press. of or ambivalence toward traditionally defined “femininity” Chernin, Kim. 1983. Womansize: The tyranny of slenderness. (Orbach, 1993) and as an expression of women’s relative London: Women’s. powerlessness and lack of status in patriarchal cultural con- Cosford, P.A., and E.Arnold. 1992. Eating disorders in later life: A texts (Chernin, 1983; Lawrence, 1984). Eating disorders can review. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 7(7): thus be understood to be expressive of cultural concerns and 491–498.

433 ECOFEMINISM

Edwards-Hewitt, Terilee, and James Gray. 1993. The prevalence spoke to the movement’s quintessentially postmodern of disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in character. There are no clear boundaries between the BlackAmerican and White-American college women: Eth- thought and practice of ecofeminism and those of other nic, regional, class, and media differences. Eating Disorders movements originating in the late twentieth century that Review 1(1):41–54. deal with issues of nonviolence, social justice, health, and Fallen, Patricia, Melanie A.Katzman, and Susan C.Wooley, eds. the natural world. Moreover, ecofeminism, as an out- 1994. Feminist perspectives on eating disorders. London: growth of feminist, environmental, and postcolonial move- Guilford. ments, is not immune to many of the political divisions and Hill, A.J., and A.Robinson. 1991. Dieting concerns have a func- intellectual debates found in these movements. Precisely tional effect on the behaviour of nine year old girls. British because ecofeminism’s roots and alliances are so varied, Journal of Clinical Psychology 30:265–267. one’s understanding of the potential and problems of this Hsu, L.K.George. 1989. The gender gap in eating disorders: Why global tapestry is heavily shaped by the affinities of the are the eating disorders more common among women? Clini- particular interpreter. Nonetheless, there are certain as- cal Psychology Review 9:393–407. sumptions common to all ecofeminisms that warrant its Katzman, Melanie A., and Lee Sing. 1997. Beyond body image: designation as a distinct form of consciousness and politi- The integration of feminist and transcultural theories in the cal practice. understanding of self-starvation. International Journal of Eating Disorders 22(4):385–394. Giving Value to Women’s Voices Lawrence, Marilyn. 1984. The anorexic experience. London: Like feminism, ecofeminism strives to give value to wom- Women’s. en’s voices and to challenge cultural and political practices Malson, Helen. 1998. The thin woman: Feminism, post-structural- that assume women’s inferiority. However, ecofeminism ism, and the social psychology of anorexia nervosa. London: also strives to revalue the nonhuman natural world, for this Routledge. world is understood as an active subject with agency of its Orbach, Suzie. 1993. Hunger strike. London: Penguin. own. Because of this dual focus, ecofeminism does not as- Swartz, L. 1985. Anorexia nervosa as a culture-bound syndrome. sume that women’s freedom is contingent on severing Social Science and Medicine 20(7):725–730 women’s historical association with nature. The liberation Turner, Bryan S. 1992. Regulating bodies: Essays in medical soci- of women is seen to be intimately associated with the lib- ology. London: Routledge. eration or revaluation of the natural world, whereas the foundation of patriarchy is understood as deriving from the Helen Malson denigration or “othering” of both women and nature. In ecofeminist visions—whether they be political platforms, science fiction stories, or theoretical treatises—struggles for women’s rights and freedom are viewed as inseparable ECOFEMINISM from struggles to repair the living systems of the earth that sustain life. Nature is not assumed to be inferior to human The term ecofeminism refers both to the global intersection culture: indeed, ecofeminist theorists strive to challenge of women’s movements and ecological movements in the the very dualism of nature and culture that is typically as- late twentieth century and to the worldview that contends sumed rather than questioned in much social and political there is a connection between the degradation and devasta- thought. tion of the earth and the domination of women. This new consciousness of a relationship between a cultures treat- Shared Tenets of Ecofeminism ment of women and its treatment of the nonhuman natural In addition to this revaluation of nature and the natural world, sometimes labeled the “third wave of feminism,” is world, another commonly shared tenet of ecofeminism— extremely diverse and contains positions and political one that infuses the worldviews of political activists, aca- commitments that sometimes conflict. As the term was in- demic scholars, and spiritually focused practitioners—is a creasingly used by activists, writers, and academics in the belief in the interconnectedness of life. Indeed, this rec- 1980s and 1990s, this heterogeneity of ecofeminism was ognition of the relational manner of all existence, which often noted. Some critics saw this lack of a unified position for some participants is the impetus toward spiritual ac- or theory as evidence of ecofemmism’s incoherence; those counts of life on Earth, provides the link between who were more sympathetic thought this lack of unity ecofeminist political initiatives and the theoretical

434 ECOFEMINISM accounts of women’s condition and the ecological crisis. States—based Institute for Social Ecology began holding Whether it be efforts to save forests, struggles around in- seminars on women and ecology during this period; and dustrialized agriculture, movements against toxic con- Ynestra King, a teacher at the institute and an activist in tamination, or antimilitarism campaigns, these initiatives the antimilitarism movement who went on to organize the are typically conducted in modes that bring to the fore the 1980 Conference on Women and Life on Earth: question of how people’s survival and well-being are inti- Ecofeminism for the 1980s, is often credited with devel- mately linked to the well-being of the earth. And for theo- oping the term in the U.S. context. The 1987 conference rists of ecofeminism—whether advocates of Goddess “Ecofeminist Perspectives: Nature, Culture, and Theory,” spirituality, philosophers who focus on explicating the held at the University of Southern California in Los Ange- connections between the oppression of women and the les, brought together academics and writers associated oppression of nature, theologians who explore the sym- with the term, women activists working on environmental bols and myths that structure creation stories, historians issues, and leading philosophers of deep ecology. The who examine the impact of western science and capital- conference received international press coverage outside ism on the survival strategies of third world women farm- the feminist community and served to catalyze interest in ers, or ecocritics who explore the images of gender and ecofeminism among participants in and observers of the nature in literature—the interconnections among the phe- environmental movement. The 1990 volume Reweaving nomena of the social and natural worlds are a uniform the World: The Emergence of Ecofeminism (Diamond and feature of the diverse accounts. The domination of women Orenstein), which grew out of the conference, generated and the domination of nature are viewed as intercon- interest in this new constellation in a range of intellectual nected, both in cultural and religious myths and symbols and political communities around the globe. In 1988, the and in social and economic structures. The devaluation of Indian physi-cist Vandana Shiva published Staying Alive: both women and nature is understood in terms of a par- Women, Ecology, and Survival in India. Although Shiva ticularly deleterious construction of masculine conscious- had initially resisted the term ecofeminism because of its ness that denigrates and manipulates everything defined association with the West, in 1993 she published as “other,” whether nature, women, colonized cultures, or Ecofeminism with the German sociologist Maria Mies. marginalized races. Shiva’s combining neo-Marx-ist theories with relentless There is some disagreement over the coinage of the activism around the globe on issues of development, glo- term ecofeminism. The French writer Françoise bal trade, and bioengineering moved the term d’Eaubonne used the term in a text entitled Le féminisme ecofeminism into the realms of international policy mak- ou la mort (1974; Feminism or death). D’Eaubonne ar- ing on women and global political and environmental dis- gued that “male control of production and of women’s course. Although the movement’s philosophical and sexuality had brought about the twin crises of environ- political merits were still heavily contested, Shiva’s em- mental destruction through surplus production and brace of the word shifted the terms of the debate. overpopula-tion through surplus birth.” Ecofeminism rep- Ecofeminism could no longer be seen as a product of resented women’s potential for bringing about an ecologi- western feminism. cal revolution to ensure human survival on the planet. Such an ecological revolution would entail new gender re- Continuing Debate lations between women and men and between humans and Debates among identifiers with the movement and among the earth. D’Eaubonne’s coinage of the term was noted in outside observers center on the issues of essentialism, spir- Mary Daly’s Gyn/ecology, which was published in the ituality, animal rights, and science. Critics are often wary United States in 1978. Students of Daly in Boston were of the alleged essentialism of ecofeminism, while identifi- introduced to d’Eaubonne, but most users of the term, ers either strive to refute such charges or claim that whether academic scholars, writers, or activists, were not ecofeminism employs essentialist rhetoric for strategic aware of Daly’s genealogical investigation, and thus coin- purposes. One significant form of ecofeminism draws age is not appropriately traced in any straightforward heavily on sec-ond-wave feminism’s rediscovery and em- manner to d’Eaubonne. Much evidence suggests that the brace of goddess-revering cultures that are reputed to be term began to be used spontaneously across a number of more respectful of women and the natural world. This as- continents in the mid-1970s by women’s movement activ- sociation is the most contentious issue dividing ists focused on issues of peace and the ecological costs of ecofeminists and is the primary reason ecofeminism is at- science, technology, and development. The United tacked or dismissed as nonsignifi-cant by nonidentifiers.

435 ECOLOGY

Within the movement, the central-ity of Goddess spiritual- ECOLOGY ity is either embraced, critiqued, or minimized. Many See ECOSYSTEM and ENVIRONMENT: OVERVIEW. ecofeminist activities in western nations focus on animal rights issues, and this work is central to the theoretical ac- counts of a small number of ecofeminist theorists. Political attacks from outside are often directed at this work. Within ECONOMIC DETERMINISM the movement, the centrality of animal rights is rarely de- See DETERMINISM: ECONOMIC. bated; but when it is, it is extremely contentious. Many ecofeminist texts document the deleterious impacts of modern science, and outside observers often dismiss ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ecofeminism for its alleged vilification of science. There is See DEVELOPMENT, SPECIFIC ENTRIES; and ECONOMY: relatively little debate about science within the movement, OVERVIEW. because the antiscience stance is often internal to the ex- plication of the worldview or simply assumed. As the movement expanded in the last decade of the twentieth century, its use of scientific findings in political campaigns ECONOMIC STATUS: was often noted, and there were internal calls for more Comparative Analysis complex positions on science. The economic status of women throughout the world is See Also generally lower than that of men. Measurements of the EARTH; ENVIRONMENT: OVERVIEW AND REGIONAL ENTRIES; economic value of work that determine status have been GODDESS; GREEN MOVEMENT; GYN/ECOLOGY; NATURE; devised and applied by men for at least 7,000 years. They NATURE: PHILOSOPHY AND SPIRITUALITY have also been implemented by women to create and maintain a supply of cheap labor to perform with the hard- References and Further Reading est, most repetitive jobs. Girls and women form the bulk Daly, Mary. 1978. Gyn/ecology. New York: Beacon. of the world’s cheap labor force. They supply most of the Diamond, Irene, and Gloria Orenstein, eds. 1990. Reweaving the labor in the world, including unpaid labor. The work world: The emergence of ecofeminism. San Francisco: Sierra women do in their homes for their families forms the eco- Club. nomic basis of every society. In today’s world every kind Eaubonne, Françoise d’. 1974. Le féminisme ou la mort. Paris: P. of economic and social structure coexists, ranging from Horay. electronic, computerized finance capitalism to Stone Age Gaard, Greta, ed. 1993. Ecofeminism. Philadelphia: Temple Uni- tribalism. versity Press. Mellor, Mary. 1997. Feminism and ecology. New York: New York Tribalism University Press. In the 1990s—the United Nations Decade of the Indig- Merchant, Carolyn. 1980. The death of nature: Women ecology enous Peoples—more than 150 million indigenous and and the scientific revolution. San Francisco: Harper and Row. tribal people were estimated to be living in Asia and mil- Mies, Maria, and Vandana Shiva. 1993. Ecofeminism. London: lions more in Australia, Africa, Latin America, North Zed. America, and Europe. Tribal women are often included Plumwood, Val. 1993. Feminism and the mastery of nature. New in official ceremonies designed to help the local York: Routledge. economy, such as those devoted to rainmaking and to Ruether, Rosemary Radford. 1996. Women healing earth: Third enhancing the fertility of the soil. Most plant deities are world women on ecology, feminism, and religion. New York: female; some South American Indians, now put to work Orbis. in sugar factories, still sing songs to the Earth Mother Salleh, Ariel. 1997. Ecofeminism as politics. London: Zed. Nungui. However, men sometimes claim a prior right to Shiva, Vandana. 1988. Staying alive: Women, ecology, and paid jobs; this claim may have originated in their special survival in India. New Delhi: Kali for Women. responsibility for long-distance hunting. The claim may Sturgeon, Noel. 1992. Ecofeminist natures. New York: Routledge. also be related to men’s responsiblity for defense, which evidently developed along with the development of de- Irene Diamond fined territories.

436 ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Slavery bear children and perform household work. Unless she per- sonally markets some of her own produce and establishes Slavery permeates the whole of human society. Tribal peo- an incontrovertible cash value for that part of her work, her ples recognized women’s economic importance, but they economic contribution, being unpaid, is valued less than also initiated slavery, which developed along with settled that of a paid servant. agriculture. The common human practice of forcing the Serfs, bonded families, and females whose work in food disadvantaged to do the hardest and most unpleasant work production for their families is unacknowledged lower the persists in feudal, capitalist, and socialist states today, and status of free paid workers doing the same jobs. The taint of the sale of human beings is still rife. servility sticks not only to agriculture but also to other work Slavery today exists in agriculture, domestic work, done for landlords mainly by women: cleaning, laundering, manufacturing of clothing and textiles, and prostitution, all making and mending clothes, and preparing food are still trades involving large numbers of women. The United Na- termed menial. The status of a worker in agriculture has tions Economic and Social Council in 1983 passed a reso- risen to equal that of a worker in manufacturing only in the lution (no. 30) asking member states to ratify the last 100 years as farming has been increasingly mecha- Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons nized in industrialized countries. passed 34 years earlier in 1949. In 1991 UNESCO set up a working group to assist the implementation of this conven- Making Goods for the Market: Female Labor tion. In the twenty-first century ancient forms of slavery The economic status of craft manufactures, in which peo- exist in the Sudan and Mauritania; people are traded in ple provide their own raw materials and in which women open markets in Karnataka, India; they are used as forced often participate, is high in preindustrial societies. Women labor in Brazil and Haiti; and child slaves work openly on also play a significant part in land-based commerce, espe- the streets of Gabon. Anti-Slavery International, the Inter- cially when they can sell their own products locally, and, in national Abolitionist Federation specializing in combating West Africa, much farther afield. Less commonly, they en- prostitution, the International Labor Organization, and gage in seaborne trade; for example, the Mamas Benz of other United Nations agencies and institutions have all Lomé in Togoland import foreign goods like cigarettes and failed to stop the trade in persons. whiskey. The status of all workers deteriorated when merchants, Serfdom usually male, began providing raw materials and paying Serfdom developed late among tribal peoples, originating outworkers to turn them into finished products. Landless in settled farming. Today it is the mode of economic exist- people, unable to grow their own food and therefore un- ence for millions of women as well as men. However, it is able to support themselves in this new ecomonic environ- most visible as the basis of feudalism. Under feudalism ment, became virtual employees of a raw material serfs are tenants who pay for the right to a small farm not supplier; their numbers increased with the growth of only in cash and produce but also by working for their land- towns. As in serfdom and bonded labor, whole families are lords. The serf tenant has to provide not only his own labor employed in this way. Large numbers of women are in- but also that of his wife and children. This system is com- volved because of their skill in making clothes, accesso- mon today in Latin American and southeast Asian coun- ries, and soft furnishings. The low “piece rates” paid tries, and vestiges of it are only now dying out in compel them to work at unhealthily intensive speeds for industrialized countries. To a landlord, the advantage of overlong hours so they become “sweated labor.” Home- serfdom over slavery is that a serf family feeds and main- work cuts employers’ overhead, for the employee in her tains itself, whereas slaves must be maintained by the land- own home pays for the power, light, heat, water, and lords. Often free peasants, owing to bad harvests, have to premises and the work may be hidden so employers do not borrow in order to survive. High interest rates charged for pay any statutory social insurance. loans to buy food and seed prevent families from paying off The ease with which people with little bargaining their debts: the system is known as debt slavery or bonded strength could be induced to accept low wages resulted in labor. To repay the debt, a male peasant, as in classic serf- their not being paid much when machines were introduced dom, pledges not only the product of his own labor but also that required a power source not available in people’s that of his whole family. homes and manufacturing moved into factories. Girls from In free peasant families, marriage requires a woman to peasant families in southeast Asia, India, Mozambique, and provide agricultural labor, to collect fuel and water, and to other parts of Africa, and from Latin America and the West

437 ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Indies, are employed in local factories and compete with The twentieth century was marked by global financial female labor in old industrialized countries not only in tex- crises, notably in the late 1920s and 1930s and in the 1980s tiles, clothing, and printing but also in manufacturing the and 1990s. In the intensified effort to survive, people com- most up-to-date electronics components. This competition peted for jobs, undercutting one another’s wages: to gain is so strong that the European Union (EU) has tried to limit work, women accepted less money than men, and young- clothing and textile imports and the United States has tried sters of both sexes accepted less money than women. to reduce competition in electronic goods. The governments of newly industrializing countries Raising Women’s Economic Status (NICs) compete with one another for foreign investment. Unions and informal organizations. The reaction to low The earliest NICs—South Korea, Hong Kong, and Tai- pay and poor work conditions has been to organize. In in- wan—lost their competitive edge to Singapore, Malaysia, dustrialized countries women have been a part of trade un- Thailand, and the Philippines, which in turn have been ionism since it began in the late eighteenth century. From overtaken by Indonesia, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the beginning, however, women found it necessary to set up Vietnam. The prime attractions are readily available and unions separate from those initiated by men. Within trade cheap female labor in special economic processing zones unions in some countries women workers are still cold- and lax health and safety regulations and laws. Criticism by shouldered by men not only because many women are some western companies of bad conditions in the factories classed as unskilled whatever their expertise but also be- of their Asian subcontractors has been seen as protection- cause men want the major share of any wage increases. ism against Asian competition. However, in industrialized Throughout the twentieth century and beyond, women countries, too, depressed areas compete with one another continued to set up their own unions. For example, in Hong and with Asian countries to attract investment and jobs. Kong in 1988, women household workers formed the This policy of locating businesses where the cheapest com- Asian Domestic Workers Union, whose 1,700 members petent labor is available is now also being applied to office came from many countries in the region. work. For example, a U.S. company outsources its data There is also a powerful informal organization of processing to Barbados rather then having it done in New women domestic workers in Delhi who pass the word York City. In industrializing, as in industrialized countries, around if one manages to persuade an employer to raise her women predominate in these often low-paid clerical and pay; then the rest follow, pushing up their rates. That these related jobs. workers live near one another in the same quarter of the city Some argue that the cheapness of female labor protects makes it easier for them to cooperate in improving their women’s jobs and may create opportunities for work. For working conditions. Concentration in factories and offices instance, in self-service supermarkets, much that used to be became important for workers’ organization only as trans- done by experienced, knowledgeable men grocers is now portation developed, enabling people who work together to done by computerized ordering and by women operating live far apart. sophisticated adding machines at checkouts. The women in Delhi have one big advantage. Each However, not only low pay but also increasing job inse- works on a part-time daily basis for more than one em- curity undermines economic status. White-collar jobs in ployer. Each woman specializes in a particular house- offices and banks are no longer secure in industrialized hold job, which she does for several households during a countries like Britain that are more and more using short- week. Each woman is therefore much less vulnerable term contractors. than an employee working for a single employer, how- Cheap female labor is still a feature of skilled occupa- ever high-grade the work. People in the latest form of tions largely staffed by women. Semiskilled women engi- homework, telework, have likewise found they obtain neers, employed because of their ability to deal with tiny better pay if they work for several employers and not components, emerged from the unskilled classification just one; this may also help to compensate for the fact only at the end of the twentieth century. In the Russian Fed- that they neither live in the same area nor work in the eration, the medical field, at all but the highest specialist same office. level, and teaching are largely staffed by women, as they Part-time workers. Part-time work is popular with were in the Soviet Union earlier. Yet they have always been women because it leaves them time and energy to do family low paid and today, like other public servants, have to and household jobs while allowing them to earn. The Brit- struggle for wages owed to them by the state because pub- ish governments claims that the number of unemployed lic finance is chaotic. was much lower in Great Britain than in other EU countries

438 ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS were based on the mass of women part-timers. These to nominate to uncontested seats in the Raja Sabha, the up- women were a form of cheap labor with none of the rights per house of the Indian parliment. She served from 1986 to of full-time employees until the early 1980s, when unions 1990, and although she retired as SEWA General Secretary began to support them in legal claims of sex discrimination. in 1996, she and SEWA continue to influence national and So much part-time work was done by women that the EU international policies. As a result of their campaigning, the equated their lack of rights with sex discrimination. With International Confederation of Free Trade Unions in 1988 trade union help, women have established a European Un- passed the first-ever international resolution on the Recog- ion directive, giving part-timers pro rata equality of treat- nition and Protection of HomeBased Workers, which ben- ment in a range of rights and benefits, including share efits women worldwide. options, pensions, and holidays. The directive was formally Discrimination or protection. To improve women’s eco- adopted into member states law in 1999 and became opera- nomic competitiveness with men, some women in the tional in 2000. United States and Latin America propose extending their Banks and credit circles. Some men, like Dr. working hours by lifting bans on their working overnight Muhammad Yunus of Bangladesh, champion poor, illiter- and in dangerous manufacturing processes. Women strug- ate women. Yunus founded the Grameen Bank to enable the gling for access to paid jobs often believe that limitations rural poor, particularly women, to start making small in- on their work hours are intended to cut competition for jobs comes for themselves. The bank provides credit for loans to that men usually do. The limitations are allegedly protect- small groups; the groups monitor loan repayments, so that ing women’s motherhood function. However, in various the rate of default is very low. The bank’s success has in- parts of the world women do what are conventionally re- spired similar institutions in 30 other countries. However, garded as “men’s jobs,” just as men do “women’s jobs”— men in their roles as heads of families often misuse the with the one universal exception of procreation. Proposals bank’s loans, diverting then to purposes not approved by to end bans are, however, counterproductive when work is the bank: women borrowers are then burdened with more being destroyed by machines and unemployment is high or debt. Informal credit circles were popular in Asia before rising, as two French trade union organizations, Force banks appeared. In Vietnam they are now extremely impor- Ouvrière and the Confédération Générale du Travail, have tant, and women run these circles from their homes. pointed out. To reduce unemployment and the resulting The informal sector. Among women’s initiatives to raise drain on social security funds, a cut in working hours for their economic status, the most widespread is still the mar- both sexes is necessary, banning night work in manufactur- keting on a small, local scale of surplus produce from gar- ing and in offices. dens and cottage industries. This so-called informal sector Education, training, and more women in higher-grade escapes official notice and goes unmeasured and untaxed. jobs. One way to raise women’s economic status is by giv- In trade what matters is numeracy. Literacy becomes im- ing girls the same educational opportunities as boys. Tra- portant only with the growth of bureaucracies and world ditionally boys have been given better opportunities trade. Then people have to be able to read regulations and because of their gender rather than their innate capabili- deal with government departments. ties. This tradition remains strongest in less industrialized International recognition for the self-employed. Ela countries, but some have recognized the problem and have Bhatt’s Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), an begun taking steps to repair it. For instance, in Zimbabwe offshoot of the Women’s Wing of the Textile Labor Asso- the Department of Women’s Affairs stated in 1992 that a ciation of Ahmadabad, Gujarat State, India, assists the or- comprehensive education program should begin with par- ganization of petty traders, workers in service jobs and ents, as a first step toward giving girls more access to edu- manual labor in agriculture, construction, transportation, cation and careers. cleaning, health, and catering and domestic help, and Women in industrialized countries worked long and home-based workers in a variety of trades. It sponsors 40 hard to establish educational equality for girls, and they cooperatives a pioneered women’s savings banks that pro- largely succeeded in the last quarter of the twentieth cen- vide women with working capital. Exclusion from national tury. Still, there is only a small minority of women in accounts and economic indicators may enable women to toplevel jobs. Attempts to help women into professional escape taxation. Recognition, however, could bring a mini- jobs must often contend with perceptions of favoritism on mum wage, maternity benefits, worker’s compensation, the part of ethnic minorities and those engaged in lower- and other welfare measures. Ela Bhatt was one of the six grade work, as the United States discovered when it imple- eminent persons whom the president of India is permitted mented programs to help undo sexual bias in education

439 ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS and employment. The Equal Employment Opportunity continue to pay health insurance, and employees are enti- Commission and other federal government agencies from tled to return to the same or an equivalent job; payment has the 1970s had to combat the perception that affirmative to be claimed under disability benefit; some U.S. states, action under legislation like the Civil Rights Acts mainly however, provide more generously. Moves in Scandinavian helped educated white women already in higher-grade countries, Canada, and the European Union to give men posts. In the mid1990s over a third of managers and ad- some responsibility for families are intended to redress the ministrators in industrialized countries were women. But imbalance so that employers have fewer grounds for pre- this proportion was as high in some developing countries, ferring men. With the appearance of “rent-a-womb” agen- notably in Latin America, where some women from rich cies in the 1980s, childbearing has been given a price, families still have feudal advantages, such as cheap do- which may help to reestablish the notion that motherhood mestic labor, which enables them to work outside the has an economic value and that childbearing and child rear- home. Many women in highergrade jobs today rely on ing are forms of work. their own earnings to buy services to ease their double In the former socialist countries of eastern Europe, workload, and they have benefited from the mechanization there was a huge increase in state provision of child care in of housework. order to enable women to go out to paid jobs. In the after- It is no use, however, educating and training girls for math of the collapse of the socialist system, child care fa- unemployment. Many high-tech processes, which girls cilities have been closed down. On the other hand, the have learned in order to gain well-paid jobs, are being rap- Cuban State Marriage Service of 1974 required marriage idly overtaken by new technological developments. Rates partners to share the work of running their homes. In of unemployment in Germany, France, Italy, and Spain are China there was less socialization of household work fol- boosted because proportionately more women than men lowing the establishment of the People’s Republic in are looking for paid jobs, not only in traditional women’s 1949; however, along with girls’ equal access to educa- work like textiles and clothing but also in modernized of- tion, many nurseries and kindergartens have been pro- fice work. A growing number of girls in western industri- vided. Following initiatives during the revolutionary alized countries who attend college are opting for training struggle of the 1930s and 1940s, in 1950 a law decreed in the one expanding field of employment—the environ- that a wife’s work in the family home was equivalent to ment, in subjects from veterinary science to geology. They that of a husband outside the home and gave her equal may have less chance of financial success but better job rights to the family property. From the 1980s the numbers security. of Chinese women in wage employment have risen with the demand for female labor, especially in tourism and in Unpaid Work economic processing zones, and more men have been tak- The economic status of motherhood and family care. Child- ing on household jobs. However, Confucian and feudal bearing has a recognized economic value in non- and traditions of men having a higher economic status have newly industrializing countries, especially where social se- persisted in the countryside. The All-China Women’s Fed- curity is nonexistent or weak. Children, as well as being eration hopes that the current shortage of women—par- expected to care for the elderly and infirm, are valued for ticularly in rural farming communities due to female their labor because they can help with family work from an infanticide and the migration of poor women to towns— early age, can be sold, or can earn in paid jobs, although will increase recognition of women’s economic impor- payments are pitifully low. Motherhood generally had no tance. Asian women leaders are well aware that rising publicly acknowledged value in most industrialized coun- populations impede women’s efforts to raise their eco- tries until, beginning in the mid-twentieth century, a nomic status. Children are future competitors for their number of governments began to develop social security parents’ jobs. provisions for maternity leave to which employers as well By the late 1990s, under growing pressure from women as employees have to contribute. As a result some female citizens, more countries had officially taken steps to ac- and male managers and employers—for instance, in Latin knowledge the importance of unpaid work: Trinidad and American countries and Britain—were found by labor and Tobago in 1996 passed a law; Canada and Switzerland in- women’s organizations to be reluctant to add to overheads cluded relevant questions in censuses; New Zealand and by employing women. In some countries, for example, the Spain initiated “time-use” studies. However, the adoption United States, with its Family and Medical Leave Act of of “time-use” as a means of measuring the economic worth 1993, maternity leave is unpaid, but employers have to of unpaid work devalues it. Only the lowest status, least

440 ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS skilled paid jobs are remunerated on time rates of pay; skill GNP per capita rank higher than some ascribed greater and energy are taken into account in most paid jobs. GNP values. Geographically small states experience pressure more The members of the United Nations Commission on than large ones. In Belgium, the Netherlands, and parts of the Status of Women are mostly from educated female Britain there are more people per square hectare than in elites who feel their professional achievements may be most other countries, including China and India. Striking a belittled if the economic value of unpaid home and family balance between population growth, a country’s area and work is acknowledged. The strategic objectives that natural resources, and the foreseeable demand for labor is a emerged from the 1995 Women’s World Conference sup- priority for raising women’s economic status, especially ported women’s need for paid help with children and fam- where there is high unemployment. ily care, but apparently these functions were not counted Men’s economic measurements. So long as women’s as economic and part of the labor market. The present economic status is determined by measurements developed United Nations view is that putting a notional value on by men—gross domestic product (GDP) and gross national unpaid work and including it in GDP should be left to in- product (GNP), which value work in terms of cash or dividual countries. equivalents like oil—the true value of women’s economic No country can afford to pay women for their unpaid contributions will remain invisible. For example, the gov- work. Countries can, however, acknowledge its value ernments of the various Indian states set what they consid- loudly and publicly, and work can be redefined—no longer ered a fair payment for work on small and marginal farms. limited to what is paid for in cash—as effort—all effort—in On that basis the women on these farms in the late 1980s order to live. were adding about U.S. $62.5 million a day to India’s GDP that was never counted. See Also Beginning in the United States in 1920, women, some- CAREGIVERS; CASTE; CHILD CARE; CLASS; DOMESTIC LABOR; times supported by men, have been insisting that house- ECONOMY: OVERVIEW; HOUSEWORK; MATERNITY LEAVE; hold and family work has an economic value. In 1947 the MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS; POVERTY; SLAVERY; International Labor Organization began to include in its VOLUNTEERISM; WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES statistical yearbooks numbers of female and male “Unpaid Family Workers” in family economic enterprises—that is, References and Further Reading in farming, manufacturing, shops, and so on. All unpaid jobs in homes are also done for pay outside; this provides a Anderson, Bridget. 2000. Doing the dirty work: The global poli- basis for estimating values through market rates, negoti- tics of domestic labour. London: Zed. ated agreements, insurance company premiums for re- Anti-Slavery International. Newsletters. 1993-. London: Anti- placement of wives and mothers, agency rates, and so on. Slavery International. However, work done for no pay results in low pay for Bales, Kevin. 1999. Disposable people: New slavery in the global many jobs done for the market. In the 1970s estimates of economy. Berkeley: University of California Press. the cash value of unpaid household work amounted to Barot, Ronit, Harriet Brady, and Steve Fenton, eds. 1999. Ethnic- about a third of GNP in the United States, and 40 percent ity, gender, and social change. London: Macmillan. or just over half, in Canada, depending on whether wom- Bhatt, Ela. 1991. Organizing self-employed women toward en’s or men’s earnings were used for the calculation. That selfreliance. Women’s Information Network for Asia and the difference in itself was an illustration of women’s lesser Pacific Newsletter, nos. 8–9(Dec.):15. earnings. In Japan, calculating on the basis of women’s Goldschmidt-Clermont, Luisella. 1982. Unpaid work in the earnings would have added only 8.7 percent to the GNP. In household. Women, Work, and Development Series 1. Ge- Finland, in 1981, the calculated figure was only somewhat neva: International Labour Office. higher—an additon of 9.6 percent for house cleaning and International Labor and Working-Class History 56 (Fall 1999). child care alone. Lewenhak, Sheila. 1988. The revaluation of women’s work. Lon- The United Nations Children’s Fund and the United don: Croom Helm. Nations Development Program in the 1990s began to cre- Lim, Lin Lean. 1996. More and better jobs far women: An action ate alternative measurements to GDP and GNP. Health, guide. Geneva: International Labour Office. education, a clean environment, and free participation all Melkas, Helena, and Richard Anker. 1998. Gender equality and count in the United Nations Development Programs Hu- occupational segregation in Nordic labour markets. Geneva: man Development Index, in which countries with very low International Labour Office.

