Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
History of feminism essay
History of feminism essay
All about feminist theory
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Feminist Theory Feminist theory is derived from feminism, a complex doctrine that has been defined in many different ways (Chodorow, 1978). Hooks (2000) believes that without a consensus regarding a definition, that the foundation on which feminism was built is not fully clear. Nonetheless, several individuals have stepped forward to offer their ideologies and principles regarding feminist theory. Gender is a broad, multicultural issue (Hooks, 2000). The term has traditionally been used to understand the differences between men and women. Scharf (1995) indicated that gender should also be used to identify individual differences among men and women (as cited in Stewart and McDermott, 2004, p. 436). Benjamin (1995) however, feels that there …show more content…
The author indicates that along with positive feelings and thoughts about parenthood, there is a degree of anxiety about the changes this life experience will bring about. Chodorow (2003) also supports this concept of ambivalence. The author describes how a constellation of fantasies and defenses that are unconscious, can delay childbearing. Women, who use feminism or career-based reasons for delaying motherhood, do so based upon their psychic realities and the behaviors these realities have generated. Anxiety around uncertainty of roles, career delays, and how the quality of significant relationships in their lives will be affected by the arrival of a child, can unconsciously lead to a delay in preparing for motherhood (Wischmann, 2003). Women feel that the struggles they are experiencing with becoming a mother and those who may be hurt in the process (spouse and/or other family members) is their …show more content…
In a study, Lloyd (1996) found that male infertility is perceived as more stigmatizing than female infertility. Men are reluctant to discuss male infertility, viewing it as a sign of their lack of virility and potency. As a result of these issues, Miall (1986) found that to alleviate this burden of feeling of impotence, some wives have gone as far as utilizing courtesy stigma, where the woman identifies herself as being infertile in order to spare her husband the shame and guilt. Self-labeling infertility allows protects the husband from the stigmatizing effects of sexual dysfunction. Unlike other peer researchers, Tyler May (1995) found that men possess very strong feelings about being infertile that they were willing to express. Male participants expressed feeling unworthy, bitter, and useless because they could not contribute to society via reproduction. One male participant expressed, “ ‘that one term (infertile) transformed this budding stud into a wimp.’ And when he learned that the quality of his semen was “borderline”, I was shattered. My voice went up two octaves.’ “ (p.
The reading basically sums up different perspectives about feminism. Feminist theories have been going on for a long time. Feminist theories often describe women’s way of living and explaining its causes and consequences (Tong, 1998). It is how women act the way they act, think the way they think, and speak the way they speak.
Gender indicates to the conventional psychological, social and representational differences between men and woman, which are socially determined and culturally interchangeable (Howson: 2004. 40). The conceptualisation of gender is aimed at presenting how
First, let’s define Infertility? Infertility is the inability to conceive from unprotected sex within a year. According to National Infertility Association(NIA), approximately 1 in 8 couples in the U.S-about 10-15% experience infertility. Infertility doesn’t discriminate against gender or race, therefore, it impacts both men and women equally, and that range from ages 15-50. In addition, any fertile individual could experience this condition, therefore, one can develop it later in life. This condition is shared by about 6 + million women in the U.S. and about 3-4.7 million men were diagnosed in with infertility, including 14% sperm/semen and 6% varicocele, which is an enlarged vein inside the male scrotum, pouch that holds the testicles of a male, therefore this blocks the blood from through the blood stream.
Kliff, Sarah. "Understanding Male Infertility." The Daily Beast. 16 Oct. 2007. Web. 18 Nov. 2011. .
One often pre-conceived notion about feminist theory that was discussed in the unit is the idea that theory does not relate to practice (Levan, 10). Even though I have taken multiple Women’s Studies courses prior to this course, I also used to believe this notion. I believed that studying theory would help my own understanding of feminist ideas, but that it was not practical. I admit that even reading the course manual, my opinion only wavered slightly. I agreed more with Andrea Nye’s perspective, that theory “seem to exist without reference to the real world” (Levan, 10). It was not until I read Charlotte Bunch’s article, Not by Degrees: Feminist Theory and Education, that my opinion changed. Her example about the creating a theory regarding lesbian oppression is what truly helped explain the connection between theory and application to me: “Having a theory about lesbian oppression did not tell us what to do tactically, but it did provide a framework for understanding situations, for placing them in a broader context, and for evaluating possible courses of action” (Bunch, 12). The end of this quote is what I needed to understand for me to see the connection between theory and practice. Feminist theory can be used as a guideline when trying to create action for social change.
