Feminism; A Theory or Political Project?

In determining whether feminism is a theory or a political project, the terms must first be defined. The word ‘theory’ is one of many definitions due to its wide use in academia, though the following criterion is generally agreed upon: A) Substantiated, B) Explanatory, C) Predictive and D) Testable. According to these requirements, for a concept to identify as a theory it must provide causality (as opposed to description) alongside predictions which can be tested, and it cannot be independent of prior evidence. On the other hand, the definition for ‘political project’ appears ambiguous, which will subsequently make this proposition more difficult to analyse. Though there is not explicit criterion, the connotations of this phrase can instead be considered so that the significance of feminism in the political arena can be better understood.

Explanatory power must first be analysed to establish the foundations of feminist theory. It is also important to consider that this explanatory power must be of significance as the majority of schools, aside from realism which is relatively gender-blind, take the paradigm somewhat into consideration. Furthermore, it has been increasingly tied to traditional theories such as Marxism and post-colonialism, thus suggesting its sentiments are of value.

Feminism proposes that a gender sensitive approach to power relations is necessary as ideas relating to masculinity and femininity are central to how international relations function . The international system is patriarchal and constituted through power relations that systematically disadvantage women and benefit men, which is reflected in politics where women are underrepresented due to their less desirable, feminine qualities. It is thus important to approach major issues such as war, security and peace from a gendered perspective as feminist propositions provide explanations as to why the world operates under this system. Furthermore, the theory argues that gender is the most important category of analysis, above concepts such as anarchy and capitalism, and rejects the idea that the world cannot be separated into distinct levels of analysis. Only in taking a sociological approach to international relations by studying the lives of normal people can we grasp an idea of the bigger picture, and consequently make a normative commitment to improving the lives of women and men.

Moreover, feminism challenges theories that are comfortable assigning their focus solely to men. The theory questions the role of women on both micro and macro levels, putting forward the argument that women’s work depends on their subordination as they are expected to perform labour for less. Their subservient position, which has been constructed through global narrative and traditions, can be attributed to femininity; a quality which connotes submission, emotion, pacification and vulnerability . Masculinity, on the other hand, holds connotations of control, power, rationality and autonomy which, though not exclusive to men due to the socially constructed nature of gender, are globally associated with being male and must be exercised in an abundance by women for them to hold a fraction of the authority men possess . This is also known as the ‘Thatcher Effect’ .

In evaluating feminism’s relevance as a theory, substantiality must also be contemplated. This can be interpreted on a global scale, where issues exclusive to women which come as a result of their exploitation and patriarchal position are testament to the arguments put forward in feminism. Due to the extensive nature of this topic, only 3 of the ‘Top 9 Issues Affecting Girls and Women Around the World’ from the Global Citizen will be considered; access to 1. Education and 2. Work, and 3. Reproductive rights.

Feminism’s substantiality is strong when assessing statistics relating to women’s access to education and work; the two undoubtedly having a correlation. According to the latest available global figures the 263 million children that are out of school make up 19% of all girls and 18% of all boys, and out of the 61 million children without access to primary education 53% are female . In areas of higher out of school rates, this gender division is wider. This is evident in Sub-Saharan Africa, where 23% of girls are out of school compared to 19% of boys and 15 million girls are likely to never enter a classroom, compared to 10 million boys . These inequalities are also evident in Western Asia, where 20% of girls compared to 13% of boys are excluded from secondary education . Young women are also more likely to be excluded from upper secondary education in the Caucasus and Central Asia, Northern Africa, Southern Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Western Asia .

These gender-based exclusions are reflected in global figures that state 2/3rds of the 758 million illiterate adults worldwide are women . Partially as a result of these imbalances, women participate in labour market disproportionally to men. As of 2013, the male employment-to-population ratio stood at 72.2% whilst the female ratio stood at 47.1% . Inconsistencies are also evident in pay, where in most countries women earn on average only 60-75% of men’s wages . It is calculated that women’s income could increase by up to 76% if the wage gap and employment participation gap was closed, having a global value of USD 17 trillion.

The trend in the global mistreatment of women is especially present in data concerning reproductive rights, where laws such as the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act passed in Ireland in January 2014 serve to criminalise abortion, regardless of pregnancy complications being the leading cause of death for 15-19-year-old girls globally. Contributing to this is the fact 214 million women in developing countries who want to avoid pregnancy are not using a modern contraceptive method , resulting in 3.9 million girls undergoing unsafe abortions annually and experiencing heightened risks of severe bleeding, infections, complications in childbirth and new-born deaths . Another challenge to the reproductive rights of women is FGM, which is typically carried out on girls between infancy and the age of 15. More than 200 million women alive today have been cut in 30 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia; a significant cause of the 270,000 maternal deaths that occur annually in developing countries .

