Patriarchy in the 21st century

When a person says “Patriarchy” we tend to think of male dominance. This idea that men rule the word and women are just there to stand by them and do what they say. Before there were women's rights, women were seen as property to their husbands and they had total dependency on them. This was called coverture and it was the law in the 1900’s, “The status of a married woman considered as under the protection and authority of her husband”(dictionary). However in 21st century America things have come a long way for women than how they used to be. Women can vote, own property, write wills, make a higher income than men, all things that they could not do in the 19th century. If that dates too far back, it is still safe to say that things have come a long way in as little as 50 years. In Bell Hooks essay, Understanding Patriarchy, many of her ideas are outdated and refer back to a time when men had more control over women. As we move toward a future with more equal rights for everyone, women are starting to get the upper hand on men in all aspects.

Thinking back to a time when men ruled the workplace and women were still stay at home moms patriarchy still had a strong hold on America. Women were more likely to be on welfare than men, and had a harder time making ends meet. In an essay written by Johnnie Tilmon, “welfare is a Women’s issue” She describes the struggle of being a woman on welfare in 1972 and that nothing will change until women liberate.

“Because up until now we’ve been raised to expect to work, all our lives, for nothing. Because we are the worst educated, the least-skilled, and the lowest-paid people there are. Because we have to be almost totally responsible for our children. Because we are regarded by everybody as ...

... middle of paper ...

...atriarchy 50+ years ago it would be defined as, “a form of social organization in which the father is the supreme authority in the family, clan, or tribe and descent is reckoned in the male line, with the children belonging to the father's clan or tribe.”(dictionary) A more modern definition of that, that should be used when talking about patriarchy in 21st century America is, “a society, community, or country, based on this social organization”(dictionary). Though we hate to think of ourselves as a patriarchal society because in most cases it is viewed as a bad thing, the fact of the matter is, that we are. If we can expel the negative aspects of patriarchy we can have an improved social structure.

Works Cited

http://finallyfeminism101.wordpress.com/2007/03/21/faq-isnt-the-patriarchy-just-some-conspiracy-theory-that-blames-all-men-even-decent-men-for-womens-woes/