Labouring to love: romantic love and power in the construction of middle-class femininity

Vincent, Louise; McEwen, Caryn

Title: Labouring to love: romantic love and power in the construction of middle-class femininity
Creator: Vincent, Louise
Creator: McEwen, Caryn
Date Issued: 2006
Date: 2006
Type: text
Type: article
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141783
Identifier: vital:38004
Identifier: DOI: 10.1177/097152150501300102
Description: South Africa is 10 years into its new democratic order. An aspect of the country's political transformation has been an official political commitment to gender trans-formation. While great strides have been made towards greater gender equality at the institutional and legal level of society, the present article suggests that highly unequal power relations between men and women continue to be perpetuated in unexpected ways among those whom we would most expect to be capable of resistance. This paper is about how subtle yet deeply embedded ideologies and practices within heterosexual relationships serve to keep highly educated, apparently empowered and liberated women ‘in their place’, ensuring that they do not fulfil their potential. Traditionally women were socialised into assuming their positions in the home as caregivers and unpaid household labourers. The hope of feminism was that education, economic empowerment and an ideology of ‘can do’ independence would liberate women. However, for many women, it is in the most intimate aspects of their lives—in their sexual relationships with men—that this hope continues to be thwarted.
Format: 23 pages
Format: pdf
Language: English
Relation: Indian Journal of Gender Studies
Relation: Vincent, L. and McEwen, C., 2006. Labouring to love: Romantic love and power in the construction of middle-class femininity. Indian Journal of Gender Studies, 13(1), pp.37-59.
Relation: Indian Journal of Gender Studies volume 13 number 1 37 59 2006 0973-0672
Rights: Publisher
Rights: Use of this resource is governed by the terms and conditions of the Sage Journals Terms of Use statement (https://journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/terms-of-use)

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Vincent, Louise (Prof)

RU Department of Political and International Studies

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