Violence Against Women: A Feminist Analysis

In our recent history, feminism has become more prevalent in almost every aspect of our lives. One important thing to remember is that each sex has uniquely valuable traits to contribute to society (Maguire, 2014). However, overgeneralizations of these traits have driven a wedge between the different sexes and as a result, discrimination, injustice, and unfair stereotypes plague our society. Key terms discussed throughout each source include, but are not limited to, gender stereotypes, double standards, benevolent sexism, hostile sexism, gender disparities, and female/male injustice. Gender stereotypes encompass the generalizations placed on gender-specific traits. Sexuality includes how society views each gender’s relation to sex. Double

Both men and women fall victim unto sexual and emotional abuse. Girls, however, are more likely than boys to have experienced repeated severe violence. Aisha Gill, in her article Violence Against Women : Current Theory and Practice in Domestic Abuse, Sexual Violence, and Exploitation, studied the amounts and different types of abuse both men and women face in our modern society. The data showed that girls were significantly more likely than boys to experience sexual violence. Disconcertingly, 31% of girls and 16% of boys reported at least one experience of sexual violence (Gill, 109). There also clearly exists a gender divergence in relation to emotional violence. Women are more likely to experience emotional violence, different types of emotional violence, and intimidation/control. A third of women stated they had been made fun of and one in five girls reported that partners often yelled at them and controlled their lives (Gill, 115). In all these categories men reported much lower repeated

In the American Political Science Association, an article discusses the lack of women representation in politics. When Gender and Party Collide: Stereotyping in Candidate Trait Attribution by Danny Hayes showed that voters are willing to stereotype candidates on the basis of their gender, which for some is advantageous, but for women, it becomes an obstacle (Hayes, 134). Decades of research has shown that voters tend to view female candidates as more liberal, less capable of handling national security and foreign policy, and less tough but more empathetic. Along with unequal representation in politics, the science field also embodies the same lack of representation. In her article, Gender Roles and Stereotypes about Science Careers Help Explain Women and Men’s Science Pursuits, Jane Stout agrees with Danny Hayes argument that women face stereotypes that hinder them from engaging in certain fields of work. Women have traditionally served as caregivers which have factored into their decision to pursue psychology based sciences. However, it would be unfair to argue that women are the only gender to face lack of representation. Since women tend to dominate the psychology based science field, men are not as represented as they should be. Feminism does not just fight for female justice, it fights for male justice as