View attached explanation and answer. Let me know if you have any questions.HelloIt was nice helping you. In case you need editing, please reach out to meOtherwise, if you liked my service, please give me a good rating. I look forward to working with you in 2022😊

Feminist Epistemology Outline
Thesis statement: This paper analyzes the portrayal of women’s experiences in literature
through a five-structure tool, rationale, and positionality.
I.

5-STRUCTURES
A. Women living experiences
1. In chapter 11 of her book titled Black feminist thought, Collins (1990)
provides a comprehensive account recounting US women’s lived experiences
within the oppressive and manipulative patriarchal society.
2. The chapter primarily examines the underlying challenges and difficulties
facing US women feminists and scholars due to the current male-dominated
socio-political and economic systems.
3. Collins reveals that the history and experiences of women, especially from the
African-American community, have been distorted or excluded from what
counts as knowledge to suit the demands of the patriarchal society.
B. Rejecting existing theories and explanations
1. After realizing their subjugated knowledge and false consciousness in the
patriarchal society, many women scholars and activists rejected existing
theoretical explanations and research findings of social relationships.
2. Stanley & Wise (1992) criticize existing research on mothers and parenting
because it is construed on misconceived notions and ideas.
3. In their article, Stanley and Wise the existing research’s inclination to accept
assumptions on social relationships without questioning.
C. Alternative approach
1. Standpoint theory
a. In their respective studies, Sandra Harding, Dorothy Smith, and Patricia
Hill Collins propose the standpoint theory as a viable alternative approach
to knowing and understanding the social world.
b. The feminist scholars suggest that the standpoint theory offers various
positions that provide women researchers with distinct epistemic
resources.
c. Furthermore, the standpoint theory enables women researchers to relate
and situate theoretical findings with their experiences.
D. Evaluation
1. Despite feminists’ emphasis on the standpoint theory as a viable alternative to
debunk and overcome the limitations in existing theoretical explanations in
contemporary literature, the theory has a contentious history.
2. The theory suggests that it is impossible and impractical for prospective
scholars to research social phenomena unless they become part of the
research.
3. The standpoint theory prompts the issue of reflexivity in social sciences.
E. Relevance and reflection
1. The lessons on feminist epistemology would play critical roles in helping my
understanding of my women and gender studies and my future profession in
the field.

2.

II.

III.

IV.

The readings from the topic exposed me to essential details and insights
regarding the existing literature surrounding the issue of women’s welfare in
the patriarchal social-political and economic systems.
3. After reading the texts, I realized that most of the available information about
women's achievements and living experiences in modern-day books, journals,
and media are constructed to fit the interests of the dominant patriarchal
society.
RESEARCH RATIONALE
A. Rationale
1. The primary reason for conducting narrative research was to provide a
comprehensive account that conveys various discussions and descriptions of
women's experiences in the patriarchal society.
2. Narrative research enables the researcher to critically examine and review the
primary issues discussed by different authors in literature.
3. Narrative research also enables the researcher to collect and analyze these
accounts and describe their respective experiences and interpretations.
RESEARCH POSITIONALITY
A. Positionality
1. As aforementioned, the issue of reflexivity in research threatens validity and
positionality.
2. Research positionality acknowledges that a researcher's social, political, and
historical locations play critical roles in influencing their orientations because
they are not separate from the social processes they study.
REFERENCES


FEMINIST EPISTEMOLOGY: 5 STRUCTURES, RESEARCH RATIONAL AND
POSITIONALITY

1

Feminist Epistemology: 5 Structures, Research Rational and Positionality
Name
Institution

FEMINIST EPISTEMOLOGY: 5 STRUCTURES, RESEARCH RATIONAL AND
POSITIONALITY

2

Feminist Epistemology: 5 Structures, Research Rational and Positionality
5

Structures

In chapter 11 of her book titled Black feminist thought, Collins (1990) provides a
comprehensive account recounting US women’s lived experiences within the oppressive and
manipulative patriarchal society. The chapter primarily examines the underlying challenges and
difficulties facing US women feminists and scholars due to the current male-dominated sociopolitical and economic systems. Collins reveals that the history and experiences of women,
especially from the African-American community, have been distorted or excluded from what
counts as knowledge to suit the demands of the patriarchal society. The chapter further reveals
that most US feminists advanced thoughts on work, family, motherhood, sexual politics, and
political activism have been distorted or excluded from history because they contradicted or
challenged the White male’s interpretations of the world. Considering that elite white males
control knowledge validation processes in the western world, a considerable of US women’s
experiences and contributions to knowledge have been eliminated from mainstream and
accessible platforms. Even after successfully stirring the US political and intellectual climate
through social movements and activism campaigns during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, women
scholars and authors encountered conflicting epistemological standards. For instance, US female
scholars who aimed to advance their feminist thought were required to validate ordinary AfricanAmerican women. Furthermore, women scholars were required to be personal advocates of their
material and prove to have lived or experienced their material in their day-to-day activities. The
difficulties faced by the women scholars are not idiosyncratic to certain women but arise from
patriarchal conditioning. Women authors and scholars were expected to adhere to the

