Marxism was thus sympathetic to feminist viewpoint believing that capitalism leads to a system where women are treated as means of production and nothing else. What Marx was propagating for a more socially equal and respectful environment for women where they could work out of their own free will and did not have to resort to prostitution and other evils to support themselves.

             With these inherent similarities, the two were meant to merge eventually and this led to the development of the term socialist feminism. Both are essentially connected with liberation and Marxism contains within it seeds of change for women as well which is what attracted feminists towards it during latter half of the 20th century. The merger is no longer as strong as it once used to be, but the structural similarities of the two theories are such that they will not allow feminism to completely severe ties with Marxism. Some of the key similarities can be summarized as follows where both are seen as:.

             are theories of emancipation/liberation.

             appeal explicitly to theory to inform and guide practice.

             invoke a linkage between intellectuals and 'ordinary' people.

             employ extra-parliamentary tactics.

             are founded on a view of a group/class that can act in a world-historical way.

             if properly 'conscious' (or 'consciousness-raised').

             have a historical sensibility that tends toward the universal and the universalizing.

             generate intellectual problems and trends (particularly philosophical and.

             historical ones) independent of political projects (and perhaps at the expense of them).

             appeal to worldwide majorities.

             have problems with imperialism/colonialism in terms of leadership/identity (but not 'race') as a constitutive concept.

             create a canon of major writers, authoritative documents and heroes.

             cause major revisions to history as it is written and understood as an activity.

             tend to validate a 'method' or search for same.

             support mass revolution, and a new understanding of same (Taken verbatim from Terrell Carver, April 2004).