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Survival International. 1994. Survival Newsletter 33. London: must be taken of differences among the three major para- Survival International. digms or approaches in economics. The dominant main- Waring, Marilyn. 1988. If women counted. London: Macmillan. stream approach, called neoclassical economics is characterized by its use of a behavioral model of constrained Sheila Lewenhak choice, where individual units (be they persons or firms) maximize their self-interest, and these choices generate the supply and demand of commodities and resources in mar- kets, where prices are determined. The radical paradigm, ECONOMICS: Feminist Critiques on the other hand, with more or less explicit roots in the Marxist tradition, emphasizes factors beyond the control of Economics is a male-dominated discipline, in terms of the individual, focusing on the structural forces in the practitioners, subject matter, and approach. Feminists both economy that limit and shape the choices people have. The outside and inside economics have sought to develop a relations of production (class) are central to the analysis. feminist interpretation of the economy and have challenged The institutional paradigm, while somewhat diverse and the male bias of the formal discipline. The feminist critique eclectic, draws attention to culture and the inseparability of of economics concerns its treatment of women and the the political, economic, and social spheres. The institutional limitations of its analysis resulting from its inadequate in- context of decision making is of critical importance and leads clusion of gender. to more complex, multidisciplinary explanations of eco- Economics claims as its domain the whole of reproduc- nomic behavior. Feminists working within each tradition tion, distribution, and consumption in society: the use of have challenged and critiqued each approach. resources, human and physical, to meet human needs. Such a broad definition should include women; however, eco- Neoclassical Economics nomics is essentially about male experience or a male view Neoclassical economics has perhaps come under the most of the world. This is not surprising, given that the majority attack. The critique includes both the gender biases in the of economists are male. Throughout the 1990s women concepts and methods and the problems with traditional made up about 13 percent of the economics faculty at economic analysis of women. Neoclassical economics Ph.D.-granting institutions in the United States (Committee rests on an analysis of how scarcity and choice underlie the on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession, allocation of resources. As Becker wrote, “The combined 1999). In New Zealand in 1992 only two of thirty senior assumptions of maximizing behavior, market equilibrium staff in economics departments were women (Hyman, and stable preferences, used relentlessly and unflinchingly, 1994:49). form the heart of the economic approach” (quoted in Furthermore, research on the history of economic Hyman, 1994:23). Feminist economists join others in chal- thought has shown that a more inclusive view of the lenging how economics has become defined and limited by economy was systematically undermined (Pujol, 1992). this approach. They argue that economics should be de- Economics has overwhelmingly concentrated on the public fined by subject matter, not by one approach. Nelson sphere, on the buying and selling of inputs and goods in the (1993:32) suggests that economics should focus on “the market. This focus on price (and wage) determination provisioning of human life, that is on the commodities and means that much of the economic activity of women is ig- processes necessary to human survival,” which would in- nored, because it is unpaid. This partly reflects the actual clude, but not be limited to, the study of choice. undervaluing and nonrecognition of women in the real Feminists have long criticized the concept of the ra- world, of concern to feminists everywhere. It also ignores tional economic man, which is the cornerstone of the the underlying relations between the paid and unpaid model of choice in microeconomic theory. The primary economies and between household production and market unit of analysis is the individual decision maker who makes production. rational choices among alternatives in accordance with Feminists expose the male bias in the theory and con- mathematical principles of constrained optimization. The cepts of economics and in the inability of economics to deal consumer maximizes well-being, termed utility, and the adequately with feminist concerns such as gender inequal- producer maximizes profit, subject to constraints. Is this a ity in the paid market, the gender division of labor, distribu- reasonable approximation of human motivation and tional issues within households, and the economic importance behavior? Does it apply more to the behavior of men than of unpaid work. In discussing these issues, explicit account women? Individualism and self-reliance are key behavioral

442 ECONOMICS: FEMINIST CRITIQUES attributes built into the models and implicitly championed the discipline reflects the social devaluation of “feminin- by the analysis. ity” and has erased from view feminine reality and Feminists object to how the analysis of the rational eco- nonmasculine worldviews, values, and ways of knowing. nomic agent focuses on choice, rather than on constraints. Choice, independence of action, competition, individual- People are all dependent at some stage of life, and individu- ism—all core aspects of the economic model—are identi- als differ in how much real choice they have in their various fied in many cultures with masculinity. A related aspect is economic transactions. The focus on choice tends to trans- the defining of male behavior as the norm, implicitly leav- late into laissez-faire attitudes, assuming that economic ing female as the “other.” Feminist theory argues that disci- outcomes are freely and rationally chosen. plines like economics have an implicitly male standpoint The neoclassical model, with its focus on the individual, and that this must be balanced by analysis based on a fe- does not capture the relational aspects of decision making. male standpoint. This will require theoretical and methodo- The model assumes that tastes or preferences are exog- logical tools different from those that have been honed to enous rather than analyzing the interdependence of tastes the male standpoint. and endogenous preference changes (England, 1993; The feminist critique also questions the obsessive math- Woolley, 1993). The model also assumes that interpersonal ematical focus of neoclassical economics. Feminist econo- utility comparisons are impossible, because utility is the mists do not advocate abandoning mathematics; they satisfaction of subjective desires. This rests on a notion of a advocate opening the discourse to other forms of analysis separative self rather than on an assumption of and argument and emphasize possibilities for other lenses interconnectedness (England, 1993). It denies absolute to view economic reality, other rules of the game in the eco- measures of well-being and comparisons of group well-be- nomics discipline. Julie Nelson(1993:33–34) puts it this ing. The model also assumes self-interested behavior, way: “I am not claiming or advocating that men do one which often translates into selfish behavior. This concep- kind of economics and women another. Nor do I believe tion again rests on an individualistic notion of human na- that the problem can be solved by asking economists who ture and in turn reinforces individualistic behavior. Only in want a richer approach to simply remove themselves to so- neoclassical models of the household (the new home eco- ciology (as has been suggested more than once)…. Rather nomics) is altruism introduced as a form of self-interested than keeping high-status economics as it is and pushing all behavior, in order to allow for a joint utility function among dissidents out, I suggest that the term economics be re- household members. Feminist critiques of this household claimed. Let us start by speaking of the mathematical model are discussed later. “Overlapping generations” mod- theory of individual choice, as ‘the mathematical theory of els in new growth theory analysis build on this work on individual choice,’ instead of as ‘economic theory’; or the altruism and joint utility functions. choice-theoretic approach as the ‘choice-theoretic ap- The concept of rational man-economic action is also proach,’ instead of as ‘the economic approach.’” subject to the general feminist philosophy of science cri- In addition to critiquing of the conceptual and methodo- tique of positivism for its implicit gender bias (Nelson, logical basis of neoclassical economics, feminists chal- 1992.), as well as to the postmodern critique of the lenge specific applications of the analysis. Women are universalist claims of positive science. The feminist cri- rendered invisible by the focus on market transactions. The tique of science draws attention to the dualisms, such as distinction between production and consumption also mind/body, objective/subjective, rational/emotional, on makes invisible women’s labor by consigning nonmarket which positive science is based. Claims of objectivity and production to the sphere of consumption. Much of what value neutrality are challenged. Science is identified with women contribute to the economy is explicitly outside the masculine values and a male standpoint, while the claim is domain of traditional economics. In the simple models of made that such science is value-free and neutral, uncover- labor supply, the activities of women in the home are ing universal principles and truths. The feminist critique of labeled “leisure,” and only paid work is counted as “work.” science emphasizes the implicit hierarchical duality in this This invisibility of women’s work is most clearly apparent form of analysis—objective versus subjective; hard versus in the national accounts, where most nonmarket work is soft science; masculinity versus femininity. Neoclassical not valued. The standard comment in introductory eco- economics provides clear examples of this (Nelson, 1995). nomics is that gross national product (GNP) goes down if a In the feminist critique, it is not that economics has sim- man marries his housekeeper. The woman’s actual work ply not yet turned its attention to feminist concerns; rather, does not change, but it is no longer counted as part of the the whole construction of the theory and methodology of production of goods and services in the economy. Although

443 ECONOMICS: FEMINIST CRITIQUES this is often acknowledged as an unfortunate oversight, rational choice are driven by selfishness, the home models feminist scholars have revealed conscious gendered deci- are driven by altruism. Feminists point out the need to rec- sion making, which turned home production into leisure ognize elements of both altruism and selfishness in both and eliminated it from “economic activity” (Benería, 1981; spheres. The minimum requirement for a feminist model of Folbre, 1991; Waring, 1988). The definitions of economic the household is one that allows for conflict of interests and activity in the national accounts not only render women’s patriarchal power relations within and outside the family. work invisible but also count activities that damage the en- Bargaining models have been developed based on coopera- vironment and thus overstate the “value” of our production. tive and noncooperative game theory (Hyman, 1994; Because economic concepts and measures take a narrow Lundberg and Pollack, 1996; McElroy and Horney, 1981). and shortsighted view of the economy, they do not provide Such models assume that individuals within households a full accounting of the value of resources used and output have different preferences and experiences. All these “col- produced. Thus neoclassical economics fails at its own goal lective models” also share the idea that control of market of analyzing efficient resource allocation. In the late twen- income may influence decision-making power within the tieth century the efforts of women led to significant steps to household and affect outcomes such as expenditure pat- take better account of unpaid work, through changes to the terns and labor supply. They challenge the standard eco- UN System of National Accounts and the development of nomic assumption of the household as an income- satellite accounts by some countries (Benería, 1992). pooling unit. Neoclassical economics has increasingly turned its at- Each household model has to capture the asymmetries tention to household decision making and household pro- between men and women (Woolley, 1993). There are prob- duction in the new home economics (Becker, 1981). lems with all these models, however, because they all rely Although feminists applaud this focus, they have been on the general neoclassical principle of constrained optimi- highly critical of the analysis. The “new home economics” zation, with its limited focus. While intrahousehold in- takes the basic neoclassical model discussed above, with its equality is now a recognized issue within economics, the analysis of maximizing behavior and choice, and applies it neoclassical approach does not provide adequate insight to decision making on issues ranging from choice of mar- into this central feminist concern. The whole area of the riage partner, to time allocation between home and market, economics of social reproduction remains marginalized to number of children. The subject matter is expanded, but and inadequately understood, with profound implications the conceptualization of human behavior is not. This work for policy issues in areas such as social security and child does not at all satisfactorily address feminist questions welfare (Elson, 1991; Folbre, 1986; Humphries and about the gender division of labor and the relationship of Rubery, 1984; MacDonald, 1998). unpaid domestic work to the paid market sphere. At most it Another crucial topic for feminists that is inadequately describes the vicious circle women are in, whereby house- addressed in the neoclassical approach is gender inequality hold responsibilities undermine their labor market work in the labor market. Feminists are concerned about the gen- and help justify lower wages and lower wages then per- der division of labor and the inequality of outcomes in the petuate the household sexual division of labor. It fails, how- labor market. Why do women earn less than men? Neoclas- ever, to shed light on the raison d’être of these gender sical economics has paid a lot of attention to the analysis of relationships. It is unable to address issues concerning the wage differentials. Given the emphasis on competition and function of this unpaid domestic work in the broader individual choice, the neoclassical approach draws atten- economy, as opposed to its utility to the individual house- tion to productivity-related characteristics that might ac- hold unit. It cannot resolve questions about overall re- count for wage differences (such as the amount or type of source allocation, including market and nonmarket education “chosen” by the individual) or job attributes that activities. might result in a wage difference due to the forces of supply These models of household behavior have to be based and demand (such as “heavy” work). To the extent that the on assumptions about how decisions are made. The initial gender wage gap can be explained by such factors, it is con- models assumed a joint or family utility function, with no sidered to reflect a well-functioning labor market. There is conflict or differences in preferences. Becker (1981) no interest in the systemic factors that might privilege men showed that you could reconcile separate individual utility in this regard. functions with a single household utility function by as- Neoclassical theories of discrimination suffer from a fo- suming an altruistic head who made decisions in every- cus on the individual (who may have a “taste” for discrimi- one’s best interests. Thus, whereas the market models of nation) and a lack of attention to institutional and social

444 ECONOMICS: FEMINIST CRITIQUES processes. The empirical methodology of neoclassical eco- both in the tradition of scientific rationalism and are subject nomics retains this focus on the individual. Research on to the same general feminist philosophy of science cri- gender wage differentials uses data on individual employ- tiques. ees and their attributes. The analysis proceeds in the tradi- The Marxist tradition, however, has always paid some tion of looking at industry, occupation, union/nonunion, or attention to the unpaid work of women. For example, the public/private sector wage differences. However, feminists analysis of the transformation from the domestic mode of working with such wage equations quickly find that most production to capitalism includes its impact on the family of the variance is unexplained, using the variables that neo- and the sexual division of labor. Another example is the classical economic theory draws attention to. Neoclassical relationship of the cost of social reproduction of labor economics does not facilitate an understanding of the ori- power (including unpaid work) to the production of value. gins, nature, and function of sexism or patriarchy, as mani- Thus gender relations are more visible in Marxist econom- fested in the gender division of labor in the home and in ics, though they have traditionally been of only peripheral occupational segregation and the glass ceiling in the interest in the development of the paradigm. Only the femi- workplace. These are the “invisible” determinants of wage nists working within this approach have seriously tried to inequality in the neoclassical literature. expand the analysis of the relations of reproduction and The feminist critique of applied neoclassical economics production under patriarchy and capitalism (Gardiner, has tended to focus on its analysis of household and labor 1975; Hartmann, 1979; MacDonald, 1984). market inequalities, but increasing attention is being paid The methodology of radical economics, which empha- to problems with other topic areas. For example, macroeco- sizes historical analysis, class conflict, and relations of nomics is increasingly under attack for its implicit male power, has both attractions and traps as a framework for bias and neglect of the sphere of economic reproduction . It is appealing in its fundamental rec- (Bakker, 1994; Cagatay, Elson and Grown, 1995; Elson, ognition of conflicting interests and systemic power differ- 1991). Its focus on market production gives a distorted un- ences among groups and in the questions raised about the derstanding of the economy. Feminists emphasize the inter- family wage and the importance of the reproduction of relationships between the productive and reproductive labor power (Albelda, 1997; Hyman, 1994; MacDonald, sphere and the feedback effects created when the reproduc- 1984). It is disappointing, however, in its emphasis on class tive sphere is unduly stressed, as it was in developing coun- divisions, which consistently dwarf or marginalize con- tries undergoing structural adjustment in the late twentieth cerns with other divisions, such as gender or race. Feminist century (Elson, 1991). Third world feminists have been economists did not readily find answers to their concerns very active in critiquing the modernization approach to de- about gender inequality in this paradigm. Women have velopment, with its roots in neoclassical economics (Sen been introduced in certain fields as a topic; however, the and Grown, 1987), and in developing alternative gender overall approach has not been altered by incorporating and development analyses. feminist concerns and analyses. Feminist critiques of the radical approach focus on the Radical Economics two topic areas discussed in the neoclassical critique: the Radical economics, or political economy, has a long tradi- analysis of the household and the unpaid work of women, tion in economics as an alternative to the neoclassical ap- and the analysis of gender inequalities in the labor market. proach. The radical paradigm, with more or less explicit These critiques arise from the experience of feminist roots in the Marxist tradition, emphasizes factors beyond economists trying to ground their work within the radical the control of the individual, focusing on the structural approach (Folbre, 1982; Hartmann, 1979). forces in the economy that limit and shape the choices peo- The radical analysis of the household focuses more on ple have. Issues of power are central to the analysis. This the role of domestic labor in relation to the external gives it an appeal to feminists attuned to systemic gender economy than on the choices of the individual woman and inequality, and feminist work in economics is better estab- her family, as in neoclassical analysis. However, as lished within this tradition than within the neoclassical ap- Humphries and Rubery (1984) point out, Marxist econom- proach. However, radical economics has traditionally ics as well as neoclassical economics treats the family ei- focused more on the relations of production and class than ther as totally autonomous (exogenous) or in a reductionist/ of reproduction and gender. The economy that has been functionalist way (subsumed to the interests of capital). studied is the same money economy as in neoclassical eco- Marxist economics is also silent on the issue of inequality nomics, and the methodologies of the two approaches are within the home (Folbre, 1986).

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Feminists have tried to bend, stretch, and reinterpret However, that is not to say that institutionalist work has Marxist categories to accommodate gender concerns. For made gender central to its analysis (Peterson and Brown, example, the work done by socialist feminists in the area of 1994). Gender blindness characterizes much of this work, women’s paid and unpaid work and its economic meaning as it does in the related disciplines of anthropology, sociol- has taken two tracks, drawing on traditional Marxist ana- ogy, and history. lytic categories (MacDonald, 1984). The reserve army of There is also a related institutional literature in labor labor analysis has been modified to address questions of economics that emphasizes the social context of labor mar- female labor force participation, and the relationship be- kets and the importance of institutional structures. It exists tween reproduction and production in the creation of value in opposition to aspects of the neoclassical and radical ap- has been analyzed at length in the domestic labor debate proaches. Institutional labor economics is less abstract and (Gardiner, 1975). These categories have proved inad- mathematical than its neoclassical counterpart. There is a equate, and feminist political economists are increasingly more interdisciplinary flavor in both theory and methods. moving beyond the straitjacket of traditional concepts While interested in issues of power, inequality, and con- (Folbre, 1994). flict, institutionalists do not embrace Marxist categories or The radical approach pays considerable attention to the method. Institutional work on wage inequality has focused systemic creation of inequalities within the labor market, on internal labor markets—the complex job and wage and this has provided a home for feminists concerned about structures of firms that create a world somewhat insulated gender inequalities. They have argued for an analysis of the from competitive market pressures. Institutionalists em- labor process as inherently gendered, exploring relation- phasize rigidities and systemic inequalities in the labor ships between capitalism and patriarchy (in endless varia- market that give rise to labor market segmentation tions) (Hartmann, 1976). In the 1990s considerable (MacDonald, 1984). Structural factors, rather than indi- attention began to be devoted to racial issues, recognizing vidual choice, are emphasized in explanations of labor the differences among women (Amott and Matthaei, 1991). market inequality. Systemic inequalities related to race and Despite the considerable body of work on the labor market gender are analyzed. While this approach addresses femi- by feminists within the radical approach, they are still frus- nist concerns, its emphasis on “women and other minori- trated by the failure of the approach to incorporate gender ties” does not elucidate the fundamental gendered nature of into the core of its analytic framework. For most econo- the economy and the particular subordination of women. mists gender is not a factor unless one is studying house- The focus is paid work and the norm is the good, implicitly hold or labor market issues. The more fundamental male job—with women and minorities cast in the position gendered nature of the economy goes largely unrecognized. of “other.” Feminists working in this tradition are strug- gling to have gender and household made more central to Institutional Economics the analysis. The third approach in economics is the institutional tradi- tion. This approach combines the American tradition of Conclusion Thorstein Veblen with the European tradition of Karl Economic theory has failed to provide answers to the most Polanyi and Gunnar Myrdal (Jennings, 1993). The “new fundamental feminist concerns about the economy, includ- institutionalism” associated with Oliver Williamson is not ing the pervasive economic subordination of women and part of this approach but is basically an application of neo- the relationship of the unpaid work of women to the formal classical principles to the analysis of institutions. economy. The critique of neoclassical economics is espe- Institutionalism constitutes a critique of the neoclassical cially strong, and feminists are also challenging radical and approach and is in agreement with many elements of the institutional economics. Many feminist issues are essen- feminist critique. Its focus on culture, historical processes, tially economic, yet economics has not provided answers and collective activity is more in keeping with feminist or even frameworks capable of formulating the questions. concerns. Institutionalism, like feminist philosophy, rejects The critiques outlined in this article are being reiterated by dualistic constructions. feminists around the globe—in developing and industrial- Thus the institutional approach, like the radical ap- ized countries. The hegemony of the neoclassical market proach, views the economy in a holistic way that offers the model and its dominance in policy making affect women potential to incorporate feminist analysis. The flavor of the everywhere. Feminists both within and outside the disci- analysis is more interdisciplinary, the view of human pline of economics are increasingly challenging this ap- behavior more complex than the neoclassical approach. proach. Feminist economics is beginning to take shape,

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drawing on elements of-each of the traditional approaches ——. 1994. Who pays for the kids? Gender and the structures of but fundamentally transforming them in the process. The constraint. London: Routledge. International Association for Feminist Economics has been Gardiner, Jean. 1975. Women’s domestic labor. New Left Review, active since the early 1990s in promoting feminist inquiry no. 89. into economic issues, including publishing the journal Hartmann, Heidi. 1976. Capitalism, patriarchy, and segregation by Feminist Economics and holding annual conferences. The sex. Signs 1(3). literature in feminist economics has grown exponentially ——. 1979. The unhappy marriage of Marxism and feminism: and shows every indication of continuing to flourish. Towards a more progressive union. Capital and Class, no. 8. Humphries, Jane, ed. 1995. Gender and economics. Aldershot, See Also U.K.: Edward Elgar. DIVISION OF LABOR; ECONOMIC STATUS: COMPARATIVE Humphries, Jane, and Jill Rubery. 1984. The reconstitution of the ANLYSIS; ECONOMY: INFORMAL; MARXISM; THIRD WORLD; supply side of the labour market. Cambridge Journal of Eco- WORK: FEMINIST THEORIES nomics 8(4):331–346. Hyman, Prue. 1994. Women and economics: A New Zealand femi- References and Further Reading nist perspective. Wellington, N.Z.: Bridget Williams. Albelda, Randy. 1997. Economics and feminism: Disturbances in Jennings, Ann. 1993. Public or private? Institutional economics the field. New York: Twayne. and feminism. In Marianne Ferber and Julie Nelson, eds., Amott, Teresa, and Julie Matthaei. 1991. Race, gender, and work: Beyond economic man: Feminist theory and economics. Chi- A multicultural economic history of women in the United cago: University of Chicago Press. States. Boston: South End. Kuiper, Edith, and Jolande Sap, eds. 1995. Out of the margin: Bakker, Isabella, ed. 1994. The strategic silence: Gender and eco- Feminist perspectives on economics. New York and London: nomic policy. London: Zed. Routledge. Becker, Gary. 1981. A treatise on the family. Cambridge, Mass.: Lundberg, Shelly, and Robert Pollack. 1996. Bargaining and distri- Harvard University Press. bution within marriage. Journal of Economic Perspectives 10. Benería, Lourdes. 1981. Conceptualizing the labor force: The un- MacDonald, Martha. 1984. Economics and feminism: The dismal derestimation of women’s economic activities. Journal of science? Studies in Political Economy 15:151–178. Development Studies 17(3):11–28. ——. 1998. Gender and social security policy: Pitfalls and possi- ——. 1992. Accounting for women’s work: The progress of two bilities. Feminist Economics 4(1):1–25. decades. World Development 20(11):1547–1560. McElroy, M.J., and M.B.Horney. 1981. Nash bargained house- Cagatay, N., D.Elson, and C.Grown, eds. 1995. Gender, adjust- hold decision-making. International Economic Review 22: ment, and macroeconomics. Special issue of World Develop- 333–349. ment 23(11). Nelson, Julie. 1992. Gender, metaphor, and the definition of eco- Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession. nomics. Economics and Philosophy 8(1):103–125. 1999. 1999 annual report (www.cswep.org). ——. 1993. The study of choice or the study of provisioning? Elson, Diane, ed. 1991. Male bias in the development process. Gender and the definition of economics. In Marianne Ferber Manchester: Manchester University Press. and Julie Nelson, eds., Beyond economic man: Feminist England, Paula. 1993. The separative self: Androcentric bias in theory and economics. Chicago: University of Chicago neoclassical assumption. In Marianne Ferber and Julie Nel- Press. son, eds., Beyond economic man: Feminist theory and eco- ——. 1995. Feminism and economics. Journal of Economic Per- nomics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. spectives 9(2):131–148. Ferber, Marianne, and Julie Nelson, eds. 1993. Beyond economic Peterson, Janice, and Doug Brown, eds. 1994. The economic sta- man: Feminist theory and economics. Chicago: University of tus of women under capitalism: Institutional economics and Chicago Press . feminist theory. Aldershot, U.K.: Edward Elgar. Folbre, Nancy. 1982. Exploitation comes home: A critique of the Peterson, Janice, and Margaret Lewis, eds. 1999. The Elgar com- Marxian theory of family labour. Cambridge Journal of Eco- panion to feminist economics. Northhampton, Mass.: nomics 6(4):317–329. Edward Elgar. ——. 1986. Hearts and spades: Paradigms of household econom- Pujol, Michele. 1992. Feminism and anti-feminism in early eco- ics. World Development 14(2):245–255. nomic thought. Aldershot, U.K.: Edward Elgar. ——. 1991. The unproductive housewife: Her evolution in nine- Sen, Gita, and Caren Grown, eds. 1987. Development crises and teenth-century economic thought. Signs 16(3): 463–484. alternative visions. New York: Monthly Review.

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Waring, Marilyn. 1988. If women counted. San Francisco: written by feminist anthropologists, historians, political HarperCollins. scientists, and sociologists from across the globe. Schol- Woolley, Frances. 1993. The feminist challenge to neoclassical arship along these lines may differ in emphasis, but in economics. Cambridge Journal of Economics 17:485–500. general it highlights the importance of women’s contribu- tions to waged and unwaged labor, the extent of job segre- Martha MacDonald gation caused by the sexual division of labor, and the serious economic disadvantages faced by women. It de- scribes differences and similarities in the experiences of women between countries and cultures and emphasizes ECONOMY: Overview women’s capacity to “fight back,” their persistent efforts to carry on with their important daily tasks and to improve Everywhere in the world women make a crucial contribu- the quality of life for their children, their community, and tion to the economy—that is, to the production of goods themselves. and services essential for human survival. But everywhere Feminist explanations of women’s position in the women’s economic status is lower than that of men. Much economy and in work and development focus on the nature of women’s economic activity is “unwaged” (unpaid) or of patriarchy. Feminists reject theories of rational choice, poorly paid. Very few women are financially independent developed by neoclassical economics, which assume that or participate in economic decision making as business en- women choose not to take a major role in “market” eco- trepreneurs, as directors of banks and other financial insti- nomic activities. Feminists are also critical of “radical eco- tutions, or as traders in financial markets. There are nomics,” or political economy perspectives, which argue considerable cross-cultural and cross-class differences in that women’s position can be explained solely by the eco- the opportunities available to women and the type of eco- nomic processes of capitalism. Instead they argue for the nomic activities in which they engage: women of color development of feminist economic and social theories that generally are less well off than white women; women in acknowledge the importance of women’s unwaged work, industrial countries have a wider and different range of eco- explain the connection between women’s waged and nomic activities available to them than women in agrarian unwaged work, and—while recognizing the relevance of societies. Religion, education, class, and ethnicity all play a class, ethnicity, and cultural differences among women— part. But all women have in common the fact that their eco- give central attention to patriarchal structures, created by nomic contribution, however extensive, tends to be ignored men for men, as the reasons for women’s economic disad- or underrated and that their economic status and power are vantage. less than that of men. Economy Discourses on Economy and Development A fruitful starting point for analysis is the history of wom- According to many thinkers, the lack of attention to wom- en’s participation in the economy. A review of this history en’s economic contribution is a consequence of the pre- reveals profound differences in the position of women be- dominance of (male) mainstream economic thinking, tween gatherer-hunter, agrarian, feudal, industrial capital- which renders unwaged work invisible, gives attention only ist, industrial socialist, and colonized nonwestern societies. to economic activities that take place in the formal labor Studies indicate gradual deterioration in women’s eco- market, and undervalues the waged work of women. Writ- nomic status as economic surplus increased: whereas ers such as Marilyn Waring (1988), for example, have women were central to the survival of their communities in drawn attention to the distorted view of the economy pro- gatherer-hunter societies, they became subordinate to men duced by the collection of government statistics that ignore in subsistence agricultural societies—although they were most of women’s productive work. This distorted view is still major participants in economic activities. For exam- reflected in malecentered definitions of concepts such as ple, Gerda Lerner (1986), describing economic develop- work, unemployment, leisure, the informal economy, and ments in Mesopotamia in the Neolithic period, argued development, rendering such definitions inappropriate for that it was at the time of the development of agriculture the analysis of women’s work. that women became sexual and reproductive subordi- Current literature in economics includes a wide range nates, “traded” between men of different tribes as part of of works that redress the bias of conventional scholarship warfare and economic exchange. Industrial capitalism on the economy, labor, and development. Such works are brought a new dimension to women’s subordination with

448 ECONOMY: OVERVIEW its sharp distinction between home and work and with its children, water carrying, fuel collection, cleaning, wash- new definitions of the categories of paid work suitable for ing, sewing; it also involves the complex and never-end- men and women. It was in this context that the productive ing emotional labor associated with caring for children work carried out by women in the home became defined as and partners. In addition it may include unwaged infor- nonwork—being work that did not take place in the public mal care of the elderly and chronically ill in family and sphere and was not paid. community and volunteer work for charitable organiza- During the second half of the twentieth century a major tions. Being a wife may also encompass unwaged work economic restructuring took place that rendered the entire for husbands: doctors’ wives act as office receptionist, world a “global supermarket.” In those regions most af- wives of tradesmen keep the books and answer the tel- fected, globalization of agriculture has led to the demise of ephone, church ministers’ wives carry out innumerable subsistence economies and therefore of the livelihood of social and pastoral tasks, and businessmen’s wives are women. Whereas they had once been subsistence produc- expected to play hostess to important guests (Finch, ers together with men, women now became defined as 1983). In agricultural societies women’s work as food “housewives” whose livelihood depended on men (Mies, producers and traders provides much of the subsistence 1986). Where globalization of industry (for example, in for their families. Such “informal” work is still common electronics or textiles) occurred, young women were the in industrial settings: women take in boarders, baby-sit, preferred workers because they could be forced to accept clean houses, take in washing and ironing, or do low wages and submit to employers’ strict work regimes. “outwork” within their homes—all work activities that As Maria Mies has noted, the processes are similar in de- they are paid for but that are not defined as part of the veloped and developing countries. They involve deregula- formal labor market (Chen et al., 1999). When in the for- tion, flexibility of labor, “housewifization,” and an mal labor market, women are commonly found in low- increase in informal sector work and home-based paying casual and part-time jobs and in areas typically (sweated) labor. defined as “women’s work” in retail, clerical, domestic, The poor economic status of women has meant a strong service, and so-called caring labor. They tend to work in reliance by women on state welfare in those countries— smaller enterprises, may work in isolated sites (for exam- generally only industrialized capitalist countries—where ple, providing domiciliary care to the elderly), and may state welfare is provided to modify the negative effects of not have the protection of industrial unions. Especially the market economy. However, in the late twentieth century when they are employed in “caring labor,” which is government policies of privatization eroded such welfare deemed women’s natural province, their work is often provisions. This led to a reduction in paid-work opportuni- defined as unskilled. ties for women (traditionally women are employed to pro- Women’s entry in the professions is generally seen as a vide these state welfare services) and an increased reliance benchmark of their progress toward equality. However, the on the unwaged work of women as informal carers and vol- professions remain segregated, with women predominating unteers. In countries without developed welfare systems, in lower-status professions and in the lower echelons of women’s welfare is normally dependent on family support highstatus professions. The very few women who make it and their own involvement in subsistence agriculture or to the top are expected to fit in with the dominant male cul- paid employment. Where global restructuring has under- ture and frequently experience strong resistance from male mined women’s opportunities to gain a livelihood through colleagues. The same applies in the case of senior manage- trading or wage labor, without the safety net of state wel- ment and government bureaucracies (see, for example, fare, abject poverty is common. Marginal, unregulated ac- Cockburn, 1991). The public service sector is an important tivities such as street vending, work as a domestic servant, employer of women in industrialized capitalist countries. and prostitution are the symptoms. This is why the process of privatization—that is, the cutting of government expenditure through transfer of services to Work the nongovernment profit or not-for-profit sector—has se- For an analysis of the nature of women’s work it is impor- rious implications for women, robbing them of stable job tant to reiterate that waged and unwaged work need to be opportunities and relegating the services back to them considered. Both waged work and unwaged work are ex- without pay. tremely varied. Women’s unwaged work commonly in- For most women their hours of paid work and the loca- volves the many physical tasks of being a wife and mother tion and type of paid work they undertake are affected by such as food production, meal preparation and feeding of domestic contingencies. When women’s paid and unpaid

