Patriarchy, the system

Patriarchy is the system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it.
However according to Allen some men are defensive when it comes down to patriarchy as they are all tend to be seen as oppressive , which is not the case .
Allen also described society as patriarchal and associate actions such as mens violent actions against women to it . It is also believed than men are the most important people as they do the more important things according to the system .
This then leads to how it affects socialization and social systems . It is said that we humans are the ones that make social systems happens .
social system is the patterned network of relationships constituting a coherent whole ,that exist between individuals, groups, and institutions. It is the formal structure of role and status that can form in a small, stable group.
Being the fact that people can make the system they have the ability to change the system differently.
The dynamic between people and the social system represents a basic sociological view of the world at every level of human experience.

In my conclusion Patriarchy is a lived system; it is a framework that people use to justify male superiority over women and it is one which survived through numerous social, cultural and political changes over the last several centuries. Although the roles of men and women have radically changed over the turn of the century, it is still inevitable to have various gender related  issues .

Oppressive systems aren’t just made up of individual actions but years and years of social constructs and institutions contributing to empowering and upholding these structures. For example racism, sexism, etc. are all systems that can’t be boiled down to a few shared experiences. Instead it is the amalgamation of actions and systems that work against a specific group of people in order to maintain the power for the other group. This is where privilege arises, and one may benefit from one aspect of their identity but suffer at the expense of another aspect. Allan G. Johnson in “Patriarchy the System” elaborates that if we reduced things like the patriarchy to just individual behaviors we would essentially be ignoring how structures are influencing these experiences to begin with, “If we see patriarchy as nothing more than men’s and women’s individual personalities, motivations, and behavior, then it won’t occur to us to ask about larger contexts—such as institutions like the family, religion, and the economy—and how people’s lives are shaped in relation to them.” (Johnson 15.) As a black cishet woman, I have cishet privilege but will still lack power due to misogyny and racism. Things that are rooted in misogyny will still result in my harm and the same goes for parts of society rooted in racism. “Within the lesbian community I am Black, and within the Black community I am a lesbian. Any attack against Black people is a lesbian and gay issue, because I and thousands of other Black women are part of the lesbian community. Any attack against lesbians and gays is a Black issue, because thousands of lesbians and gay men are Black.” (Lorde 1983) In my own experience I’ve found that whenever one marginalized group is attacked it always creates a trickle down effect. Eventually the oppression spreads like mold and it begins to affect every group similarly but in different ways. Even in modern day America, although I’ve only been alive for 20 years I witnessed how dehumanized black children and victims of police brutality were in the media as a teenager and only for me to witness it happening to asian people a few years later in current time. Myweleman mentioned that “I think that patriarchy is universal, everywhere. Patriarchy is in every country, in America, Japan, Saudi Arabia, France, Congo, Ivory Coast . We can find patriarchy in all of this nation. Patriarchy is like oxygen, everywhere, men can not live without this way of dominating. It is innate. Sometimes people tend to point to another country, but patriarchy is right there next to them.” And I completely agree. I’ve seen some people use the argument that because in some ways American women live under better circumstances than those in other countries that feminism is no longer needed, but obviously it doesn’t matter the intensity or magnitude of the misogyny. Feminism is to combat all forms the patriarchy presents itself in. Due to the patriarchy being everywhere I often wonder if it’s possible to dismantle it or if it’s something we should attempt to reform instead of destroy entirely because of the difficulty that comes with tearing it down.

Keona Malcolm

GWS

10/4/2021

The patriarchy

The patriarchy is a system structured to make one group at an advantage and an other at a disadvantage. It’s not something we can get rid of, it’s been around for centuries and decades and centuries. Everything we do in our everyday lives perpetuates the patriarchy. I believe if we all come together and understand how our actions contributes to this oppressive system that puts people at a disadvantage and to make sure we are all treated equally. 

Although it’s no surprise not everyone believes the patriarchy exists and not everyone sees it the same. People have different experiences and see the world through different lenses. No matter how hard you explain an issue, it just won’t resonate with everyone the same way it does with you. I think that maybe one of the many challenges in trying to change the patriarchy. Another factor is religion and culture. Some cultures and religions thrive on the patriarchy, so presenting the idea of illuminating  the patriarchy would mean giving up the power and control and the status they gain from the  patriarchy.

