Chapter 1: Introduction

1.0: Introduction

All throughout humanity, patriarchy has held the status quo of supremacy over the female

gender. It has always been men who have been in charge of families, corporations, government

and other areas of society.

Despite the advent of Feminism, we are still controlled by patriarchy and the men are fighting

back to take stronghold of what was once their position or status in society.

Men do not like it when their status quo is threatened. They want to be comfortable in their own

comfort zone as being the one on top of everything. (Fradet,2018).

Yes, the glass ceiling has been broken for some areas such as having female CEOs in certain

companies but there is still the undercurrent of men playing the field. Women may not be aware

of the glass ceiling in companies until they hit it. (Lewis, 2019). We are not aware of this most of

the time because people think women rule today. Authoritarianism is the new leadership around

the world with the rise of President Duterte, Vladimir Putin and ofcourse, Donald Trump who

have come to lead nations to the detriment of nations with the misogynistic ways they handle

power. These leaders have to rely on repressing their constituents to the point of corruption.

(Snyder, 2017).

These types of leadership are examples which their people have once again recognized as a

calling to bring back the good old days when barbarianism was rampant and women were

considered a little more than cattle to be quieted down with male sexuality as a means of brute
force to keep them down. In national discourse, we still have images depicting men as the

breadwinner and women relegated to the role of domesticity. (Bacchetta, 2002). If there ever has

been the norm to have women in power, we are back to square one with these kind of leaders in

society.

This research paper aims to prove that men are in power once again and that people should

rethink, does authoritarian leadership really work, is it the answer to the world’s ills? Is

patriarchy the answer to our problems? Is patriarchy as a status quo really going to help us

considering the mire we are all in. Or has patriarchy never been abolished at all and surges on as

vital as the medieval ages when women were relegated to the soft side of life, such as caring for

their babies leaving them domesticated and unrealistic to be in a board room of corporate culture

where men are still predominant. Haven’t we proven that women are so much more skilled and

very good in handling positions of power? The Huffington Post reported that only 23 were CEOs

of Fortune 500 companies. (Business News Daily).

1.1: Research and Objectives

Patriarchy is alive and well in society. What we do not know is how stealthy it has pervaded

society to the point wherein we do not know of its existence. We are so used to it that we believe

it no longer exists in this day and age.

With the use of research we shall sift through the data we can accumulate and analyze what we

have in order to prove that patriarchy is a privilege given to men alone as a status to be proud of.

The following are the objectives of the research questions:

1) To prove that patriarchy still exists in our society.

2) To wonder how we allowed this to happen despite the fight of feminism.

 3) How to eradicate the spoils of patriarchy in our society to save the women from the

consequence of their disparity.

4) How do we move on into the future and make certain we are not exploited by the

patriarchal status we encounter everyday of our lives.

1.1.1: Definition of Terms

There are some words we need to define before we go and delve deeper into the matter of

patriarchy as the leading status in society. These words would unlock the areas where patriarchy

has inflicted so much damage to women and to the world in general.

Patriarchy is the unjust system whereby women are subjugated and discriminated upon by men

in power. Feminists did not coin the term but was first encountered in the medieval ages as a

position of power. Today, it holds a very political connotation with the rise of Feminist politics

who have come to raise the flag for the betterment of women. (Facia, 2013). Men are given

special privileges where women are not. (Napikoski, 2019).

Feminism is an advocacy. It advocates the equality of women and men in all aspects of society.

(Caprino,2017). Equality between men and women is the main belief of Feminists. (Rosie). We

think that feminism has already changed things for the better but in all truth there are as much

people who advocate it as much as those who want things to go back to the way things were.

Thus, feminism is in a quagmire as to whether it has happened already. Some people even reject

feminism believing it hasn’t been achieved. (Scharff, 2019).

We are at an age when we choose to believe it is already at hand, the rise of women to power.

But statistics say otherwise. These people who are still against it are stealthy and just as cunning
as their counterparts being hidden from view. But we can be aware of this and try to persuade the

ill effects of patriarchy which lurks in the dark like a disintegrating corpse.

