Are any of you radical feminists?

[Jazzicatz]

I would consider myself a radical feminist. I was told yesterday that the logical conclusion to radical feminism is lesbianism and seperatism! I am not in agreement, but would love to know your opinions.

I can't answer for him obviously, but I think he sees that a Marxist approach is more about equality than a radical feminist approach which lends itself to seperatism!

Do you know what? - I was just thinking the same thing

Oh no one ever mentions Lenin's comment about Alexandra Kollontai. (or it might have been someone else, but I think it was her.) She argued against the idea of sex being confined to marriage, noting that it was just a pleasurable activity and ought to be conisidered no more signicant than drinking a glass of water. To which Lenin's response was "but who wants to drink from a dirty glass?"

Whihc gives a bit of a clue as the attitudes to women of one of the gods of communism.

Jazzi, are you ok? It seems wildly inappropriate that your supervisor won't support your methodology. Surely he knew about it when he agreed to take you on, and anyway, it's none of his business is it?

PhD has changed over time, and this new methodology follows more what I want my PhD to be. Before it was gender neutral and of course they were happy with that. Think I need to reassess my supervisory team!

HerB, I got incredibly confused there thinking, 'That doesn't sound like our Lenin'.

Dittany - I did argue that point and he just didn't agree. I can't make him agree with my standpoint. It is just very frustrating when I have to spend supervisory sessions arguing my position, beyond the ususal. He literally verbally attacked me!

He is being a twat. And you need a new supervisor or at least someone else you can go to and discuss this area of your phD. Is there someone else in the department you could go out for coffee with and talk over this chapter/section?

Not really - another thread entirely, on the lack of feminist research and debate to be had within academia. I was most shocked by his vehemence, especially as he writes about equality!

No he is a young academic!

the ones who write about equality are the worst . If you dare question their utter moral rightness on all equality-related matters they will use whatever bullying techniques they can to silence you.
You need some feminist allies....

Btw, I've just done an OP in this topic about women and sexism at universities, if you're interested?

Sorry, I both wrote the OP and my last post here before I read yours about it being another thread jazzi. Didn't meant to poach your topic. It's something that's been on my mind for a bit.

Dittany, thank you and I believe you are right in that it will strenghten my resolve and therefore my argument will be stronger!

LittleRedPumpkin - I think its a great discussion to be had and I have posted on your thread!

Jazzicatz - I had an experience with my PhD where my temporary supervisor really didn't get what I was doing, and that turned out to be the making of the research in a way because I became much better at explaining and justifying it as a result, and much clearer about what I was trying to do and why. So I see what Dittany means, it will strengthen it.
I think it would be hard without someone who gets it but in the end you can find that person elsewhere.
In the end your supervisor will want an easy life, he wants an independent student who will write a thesis that will pass. If you can show him you are doing the rad fem stuff really bloody well without his input, he's more likely to accept it and not put barriers in your way even if he actually disagrees. And then when your thesis is done and you have passed he will convince himself it is thanks to his great expertise on radical feminism

Much of what I've seen and read about the old Communist/Marxist/Socialist societies of Eastern Europe leads me to think that women there were dealing with very similar discrimination to what happens to women in the west. For example, domestic abuse, work/life balance, being sole carers. Very many Russian men "survived" communism by being permanently drunk. Most Russian women still had the same problems with state repression, poor economy, shortages etc. but they were still expected to look after the drunk men and raise families. Those women didn't have the luxury of abdicating their responsibilities.

Now that Russia is worshipping capitalism, those same men are still useless drunks and the women are still struggling.

Whichever patriarchal system is used, women still come off second-best of the two sexes.

The main issue with Marxism is that although the works of Marx are very good at describing how economic systems work and how they should work if people want a fairer society, Marxism is ineffective because it is very poor on explaining how we are going to ethically travel from an unequal society to an equal one.

Marxism has been criticised for this by other Left wing groups since Marx invented it, and this debate runs through the history of left wing thought.

Marxist academics are often very good at making out that to critique Marxism is to accept Capitalism. It is just a straw man argument. I think you should read around Left Wing economics other than Marxist economics, and look at economic ideas that could be developed from a feminist perspective.

As there has never actually been a Marxist state, making sure that we move towards equality in a way that is ethical is more important than stomping all over people (women) in our efforts to arrive at some kind of utopia.

I'm a man, so can never even be a feminist, much less a radical one. But experience of looking after children, being supported by and supporting women who do, makes me wonder why everyone doesn't start wearing a Fuck the Patrix T-shirt the moment the Bounty pack arrives, seems no other way of explaining the manifest oppression of mothers and children all around me. And I probably agree, however much I try simply to change what is there, that ultimately you can't build anything truly better unless you knock the whole bloody mess down and start again. I'd be first against the wall come the revolution, but maybe my spirit would see a better world.

I'm also an academic, and am concerned by this thread. The seminar leader defending free speech is shit-seminars are professional environments, not laddish aggression sessions. Sue him-most academics are sued unjustly, be good to have one up against the wall fairly for once.

On the PhD supervisor there are explanations (I'm not defending, just saying there are) which are not ideological. I've seen supervisors do nothing but put a line through work and say 'go to library', others whose students always leave the room in tears (a female colleague of mine was particularly guilty of this-believing women needed more toughening to survive) and others who are all sweety nice but ineffectual. It's a complex thing to do-it demands an understanding of who you are dealing with, a negotiation of intellectual and personal difference, and being the critical eye, yet no special training at all is given. I've always grilled my students very, very hard and aggressively on framing even when I agree with them (in fcat more so when I agree because I need to be sure they are not trying to please) because if the framing is not believed in by the student then work will be wasted or the project be abandoned. It may be your (young) supervisor is doing this but failing to explain it at a basic level. Or he may just be a cock, I've no idea, but you need to ask and seek alternative supervision if not.