Journal of Modern Greek Studies

Capitalist Development and Women's Work in Greece Jennifer Cavounidis The growth of capitalism in various societies has not affected the economic activities of women in these societies uniformly. This recognition makes necessary the study of the specific nature of capitalist development in each society, and of the ideas concerning the roles of men and women in each. The specific articulation of the capitalist mode of production with non-capitalist modes of production is crucial in determining which types of economic activity can provide some sort of living and what standard of living they will provide. Ideas concerning the sexual division of labor in each society are crucial in determining who will be engaged in each type of economic activity. The existence of such ideas does not, as has frequently been assumed, constitute proof of the necessity of these specific ideas to the reproduction of the mode of production it accompanies, though of course they must be compatible .1 Since the formation or continuity of specific ideas concerning this division of labor cannot be considered a simple functional consequence of a certain mode of production, such ideas must be considered as an independent factor in the study of the effects of capitalist development on the economic activities of women. Such ideas not only affect the participation of men and women in the various forms of production, but also mediate the relationship between participation in production and control over the product or income of this participation . This paper examines the way in which the process of Greek capitalist development, and more specifically, the articulation of simple commodity production and capitalist production in this process in Greece, together with Greek ideas concerning the sexual division of 'For a critique of functionalist approaches to the study of the relationship between the capitalist mode of production and the sexual division of labor, see for example Maxine Molyneux, "Beyond the Domestic Labour Debate," New Left Review 116 (JulyAugust 1979), 3-27. 321 322 Jennifer Cavounidis TABLE I Economically Active1 Population2 of Greece, 1951 to 1971, and Men and Women in Agriculture and Industry as Percentage of Economically Active Men and Women Total Agriculture3 Industry Men Women Men Women Men Women 1928 1,781,643 633,435 1,007,956 467,685 330,119 99,712 — — 56.6% 73.8% 18.5% 15.7% 1951 2,243,800 1,005,000 1,107,400 689,500 315,800 130,100 — — 49.3% 68.6% 14.1% 13.0% 1961 2,444,800 1,193,800 1,178,400 782,000 333,400 155,200 — — 48.2% 65.5% 13.6% 13.0% 1971 2,329,600 1,165,100 834,400 721,700 404,200 156,100 — — 35.8% 62.0% 17.4% 13.4% 1. For 1928, those declaring an occupation. 2. Population ten years old and over. 3. Including livestock raising, forestry, hunting, and fishing Sources: Ministère de l'Economie Nationale-Statistique Générale de la Grèce, Résultats Statistiques du Recensement de la Population de la Grèce, 1928, Vol. I, Athens, 1933; and Dionysos Frangos, O ikonomikós energós plithismós tis Elládos (Athens, 1980). Frangos has adjusted the census figures of 1951 and 1971 in order to make them comparable to the more reliable 1961 census figures (see footnote 3). labor, have worked to shape the activities of men and women in agriculture and manufacturing. Women in these two sectors continue to account for 75 percent of all economically active women in Greece (see Table I). Also, we will compare the effects of capitalist development on female economic activity in Greece with the effects of capitalist development on female economic activity in other societies which were late to industrialize. In many societies late to undergo capitalist development, articulation between the capitalist mode of production and non-capitalist forms of production was such that the viability of non-capitalist forms in agriculture and manufacturing was destroyed. The capitalist sector was unable to absorb all those whose economic activities were rendered non-viable, or whose access to the necessary factors of production (e.g., land or tools) was restricted. The relatively few paid positions in the capitalist sector...