On Marxism and Feminism

Abstract

Recently the issue of class and gender has been raised in the pages of Studies in Political Economy - by Angela Miles in "Economism and Feminism; Hidden in the Household: A Comment on the Domestic Labour Debate," and by Pat Armstrong and Hugh Armstrong in "Beyond Sexless Class and Classless Sex: Towards Feminist Marxism." These authors argue that we need more dialogue around this issue to develop a framework appropriate for the explanation of women's oppression under capitalism. In the spirit of such a dialogue, I would like to comment on several of their points. In addition, I will draw on some arguments made by Michelle Barrett in Women's Oppression Today: Problems in Marxist Feminist Analysis.