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working hours are combined, they work much longer hours Cockburn, Cynthia. 1991. In the way of women: Men’s resistance than men, and the necessity of juggling their paid and un- to sex equality in organizations. London: Macmillan. paid work often has a deleterious effect on their advance- Finch, Janet. 1983. Married to the job: Wives’ incorporation in ment in paid work. This problem has been recognized in men’s work. London: Allen and Unwin. legislation facilitating the combination of paid and family Lerner, Gerda. 1986. The creation of patriarchy. New York: Ox- work through the provision of child care, maternity leave, ford University Press. and parental leave. The recognition that women face dis- Mies, Maria. 1986. Patriarchy and accumulation on a world scale. crimination when seeking (advancement in) paid work has London: Zed. also led to equal opportunity and antidiscrimination legis- ——. 1997–1998. Women and work in a sustainable society. lation. Cross Currents, no. 47 (Winter):473–492. Shiva, Vandana. 1989. Staying alive: Women, ecology, and devel- Development opment. London: Zed. The concept of development has frequently been associ- Waring, Marilyn. 1988. Counting for nothing. Wellington, N.Z.: ated with processes of modernization and westernization Allen and Unwin. in socalled developing (sometimes called third world) Cora Vellekoop Baldock countries. Since the 1970s feminists have criticized such processes as detrimental to women: they observed that development policies marginalized women’s contribu- tions to the economy and inevitably led to a reduction in ECONOMY: Families and Households women’s economic opportunities. The feminist preoccu- See HOUSEHOLDS: DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION; pation was to rewrite the “development” agenda so as to HOUSEHOLDS: POLITICAL ECONOMY; and HOUSEHOLDS: emphasize the necessity for a global perspective that fo- RESOURCES. cuses on human rather than exclusively economic factors and on a humane economics for an environmentally sus- tainable, nondestructive economy (Mies, 1997–1998; Shiva, 1989). ECONOMY: Global Restructuring The economic opportunities of women in industrialized capitalist countries are also an aspect of development. The term global restructuring refers to the process of the There are vast differences in the position of women be- globalization of the market economy. Although this tween and within countries in terms of economic struc- process started with the beginning of colonialism in the tures, educational levels and religious and other cultural sixteenth century and with the development of capital- factors. For instance, the enterprise system in Japan as- ism as a world system (Wallerstein, 1974), late twenti- sumes a worker’s lifelong total devotion to one firm (a no- eth-century discourse on globalization or global tion that is difficult to reconcile with a woman’s family life restructuring of the economy means that practically all cycle); and sex segregation still prevails in some Middle regions and countries of the world are now integrated Eastern countries, where women are forbidden to work out- into the capitalist economy of commodity production side the home in the company of men. It appears that every- and consumption. In this process goods produced in dif- where—even in the most privileged settings of North ferent and distant parts of the world, particularly in the America, western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand— developing or poor countries of the “South,” are being women are subservient to men, carrying out waged and sold and consumed in the affluent countries and the unwaged economic activities that underpin the wage “North.” This process has had far-reaching conse- economy and support men’s paid work. quences for societies in both the South and the North, particularly for women and their work. See Also In the following overview three stages of global restruc- Specific topics: DEVELOPMENT, ECONOMY; WORK turing will be discussed: (1) the colonial period; (2) the pe- riod beginning with the early 1970s, which has also been References and Further Reading called the new international division of labor; and (3) the Chen, Martha, Lesley O’Connell, and Jennifer Sebstad. 1999. period from the late 1980s through the 1990s. When people Counting the invisible workforce: The case of homebased talk of global restructuring, they usually refer to this last workers. World Development 27(3: March):603–608. stage, in which global institutions like the World Bank and

450 ECONOMY: GLOBAL RESTRUCTURING the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and agreements The New International Division of Labor (NIDL) like the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), The fundamentally colonial structure of the capitalist which was institutionalized in the World Trade Organiza- world economy was not abolished when most of the tion (WTO) in 1995, and the (failed) Multilateral Agree- former colonies won their political independence after ment on Investments (MAI) have been organizing the World War II. This was the period when old-style colonial- whole world economy into one global supermarket. The ism was replaced by the development discourse, which following analysis of this process will focus on its impact suggested that the former colonial countries could reach on women, particularly on their work, both in the South the living standard and the wealth of the former metropoles and in the North. by “catching-up-development” and industrialization (Mies and Shiva, 1993). Colonial Restructuring and Women’s Work By the beginning of the 1970s, particularly after the oil As Wallerstein (1974) pointed out, the new economic sys- shock (1972), it became clear that this independent devel- tem that started with colonialism in the sixteenth century opment of “underdeveloped” countries had not happened. was from the beginning a “world system,” aiming at divid- At the same time the leading economies of the world, and ing the whole world up in to “metropoles,” or “core coun- the transnational corporations (TNCs), were confronted tries,” and “colonies,” or “peripheries.” In this dualistic and with high-wage demands from workers and a flood of pet- hierarchical division of the world the colonies—usually rodollars that they could not profitably invest in their through direct violence and coercion—provided the cheap countries. The solution was a restructuring of the interna- raw material and the cheap labor for industrialization and tional division of labor. In the old international division of the accumulation of ever more capital and wealth in the labor, the colonies had been used as sources of raw mate- core countries. In the colonies large masses of people were rial, which then was manufactured into commodities in forcibly taken away from their subsistence base and trans- the metropoles. Now the TNCs of the United States, Eu- ported to other parts of the world, where they had to work rope, and Japan relocated entire factories to so-called as slaves or indentured laborers for their colonial masters. cheap labor countries, particularly southeast Asia and In the phase of slavery these masters calculated that it was Mexico, later also Tunisia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and cheaper “to purchase than to breed” slaves. Therefore, other poor countries. The relocated firms had a very high slave women were not allowed to marry or have children percentage of female workers. The industries that were and a family. They were treated merely as physical labor first relocated were electronics, textiles and garments, power (Reddock, 1994). toys, and plastics. This transfer was made possible by new Colonial plunder and exploitation are the base on which inventions in the field of electronics, by cheap transport the modern capitalist industrial society was built. Capital- costs, and by special concessions that the host countries ism also restructured women’s lives, work, and identities in gave to these companies. These concessions included re- the metropoles. Whereas formerly women had been sub- laxation of labor laws, exemption from import/export tar- sistence producers, together with men, they were now de- iffs, tax holidays, lax environmental laws, and prohibition fined as “housewives,” whose livelihood depended on a of strikes. The relocated production units were established male “breadwinner” for the nuclear family. This in special areas—Free Production Zones (FPZs), World “housewifization” of women became the complement to Market Factories (WMFs), Export Processing Zones the proletarianization of men. But whereas the proletarian (EPZs)—because at this stage the production was not for a sells his labor power for a wage or salary to an employer, home market but for consumers in the North. The TNCs the housewife does not get a wage for her work. Because chose these countries because of their low labor costs. In housewives’ nonwaged work takes place in the private 1994 a production worker in Germany earned $25 per sphere of the family, it is hidden, together with colonial hour, a worker in the United States $16, in Mexico $2.40, exploitation and the exploitation of nature, from the eyes of in Poland $1.40, in India, China, and Indonesia $0.50 economists and politicians. It does not appear in the UN (Woodall, 1994). System of National Accounting (UNSNA) (Waring, 1988) Labor costs are so low in the third world not only be- or in national statistics. The exclusion of nonwaged labor cause these countries are generally poor and have a large and of nature from the concepts, theories, and policies of pool of unemployed but also because up to 90 percent of the formal economy is one of the secrets of its paradigm of workers in the global factories are young, unmarried permanent growth or accumulation (Bennholdt-Thomsen women. One of the main reasons for hiring young women and Mies, 1999; Mies, 1999). is that they are assumed to have acquired a “housewife

451 ECONOMY: GLOBAL RESTRUCTURING ideology” and to have mastered certain skills related to of life by the logic and practice of capital accumulation, housework, such as sewing and knitting. They are also epitomized as global free trade. Moreover, owing to the supposed to have “nimble fingers” and to be “docile.” breakdown of “actually existing socialism” in eastern Eu- Moreover, when they get married and have children, rope, there no longer seems to be any alternative to this glo- many either leave the job or are fired. Also, in the house- bal economic system. wife ideology the woman’s wage is seen only as a supple- In this stage most of the changes brought about in the ment to the man’s wage. Because most of these women second stage of the restructuring of the world economy come from impoverished households, they accept appall- have continued, but there have been quantitative and quali- ing working conditions, including working up to 12 hours tative differences. The system of relocating manufacturing per day, an inhuman work speed, sexual harassment, prac- industries to low-wage countries has vastly expanded and tically coerced labor discipline, and safety and health includes today not only practically all poor countries of the risks that would not be permitted in northern countries world but also the economically bankrupt eastern European (Mies, 1999). countries, Russia, and China. The closing down of labor- The global restructuring of the capitalist economy is not intensive, environmentally polluting plants and relocating restricted to the industries in the EPZs; it has also pen- them to cheap-labor countries has now also affected other etrated agriculture and has created an enormous expansion industries in the rich countries like steel, coal mining, and of what has been called the informal sector in rural and ur- ship and car production. It has led to a massive layoff of ban areas. It is, above all, the exploitation and skilled workers, mainly male, in Europe and the United overexploitation of women’s labor in this informal sector States. Moreover, when, due to workers’ protests, wages that explain how people in rich countries and classes can rise in one of the cheap-labor countries, the companies buy garments, handicrafts, flowers, fruit, or vegetables move to a country that is even cheaper—for example, from yearround from Asia, Africa, and Latin America at a very South Korea to Bangladesh (Bennholdt-Thomsen and low price. Owing to the process of modern development in Mies, 1999; Elson, 1994). agriculture, particularly the “green revolution,” many peas- The restructuring of the global economy in the direction ants lost their land or were pauperized. Many had to mi- of ever more export-led industrialization, also in the South grate to the cities, where their women then had to take up and in the East, is driven by the big TNCs. In their hands domestic service, work in a sweatshop, or work from their more and more capital and power are concentrated. TNCs homes as homeworkers, organized along the lines of the control not only most of the worlds consumer-goods mar- puttingout system. The sex industry, including prostitution kets, like computers, cars, household equipment, textiles, tourism, is also an outcome of this process. It is characteris- and garments, but also almost all primary commodities, tic of this informal sector that women are defined not as like food. Cargill, one of the biggest TNCs, controls 60 per- workers but as housewives and therefore do not appear in cent of the world’s trade in cereals. The same concentration labor statistics, are not protected by labor laws, and are at- can be observed in the field of telecommunication. Almost omized and consequently not organized. The main features half of the TNCs are located in the United States, the rest in of such work for the global market were analyzed in The Europe and Japan. Thus the third world is virtually ex- Lace Makers of Narsapur: Indian Housewives Produce for cluded from this concentration of money and power (Lang the World Market (Mies, 1982). In the lace-making indus- and Hines, 1993). try the women’s wages could be much lower than even the This neocolonial structure of the global economy— minimum wages of a female agricultural laborer. Therefore Michel Chossudovsky (1994) talks of “market colonial- it is not surprising that in the last decade of the twentieth ism”—is politically and ideologically upheld by a few century the putting-out system and working in the home global institutions and agreements, such as the World have been rediscovered by international capital as the opti- Bank, the IMF, GATT, and the WTO. mal form of labor organization—an informal sector that The WTO believes that trade barriers, which countries includes both women and men, both in the South and in the have set up to protect certain areas of their economy and North (Werlhof, 1988). society, have to be removed; the countries have to open their markets to goods and corporations from all over the Globalization without a “Human Face” world. This neoliberal free-trade policy assumes that all The third stage of global restructuring began with the re- trading partners are equal and that by using the principle of cession around 1990. It is characterized by an unprec- comparative advantages, all will benefit equally. But in edented penetration of all regions of the globe and all areas practice the weaker partners, particularly third world

452 ECONOMY: GLOBAL RESTRUCTURING countries, will be forced to accept regulations that threaten education, and subsidies for basic food items; liberalizing their national sovereignty. They have to make their agricul- trade and promoting exportoriented production; and re- tural sector dependent on the TNCs and abandon their moving import barriers for foreign consumer goods. In policy of food self-sufficiency. They have to allow northern practically all countries of the South and in the former firms to set up their “dirty” industries in their territory. Soviet-block countries, these SAPs have led to an imme- They have to open themselves up to northern banks and diate rise in the price of basic goods like bread, an in- insurance companies and, above all, through the GATT crease in unemployment, and the collapse of basic health clause on trade-related intellectual property rights (TRIPs), care. Primary health care centers were closed down and allow foreign companies and scientists as patent holders to replaced by family planning centers in many third world privatize, monopolize, and commercialize their biological countries. In desperation the poor in many countries re- and cultural heritage and common property. volted against the SAPs of the IMF, but their protests were TRIPs are particularly dangerous for the third world usually brutally suppressed by police forces. In many against the backdrop of the development of biotechnol- parts of the world the economic crisis and the increase of ogy, of gene and reproductive engineering. This technol- poverty and social polarization, sparked off by the ogy is considered unprecedented in its potential to neoliberal austerity programs, have led to more violence change the world. Biotechnology TNCs are trying to against women, to social strife, and even ethnic, religious, gain monopoly control over all life-forms, plants, ani- and racial wars (Chossudovsky, 1994). In the second mals, even human genes, above all in the South. This will phase of globalization the poor could still hope that the affect women in particular, who in many countries are state would eventually take care of them, but this illusion responsible for the preservation of seeds (Akhter, 1998; is no longer possible. The poor and particularly poor Shiva, 1993). women are virtually left to fend for themselves. They are But the genetic manipulation of plants, animals, and practically expendable, both as producers and as consum- eventually human beings will also have detrimental conse- ers. That is why poor women are the main target of popu- quences in the North. Most consumers in the North already lation control. depend on TNCs for their food, and they will lose the free- On the other hand, the new global restructuring has im- dom to choose food that is not manipulated. Because bio- proved the situation of the elites in the third world, so technology is increasingly seen as the growth industry, much so that their lifestyle is more or less similar to that of ethical considerations are more and more pushed aside. In the middle classes in the North (Mies and Shiva, 1993; these processes women and their capacity to generate new Sklair, 1994). Until 1997 the fastest growing economies human life are of strategic importance. Reproductive tech- were some of the newly industrializing countries in Asia, nology is being expanded all over the globe. It opens the such as Thailand, Indonesia, China, and India. Their mid- way for eugenic, racist, and sexist manipulations and treats dle classes are keen to buy western-produced consumer women’s bodies increasingly as reservoirs of biological goods, and, according to an analysis by Pam Woodall raw material for scientific experiments and for bioindustry. (1994:13), they helped “to pull the rich world out of the Already scientists are asking women to produce “fetal ma- recession of the early 1990s.” According to an estimate by terial” for research or for the development of spare parts for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Develop- organ transplants (Klein, 1989; Mies and Shiva, 1993; ment in the early 1990s, the number of consumers in In- Raymond, 1993). dia, China, and Indonesia will total 700 million by 2010. Another consequence of globalization is an increasing But some argue that the gap between these elite consum- polarization of the rich and the poor in the South as well ers and the poor in their countries will widen further. This as in the North. One reason for this is the Structural Ad- trend even continued after the financial meltdown in Indo- justment Programs (SAPs), which were imposed on in- nesia and Thailand in 1997, which made millions of peo- debted third world countries in order to bring their ple jobless. economies under the discipline of the neoliberal “free A similar situation can be observed in the North. The market.” These SAPs have had disastrous consequences, computer “revolution” and the relocation of industries to particularly for poor women. The austerity program that the third world have led to increased unemployment, the IMF prescribes under the SAPs usually consists in de- wage loss, and poverty in the United States and Europe, valuing a country’s currency, privatizing hitherto state- and the strategies to “solve” this crisis are similar to run enterprises and institutions; dismantling social those being applied in the South: privatization, deregu- programs for the poor, such as primary health care, free lation, and “flexibilization” of labor; housewifization;

453 ECONOMY: GLOBAL RESTRUCTURING

and increasingly informal labor relations, with more Bennholdt-Thomsen, Veronika, and Maria Mies. 1999. The sub- homeworking. The creation of a cheap labor sector within sistence perspective: Beyond the globalised economy. Lon- a country, particularly one made up largely of women, don: Zed. the gradual dismantling of the welfare state, the elimina- Chossudovsky, Michel. 1994. The globalisation of poverty: tion of subsidies, particularly for peasants, follow the Impact of the IMF and World Bank reforms, London: same pattern as SAPs in the third world. Owing to all Zed. these measures, poverty has returned to the rich countries Elson, Diana. 1994. Uneven development and the textiles and of the North. Also in the North the polar-ization between clothing industry. In Leslie Sklair, ed., Capitalism and devel- the poor and the rich is increasing. From 1980 to 1990 opment. London: Routledge. the income of the richest 5 percent of U.S. citizens rose George, Susan. 1999. A short history of neoliberalism: Twenty by 23 percent. In the same period that of the poorest 10 years of elitist economics and chances for structural change. percent sank by 15 percent (George, 1999). Global re- Paper presented at the Conference on Economic Sovereignty structuring has not brought, as its spokespeople prom- in a Globalising World, March, Bangkok. ised, more wealth, more equality, and development to all; Klein, Renate D. 1989. Infertility: Women speak out about their on the contrary, the global capitalist economy can grow experiences of reproductive medicine. London: Pandora. only as long as it maintains and re-creates inequality be- Lang, Tim, and Colin Hines. 1993. The new protectionism: tween and within countries as well as between men and Protecting the future against free trade. London: women. This was clearly spelled out by Woodall in 1994: Earthscan. “The benefits of international trade come from allowing Mies, Maria. 1982. The lace makers ofNarsapur: Indian countries to exploit their comparative advantage, not housewives produce for the world market. London: from requiring them to be identical. And much of the Zed. Third World’s comparative advantage lies, in one way or ——. 1999. Patriarchy and accumulation on a world scale: another, in the fact of its poverty, in particular, cheap Women in the international division of labor. New ed. Lon- labor and a greater tolerance of pollution” (42). Although don: Zed. the process of neoliberal restructuring of the world ——, and Vandana Shiva. 1993. Ecofeminism. London: Zed. economy is still going on, the people most negatively af- ——, Veronika Bennholdt-Thomsen, and Claudia Werlhof. 1988. fected by it are increasingly rebelling against further de- Women: The last colony. London: Zed. regulation, privatization, and globalization. Peasants and Raymond, Janice. 1993. Women as wombs: Reproductive tech- indigenous people in the South were the first to reject nologies and the battle over women’s freedom. San Fran- neoliberal globalisation. But since 1998 they have been cisco: Harper. joined by large protest movements of various NGOs and Reddock, Rhoda. 1994. Women, labour, and politics in Trinidad initiatives in the North. These movements contributed to and Tobago: A history. London: Zed. bringing the MAI to a halt in 1998. And their successful Shiva, Vandana. 1993. Women’s indigenous knowledge and opposition to a further comprehensive round of global biodiversity. In Maria Mies and Vandana Shiva, trade liberalization helped to turn the third Ministerial Ecofeminism. London: Zed. Meeting of the WTO in Seattle, at the end of 1999, into a Sklair, Leslie. 1994. Capitalism and development in global capi- fiasco. In all these movements women have played an im- talism. In Leslie Sklair, ed., Capitalism and development. portant role. London: Routledge. Wallerstein, Immanuel. 1974. The modern world system: Capital- See Also ist agriculture and the origin of the European world economy in the sixteenth century. New York: Academic. ECONOMY: OVERVIEW; GLOBALIZATION; INTERNATIONAL Waring, Marilyn. 1988. If women counted: A new feminist eco- RELATIONS; POLITICAL ECONOMY nomics. London: Macmillan. Werlhof, Claudia von. 1988. The proletarian is dead: Long live the References and Further Reading housewife! In Maria Mies, Veronika Bennholdt-Thomsen, Akhter, Farida. 1992. Depopulating Bangladesh. : and Claudia von Werlhof, eds., Women: The last colony, 168. Narigrantha Prabartana. London: Zed . ——. 1998. Naya Krishi Andolon (A peasants’ movement for Woodall, Pam. 1994. The global economy. Economist, 1 Oct. food, security, and a happy life in Bangladesh). Dhaka: UBINIG. Maria Mies

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Gatherer-Hunter Societies ECONOMY: History of Women’s Participation Feminist research on foraging societies has deconstructed the myth of “man-the-hunter,” which placed male hunting activities at the heart of human evolution in general and of Conventionally, economists define economic activity in the economy of what are conventionally termed hunter- terms of paid work or labor performed in the production of gatherer systems in particular. The discovery that women surplus value. In consequence, women’s work that is un- were major providers of subsistence, contributing up to paid and carried out within the home is invariably invisible threequarters of the food supply (Lee, 1979), challenged in official statistics. Food processing, the production of assumptions of the marginality of women’s contribution in clothing, or the provision of health care through the market the productive sphere. These findings altered widely held are formally recognized as productive work. But the same essentialist views that tied women’s work to the reproduc- activities carried out unrecompensed within the home are tive sphere, while men dominated economic production as not counted despite functioning in an identical way to serve the primary providers of subsistence. Ethnographic re- basic needs. Feminist writings challenge such orthodox search also uncovered a much less exclusive sexual divi- definitions of labor to include both paid and unpaid work: sion of labor among some gatherer-hunter groups than had that which creates surplus value, as well as that which re- previously been thought. Women were found to be compe- lates to subsistence needs, household maintenance, the so- tent hunters, and men actively participated in child care in cial exchange of services, child care, and childbirth many gatherer-hunter societies. (Waring, 1988). Women in these societies used various methods to space Scholarly interpretations of the history of women’s partici- and limit the number of children. The difficulties of carry- pation in the economy have been dominated by the socialist- ing and feeding more than one young child in such a mo- feminist tradition influenced by the nineteenth-century bile lifestyle, and the fact that in small groups there was a writings of Lewis Henry Morgan and Friedrich Engels. Fun- limited pool of people to assist with child care, have been damentally, this position asserts that the sexual division of suggested as motivations for women’s decisions regarding labor and women’s involvement in production are adversely whether to bear a child or to keep it after birth. Motherhood affected by changing property relations and that segregated has often been assumed to limit women’s productive work, spheres focused on production in the “economy” and repro- but there is evidence that women in these societies re- duction in the “family” emerge with the development of class stricted their activities for only a short time after childbirth divisions in society. and that child care was adjusted according to the demands Critiques of the Engels thesis refute underlying assump- of other work (Dahlberg, 1981:20–23). tions of the natural basis of the sexual division of labor and Research on gatherer-hunter groups settling and adopt- the artificial distinctions between economy and family, ing new economic bases in the contemporary period sup- public and private, production and consumption that follow ports the general thesis that women’s roles have become from adopting constructions of the economy founded in restricted with the shift to other modes of production. A modern capitalism. Also challenged is the lineal evolution- decline in the relative valuation of women’s economic con- ary model of social development that provides the frame- tribution tends to be accompanied by a loss of autonomy work for the Morgan-Engels thesis. and status as agriculture, trade, or wage labor supplant the A great deal of historical and anthropological re- traditional gathering subsistence base. For an interesting search has since been devoted to the comparative analy- case study, see Howell’s (1983) research on socioeconomic sis of empirical evidence on women’s work in different change among the Chewong. modes of production. Of critical importance has been the research of anthropologists and historians on gath- Agrarian Societies erer-hunter and agrarian societies where production within the household or domestic sphere is the basis of Ester Boserup’s classic study, Woman’s Role in Economic economic provisioning. These studies, alongside re- Development (1970), redressed previously prevailing stere- search on unpaid work in industrial societies, show that otypes of the sexual division of labor in agrarian societies. the nature and allocation of productive and reproductive Although it is true that women were restricted or excluded tasks in this more widely constructed understanding of from working in the fields in regions such as Europe and the economy vary considerably across time and cultures parts of Asia, where male-controlled plow technology was (Moore, 1988). (and still is) dominant, the situation is markedly different

455 ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION under other farming regimes. Shifting cultivation, the typi- Thus Gerda Lerner (1986), for example, argued that cal farming pattern among nonstate societies in Africa, with the initial development of agriculture in the Neolithic South America, and Asia, has involved high rates of female period, women’s sexuality and their reproductive capacity participation, as does wet-rice cultivation in southeast Asia. became commodified under arrangements controlled by In shifting cultivation, an extensive form of agriculture that men. Women became a “resource” as they were “ex- does not involve plowing the soil or irrigation, the heavy changed” between tribal groups in order to create marriage labor of felling trees is normally a male activity. Women alliances, thereby reducing the incidence of warfare be- usually sow, weed, and harvest the crop. The disproportion- tween groups. The acquisition of women and their repro- ate amount of farming labor carried out by women in Afri- duction of children were important for male prestige, while can shifting-cultivation economies led Boserup to term women’s labor contributed to the accumulation of surplus. these female farming systems (16–24). In early agrarian state societies, such as that of Mesopo- The prominent role of women in the labor force of the tamia, the patriarchal family became institutionalized. wet-rice cultivating societies of southeast Asia is a notable Male family heads represented their households in the pub- exception to the evidence on intensive cultivation. In this lic realm and were dependent on the king or state bureauc- case, the considerable labor demands of transplanting, racy for the allocation of resources. The state enacted weeding, and harvesting encouraged a system where male numerous laws to regulate female sexuality. These power and female participation was roughly equal and in some relations were mirrored at the household level in the male cases undifferentiated. Boserup (1970:35) argued that family heads control over both resources, and their female population densities determined the kind of farming regime kin’s production and sexuality. Daughters of the poor were needed to support the population and that technology and sold by their families as brides or into prostitution. Women, labor demands within each of these productive systems de- as slaves, were required to provide sexual services as part termined that in general women controlled agriculture in of their labor, and their children became the property of shifting cultivation; men dominated extensive plow-farm- their masters (Lerner, 1986). ing systems; and both sexes contributed the heavy labor demanded by intensive irrigated agriculture. European Feudal Society Cross-cultural studies by Jack Goody (1976, 1990) pre- In medieval Europe, although women were generally ex- sented a complementary interpretation of the role of women cluded from political life, they played an active economic in agrarian economies but focused on the transmission of role. There was a wide variation in the assignment of tasks property through marriage and inheritance rather than treat- between men and women, but husband and wife were mu- ing demography and technology as the pivotal variables, as tually dependent and both supported their children. Rural did Boserup. An important contribution of Goody’s ap- women in general worked in the house, barn, farmyard, and proach was a recognition that in precapitalist agrarian soci- garden, and much less often in the fields. They ventured eties such as China, which had a highly developed state and infrequently into village and public life, except for market- class structure, there was a marked difference between the ing. Research indicates that in feudal England key activities economic roles and positions of elite and peasant women. such as plowing brought men “into the political arena of Although there remains considerable debate about feudal services and obligations, emphasizing their public causal relationships, the work of Boserup and Goody pre- role as representative of the household” (Bradley, sented convincing evidence of the interconnections be- 1989:35). tween patterns of kinship, demography, modes of In the city, women worked in the home or shop along production, and the role and status of women cross-cultur- with men. However, they performed different tasks from ally. However, both schlolars shared an emphasis on eco- men and did not take finished articles to the marketplace. nomic structures and material determinants that many Whereas men tended to specialize, women were more feminist analysts regard as inadequate to explain the wide- likely to generalize and to take on less valued types of spread devaluation of women’s work, even in many socie- work. Their jobs were usually linked to their marital status ties where women’s substantive contribution to the and their location in the life cycle and were frequently con- economy is visible and recognized. Feminists have looked sidered a “sideline” activity. Often women obtained work to theories of patriarchy to explain how ideology and cul- through male relatives, such as husbands or fathers. When ture associated with the reproductive and domestic spheres they were employed for wages, their pay was less than that are linked to social and economic structures with adverse of men. As in the twentieth century, women’s work histo- material consequences for women. ries were fragmented and intermittent, unlike those of men,

456 ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION who remained at their chosen craft throughout their work- arts, and the establishment of social services. However, by ing life (Bradley, 1989:35). the late Middle Ages the influence of churchwomen had Women were members of artisan guilds, but this was waned. Outside the church, women’s opportunities exter- often through their husbands or fathers, rather than as inde- nal to the domestic setting were also rapidly narrowing. pendent craftswomen. Some guilds were exclusively filled One manifestation of this was the diminishing guild mem- by women (for example, Paris and Cologne), but these bership of women and the suppression of the Beguines by were administered by men, with the result that women were guild restriction and church authorities (Shahar, 1983) excluded from positions through which they could achieve high social status. Women appear clustered in a number of Industrial Capitalism occupations outside guild-organized crafts. The most com- In the process of capitalist industrialization in Europe dur- mon of these were spinning, brewing, retailing, and general ing the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, new definitions provisioning (Charles, 1985:7). of the division of labor emerged in the types of work allo- Debates range over the nature of the power relationships cated to women and men and through the separation of within marriage. Some authors, such as Louise Tilly and home and workplace. In the early period of European in- Joan Scott (1978), saw the partnership of husband and wife dustrial capitalism, the range of opportunities for some as complementary in that although men and women per- women to earn a cash income within their home increased. formed different roles, both were essential to the family For instance, in Britain the introduction of the “flying shut- economy and one was not subordinate to the other. Others, tle” circa 1760 made male weavers more efficient. This cre- such as Lindsey Charles (1985), argued that women were ated a demand for more thread. In the 1770s the “spinning relegated to more marginalized and secondary work roles jenny” became widely used by women and children work- and that this was because men held ultimate power within ing within their homes. A few years later, with the introduc- the family. This power difference is argued to be reflected tion of Arkwright’s water frame, the production of warp in the lower value men assigned to women’s work and their moved to the factory, where men were employed to work reluctance to take part in such work, a point also conceded the new machines. For a short time, spinning within the by Boserup (Bradley, 1989:37–38). home was maintained in combination with the male-oper- Part of the difficulty in coming to an agreement in ated factory production, but with further technological de- the debate is that the evidence available indicates that velopments the entire spinning process was moved into the there was great variability in the sexual division of factory. “Women’s work” of spinning became “men’s labor between regions and even within communities. work,” not only because of the separation between home There were expectations regarding gender roles, but the and workplace but because women were denied access to sexual division of labor was flexible. This enabled some the new technology. women to challenge the rules and achieve and maintain In the factories and workshops women were allocated economic independence, particularly in early and mid- the lowest paid, unskilled, and semiskilled types of work, dle medieval times. which were often seen as extensions of their tasks in the The Beguine movement, which sprang up during the home. Greater social value was given to men as workers Middle Ages in the Low Countries, Germany, and France, and to the work they did. Training and use of new technol- offered women the opportunity for independent self-sup- ogy was therefore provided for men, who were seen as the porting livelihoods outside the confines of marriage and more important workers. convent. Beguines competed with guilds in the cloth-mak- However, while some women lost work opportunities, ing industry until guild restrictions on their use of tools an increased demand for cotton cloth and the absence of forced them to rely on work in the non-competing areas of men during the French revolutionary wars created open- education and nursing. They undertook literary and schol- ings for women in the previously male-dominated weaving arly work, some of which was regarded by church authori- industry. Eventually women constituted a high proportion ties as challenging orthodox theology. of weavers, but as a group they were still subordinate to Medieval women also contested prescribed domestic male weavers. Few had been apprenticed, and they lacked roles by entering one of the many convents that flourished formal qualifications. Most were dependent on skilled during this period. Although working in the male-domi- male weavers to set up their looms. Women were paid at a nated confines of the Catholic church, nuns and abbesses lower rate than men, and because of their presumed lesser were free to pursue their activities in a protected environ- skills and the oversupply of labor, their wages rapidly ment. They made substantial contributions to science, the dropped below that which was sufficient for their own

