Pychoanalyitical Feminism

For class I read Tong's fourth chapter on Psychoanalytical Feminism. I was happy to find the others who read the chapter shared my dislike for the content. The first thing we all agreed on was that for a feminist theory, it was remarkably un-feminist. I can't really agree to a theory that places all the blame for our gender differences on mothers (admittedly, they insist it's not her fault, just they nature of things) and claims that all women sub-consciously seek to be dominated by men for fear of womanhood. This may be simplifying things, but it all felt a bit icky to me.

I am not going to talk about too much Freud, because that's a whole 'nother ball of wax. But the modern feminist perspectives are obviously based on his concepts - though, thankfully, ditching the whole "penis-envy" bullsh*t. Some main themes were the emphasis on the sub-conscious mind, early childhood and it's effects on individuals, and (unfortunately) the Oedipus/Electra complex.

What I find difficult about psychoanalytical feminism, and many other controversial theories, is I have a hard time distinguishing between"gross" or otherwise unappealing and "untrue." Let me explain. When I look at these concepts that claim all children have sexual feeling for their mother and/or father, my knee-jerk reaction is "no way" (usually with some profanity in there, but I already swore once so I'll keep it clean). But do I actually believe that these theories are false, or do I just want them to be? One cannot write off every idea that doesn't fit into their nice little world-view - if we did that we would still be thinking the world is flat and that the stars revolve around the earth. So where is that line of disliked/disbelieved? I don't know.

But when it comes to a lot of what makes up the modern psychoanalytical perspective on gender, I think I can say that it freaks me out AND I actually don't believe it. For many reasons; one of which being that all of the weight of this argument lies on the "traditional" family. What about children of single mothers who have no father to learn the "logical language of the world" from? Single fathers, whose children have no mother to lust after and be betrayed by? Same-sex parents, raised by grandparents or other relatives, adopted after infancy, two working parents and a nanny - there are so many more of these than the actual white-picket-fence families of the middle class with working daddy and stay-at-home mommy. I just can't validate it.

Also, I don't know about you, but I really don't think I lusted after either of my parents, or that I must suppress my inner-femininity so I will not become my evil evil mother. Sub-consciously or not. Thank-you-very-much.

-Sara