The Role of the Family » Feminist Views of the Family

The family through feminist eyes

Remember, feminists argue that society is patriarchal, which means men hold more power than women. Functionalists say the family is good for everyone, and Marxists say it mainly helps capitalism. Feminists ask a different question: who gains, and who loses, inside the family?

Their answer is that the family often benefits men and male power, and that women pay the price. They look closely at what goes on inside the home, such as who does the housework, who makes the decisions and who holds the power.

Key terms:

• Domestic division of labour: the way household tasks, such as housework and childcare, are shared out between partners.
• Conjugal roles: the roles that partners in a couple play in the home.
• Segregated conjugal roles: roles that are separate and different. One partner, often the man, is the breadwinner, and the other, often the woman, does the housework and childcare.
• Joint conjugal roles: roles that are shared. Partners share the housework and childcare, and spend leisure time together.
• Dual burden: doing both paid work and most of the housework and childcare.
• Triple shift: the dual burden plus a third job, emotion work, which means looking after the feelings of the family.

How the family benefits patriarchy

Feminists say the family is a place where male power is kept going. It does this in several ways.

Feminists also say the family passes patriarchy on to the next generation. Children learn from what they see at home that men and women have different jobs and different amounts of power.

There are different kinds of feminist, and they do not all agree. Some say the family can change through equal rights laws, while others say patriarchy must be challenged much more deeply.

The domestic division of labour

In many societies, women do more of the housework and childcare than men, even when both partners have paid jobs. Feminists say this is unfair and it is a sign of male power in the home.

• Women are often expected to do the cooking, cleaning, washing and childcare.
• Men may do tasks that are occasional or outdoor, such as repairs, and may see their help as a favour, not a duty.
• Women may also care for elderly relatives, which is more unpaid work.

Oakley studied housework in the 1970s. She argued that housework is real work, and that it was often boring, repetitive and lonely. Many of the housewives she studied were dissatisfied with it. She also said the housewife role was seen as natural for women, when it is actually learned.

Dual burden and triple shift

When more women went out to work, many still did most of the housework and childcare at home. Feminists call this the dual burden: two jobs, one paid and one unpaid.

Duncombe and Marsden argued that many women also do a triple shift. As well as paid work and housework, they do emotion work: comforting and supporting partners and children, and keeping family relationships healthy. This work is almost invisible and unpaid. They argued that emotion work is mostly done by women and is rarely recognised as work.

Conjugal roles and decision-making

Feminists compare segregated and joint conjugal roles to see how equal a relationship really is.

Decision-making is another sign of power. Feminists argue that in many couples, men make the important decisions, such as where to live, how to spend money and whether to move for a job. Women may make the smaller daily decisions. Control of money matters, because the person who controls it usually holds more power. In some societies, women have far fewer rights to take decisions than men.

Domestic violence and abuse

This is a serious subject, and sociologists treat it calmly and factually. Domestic violence and abuse means violence or abuse, physical or emotional, that happens between people in the home or in a close relationship.

Feminists argue that:

• most of the people who suffer this kind of violence are women, and most of those who carry it out are men;
• it is linked to male power and control in the home, and not just to individual bad behaviour;
• women may find it hard to leave, because they may depend on a man for money or housing, and for their children's security;
• in the past, it was often treated as a private family matter and the police and the law did little about it.

Domestic crime is covered in a later lesson, so here the focus is on what feminists say it shows about power in the family.

Gendered socialisation in the family

Remember, canalisation means steering children towards activities seen as suitable for their gender. Oakley argued that families do this from birth, for example by choosing different toys, clothes and chores for girls and boys. Girls may be encouraged to help with housework and care, while boys may be encouraged to be active and independent.

Feminists say this prepares girls for the role of carer and housewife and boys for the role of breadwinner, so the family reproduces patriarchy in each generation.

Evaluating the feminist view

• Strengths: it draws attention to unpaid work, power, violence and gender inequality, which other theories largely ignored. It helped to change laws and attitudes.
• Limitations: it may overstate the inequality, because in many families men do much more housework and childcare than before. Not all families are patriarchal, and women are not the only victims, since men can suffer abuse too. It may also ignore family diversity, and how class and ethnicity affect experience. Functionalists would also say that roles are different but fair, since each partner contributes.

Exam-style question

(a) Define the term dual burden. [2 marks]

(b) Give two examples of unpaid work done in the home. [2 marks]

(c) Explain three ways in which feminists say the family benefits men. [6 marks]