If we want to change patriarchycompletely, we should let people know the difference, so that people know what blocking us is a system, not any individual identity. But only summary it as the system’s fault is not a solution, we need to know what the system is and how can we change it. If people can understand the system leads to some problems, then people’s questions and action would focus on the system instead of blaming certain individual identity. If people focus on how the system produces these problems, so that there will be movements and change to the system.
There are four levels of oppression: personal, interpersonal, institutional and cultural/structural.
From personal level:
- Misogyny is common and even women would have misogyny. Some women would stand with their husbands or boyfriends first than stand with other women. They would consider other women as enemies that would be able to steal their partners.
- Women can’t be trusted; men are the ones can protect others and the ones that are able to protect others because they are stronger.
From interpersonal level:
- Some words were originally described women in a good way but under pa…. Culture, their meanings had been changed and become insulting words.
From institutional level:
- Women are not allowed to have their own credit cards or inherit poverty from their biological parents/family.
- In China, the law of marriage is more beneficial to husbands than wives. Also in China, if a wife went to police station to file her husband uses violence to her, generally the policemen would not take it seriously and would concern it as regular family argument first, they would persuade the wife to go back home with her husband and live life as normal.
- While a woman and a man telling a same opinion, the woman party is easier to receive more doubt compared to the man party. A man’s word seems more convince.
From cultural/structural:
- Women menstruate is always being considered as bad, gross, and many women even feel shamed about it, and they don’t want to talk about it in public even it is normal and natural. Advertisement about tampons and pads always using blue liquid instead of red liquid to represent the blood.
- When I was a kid, I remembered some family members especially the male family members would talk to my family that don’t need to pay so much attention and money for my education because I am a girl. In their opinions, girls would marry someone one day and become other people’s family members.
Hello Yin,
This week’s readings were helpful because they clarified what the problem is and how it can be solved. As you stated in your discussion board, we need to first educate people on the proper definition of the patriarchy so people can refrain from the misconception that the patriarchy is a group of people. Just as the readings expressed, once we understand that the system was built at the disadvantage of some, we can move away from trying to place the blame on an individual.
To be honest, I was not aware that there are four levels to oppression, but am now made of where of each level and the influence each level has on one another. The example you gave on the final level (Cultural/Structural), referring to male family members stating that a female need not an education because marriage would make them “some other people’s family member,” was shocking. It is such a perfect example of the cultural oppression that occurs and how harmful it is.
Thank you for sharing.
Hi Yin! =)
I love the examples you listed of all the levels. I really like that you chose to highlight the fact that certain words are used to belittle women in the interpersonal level. Some people think that words aren’t a big deal, when they really are.
I also like that you mentioned the stigma around menstruation! I’ve never understood it. A lot of the time, pulling out pads/tampons in public can be considered shameful. It doesn’t make any sense.
The example you gave for the effects of cultural patriarchy was amazing, as well. Many people refuse to believe that women’s education is still sometimes a debated topic around the world because they are ethnocentric and only focus on what’s going on in the U.S. Women’s rights are still an issue today, and even small comments like that from family members are extremely harmful.
How about the WEIRD shame that occurs when buying pads/tampons? How does that shame manifest for different genders?
All this menstruation shame comes back to sexist ideas that a female is “weak” because she menstruates, and that women on their period are “crAzY”
Hi Yin Lin!
I really love how you broke each level of this week’s discussion down and the examples you provided were spot on. I also thought it was informative to see your example of how police handle abusive relations outside of the US, in China. It is really unfortunate that a woman wouldn’t be able to seek help when she is being abused in a situation like that. I also liked that you used personal examples from your own experience, even though it is unfair your family would make you feel like your education isn’t as important because you are a woman- and look at you! Enrolled in BMCC and will eventually get your degree 🙂
Hi Yin, I like the way you list everything, and that you always bring in your cultural perspective/knowledge. It’s interesting to see how it compares to the U.S. I think domestic violence is similarly dismissed here, especially if the man is in law enforcement. The rate of domestic violence is higher among cops and people in law enforcement.
Women are also more likely to “get away with” domestic violence, because women are viewed as “weaker” by society, and therefore incapable of that level of violence
Hello. You make a great job and I agree with you because us the young generation , we are one that can change the patriarchy because we know that bad thing have it and we can start teaching what really means patriarchy because people are confused about it. Before to read the article , I thought that we should to follow the Patriarchy because we need to honor our family , do the things that like in the past when they don’t have a voice more specific the women don’t have a voice to say “No”. We can create a school of what Patriarchy is and how people can help to get a better society without prejudices.
I love the way your organized the main point that matter while reading. There is literally levels to patriarchy to .There are some things in this reading that you mentioned that I didn’t even know about. Things like the law of marriage being more beneficial to husbands than wives in china and more places just not spoken about.
Hi Yin!
I really love how you listed everything! It made reading so much more enjoyable. The part of under cultural/structural where you mention menstrual product advertisement is so true. I never understood why they used blue liquid instead and it never sat right with me. Growing up I experienced something similar to you about the men in my family saying my education not mattering as much as long as I marry right.