Whilst not necessarily deterministic, predictions are present in feminist theory which take into account regional variations and potential lines of action. It is necessary for predictions to consider regional variations as the severity of gender-related issues differs globally, which is evident when evaluating body dissatisfaction and disordered eating. Disparities were clear when these were compared across groups of college women from China, South Korea and the US, where feminist theory initially predicted figures would be highest in the Korean sample and lowest in the US sample as a result of Western female beauty standards being imposed on a global scale . The data generated from these surveys was a better fit to the predictions of feminist theory, more so than those of sociocultural theory, due to feminisms theoretical understanding of the inconsistences that arise as a result of perceptions of Western and non-Western cultures.

Furthermore, the future of gender’s impact on global affairs also differs on the prediction type. Naturally, if the issues discussed in substantiality were unchallenged, gender roles would prevail and the systemic subjugation of women would continue. If feminism took a similar line of action to Marxism however, women leading bloody revolutions as the patriarchy reaches prime exploitation can be expected. Alongside this, feminist theory would predict women will increase as a percentage of the population which, combined with an intensified desirability given to masculinity in the international system resulting in the further disenfranchisement of females, would result in women no longer playing a role in power relations.

These developments in the international arena can be evaluated using data, reviewing personal accounts from people in different regions, assessing the amount of legislation passed concerning women’s rights and frequently scrutinising the efforts being made by interest groups to help the matter. Therefore, the fact feminism can make predictions and employ a variety of mediums to test these predictions further supports the proposition that it is a theory.

To assess the extent in which feminism is merely a political project, the United Nations’ approach to the issues discussed in substantiality can be considered to determine the responsibility taken by global leaders in addressing gender-related issues, and if politicians have made these issues a priority.

The most obvious effort made by the UN to combat the issues highlighted by feminism is a series of flagship programmes. The organisation states these programmes have been established to “(strengthen) the voice of women and girls” and “remove structural barriers to gender equality and women’s empowerment” , with each initiative being “high-impact (and) scalable to build on and supplement UN Women’s ongoing programming work”. Out of their 12 flagship programmes, 4 directly address the issues raised in substantiality: Women’s political empowerment and leadership, Income generation for women, Decent work and social protection, Stimulating equal opportunities for women entrepreneurs and Demanding rights to reproductive, maternal, new-born, child and adolescent health services. In addition to this, initiatives such as the Global Innovation Coalition for Change and System-wide strategy on gender parity strive to tackle women’s access to education and work. Political efforts have also been made outside the UN to challenge patriarchal structures, such as the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. It is thus evident feminism possesses the qualities of being a ‘political project’, as efforts have clearly been made by world leaders to confront gender inequalities. That being said, efforts made to confront these gender inequalities are not exclusive to politicians, which suggests the phrase ‘political project’ is misleading and under-representative of NGOs and grassroots organisations. Movements which have set out to tackle the issues raised in substantiality include: Catalyst, Centre for Reproductive Rights, Feminist Majority Foundation, National Organization for Women and Global Fund for Women .

It can also be argued that the term ‘project’, defined as an individual or collaborative enterprise that is carefully planned to achieve a particular aim, connotes a sense of specificity and finality. This contrasts with the aims of feminist theory as feminism sets out to challenge a multitude of issues over a wide span of time. This proposition is consequently compromised as the phrase ‘political project’ diminishes the paradigms aims to a singular, finite level.

To conclude, it is clear feminism is a valuable theory that happens to encompass a ‘political project’ quality, but is not solely grounded in the efforts made by politicians to alleviate the issues raised. It instead puts forth a convincing explanation concerning global power relations and the impact of gender perceptions, which is supported by relevant data and feasible predictions that pertain to regional differentiations. Taking this into account, and the fact much of the work done to challenge gender inequality has been bottom up and executed over decades, the phrase ‘political project’ appears neglectful, distorted and myopic. The phrase ‘global movement’ would perhaps be more appropriate, and even then this label would still be an element of the theory, as opposed to its defining quality. Fundamentally, the fact feminism’s validity as a theory is challenged further supports not only why it is a theory, but why it is an important theory as paradigms such as realism, liberalism and Marxism are debated, but their authenticity as theories is rarely challenged. The gendering of feminist theory itself thus demonstrates why the phrase ‘political project’ is unsatisfactory.