457 ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION reproduction (Pinchbeck, 1969:166–82). Working-class rights of colonized women were eroded as the indigenous women participated extensively in such economic activities economy was transformed in the interest of the colonial outside the home and in paid domestic work, but middle- powers (Etienne and Leacock, 1980). Colonized men class women had a different experience. They were in- were the focus of intervention. They were absorbed into creasingly confined to the home to carry out their duties as the administration, introduced to new technology, and “housewives” as the ideal of separate public and domestic favored in the production of cash crops and access to re- spheres became institutionalized. sources. Women, whose economically dependent position In Britain in the latter part of the nineteenth century, within a patriarchal nuclear family was assumed by colo- women were increasingly excluded from competition with nial administrators, were excluded from these opportuni- men for jobs. Opportunities for women in agriculture and ties. Increasingly, they were identified only with domestic industry decreased, and light industry was largely subsistence production. Changes in land tenure from col- replaced by heavy industry in which mostly male workers lective rights in land to private property also advantaged were employed. By the end of the nineteenth century only a men (Boserup, 1970:58–63; Rogers, 1980:122–147). In- limited range of waged employment was available for digenous women were often forced to provide domestic women, and many women lived in poverty. Domestic serv- and other services for colonial administrators, landown- ice continued to be an important source of women’s work. ers, magistrates, and their wives. The work of Christian Employment opportunities did not expand until the twenti- missionaries in altering beliefs and attitudes was also det- eth century, with the creation of the “white-collar” service rimental to indigenous women’s economic position, be- sector and during wartime. cause their roles were redefined to eclipse traditional The contraction in women’s wage labor opportunities in forms of female authority and they were made dependent the late nineteenth century was linked to social definitions on men. of women’s domestic and child-rearing obligations. When The processes of capitalization in the nonwestern world production had been located within the home, women’s and the imposition of western patriarchal values and tech- work was only briefly interrupted by childbirth. Women nologies through “development” policies have been traced could continue spinning or working at other activities while by a number of writers. Barbara Rogers (1980) and Maria babies slept or crawled around their feet, and older children Mies (1986) argued that capitalism and westernization helped. Because working-class women’s wages were nec- have compounded patriarchal restrictions in nonwestern essary for the family unit’s survival, it was necessary for cultures, often resulting in a more narrowly constructed them to work whenever possible. Children were left with “domestic” sphere being reconstituted as women’s place. elderly relatives or paid baby-sitters, and wet-nursing was Rogers described the process as one of “domestication,” widespread. Child mortality rates were high, and not many Mies as “housewifization.” Both focused on the structural more than six out of ten children could be expected to live exclusion of women from full participation in the economy to 20 years of age. At the end of the nineteenth century, and on the role of gender ideologies in producing and re- legislation was passed regulating wet-nursing and child producing this effect. Since the United Nations’ sponsored care, limiting the hours of women’s paid work, and prohib- International Women’s Year in 1975, more attention has iting women from returning to the workforce soon after focused on women and the development process. Yet even childbirth. By the early twentieth century, fertility rates programs under the aegis of “women in development” rein- among the working class declined as couples deliberately force women’s domestic role at the expense of their wider controlled family size. The participation of working-class economic participation. women in the workforce became periodic or part-time, and the mark of a respectable working-class husband was the The Capitalization of Agriculture ability to keep his wife at home, where she could devote The global capitalization of agriculture has replaced the herself to the raising of the children and to household du- predominantly self-subsistent systems of peasant produc- ties (Tilly and Scott, 1978:228). tion for the domestic unit with production for the market. Throughout the nonwestern world this process had its be- Capitalism and the Industrialization of ginnings in the colonial period, but it accelerated rapidly in the Nonwestern World the last half of the twentieth century with the introduction Colonization was stimulated in the nineteenth century as of the green revolution. This “masculinist paradigm of food the industrial revolution created a demand for raw materi- production,” as Vandana Shiva (1989:96) described capi- als and new markets. The economic autonomy, status, and talist-industrial agriculture, increased productivity per unit

458 ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION of land and labor by introducing substantial capital inputs As “gender typing” locates women’s work dispropor- (hybrid seeds, chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and machin- tionately at the bottom rung of the occupational hierarchy ery). Depending on credit and these nonrenewable inputs in the factories and offices of the modern world system, the available only outside the domestic economy, the green effects of the construction of the feminine around the do- revolution shifted the basis of food production from a mestic and reproductive are even more explicit for the large labor-intensive, subsistence orientation to a mechanized, number of women who must find work outside the “for- profit-driven system. The structural and technological mal” sector of factory and office in the modern economy. changes that accompanied the intensification of rural agri- These women find themselves on the margins of the urban cultural production have disporportionately displaced environment in the often unregulated and sometimes illegal women, whose households traditionally depended on their economy of the “informal” sector as street vendors, prosti- income from labor-intensive composting, weeding, har- tutes, or domestic servants. vesting, and threshing. Women are also marginalized in home industry and the With the displacement of women from traditional occu- “putting-out” system, in which the interconnections be- pations, growing landlessness, and the incapacity of the tween production and reproduction are strikingly apparent. agricultural sector to absorb more labor, many women have As producers in their own homes, women are part of na- migrated in search of work. The international migration of tional and international economies and at the same time women as domestic workers has been a growing trend since juggle their domestic and child care responsibilities. The the 1970s, but most movement is within countries and over- system is characterized by long working hours and low pay whelmingly from rural to urban areas. Industrializing ur- at piece rates, yet the atomization of workers makes it diffi- ban areas attract women because of the greater diversity of cult for women to organize against their exploitative condi- formal and informal incomeearning activities available. tions (Mies, 1982). Migration of men from rural areas also has important con- Despite the introduction of equal opportunity legislation sequences for women’s participation in the economy. In in postindustrial societies, women everywhere earn lower many regions, women are increasingly taking over subsist- incomes than do men. In the United States the median an- ence production, contributing to the “feminization” of agri- nual earning of full-time working women was 76 percent culture (Moore, 1988:75). that of men in 1998 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1999). Even in the former socialist countries of eastern Eu- The Globalization of Industry rope, which claim a commitment to equality and the Taking advantage of low incomes and displaced labor “emancipation of women,” women’s wages are on average from the countryside are globally integrated industries lower than men’s. Their employment is gender typed and seeking a cheap, controllable workforce. In the 1950s and restricted to lower-status positions within the occupation. 1960s, rising production costs led corporations to search For instance, in the former Soviet Union almost all princi- for new locations with abundant supplies of cheap labor pals of schools for children up to the age of 7 were women. outside the industrialized countries. Many were attracted However, in schools for children from the ages of 8 to 17 to Export Processing Zones, which offered lucrative in- only 40 percent of principals were women (Lewenhak, centives to foreign investors. The effects of the new inter- 1992:189). national division of labor have been double sided for Women’s collective political and organizational efforts women in developing countries. On the one hand, some are an important dimension in the struggle to confront the aspects of the sexual division of labor prevailing under structural and legal bases of economic inequalities. In precapitalist systems are being eroded as women choose, western and nonwestern countries, women’s organiza- or are forced by the decline of traditional economies, to tions and self-help groups offer a means by which women seek new kinds of work in the expanding industrial sector. can improve their access to resources, training, and politi- On the other hand, global factories are attracted to these cal power, offsetting to some extent the forces producing new sites of production precisely because they can rely for and reproducing gender disparities (Pearson and Jackson, their profits on the invisibility and devaluation of wom- 1998). In Bolivia women have formed production, mar- en’s skills acquired in the domestic sphere. Patriarchal keting, and consumer cooperatives to counter their re- gender ideologies continue to ensure low wages and rapid striction to domestic-centered economic activities. turnover in the female workforce that is the backbone of Women in other countries have successfully organized to rapidly changing industries such as electronics (Heyzer gain title and rights to land and access to credit. Women’s and Sen, 1994). farmer cooperatives in Kenya have flourished, and some

459 ECONOMY: HISTORY OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION have become large-scale businesses (Lewenhak, food, and fuel again become the basis for managing the 1992:106–108). economy (93–95, 220–224). In Bangladesh, ordinary women were responsible for the remarkable success of the Grameen Bank micro-credit See Also scheme. In India, urban women in the informal sector or- CHILD CARE; CHILD LABOR; ECONOMY: INFORMAL; FERTILITY ganized to protect themselves through SEWA, the Self- AND FERTILITY TREATMENT; HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES: Employed Workers Association (Kabeer, 1994). OVERVIEW; POLITICAL ECONOMY; PROSTITUTION; Organization and self-help do have the potential to em- REPRODUCTION: OVERVIEW; WORK: OCCUPATIONAL power women and transform society, as Gita Sen and Caren EXPERIENCES; WORK: PATTERNS Grown (1987) discuss. Nevertheless, both formal and in- formal organizations tend to represent particular interest References and Further Reading groups rather than women as a whole. There remain many challenges and new problems surrounding women’s par- Boserup, Esther. 1970. Woman’s role in economic development. ticipation in the economy. New York: St. Martin’s. Not least among the issues raised by feminist scholar- Bradley, Harriet. 1989. Men’s work, women’s work: A sociologi- ship has been the “double burden” induced or accentuated cal history of the sexual division of labour in employment. by women’s increasing participation in the paid workforce. Cambridge: Polity. Asymmetries are compounded when income-generating Charles, Lindsey. 1985. Introduction to Lindsey Charles and activities are added to women’s responsibilities in the re- Lorna Duffin, eds., Women and work in pre-industrial Eng- productive sphere. Women in Development (WID) policies land, 1–23. London: Croom Helm. were criticized for their one-dimensional focus on eco- Dahlberg, Frances, ed. 1981. Woman the gatherer. New Haven, nomic participation, while failing to recognize the broader Conn. : Yale University Press. context of gendered power relations that have to be ad- Etienne, Mona, and Eleanor Leacock, eds. 1980. Women and colo- dressed for women’s empowerment (Kabeer, 1994). nization: Anthropological perspectives. New York: Praeger. Caroline Moser (1993) points to a third dimension of the Goody, Jack. 1976. Production and reproduction. Cambridge: gendered division of labor revolving around the largely Cambridge University Press. unrecognized collective consumption and community ——. 1990. The Oriental, the ancient, and the primitive: Systems management tasks women perform. She argues that a “tri- of the family in pre-industrial societies of Eurasia. Cam- ple role framework” is required for a more complete analy- bridge: Cambridge University Press. sis and appropriate interventions, particularly for women in Heyzer, Noelina, and Gita Sen. 1994. Gender, economic growth, the low-income part of the globalizing economy. and poverty: Market growth and state planning in Asia and Finally, the relationship among gender, the economy, the Pacific. New Delhi: Kali for Women. and the global ecological crisis is one of urgent concern. Howell, Signe. 1983. Chewong women in transition: The effects Shiva has written extensively on the destruction of wom- of monetization on a hunter-gatherer society in Malaysia. In en’s knowledge about and control over food production Women and development in southeast Asia. Occasional Paper throughout human history. Tied to that loss of knowledge no. 1, Women and Development in Southeast Asia I. Canter- and control is the fate of the poorest segments of the bury, U.K.: University of Kent. world’s population and the environment itself (1989:104– Kabeer, Naila. 1994. Reversed realities: Gender hierarchies in 121). Shiva describes the privatization of property, knowl- development thought. London: Verso. edge, and value, which have paralleled the history of Lee, Richard B. 1979. The !Kung San: Men, women, and work in a women’s displacement from their central roles in the pro- foraging society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. duction and reproduction of life in the late twentieth cen- Lerner, Gerda. 1986. The creation of patriarchy. New York: Ox- tury, as the last phase of capitalism’s relentless drive toward ford University Press . enclosure of the commons. The objective of economic par- Lewenhak, Sheila. 1992. The revaluation of women’s work, 2nd ticipation—production for human needs—has been sub- ed. London: Earthscan. verted by capitalist processes divorced from substantive Mies, Maria. 1982. The lace makers ofNarsapur. London: Zed. criteria for measuring real worth. Shiva argues that women ——. 1986. Patriarchy and accumulation on a world scale. Lon- need to recover the commons, where nature and women’s don: Zed. energy and knowledge are again recognized and respected Moore, Henrietta. 1988. Feminism and anthropology. Oxford: as living capital resources and where local needs for water, Basil Blackwell.

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Moser, Caroline. 1993. Gender planning and development: on contracts and the delivery of information about wages to Theory, practice, and training. London: Routledge. the tax authorities. Women are often highly concentrated in Pearson, Ruth, and C.Jackson. 1998. Feminist visions of develop- the informal economy, and therefore feminists became in- ment: Gender analysis and policy. London: Routledge. terested in analyzing and understanding the dynamics of Pinchbeck, Ivy. 1969. Women workers and the industrial revolu- the informal economy. tion, 1750–1850. London: Frank Cass. Debates about the informal economy have included Rogers, Barbara. 1980. The domestication of women: Discrimina- discussions about both the definition of informal economy tion in developing societies. London: Tavistock. in general and the role of gender. It is important to stress Sen, Gita, and Caren Grown. 1987. Development, crises, and al- that it was a debate, because the term informal economy or ternative visions. New York: Monthly Review. informal sector covers a wide variety of definitions. Shahar, Shulamith. 1983. The fourth estate: A history of women in Moreover, the approach of discussions about the informal the Middle Ages. London: Methuen. economy in developing and developed countries has been Shiva, Vandana. 1989. Staying alive: Women, ecology, and devel- very different. opment. London: Zed. Interest in the role of women in the informal economy Tilly, Louise A., and Joan W.Scott. 1978. Women, work, and fam- was almost absent in the early debate. This was due partly ily. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston. to the level of abstraction of the analysis but also to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 1999. Highlights of women’s “invisible” nature of women’s work. When feminists dis- earnings in 1998. Report 928 (http://stats.bls.gov/ cuss informal economy, they often prefer the term informal cpswom98. htm). work, because a great deal of women’s work is informal, Waring, Marilyn. 1988. Counting for nothing: What men value due to its reproductive nature, but is not considered illegal. and what women are worth. Wellington, N.Z.: Allen and Nursing children, taking care of the elderly, cooking, and Unwin. so forth, cannot be considered illegal work. When women’s studies became more engaged in this field, the concept had Carol Warren to be broadened. Gaynor Dawson The concept of informal economy was first identified in a 1971 study of Ghana by J.K.Hart, but a report by the In- ternational Labour Office (ILO) about Kenya is often men- ECONOMY: Informal tioned as the point when the concept became well known. In the Kenya report (ILO, 1972), the focus shifted from Informal economy is a term that defines “unregulated” and employment to unemployment, and a category of workers “unrecorded” small-scale activities that people undertake called the working poor was identified. The working poor in order to generate income. These types of economic ac- were employed in the informal sector and were considered tivity include production, provision of services, and trad- to have a very low income compared with the workers in ing of goods. In the developed countries the informal the formal economy. economy is often equated with the “black economy” be- The characteristics given in the ILO studies of the infor- cause many informal activities like construction of a ve- mal economy in developing countries usually include the randa for one’s neighbor or baby-sitting are not registered following: and therefore not taxed. Some would thus call them illegal activities. (Various types of criminal activity are also con- 1. Ease of entry sidered part of the informal economy.) Developing coun- 2. Reliance on indigenous resources tries have a much broader notion of the informal economy 3. Family ownership of enterprise which includes the very diversified activities that are often 4. Small-scale operations the main income of households. In developing countries 5. Labor-intensive and adapted technology the problem of taxation is often of limited importance be- 6. Skills acquired outside the formal school system cause the taxation system is much less regulated than in 7. Unregulated and competitive markets developed countries. 8. Lack of attention from or direct discouragement by gov- The notion of an informal economy came about in the ernments 1970s to distinguish a certain kind of economic activity from the kind that goes on in the formal economy: the regu- On the other hand, activities in the formal economy are lated, registered production by workers who are employed characterized by the following:

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1. Difficulty of entry only a small part of the proletariat would have stable wage 2. Frequent reliance on overseas resources employment (Gerry, 1974, 1987). 3. Corporate ownership At this point feminists became much more engaged in 4. Large-scale operations the discussion. The had been a very subordi- 5. Capital-intensive and often imported technology nated issue, even if the debate hit on the hot issue of wom- 6. Formally acquired skills, often obtained abroad en’s increasing participation in the labor market, in the 7. Protected markets (tariffs, quotas, and trade licenses) household, and in household production. For male authors, 8. Governmental encouragement the 1970s were still a period when gender roles were sel- dom taken into consideration, and the official development The differences between the two types of economic or- policy toward the informal sector focused on males. In the ganization would appear clear-cut, but many questions early 1980s the debate about the informal economy was have been raised about the most salient differences. For revived and redirected by female researchers such as example, was the central difference that the informal Noeleen Heyzer and Caroline Moser at the Institute of De- sector involved small-scale production and was adapt- velopment Studies in Sussex, England (for example, able to local conditions, unlike the formal sector? Was it Moser, 1978; Moser and Young, 1981). the difference in income between wage labor and self- When the most dynamic economies in developing coun- employment? Or was the issue the labor market—pro- tries turned to export production, women often constituted tected in the formal sector, unprotected in the informal a large share of the new labor force. The dominance of fe- sector? male labor accelerated the development of a segment with Moreover, the concept of informal sector was severely lower wages in the labor market. For a time this type of criticized for grouping everything that was not formal “world market factories” attracted the attention of re- together, even if there were big differences within the searchers. sector between productive activities, trade, domestic The attention now shifted, however, from the previous service, prostitution, beggary, or income-generating foci to look at women’s work. It became clear that young criminal activities. Public policy toward the various ac- women were employed in the formal labor market, but at tivities also differed greatly. Furthermore, the original the same time a process of informalization of labor was concern of the ILO was the problem of employment in also taking place—that is, women worked increasingly in big cities, and researchers on the informal sector were shortterm wage work, subcontracting, or self-employment. criticized for not including smallscale nonfarming activi- Many of these activities took place in the household, and ties in rural areas. because of ideological assumptions about women as A further point was basically theoretical: the housewives usually dependent on their husbands, their formalinformal dichotomy pointed to a dual economy in work was not considered important: it was “invisible.” which each sector was independent, driven by its own Apart from the evident role of reproduction, women are rules and dynamics, whereas it would be more meaningful considered responsible for the maintenance of daily life— to speak of the sectors as interrelated, with one being cooking, sewing, creation of a home environment, taking dominant. The strongest criticism came from Marxist care of the socialization of children, and so on. It was sug- scholars, who pointed out the dependency of the informal gested that because of their multiple roles, women could economy on the capitalist sector. This school analyzed the combine these with work only in the informal sector informal economy as “petty commodity production,” (Heyzer, 1981). The informal activities were considered which is a transitional mode of production used to de- “survival strategies,” especially for women in poor female- scribe a phase in the development of capitalism in Europe headed households. The dominant approach was, however, in the nineteenth century. That sort of production was that the informal sector was an undesirable adjunct to the never considered an independent or dominant mode, and formal capitalist economy. Marx himself held that the capitalist mode would trans- In the early 1980s the informal economy was becoming form all other forms of commodity production to capitalist a focus also in mainstream sociological research of devel- production. In reality this petty commodity production has oped societies; but even if women’s work was included in increased rather than decreased. Therefore, Marxists de- the research, it was mainly regarded as an addition to the veloped the concept of petty commodity production as a malecentered account (Pahl, 1984). mode at the margins of capitalist production but neverthe- Socialist feminists reacted angrily to the fact that less integrated and subordinated. Some anticipated that women increasingly were employed in informal household

462 ECONOMY: INFORMAL activities in the developing world. They saw expanding The focus on informal work instead of the informal capitalism as interfering in more and more areas of life and economy or sector bridges the debate of developing and economy, which led to a deterioration of conditions for sur- developed societies. Probably owing to the Eurocentrism vival and of human life (Mies et al., 1988). In the mid- of the perspectives adopted, the relations between local and 1980s, the world economy was characterized by crises of global conditions are much more dominant in the debate of accumulation of national and international capital. Social- developing countries. The international impact on devel- ist feminists concluded that under these circumstances oped countries is not very important in the discussion, but workers in the formal economy would disappear due to of course the economic crises—at both the national and the underproductivity and be replaced by low-paid female global level—of the 1970s and 1980s led to an increase in home labor (Mies et al., 1988:10). The term informal the informal economy, strengthened by the new informa- economy was changed to other expressions like tion technology. housewifization, marginalized labor processes, or house- A striking difference in the debate on the economy in holds, which were “seen neither as isolated nor as small developing and developed countries is that feminist re- units of social organization related to national economies, searchers in developing countries were much less engaged but instead as basic units of an emerging worldsystem” in the specific differences between women’s and men’s (Roldan, 1987). Because of the new trends in the interna- work, which became a core issue in the debate in developed tional division of labor, the process of informalization was countries. In the 1970s in developed countries feminists considered a central characteristic: high-technology firms found trends of de-skilling in women’s informal labor in make use of subcontracting that increasingly involves the the household because of the competition with mass-pro- informalization of female labor. duced consumer goods. In the 1980s a new trend of femi- Alejandro Portes (1983) suggested a definition of the nist analysis acknowledged the low evaluation of women’s informal sector that turned the picture on its head by saying skills, a devaluing of women’s work whether it was income that this sector was the area in which the majority of people generating or not, due to dominant male ideology were employed in developing countries. It included all ac- (Baldock, 1990). The central point is that women’s work tivities that were not part of contractual and legally regu- and activities differ substantially from men’s, and this is lated employment. This definition embraces various modes probably the best way of understanding both the low evalu- of production and allows for a historical point of view: in- ation of and lower wages for work carried out by women. formal sector work did not occur only in the expanding city In most developing countries, giving birth to children and conglomerates of the third world in the 1960s, but could raising and educating them are some of the central tasks in also be found in the countryside in earlier periods of his- life, and, following from this, marriage and reproduction tory. On the other hand, the definition was still not gender are the central issues for women. Even if marriage and oriented per se and, for example, did not include work that childbearing are less important in western ideology, and was not income generating. In some respects it was back to even if bringing up children and nursing and taking care of square one of the early discussion of formal versus infor- elderly people are tasks that to a higher degree are assumed mal, yet inverted. by the welfare state, still, women’s work and activities are Nevertheless, Portes’s concept of informality opened an more related to the household than men’s. This difference approach that distinguished informal versus formal work. is debated by feminists in developed countries as the di- By including all types of work carried out, except for direct chotomy between the private and the public. In developing leisure activities, his approach made women’s work visible countries this has not been discussed so thoroughly. It is to the same degree as men’s, including non-income-gener- certain, however, that feminist research on informal work ating work; all types of work are important for the produc- has enhanced our understanding of women’s and men’s tion and reproduction of individuals and households lives in both developing and developed countries. (Nørlund, 1990). The question about the relation between the world economy and the local economy is not deter- See Also mined strictly in the definition of informal work, and we DOMESTIC LABOR; ECONOMICS: FEMINIST CRITIQUES; need not presume that the relation to capital necessarily FEMINISM: SOCIALIST; UNEMPLOYMENT; VOLUNTEERISM leads to increased exploitation. Rather, we should recog- nize that the relations of production are changing, and the References and Further Reading important factor is how these changing relations relate to Baldock, Cora Vellekoop. 1990. Volunteers in welfare. Sydney: existing family and gender structures. Allen and Unwin.

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Gerry, Chris. 1974. Petty producers and the urban economy: A ECONOMY: Welfare and the Economy case study of Dakar. WEP Urbanization and Employment Research Program, Working Paper no. 8. Geneva: Interna- Historically, welfare has been used as a specialized term to tional Labour Office. refer to the intervention of the state in capitalist industrial- ——. 1987. Developing economies and the informal sector in his- ized countries to modify the negative effects of the market torical perspective. Annals of the American Academy of Po- economy. If people have to rely solely on paid work for litical and Social Sciences, “The Informal Economy.” their support, many suffer hardship, and hence welfare Hart, J.K. 1971. Informal income opportunities and urban em- states provide an alternative source of income for those un- ployment in Ghana. Paper presented at a conference at the able to participate in paid employment. Welfare state pro- Institute of Development Studies, Sussex, U.K. September; grams have also historically encompassed the collective later published in revised form in journal of Modern African provision of basic services such as education and health, so Studies 11(1973):61–89. that these are not available only to those who can afford to Heyzer, Noeleen. 1981. Women, subsistence, and the informal sec- pay for them. As welfare states have matured, they have tor: Towards a framework of analysis. Discussion paper. Sus- responded to a wider range of social needs and claims, in- sex, U.K: Institute of Development Studies. cluding those of women. It remains the case, however, that International Labour Office (ILO). 1972. Employment, incomes, welfare and the economy can only be understood in rela- and inequality: A strategy for increasing productive employ- tion to each other both at the societal and at the individual ment in Kenya. Geneva: International Labour Office. level. This fundamental relationship was highlighted by Mies, Maria, Veronika Bennholdt-Thomsen, and Claudia von policy trends in the 1980s and 1990s that led in most coun- Werlhof. 1988. Women: The last colony. Zed. tries to privatization of collective assets and services, cuts Moser, Caroline. 1978. Informal sector or petty commodity to welfare state expenditure, and a reemphasis on the mar- production: Dualism or dependence in urban develop- ket economy. ment? World Development 6(9/10: Sept./Oct.): 1041– 1064. Special issue on “The Urban Informal Sector: Dual Welfare States and the Public-Private Dichotomy Critical Perspectives.” ——, and Kate Young. 1981. Women of the working poor. Bulle- Second-wave feminist writers have been well aware that tin. 12(3: July):3–7. Special issue on “Women and the In- women’s and men’s citizenship can only be understood in formal Sector.” Sussex, U.K.: Institute of Development terms of their differing relations to the economy and the Studies. welfare system. This has led to the observation that it is not Nørlund, Irene. 1990. Informal work: Textile really accurate to speak of one welfare state; rather, there is and the Philippines. In Satya Datta, Third world urbaniza- a dual system. Effectively there are two welfare states, one tion: Reappraisals and new perspectives. Stockholm: Swed- for women and one for men, though from the latter decades ish Council for Research in the Humanities and Social of the twentieth century these have shown increasing signs Sciences . of convergence. Nonetheless women’s position is still af- Pahl, R.E. 1984. Division of labor. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. fected by their association with traditional caring roles and Portes, Alejandro. 1983. The informal sector: Definitions, contro- an assumed economic dependence on a male breadwinner, versy, and relation to national development. Review 7(1): despite the reality that rates of employment among married 151–174. women are high and increasing in many countries and that Roldan, Martha. 1987. Yet another meeting on the informal sec- many women are breadwinners. tor? Or the politics of designation and economic restructur- Whereas women’s welfare state is formed around an ing in a gendered world. In The Informal Sector as an assumed location of women within the family or private Integral Part of the National Economy, 22–68. Proceedings sphere, men’s welfare state is formed around men’s loca- of conference in Denmark, 28–30 September. Roskilde: Dan- tion within the public sphere, as breadwinners and as ish Association of Development Researchers. workers within the market economy. This breadwinner role has historically been recognized within men’s welfare Irene Nørlund states through a range of entitlements for a dependent spouse and in some countries, such as Australia and the United Kingdom, through the provision for men of a fam- ECONOMY: Patterns of Work ily wage. The association of women with the private See WORK: PATTERNS. sphere and men with the public is highly significant for

464 ECONOMY: WELFARE AND THE ECONOMY gender equality because the public sphere is associated Assistance was based on an absolute definition of pov- with far greater economic and social rewards and is the erty—that is, it was kept to the minimum necessary to sphere in which political power is exercised (Bryson, keep people alive rather than aiming to provide any level 1992; Fraser, 1989; Hernes, 1987). of comfort (Bryson, 1992; chaps. 2 and 3). Where nations That different welfare states are experienced by men are deemed welfare states today, their regimes are based and women is highlighted by the legislation that was en- on a relative definition of poverty. This relative approach acted in many countries from the 1970s explicitly to ad- is aimed not just at subsistence but at providing life dress the issues of gender inequality, particularly in chances that compare reasonably with those enjoyed by relation to employment. The Scandinavian collective term the nonpoor. equality policies neatly encapsulates the cluster of poli- Much nongovernment charitable welfare activity di- cies variously referred to in other countries as rected to the poor of many countries remains of the subsist- antidiscrimination, equal employment opportunity, and ence kind, and the poorest countries, where needs are affirmative action. These policies involve women being greatest, are unlikely to have institutionalized welfare sys- responded to as workers, not only as wives and mothers. tems. In countries that are without developed state welfare For example, child care is provided by some states to fa- systems, an individual’s welfare is normally dependent on cilitate women’s employment, and when their children are paid employment and families. Hence, for all societies— no longer dependent, women may be restricted from not just those designated welfare states—to understand claiming entitlements as widows or mothers. Some provi- women’s position, analysis must focus on the interplay of sions, for example the sole parent benefit and parental the three key social systems: the family, the market leave to care for young children, were extended to fathers economy, and the state. (Sainsbury, 1996), though men are not eagerly taking up Contemporary welfare states also encompass the right these options. of individuals to be fully participating members of their The degree of formal convergence of women’s and society, and it is on this that the claims of women to equal- men’s welfare states varies considerably from country to ity are based. These rights assume liberal notions of social country, with the Scandinavian countries generally the justice, and although these cannot deliver the radical most advanced. These nations tend to be the only states that changes that many feminists would like to see, such as a systematically promote women’s independent rather than world at peace and a society more concerned about caring family status, though other countries, including Australia, than profit, they have provided an invaluable basis for are moving in this direction. Nonetheless, even in the claims to full citizenship. Scandinavian nations the effects of former patriarchal structures are still evident. Women still undertake most of Dual Constructions of Entitlement the public caring work of the society, particularly of the The seeds of later dual welfare states are evident in the hands-on kind, as well as taking major responsibility for focus of the early poor laws on women as mothers. A ma- private caring work. This is linked with lower earnings, jor concern was to prevent women having children inde- lower-status and highly sex-segregated jobs, and high lev- pendent of a male breadwinner and then claiming els of part-time employment. The rate of part-time male benefits. Men were responded to as workers, with concern and female employment rose during the 1990s and in 1997, fixated on preventing adult males from choosing welfare among the European Union countries, was 32 percent of all rather than paid employment. These concerns are still evi- women’s employment compared with 6 percent of men’s dent today, in anxiety to prevent “welfare cheating,” and (European Commission, 1999). they still have their gendered subtext, with the sole mother and the unemployed adult male most often the focus of The Development of Dual Welfare States such anxiety. Gendered patterns were built into the very fabric of mod- Male welfare states historically were constructed ern western welfare states, whose origins are traced to around a male-headed family despite the reality that many various nineteenth-century European poor laws, with the women have always headed families. In the absence of a British Poor Laws having been particularly influential. male provider, however, the state reinforced the legitimacy Poor laws generally provided an entitlement to a level of of women’s dependent status by stepping into the role of subsistence to those who, for example, through ill health economic provider for sole mothers and widows. Widows’ and/or old age, were unable to support themselves and sole parents’ pensions, however, were not usually in- through working within the emerging market economy. troduced at the earliest stages of welfare state development.

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As the modern welfare state developed, age, invalidity, and that Sandra Kamerman (1984) studied in the 1980s, only work injury were generally first to be recognized as the Sweden, and to a lesser extent France (both with well-de- bases for state entitlements by all male national legislatures veloped family support policies), came close to having the influenced mainly by class politics. In Australia, for exam- income of unemployed single mothers equal the average ple, age and disability pensions were introduced at the na- weekly earnings of a production worker. tional level in 1908 for poor people, though indigenous The legacy of traditional family ideology also affects people were excluded. Women were mainly covered as women with male partners, as was shown by research using spouses and were entitled to the age pension five years ear- data from 10 welfare states collected in the mid-1980s, for lier than men. Nonetheless, women of European origin the Luxembourg Income Study (Hobson, 1990). It was without spouses, who were otherwise ineligible, received found that Swedish women were more likely than others to the pensions on the same basis as men, though at 60 rather have achieved financial independence, defined as earnings than 65 years. Just over 30 years later, pensions for civilian within 10 percent of the earnings of their male partner. widows (including de facto and deserted wives) were intro- Even so, the proportion of financially independent Swedish duced, at the same time as national unemployment benefits. women was only 11.2 percent. Next was the United States, War widows, by virtue of their husbands’ highly valued with 9.6 percent, even though that country lacks a particu- contribution to the military effort, had received pensions larly well developed welfare state. Switzerland and the from World War I. This entitlement attests to the centrality Netherlands, predictably, had the lowest rates. Both wel- of the male role in the historic construction of women’s fare states have a strong male breadwinner focus, and only welfare states. 2.6 percent and 3.4 percent of women, respectively, had reached financial independence (Hobson, 1990:240). Women’s Welfare State and Relative Poverty When we consider the characteristics of contemporary Women’s Welfare State and the Labor Market women’s welfare states, we find that while all originally Inferior access to the labor market is typical of women’s incorporated a traditional patriarchal construction of fam- welfare states. Historically, there have been a range of re- ily, this family ideology has since been modified to varying strictions on women entering occupations and work envi- degrees. For some of the twentieth century, in Sweden, for ronments, such as mining, the military, and a range of example, this male breadwinner ideology has been only skilled and unskilled work. Access to certain professions weakly reflected in policy. In many countries, including and educational qualifications was restricted, and a bar to France and Australia, the male breadwinner focus had been the employment of married women was common. In sev- moderated, while in some, such as the United Kingdom, eral countries there is still a lack of formal access to some Germany, and the Netherlands, it remained strong jobs, and in all countries there are many informal barriers. (Hobson, 1994). The strength of the breadwinner ideology Even when there is formal equality of access, women’s in social policy does not, on its own, however, indicate how employment position is routinely inferior to that of men. securely a welfare state provides support for women, This is particularly critical where benefits from the welfare though it does indicate the basis of gendered citizenship. In state are linked to employment through contributions to Sweden there is a consonance between a high level of state social insurance systems. Most welfare states have some support and a lack of focus on the male breadwinner, but entitlements linked to prior earnings. Men are therefore this is not the case everywhere. For example, in the Nether- systematically advantaged over women because they are lands, state support for sole mothers is of an adequate likely to be in higher-paying jobs, and they are less likely to standard, whereas in the United Kingdom, with a similarly have interrupted work histories. strong male breadwinner ideology, sole mothers are not Where income support programs are linked to employ- provided for and are likely to be poor (Hobson, 1994). ment records, welfare states also provide income support Sole parent families are overwhelmingly likely to be that is directly state funded for those such as young unem- headed by mothers. In fact, in the 1990s in the western wel- ployed people or sole mothers who are stranded without the fare states, between 80 and 90 percent of sole parent fami- necessary employment history to claim social insurance lies were female headed. Moreover, these families are benefits. Such social assistance, however, tends to be likely to have high rates of poverty. Their position provides viewed less positively and as less of a right than the benefits something of a litmus test for understanding the nature of from contributory social insurance schemes. Benefits tend women’s welfare states, because it is not mediated by a to be less generous, means tested, and to involve more so- male partner (Hobson, 1994). Of nine European countries cial control.

