presumptuous when it came to drawing conclusions about women. For example, Freud said "One might consider characterizing femininity psychologically as giving preference to passive aims…It is perhaps the case that in a woman, on the basis of her share in the sexual function, a preference for passive behavior and passive aims is carried over into her life…" He is assuming that a woman’s role in the sexual function is a passive one. It seems to me that the males have the passive role in this situation considering that it is the woman who carries and gives birth to babies. Feminists who have been arguing against Freudian theory for many years all come to the same basic conclusion about his philosophies on women: Freud was greatly influenced by the societal norms of his time, and that factor had a great impact on his theories about women’s roles. Since the days of Sigmund Freud, our society has progressed a great deal, and women have been gradually accepted as more than the property of their husbands. It is the freedom to decide her own destiny; freedom from sex-determined role; freedom from society’s oppressive restrictions; freedom to express her thoughts fully and to convert them freely into action. Feminism demands the acceptance of woman’s right to individual conscience and judgment. It postulates that women’s essential worth stems from her common humanity and does not depend on the other relationships of her life. During the nineteenth century, feminism was virtually non-existent, and the beliefs of Freud and other great minds were just accepted as fact. The stereotypical role of women as passive caretakers of the home and of children that existed throughout Freud’s lifetime, is gradually diminishing and women are gaining social status as well as respect from the men who at one time were out oppressors. The feminist movement has played a huge role in changing the opinions of many people t...
