Marxist feminism
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Marxist feminism is a philosophical variant of feminism that incorporates and extends Marxist theory. Marxist feminism analyzes the ways in which women are exploited through capitalism and the individual ownership of private property. According to Marxist feminists, women's liberation can only be achieved by dismantling the capitalist systems in which they contend much of women's labor is uncompensated. Marxist feminists extend traditional Marxist analysis by applying it to unpaid domestic labor and sex relations.
Because of its foundation in historical materialism, Marxist feminism is similar to socialist feminism and, to a greater degree, materialist feminism. The latter two place greater emphasis on what they consider the "reductionist limitations" of Marxist theory but, as Martha E. Gimenez notes in her exploration of the differences between Marxist and materialist feminism, "clear lines of theoretical demarcation between and within these two umbrella terms are somewhat difficult to establish."
Marxist feminism is an offshoot of Feminist Theory that argues that capitalism is the main contributor to women's oppression. Marxist Feminist views encompass the idea that capitalism and patriarchy are interconnected systems that mutually reinforce one another. In this framework, capitalism relies significantly on the unpaid domestic labor performed by women, which is often undervalued and neglected. This exploitation is not only a key concept of capitalism theorized by Marxist Feminists but also perpetuates and strengthens the patriarchal structures embedded in our society. By highlighting how women's labor is essential to the functioning of capitalist economies, Marxist feminism reveals the impact of gendered inequalities and calls for a critical examination of both economic and social systems.[6] Additionally, Marxist-feminist ideologies continue to be relevant today for examining the intersection of gender and political economy, particularly in how the social reproduction of individuals and communities perpetuates capitalism.
Elizabeth Armstrong[2] proposes that Marxist Feminism theorizes subjectivity and possibilities for an anti-capitalist future with key elements such as Imperialism, primitive accumulation, theft of land, resources, and women's unpaid labor to the reproduction of lives and generations being analyzed. Marxist Feminism challenges the precedence of capitalist value to regulate social values including the exchange value in wages and profit by making the value of reproductive labor visible.[2]