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Men’s welfare state is more focused on work-related Titmuss (1974) likened social welfare to the visible tip benefits and women’s on social assistance, with the United of an iceberg, with the other two forms of welfare the States providing a striking example of such a system. equivalent of the very large part hidden below the Those who draw benefits via “masculine” social insurance waterline. He pointed out that even though fiscal welfare are seen as exercising their rights and are recognized as and occupational welfare represent only other methods of consumers of services. Those within the “feminine” social making state transfers to individuals, through the state for- assistance system are seen as dependent clients; women of going taxes, they are perceived differently from and more color are particularly highly represented (Fraser, 1989; positively than social welfare transfers. Women’s welfare O’Connor, Orloff, and Shaver, 1999). Social assistance state does not encompass a fair share of fiscal or occupa- benefits in the United States are far meaner than in other tional welfare. However, because of their longevity and countries and are likely to be identified as charity and to relative poverty, women are usually well represented in so- subject their recipients to severe controls. Furthermore, the cial welfare systems, the most stigmatized of Titmuss’s provisions are often subject to the vagaries of the political three forms of welfare. climate. Social insurance entitlements, on the other hand, are protected by the electoral strength of the contributors. Women’s Welfare State as Facilitator of Employment Even in countries such as Australia and New Zealand, The most significant changes within women’s welfare states where historically income replacement pensions were not over the last quarter of the twentieth century were associ- based on work records, those in the best position in the ated with employment. The demands for women’s labor, labor market reap greater welfare state benefits. This is be- combined with women’s own claims for gender justice, re- cause additional benefits are linked to the occupational sys- sulted in increasing rates of employment among married tem, which effectively acts as a form of welfare, though it is women, and in most countries some attempt was made to not popularly defined as such. Richard Titmuss (1974), a promote more equal employment opportunity. Measures much quoted British commentator on the welfare state in taken included improved access to education, efforts to stop the post-World War II era, pointed to the importance of ac- direct and indirect discrimination in the workforce, and at- tually defining welfare to encompass the occupational con- tempts to increase women’s pay rates. There were also ef- text. He identified three main forms of welfare: social forts to facilitate the combination of paid and family work welfare, which is the traditionally recognized form and the through provisions such as child care, maternity leave, and one that plays a prominent role within women’s welfare parental leave for the care of young or sick children. In some state, and fiscal and occupational welfare, which are dis- countries there was a reduction of the hours of employment proportionately male preserves. for those with caring responsibilities. The Scandinavian Fiscal welfare is made up of money saved through taxa- welfare states are, however, the only countries to have a tion exemptions or subsidies. These include a range of reasonably comprehensive approach to the issue of the com- items, such as profits of varying kinds and business or bination of work and family roles. A sign of the global rec- work-related costs such as those for education and career ognition of the importance of such policies is found in the training, travel, or work-related expenses. These taxation International Labour Organizations Convention 156, “Equal benefits can be achieved only by those who pay taxes and Opportunity and Equal Treatment for Men and Women are therefore denied to those, such as sole parent pension- Workers: Workers with Family Responsibilities.” ers, who pay little or no taxes. Moreover, the exemptions The public sector, particularly those areas providing car- amount to more for those with higher incomes, because the ing services, has become an important source of employ- rate of taxation is likely to be higher. Also, those with high ment opportunities for some women as welfare states have incomes are in a better position to have expert accountants expanded, though less so for those with the least advan- to maximize their benefits from the usually complex taxa- tages. These jobs are important for two reasons. First, state tion system. Occupational welfare is also more likely to be employment has traditionally provided better working con- associated with high status and higher-paying occupations ditions and been more directly responsible for equal em- and is more typical of men’s than women’s welfare states. ployment policy measures. Second, services providing care Occupational benefits include allowances for entertain- for children, the aged, and the sick, and those with disabili- ment, dress, equipment, meals, cars, accommodation, trips, ties potentially free women from at least some of their tra- and the like and usually involve the additional advantage of ditional family obligations, thus facilitating their avoiding the taxation that would be due were these items independence from family and their access to the advan- and services purchased directly by a worker. tage of the public sphere of paid employment. The centrality

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of the public sector for women’s employment means that O’Connor, Julia S., Ann Shola Orloff, and Sheila Shaver. 1999. late twentieth-century global trends to cut expenditure on States, markets, families: Gender liberalism and social the welfare state had particularly serious implications. policy in Australia, Canada, Britain, and the United States. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Conclusion Sainsbury, Diane. 1996. Gender, equality, and welfare states. The most important changes in the nature of women’s wel- Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. fare state in the course of the twentieth century were associ- Titmuss, Richard. 1974. The social division of welfare: Some re- ated with more equal access to the market economy flections on the search for equity. In Essays on “the welfare through paid employment, though this has failed to deliver state.” London: Allen and Unwin. equal citizenship. The shadow of woman’s traditional fam- Lois Bryson ily role and her relationship to a patriarchal husband still hangs over women’s welfare state. This is reflected in women’s poorer economic circumstances, in their overrepresentation within welfare entitlements based on their family status as wife or mother, and in their distinctive ECOSYSTEM and largely secondary relationship to the economy. Wom- en’s unpaid family labor still acts as a gatekeeper to finan- Ecosystem refers to a unit of the environment. In contrast cial independence and can be identified as a tax that women with many other entities in the natural world, which are are required to pay (Bakker, 1994:5) before they move into defined by a rigid set of characteristics (for example, mol- income-producing work in the public sphere, which would ecules, species, quasars), ecosystems are defined by their both keep them out of poverty and give them access to so- dominant structures or functions (for example, wetland cial and political resources equivalent to those enjoyed on ecosystems, tundra ecosystems). Nevertheless, ecosystems the basis of men’s welfare state. share a number of features (see box). An observer might look out across a wetland and see only the community of See Also plants there, or she might be interested in how birds use the CHILD CARE; EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES; POVERTY; different plants for food and nesting habitat. However, the PRIVATIZATION ecosystem scientist would specifically consider the interac- tions of the plants, animals, and microorganisms (the biota) References and Further Reading with the nonliving (abiotic) elements of that area: the Bakker, Isabella, ed. 1994. The strategic silence: Gender and eco- chemical compounds, including major and minor nutrients nomic policy. London: Zed. as well as toxic compounds, geology, climate, weather, and Bryson, Lois. 1992. Welfare and the state: Who benefits? London: other elements. The interactions are defined as occurring Macmillan. within the system boundaries (defined by the observer to fit European Commission. 1999. 1999 employment report. Equal the scientific question at hand) or as passing across the Opportunity Magazine 7:5. boundaries. Using the wetland example again: the system Fraser, Nancy. 1989. Women, welfare, and the politics of need in- boundaries might include the extent of saturated soils terpretation. In Nancy Fraser, Unruly practices: Power, dis- across the landscape or the areal limits of water-tolerant course, and gender in contemporary social theory, 144–160. plant species. Cambridge: Polity. Ecosystems are studied in various ways, but in general Hernes, Helga. 1987. Welfare state and woman power. Oslo: Nor- the emphasis is on holistic measures that integrate beyond wegian University Press. the level of individual organisms or populations. One such Hobson, Barbara. 1990. No exit, no voice: Women’s economic approach is to study the structure of food webs—the inter- dependency and the welfare state. Acta Sociologica 33(3): actions of all the biota characterized by feeding relation- 235–250. ships (who eats whom?). Often these interactions are ——. 1994. Solo mothers, social policy regimes, and the logics of characterized by the energy flow (joules or calories) within gender. In Diane Sainsbury, ed., Gendering welfare states. the system. Another, more refined approach is to consider London: Sage. biogeochemical transformations by both the biotic and abi- Kamerman, Sandra. 1984. Women, children, and poverty: Public otic components of the system. Typically an element (for policies and female-headed families in industrialized coun- example, nitrogen or carbon) or chemical compound (for

tries. Signs 10(2):249–271. example, a specific nutrient like ammonia, NH3; or a

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Principles of Ecosystem Science easier to conceptualize their boundaries and biotic-abiotic interactions. 1. Ecosystems are open to flows of energy, elements, Ecosystems are vital for conservation of biodiversity and biota. and for the preservation of the “ecological goods and serv- 2. Ecosystems are continuously changing; yet the ices” on which civilizations depend, including not only present bears the legacies of the past. food resources but also fertile soils, clean water and air, and 3. Ecosystems are spatially heterogeneous on a range of a climate within the limits of biological tolerance. scales, and ecosystem structure and function depend on that heterogeneity. See Also 4. Indirect effects are the rule, rather than the exception, EARTH; ENVIRONMENT: OVERVIEW; GAIA; MOTHER EARTH in most ecosystems. 5. The function of an ecosystem depends on its biologi- References and Further Reading cal structure; species do not have equal effects on an Carson, Rachel. 1962. Silent spring. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ecosystem; and an organism’s size is not a good indi- Golley, F.B. 1993. A history of the ecosystem concept in ecology: cator of its importance to ecosystem function. More than the sum of the parts. New Haven, Conn.: Yale 6. There is redundancy within functional groups in eco- University Press. systems; this reduces variation in ecosystem function Hagen, Joel B. 1992. An entangled bank: The origins of ecosys- when environmental conditions change. tem ecology. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University 7. Humans are now part of all ecosystems. (Meyer, Press. 1997) McIntosh, R.P. 1985. The background of ecology: Concept and theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Meyer, Judy L. 1997. Conserving ecosystem function. In S.T.A. toxicant like PCB) is traced through the system, and the Pickett et al., eds., Enhancing the ecological basis of conser- investigator learns of the fate (where does it accumulate?) vation: Heterogeneity, ecosystem function, and biodiveristy, or transformation of the element or compound. Ecosystem 126–145. New York: Chapman and Hall. ecologists are concerned about not only ultimate fate and transformations but also the rates of transformations Karin Limburg (fluxes), the degree of interactions of the element or com- pound (the scale of interaction), and, often, how human ac- tivities alter these fluxes. Ecosystem ecology is a relatively young science. The ÉCRITURE FÉMININE term ecosystem was coined by Arthur Tansley, a British ecologist, in 1935,to give form and substance to ideas that Écriture féminine—or feminine writing—is a concept that were developing at the time. Few women were involved in derives primarily from the work of the French feminist the early development of ecosystem concepts and studies critic and writer Hélène Cixous (b. 1938). Sometimes because of the general prejudice against women in the sci- glossed as “a writing of the other,” it refers to a mode of ences. Among the early women scientists whose work in- writing that refuses appropriation and destruction and con- fluenced the field, either directly or indirectly (often by sequently challenges the premises of patriarchal rule. influencing their husbands!), were Ellen Swallow Richards (1842–1911), who in the late nineteenth century drew at- Hélène Cixous tention to industrial pollution effects in the United States, In an influential essay, “Sorties” (1975), Cixous outlines and Edith Schwartz Clements (1877–1971), who received some of the features of feminine writing, arguing that it is a a doctorate in 1904 and, with her husband, Frederic, devel- practice that is impossible to define. Its importance, she oped seminal concepts of plant community interactions. stresses, lies in its capacity to circumvent the binary struc- Rachel Carson (1907–1964) provoked public and scientific tures embedded in our current “masculine” system of awareness of the impact of humans on ecosystems with her thinking, whereby whatever is designated as different or many writings, particularly Silent Spring, published in “other” is devalued, made use of, or destroyed. Cixous un- 1962. Since 1950, the number of women influencing the derstands the terms masculine and feminine as behavioral field has increased exponentially. Many of the important “economies” rather than as adjectives linked to biological contributions arose in aquatic ecosystems, because it is sex. On the one hand, there is the masculine position of

469 ÉCRITURE FÉMININE obedience with its concomitant fear and desire for control; important ally in the feminine writer’s undertaking to work on the other, there is the feminine position of risk, charac- against restriction and closure. Cixous here is drawing in terized by openness, generosity, and a refusal to destroy. part on the work of the Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Although Cixous believes that both these positions are Freud (1856–1939) and his description of infant open to men as well as women and are in constant flux, she socialization in terms of castration and the Oedipus com- suggests that for cultural and biological reasons women are plex. Cixous stresses that women’s experience of the fa- more likely to adopt a feminine practice than men. As a ther’s intervention into the symbiotic union with the result, her discussions of feminine writers include both mother is different from men’s and that women’s bodies male and female authors. figure this capacity for union in a way that potentially chal- For Cixous, most writers struggle to “master” their ma- lenges the otherwise omnipotent stratification of the mas- terial, annihilating complexity and entirety in their culine “symbolic,” exploding its constitution and endeavor for order and self-glorification. She argues that definitions, and with it the individual’s relationship to him- feminine writing by contrast begins with the “other,” relin- self, the “other,” and the world. quishing the demands of the self and the dictates of conven- Among the other features of écriture féminine that tion and faithfully inscribing “life as it is.” In thus Cixous outlines is inclusivity. Cixous argues that feminine circumventing the prevailing hegemony, it posits new mod- writing must refuse to prioritize and select from the range els for self-other relations and envisions corresponding of possible meanings and work, instead, to include every- changes in perception, representation, and ideology. thing. She stresses that this is especially true of those In Le Livre de Promethea (1983, The book of significations that threaten or contradict the design the Promethea) Cixous offers a possible model for a writing writer hopes to achieve and wishes to impose on the reader. directed not by the self but by the “other.” The book is of For Cixous, feminine writing spans the unexpected possi- Promethea not only because it is about her but also because bilities generated by the writer’s attention to herself—in- it is Promethea who produces and directs what it says. This cluding the motivations of the body and the alters the writer’s role from author to scribe. The writers unconscious—language, the promptings of the writing’s endeavor to convey Promethea involves relinquishing all subject, and those meanings marginalized or distorted by her previous techniques and tools. Her task of “listening” the masculine. In the bilingual Vivre l’orange/To Live the and faithfully rendering Promethea requires vigilance to Orange (1979) Cixous shows how her attempt to write prevent her own needs and desires from sabotaging this about the magnificence of an orange must also embrace the process. Even her skill as a writer must be continually ex- reality of torture and murder. amined so that it too does not eclipse the truth. Cixous is “Writing the other” demands the inscription of that dismissive of the notion of a work of art and stresses that which is repressed by history and culture. In an important the feminine writer’s mission is a “work of being.” essay entitled “La Venue à l’écriture” (1977, Coming to The phrase “write your body” has become a rallying cry writing), Cixous insists that this must include death, which for écriture féminine. For Cixous, this has three main com- has become almost completely taboo in western culture. ponents. First, she believes that women’s bodies—includ- She suggests that recognition of human mortality is vital in ing women’s self-perceptions and sexual enabling us to live and write in a feminine way. In a series experiences—have been appropriated and determined by of reflections on her own writing for the theater, Indiade ou men. Consequently, she urges women to break with these l’Inde de leurs rêves (1987, Indiada or the India of their restrictive definitions and to record their discoveries in dreams), Cixous describes how the confrontation with writing. This inscription, she argues, will detonate the par- death on stage returns us to what is essential and forces us titions and codes of the masculine schema by opening this to reconsider our own lives, attitudes, and actions. up to other possibilities. Second, Cixous insists that lan- The task of writing the “other” also requires attention to guage is itself an activity of the body. She believes that re- the process of writing. Cixous believes that the masculine pression of the physiological source of writing, together desire to limit and control meaning both is reductive and with ongoing body functions such as breathing, pulse, corroborates the status quo, and she urges writers to ac- drives, and the influence of stress, is a falsification of the tively incorporate the myriad rhythms, sound patterns, and nature of the writing process embarked on in a quest for signifying possibilities generated by writing itself. Numer- control. Third, Cixous suggests that our bodies link us back ous examples of this play can be found in Cixous’s own to the period in early childhood before socialization and its work, such as the deliberate evocation of the two meanings imposition of law and that this memory of freedom is an of voler as “stealing” and “flying” in “Sorties.”

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Cixous’s insistence that écriture féminine attend to the human development in which body drives predominate and multifarious possibilities generated by writing and refuse the subsequent repression of these as the child becomes to shy away from difficult or painful subject matter has im- socialized. Kristeva suggests that these energies are ex- plications for genre. Conventional characters and plot are pressed in infants’ babblings as they attempt to copy dispensed with as the writer engages in the complex task of sounds and in their body movements. Although the con- rendering life. The pages of Cixous’s Le Livre de straints imposed on body drives are the necessary precondi- Promethea, for example, are presented in the disorder of tion for subjectivity and language, Kristeva stresses that their composition as the author overcomes her desire to re- drive energies continue to exert pressure on the individual, write; other texts, such as the early Neurtre (1972, Neutral), affecting socialization and hence the status quo. She be- involve a radical reworking of syntax, page layout, and lieves that poetry, because of its comparative freedom from even typography to convey a rich polysemy. This has led the rules that govern language, enables the fullest expres- some critics to question the effectiveness of feminine writ- sion of the maternal semiotic and thus has the maximum ing, on the grounds that it is difficult to read and conse- potential for disruption. In a poem, for instance, rhythmic quently elitist (see Sellers, 1996). patterns might take precedence over the conventions of Cixous’s extensive criticism details numerous instances syntax, and these patterns unsettle our expectations and of écriture féminine. Her work covers male writers as vari- beliefs, preparing the way for change. Although Kristeva ous as William Shakespeare (1564–1616), Heinrich von discusses male authors, such as the French poet Stéphane Kleist (1777–1811), Franz Kafka (1883–1924), Jean Genet Mallarmé (1842–1898), among her list of examples, in es- (1910–1986), and James Joyce (1882–1941), as well as fe- says such as “Stabat Mater” (1983) she draws on her own male writers such as the Russian poet Marina Tsvetayeva experience of motherhood and analyzes communication (1892–1941) and the Brazilian novelist Clarice Lispector between women to envisage a language that would not de- (1925–1977). The latter remains perhaps the outstanding pend on individual subject positions with their implicit an- illustration for Cixous of feminine writing. nexing of the “other” but would involve, instead, a contextualized, multifarious, and fluid form of exchange. Luce Irigaray The preoccupations and styles of a number of other Though neither uses the phrase directly in her work, Luce French women writers, such as Marie Cardinal (b. 1929), Irigaray (b. 1930) and Julia Kristeva (b. 1941) can also be Chantal Chawaf (b. 1948), Jeanne Hyvrard (b. 1945), linked to the concept of écriture féminine. In an essay enti- Annie Leclerc (b. 1940), and Monique Wittig (b. 1935), tled “Pouvoir du discours, subordination du féminin” have also been productively linked to the notion of an (1977, Power of discourse, subordination of the feminine), écriture féminine (see Sellers, 1991). the French philosopher Luce Irigaray suggests that inscrip- tion of the proximity, fluidity, and multiplicity characteris- See Also tic of exchanges between women will undermine the DIFFERENCE, I and II; FEMININITY; LITERARY THEORY AND destructive forms of conventional discourse. In another es- CRITICISM say, “La Mystérique” (1974), she reviews those languages traditionally associated with women and sees in the visions References and Further Reading and writings of the mystics the model for a language at- Cixous, Hélène. 1972. Neurtre. Paris: Grasset. tempting to express what is repressed by doctrine. Many of ——. 1975. Sorties. In La jeune née (The newly born woman) the features of what Irigaray terms the new femininity par- with Catherine Clément. Paris: Union Générale d’Editions. allel those delineated by Cixous. For Irigaray the new femi- Trans. Betsy Wing, 1986. Minneapolis: University of Minne- ninity will be grounded in an “economy of spending,” sota Press. involving an expansion and dissolution of the self and a ——, with Madeleine Gagnon and Annie Leclerc. 1977. La subsequent refiguring of relationships with others. Venue à l’écriture (Coming to writing). Paris: Union Générale d’Editions. In “Coming to uniting” and other es- Julia Kristeva says. Trans. Sarah Cornell, Deborah Jensen, Ann Liddle, In an important book, La Révolution du langage poétique and Susan Sellers, 1991. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uni- (1974, Revolution in poetic language), the Bulgarian-born versity Press. linguist and psychoanalyst Julia Kristeva argues that writ- ——. 1979. Vivre l’orange/To live the orange. Trans. Sarah ing has the capacity to transform the symbolic order. She Cornell, Ann Liddle, and Hélène Cixous. Paris: Des distinguishes between a pre-Oedipal or “semiotic” stage in Femmes.

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——. 1983. Le livre de Promethea (The book of Promethea). Theoretical Positions Paris: Gallimard. Trans. Betsy Wing, 1991. Lincoln: Univer- Feminist theorists have various understandings of women’s sity of Nebraska Press. educational achievement and offer various strategies for ——. 1987. Indiade ou l’Inde de leurs rêves. Paris: Théâtre du improving it. Between the 1970s and the 1980s, the disci- Soleil. pline of the sociology of women’s education was estab- ——. 1994. The Hélène Cixous reader. Ed. Susan Sellers. Lon- lished in Australia, Britain, New Zealand, and the United don: Routledge. States. This discipline is characterized by several overlap- Irigaray, Luce. 1974. La mystérique. In Speculum de l’autre ping and interactive perspectives on educational achieve- femme (Speculum of the other woman). Paris: Minuit. Trans. ment. Liberal feminists aim to alter women’s educational Gillian C.Gill, 1985. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. status and opportunities within existing social and educa- ——. 1977. Pouvoir du discours, subordination du féminin. In Ce tional frameworks. They focus on the negative effects of sexe qui n’en est pas un (This sex which is not one). Paris: sexual discrimination and on sexual stereotyping within Minuit. Trans. Catherine Porter, 1985. Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell socialization practices, within the home, and at school. Lib- University Press. eral feminists emphasize the role of formal legal rights and ——. 1991. The Irigaray reader. Ed. Margaret Whitford. Oxford: the provision of equal opportunities practices in the ad- Blackwell. vancement of women’s educational achievement. Although Kristeva, Julia. 1974. La révolution du langage poétique (Revolu- liberal feminism has been criticized by feminists who think tion in poetic language). Paris: Seuil. Trans. Margaret Waller, it neglects the causes of socialization practices or who re- 1984. New York: Columbia University Press. ject its individualistic approach, it has made a positive con- ——. 1983. Stabat mater. In Histoires d’amour (Tales of love). tribution to the educational life chances of many women. Paris: Denoël. Trans. Leon S.Roudiez, 1987. New York: Co- These liberal strategies have secured government funding lumbia University Press. in many countries. Scandinavian countries, in particular, ——. 1986. The Kristeva reader. Ed. Toril Moi. Oxford: see formal equality as a reality that has benefited the major- Blackwell. ity of Nordic women. Sellers, Susan. 1991. Language and sexual difference: Feminist Radical and socialist feminists have argued that the lib- writing in France. Basingstoke, U.K.: Macmillan. eral program does not address the underlying issues that ——. 1996. Hélène Cixous: Authorship, autobiography, and love. affect the educational achievement of women. Radical Cambridge: Polity. feminists focus on the effects of patriarchy that marginalize women’s experience and knowledge while prioritizing Susan Sellers men within the educational system. Patriarchal values are reinforced by the content of basic literacy programs in most political systems. Even in countries where schooling is uni- versal, schools can define and reinforce gender roles and EDUCATION: Achievement identity through the curriculum, teachers’ attitudes, and physical and verbal sexual harassment, all of which rein- Education allows people to reach their full potential within force girls’ low self-esteem. the value system of their culture. Some feminists define Socialist feminists emphasize that these gender issues educational achievement in terms of personal development work in combination with social and economic conditions. and success, often linked to qualifications that lead to In parts of Asia, Africa, and Latin America high female il- wellpaid work. Other feminists see educational achieve- literacy often is linked to rural poverty. Fees for primary ment in terms of the individual’s contribution to the ad- school may be limited to boys while girls work at home. vancement of family and community. Feminist research Similarly, in the developed world, parents may subsidize focuses on issues of race, class, and gender that limit wom- sons but not daughters in higher education. Cultural values en’s educational success worldwide and takes into account interconnect with gender and economic considerations. In the national socioeconomic context in which women live. some cultural contexts the “marriageability” of girls may Depending on this context, if women are not enrolled in require their seclusion, thereby reducing school attendance school, if they fail to complete a stage of education, or if and hence achievement. Parents also may be involved in dis- they do not appear in sufficient numbers in higher educa- cussions about dowry that will directly influence girls’ edu- tion to influence policy, then they are not achieving educa- cational aspirations. These limited aspirations may reflect tional success. social reality: if working-class girls in urban industrialized

472 EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT societies see that they have little chance of obtaining paid develop characteristics that were incompatible with aca- employment, then they may lose the motivation to succeed demic achievement. It was suggested that the sexual iden- in education. In contrast, upper- and middle-class girls, tity and self-image of these girls were connected to a particularly white girls, often achieve high levels of educa- particular model of femininity. tion, although they still may suffer from socialization fac- Girls were socialized into this model through strong tors, as will be discussed later. identification with female patterns in the family and through patriarchal practices both at home and at school. Black Feminism and Educational Achievement Identification with this vision of passive femininity led Black feminists have been at the forefront of research that many girls to choose an educational path that did not con- shows how “race” intersects with class and gender to deter- flict with a domestic role. Feminist research in Britain on mine the educational achievement of many black women. the “culture of femininity” among working-class girls, and This is particularly true for women who are members of a in the United States on the “culture of romance” among minority (in a historical context) whose cultural uniqueness college girls, showed how education might begin to be seen has been undermined or violated. The educational reper- as asexual or as an alternative to a fulfilling personal life. cussions of a colonialist or imperialist past are far-reaching. The impact of socialization has been identified in other Negative experiences ranging from extreme exploitation of countries. Karuna Chanana (1988) has suggested that a labor, impoverishment, and denial of rights and privileges rapid increase in female educational success in to underfunded education and marginalization have formed postindependence India drew to a halt because of the consciousness of many black women. For many Latina socialization factors. She concludes that the internalization women, African-American women, and Maori women, of values and identity formation in socialization processes “cultural assault,” the ridicule of their culture and lan- have an overarching influence on the educational achieve- guage, has been a severe challenge to their self-esteem and ment of Indian women. Similarly, Bouthaina Shaaban educational prospects. This can lead to ambivalence about (1988) argues that many Arab women who have benefited educational achievement, because success might involve from educational development schemes and who have identification with the dominant culture and separation gained public confidence through participation in struggles from their own community. In this context, education has for national identity are still locked into a model of docile frequently become a symbol of empowerment for the femininity that restricts their success. whole community. Gaining literacy for black American women has often been seen not just as personal achieve- Postmodern Feminism and Achievement ment but as “the practice of freedom,” helping to liberate Postmodern feminists suggest that what it means to be a the community. Linda Tuhiwai Smith (1993) has described woman—to develop feminine subjectivities—might differ how the establishment of a Maori cultural complex pro- significantly in different contexts. A female may receive moted the development of alternative pedagogic practices confusing messages—to achieve academically (as a male’s that validated Maori forms of knowledge, including collec- equal) while staying “feminine” (not competing with men). tive identity. In Britain, feminist subcultural research has Also, some subjectivities may be unavailable to girls. High- investigated the experiences of black women. A “culture of achieving girls are often seen as “mediocre” because an resistance” to the dominant society might involve women understanding, or discourse, about “brilliant feminine sub- using academic success to gain a sense of personal control jects” is not available. Postmodern feminists, however, rec- that also reinforces the power of the family and community. ognize that it is impossible to abstract a distinct and universal model of feminine behavior. Black feminists Socialization, Identity, and Achievement point out that different interpretations of femininity insti- The varied experiences of women from different races and gate different attitudes toward educational achievement. cultures both between and within countries suggest that achievement in education must be considered in very spe- Female Achievement cific ways. This becomes clear in such a key area as Many feminists seek to increase the range of discourses socialization and education. Anglo-American feminist so- within which female achievement may be conceptualized. ciologists and psychologists have investigated why (usu- Poor achievement may stem from poor motivation or poor ally white) girls in systems of almost universal schooling teaching, but it also may imply a different cultural or gen- seem to “avoid” educational success. They found evidence der construction of such terms as schoolwork or academic that families and schools seemed to encourage girls to success. Female “fear” of success may be, in fact, a rejection

473 EDUCATION: ADULT AND CONTINUING of conventional male definitions of knowledge or success. to a type of adult education that focuses on improve- Feminists have sought to bring a female perspective into ments of work skills and career development. Both terms academic institutions. Women’s studies courses and publi- have numerous aliases, including academic education, cations have drawn attention to female achievement and nonformal education, recurrent education, lifelong learn- “ways of knowing” worldwide. ing, distance learning, and literacy campaigns. Variations in these concepts and their meanings differ from country See Also to country. Adult education is a significant component in CHILD DEVELOPMENT; EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN the efforts of many developing and highly industrialized SCHOOLS; EDUCATION: GENDERED SUBJECT CHOICE; countries to raise employment levels and retrain work- EDUCATION: MATHMATICS; FEMININITY; GIRLS’ ers. Complexities arise when women are added to con- SUBCULTURES; KNOWLEDGE; LANGUAGE siderations of adult and continuing education throughout the world. References and Further Reading Throughout the world, adult education has been an un- Arnot, Madeleine, Miriam David, and Gaby Weiner. 1999. Clos- structured institution, even as it becomes more complex ing the gender gap: Postwar education and social change. and globalized. Differing terminology makes international Cambridge: Polity. comparison difficult. Countries vary in their definition and Chanana, Karuna, ed. 1988. Socialization, education, and women. age of adulthood, for instance. Many societies regard age New Delhi: Orient Longman. 15 (Latin America) or 18 (United States) as adulthood; oth- Fogelberg, Paul, Jeff Hearn, Liisa Husu, andTeija Mankkinen, ers place the age much younger or older. Developing and eds. 1999. Hard work in the academy: Research and inter- rural areas provide the most problematic situations in deter- ventions on gender inequalities in higher education. Hel- mining access to adult education because of their lack of sinki: Helsinki University Press. available resources. Interconnections among politics, hooks, bell. 1989. Talking back. Boston: South End. economy, religion, and culture influence the type of serv- Jones, Alison. 1993. Becoming a “girl”: Post-structuralist sugges- ices and access to those services. Throughout the world, tions for educational research. Gender and Education 5(2): adult education is voluntary, but has often excluded 157–166. women. Adult education, however, is closely linked to Luttrell, Wendy. 1997. School-smart and mother-wise. New York: community demands, and communities around the world Routledge. are beginning to recognize the needs of women. Shaaban, Bouthaina. 1988. Both right-and left-handed. London: Adult education occurs in a variety of settings that have Women’s Press. not always included women. The formal sector includes Smith Linda, Tuhiwai. 1993. Getting out from down under. In such institutions as employers, labor unions, schools, Madeleine Arnot and Kathleen Weiler, eds., Feminism and churches, professional organizations, the military, and social justice in education: International perspectives. Lon- nonprofit organizations. Adult programs also exist among don: Falmer. social circles, libraries, museums, church groups, commu- Spender, Dale. 1980. Learning to lose. London: Women’s Press. nity centers, and personal development seminars. These Stromquist, Nelly. 1989. Determinants of educational participa- settings have been crucial to women learning practical tion. Review of Educational Research 59(2):43–83. skills like reading, sewing, cooking, and health care. Co- Walkerdine, Valerie. 1994. Femininity as performance. In Lynda workers provide an opportunity for professional Stone, ed., The education feminism reader, 57–69. New York: socialization concerning the work environment and ex- Routledge. pected duties (Jarvis, 1985) that are not part of the initial work orientation or written in formal guides, such as the Chris Mann culture of the company, acceptable shortcuts, or the dos and don’ts. Advances in technology, especially in computeriza- tion, continue to extend adult education throughout the world and into the home. Women may historically have EDUCATION: Adult and Continuing used other educational locations that have yet to be discov- ered because of a lack of interest in women’s experiences. Adult education is a broad term that encompasses a vast Adult education is typically financed by private organi- array of learning and training activities for adults, includ- zations such as religious groups, social and political or- ing continuing education. Continuing education refers ganizations, and businesses. The state typically plays a

474 EDUCATION: ADULT AND CONTINUING minor role as a sponsor of adult education. The United realms interest women who want to enter the labor market. States was the first industrialized society to legislate the Other classes provide information concerning women’s Adult Education Act (1966) to provide financial support traditional domestic roles, including child rearing, cook- for adult education. Sweden followed in 1967. Financing ing, and housekeeping. For women in the poorest countries for adult education is affected by politics, population of the world, adult education often involves family plan- needs, economics, and technology, factors that vary widely ning, literacy, and health-related concerns. Rural women of among countries. Africa find their main source of work is in food production Throughout history, many organizations have con- and preparation, which can become problematic when they ducted international comparisons of adult and continuing are not adequately trained in these areas (Harrison, 1997). education. In the nineteenth century, adult education be- Professional associations found in almost every country came an international phenomenon. The United Nations provide women with a form of adult education. Most adult Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization programs for women tend to focus on the worldwide issue (UNESCO) has associated itself with the development of of literacy. adult education worldwide since 1945. This organization’s Over half the world’s women are illiterate. Throughout central emphasis is to bring attention to women’s participa- the world, many organizations work toward eradicating il- tion in these programs. The Continuing Education Unit is literacy as part of adult education. International compari- an international organization that sets the standards for sons acknowledge that illiteracy is a problem for third continuing education and training for corporations, col- world countries, as well as for industrialized countries. Il- leges and universities, health-related organizations, and literacy is more prevalent among women in rural many other institutions. Women were added to the agenda populations than among women in urban areas, but neither of adult education during the United Nations International is immune to the problem. Illiteracy rates are highest Women’s Year in 1975 and the Decade of Women in 1976. among women in developing countries because of poor en- The International Council of Adult Education, vironmental conditions, malnutrition, short life expect- headquartered in Toronto, Canada, developed a plan of ac- ancy, and lack of basic human needs. Women’s illiteracy tion in 1973 to increase women’s participation in adult edu- can negatively affect family well-being, children’s educa- cational programs worldwide. Throughout the 1980s many tional performance, and economic prospects in the labor countries experienced economic recession, famine, and in- market. Literacy programs often assist women with issues ternational debt that put a hold on women’s issues in adult of family planning and self-reflection. Educating women programs, but the 1990s brought the emphasis back to has been a major factor in changing the pattern of world women’s education because of demographic trends in fam- fertility; fertility rates tend to be higher in those countries ily planning, globalizing economy, and cross-cultural in- where women are poorly educated, so many adult pro- fluences. grams have focused on this critical problem. Women participate in adult education for a variety of Countries vary in their responses to the problem of reasons. A central feature of adult education is its power to women’s access to adult educational programs. In Afghani- build self-esteem and self-confidence in women. These stan, for instance, educating females is officially prohib- programs often provide women with empowerment, iden- ited. Females are therefore often educated in secret shelters tity, and purpose and a network of friends and resources. and private homes (Bearak, 2000). Western European Many women attend programs to complete their formal countries tend to be more concerned with equal access to education or to start anew; other women enter adult pro- education and employment for women and men. Central grams to assist in the economic needs of the family. Many and eastern Europe view adult education as a way of pre- participate in continuing education classes to enter or re- paring women for new forms of government and new eco- enter the labor market after an absence, typically resulting nomic growth. In some of the poorest countries, educating from childbirth, child rearing, or caring for elderly family women includes exposure to family planning information, members. Some women want to better themselves and fur- sanitation, and nutrition, all necessary for survival. In many ther their personal development. Some married women countries, obstacles such as cultural attitudes, the social who define themselves as housewives enter adult programs position of women, economics, and political structures in- to help their children with schoolwork. terfere with women’s access to adult education. Other Adult education encompasses a variety of fields for countries are expanding their educational connections into women, including civic, political, arts, language, and rec- rural and urban areas to increase access for those who are in reational topics. Programs tailored toward vocational lower socioeconomic positions.

