Feminism and Sociology

Since the 1960s, feminist thinkers have had a tremendous impact on sociology, challenging the mainstream ideas that had failed to adequately account for the position of women. Joan Acker played an important part in this challenge, and this work presents her response to these challenges.

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Since the 1960s, feminist thinkers have had a tremendous impact on sociology, challenging the mainstream ideas that had failed to adequately account for the position of women and recognize the structures that made them "invisible". Joan Acker played an important part in this challenge, and in going beyond it to develop ways of comprehending social life that take account of gender. This book presents her response to these challenges and her attempts to forge a feminist sociology. Acker argues that feminist critiques of sociology lead to basic shifts in our ways of conceptualizing human societies and social structures. By looking at the development of the concept of gender, she shows how the multiple standpoints of gender, race, ethnicity and class must be the starting point for feminist rethinking. From here she develops a feminist analysis of the main institutions of society. Joan Acker was awarded the American Sociological Association's Career of Distinguished Scholarship award for her contribution to the study of women and gender.