Article in the Journal of Academic Social Sciences · September 020 doi: 10. 29228/jasss. 45458 citations reads 4,242 author: Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects

Yıldız Merve Öztürk
 
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INTRODUCTION 
Ecofeminism is a political, philosophical and social movement, and according to this 
movement, women and nature are exploited by the male-dominant system. Thus, this critical theory 
claims that environmental problems and women’s issues are interrelated. That is, as the patriarchal 
order continues to exploit nature, discrimination against women will also endure. Similarly, as long as 
the sex segregation persists, the exploitation of nature will continue. As a term, ecofeminism was first 
coined in 1974 by the French thinker Françoise d'Eaubonne. According to this theory, white Western 
patriarchal societies create a male-centred culture, and through this culture impose social hierarchies 
and dualities. The hierarchies and dualities give superiority to men while subduing non-male beings. 
For example, dualities such as men/women, white/black, culture/nature, West/East, strong/weak, 
soul/body, mind/emotion are put forward to create hierarchies in western societies. These dualities 
create an unequal order in society, and impose a superior/inferior relationship. Thus, while the former 
is dominant, the latter is subordinate. Just as Pelin Kümbet notifies, in this system, the former asserts 
control over the latter; therefore, the latter is discriminated and underestimated (2012:172). In this case, 
for example, white people have superior positions, while black people have inferior positions. Also, 
while the East is represented as a barbarian and uncivilized, the West symbolizes civilization and 
enlightenment. Edward Said underlines that East is inferior, ignorant, and the West is superior, logical, 
civilized and philanthropic (1977:301). In this way, the hierarchical orders that generalize binary 
concepts enable men to be the primary sex while making women the second sex in the words of De 
Beauvoir. Similarly, this order also causes culture to overpower nature. Therefore, since culture, 
intelligence and powerfulness are considered as superior features, they represent men. On the other 
hand, nature, emotions and powerlessness are perceived as inferior properties, and they are ascribed to 
women. Belonging to the same subcategory creates a link between women and nature. However, this 
situation also conceptualizes them similarly in a male-centred society. Therefore, in male-dominant 
societies, women and nature exist as inferior and subordinate beings. The system oppresses both of 
them simultaneously. Thus, women's issues and environmental problems become interrelated, and 
ecofeminists aim to liberate women and nature from the oppression of the male-dominance. Kümbet 
mentions that if the male-hegemony ends discriminating each creature, the harmony and peace in the 
societies may reoccur, which are essential for a more democratic world (Kümbet, 2012:185). On the 
other hand, Serpil Oppermann clarifies that ecological studies aim to destroy the beliefs that are against 
the living and non-living beings, and to create an ecocentric point of view (2012:15). Consequently, since 
gender inequalities and environmental problems are interrelated issues, ecofeminism by drawing 
attention on women and nature, aims to free them from the oppression of the male-dominance. 
As social irregularities like exploitation of women and nature are interdependent, the types of 
oppression are also interrelated. For example, Karen Warren remarks that one form of inequality can 
help to find another sort of imbalance like sexism, racism, classism, colonialism, ageism, which are the 
different examples of abuse (2000:1). Therefore, the male-dominant system generalizes the relationship 
between oppressor and oppressed through hierarchies; hence, ecofeminists handle all these forms of 
inequalities. It means that minorities and non-male beings like women; people of colour, poor people, 
people with disabilities, animals and children are oppressed by the male-dominant system and 
ecofeminists seek to liberate them from the oppression. In a male-centred order men dominate over 
women because of women’s reproductive system. Thus, women cannot be independent and they 
become men’s domestic slaves. As Sherry Ortner notifies, since women give birth, they are supposed to 
be at home and do the cooking and cleaning (1996:34). Just as Rosemary Radford Ruether mentions, 
women “are isolated, sedentary, caring for children, cooking food (2015:15). Therefore, in the male-
centred society, the system affirms women’s exclusion, and reinforces the dominance of men. 

 
An Overview of Ecofeminism: Women, Nature and Hierarchies
 
708 
Ecofeminists aim to destroy the hierarchy between men and women and finalize women’s 
marginalisation. Additionally, in underdeveloped countries, women and children are also oppressed by 
the male-dominant system. For example, finding water is women’s and children’s duty in 
underdeveloped countries. Warren remarks that African women and children walk long steeps to reach 
the water (Warren, 2000:7). However, this is a difficult mission and performing this mission deteriorates 
women’s and children’s health; they face challenging conditions while walking through the forests. 
Therefore, women of colour and children are also abused in male-dominant societies. Thus, 
ecofeminists also draw attention to women and children in the third world countries and intend to 
liberate them from the oppression. On the other hand, the male-dominance also treats animals as 
sources of money; they kill and commodify animals to gain power. Men hunt and kill animals in order 
to make a profit. Thus, humans exploit animals because they perceive animals as inferior beings. In this 
way, Greta Gaard suggests herbivorous diet. She also mentions that murdering animals and consuming 
them is cannibalism (1993:299). Hence, consuming meat is another form of oppression because it 
approves the superiority of humans over nature. Ecofeminists also fight against the system that treats 
animals and nature as objects. Therefore, all the non-males and minorities like women, women of colour 
or animals exist as commodities in the society. For example, Charlotte Perkins Gilman exemplifies in 
Women and Economics the objectification of women and animals: 
“The labor of women in the house, certainly, enables men to produce more wealth than they 
otherwise could; and in this way women are economic factors in society. But so are horses. The labor of 
horses enables men to produce more wealth than they otherwise could. The horse is an economic factor in 
society. But the horse is not economically independent, nor is the woman.” (2018:10) 
Women provide economic power to men by serving them in the domestic sphere. On the other 
hand, horses also bring economic wealth to men by serving them in the public sphere. In this way, 
Gilman demonstrates that in a male-centred society, both women and nature have close positions as 
they exist as objects. In this way, the male-dominance oppresses non-male beings and minorities, and 
treats them as objects. For this reason, women’s issues, exploitation of animals and other disparities like 
ageism, classism etc. become interrelated as they represent the same kind of oppression done by the 
male-hegemony. Just as Greg Garrard notes, dominance comes to the fore in terms of the 
discriminations against class, species, race and gender (2004:26). Consequently, ecofeminism handles 
not only nature's exploitation and female's subordination, but also issues such as class, race, gender and 
age matters. 

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