LIBERAL FEMINISM

Introduction

Liberal feminism is a branch of feminism focused on achieving gender equality through political and
legal reform within the framework of liberal democracy. It emphasizes individual rights, legal
equality, and ending sex-based discrimination. This approach to feminism is often considered
culturally progressive and advocates for changes within the current social systems rather than an
overhaul of these systems. Liberal feminists sought to end the treatment of women as legal
dependents on their husbands or fathers. Through examination of laws and practices, liberal
feminists including Mary Astell (1666–1731), Mary Wollstonecraft (1759–99), Harriet Taylor (1807–
58), John Stuart Mill (1806–73), Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902), and Virginia Woolf (1882–1941)
drew on the liberal tradition's value of equality and individual freedom to argue that, just as social
status at birth was no longer a legitimate basis on which to discriminate among men as liberals
argued, so also sex at birth was no longer a legitimate basis on which to discriminate against women.
This paper is trying analyse the stances and relevance of liberal feminism from a broader perspective.

Liberal feminism

Liberal feminism is a prominent branch of feminism that aims to advocate for women’s legal and
political rights. It was born in western countries and emphasizes the value of freedom, which can be
achieved through political and legal reform. It advocates for equal individual rights and liberties for
women and men and downplaying sexual differences, liberal feminism is the most widely accepted
social and political philosophy among feminists. Liberal feminists defend the equal rationality of the
sexes and emphasize the importance of structuring social, familial, and sexual roles in ways that
promote women's autonomous self-fulfilment.

They emphasize the similarities between men and women rather than the average differences
between them, attribute most of the personality and character differences between the sexes to the
social construction of gender, and tend to promote a single set of androgynous virtues for both
women and men. While rejecting strong claims of sexual difference that might underwrite different
and potentially hierarchical rights and social roles, liberal feminists otherwise avoid the promotion of
particular conceptions of the good life for either men or women, in-stead defending a broad sphere
of neutrality and privacy within which individuals may pursue forms of life most congenial to them.
While liberal feminists acknowledge that some choices made by women are questionable because
conditioned by sexist social practice’s, they also tend to avoid maternalism and any second-guessing
of those choices made without coercion, or threats. Fully informed and mentally competent adult
women are assumed to be the final judges, of their own best interests. Thus liberal feminists tend to
resist legislative intervention that would gainsay the judgment of women.

Some of the key perspectives and approaches can be summarised as, 1) Seeks Equality Within
Existing Systems: Aims to achieve gender equality through legal and political reform within the
framework of liberal democracy.2) Focus on Individual Rights: Stresses the importance of individual
rights and equal opportunities for women in education, employment, and politics.3) Reformist
Approach: Advocates for gradual social progress and changes in laws and policies to eliminate
discrimination.
Among liberal feminists, justifications varied. To defend their claim, some feminists argued
that men and women were of equal human worth; some argued that some women were
superior to some men and thus all women should be given opportunity to demonstrate their
worth; and some argued that women's virtues were superior to men's and thus
warranted influence on public economic and political activity. Mill drew on each of these
when it was strategically prudent. However, in general, the liberal argument took the form of
asserting that individual development required the ability to educate and expand one's
faculties such that to deny women access to education and the professions was to deny the
development of their full human potential. Further, liberal feminists argued that society
would benefit from the public contributions of women.

Liberal feminism works within the structure of mainstream society to integrate women into it
and make it more directly challenge the system itself or the ideology behind women’s
oppression. The suffragist movement is an example. Liberal feminists are concern with
extending to women, the liberal values of liberty, equality, and justice through legal and
social reforms. Liberal Feminists believe that the main causes of gender inequality are
ignorance and socialisation. They do not believe that social institutions are inherently
patriarchal. They believe in a “March of Progress” view of gender relations. Liberal feminism
differs from other branches of feminism in its approach and focus on reform within the
existing social and political systems. While other branches of feminism also aim for gender
equality, they differ in their strategies and the extent to which they seek to alter societal
structures. Liberal feminism works within the current system to enact change, whereas radical
feminism calls for a more profound transformation of society to eradicate patriarchal norms
and structures There are also other branches like socialist/Marxist feminism, which focuses
on the intersection of gender and class oppression, and each has its unique perspective and
methodology for addressing women issues.

Main proponents and scholars

Mary Wollstonecraft (1759–1797): Often regarded as the “mother of feminism,” she wrote
“A Vindication of the Rights of Woman” in 1792, which is considered one of the earliest
works of feminist philosophy. Wollstonecraft wrote that many of the supposed differences
between the sexes were either fabricated or exaggerated and therefore could not be used as
the basis for differential rights and roles. Imposing different educational expectations on men
and women was not only unjust but also counterproductive, tending to create less productive
female citizens with artificial, weak characters. Both sexes, Wollstonecraft argued, have the
capacity to reason; hence both should be educated as to enhance their rationality, which she
defined as the ability to act as fully responsible moral agents. John Stuart Mill (1806–1873):
A philosopher and economist who, influenced by the ideas of Wollstonecraft, argued for
women’s rights in his work “The Subjection of Women” in 1869 He described sex roles as a
kind of caste system in which women were assigned lower status and restricted in what they
were permitted to do simply because of their sex, even though there were no categorical
differences between the sexes that could justify it. This not only stunted the moral
development of women but also denied them the self-fulfilment that comes only with the
freedom to pursue one's own good.
Harriet Taylor [Mill], disagreed, arguing that women would choose to participate more fully
in public life, going beyond simply voting and performing charity work. Women would
choose to become the partners of men in productive industry and would have fewer children.
Betty Friedan (1921–2006): A leading figure in the women’s movement in the United States,
her 1963 book “The Feminine Mystique” is credited with sparking the second wave of
American feminism in the 20th century. Following the work of feminists such as Friedan and
Steinem, many obstacles to the full participation of women in public life were removed.
Employment opportunities for women were widened, many discriminatory laws in the United
States were abandoned, and sex-based employment discrimination was outlawed with Title
VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964).

Criticism and debates

The perspectives and approaches of liberal feminism has witnessed a wide verity of criticism
over the time. Some argue that liberalism’s focus on the individual renders it unable to
adequately conceptualize injustice to groups Marxist feminists have criticized capitalism as
causing the sexual division of labour in the family and have criticized liberal feminists' focus
on equal Liberal feminists likewise are concerned about the sexual division of labour in the
family but they seek to change social norms regarding male and female roles in family
maintenance increasing women's role in providing the economic resources for the family and
promoting equal opportunity for women in economics and politics while increasing men's
role in providing for the care of the family. In addition, liberal feminists working in
development have challenged the global distribution of resources and economic power
without objecting to a capitalist organization of economics. Radical and lesbian feminists
accuse liberal feminists of accepting patriarchy and the heterosexual model of family such
that any challenge to gender norms within the family is not radical enough. In other words,
according to their radical critics, liberal feminism does not get at the root causes of gender
inequality.

References

1. Ackerly, BA (2001) Feminist Theory: Liberal, International Encyclopaedia of the

Social & Behavioural Sciences
2. Bailey, lucy (2016) Feminism, The Wiley Blackwell encyclopaedia of Gender and
Sexuality Studies
3. Szapuová , Mariana(2006) Mill’s Liberal Feminism: Its Legacy and Current Criticism, Journal
of Philosophy 5(2)