All in all this paper is defined as an assumption that patriarchy still exists despite the actions of

Feminists and sympathizers to eradicate the discrimination against women in the workplace, in

the seats of government and, most frightening of all, in the domestic areas where domestic

violence is rampant and hidden from view.

1.2: Significance of the Study

It is significant to study patriarchy in the sense of the damage it has inflicted on our society by

being a status of being on top of things because we still live it every day of our lives. In fact there

are non-STEM disciplines that study feminism in higher eduction which makes them more

reflective of the women’s movement. (Guest, 2016).

The side snicker of men when women voice out their opinions in the board room, being belittled

at home because they are treated less than unpaid helpers who care for their husbands, the voice

unheard in the seats of government, the female journalist imprisoned for being reasonably angry

at an autocratic president in an age of male authoritarianism.

The significance lies not only in wondering how we could have overlooked every nook and

cranny of our lives.

Men, unlike women are structurally different than women who gestate children in their bodies,

thus leaving men with more energy to have a desire to impregnate other women while their

wives are busy tending to their children and resting after childbirth. (Buckner, 2018). This

energy that men have been the tendency for men to be promiscuous and unfaithful leaving

women to be taken advantage of.

Do we have a dark spot when it comes to patriarchy and relent when the going gets tough. Think

of mother earth as a woman being pillaged by the top honchos of companies whose factories

spew dark matter to the atmosphere, spilling toxic, waste chemicals to our rivers, cutting down

much needed trees consequently denuding our forests causing floods. These are men who do not

want anything more but profit and could care less for the future generations who have to deal

with the damage they have done. These are all decisions of men who hold the key to our world.

This is patriarchy and we have placed them on top status. Why did we allow this to happen?

Mother nature relates women to nature by ecofeminists. (Norgaard, 2000). Ecofeminism is a

theory that the fight for women’s cause can be related as a process to the natural process thus, we

are able to fight domination in every aspect, especially patriarchy, as well.

1.3: Limitations of the Study

This study is limited by fear. Fear that we may be heard and struck down. There are still much

data and statistics to be found but they are covered by autocratic leaders who make certain the

footprints are being washed away by red tape, documents erased. How else could these

companies have thrived despite laws which have banned toxic materials in the atmosphere.

Closer to home, how could domestic violence can still exist by numbers exceeding our

imagination. Because they are covered up and the women whisper in the dark. They do not come

up to talk. Women are silenced by patriarchy. Men know how to silence women. By instilling

fear in them. Fear is the worst limitation we have to admit to. Clearly, to talk may entail torture

or even death.

To deliver this paper is tantamount to treason and the subject matter is too big to fit into this

paper. Whatever data this paper can provide only skims the surface. To delve deeper is to go into
the boardroom of the heads of companies, into the seats of government who pass laws they

cannot, will not follow. It takes us into the dark corridors of state and homes where the women

are hiding.

This paper is limited by the lack of data because people fear to talk that it still exists. Patriarchy

is alive pervading every area of society.

1.4: Organization of Research

This paper is organized by having an introduction leading to a literature review. In the literature

review are products of research followed by clear analysis of these research. Finally, there is the

conclusion and recommendations on how the paper could have been better done.

2.0: Literature Review

2.1 Introduction

Patriarchy is a menace to society. According to Terry Real, a well-known lecturer on Gender

roles there are three rings of passivity we all contend with in terms of patriarchy.

 The Great Divide- here women and men are divided wherein there are the men on one

side and the women on the other.

 The Dance of Contempt- here women and men are divided and there is a dance wherein

men are at the top of this dance while the women are degraded to be below this

relationship.

 Core Collusion- here the perpetrator is man and the woman, perpetrated, protects the

perpetrator even at the expense of being damaged to the core. There is an unspoken dance
 of silence between them, It is as if women were held hostage and somehow,

psychologically, they have to protect and defend their man no matter what.

We are now introduced to what happens at the core of what between man and woman.