FEMINIST EPISTEMOLOGY: 5 STRUCTURES, RESEARCH RATIONAL AND
POSITIONALITY

3

conventional ideals prescribed by the patriarchal society. The realization that the patriarchal
society has traditionally subjugated women's knowledge has helped women escape from false
consciousness. It dawned on women that most of the literature from women has been changed to
suit the interests of the patriarchal society.
After realizing their subjugated knowledge and false consciousness in the patriarchal
society, many women scholars and activists rejected existing theoretical explanations and
research findings of social relationships. For instance, Stanley & Wise (1992) criticize existing
research on mothers and parenting because it is construed on misconceived notions and ideas. In
their article, Stanley and Wise the existing research’s inclination to accept assumptions on social
relationships without questioning. Some of the accepted assumptions included: the dualist notion
of gender roles and sex-role models describing the role world. Furthermore, the scholars
criticized the approval of functionalist perspectives, suggesting that males and females should be
differentiated. The scholars’ criticisms were based on their reviews of a wide range of theorists'
applications of sex-role socialization. In most of the existing theoretical explanations and
research findings, the earliest interactions between mother and child played critical roles in
determining the direction of an adult’s personality. Whereas the mother-daughter relationship
emphasizes mutual identification, the mother-son relationship stresses opposition. The earlier
studies also asserted that gender identity is learned through moving, doing, touching, and
copying rather than words and disciplinary actions. The feminist critics rejected the existing
theoretical underpinnings because their findings and conclusions were fashioned to promote the
ideals of the patriarchal society. For instance, most academic observers were male, thus asking
only partial questions, thus conditioning research participants to take a particular view.

FEMINIST EPISTEMOLOGY: 5 STRUCTURES, RESEARCH RATIONAL AND
POSITIONALITY

4

Considering that the male observers could not distance and detach themselves from the social
world, they would not reach neutral positions and conclusions.
In their respective studies, Sandra Harding, Dorothy Smith, and Patricia Hill Collins
propose the standpoint theory as a viable alternative approach to knowing and understanding the
social world. The feminist scholars suggest that the standpoint theory offers various positions
that provide women researchers with distinct epistemic resources. Furthermore, the standpoint
theory enables women researchers to relate and situate theoretical findings with their
experiences. The standpoint theory is a framework in which a researcher speaks on behalf of the
marginalized, aiming to improve their situation (Wylie, 2012). For instance, women researchers
are poised in positions where they can perceive oppression from their direct personal experiences
and through the eyes of the establishment. The standpoint theory functions as a feasible
alternative tool to help scholars reflect and debate socio-political issues in the contemporary
Western intellectual and political sphere. Furthermore, the standpoint theory helps researchers
avoid the issue of partisanship in research by providing several social locations for the
researcher. In her analysis, Harding (2004) reveals that whereas social locations and political
struggles function to advance knowledge growth, the dominant view in local situatedness
functions to block scientific inquiry and knowledge. In essence, the standpoint theory aligns with
the concept of positionality in research because the theory acknowledges the need to intersect
social locations and complex power dynamics. The standpoint theory suggests the separation of
the researcher from the research process. In women and gender studies, the alternative theory
enables women authors and researchers to separate the influence of their culturally ascribed and
fixed characteristics such as gender, race, and skin color from impacting their research processes.

FEMINIST EPISTEMOLOGY: 5 STRUCTURES, RESEARCH RATIONAL AND
POSITIONALITY

5

Despite feminists’ emphasis on the standpoint theory as a viable alternative to debunk and
overcome the limitations in existing theoretical explanations in contemporary literature, the theory
has a contentious history (Wylie, 2012). The theory suggests that it is impossible and impractical
for prospective scholars to research social phenomena unless they become part of the research.
The standpoint theory prompts the issue of reflexivity in social sciences. Considering that
researchers are...