For most of my life, my family was fortunate enough to be able to afford to send me to a private school. I learned many valuable lessons while there about treating others with respect and not to judge people on gender, social status, or background. My classmates and I learned that all people deserve to be treated the same. Once I went to high school, many things changed as I found not all people were taught the same valuable lessons that I was. I quickly noticed that the girls in high school get treated like pieces of meat, are often judged solely on what they are wearing, or what boy has taken an interest in them. While young girls are taught that covering up their shoulders is more important than getting their education, boys are not given the same restrictions on dress code. The Patriarchy has plagued our society in such a way that we can see 14 and 15-year-old girls as sex objects. Gerda Lerner argues that the patriarchal nature of our society goes back to ancient Mesopotamia.
Lerner states, “What I am attempting to do in my book is to trace, by means of historical evidence, the development of leading ideas, symbols, and metaphors by with the patriarchal gender relations were incorporated into Western civilization.” I believe this quote is very relevant to this entire book. Lerner really dives into the cause of why women are so oppressed in our society today. In this book, Lerner believes that it all started in ancient Mesopotamia. After reading this book I would have to say that I agree. Women once were very prevalent in the societies of the past. However, as time went on, women were pushed to the back of the pack. Women were no longer seen as figures to be respected, but as mere objects.
Some believe that the Patriarchal nature of our culture stemmed from our evolutionary Biology. She also states that some believe “male dominance is universal and natural”. It is our survival instinct to pass on desirable genes on to the following generations. We notice that males seem to be more excited about female beauty then females being excited about male beauty. This is where the belief that men cannot control their feelings towards women. However, both men and women put on a show to attract a mate. According to psychologists, men will most likely approach a woman based on the tightness of her clothes, the amount of flesh exposed, and the erotic nature of their dancing. The stigma that “women are only good for their looks” is a matter of simple biology. Human evolution is driven by sexual selection just as much as by natural selection. Quite honestly, that is simply not true. Our government is predominantly male, if they cannot control their feelings; why are they in leadership? If they can control themselves in life or death decisions, they can control their feelings towards women.
Men and women put very strict standards on what women should be like. However, most of these standards conflict with one another and can get very confusing. For example, people say “a woman should put effort into her appearance and should wear make-up to hide any blemishes”. However, if a woman wears too much make-up, people then say she’s “easy” and “probably doesn’t even know what she looks like under all of that”. We never once think about how the woman actually feels; about how she feels about make-up and what she feels is right for her body. The constant double standards are exhausting. That’s why women of today are fighting for a change and want to be free of the constant judgement. However, when they do so, they get labeled “extra” or “femanazi”. The Patriarchy has planted so deep in our minds that a woman must be and can only be beautiful, but we refuse to listen. Women are craving equality and will not stop until they get it.
While some believe that the days of discrimination based on race, weight, or gender are solely in the past, others will argue that these prejudices are a big problem that many Americans face every day. Many employers will hire on the bases of attractiveness because they believe it will help sell their product. Not only do we see these sorts of discriminations in stores, we can also see them in sports careers. Women gymnast are constantly slandered for their unwomanly like bodies and physics. These women are seriously trained athletes. Their last concern should be on how pleasing they look to the public eye. However, they are getting shamed because they don’t look like the “perfect woman”. These women dedicated their lives to pursuing this career just to be reduced to what every other woman is reduced to, a piece of eye candy. No matter what you do, you will always be judged by the never-ending cycle of oppression.
Lerner argues that men’s dominance and control of women has, in part, provided the earliest model of slavery. Women were not people, but objects. Much like later forms of slavery, they had no rights and were property of someone else. While some might think that’s extreme, I believe this is entirely true. Being a slave is exactly what women are to this day. Slaves to culture, media, and the patriarchy. There is no doubt that a women’s role in society has indeed gotten better, however, it is less than ideal. Women are constantly being told that they are second to men. Women are oppressed in so many ways in today’s culture, we cannot settle for just being “better than the past.” Women today are still being oppressed and we should settle just because we are not slaves? No, there has to be something more than that. Women around the globe are fighting for themselves, and men fighting for equality as well, but what has that accomplished?
We are still nowhere near where we need to be. The Patriarchal nature of our society has plagued us for far too long. Men and women alike are fighting every day for freedom from this mindset. You don’t need to be a certain way to have your opinion matter. Every voice deserves the chance to speak and be heard.