Patriarchy- The Easy Explanation for Modern Feminists

Patriarchy is usually used by shrill feminists who usually blame everything on some “old, white guy.” However, this explanation is thoroughly challenged by a real academician who does not simply resign power over to men, like the feminist explanation actually does. When one says that patriarchy explains the inequalities in society between men and women they make the woman a powerless party in the entire scheme. However, nothing could be further from the truth. This is demonstrated in many different ways. Women acted with economic interests in several different ways.  One example used in class was the Puritans. The Puritans were actually ok with pre-marital fornication as long as the male stayed in the area and intended to marry the pregnant bride. It became a problem when the men began moving West, and the family had to take care of the illegitimate child. It was not as one student tried to childishly explain that a old, white man forced his morality on the woman. It was much more complicated than that. The family as a whole had to deal with the burden of an unwed mother, which meant that the woman made decisions concerning her family’s life. She was not a passive actor in the entire process. Instead, she held power by shaping the policy of the family.

In chapter one of “Women’s Lives in Colonial Quito” by Kimberly Gauderman, the  use patriarchy as the simplest explanation is debunked by an academic, not utilized like a blunt tool as most feminists try to do.  Yet, she acknowledges its existence by discussing the role of the king and father in relation to the family. Patriarchy obviously exists, but the complexities of the situation call for stronger analyses than just blaming white men. In fact, Gauderman wrote: “The conflicts between parallel intities with shared and competing interests produced the tension which held the network together; in other words, social stability was the product of continual contestations of power rippling through a web rather than obedience generated through vertical lines of authority” (pg 29). This quote explains how complex the system was and how the women took the role to change things. She fought (not literally, metaphorically) for her rights and existence within the family unit. She struggled to gain more power and equality with the men in her life. Does this mean equality was actually achieved? No, of course not. But women did not just sit down and take, nor were they powerless as simply yelling patriarchy does. When people see that men did create tyranny over women, but women challenged that tyranny regularly, then they can understand the dynamics of patriarchy in societies.