The Capitalist function of the family / Sarah Elbert and Silvia Federici

On April 5 and 6, 1975, the New School chapter of the Union of Radical Political Economists hosted a conference on Marxian Approaches to History. This recording consists of the formal presentations given during a session on the capitalist function of the family. Sarah Elbert, State University of New York at Binghamton, delivers a talk entitled "The Concept of Domestic Feminism" about the domestic reform movement of the early 19th century which sought to cushion the shock of industrialization and nuclearization of American families with a cult of conservative domesticity. As opposed to the 1700's, when they often worked alongside their men, 19th century women were relegated to the unpaid caste of housewives. The second speaker, Silvia Federici, sees the nuclear family as a factory for capitalism. She calls for women to undermine this exploitative system by demanding wages for work in the home.