I think it is important to discuss the effects of the patriarchy from the perspective of the people who are at an advantage and for the people who are at a disadvantage. I also wanted to state that no one person is to be blamed for the patriarchy because everyone regardless of class, race, gender, religion and sexuality can uphold the patriarchy. The patriarchy from the perspective of women has always been oppressive. It has presented so many challenges from not being treated equally and fairly to getting a job, unequal pay in the workplace  and etc…It is crucial to also understand that your race can also play a role in your experience under the patriarchy. For example when speaking up regarding an issue or how they feel uncomfortable in any situation, a white woman is more likely to be believed over a  black woman or a woman of color. Another example is white women are  seen as feminine, quiet, always needing protection, positive traits while black women are seen as loud, angry, aggressive, and masculine, always having their femininity questioned. White women have the opportunity to enjoy their children while women of color are constantly sexualized for their body  and accused of being provocative. 

Whenever you present the conversation about the patriarchy to men, they always find it hard to accept the idea that they have privilege. People like being seen as the victim because that eliminates them from being held accountable for how their actions affect others. For some, admitting that the patriarchy exists and that it is detrimental to our society means giving up their privilege and their comfort  and also admitting that they benefit from other people’s suffering. Even though no one person is responsible for the patriarchy, we all play a part in upholding the patriarchy. I believe men play a major role in keeping it alive. 

I also wanted to bring up the fact  that just like women, men can also be affected by the patriarchy. Men are seen as tough, aggressive, strong, head of the household and caretakers of women and their family and if you are a man and you are a part of the lgbt community, then people see that as a threat to their masculinity. For some reason if a man is gay then he cannot embrace any of the societal male qualities that are listed above. People see you as weak, fragile and incompetent of being a man simply because of who they chose to love.

I don’t believe that the goal should be about pointing finger at each other, but finding a middle ground and working together in finding a solution on  how the lessening the effects of the patriarchy because we can never get rid of it. It is something that is deeply embedded in our society that it would take centuries to unlearn. We can teach people to be more open minded and accepting of others because we are  all deserving of respect regardless of what background, culture, race, religion, and skin color we are. 

Patriarchy is a significant factor of society, specifically American culture, as we have been led primarily by men for as long as we can remember. Like oppression, sexism, racism, and discrimination, patriarchy is deep-rooted. Patriarchy can be described as a social system designed to ensure a male figure is always at the top, always the lead. Because society was structured and founded on this foundation of beliefs, patriarchy is ultimately the blueprint that leads to other issues such as racial and gender oppression. The fact that America has never even had a female president is a prime example of patriarchy and oppression, especially since all but one of our presidents have been both male and white. Such patriarchy often flows into our homes where families are traditionally dependent solely on the father to provide and act as the head of household, while women traditionally take on different roles such as cooking or cleaning. This ideology of life goes back as early as the hunter-gather era and is applied in some homes today.

Though it is in our nature as civilians to blame everything on a system, we often forget that we as civilians are the very ones contributing to the upholding of such systems. For example, Allan Johnson writes, “we also avoid taking responsibility either for ourselves or for patriarchy. Instead, ‘the system’ serves as a vague, unarticulated catch-all, a dumping ground for social problems, a scapegoat that can never be held to account and that, for all the power we think it has, cannot talk back or actually do anything”. In other words, as a society, we implicitly enable such ideologies by applying them to our individual lives, whether that be looking to men to do the heavy lifting or relying on the eldest woman in the family to prepare dinner every night. Through the lens of racism and oppression, the same concept applies. To be oppressed is to be limited as you must endure the unfair burden of the abuse of power. People of color, specifically Black people, experience oppression firsthand as they have the disservice of participating in institutions that conspire against them. Whether that be prisons where people of color are disproportionately incarcerated, or places of work where the natural state of Black people is frowned upon as certain hairstyles are socially deemed unprofessional, or schools where Black boys and girls are underrepresented in the curriculum. Although such flaws in the system directly impact people of color, the oppression is so deeply engraved into our society that everyone is affected. Audre Lorde, a Black lesbian woman, states, “I must battle these forces of discrimination, wherever they appear to destroy me. And when they appear to destroy me, it will not be long before they appear to destroy you”. People of color certainly reap the effects of such systematic cruelty; however, those higher up in the hierarchy are too impacted as they benefit from the system due to simply being a male or, in this case, obtaining significant privilege due to their whiteness.

