envisaged women participating on an equal basis in government in
classical times. As early as 1792 Mary Wollstonecraft was arguing the
case for female emancipation (Wollstonecraft, 1985). By the begin-
ning of the twentieth century women had achieved the franchise in
some American states and the Women’s Suffrage movement had
become a major political issue in Britain with radicals prepared to use
violence against property and even suicide as a political weapon.
Despite the achieving of universal suffrage in virtually all Western
democracies, feminism remains a live political issue for many and the
overwhelming passion of a few.
The vote has not brought equality of pay, status or opportunity for
women. Attitudes to this fact may be roughly summarised in Table
4.1. ‘Radical’ feminists have tended to see feminism as an all-
embracing matter which should determine attitudes to a wide variety
of issues – including the nature of work, authority structures and
careers, education, taxation and personal relationships. Western
society has been warped by the aggressive and acquisitive elderly
males of the species dominating and exploiting the young and the
female.
Possibly as a result of media overreaction and misrepresentation
of the views of a minority of radical feminists (customarily cari-
catured as bra-burning lesbians in the tabloid press), many people of
moderate views would now hesitate to describe themselves as
‘feminists’. However, moderates are now found endorsing what most
people of the older generation of feminists would have regarded as a
feminist stand. Thus they take for granted the desirability of equal
political rights for women, freedom to pursue any career without
discrimination, and equal pay for equal work.
Even amongst conservatives on the issue, few can be found to
argue for the inferiority of women. In many cases the ostensibly
flattering line is taken that women have quite rightly preferred not to
get involved in male power games and should not compromise their
essential nature by doing so (compare comments on racial apartheid
in Chapter 5).
Radical feminists would argue that their more moderate sisters
mistake the size of the problem in asserting equal status in a male-
dominated society. Their analysis of the problem and suggested
strategy and tactics vary greatly from one group to another.
IDEOLOGIES 87