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Many adult educational outlets have been unsuccessful References and Further Reading in maintaining women’s completion of their programs. Bearak, Barry. 2000. Afghanistan’s girls fight to read and write. Most programs are not designed by women, nor do they New York Times, 9 March. reflect women’s needs. Some women lack financial re- Harrison, Kelsey. 1997. The importance of the educated healthy sources to access or complete educational programs. Fam- women in Africa. Lancet 349:644–648. ily responsibilities, like child rearing and domestic chores, Jarvis, Peter. 1985. The sociology of adult and continuing educa- may inhibit women from completing training programs. A tion. London: Croom Helm. significant number of adult educational programs do not Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development provide women with day care centers, transportation, or (OECD). 1999. Education policy analysis 1999. Paris: Cen- domestic assistance, which would help many women to tre for Educational Research and Innovation. complete these programs. Many women do not feel a cer- UNESCO. 1999. Questioning the ABC’s of women’s literacy. tificate of completion is much reward if they cannot find UNESCO Courier, Oct.: 14–19. employment (UNESCO, 1999). The International Adult Literacy Survey found the number of hours that an indi- Jennifer L Gossett vidual spends in training is based on her level of educa- tional attainment. Higher levels of educational attainment are associated with greater numbers of training hours. Women who obtain higher levels of education typically EDUCATION: Antiracist have greater financial and family resources that allow them to complete trainings that further their careers. In all coun- Multicultural education as a concept and a set of practices tries, those with less than an upper secondary education re- emerged in the West in the 1960s in response to the de- ceive substantially less training on average than those who mands of minority ethnic groups for better educational op- have completed upper secondary education or more portunities for their children and for equal representation in (OECD, 1999). Limited education skills can inhibit women educational structures and in school curricula. This chal- from completing educational programs. Those with a lim- lenge led to various curriculum reform initiatives that re- ited education usually are not employed outside the home flected different national concerns and political priorities. or work in positions that require minimum skills, where The postwar period of global migrations led to dynamic training programs do not better their economic or family changes in the demographics of western countries, and the position. Overall, women, in all countries, typically receive types of policies and practices that emerged reflected the less hours of training than men at all educational levels, specific histories of colonial settlement and the different which greatly affects their economic position in society. relations between dominant and subordinate groups within Increases in women’s participation in adult education, the society. which can positively affect their jobs and continuity in the Although there was no single definition or practice of labor market, have done little to affect the wages women multicultural education, a common feature of earn. Women’s educational levels also strongly affect the multiculturalism lay in the basic theoretical assumptions occupations they choose. The right of females to receive an about culture and society and the place of different groups education at any age has its political origins in basic human within it. Minority ethnic group cultures were represented rights. Adult education provides women with a way of dis- in dominant discourses as distinctive, homogeneous, inter- cussing and processing information about themselves and nally stable and therefore without different male and fe- others. Although access to adult education is still denied to male agendas or internal inequalities. Whereas for these many women throughout the world, change is occurring, groups differences such as gender and class, were rendered albeit slowly. Women worldwide are finding that adult and invisible, white dominant groups were presented as continuing education provides the needed skills, access to “nonethnic,” unproblematic, and self-evident—the norm available resources, and an avenue to raise their status in a against which “others” were measured. globalizing economy. From an official or state perspective, the increasing cul- tural pluralism of western societies and the supposed cul- See Also tural distinctiveness of groups were potential threats to EDUCATION: DISTANCE EDUCATION; EDUCATION: HIGHER social cohesion. With the failure of assimilationist policies, EDUCATION; EDUCATION: ON-LINE; EDUCATION: it was deemed necessary to devise strategies that recog- VOCATIONAL; LITERACY nized and promoted cultural pluralism and supported the

476 EDUCATION: ANTIRACIST stability of the nation. In Britain part of the threat to na- feminists, however, not only continued to raise gender and tional stability was seen to be posed by a growing popula- class issues (see Bryan et al., 1985) but also remained criti- tion of young people (mainly male) from minority ethnic cal of policies and practices that failed to acknowledge the groups, who were said to be failing in the education system different interests and different positions of women within and becoming disaffected and alienated. groups. Yuval-Davis (1992), for example, questions the However, much of the research into the experiences of role of predominantly male “community leaders” in decid- minorities was itself contained within a simplistic ing the interests of diverse sections within communities. culturalist framework, and policies and practices gener- She sees multiculturalism and antiracism as major ideo- ally reflected this. Theories about the educational undera- logical weapons of religious fundamentalism and of politi- chievement of minority-group pupils, for example, rarely cal expediency. By defining culture in primarily religious took into account the different experiences of girls terms, she argues, multiculturalism helped to legitimate (Mirza, 1992). The tendency was to make comparisons of attempts by religious fundamentalists to define and control the academic success or otherwise of supposedly discrete women’s behavior and to attack and undermine women’s ethnic groups, so that class and gender differences were autonomous mobilizing. Equally, leftist politicians were overlooked and the interactions of class, gender, and eth- able to jump on the antiracist bandwagon in order to gain nicity were excluded from the analysis. A major assump- the support of “community leaders,” thereby ignoring the tion behind the notion of educational failure among concerns and interests of women. On the other hand, the minority-group pupils was that these pupils suffered from focus on minority-group religions masked the gendered low self-esteem, which was said to result partly from inequalities inherent within Christian religions, so that white prejudices and also from the experience of cultural fundamentalism became associated in the popular mind exclusion (Bullivant, 1981). Theories of low self-esteem with Islam and all Muslims came to be defined as funda- among minority-group pupils, and in particular among mentalists. black girls, were strongly disputed (Fuller, 1980; Stone, The prioritization of culture exposed particular tensions 1981). Multicultural education nevertheless emerged as and dilemmas for multiculturalists and antiracists around the panacea for the educational disadvantages experi- the issue of single-sex schools. Although such schools are enced by pupils from minority ethnic groups (Swann Re- said to be generally of benefit to girls’ education, single- port, 1985). sex religious schools are viewed by antifundamentalists as In Britain the strategies adopted by multiculturalists a means of ensuring that girls are educated for roles as good largely consisted of celebrations of superficial aspects of wives and mothers. In their support of such schools, cultural and religious differences. These strategies were multiculturalists were thus said to collude in the oppression criticized by antiracists for being blind to the structural in- of women. Moreover, multiculturalists were seen as the al- equalities of groups in the society. As Sarup stated, lies of right-wing separatist groups whose support of the multicultural education “was associated with…thought notion of freedom of parental choice included a belief in and consciousness, beliefs and customs—the curries peo- the right of white parents to remove their children from ple cook, the music they make, the dances they perform” schools attended by minorityethnic-group children. On the (1986:13). Antiracists rejected the idea that the problem other hand, parents who preferred that their children attend lay in minority groups themselves or in the individual single-sex religious schools argued for the right to send prejudices of white children. They underlined the signifi- their children to schools that best reflected their own value cance of the unequal power relations that existed in the systems and freed them from the tensions and contradic- structures and institutions of society, which included un- tions inherent in their relations and interactions with main- equal gender relations. The strategy for antiracists was to stream education. Some of these tensions and raise awareness of different forms of inequality through contradictions arose for Muslim parents, for example, in a training. However, official funding mechanisms generally range of situations, from negotiating the dietary require- forced a separation of issues, so that different interest ments of their children, to the curricular issue of sex educa- groups dealing with issues of sexuality, gender, disability, tion, to participation in sports. They argued that there was or “race” vied with one another for priority or recognition. as much variety and diversity of response to girls’ educa- The antiracist focus on racism led to accusations that tion among Muslim parents as there was in other groups antiracists reduced all disadvantages experienced by mi- (Wade and Souter, 1992). The essentialist nature of many nority groups to the effects of racism and ignored experi- forms of multicultural education, however, largely over- ences of class and gender (Gilroy, 1990). Antiracist looked this diversity.

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Minority women and girls were thus rendered invisible are scattered in the southern region of the Pacific Ocean by the multiculturalist neglect of the specifically gendered and covers what is commonly known as the Pacific Islands, and classed forms of racism and discrimination in the edu- New Zealand, and Australia. This article deals mainly with cation system. the education of women in the Pacific Islands, traditionally categorized into three main groups: Melanesia (for exam- See Also ple, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Vanuatu), Polynesia (for ex- ANTIRACIST AND CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS; EDUCATION: ample, Samoa, Tonga, Cook Islands), and Micronesia (for ACHIEVEMENT; EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS; example, Kiribati, Nauru, Tuvalu). It specifically discusses EDUCATION: RELIGIOUS STUDIES; EDUCATION: SINGLE-SEX illiteracy rates of women in these nations as well as their AND COEDUCATION; ETHNICITY; FUNDAMENTALISM: access to and participation in formal schooling, including RELIGIOUS; MULTICULTURALISM; RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA postsecondary and distance education.

References and Further Reading Female Illiteracy Bryan, Beverley, Stella Dadzie, and Suzanne Scafe. 1985. The Generally speaking, illiteracy in females is significantly heart of the race: Black women’s lives in Britain. London: higher than in males, because women’s access to and par- Virago. ticipation in education are not priorities in some areas of Bullivant, Brian. 1981. The pluralist dilemma in education. Syd- Oceania. For instance, from a table provided by ney: Allen and Un win. FairbairnDunlop (1994), we learn that the illiteracy rate Fuller, Mary. 1980. Black girls in a London comprehensive was 82 percent for women in Papua New Guinea in 1980, school. In Rosemary Deem, ed., Schooling for women’s 83 percent for women in the Solomon Islands in 1991, and work. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. 40.2 percent for in 1989. These figures Gilroy, Paul. 1990. The end of anti-racism. In Wendy Ball and demonstrate that more girls will need to be educated in the John Solomos, eds., Race and local politics. London: formal schooling system before some progress is made in Macmillan. terms of the future participation of women in national life Mirza, Heidi. 1992. Young, female, and black. London: Routledge. in these countries. In comparison, the illiteracy rate for Sarup, Madan. 1986. The politics of multiracial education. Lon- women in some Pacific nations is significantly lower than don: Routledge and Kegan Paul. these three Melanesian nations. For instance, in 1986 Fiji Stone, Maureen. 1981. The education of the black child. London: had a 15.8 percent illiteracy rate, the Cook Islands 4.0 per- Fontana. cent, and Samoa 1.7 percent. Nonetheless, women’s illit- Swarm Report. 1985. Education for all. London: HMSO. eracy rates are significantly higher than those of males in Wade, Barrie, and Pamela Souter. 1992. Continuing to think: The most Pacific nations. British Asian girl. Clevedon, U.K.: Multilingual Matters. Yuval-Davis, Nira. 1992. Fundamentalism, multiculturalism, and Access to and Participation in Formal Schooling women in Britain. In James Donald and Ali Rattansi, eds., In most Pacific nations, education is not free, nationally “Race,” culture, and difference. London: Sage. available, or compulsory. As with illiteracy rates, women’s participation in formal schooling is markedly less than that Maud Blair of males in most of the nations in Oceania. Pacific wom- en’s participation in formal schooling is similar to that of women in developed nations (Fairbairn-Dunlop, 1994:56). EDUCATION: Assessment This is reflected in the following: fewer females compared See EXAMINATIONS AND ASSESSMENT. with males enter the school system; the attrition rate for women is higher than for males, so the higher the level, the lower the female participation; and there is a concentration EDUCATION: Central Pacific of women in social sciences, as opposed to the male pre- and South Pacific Islands dominance in basic sciences. Women face some critical problems in attaining formal This article provides an overview of general trends in the education in many countries in Oceania. First, they need to educational status of women and girls in Oceania. How- enter primary school. Girls’ access to first grade in many ever, there is enormous variation between and within na- Melanesian countries has improved considerably. For in- tions in this region. Oceania includes those countries that stance, female enrollment in first grade in Papua New

478 EDUCATION: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

Guinea rose from 47.3 percent in 1971 to 68.8 percent in continued focus on women’s issues is necessary, for, on the 1981 (Fairbairn-Dunlop, 1994). Similarly, in Fiji, 47 percent basis of their gender, women continue to exceed males in of the total first-grade enrollment in 1992 were girls, and 49 all measurable categories of disadvantage. percent of the total primary enrollment in 1992 were female. The next major hurdle facing females is access to and See Also continued enrollment in secondary schools. Female EDUCATION: DISTANCE EDUCATION enrollment in secondary and higher education in Papua New Guinea is estimated as one-third that of males; in Vanuatu, References and Further Reading secondary-school enrollment figures have been calculated Bolabola, Cema, and Richard Wah, eds. 1995. South Pacific at 24 percent males and 21 percent females; in the Solomon women in distance education: Studies from countries of the Islands the female population in secondary schools in- South Pacific. Suva, Fiji: University of the South Pacific Ex- creased from 30 percent in 1980 to 36 percent in 1986 and tension and the Commonwealth of Learning. 1991 (Fairbairn-Dunlop, 1994:58–59). Some countries are Dé Ishtar, Zohl. 1994. Daughters of the Pacific. Victoria, Aus- moving toward gender equity at the higher secondary level. tralia: Spinifex. For instance, in Fiji 47 percent of form 6 (12th grade) Fairbairn-Dunlop, Peggy. 1994. Women’s education: Pacific over- enrollment in 1992 were girls, and 49 percent were enrolled view 1994. Directions 30, Journal of Educational Studies in form 7, the preparatory year for higher education. 16(1):55–68. In subject disciplines at the postsecondary level females Flaherty, Teresa A. 1998. The women’s voice in education: Iden- tend to concentrate in the humanities (education, psychol- tity and participation in a changing Papua New Guinea. ogy, literature, and language). At the University of the Goroka, Papua New Guinea: Melanesian Institute. South Pacific (USP), which serves 12 island nations— Government of Federated States of Micronesia and UNICEF. namely, the Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, 1996. A situational analysis of children and women in the Nauru, Niue, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, federated states of Micronesia. Suva, Fiji: UNICEF. Vanuatu, and Western Samoa—males predominate in the Government of Fiji, Ministry ofWomen and Culture. 1998. The pure and applied sciences (63 percent) and agriculture (81 women’s plan of action, 1999–2008. Suva, Fiji: Ministry of percent), and females dominate in the humanities (53 per- Women and Culture. cent). In 1995, 43.5 percent of the total full-time Hughes, Helen, et al. 1985. Women in development in the South enrollment at USP was female. Pacific: Barriers and opportunities. Paper presented at a con- ference held in Vanuatu, 11–14 Aug. 1984. Canberra: Aus- Distance Education tralian National University, Development Studies Centre. Although females generally are slowly approaching gender Matthewson, Claire, and Ruby Va’a. 1999. The South Pacific: equity in full-time enrollment at primary, secondary, and Kakai mei tahi. In Keith Harry, ed., Higher education postsecondary levels in many Oceanic nations, they are still through open and distance learning, 277–291. New York: heavily underrepresented in distance education. Women in Routledge. Melanesian countries do not appear to benefit from the op- University of the South Pacific. 1994. Report of the Pacific work- portunities provided by USP’s distanceeducation pro- shop for women managers in higher education. Suva, Fiji: grams. In these countries, women’s enrollments are low, University of the South Pacific. and they have a high attrition rate (Bolabola and Wah, Priscilla Qolisaya Puamau 1995). On the other hand, women from Polynesian and Micronesian nations generally have high enrollment fig- ures but high attrition rates. The high dropout rate of women from all areas of the South Pacific highlights the problems that women have when they undertake distance EDUCATION: Central and South America education on a part-time basis. Reasons consistently pro- and the Caribbean vided by women who withdrew from distance-education courses were heavy workload and family commitments. Adequate educational opportunities are limited for all resi- dents of Latin America. Although there are few disparities Conclusion in access to education between men and women at all levels Generally, women continue to be disadvantaged and in Latin America and the Caribbean, the curriculum is inad- underrepresented at all levels of the educational system. A equate to meet the needs of young girls for an education

479 EDUCATION: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN free of limiting gender role expectations. Classroom prac- Despite the UNESCO and ECLAC statistics that show little tices often do not encourage girls to further their careers. problem with access to education based on gender, women Furthermore, women are often educated in preparation for still are subordinate to men in types of jobs and wages, in field teaching or other “feminine” jobs, which pay less than of study choices, and in occupational segregation. Further- men’s jobs. At the university level, women’s studies and more, women in Latin America are underrepresented at all gender studies programs have been growing. This may political office levels. This suggests that despite women’s ac- have longterm positive results for women’s educational ex- cess to education, the educational process is not resulting in periences. changes in their societal status. Because of the disparate re- Preschool education has been recognized as a potential sults, a closer study of the educational process is warranted. mechanism for stimulating early intellectual development. Studies have shown that textbooks used in Colombia, The trend toward an increasing presence of women in the Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Mexico depict women as pas- workplace has led to more children in Latin America and sive, subordinate, and fatalistic. Gender roles prevail and the Caribbean attending preschool and is the area within are justified by “natural” differences between the sexes education that shows the highest growth. The availability (Wainerman and Raijman, 1984). Studies of classroom and quality, however, of preschool programs vary widely. practices reveal that teachers (mostly women) transmit tra- Government support for preschool education is increasing ditional views of gender roles. Often these teachers are but is at generally low levels. Typical is Jamaica, where 2.5 viewed not as professionals but as poorly paid caretakers percent of the education budget supports preschools. The (Anderson and Herencia, 1983). United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Or- At the university level, there has been a rapid growth of ganization (UNESCO) yearbook for 1999 reports that the women’s studies and gender studies programs. Argentina, percentage of girls enrolled in preschool is about half of all Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican enrolled. Thus the preschool stage of education, although Republic, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Uruguay, and Ven- not adequate for all the children in the region, does not ap- ezuela all have programs focusing on gender studies. pear to be widely discriminatory in its availability to young Women in these programs have formed feminist and wom- girls. Of course, the poor and those in rural regions have the en’s nongovernmental organizations to challenge sexism most limited access to preschool education. and oppressive gender roles. Their impact in society may Access to elementary and secondary education in Latin be transformative in the long run. This is evidenced by in- America varies widely. Guatemala and Bolivia have much creased participation of Latin American and Caribbean lower enrollment rates than Argentina, Chile, or Costa women in international women’s organizing projects. As Rica. Within nations, the enrollment rates are much lower women from this region pursue more educational opportu- among poor, rural, and indigenous people. Furthermore, nities, their quest for self-determination will be closer to girls from rural areas and indigenous families are less likely becoming a reality. to receive an education than are boys from similar back- grounds. Latin America has one of the lowest educational See Also completion rates. According to the Inter-American Devel- DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA AND THE opment Bank, only 54 percent of those who enter primary CARIBBEAN; EDUCATION: GENDER EQUITY; EDUCATORS: school reach fourth grade, and only four Latin American PRESCHOOL; EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES: EDUCATION; WOMEN’S countries have primary completion rates higher than 75 STUDIES: CARIBBEAN; WOMEN’S STUDIES: CENTRAL AND percent. The gap in enrollment between boys and girls is SOUTH AMERICA small. Girls slightly outnumber boys in secondary school. This results in boys entering the workforce more easily. References and Further Reading In some countries, women outnumber men at the univer- Anderson, Jeanine, and Christina Herencia. 1983. La imagen de la sity level. This has been attributed to the large numbers of mujer y del hombre en los libros de texto escolares peruanos. women enrolled in university programs for training as teach- Paris: UNESCO. ers or secretaries. A 1995 study by the Economic Commis- ECLAC and UNIFEM. 1995. Regional programme of action for sion for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) found the women of Latin America and the Caribbean, 1995–2001. that women need to have four more years of education in Santiago, Chile: United Nations (CEPAL). order to compete for salaries similar to those of men. Careers Facio Montejo, Alda. 1992. Cuando el género suena cambios trae: to which women are channeled—teaching and other sex- Una. metodología para el análisis de género delfenómeno segregated jobs—do not pay as well as male occupations. legal. San José, C.R.: Ilanud.

480 EDUCATION: CHILLY CLIMATE IN THE CLASSROOM

Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). 1995. Social dimen- dampens their vocational and academic aspirations, and sions in the agenda of the IDB. Copenhagen: World Summit diminishes their self-esteem and confidence. A chilly cli- for Social Development. 6–12 March. mate is characterized by the following: Meyers, R. 1992. Investing in early childhood development pro- grams: Toward definition of a World Bank strategy. Washing- • Girls and women typically get less attention, less eye ton, D.C.: World Bank. contact, and less encouragement. Puryear, Jeffrey, and José Joaquín Brunner, eds. 1999. Education, • Females are more likely to be praised for their attractive- equity, and economic competitiveness in the Americas: An ness or neatness, whereas males are more likely to be inter-American dialogue project. Washington, D.C.: Organi- praised for their work and creativity. zation of American States. • When males speak, teachers often engage in a dialogue Stromquist, Nelly P., ed. 1992. Women and education in Latin with them, whereas girls and women are more likely to American countries: Knowledge, power, and change. Boul- receive the ubiquitous “uh-huh.” der, Colo.: Lynne Rienner. • Female students may be interrupted more often and be UNESCO Statistical Yearbook. 1992 Paris: UNESCO, http:// called on less often in many classes. unescostate..org • Teachers are more likely to call on males, even when United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the females raise their hands. Caribbean: http://searcher.eclacpos.org/ • Men and boys are more likely to be called by their name Valverdo, Gilbert A. 1999. Democracy, human rights, and devel- than females. opment assistance for education: The USAID and World • Teachers are more likely to ask males the harder, Bank in Latin America and the Caribbean. Economic Devel- higherorder “thinking” questions, such as “Why did the opment and Cultural Change 47(2: Jan.):401. Revolution occur?” By contrast, females are more likely Wainerman, Catalina, and Rebeca Barck de Raijman. 1984. La to be asked factual, lower-order questions, such as division sexual del trabajo en los libros de lectura de la “When did the Revolution occur?” escuela primaria Argentina: Un caso de inmutabilidad secu- lar. Buenos Aires: CENEP. These and other subtle behaviors are often unnoticed by World Bank, Mexico. 1992. The initial educational strategy. faculty members who engage in them or by the persons af- Washington, D.C.: World Bank. fected by them. Why should these behaviors occur, especially when al- Antoinette Sedillo Lopez most all teachers want to be fair? Stereotypes play a role, as does devaluation. In numerous studies, when male and fe- male names are switched on résumés, articles, pictures of works of art, or other items, those with a male name are EDUCATION: rated higher by both men and women. Thus female accom- Chilly Climate in the Classroom plishments are often attributed to “working hard” or to “good luck” rather than to intelligence and talent. The term chilly climate was developed by Bernice Many of these behaviors are also directed at women fac- R.Sandler and Roberta M.Hall in 1982 in the first com- ulty members (and other employees) at staff meetings and prehensive report detailing the numerous, subtle ways in in their relationships with students, colleagues, and admin- which males and females are often treated differently in istrators. the classroom, even by the best-intentioned teachers. Al- though most of the research about classroom behavior See Also has been done in the United States, there is much anec- EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT; EDUCATION: GENDER EQUITY; dotal information that confirms that these behaviors are EDUCATION: GENDERED SUBJECT CHOICE; EDUCATION: universal. NONSEXIST; EDUCATION: SINGLE-SEX AND COEDUCATION Women as well as men engage in these behaviors, which may also be directed at men of color, disabled per- References and Further Reading sons, those of lower class, and others viewed as being dif- Cohee, Gail E., Elizabeth Daumer, Theresa D.Kemp, Paul M. ferent or “on the margins.” Over time, these small, Krebs, Sue Lafky, and Sandra Runzo, eds. 1998. The feminist seemingly insignificant behaviors create a chilly climate, teacher anthology: Pedagogies and classroom strategies. which lessens girls’ and women’s class participation, New York: Teachers College Press.

481 EDUCATION: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES

Sadker, Myra, and David Sadker. 1994. Failing at fairness: How Women reached levels of educational attainment in the America’s schools cheat girls. New York: Charles Scribner’s U.S.S.R, far earlier than in the West, although some eastern Sons. republics lagged behind somewhat. The educational Sandler, Bernice Resnick, Lisa A.Silverberg, and Roberta M. progress of women during the twentieth century was dra- Hall. 1996. The chilly classroom climate: A guide to improve matic. At the time of the Russian Revolution, illiteracy had the education of women. Washington, D.C.: National Asso- been a significant problem, with 14 million out of a total of ciation for Women in Education. 17 million illiterate people being female (Stites, 1976). But between 1926 and 1939, the proportion of women who Bernice R.Sandler could read rose from just over 42 percent to just over 83 percent (Stites, 1976). Coeducation and equal admission conditions and uniform curricula for girls and boys were enforced by early postrevolutionary laws (Stites, 1976). EDUCATION: “Equality of the sexes in real life,” as N.K.Krupskaya Commonwealth of Independent States pointed out in 1921, “had to be anchored in educational equality from the very earliest years. Thus, the belief in the The specificity of girls’ education in the Commonwealth of omnicompetence of women, long nourished by the female Independent States is associated with the political history intelligentsia of the nineteenth century, was institutional- of the region, as is the case with all countries in the former ized in the Soviet educational system” (Stites, 1976:397). Soviet bloc. Real educational gains were made early on, In 1950 women were 53 percent of the total number of stu- although these did not translate into full parity with men in dents enrolled in higher education in the U.S.S.R. (Ratliff, the labor market. The social position of women, whether in 1991). This fell to 43 percent in 1960 but rose again to 49 education or the labor market, has not in the past been the percent in 1970 and to 55 percent in 1985 (Ratliff, 1991). subject of feminist theorizing or campaigning. That is be- The Soviet education system did not develop in an alto- cause, in the absence of liberal civil society, neither educa- gether linear fashion, being subject to periodic reform and tional nor labor market inequalities can be translated into counterreform. Stalin abolished coeducation in 1943, and the “political exclusion: of women” (Watson, 1996). Cur- until 1954 boys and girls in urban areas were taught sepa- rent levels of female educational participation, which are in rately from the seventh class onward (Matthews, 1982). the main still high, are nevertheless threatened by political The system was and continues to be based on the 10-year and economic changes in the region. (now 11-year) general school, which was the main route to The table indicates the representation of girls and young higher education. The last three years of this general school women in primary, secondary, and higher education in the provide a standardized curriculum that stresses math and countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and science, where girls usually take the same courses and per- the central Asian republics in 1992. form at least as well as boys (Matthews, 1982). In addition, there is the possibility of vocational training Girls as a percentage of all students in primary, sec-ondary, in the lower-level “vocational-technical school” or in the and higher education in Commonwealth of Independent higher-level teknikum. With the restructuring of the States and central Asian republics, 1992 economy in the Commonwealth of Independent States, the future of vocational training was under question. Young women have been underrepresented in the lower-level vo- cational schools but have typically constituted more than half of the teknikum pupils and more than half of the pupils in the final three years of the general school, since boys have tended to leave school earlier to take up employment. Traditional ideas of gender identity, paradoxically rein- forced under communism (Watson, 1993), have continued to influence subject choice at the teknikum, where girl tend to choose courses that lead to feminized sectors of the economy (Ratliff, 1991). The introduction of more subject *1993 choice into the secondary curriculum, given these traditional Source: UNESCO, Statistical Yearbook 1994. preferences, may lead to a split in the subjects followed

482 EDUCATION: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES within the general school, with boys tending toward math the demand for labor, produced a school textbook that de- and science and girls toward humanities and languages nounced “the engagement of girls in academic excellence (Ratliff, 1991). In higher education, women have favored as producing a specific illness of excellence.” “These girls the fields of medicine, teaching, and research in applied are deprived of childhood,” the text says, “they spend all and pure sciences and are underrepresented in courses day reading books… As a result, when they get married, leading to jobs in agriculture, manufacturing, construction, their body is not ready to pass the main exam of life, to give and transportation (Ratliff, 1991). Similarly gendered pat- birth to a child” (Posadskaya, 1994:168). terns of preference persist today in the countries of the Educational policy with respect to women in the Com- Commonwealth of Independent States (see UNICEF, monwealth of Independent States has not been associated 1994). Given the large proportion of women seeking entry with feminist campaigning or theorizing. Indeed, the high to higher education, there is evidence that the informal rates of female education in most countries of the region, as equal quota systems have sometimes acted against rather elsewhere in the former Soviet bloc, have been accompa- than in favor of women. Ratliff (1991) notes two early stud- nied by a widely noted antifeminist sentiment. Such atti- ies where, although four times as many women applied for tudes toward feminism are likely to change with the admission to certain institutions of higher education, they installation of liberal civil society, which brings a new, po- represented one-half of all students gaining admission to litically divisive force to gender relations (Watson, 1996). these institutions. Political and economic change in the region has impor- See Also tant implications for education, particularly for the educa- COMMUNISM; EDUCATION: SINGLE-SEX AND COEDUCATION; tion of girls and young women. Far from being viewed as a EDUCATION: VOCATIONAL; LABOR MARKET; POLITICS AND universal instrument of social change (cf. Lapidus, 1982), THE STATE: COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES; democratization has transformed education into a second- SOCIALISM ary issue, starved of public funding and dependent on the (future) successful restructuring of the economy. This has References and Further Reading been associated with the ascendancy of neoliberal reason- Human Rights Watch. 1995. Neither jobs nor justice. New York: ing during the first few years of transformation in the Human Rights Watch. former Soviet bloc. More specific problems arise where Lapidus, Gail. 1982. Sexual equality through educational reform: transformation has involved violence. Azerbaijan, for ex- The case of the USSR. In P.G.Altbach, R.F.Arnove, and ample, has seen many schools abandoned as a result of the G.P.Kelly, eds., Comparative education. New York: occupation of some of its territory by Armenian armed Macmillan. forces (UNICEF, 1994). Matthews, Mervyn. 1982. Education in the Soviet Union. London: Moreover, the political and economic changes under Allen and Unwin. way have specific implications for women. These are most Morozova, Marina Y. 1994. Gender stratification in Russian striking in the labor market (see Human Rights Watch, higher education: The matrioshka image. In Suzanne Stiver 1995), but they also impinge on education. Charges for pre- Lie et al., eds., The gender gap in higher education. London: school education in Georgia, the Russian Federation, Kogan Page. Moldova, and elsewhere have risen, and the number of Posadskaya, Anastasia. 1994. Women’s studies in Russia: Pros- places available has generally decreased (UNICEF, 1994). pects for a feminist agenda. Women’s Studies Quarterly, nos. Morozova (1994) notes that since the end of the 1980s, the 3 and 4:157–170- rates of enrollment of women students in Russia have Ratliff, Patricia. 1991. Women’s education in the USSR; 1950– fallen. Whereas women represented more than 54 percent 1985. In G.P.Kelly and S.Slaughter, eds., Women’s higher of undergraduates at the Moscow State University in 1985, education in comparative perspective . Boston: Kluwer Aca- they constituted only 45 percent of students at the univer- demic. sity in 1991 (Morozova, 1994). She points out that some Stites, R. 1976. The women’s liberation movement in Russia: institutes and departments have strict quotas for women Feminism, nihilism, and Bolshevism, 1860–1930. Princeton, and that in higher military schools and certain elite depart- N.J.: Princeton University Press. ments teaching diplomacy, international law, and journal- UNICEF. 1994. Women and gender in countries in transition: A ism, women are not admitted at all. The renewed public UNICEF perspective. New York: UNICEF. emphasis on women’s “natural domesticity” during Watson, Peggy. 1993. Eastern Europe’s silent revolution: Gender. perestroika, which was associated with an expected fall in Sociology 27(3):471–487.