Although we are currently in a stage of revolution as women are far more encouraged to take on leadership positions and more often white people are becoming allies of their Black counterparts, there is still much work to be done to reverse these systems America was founded on.

I agree with Sade Pickering’s post. It shows that women and society stand up for themselves more. The article “Patriarchy, the System” focuses on how men have so much power and believe all of their success is self-made. Society expects women to be perfect having the perfect body and should have no imperfections, no stretch marks, a perfect nose, and the ideal body. We as Females push ourselves to look like that to be accepted. Society expects us to be beautiful, if we are anything less than beautiful it is unacceptable. To society, it’s a woman’s job to be pretty and a man’s job to be smart. Society expects us to be beautiful. Women have to work twice as hard as a man to show that they are smart and that they are more than property.

In “There Is No Hierarchy of Oppressions” focuses on how black women get treated worse than everyone, mostly based on their color and what they identify as. Audre Lorde once quoted “it is the differences that divide us. We cannot recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” Based on gender and as a color people treat you differently and believe that all types of people of color are the same. Instead of considering people’s feelings, make them fear the world more and make them see death and abuse as the only option when it comes to skin color. American ways teach their beliefs of freedom of speech, religion, and assembly. All of these are part of our first right according to the 10th Amendment, however, when it comes to other people, such as people of color, Americans fail to respect these rights and go against their constitutional rights.  society always expects the worst for women especially if they are black, black women in the United States who work full time, year-round are typically paid just 63 cents for every dollar paid to white. Even in movies, they downplay black characters, especially black women characters.  The Princess and the Frog is one of the first black Disney animations, the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of that movie is a frog because Tiana character was poor and a frog 90% of the movie, Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Rapunzel, Anna, Elsa was born into royalty and stayed human throughout the movie. People portray black people as poor and think of them as animals and violent. Some other black movies are played by light skin instead of a black actor/actress because they look more fitted and beautiful, such as the movie The Hate U Give, the character is supposed to be black, however, it didn’t stand the profile of beauty. 

9/28/21

GWS 100-170w

Professor Waychoff

Response to Vanessa Lopez 

What is patriarchy? 

Patriarchy is male dominance and privilege which has empowered male to control and limit possibilities, controlling their lives and more. An example of patriarchy would be when females would stay home to take off the children, and do all the chores while the men would go to work. In addition Men would be the head of the household. Although this does not happen now but this was a regular occurrence in the 50s and 60s. Furthermore men would be very controlling by dictating how women would dress and limit women from doing things. For example they would underestimate women when women are looking for jobs. Imagine if you are a female and go for a job interview and you want a manager or the boss of the company and you get denied of this position because people don’t believe you can be a boss because of your sex. Some people would believe that because you are a female that you don’t possess a boss quality. They will think that a man will be more qualified for the position because he is more dominant. A while ago I was hearing a conversation on a train and two friends were speaking about a job. One of the friends said they wanted to be a fashion designer and the other said she wanted to be an architect and the friend was so shocked and she stated that this is only a job that men could do. Patriarchy made us have this in mind because decades ago we were taught that females cannot do everything that men can do. Therefore we still have it embedded in our minds. Lastly in the movie entitled “ Selena” Selena’s father wanted to form a band with all of the siblings. Each of them had their own rolls. However, Selena’s sister (Suzette) was forced into playing the drums. She refused to play it because she said that “ Girls don’t play drums. 

