in Esperanto
Chapter 3: SKETCH OF COMMUNIST SOCIETY -- LABOR
5.1. Factors of gender disparity
While mentioning family issues in the previous section, I would like to touch on so-called gender issues, which are deeply related.
It is well known that there is a persistent wage gap between men and women as a phenomenon that is almost common in the capitalist world. But why is the wage gap still continuing when "gender equality" is being called for as a principle?
One traditional hypothesis is the theory of feminism, which points to the persistence of patriarchal male domination. However, this view is becoming less applicable in capitalist countries where nuclear families have advanced. This is because there is no "patriarch" in the nuclear family, though it cannot be ruled out that within a production organization such as a capital company, something like a patriarchy still exists.
But a more plausible explanation would be as follows. As long as capitalism expects the marriage family to function to reproduce the labor force, women = wives must be "birthing machines" and are still expected to become housewives and devote themselves to the production of the next-generation labor force (childbirth and childcare) as mothers rather than working equally with men in capital companies.
With some exceptions, female workers are temporary labor forces who are scheduled to retire after marriage or childbirth, or are treated as part-time labor forces as side job workers. This is why the wage gap between men and women does not shrink.
Today's "sophisticated" capitalism accepts gender equality as a concept, but in reality male domination is firmly adhered to. This is conceivably the result of the nature of capitalism mentioned above.
5.2. Communism and gender
In contrast, apart from the fact that wage disparity between men and women would not exist in a communist society because the wage labor system itself would be abolished, communism no longer puts its hopes into the marriage family. There is no such expectation, so there is no need to expect a woman to play the role of a “birthing machine.” Whether or not to have children is merely a matter of life planning between partners.
Especially in a notarized partnership, even the defined role of husband/wife disappears, and since the partnership is just a relationship between couples who share a living, there are no full-time housewives who serve their husband and child.
Therefore, the life pattern in which the male partner M goes to work for 4 hours in the morning and after he returns home, the female partner F goes to work for 4 hours in the afternoon will no longer be an exception. In this case, if there is a minor child C between the couple, M and F will be able to take turns taking care of C.
In a communist society, slogans such as "gender equality" will likely be remembered as classics from a time when it was just an empty phrase. But a skeptical feminist might ask: Even in a communist society, isn't there still a gender disparity in social status, such as the male predominance in executive positions in companies and the other organizations?
It is true that we cannot give a clear answer to this question at this time. As I suggested earlier, it depends on whether or not communism can wipe out the patriarchal legacy that may remain within modern capitalist society.
However, in a communist society, where the big goal of earning money and pursuing profit, which males in the capitalist world have been crazy about, will completely disappear, males' way of thinking will also change, and they will be moving away from corporate activities. There may be more males trying to find their own way. Such a shift in masculine values conceivably facilitate the possibility of closing the gender gap in social status.
