"I don't mind living in a man's world as long as I can be a woman in it. " -- Marilyn Monroe
Feminist utopia... isn't feminism a form of sexism? In our day and age, men still hold the power in most societies, and in such societies, women are considered the minorities. Minority is not a question of numbers, but a matter of social influence. Thus, feminism is not sexism, but a form of resistance to the dominant gender. So I'm not a sexist, I'm just a feminist.
So what is my vision of a feminist utopia?
First, what is utopia? When I say utopia, I mean IDEAL world. Sounds like a fantasy land, but please lend me an ear, as my vision is far from fictional. It can be realized...
Without further ado, my vision of a feminist utopia is for women to assert their right to BE A WOMAN, no matter what identity she envisions herself to be. That's right. Look back at Marilyn Monroe's statement. Do you see a case of mistaken identity? There is none whatsoever. She knows she is a woman first... the rest are just details. And don't take this vision at face value. There is a gamut of reasons behind this proposition.
Reconstruction of women's identity
Various feminist groups have continuously challenged the normative standards in our society.
Not only they fight for women's rights, they also try to redefine women's identity. Some social scientists have recently focused on developing a body of knowledge that is grounded from the unique views and experiences of women (Dubois, 1983). Why study the unique views and experiences of women? -- Because gender is socially constructed, and in patriarchal societies, women's identities have been greatly influenced by men. Studying the subjective views of women would provide awareness on the inherent meaning of being a woman.
With the growing popularity of social constructionism, we realize that identities are narratively constructed; hence, they can also be narratively repaired in cases of negative identities (Nelson, 2001). In patriarchal society, a number of women's identities are considered the weaker type compared to men's. Using narrative construction, it is possible to elevate the status of women's identities by repairing the distorted views about women. All this means is that we should let women narrate their stories subjectively and repeatedly to get a sense of reality from their own perspective.
When a woman is told to be a woman, it denotes that she's a woman who stays at home, raises her family, and provides emotional support to her husband. Even though this role is fulfilling to some women, this 'old school' identity seems to have a negative connotation because the image of a career woman is becoming more positive. My vision is to redefine this 'old school' identity because it suggests a submissive role, and it pathologizes womanhood. Thus, the phrase be a woman should denote a positive identity because of the positive value-judgment of some of women in this role.
The search for a homogeneous characteristic for both men and women may be a great idea, but
there would always be an inclination to search for differences due to biological characteristics of men and women. Even though we accept the concept that gender is socially constructed, the fact remains that women are not men (in biological terms), and this fact will remain unchanged. Therefore, in my feminist utopian society, women are women as a human specie, and so as a social being. Her social identities are inherently hers, meaning, she is not borrowing any characteristics that are inherent in men. In this regard, my vision is to erase any pre-existing notions that a woman is trying to be a man just because she happens to have the same stereotypical characteristics as men. If she happens to have the same stereotypical characteristics as men, then it should be treated as such -- the same... but they are rightfully hers. She should not be labelled as a woman who's trying to be a man, but simply as a woman being a woman.
Feminist Care Ethics
Feminist Care Ethics consists of moral theories that are common to women. For example, as most people would probably agree, women manifest more nurturing behaviors than men. Feminist Care Ethics recognizes this characteristic and legitimizes its value. Meaning, nurturing is not a weak characteristic just because it is typical of women's.
Carol Gilligan, the foremost proponent of Feminist Care Ethics, questions Freud's and Kohlberg’s theories of moral development (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2009). She argues that their moral theories are male-biased and do not reflect morals that are distinct to women. Gilligan explored the views and experiences of women, and discovered that relationships and responsibilities are central to women's moral development, while justice is central to men's. Recognizing these gender-differences in approaching moral dilemmas creates an avenue that allows women to make decisions based on their own terms and the manner they see fit. Therefore, based on Feminist Care Ethics, a woman's effort to put her family first (before her career for example) is a decision that should not sabotage women's positive identity. Inasmuch, the decision to place family before career should be regarded as a moral decision, and not a form of submission.
Liberal Feminism
The ability to draw a moral decision, in itself, is not sufficient. Decisions made by women are sometimes influenced by men. In some instances, an individual appears to be using his or her autonomy in making decisions; however, adaptive preferences can occur, which is an illusion that one is making a self-determining or autonomous choice over a range of options (Donner, 2009). Meaning, the individual has subjected himself or herself, without knowing, to a range of options that has been pre-determined or influenced by an oppressor.
Liberal feminism centers on equality between men and women. John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), one of the major proponents of liberal feminism, raises his concerns on gender inequality and the oppression of women (Donner, 2009). He argues that women's value was tied to being wives, and that men treat them as slaves in marriages. Mill illustrates how women's experiences in the nineteenth century were demoralizing.
The oppression and the demoralization of women are still present in the twenty-first century. In some societies, in the Taliban[1] regime for example, oppression and demoralization of women are understatements because women are not even treated as humans in that society. Under the Taliban, women are stoned to death or buried alive because of their defiance to men. Needless to say, this type of inhumane treatment of women would have no place in my feminist utopian society. Recognizing women as human beings would be of utmost importance in my society.
One of the main tenets of liberal feminism is the gender equality. This concept appears dignified, however, the political agenda behind it sound rather calculated, which suggests a tendency to look only for positive virtues in women so that they could equate at the same level as men. Equality becomes means, not an end. In my feminist utopian society, gender equality is also an integral component, however, women are not required to pass any criteria listed by the dominant gender just so equality can start. As I have discussed in the earlier segment, women are not men; hence, there is no point to this kind of pre-qualification to meet equality.
Time to get real...
Women have come a long way in our society. More and more women have become renowned in the areas of science and philosophy, and there is no doubt that women can undertake the challenges in the intellectual domain. However, to envision a feminist utopia requires I should not neglect the sufferings of women in the extremist societies.
Gender equality is not an option of one, it requires both parties to assert responsibility in order to achieve it. Even though many women have already established an equal status with men, this circumstance should not bind oppressed women to the notion that they should also be able to do it, just because other women have done it. This notion would simply stigmatize oppressed women even further because it suggests they are to blame for being oppressed.
I had no desire to envision a fictional feminist utopia, where women possess all the positive virtue that one could possibly have. To envision a utopia where women simply dominates is a circumstance that creates a wrong motive because it would suggest inferiority of the other gender.
I don't have the perfect solution on how to realize this feminist utopia, however, I do propose that the traditional term be a woman to be transformed into a more positive identity. This positive identity is not just for the sake of women, but also for men. If men continue to regard women as a lesser counterpart, then they are simply depriving themselves of a true human relationship that they could possibly have with women. Finally, the term be a woman is not an attempt to place any segregation between the genders; rather, it allows for a meaningful experience for humanity as a whole.
References
Donner, W. (2009). Chapter 7, Sexual Equality and The Subjection of Women. Mill. Wiley-Blackwell. U.K. (pp. 160-189).
DuBois, B. (1983). Passionate Scholarship: Notes on values, knowing and method in feminist social science. Theories of Women's Studies. Boston, MA: Routledge & Kegan Paul, (pp. 105-116).
Nelson, H. L. (2001). Identity and Free Agency. Feminist Doing Ethics. Oxford, England: Rowman & Littlefield, (pp. 45-61).
Tong, R., & Williams, N. (2009). Feminist Care Ethics: The Different Voice. Feminist Ethics, Retrieved December 4, 2005, from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Web Site: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feminism-ethics/
[1] Taliban is an Islamic fundamentalist group in Afghanistan. Taliban men are generally known for maltreatment of Afghan women; http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~mvcarmac/taliban.html
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