In conclusion in my opinion patriarchy is almost similar to a privilege. Men would work to get money and they made the rules. While females’ needs and rights were denied. Therefore I agree with Vanessa’s post. There should be no limit to what a woman can do. We could be the head of the household, the carpenter, the architect, the doctor, the teacher. Women also have the right to live their own lives without being punished or judged for it. I have seen this in a lot of African films as well. Whenever the father dies (king) the son always inherits the throne and always gets the privilege to take care of the family and have all the money. Women would even be ridiculed for having a female child  and not male child. Although this is a part of their culture it does not make it right. STOP PATRIARCHY

I like Lezbeth Bolanos Snapshot and it shows how they are trap in the web and can’t escape and I agree with her snapshot they are trap because there isn’t freedom for them and can’t get to choose because white men have much higher advantage. Mostly this isn’t fair because as a women I feel like it should also be equal and we should have the same thing as them not because of our race and gender. Also men are also trapped in the web just because of stereotype as you are a men you shouldn’t be crying saying that they should be strong but strong people can end up crying as well. As I think about patriarchy tells us that we don’t have the power men leads the women have to follow they have no right to say no to it. We also get judge for us wearing something that we want would show some parts the way we dress like wearing a skirt and showing too much are meant for them but no we wear them for style. Women are trapped and can’t escape but really wanted some privileges’ they only want because some women can’t even stand up for themselves even if they had gotten raped because some people don’t believe what is happening to them and are they saying the truth even so they won’t believe even though these things did happened to them living in such world makes me feel disappointed in boys that don’t admit what they have done and especially when a girl is drunk especially that’s the time they take advantage of them they can even say they didn’t do it. Also I believe that parents would now understand that us women can also go work and earn money not just stay home and do chores anyone can do chores at this point. I have to tell my parents most of the time because the way she tells us you are a girl you would have to do all the chores. When my parents always say you should wash dishes and do chores because you’re a girl your brother he is a boy you know these all are for girl but it isn’t fair most of the time he can relax and play games we do chores and cook. As a women you also have to waste money on pads and these cost a lot they don’t provide them to you for free. Most cannot even afford these like homeless women around that needs them for free we can’t control that we women have mensural cycle it is the way we are born. Some of the time men don’t think we women go through a lot because they think they go through a lot only from working but we go through so much and mostly wouldn’t understand taking care of baby and pregnant ain’t easy you would have to wake up if they baby starts crying and losing sleep. We also deserve in going to school back than we couldn’t do that and now we all can go to school besides staying home taking care of them remembering that only boy’s can achieve their goals and get a job we girls can also too.

The interpretation I had about the text “Patriarchy the system” by Allan Johnson is that the author is defining patriarchy but is unwinding the why we define patriarchy the way we do. Patriarchy is a common word that presents a system where men dominate and hold primary power. Yet the author defines patriarchy as “a kind of society organized around certain kinds of social relationships and ideas that shape paths of least resistance. (Johnson, 32). The “least resistance” is the easiest path to follow instead of making one of our own because we depend on easy living because of society and the benefits and consequences it has on us. An example of this is the idea of men defining patriarchy. Men identify with patriarchy because of the privileges. Still, some men get defensive about it because their individualism or personality doesn’t correspond to that term, but the term automatically defines them. It leaves a grey area of patriarchy because it can exist without men the same way oppression towards women can exist without men.

I wanted to respond to Lizbeth’s snapshot post, a picture of a spider web with different people attached to it while someone is holding it. As Johnson says in the text, “the system” to which we blame is the problem is more like a scapegoat. It unfairly blames, it doesn’t seem ever to get resolved because truly the system isn’t the issue; we, as human beings, are the root of our social systems and relationships. We don’t take the time to understand why or why we participate or promote patterns. We are the ones that manifest these systems consciously or unconsciously because we feel limited by our perception of acceptance and the environment. This idea goes with Lizbeth’s picture of people being stuck because people are trapped in a culture where patriarchy is power or domination; even if we want to prevent failure for ourselves or others, we resist it because it is a requirement.

The web holds the reality and ideas of patriarchy. The idea of men and women being pinned against each other is a form of norms that keep both sexes and genders trapped. It’s like a man cannot bear what a woman can, such as breastfeeding or having a connection with a child, and then women cannot be masculine or aggressive because it is not expected standards of their images. Many elements present a patriarchal culture that builds our privileges or what we can define as our resources and distribute power.

To be able to start dismantling the idea of patriarchy is by educating, raising awareness, and communicating other forms for individuals can grow. Having more available paths other than the “least resistant” path. The way we distribute power is important. The first step should be women and men not being at odds. Women should dominate in things just like men because where we see ourselves is where we stand in the social world. Patriarchy can continuously be reshaped depending on how we alter our path and freedom.