483 EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS

——. 1996. Civil society and the politicisation of difference in eventual domestic destinies within the family. Parallel fe- eastern Europe. In Joan Scott and Cora Kaplan, eds., Transi- male curricula emerged, relating to gender and class, based tions, environments, translations: The meanings of feminism on Victorian middle-class assumptions concerning “the in contemporary politics. New York: Routledge. perfect lady” and her hardworking proletarian sister “the good woman.” The curriculum was framed according to Peggy Watson the skills, knowledge, and accomplishments thought neces- sary for women’s lives; for example, household manage- ment was reserved for the future “lady” of the house, laundry skills for the future working “woman.” EDUCATION: Curriculum in Schools Two perspectives on female education predominated during this period (and, some might argue, to the present This article first considers definitions of the term curricu- day). The first and most popular view was that women were lum before examining how this term has developed histori- different from (and inferior to) men, not only biologically cally and the different ways in which feminists have but also socially, intellectually, and psychologically. Girls conceptualized its meaning. therefore needed an education different from that of boys, Curriculum is a much contested term, although defini- relating specifically to their inferior roles in society. A re- tions tend to be broad based, incorporating both syllabus current theme was the fear that the working of the female and pedagogy. For example, Pring (1989:2), emphasizing mind was at odds with the working of the female body and deliberation and intentionality, argues for a simple defini- that doing any academic work would destroy women’s fer- tion of curriculum as “the learning experiences that are tility (Delamont and Duffin, 1978). planned within the school.” The second view (held by most feminists of the period) However, feminists have tended to see the curriculum was that if girls and women were educated equally with more as a site of struggle and contestation, suffused with boys and men and studied identical curricula, women implicit sexist assumptions about the needs and potential of would be more able to assume their rightful place in society individuals. Late twentieth-century conceptualizations as the social and intellectual equals of men. suggested that the curriculum was gender-biased and un- In the first half of the twentieth century, influenced by dervalued “the social contributions and cultural experi- the work of Sigmund Freud in Europe and John Dewey in ences of girls and women generally and working-class and the United States, perceptions of the importance of the minority racial and ethnic women in particular” (Kenway framework of the learner started to displace previous and Modra, 1992:141). conceptualizations of the curriculum based exclusively on realms of knowledge. This led to the development of Viewing the Curriculum Historically “child-centered” curricula relating to the perceived unfold- Before the Enlightenment at the end of the eighteenth cen- ing nature of the child. Simultaneously, shifts in the school tury, western conceptions of the curriculum and schooling curriculum were being forced by the new work opportuni- were principally concerned with promoting spiritual deliv- ties open to women, such as typewriting, clerical, and tel- erance, whereby Bible study formed the basis of all worth- ephonic work. However, despite such shifts, the outcomes while knowledge. Later, teaching and learning became of “progressive” curriculum changes for female education more secular as contemporary developments in the growth were fundamentally conservative (Walkerdine, 1990) in of scientific and social knowledge began to infiltrate post- that the main purpose of female education was still for Enlightenment curriculum thinking. These developments motherhood and domesticity. were paralleled by the rise of feminism in western Europe, The early post-World War II period brought new cur- associated with the emergence of liberal Protestantism and riculum discourses concerning the role of schooling in the religious individualism, together with ideas about natural creation of a more highly skilled labor force for the ad- rights, justice, and political democracy (Banks, 1981). vanced modern industrial state. Official documents In the nineteenth century, two opposing themes of order stressed the unity of purpose of the school curriculum, and and control and rights and freedom began to infuse (and the need was identified for a wider choice of courses to clash within) curriculum thinking in western education sys- meet the requirements of different levels of student ability, tems. Whereas male-as-norm curricula focused on boys’ interest, and aptitude. Nevertheless, the outcome for fe- public roles for the labor force and as citizens, the female male education remained as before, despite the more lib- curriculum was invariably linked to girls’ biology and their eral tone set by western governments immediately after

484 EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS the war. For example, even during the height of socialist nature of sexual inequality within capitalism. Research policy making of the 1945–1951 Labour administration in from this perspective has focused on how gender and Britain, conventional vocational destinations for men (the power relations are continually reproduced within and workplace) and women (the home) were extensively en- through the school curriculum such that working-class dorsed (Dean, 1991). girls are “schooled” to limit their aspirations to jobs and It was only with the foregrounding of equality issues to- domestic situations thought appropriate to their class. ward the end of the boom years of the 1960s and early Black feminists also have been skeptical about the extent 1970s—when there was, possibly uniquely in the history of to which education, by itself, can overturn or transform in- western schooling, a high level of public investment in cur- equalities in society: the law has been more important than riculum change and a commitment to educational equal- education in eradicating some of the most overt forms of ity—that gender was placed nearer the top of the racial and sexual discrimination. However, black activists curriculum agenda. Solutions to gender inequalities in the have pointed out the invisibility and lack of representation curriculum depended, however, on the various feminist of black and minority cultures within the curriculum in an perspectives taken up by educators. effort to reeducate teachers and educationists into more consciously egalitarian practices. Black feminists have also Feminisms and the Curriculum argued that when gender and “race” issues are distin- Four feminist perspectives will be discussed here, although guished in the curriculum (rather than fused), black girls a variety of others have emerged and will be likely to are likely to be rendered invisible in both discourses. emerge in the future (Weiner, 1994). Rather than focusing on the “clash of cultures” explana- Liberal feminists asserted that individual women should tions given by many white teachers for the general be as free as men to determine their social, political, and underperformance of black girls and young women, black educational roles and that any laws, traditions, and activi- feminists have thus tended to concentrate on exposing how ties that inhibit equal rights and opportunities should be black family culture is viewed as pathological and on frac- abolished. Access to the curriculum is thus fundamental, by turing the widely held stereotypes of black femininity—for providing equal education experiences for both sexes. Re- example, by exploring how the actual experience of black search from this perspective has tended to focus on girls’ girls and young women can be represented in the curricu- “failure” or underachievement in certain curriculum areas lum and how the sexism and racism of teachers can be such as mathematics, science, and technological subjects. eradicated (Mirza, 1992). In contrast, radical feminists attributed inequalities in the For all feminist perspectives, including those described curriculum to patriarchal forces and male-dominated power here, the curriculum’s central role in defining school relationships in which (hetero) sexuality and hierarchy com- knowledge and how it is taught makes it an important vehi- bine to create the dominant male and subordinate female. cle for challenge and for promoting change. Neither the responsibility for nor the solution to sexual in- equality can be placed entirely on the shoulders of educa- See Also tors. Rather, educators must be encouraged to develop an EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT; EDUCATION: GENDER EQUITY; “inclusive” curriculum in which female achievements and EDUCATION: HIGHER EDUCATION; EDUCATION: experiences assume their rightful place. Here, research tends MATHEMATICS; EDUCATION: SCIENCE to focus on critiquing “male” school subjects and the patri- archal domination of knowledge more generally. References and Further Reading Marxist and socialist feminists have taken a slightly dif- Banks, Olive. 1981. Faces of feminism. Oxford: Martin ferent perspective, viewing the curriculum as one of the ter- Robertson. rains on which both sex and class struggles are played out Dean, Denis. 1991. Education for moral improvement, domestic- and in which patterns of social domination and subordina- ity, and social cohesion: Expectations and fears of the Labor tion are reproduced and sustained. They argue that work- government. Oxford Review of Education 17(3): 269–285. ing-class girls are doubly disadvantaged by the Delamont, Sara, and Lorna Duffin, eds. 1978. The middle-class, male curriculum: they undergo experiences nineteenthcentury woman: Her cultural and physical world. of invisibility and inequality similar to those of their male, London: Croom Helm. working-class peers, while additionally being cast as infe- Kenway, Jane, and Helen Modra. 1992. and rior to them. In the feminist socialist view, the solution to emancipatory possibilities. In C.Luke and J.Gore, eds., educational inequality is limited by the perceived structural Feminisms and critical pedagogy. New York: Routledge.

485 EDUCATION: DISTANCE EDUCATION

Mirza, Heidi. 1992. Young, female, and black. London: Routledge. ODL. Many contributors to this collection were mem- Pring, Richard. 1989. The new curriculum. London: Cassell. bers of the International Council for Distance Education Walkerdine, Valerie. 1990. School girl fictions. London: Verso. (ICDE), the largest international network of distance Weiner, Gaby. 1994. Feminisms in education: An introduction. educators. They had become angry about the invisibility Buckingham, U.K.: Open University Press. of gender in research and publications by members of the council. Until 1988 the total number of published Gaby Weiner articles in Teaching at a Distance and Distance Educa- tion (the main ODL journals) that took gender as a sub- stantive issue for ODL was six (Burge, 1988). Faith’s EDUCATION: Distance Education collection reviewed the participation of women in ODL in a variety of developed and developing countries, dem- Distance education, also known as open and distance learn- onstrating that gender equality had not been achieved ing (ODL), is a form of structured education in which cur- with respect to access, performance, or curriculum pro- riculum is delivered through media other than face-to-face vision in most countries. It gave examples of initiatives communication—for example, print, audiotapes, broadcast to improve access for women, some of which were based media, and telecommunications of various kinds. Teaching on a liberal equality model, others on more radical and assessment are also mediated in this way. ODL stu- views, such as a critique of the curriculum as gendered. dents are at a geographic and often a temporal distance At the same time, an informal grouping of women in the from their “teacher.” The expansion of education globally ICDE was formed that called itself the Women’s Inter- has produced a corresponding expansion of ODL, because national Network (WIN). This network tries to ensure it is seen to offer economies of scale. New institutions have that every ICDE conference contains some presentations been formed that are dedicated to distance learning—for on gender issues. example, the Indira Gandhi University in India and many Since 1988 there has been a steady but small flow of other institutions that have become “dual-mode,” using publications about the nature of gender issues in ODL both face-toface and ODL methods. (Burge and Lenskyj, 1990; McLiver and Kruger, 1993). In Historically ODL has provided the only chance for 1993 the University of Umea in Sweden held the first inter- many women to learn when other educational institutions national conference dedicated to gender and ODL: “Femi- were not open to them. When in 1840 Isaac Pitman offered nist Pedagogy and Women-Friendly Perspectives in the first “modern” distance-learning course (in shorthand Distance Education.” An issue of Open Praxis in 1994 gave writing), it was open to women when no women in Europe space to reviewing the situation of women staff and stu- or the United States had access to university education and dents in the years since the publication of the Faith book many had no schooling at all. In 1873 Anna Ticknor cre- (see, for example, Taylor and Kirkup, 1994). Many of the ated the Society to Encourage Studies at Home, which pro- authors who have written in the area (Kirkup and von vided distance education to adult women of all classes on Prümmer, 1990; Burge, 1990), use Carol Gilligan (1982) the east coast of the United States. This organization pro- and Mary Belenky et al. (1986) to theorize the learning vided instruction for up to 10,000 women and flourished needs of women students. for 24 years. It influenced the development of U.S. corre- In 1994 Patricia Lunneborg published OU Women: Un- spondence education for both genders (Watkins, 1991). doing Educational Obstacles, the first “experiential” col- Women were also often the mediators of ODL for oth- lection of life histories of women studying at the British ers. In rural areas of North America they were involved as Open University. In 1995 Asha Kanwar and Neela the unpaid supervisors and tutors of their own children, us- Jagannathan edited a collection of essays about the situa- ing “home study” materials (Faith, 1988). In countries tion of women in distance education in India: Speaking for where women, even at the turn of the twenty-first century, Ourselves. Christine von Prümmer (2000) has looked at the were still seen as belonging to the private sphere of the lives and in particular the social mobility of German ODL home and family, distance education offered the only edu- women students. Before Faiths book there had been a com- cational opportunity. monly accepted view that ODL was a type of education particularly suited to women. This view was reasonably Feminist Critiques of ODL founded in the knowledge that adult women have many In 1988, Karlene Faith edited and published the first in- more restrictions on their time and mobility than adult men, ternational collection of essays about gender issues in as well as on their access to disposable income, which

486 EDUCATION: DISTANCE EDUCATION made ODL the most practical option for postschool educa- computer-mediated-communication interactions often re- tion. However, there is often an implicit presumption produce the gendered aspects of language and power typi- among ODL practitioners that, apart from these material cal of “real world” interactions. Kirkup (1996) has factors, women are the same as men with respect to their critically examined cyborg theory (Haraway, 1985) to dis- motivations to study and their intellectual styles, as well as cuss the potential of ICTs for women in distance education. their domestic circumstances. H.Jeanie Taylor, Cheris Kramarae, and Maureen Ebben Gill Kirkup and Christine von Prümmer (1990) carried (1993) have demonstrated that women not only can be- out a large-scale survey of European ODL students and come silenced in this medium; they also can be pursued and identified differences in the preferred learning styles of frightened. The Internet does not embody the kinds of val- men and women that made them respond differently to ues that educational institutions do. At the same time as different ODL methods. Women were more likely to be education has developed strong institutional policies to re- frequent attendees at study centers, despite having more strict pornography and sexual harassment, these have be- obstacles to getting there, such as less access to transpor- come problems on the Internet. Along with a variety of tation and more domestic responsibility. Women valued dubious services, messages, and graphics, the atmosphere the opportunity to meet other students and were more of much of the Internet is marked by a form of masculinity likely than men to involve others, such as family and that is rarely on display in other public arenas. At the turn friends, in their learning. Most significant, although of the twenty-first century, the atmosphere was more remi- roughly the same proportions of men and women reported niscent of the 1960s (Myburgh, 1999) than the 1990s and feeling isolated as ODL students, this was a problem for would provide an unfriendly learning environment for 24 percent of the men, compared with 40 percent of the women ODL students. The question remains: Can comput- women. The work of Gilligan (1982) suggests that this ers be incorporated into ODL systems in a more women- discomfort with isolation emerges from a desire for con- friendly fashion? nection with others. Around the world, these new media are a real possibility only for rich countries and in many cases not for the poor in New Technologies and ODL these countries. In developing countries, ODL continued to The development and convergence of telecommunications rely on printed texts and public broadcasting in the early and computing are producing sophisticated “telematics” twenty-first century, but it was a major tool of develop- systems, which educational policy makers see as provid- ment, and here some of the most exciting educational ing the possibility for all students to have access to exten- projects for women were being initiated. sive knowl-edge/learning resources that can be restructured to specific learning needs. These systems also See Also offer the possibility of fast pedagogic interactions tran- CYBERSPACE AND VIRTUAL REALITY; EDUCATION: ADULT scending place and time. “Traditional” (that is, face-to- AND CONTINUING; EDUCATION: ON-LINE; INFORMATION face) institutions are now incorporating ODL—as TECHNOLOGY; NETWORKS, ELECTRONIC; TELEVISION; distributed learning—into their methods. But so far re- TELEWORKING search on information and communication technologies (ICTs) in ODL has only confirmed that these technologies References and Further Reading. are gendered. Adult women ODL students have much less Belenky, Mary E, Blythe M.Clichy, Nancy R.Golberger, and Jill access to personal computers than do men, and the quality M.Tarule. 1986. Women’s ways of knowing: The development of access when it exists is lower (Kirkup, 1993; Kirkup of self, voice, and mind. New York: Basic Books. and von Prümmer, 1996). In addition, women who do get Burge, Elizabeth. 1988. Foreword to Karlene Faith, ed., Toward involved with using a personal computer to study with the new horizons for women in distance education: International British Open University, for example, seem to have perspectives. London: Routledge. motivations and interests quite different from those of ——. 1990. Women as learners: Issues for visual and virtual re- their male colleagues. ality classrooms. Canadian journal for the Study of Adult Probably the most important ICT development in ODL Education/Revue canadienne pour l’éducation des adultes is computer-mediated communication through the Internet, 4(2): 1–24. which provides the possibility for the connection with oth- ——and Helen Lenskyj. 1990. Women studying in distance edu- ers that some women look for in their learning (Burge, cation: Issues and principles. Journal of Distance Education/ 1990). However, Susan Herring (1993) demonstrated that Revue de l’enseignement à distance 5(1):20–37.

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Faith, Karlene, ed. 1988. Toward, new horizons for women in dis- ——. 2000. Women and distance education: Challenges and op- tance education: International perspectives. London: portunities. London: Routledge. Routledge. Taylor, H.Jeanie, Cheris Kramarae, and Maureen Ebben. 1993. Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice: Psychological theory Women, information technology, and scholarship. Urbana, and women’s development. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uni- Ill.: Center for Advanced Study. versity Press. Taylor, Lee, and Gill Kirkup. 1994. From the local to the global: Haraway, Donna. 1985. A manifesto for cyborgs: Science, tech- Wanting to see women’s participation and progress at the nology, and socialist feminism in the 1980s. Socialist Review OUUK in a wider context. Open Praxis. 15(80):65–107. Watkins, Barbara L. 1991. A quite radical idea: The invention Herring, Susan. 1993. Gender and democracy in computer-medi- and elaboration of collegiate correspondence study. In ated communication. Electronic Journal of Communications/ Barbara L.Watkins and Stephen J.Wright, eds., The founda- Revue Electronique de Communication 3(2) tions of American distance education. Dubuque, Iowa: Kanwar, Asha S., and Neela Jagannathan, eds. 1995. Speaking for Kendall Hunt. ourselves: Women in distance education in India. New Delhi: Women’s Studies Centre of Umea. 1993. Feminist pedagogy and Manohar. women-friendly perspectives in distance education. Papers Kirkup, Gill. 1993. Equal opportunities and computing at the presented at the International WIN Working Conference, 10– Open University. In Alan Tait, ed., Key issues in open learn- 13 June 1993, Umea, Sweden. ing. Harlow, U.K.: Longman. Gill Kirkup ——. 1996. The importance of gender. In Roger Mills and Alan Tait, eds., Supporting the learner in open and distance learn- ing. Washington, D.C.: Pitman. ——and Christine von Prümmer. 1990. Support and connectedness: The needs of women distance education stu- EDUCATION: Domestic Science dents. Journal of Distance Education 5(2):9–31. and Home Economics ——. 1996. How can distance education address the particular needs of European women? In G.Fandel, R.Bartz, and Many terms have been used for the subject of home eco- F.Nickolmann, eds., University level distance education in nomics, particularly in the United Kingdom, including Europe . Weinheim: Deutscher Studien Verlag. domestic economy, housecraft, home management, cook- ——. 1997. Distance education for European women: The threats ery, and domestic science. However, the central themes and opportunities of new educational forms and media. Euro- have remained constant: teaching practical and manage- pean Journal of Women’s Studies 4(1):39–62. ment skills to improve the quality of life for individuals Lunneborg, Patricia W. 1994. OU women: Undoing educational and families. The term home economics was consistently obstacles. London: Cassell. used in the United States, where it originated, though it McLiver, Rhonda, and Kerry Kruger. 1993. Women in distance was not until the 1970s that this term became widely used education. Open Forum 3(2):25–37. in the United Kingdom. Changes in subject content Myburgh, Sue. 1999. The needle in the haystack or using the aimed at improving the image of the subject have led to spade: Women’s information-seeking behaviour on the this term being replaced, particularly for higher educa- Internet. In Dinah Cohen et al., eds., Winds of change: tion courses, by family and consumer science, applied Women and the culture of universities, conference pro- consumer studies, and food technology. In this article the ceedings. Vol 2, 767–778. Sydney: University of Tech- terms domestic subjects, domestic science, and home eco- nology. nomics are used. Open Praxis: Bulletin of the International Council for Distance Education. 1994. (1.) Origins Prümmer, Christine von. 1993. Women-friendly perspectives in distance education. Keynote address in Feminist peda- The rationale for the teaching of domestic subjects to gogy and women-friendly perspectives in distance edu- girls was promoted by domestic reformers in the 1870s in cation. Papers presented at the International WIN England. Their efforts between 1870 and 1900 were re- Working Conference, 10–13 June 1993, Umea, Sweden. sponsible for setting up national training schools of cook- Available from the Women’s Studies Center of Umea, ery, the first in England being established in 1873. The Report no. 4. teaching of domestic subjects to older girls was made

488 EDUCATION: DOMESTIC SCIENCE AND HOME ECONOMICS compulsory following the recommendations set out by maintains that both boys and girls should be educated for the Board of Education in the Code of 1900, and the in- domestic life and questions assumptions that give greater troduction of the payment of grants from 1905 consoli- value to Hermean (public) knowledge than to Hestian (do- dated the position of the subject in schools (Sillitoe, mestic) knowledge. Home economists in general regard 1933). The Association of Teachers of Domestic Subjects the low status of the subject as a reflection of the low prior- was established in 1896 by the Principals of Training ity afforded to domestic work and child care by policy Schools and drew its membership from the growing num- makers. Around the world women take greater responsibil- bers of domestic subjects teachers. This association con- ity for these activities, and Marilyn Waring (1988) pro- tinues to support teachers of home economics today poses that fundamental changes in attitudes and fiscal using a new name, the National Association of Teachers policy are required to ensure that women are justly re- of Home Economics and Technology. warded for this work. The status of home economics will A similar movement developed in North America when be raised only when domestic work and caring are given promoters of the subject, such as Melvil Dewey and Ellen greater importance within society and, more important, Richards, launched the subject of home economics. Be- are shared more equally by men and women (Barrett and tween 1899 and 1907 the Lake Placid conferences, held McIntosh, 1991). annually for professional home economists and their sup- porters, discussed and debated the value of home econom- Shifts in Focus ics and its content (Ehrenreich and English, 1979). A The constantly changing names and content of the subject professional association established in the United States in reflect societal values and attitudes toward women, the 1908 continues today under the name the American Asso- family, and domestic work. Initially, domestic subjects in ciation of Family and Consumer Sciences. the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in England and the United States were concerned with developing Schooling for Girls practical skills. The main method of teaching used was The schooling of girls has been influenced by ideas about teacher demonstration followed by class practicals the role of women in the wider society. At the turn of the (Sillitoe, 1933). Housewifery, laundry work, cookery, and twentieth century, it was believed that growing up and needlework were treated as distinct and separate aspects of learning to be “feminine” meant socialization into a future the subject. Published education reports and classroom ideal of wifehood and motherhood (David, 1980). Teach- texts provided specific instructions about the content to be ing domestic subjects in schools aimed to produce compe- taught in each. Textbooks gave both practical instruction tent wives and mothers. A vocational advantage of the and “scientific” explanations, reflecting the debate be- subject was that it offered working-class girls training for tween 1906 and 1913 about teaching science to girls employment as domestic servants (Powers, 1992). The im- through domestic subjects, which gave rise to the term do- portance of home life for the survival and economic suc- mestic science (Sillitoe, 1933). cess of the nation was reinforced in numerous Board of The content of domestic science courses changed after Education reports during the early twentieth century in World War II in England and the United States, reflecting England. Domestic subjects (cookery, needlework, and advances in technological and scientific knowledge that led laundry work) taught girls the skills and practices neces- to greater automation in the home and new methods of food sary to establish and maintain the home. Thus educational processing, preparation, and marketing. Course content provision for girls was different from that of boys and was concentrated on the immediate needs of the family, child based on clearly defined and accepted roles of women and care, shopping, and the use of laborsaving domestic equip- girls within the family, home, and workplace. ment, which was becoming more widely available in indus- The specific and deliberate orientation of the subject to trially developed countries. The consumer boom and the girls has been debated by feminist critics of the subject expansion in advertising in the 1950s and 1960s stressed (for example, Attar, 1990). Middle-class parents were also domestic life and the role of women in the home as con- hostile to the subject, because it was equated with training sumers (Friedan, 1963). for domestic service and considered a socially inferior Consumerism, caring, relationships, good grooming, pursuit for their daughters. The low status attributed to budgeting, and the companion role of women were as- home economics continued into the twentieth century de- pects of domestic science teaching in the later 1960s and spite attempts by home economists to promote the values 1970s. The emphasis in teaching had shifted from cook- of the subject and its teaching. Patricia Thompson (1992) ery to the care and nurturing of family members and their

489 EDUCATION: DOMESTIC SCIENCE AND HOME ECONOMICS relationships. Understanding people in relation to family ployment, and where the structure of families has changed, and community required that a sociological perspective interdisciplinary approaches and an emphasis on social is- be introduced. The increasingly interdisciplinary nature sues predominate. of the subject required teachers to have a more generalist Additionally, in these countries academic and profes- knowledge, and domestic science teachers became con- sional home economists have developed a theoretical ra- cerned that the lack of specialist knowledge would lead to tionale for the subject, furthered research in the field, and teachers of other subjects taking over. The identity of the established higher education courses at degree and post- subject and the need for a definition were hotly debated graduate levels (Hutchinson, 1994). (Hutchinson, 1993). Attempts were made to identify a The Education Reform Act in England, Wales, and core of knowledge covering the concepts central to the Northern Ireland in 1988 signaled the end of interdiscipli- subject, irrespective of the influences of technological nary home economics teaching in schools in these coun- change and shifting cultural values. Clarifying the tries. A new field, design and technology, introduced in boundaries of the subject also resulted in the term home 1990, includes content exclusively related to the design and economics being more widely used in the United King- making of food products for the marketplace. The removal dom, though the term had always been applied in the of home economics as a distinctive area of study in schools United States. and the shift in the application of subject content from the Knowledge of food, clothing, and shelter applied to home to industrial contexts in higher education courses has people, and the home became the accepted focus of home thus fundamentally changed home economics education in economics in the 1980s. The use of the word home con- the United Kingdom. fined the subject but also reconfirmed its domestic and pri- At degree level, home economics courses have a vate identity, despite clear areas of employment in industry number of guises: applied consumer science, consumer for home economists; hence, differences between how the studies, human ecology, applied resource management, subject was taught in schools and the jobs home econo- consumer product management, and design and technol- mists performed in industry were adopted as a subject of ogy (Council for National Academic Awards, 1992). Home research in the early 1980s by the Institute of Home Eco- economics degree courses began to emphasize the manage- nomics in the United Kingdom. That the majority of home ment focus within the subject, both of people and of re- economics teachers had no industrial experience was con- sources. In part, this acknowledges the wider range of jobs sidered a factor perpetuating the stereotypical image of the available for home economists in public and commercial subject as women’s work. This image of the subject was, in sectors, and, having learned these skills, home economics turn, held partly responsible for the fact that the entry of graduates are able to compete with other graduates for mar- males into the profession was rare. keting and managerial positions. The inclusion of a “sand- wich,” or work placement, year in courses has further Recent Trends improved job opportunities for home economists. Such Home economics, how it is perceived, its nomenclature, shifts are made because changes to the names and content and the content of courses in different countries reflect cul- of courses will attract more men into the profession and tural and economic circumstances. The interpretation and thus reduce the historically overwhelming gender imbal- teaching of home economics in the United Kingdom and ance in favor of women. the United States have, over time, influenced the develop- ment of the subject in other countries. Often teachers in See Also other countries will themselves have received home eco- EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS; EDUCATION: nomics degrees and higher degrees in the United Kingdom GENDERED SUBJECT CHOICE or the United States. Former British colonies have tradi- tionally adopted courses and syllabi similar to or the same References and Further Reading as those taught in Britain. In countries where the home re- Attar, Dena. 1990. Wasting girls’ time: The history and politics of mains at the center of production, and people depend on the home economics. London: Virago Education Series. sound management of scant resources, home economics Barrett, Michèle, and Mary McIntosh. 1991. The anti-social fam- courses emphasize basic nutrition, hygiene, health care, ily, 2nd ed. London: Verso. and budgeting. In contrast, in more developed countries Council for National Academic Awards. 1992. Review of con- where the center of production has moved away from the sumer studies and home economics degree courses. Council home, where many women with children are in paid em- for National Academic Awards.