We’ve all heard of irrational fears, like claustrophobia, arachnophobia or agoraphobia, but a lesser known phobia is spermatophobia. Spermatophobia refers to the condition of having abnormal, extreme, and persistent fear of semen. On the flip side, for males it is defined as the fear of loss of sperm. As with most anxiety disorders, treatment involves cognitive therapy, including exposure and fear reduction techniques. (link 2) Treatment doesn’t sound too bad for men, but it seems like women would be getting the shaft on this deal.
Miller, Amanda J. "Cohabiting Men's Preferences For And Roles In Determining The Outcomes Of Unexpected Pregnancies." Sociological Forum 27.3 (2012): 708-731. Academic Search Complete. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
N. Gleicher, D. Barad, Does gender selection devalue women?, Fertility and Sterility, Volume 88, Supplement 1, September 2007, Page S260, ISSN 0015-0282, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2007.07.887.
Introduction The topic of gender differences must understandably be approached with caution in our modern world. Emotionally charged and fraught with ideas about political correctness, gender can be a difficult subject to address, particularly when discussed in correlation to behavior and social behavior. Throughout history, many people have strove to understand what makes men and women different. Until the modern era, this topic was generally left up to religious leaders and philosophers to discuss. However, with the acquisition of more specialized medical knowledge of human physiology and the advent of anthropology, we now know a great deal more about gender differences than at any other point in history.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2.1 million married couples experience troubles with infertility. Infertility is defined as trying for over a year and not becoming pregnant for women under 35 and trying for six months for women over 35. The cause of the infertility is a male factor one third of the instances, female another third, ten percent of the cause is a combination of both male and female factors and the remaining twenty percent is not apparent. In vitro fertilization is a process that tries to eliminate the problems inherent in the mother and father. It involves an egg is fer...
Infertility is caused by a physical abnormality that can occur in males and females and increases in older ages. SC’s mother was presented with fertility issues when she and her husband began to conceive a baby. She went through numerous fertility drugs and five different procedures one of them being In Vitro Fertilization. In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is a process where an egg from the female is fertilized outside the body with the male’s sperm. In SC’s case, he was one of three eggs that was fertilized and transferred back into the uterus. During this time, SC’s mother was very emotional because she was told that the embryos only had a 10% chance of survival. When she received the news about being pregnant, she began calling him her “little miracle.” She has showed concerns about how this procedure will affect his physical, emotional, and cognitive development in the future. Mothers who conceived through assisted reproduction expressed greater warmth towards their child and reported that they were more emotionally involved and interacted more with their child than mothers who had conceived naturally (Gibson, F. L., & Ungerer, J. A., 2000). As the interviewer, I could tell there was a strong emotional attachment between the child and his mother. According to a study on the mother-child relationship, there were concerns raised about the potential for
“The Emotional Effects of Infertility on the Couple Relationship.” IVF.com. Georgia Reproductive Specialists, 2007. Web. 22 Mar. 2010. .
I do believe the author’s conclusions were warranted given the study’s design. By using the results obtained from this study counselors can determine how to best help clients with various types of infertility issues. As the results of the study revealed the etiology of the infertility could be correlated with the type of stress the client experiences.
In order to understand how the government is addressing the issues of reproductive technologies, it is important to discuss how these issues are viewed by society. The inability to have one's own biological children is the key demand of couples that require the use of reproductive technologies. Some Canadians feel that infertility is a dysfunction of the body and should be regarded as a medical condition (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/english/nrgt/chapt-3.pdf). Other Canadians define infertility as a social condition because they believe the desire to have children results from the social pressure placed on married couples, particularly women, to bear children (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/english/nrgt/chapt-3.pdf). In an effort to allow infertile couples to produce their own biological children, new reproductive technologies are being introduced.
In the book Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center written by bell hooks, an African-American author, social activist and feminist first published in 1984 the author explains what she believes are the core principles of feminism. Throughout the book the author examines the early feminist theory and goes on to criticize it saying that it did not aim for a systematic change also that the movement has the potential to improve the lives of both men and women immensely. In the book the author investigates the performance of African-American women in the movement and what is needed to drive the movement towards ending oppression of all kinds.