Patriarchy involves a dance dividing man and woman, who is on top and who is at the bottom

and how this system is instilled in every man/woman relationship. Because there is fear.

2.2: Patriarchal Theory

Patriarchy is the selling of nature as a commodity because we live in world of men whose

system is organizational, controlling and unemotional. (Kashtan, 2017). Our lives are

revolved around men and women call them superiors when in actual fact, this collusion to

their superiority is an exploitation of their selves, society and nature in general.

The #metoomovement was a watershed of information on women who have been sexually

assaulted by men in power from the media to the Supreme Justice to the president of the

United States. (Hanisch, 2018).

No longer are we in awe of Miss America, the pageant that is the meat grinder of the United

States. Women all over the world are fed up with whistlecalling in the streets, wearing

articles of clothing to promote attractiveness at the expense of comfort just to please men.

Clothing such as girdles and high heels are now considered debilitating and a way of bowing

down to the requirements of patriarchy.

2.2.1: The #metoomovement

What does it mean to be in the hashtag movement against men. It takes courage and guts to

come out and re-depict what she had gone through, in front of all the people. It means going
through it again and again until her voice is heard among voices of women who have gone

through the same experience in various ways just to get through the struggle called life. It is

lucky for some to have survived sexual assault. Some never survive it and go through

psychological trauma which pervades their lives everyday. Some even end their lives to stop

the pain.

Harvey Weinstein, Brett Kavanaugh, Donald Trump are men of power who have exploited

the women in the industry and way back in time when they were still just boys playing

around with women. But the past has come to haunt them as they go through all smiles in

front of media to prove that they can grin, bear it and most of all for the sake of maintaining

power. They used women as pawns in their own private game of cat and mouse, like a

hunting party, predators hunting for women to satisfy their lust for power over women. And

the women beside them, their wives, grin and bear it too, for the sake of power which they

also share and their children. Children are included in this collusion for power. They are

silenced and they learn to become just like their fathers and mothers. They ingratiate the

masses of people, deceive them with their shiny smiles and deceitful show of humility. It is a

black day when the #metoomovement marched down the streets to pull down these men of

power who will be able to rise up again in history because we let them.

2.2.2: Patriarchy Around the World

It is not only men of prominence who are the perpetrators in this patriarchal system. In other

countries there are women who are raped in the streets, forced into marriages at a very young

age, anatomically removed of their sexual organs, child trafficking, prostituted women,

forced into abortions, women who commit suicide due to psychological trauma caused by
men, and the problems caused by perceived unattractiveness by men who call the shots on

who is and is not attractive.

In India, there is still the practice of child marriages caused by poverty and ignorance though

it is illegal. (Strochlic). It is still the most rampant practice being done compared to other

countries. It is sad what these girls have to go through being unable to comprehend the full

consequence of being pregnant at a young age, not having the chance to have an education

and being part of her husband’s plans for her which tantamount to nothing other than for her

to become a slave to his whims.

Prostituted women are somehow given legality to keep them safe which is a contradiction of

sorts because they are made to be sex workers and the lure of such a job becomes strong

when legalized. The money comes in and they are made to feel shameless with their jobs. A

woman from Nevada claims that legalizing sex workers could only lead to further sex

trafficking. (Fonrouge, 2019). This is true in all countries of the world. It would only lead

more women to find that it is lucrative to sell their bodies which is redefining an old term

into a new type of problem. There should be counselling for sex workers who are willing to

give up their jobs and transition to other jobs that are safer and less exploitative of their

bodies.

Abortion is another issue to contend with. Why should a woman be the sole responsible party

in an act of mistake? The man should be either thrown to jail and the child, whom the mother

has already decided to never see the light of day could reconsider. There are other ways of

assuaging the pain of an unwanted pregnancy. The psychic pain would remain for the rest of

her life therefore alternatives to abortion may be considered. Adoption by people who would

care for the child is a better idea, foster care, anything to keep the child from being killed.
Abortion in itself is a painful and dangerous procedure. Why go through it at all? Own your

child, keep the child and shun the man who has caused this pain of having to make this kind

of decision. As it is, the mother has three options in having an unplanned pregnancy:

abortion, parenting and adoption. (Pregnancy Options Counselling).