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David, Miriam E. 1980. The state, the family, and education. Lon- east Asian women till the mid-nineteenth century. Al- don: Routledge and Kegan Paul. though a handful of exceptions from elite families had a Ehrenreich, Barbara, and Deirdre English. 1979. For her own better chance to receive literary education from their par- good: 150 years of experts’ advice to women. London: Pluto. ents or brothers, education, for the majority of women, Friedan, Betty. 1963. The feminine mystique. London: Penguin. meant moral education plus domestic skills practice, taught Hutchinson, Geraldine. 1993. The title debate. Home Economist: by mothers, relatives, or female teachers at home. Journal of the Institute of Home Economics 12(6):2–4. ——. 1994. Empowering home economists: Career development “Good Wives and Wise Mothers” in focus. Home Economist: Journal of the Institute of Home As a result of a series of defeats in wars with western coun- Economics 13(5):8–9. tries as well as Japan in the nineteenth and early twentieth Powers, Jane Bernard. 1992. The “girl question” in education: centuries, China lost its glory as an educational model for Vocational education for young women in the progressive Japan and Korea. Whereas Chinese reformers were seeking era. London: Falmer. ways of strengthening the country, Japan had already stra- Sillitoe, Helen. 1933. A history of the teaching of domestic sub- tegically reformed its educational system, since the Meiji jects. London: Methuen. Restoration (1868), by incorporating the advanced ele- Thompson, Patricia. 1992. Home economics: Feminism in a ments in various western models. The successful synthesis Hestian voice. In Cheris Kramarae and Dale Spender, eds., of Asian values with western knowledge made Japan a vi- Knowledge explosion: Generations of feminist scholarship, able model for China as well as Korea. 270–280. New York: Teachers College Press. As early as 1872, Japan had established a system of Waring, Marilyn. 1988. Counting for nothing. What men value compulsory education, which made primary education ac- and what women are worth. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. cessible to both boys and girls. A series of laws promul- gated between 1880 and 1899 advanced women’s Geraldine Hutchinson education to secondary schools and paved the way to higher education for Japanese women. In 1910, less than 10 percent of the women in China were literate, whereas EDUCATION: East Asia 97.3 percent of the schoolage girls in Japan were enrolled in primary schools. “Three Obediences and Four Virtues” Chinese reformers of the late Qing dynasty, after exam- When Confucius extended education from social elites to ining the situation of their eastern neighbors and of western common people with a broader scope of private education, countries, concluded that the neglect of formal education women were not benefited. It was Ban Zhao, a female Con- for women was one major cause behind the weakness of fucian and historian in the Han dynasty (206 B.C.–A.D. China. In his Chang she nüxuetang qi (Proposal for Open- 220), with a solid background of literary education, who ing Girls’ Schools) 1897, Liang Qichao, an early initiator applied Confucian values to women’s education and thus of female education, argued, “After three generations of included women in the realm of Confucian education. In women’s education, how can China still be inferior to her Nü jie (Lessons for Women), the classic instructional America and Japan?” (Liang, 1999). In 1898, Liang manuals for women in east Asian countries before the nine- Qichao, Kang Guangren, Jin Yuanshan, and Sheng teenth century, Ban asked, “Why should it not be that girls Xuanhuai established the Chinese Girls’ School in Shang- are educated as well as boys?” (Ban, 1997:34). She en- hai, the first private girls’ school set up by Chinese (Wang, riched the content of the “three obediences and four vir- 1995). In 1907, when the Qing government started offi- tues” in Confucian classics by setting up specific cially to establish girls’ schools modeled on the Japanese guidelines for women’s behavior in everyday life. A educational system, there were already 428 private girls’ woman, Ban believed, will have a harmonious family and a schools with more than fifteen thousand students in China graceful life if she follows these maxims that honor obedi- (Liu, 1989). Women’s education at the time, however, was ence, sacrifice, and modesty. generally confined to segregated primary schools at a lower Instructional manuals on moral education in accordance level than that of their male counterparts. In 1912, the gov- with Confucian ethics, such as Nü si shu (Four Books for ernment eradicated gender segregation in primary schools Women) in China, Onna daigaku (Great Learning for and started to promote secondary education for women. Women) in Japan, and Naehun (A Guidebook for Woman- But it was not until 1922, when the national government hood) in Korea, made up the core texts for generations of promulgated the act of school system reform based on the

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6–3–3 system in the United States, that this dual system of education with revolutionary or patriotic movements. One education came to an end (Liu, 1989). objective of the early Patriotic Girls’ School founded in In 1884, Pak Yong-hyo, a political exile from Korea to 1902, for example, was to prepare women assassins as part Japan, wrote to the king of Korea pressing for a wide range of the anti-Qing revolution (Cai, 1999). Chen Duxiu, the of reforms, including equal education for school-age boys leader of the youth during the May Fourth Movement in and girls (Y.C.Kim, 1986). Influenced by some enlightened 1919, claimed that it was unnecessary to discuss women’s men, a group of elite Korean women founded the first pub- problems as educational problems, occupational problems, lic girls’ school, Sunsong, in 1898 (Choi, 1986). During the and so on, for the only way to solve women’s problem was period of Japanese colonization (1910–1945), in response to practice socialism (Liu, 1989). The combination of edu- to the “Japanizing” policy in education, more than one thou- cation with politics in Mao’s educational policy after the sand private schools, including some girls’ schools—such establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 as Chinmyong, Yangjong, Sukmyong, and Tongdok—were became so important that political education was almost established. But most of these private girls’ schools, like the only content of education. the Chinese private schools, suffered from financial diffi- culty and closed (Y.C.Kim, 1986). Ewha Hakdang, a fe- “Modern Traditional Women” male mission school, was just about the only place for Great progress in the quantity and quality of women’s edu- Korean women to receive formal education till 1945. cation—though not without reverses—occurred in east It is worth noting that western missionaries played an Asian countries in the five decades following World War II. important role in initiating and promoting formal education With efforts by the United States, a democratic for women in east Asia from the early nineteenth century to educational system modeled on the 6–3–3 school system the 1930s. In 1836, Henrietta Shuck, a Baptist, established was established both in Japan and in Korea. A series of laws the first American school for Chinese girls in Macao reflecting democratic values guaranteed women’s equal (Graham, 1995); in 1886, the Methodist missionary Mary rights to education (Beauchamp and Vardaman, 1994). In Scranton founded Ewha Hakdang in Korea. The scope of Japan, compulsory education for both boys and girls was the early mission school was rather modest. For example, extended to nine years and in Korea to six years. Although there was only one student when Scranton opened Ewha. In both countries experienced the shifts between the 1910, however, Ewha became the first institute of higher Confucian tradition and the U.S. model, a synthesized education for Korean women (Y.C. Kim, 1986). And in model came into being in the 1980s. southern China, by 1907 the number of Catholic girls’ In China, Mao’s revolutionary model extended educa- schools had climbed to 697 with 15,300 students (Wang, tion from the urban elites to rural people. But his replacing 1995). The function of mission schools, thus, had gone be- the academic model of education, an imitation of the Rus- yond propagating Christianity to reshaping the gender be- sian model in the 1950s, with the revolutionary model dur- liefs in educational practices in east Asia. ing the Cultural Revolution almost paralyzed formal The dominant idea behind women’s education in this education—especially higher education in China. The period in east Asia was to prepare refined and civilized scope of higher education shrank to such a degree that the wives and mothers for the citizens of the country. Western total number of Chinese university students in 1970 knowledge and Confucian values coexisted in the curricu- dropped to 47,815, which was only 2.6 percent of that in lum. In the Chinese Girls’ School, for instance, traditional Japan and 24 percent of that in South Korea in the same instructional manuals such as Nü si shu were still used. year (Education and Literacy, 2000). It was not until the There existed, however, a voice that countered this modern late 1970s that the economic impetus boosted a reconstruc- version of the traditional Confucian values. The Japanese tion of formal education. educator Jinzo Naruse, for example, proposed “a three- After five decades of development, from the 1950s to pronged approach to instruction for females, first, as hu- the 1990s, the gender difference in basic education had di- man beings, second, as women, and, third, as citizens” minished, and the gender gap in higher education was nar- (Judge, 1999). Cai Yuanpei, Chen Yiyi, and Ye Shaojun ar- rowing. In China, the most notable progress was the gued in China that the goal of female education should rest expansion of basic education. From less than 20 percent on the cultivation of a whole personality of women (Cai, before the establishment of the Peoples Republic of China, 1999; Wang, 1995). the enrollment rate of school-age girls soared to 98.8 per- In parallel with these views and practices, the political cent in 1997, and the proportion of female students in sec- and national crisis in China and Korea blended women’s ondary schools rose from 25.6 percent in 1951 to 45.7

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percent in 1998 (Chen, 1999). In the meantime, the per- FEMINISM: KOREA; GLOBALIZATION OF EDUCATION; centage of illiterates aged 15 and above in the female popu- POLITICS AND THE STATE: EAST ASIA; WOMEN’S STUDIES: lation decreased from 90 percent in 1949 to 23.24 percent EAST ASIA in 1997 (Zhongguo, 1999). In Japan, with a solid founda- tion of basic education established prior to World War II, References and Further Reading the most striking development in women’s education was Ban Zhao. 1997. Nü jie (Lessons for women). In W.B.Wang, ed., in higher education. In contrast with 5 percent in 1955, the Zhongguo ertong qimeng mingzhu tonglan (Chinese classics rate of female high school graduates advancing to higher of enlightenment for children), 31–38. Chinese Children education climbed to 49.4 percent in 1998 (Office for Gen- Press. der Equity, 1999). In the Republic of Korea (South Korea), Beauchamp, E.R., and J.M.Vardaman, eds. 1994. Japanese as in China, the proportion of male and female students in education since 1945: A documentary study. New York: basic education is almost equal (Education and Literacy, Sharpe. 2000). Cai Yuanpei. 1999. Jiemin zishu (Autobiography of Cai Yuanpei). A closer look at the above statistics, however, will re- Jiangsu People’s Press. veal the other side of the picture. In China, behind the high Chen, Z.L. 1999. The development of women’s education. Women enrollment rate was a high dropout rate—four million per of China (Dec.): 6–7. year on average (including primary and secondary Choi, S.K. 1986. Formation of women’s movements in Korea. In schools), of which 70 percent were girls from poor areas S.W.Chung, ed., Challenges for women: Women’s studies in (P.Zhang, 1995). In Japan, although the rate of female Korea, 103–126, trans. C.H.Shin et al. Seoul: Ewha Wom- high school graduates advancing to higher education has an’s University Press. surpassed that of male students since 1994, with 21.5 per- Education and literacy (2000). [Database.] UNESCO Institute of cent of female students enrolled at two-year junior col- Statistics. Retrieved 20 Jan. 2000 from the World Wide Web: leges, only 27.5 percent went to four-year universities in 1998, whereas 38.9 percent of male graduates went to uni- Graham, G. 1995. Gender, culture, and Christianity: American versities in 1994 (Office for Gender Equity, 1999). In protestant mission schools in China, 1880–1930. New York: South Korea, 89.4 percent of girls and 90.3 percent of Peter Lang. boys were enrolled in high schools in 1995. Only 38.6 per- Judge, J. 1999. Knowledge for the nation or of the nation: Meiji cent of girls, however, compared with 69.7 percent of Japan and the changing meaning of female literacy in the late boys, were enrolled in universities in the same year Qing. Retrieved 27 Jan. 2000 from the World Wide Web: (Y.O.Kim, 1998). The above figures suggest that equal rights to education, Kim, O.Y. 1996. Korean women today and toward 2000. In Asian as prescribed in the constitutions and educational laws in women, vol. 1, 1–29. Retrieved 20 Jan. 2000 from the World all the countries covered in this article, did not necessarily Wide Web: behind the current situation, a more covert factor, accord- Kim, Y.C. 1986. Women’s movement in modern Korea. In S.W. ing to some studies in the 1990s, came from the educational Chung, ed., Challenges for women: Women’s studies in Ko- practice itself. As researchers from all these countries rea, 75–102, trans. C.H.Shin et al. Seoul: Ewha Woman’s pointed out, traditional gender biases still exist in textbooks University Press. in primary and secondary schools (O.Y.Kim, 1996; Yang, Kim, Y.O. 1998. Data on gender and science and technology in the 1998). Although equal opportunities to schooling were no work place: Korean case. [APEC document.] Retrieved 25 Jan. longer a dream to most women in east Asia, the old ques- 2000 from the World Wide Web: agenda of educational reformers at the millennium. The Liang Qichao. 1999. Chang she nüxuetang qi (Proposal for open- cultivation of a whole personality, as some pioneers advo- ing girls’ schools). In S.H.Ding, ed., Zhongguo jindai cated in the early twentieth century, might still prove sig- qimeng sichao (Enlightenment movement in modern China), nificant to reformers in the twenty-first century. 205–206. Shehui kexue wenxian chubanshe (Social Science Literature Press). See Also Liu, J.C. 1989. Zhongguo jindai funü yundong shi (History of con- COMMUNISM; CONFUCIANISM; EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES: temporary women’s movement in China). Chinese Women’s EDUCATION; FEMINISM: CHINA; FEMINISM: JAPAN; Press.

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Office for Gender Equity, Japan Prime Minister’s Office. 1999. After the end of communism, women remained well The present status of gender equality and measures: Third represented at all levels of education in most eastern European report on the plan for gender equality 2000. [White paper.] countries, despite their experiencing severe problems in the Retrieved 20 Jan. 2000 from the World Wide Web: tries. The table shows that young women and girls repre- Wang, B.Z., and G.H.Yan, eds. 1994. Zhongguo jiaoyu sixiang sent about half of all pupils/students in primary, secondary, tongshi (General history of Chinese educational ideology). and higher education in most of eastern Europe and in the Vol. 5. Hunan Educational Press. Baltic States. Wang, Q.S. 1995. Zhongguo chuantong xisu zhong de xingbie In most countries of eastern Europe, where the educa- qishi (Gender discrimination in traditional Chinese customs). tional system is still largely based on the pre-1989 model, Peking University Press. primary education lasts eight years. (The exceptions are Yang, X. 1998. Zhongguo mixing jiaoyu de xingli zu’ai ji duice the former German Democratic Republic, Slovakia, Ro- (Psychological obstacles and strategies in women’s educa- mania, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and Slovenia, tion in China). Journal of Shannxi Normal University 1: where primary education lasts four years and secondary 152–159. schooling takes correspondingly longer.) Secondary edu- Zhang, D.W. 1999. Riben jiaoyu tezhi de wenhuaxue yanjiu cation includes three types of schools: the four-year (A study of the characteristic of Japanese education from lyceum, which provides a general academic education and the cultural perspective). Northeast Normal University is the main route to higher education; the four- to five-year Press. technikum, which provides a more specialized technical Zhang, P., ed. 1995. Zhongguo funü de xianzhuang (The current education, a technical qualification for employment, and situation of Chinese women), chap. 2. Hongqi Press. the possibility of entry to higher education; and the two- Zhongguo tongji nianjian 1999 (China statistical yearbook 1999). to three-year vocational school, which gives a lower work China Statistical Press. Zhang Wei

Level of Education Girls as a percentage of all pupils/students in primary, secondary, EDUCATION: Eastern Europe and higher education in eastern Europe and the Baltic states in 1992 The educational experience of girls and young women in eastern Europe under communism and postcommunism has differed in a number of important ways from that in the developed democracies. First, parity of educational attainment was achieved in most eastern European coun- tries by the first half of the 1970s, substantially earlier than in the West. Second, the educational gains made by women during the communist period were not in the main the result of gender-specific interventions designed to promote the education of women, nor of feminist cam- paigning. Rather, women gained disproportionately as a result of the universal character of educational and em- ployment policies. Third, the social-subjective meaning of education was specific insofar as educational differ- ences were less linked to income level than in the West, and, further, since there was no civil society under com- munism, educational, employment, and income advan- a1991; b1988; c1993–1994 tage/disadvantage could not be associated with “secondclass citizenship” in a given political community Source: UNESCO, 1994; Lithuanian Department of Statis- (see Watson, 1996). tics, 1994.

494 EDUCATION: EASTERN EUROPE qualification but allows later transfer to the technikum. sees Polish men as being less interested in higher educa- Higher education is a relatively homogeneous category tion and prolonged studies than women, because under and lasts between four and five years. The table shows that communism, in contrast with the prewar period, these in secondary education, girls tend to be concentrated in were not necessarily routes to higher earnings. Qualifica- the general academic schools and underrepresented in the tions for the nonmanual work favored by women are ob- technical vocational schools. Subject specialization be- tained at the lyceum or at university (Siemien’ ska, gins at age 15, either with choice of vocational training 1990:69). school or, to a lesser extent, with choice of subject at the Neither the high rates of female participation in educa- lyceum (see Watson, 1992). Young women tend to be con- tion nor the continuing gendered nature of educational centrated in subject areas such as the humanities, health, achievement has until now been associated with feminist education, and economics. The process of educational campaigning in eastern Europe. That is because feminism segregation is continued into higher education, with was itself absent under communism, and despite increasing women typically representing more than half of students activism—often with the financial support of the West— enrolled in education, medicine, and stomatology but sub- the idea of feminism continues to be largely rejected during stantially underrepresented in the technical universities. the period of social transformation in eastern Europe. This After higher education, the levels of educational participa- lack of receptivity to feminism has to do with the fact that, tion of women decline; in Poland, for example, women in the absence of competitive democracy, gender difference represented about 28 percent of all those completing a has not been felt to be a source of inequality. With the in- doctoral degree in 1993–1994. stallation of the market, liberal democracy, and liberal civil The gender patterning of educational attainment in society, this is likely to change. Liberal civil society is not eastern Europe cannot, in the main, be explained in terms yet in place in Poland, the country that leads the way as far of specific educational policies geared toward improving as “transition” is concerned, but economic liberalism has the social position of women. The exception is the German brought with it the decay of the state educational system Democratic Republic, where special policy measures were and the introduction of a private schooling sector that is introduced in the 1970s to raise the educational qualifica- likely to favor men—as it did before the war, when parents tions of older women through the provision of special uni- were less inclined to pay for daughters’ than sons’ educa- versity courses and sabbaticals (Grimm and Meier, 1994; tion. There is also a proliferation of new management Quack and Maier, 1994). By way of contrast, in Poland it courses where men predominate. At the turn of the twenty- was the overrepresentation of women, particularly in the first century, however, the labor market and the economy prestigious occupation of medicine, that was seen to be a itself, rather than the education system, were the major social problem, and until 1987, men in Poland were sites for the structuring of a new disadvantage for women. awarded extra points in the entrance examinations to Thus, for example, although girls represented 70 percent of medical school in order to reduce the proportion of women general academic secondary school pupils in 1993–1994 in medical students (see Watson, 1992). In Bulgaria, follow- Poland, they constituted more than 81 percent of unem- ing the Soviet pattern, a men’s and a women’s quota (usu- ployed school leavers from this type of school in July 1994. ally a ratio of 50:50) operates in selecting students for In the case of vocational schools, they represented 43 per- higher education (Sretenova, 1994). In some technical in- cent of pupils but 52 percent of unemployed school leavers, stitutes the men:women ratio is 60:40, and in dramatic arts and in the case of higher education, 53 percent of students it is 70:30 (Sretenova, 1994). But in the main, the gains but 63 percent of unemployed graduates (data from Polish women have made relative to men—particularly in higher Ministry of Labor Statistics). education—are a result of the mobilization of a female labor force, on the one hand, and the provision of a univer- See Also sal and unitary system of public education, on the other. DEVELOPMENT: CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE; These gains have coexisted with and been influenced by COMMUNISM; EDUCATION: ACHIEVEMENT; EDUCATION: traditional ideas of gender difference. Research has shown CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS; POLITICS AND THE STATE: that in Poland women attach more importance than men to EASTERN EUROPE; UNEMPLOYMENT education per se as the means to higher social status, whereas men see an improved social position in terms of a References and Further Reading combination of education, job, power, and income Grimm, Susanne, and Uta Meier. 1994. On the disparity of the (Siemien’ska, 1990:76). Thus, Siemien’ ska (1990:69) sexes in German universities. In World yearbook of education:

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The gender gap in higher education, 70–83. London: Kogan historically and politically and have different meanings in Page. different cultural contexts. The major changes in the fram- Lithuanian Department of Statistics. 1994. Lithuanian women. ing of gender equity since the 1970s have reflected devel- Vilnius: Lithuanian Department of Statistics. opments in feminist theory, leading to more sophisticated Polish Ministery of Labor Statistics. 1994. Polish statistical year- explanations of the relationship between education and book. gender inequalities in society. At the same time as these Quack, S., and F.Maier. 1994. From state socialism to market understandings have informed policy developments, the economy: Women’s employment in East Germany. Environ- complexities of the issues and the difficulties of making ment and Planning A 26:1257–1276. changes in this area have become apparent. Siemien’ ska, Renata. 1990. Plec’, Zawo’d, Polityka: Kobiety w Australia is known internationally for its strong national z’yciu publicznym w Polsce. Warsaw: Uniwersytet policy activity and research in the area. However, similar Warszawski Instytut Socjologii. trends have occurred in other parts of the world where gen- Sretenova, Nicolina. 1994. The nation’s showcase: Bulgarian der equity policies have been developed (ten Dam and academic women between the Scylla of totalitarianism Volman, 1995). and the Charybdis of change. World yearbook of educa- The initial struggle to achieve gender equity followed tion: The gender gap in higher education. London: Kogan research in the late 1960s that documented sex differences Page. in participation and achievement in education. The educa- UNESCO. 1994. Statistical yearbook 1994. Paris: UNESCO. tion of girls first became a policy issue in the early 1970s, Watson, Peggy. 1992. Gender relations, education, and social and the focus at this time was on increasing participation change in Poland. Gender and Education 4(1–2):127–147. and retention rates and improving outcomes for girls. Poli- ——. 1996. Civil society and the politicization of difference cies drew on liberal feminism and sex-role theory and were in eastern Europe. In Joan Scott and Cora Caplan, eds., underpinned by an equality-of-opportunity approach. Dur- Transitions, environments, translations: The meanings of ing this phase, sexism in education was documented in nu- feminism in contemporary politics. New York: merous research studies, and policies focused on Routledge. “nonsexist education.” A significant feature was that the existing structure of schooling was accepted as given—the Peggy Watson main challenge was making sure that girls had equal access to educational opportunities. Even where there was a stronger approach—focusing on equal participation and outcomes—the structure and experience of schooling EDUCATION: Equal Opportunities tended to be unquestioned. A good deal of attention at this SEE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES: EDUCATION. time was given to issues such as sex differences in subject choices—especially the unequal participation of girls in mathematics and science—and strategies aimed to encour- EDUCATION: Gender Equity age girls to go into nontraditional areas, such as the trades. By and large these policies operated using a “let’s fix up the Historically, the education of girls and boys was explicitly girls” approach—often referred to as a “deficit approach.” different, based on supposed “natural” differences and fu- Some of the initiatives did help middle-class girls, but tures. The formal education of girls was seen as less impor- gradually feminist educators began to see the curriculum tant than that of boys and was limited and narrowly and school organization as the problem rather than the girls defined. Students were placed in different schools or rig- themselves. idly separated where the same building was used, and this It became apparent that the “equity and access” ap- division was reflected in the different subjects they were proaches failed to challenge patriarchal power relations taught. During the 1970s, with the growth of the women’s and that different strategies were needed. Thus followed a movement in many western countries, these traditional stage of reform that was influenced by radical feminism, ideas about “women’s place” were increasingly chal- where there was an attempt to value women’s knowledge lenged, and feminist activists pressured for gender in- and experiences and to integrate them into the curriculum. equalities in education to be addressed. Schooling was seen as “malestream” knowledge, and one The terms associated with equity and social justice important policy focus was the notion of the gender-inclu- have no absolute meanings; rather, they are constituted sive curriculum. Policy initiatives during this stage included

496 EDUCATION: GENDER EQUITY the introduction of women’s studies into the school cur- Finally, there is the important issue of how differences riculum, with more attention being given to the use of re- between groups of girls have been acknowledged and ad- sources that reflected women’s experience. Terminology dressed in gender equity policies. Although initially poli- focused explicitly on “the education of girls,” and this fo- cies dealt with girls as if they were a homogeneous group, cus made it possible to address issues such as sexual har- there has been a growing recognition of the need to take assment—which is addressed through one of the objectives account of difference (Fraser, 1997; Young, 1990). Theo- in the National Policy for the Education of Girls in Austral- retical work in the late 1990s highlighted the complex ways ian Schools (Commonwealth Schools Commission, 1987): in which class, gender, and ethnicity, for example, intersect the provision of a supportive school environment. in shaping girls’ experience, and policies attempted to ad- Socialist feminism also became a significant influence, dress the needs of particular groups of girls. Much of this leading to an emphasis on structural aspects of inequal- work also has strategic implications: gender inequalities ity—for instance, on the ways in which the relations of may have socioeconomic as well as cultural components, schooling replicated the gender inequalities of the labor demanding a redistributive approach and a recognition of market. Socialist feminism was also influential in raising difference (Fraser, 1997). For example, feminist educators significant questions concerning class and race issues. may argue for equal access and participation for women in In the 1990s, developments built on increasing con- engineering courses, a strategy that plays down gender dif- cerns about sexual harassment and violence, related to a ferences, but they may also argue for special support pro- theoretical emphasis on the “construction of gender,” in- grams for women going into such courses as an affirmative fluenced by a number of different strands of feminism, in- action strategy, thereby highlighting gender differences. cluding poststructuralist approaches. Feminists began to These dilemmas are difficult to resolve: “The best we can problematize masculinity and to argue that attempting to do is try to soften the dilemma by finding approaches that deal with the education of girls without also considering minimize conflicts between redistribution and recognition boys’ issues was misguided and that a relational theoreti- in cases where both must be pursued simultaneously” cal approach was necessary. These developments coin- (Fraser, 1997:31). cided with the “What about the boys?” debates that emerged in response to the increasing educational success See Also of some groups of girls. In this context, the idea that boys CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION MOVEMENT; DIFFERENCE had become a disadvantaged group and that the education I and II; EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS; EQUAL of girls had “gone too far” gained some currency. A gen- OPPORTUNITIES: EDUCATION; FEMINISM: eral policy shift toward the use of the term gender equity LIBERAL; FEMINISM: RADICAL; FEMINISM: occurred, reflecting both the theoretical move to a “con- SOCIALIST; SEXUAL HARASSMENT; struction of gender” framework and the more strategic WOMEN’S STUDIES: OVERVIEW move to “hold the line” in the face of a challenge to the policy focus on the education of girls. This shift has re- References and Further Reading sulted in considerable attention to masculinity issues (Gil- bert and Gilbert, 1998). Arnot, Madeleine, and Gaby Weiner, eds. 1993. Feminism and so- The developments outlined have been broadly chrono- cial justice in education: International perspectives. London: logical because each stage of policy development built on Falmer. previous understandings (Gilbert, 1996). However, al- Commonwealth Schools Commission. 1987. National policy for though these broad trends have occurred widely, in no the education of girls in Australian schools. Canberra: Aus- sense has each phase replaced the previous one; rather, ves- tralian Government Publishing Service. tiges of earlier phases can be found in later policy develop- Dam, Geert T.M.ten, and Monique L.L.Volman. 1995. Feminist ments. Indeed, liberal feminist goals, such as equal access research and educational policy. Journal of Education Policy to resources, are relevant in debates at the school level over 10(2):209–220. policies to ensure that girls have access to computer labora- Fraser, N. 1997. Justice interruptus. London: Routledge. tories or sporting equipment. And the need for curriculum Gilbert, Pam. 1996. Talking about gender: Terminology used in that takes account of girls’ and women’s knowledge and the education of girls policy area and implications for policy experiences, as well as for an examination of the construc- priorities and programs. A Women’s Employment, Educa- tion of gender by students themselves, persisted into the tion, and Training Advisory Group Project. Canberra: Aus- twenty-first century. tralian Government Publishing Service.

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——and Rob Gilbert. 1998. Masculinity goes to school. Sydney: and the reasons they give for their choices. One can also Allen and Unwin. look to the educational system, to the social forces that Kenway, Jane, Sue Willis, Jill Blackmore, and Leonie Rennie. shape the subjects, and their linkages to a gendered labor 1997. Answering back: Girls, boys, and feminism in schools. market. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. Research on student choice finds that young women and Young, Iris Marion. 1990. Justice and the politics of difference. young men choose courses to prepare for different kinds of Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. work, to find classrooms where they feel confident, inter- ested, and successful, and, often, to be with their friends Sandra Taylor (Gaskell, 1992). The impact of aspirations for work is clear: students quite sensibly want the courses that will pre- pare them for and provide the credentials for the jobs they want or expect. Although young women are now aspiring EDUCATION: Gendered Subject Choice to more participation in the labor force, and in more diverse areas, there are still large differences between the aspira- The fact that males and females take different courses in tions of young women and young men. Young women schools is an often concealed but critical part of the organi- gravitate toward a traditionally female labor market, where zation of education. Male and female students are thereby they think they can find jobs, will not be discriminated prepared for different kinds of participation in the adult against, and will feel comfortable. While believing in equal world, and gender divisions and hierarchies are perpetu- opportunity, they try to be realistic about what the world ated. School becomes gender segregated for most students offers, and this leads them to a fairly conservative assess- at key moments, even in coeducational institutions, which ment of their chances, especially if they are not academic promise equal educational opportunity. or from privileged families. Although girls and boys in coeducational schools usu- Some of students’ choice of subjects is not so future di- ally begin their schooling in the same classrooms and rected, however. The social relations of the school itself af- studying the same curriculum, as they get older, and as op- fect how likely students are to enroll in courses across tions become available in the school system, they move traditional gender barriers. Some female students avoid into different curriculum “tracks” or “streams” or “pro- courses that are overwhelmingly male because of the un- grams.” The closer female students are to the end of their welcoming feel (sometimes labeled “chilly climate”) of schooling, the more likely they are to be in classrooms courses that are taught by male teachers to mostly male stu- where most of the other students are female. dents (AAUW, 1992; Culley and Portuges, 1985). The The particular patterns that this segregation takes vary courses often assume knowledge that is taken for granted from country to country, reflecting local patterns of allocat- by males but not by females. Assuming students can use ing work by gender and school systems with various sub- tools without instruction, working from analogies with ject traditions. In general, women are enrolled less often in which girls have little familiarity, and speaking only of mathematics, science, and technical areas and more often male contributions to knowledge are three examples of the in subjects like languages, the humanities, and domestic kinds of curriculum processes that can make female stu- science. Vocational subjects like carpentry, engineering, dents feel out of place and convince them that such courses computing, welding, and mechanics tend to be dominated are not “interesting” and that they are incompetent. Some by males. Social service areas like child care, nursing, edu- research has suggested that girls prefer teaching that is in- cation, and family studies, as well as clerical and secretarial teractive, that relates course content to social issues, and areas, are dominated by females. The better-paid profes- that provides more discussion of context and meaning sional programs like medicine, business, and law have been (Belenky et al., 1990; Gilligan, 1982). This kind of teach- dominated by men, whereas university programs leading to ing is more frequent in the humanities than in mathematics jobs in social work, teaching, and rehabilitation medicine, and science. for example, are dominated by women. The hierarchies of Students also choose courses that their friends take. work are also reflected in the sexual segregation of school Young women fear the sexual harassment and stigma that programs, with females dominating in programs leading to can be associated with their enrollment in overwhelmingly less well paid areas of work at every level of education. male courses. School is as much a social as an academic The reasons for such patterns can be examined in sev- setting for young people, and social support from peers is eral different ways. One can look to the students themselves key for success.

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The notion that students “choose” a program of studies strategies to encourage girls in science have increased in ignores the historical and social context that determines many school districts. the structure and organization of what is available to be There is some evidence that gender differences in sub- chosen. Schools have required female students to take cer- ject choice are beginning to decrease among more educated tain courses, particularly courses related to domestic women and in wealthier countries, but the problem remains work, and required male students to take others. Language a significant one that eludes simple large-scale solutions. instruction remains compulsory longer than mathematics Attracting women into traditionally male areas must be ac- and science, which prevents males from “choosing” to companied by attempts to desegregate labor markets, cre- avoid instruction in reading or writing, whereas females ate inclusive classrooms, and revalue those areas of the can avoid math. A schedule that forces students to choose curriculum, like child care, nursing, clerical work, and either cooking or technology courses will encourage gen- teaching, where women have predominated and men show der segregation, whereas a schedule that requires all stu- few signs of moving. dents to take some of each diminishes gender differences. Subject enrollments change as the labor market changes See Also (Rury, 1991). EDUCATION: CHILLY CLIMATE IN THE CLASSROOM; The organization and content of the school curriculum EDUCATION: CURRICULUM IN SCHOOLS; EDUCATION: reflect shared and historically specific notions of what pub- DOMESTIC SCIENCE AND HOME ECONOMICS; EDUCATION: lic schooling should teach. The Japanese system empha- MATHEMATICS; EDUCATION: SCIENCE; EQUAL sizes the same academic courses for all students, whereas OPPORTUNITIES: EDUCATION; WORK: OCCUPATIONAL the German system has a more differentiated and voca- SEGREGATION tional curriculum that becomes quite differentiated by gen- der (Bash and Green, 1995). In North America, employers References and Further Reading have historically been reluctant to invest in the education of American Association of University Women (AAUW). 1992. How women, so vocational preparation for female-dominated schools shortchange girls: A study of major findings on girls sectors of the labor market like teaching and clerical work and education. Washington, D.C.: AAUW and the National has often been vested in the schools, whereas preparation Education Association. for male areas like business and apprenticeship has been Bash, Leslie, and Andy Green. 1995. Youth, education, and work: done on the job. In some places in the Middle East and in World yearbook of education. London: Kogan Page. the former Soviet Union, women filled jobs in engineering Belenky, Mary, Beverly Clinchy, Nancy Goldberger, and and medicine, and school enrollments reflected labor mar- Jane Tarule. 1990. Women’s ways of knowing. New ket opportunities. York: Basic. Making the gendered nature of enrollment in school Cockburn, Cynthia. 1987. Two track training. London: subjects an issue that concerns educators and policy mak- Macmillan. ers has been a struggle. The statistics on enrollments are Culley, Margo, and Catherine Portuges. 1985. Gendered subjects. not often reported publicly, making the problem relatively London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. easy to conceal. In many countries, equal opportunity leg- Gaskell, Jane. 1992. Gender matters from school to work. Milton islation has been used to end requirements that males and Keynes, U.K.: Open University Press. females take different courses, but attacking the underly- Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice. Cambridge, Mass.: ing social processes that continue to result in girls “choos- Harvard University Press. ing” different courses from boys is more difficult. In third Harlan, Sharon, and Ronnie Steinberg. 1989. Job training for world countries, increased attention to the role of women women. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. in economic development by key players like the World Rury, John. 1991. Education and women’s work: Female school- Bank has led, on the one hand, to more public discussion ing and the division of labor in urban America, 1870–1930. of encouraging women in math and science and, on the Albany: State University of New York Press. other hand, to more emphasis on specific vocational edu- Jane Gaskell cation that reflects the different roles men and women play. In North America, women’s enrollments in previ- ously male-dominated fields at universities have dramati- cally increased, but change in clerical and blue-collar EDUCATION: Globalization vocational areas has been minimal. However, school-based See GLOBALIZATION OF EDUCATION.

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