UGC NET/JRF EXAM, January-2025 WOMEN’S STUDIES

C. United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948): Adopted in 1948, it was the first international document to affirm the equal rights of men and women, laying the foundation for future gender equality frameworks.

B. CEDAW - Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979): Often referred to as the international bill of rights for women, CEDAW was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1979 and entered into force in 1981. It is legally binding and commits states to eliminate discrimination against women in all forms.

A. ICPD - International Conference on Population and Development (1994): Held in Cairo, the ICPD shifted the focus from demographic targets to a rightsbased approach to reproductive health and emphasized women's empowerment and gender equality.

D. United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women (1995): Conducted in Beijing, China, this conference resulted in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which remains a comprehensive global policy framework for achieving gender equality.

Kate Millett, in her landmark book Sexual Politics (1970), critically analyzed how patriarchal systems are sustained by political structures and coined the term "Patriarchal Government" to describe the systematic control of women by male-dominated institutions.

Her work laid the foundation for radical feminist theory by linking personal experiences of women to broader political structures and ideologies.

Feminist economists argue that Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fails to account for the unpaid labour that primarily women perform-such as child-rearing, elder care, cooking, and household chores.

Though these activities are essential for the economy and social reproduction, they are excluded from national income accounting because they are not exchanged in the market.

According to various UN reports, if unpaid care work were monetized, it would contribute an estimated 10% to 39% of GDP, depending on the country.

Feminists advocate for time-use surveys and alternative measures like Gross National Happiness or Social Progress Index that include well-being and care work.

A. Shulamith Firestone - III: The Dialectic of Sex (1970): Firestone, a radical feminist, combined Marxist and psychoanalytic theory to argue that gender inequality originates from biological reproduction and the family structure.

B. Betty Friedan - I: The Feminine Mystique (1963): This book sparked the second wave of feminism in the U.S. by highlighting the dissatisfaction of middle-class housewives and challenging the "ideal woman" myth.

C. Mary Wollstonecraft - IV: A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792): Considered one of the earliest feminist texts, Wollstonecraft argued for equal education and rationality for women, laying the philosophical groundwork for later feminist movements.

D. Vandana Shiva - II: Staying Alive (1988): In this ecofeminist work, Shiva critiques Western models of development and emphasizes the role of women in ecological sustainability and traditional knowledge systems.

The Bechdel-Wallace Test, created by cartoonist Alison Bechdel, evaluates gender bias in films and media by asking three questions:

1. Are there at least two named women characters?
2. Do they talk to each other?
3. Do they talk about something other than a man?

This test reveals the systemic underrepresentation and stereotyping of women in media and promotes gender-sensitive storytelling.

Despite being simple, it has become a widely used cultural critique tool in feminist film analysis.

A. British colonial rule imposed Section 377, criminalising homosexuality: Introduced in 1861 during British rule, Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code criminalized "carnal intercourse against the order of nature", effectively making homosexuality a criminal offense in India.

B. First Pride Parade at Kolkata: India's first Pride Parade, called the "Kolkata Rainbow Pride Walk", was held in 1999, marking a public visibility movement for the LGBTQIA++ community.

D. The Supreme Court of India ruled Section 377 unconstitutional: On 6th September 2018, the Supreme Court of India in a landmark Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India case unanimously decriminalized consensual homosexual acts among adults, declaring parts of Section 377 unconstitutional.

C. Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act: Passed in 2019, this Act aimed to protect the rights of transgender persons, prohibit discrimination, and recognize their identity. It provides for a certification process and rights to health, education, and employment.

A. Empowering adolescent girls (11-18 years): The Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls - SABLA was launched in 2010 to empower girls through nutrition, health education, life skills, and vocational training.

B. Promoting awareness about health, hygiene, ARSH: The scheme includes components on awareness generation about adolescent reproductive and sexual health (ARSH), menstrual hygiene, nutrition, and family welfare.

C. Home-based and vocational skill integration: It also seeks to equip girls with life skills and upgrade vocational and home-based skills, integrated with existing skill development programs to enhance future employability.

D. Depositing 3000 in fixed deposit INCORRECT: This is a component of other schemes like Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, not SABLA. SABLA is a service-based scheme, not a direct cash transfer or deposit scheme.

Feminist epistemology challenges traditional notions that knowledge must be objective and free from emotion or subjectivity. It argues that emotions, values, and personal experiences significantly shape how knowledge is produced, especially for marginalized groups.

It critiques the male-dominated, objectivist scientific tradition and highlights how knowledge production is situated, contextspecific, and often influenced by the researcher's standpoint (Standpoint Theory).

Feminists like Sandra Harding and Donna Haraway emphasized the idea of "situated knowledges", recognizing diverse epistemologies beyond the dominant Western rationalist model.

Rosa Luxemburg, a Marxist theorist and revolutionary, wrote "The Proletarian Woman" in March 1914 for International Women's Day. In the article, she emphasized the double burden faced by working-class womenoppression due to both class and gender-and urged them to join the fight for socialism.

Her work merged the struggle for women's rights with the larger class struggle, arguing that true liberation of women could only occur under socialism.

The "Care Penalty" refers to the socioeconomie disadvantages primarily faced by women due to their role as unpaid or underpaid caregivers (in both formal and informal sectors).

A. Reduced earnings: Women often earn less than men due to taking career breaks, part-time work, or lower-paying caregiving jobs.

B. Care stagnation: Due to caregiving responsibilities (like child or elder care), many women experience limited mobility, fewer promotions, and reduced access to leadership roles.

D. Increased financial stress: The financial burden of caregiving, combined with reduced earnings, results in long-term economic insecurity, especially for single mothers and elderly women.

C. Unlimited access to benefits - INCORRECT: Caregivers do not enjoy unlimited benefits; in fact, most care work remains unrecognized and uncompensated, especially in developing countries like India.