2.3: Consequences of Patriarchy

All of these are issues that are aligned with the menace of patriarchy. We have to be educated

in knowing how a man can harm a woman because she may not be aware of it and ignorance

is not bliss, it is harmful to think this way, terribly old fashioned and exploitative.

2.4: Research Gap

This is a generic form of research. It comes from research done through the internet and not

from company sources which may further delineate what is going on in the boardroom. Why

are there more men in companies or as CEOs rather than women. This detail is not found in

this research. We can only surmise from the statistics that there are fewer women in

leadership roles than men.

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

3.0: Introduction

In this paper, it will attempt to wield the damaging effects of patriarchy upon society itself

through research and interviews we are able to do at hand. The paper is constricted within the

confines of research data and the answers from interviews which will be conducted from the

streets of a city that shall not be named for reasons of confidentiality.

3.1: Research Design

The design of the research is descriptive and flows like a narrative much like a woman would

tell a story. There is a belief that in this way, we do not condone the controlling organized

and technical manner by which men have come to depict anything, unless they are by nature

creative and free flowing like women themselves.

3.2: Sampling

3.2.1 Sampling Frame

Three persons have been chosen at random in the streets of a city which shall not be named

in order to depict more randomness and confidentiality agreed upon. The city is small and

tight. It was easy to find eager participants for interview.

3.2.2 Sampling Size

Due to time constraint and the need for compression in this paper, only three respondents

were chosen to be interviewed.

3.2.3: Sampling Method

The smapling method used in this paper was to choose persons on the streets at random to

assure there would be a variation in sampling.

3.2.4: Research Instrument

Qualitative research method was used for this research paper because of lack of numerical

data in the field of patriarchal status quo as a menace to women and society. Also, it is a way

of gathering people’s views in a narrative way.

3.2.5 Interviews
A total of three questions were prepared for this interview session. Each question is

tantamount to raise the objective of knowing if patriarchy as a status quo is deemed non-

progressive in this day and age. Have we regressed? Or have we moved on?

Chapter 4: Result and Analysis

4.0: Introduction

This

2.3 Conclusion

Patriarchy is a menace to society.

We can never get enough of how men have been manipulative of women, society and the

world in general. Some of them are not even aware what they are doing is wrong because

they are afraid of going out of their comfort zones, they have to be a man, meaning

competitive and strong in order to thrive in this world. They do not know that to be emotional

and vulnerable at times can be a sign of strength. Their grip on life is an effect of the tribal

sense that they have to be like their brothers and fathers, controlling, manipulative and

without remorse. They do not cry and they still have to learn how to cry.

When 9/11 happened, men who were strong and muscular started crying and we respect that,

we even admire that in that most unholy hour of violence. They were brothers of their true

nature then. We can emulate the strength of those men at that time. We have to let things go
from now on because men and women need each other in a symbiotic relationship that is

caring and nurturing from the core of intimacy to the corridors of power.

3.0 Recommendation

I would recommend this paper to open up more on situations when men lost their sense of

control and were able to overcome their masculine stereotype to find themselves somewhere

else. For every woman who is tired of carrying the load of caring for her man is a man who is

tired of not being able to care. There will always be a time when they will get tired, when

they see the bigger picture of who they really are inside.

I recommend that there be more positive depictions of men in this paper enough for other

men to emulate. There are men out there who are in touch with their feminine side, some of

them are afraid to show it, some of them keep their secrets to certain women they trust,

others are just plain open-minded and are the harbingers of hope.

Men could start to stop pretending that women are not skilled enough, not strong enough, not

experienced enough and still be caring. Women, on the other hand, can show men the way

home to their hearts. Time has passed and with the #metoomovement, feminism is having its

time again. It will keep repeating in history because for as long as patriarchy has its grip on

society, there will be women who will stand up for their rights.

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