Patriarchy

jolly_mcfats · 2013-04-11T00:32:52+00:00

We can't get a canonical definition, so usually just assume that the patriarchy is a system of laws and rules made by men to benefit men at the expense of women.

If that is an accurate statement of the theory, then there are obvious flaws.

Here is a much longer consideration of what the theory is, and what its' proofs might be.

fredanator · 2013-04-11T00:39:44+00:00

autocratic rule by the male head of a family

Is what I think of it as, and what his has historically meant. None of this "male privilege" bullshit.

SheepInWolvesClothin · 2013-04-11T01:25:34+00:00

We don't use patriarchy theory. That's a bit like asking creationists to define evolutionary theory for you.

The best we can do is parrot back what feminists say about it, but it's really difficult to get one of them to give a concise definition. But, in a nut shell, patriarchy theory is the theory that men men have been in power at the exclusion of women, have made rules to benefit men at the expense of women, and have purposely created a systematic and cross-generational oppression cycle for women for thousands of years which is still being readily, purposely, and eagerly perpetuated by men and Stockholmed women. That men have been, and still are, given certain innate benefits by society (men), while not giving women any benefits. That gender roles were designed to benefit men and disenfranchise women.

Something along those lines.

2013-04-11T01:06:36+00:00

SSSHHHH stop exposing our secret man group. wobbles back to secret man lair

OuiCrudites · 2013-04-11T01:55:40+00:00

Patriarchy is whatever a woman says, at the time that she says it, and if the definition is illogical or self-contradictory it's you're fault because you're a misogynist.

If two different women say it is two different things, they are both right and you're not allowed to point out the discrepancy.

intirb · 2013-04-11T02:05:02+00:00

I wrote this on another thread, but I think the most generous (for feminism) definition of patriarchy is not "all men have power, no women have power," but "a few men had power over everybody (male and female)." Power was primarily wielded by men, but that doesn't mean all men wielded substantial power.

These powerful men created institutions to ensure they could maintain their power. Sometimes that meant solidifying their power over women (institutionalized sexism), but it also meant creating institutions that keep all the other men (generally younger and/or poorer) from rising up.

So women suffered under this system, but so did most men. Which is why a feminist will tell you that getting rid of the patriarchy will help men too.

Is it still an issue now? I think there are some remnants of the old system (patriarchy or whatever else) that still cause problems for both men and women. And personally, I think that plutarchy is a bigger problem for us nowadays than patriarchy, though I imagine a feminist would say that they are related.

AnnArchist · 2013-04-11T03:06:40+00:00

Its not a theory, its a dogma.

rightsbot · 2013-04-11T00:24:17+00:00

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rottingchrist · 2013-04-11T04:23:37+00:00

In the feminist sense it means that it's a system constructed by men to benefit themselves and oppress women and keep them down.

2013-04-11T11:17:02+00:00

Once upon a time, wealthy women with time on their hands made up social rules for "ladies" and "gentlemen".

Under these rules men were supposed to move the then heavy doors and chairs for women and there were complicated dating and life protocols to be observed when men were dealing with women, and vise versa. The underlying theme was that men are stronger and women are weaker, therefore men must defer to women and visa versa in different ways in social settings. People that didn't follow the rules were shamed - men that failed the protocols were uncouth and "ungentlemanly", women that deviated were uncouth and "unladylike".

Eventually those rules trickled down through the classes and became social norms.

Today western feminists are calling this set of rules that became stereotypes "Patriarchy".

CrossHook · 2013-04-11T14:43:02+00:00

Anyone who seriously believes that our society is patriarchal is mentally retarded.

I_fight_demons · 2013-04-11T07:27:37+00:00

If you read this sub for any length of time you will find plenty of MRAs expressing frustration about the nebulous definition of 'patriarchy.' A very common thing to read here is "when I finally cornered the feminist and made him/her define patriarchy, he/she said it is traditional gender roles." Many MRAs just use 'traditional gender roles' or just 'traditionalism' as the working, functional definition of patriarchy.

Most MRAs either don't agree with or use the more standard feminist definitions of patriarchy, which sound something like "society ... characterised by current and historic unequal power relations between women and men whereby women are systematically disadvantaged and oppressed." (London Feminist Network)

There is a lot of subtext here:

Feminism is a very large movement, and it includes very many, very different viewpoints. It is not surprising that different feminists use the term differently. I personally feel many MRAs are not understanding enough on this point, the definition appears to be a moving target only because there are many possible definitions.

MRAs often don't want to use or associate with the term 'patriarchy' because they feel it validates certain concepts they disagree with. Some elements of feminism, particularly more radical elements, have definitions of patriarchy or use the concept in ways that some MRAs outright reject. An example is this currently trending list from Jezebel (look at part 4) which includes the massively broad claim "Any pressures and expectations that lower the quality of life of any gender are part of patriarchy." Vetting that statement is difficult to say the least. For instance, for many people not being allowed to have pets in certain apartments is an expectation that lowers quality of life. Are apartment pet bans part of patriarchy then? (To be fair to the Jezebel writer, the above isn't a specifically gendered issue, and she's probably intended the statement to only refers to problems that are more definitely gendered).

Many MRAs also feel that the feminist definition of patriarchy should at least get a new name, since patriarchy refers to a system of male inheritance. Though obviously the definitions have some relationship (male privilege) and overlap.

Title	Patriarchy
Author	fredanator
Upvotes	0
Comments	17
Date	April 11, 2013 12:08 AM UTC (13 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/mensrights/comments/1c3mzq/patriarchy/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MensRights/patriarchy.1610255 https://theredarchive.com/post/1610255

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