where are we? What is paternity? Is it serious?

Reading Bar 's regular reading club "Gender Knots - Demolition of Patriarchal Illegal Buildings" #1 Reading Notes

What is a patriarchal system?

Patriarchy refers to a world in which power is held by men, and this symbolic world is underpinned by male dominance, male identity, and masculinity.

In terms of power, men hold more power than women. Whether in the workplace or in life, men have far greater discourse power than women. Second, men maintain such a system through self-identification, which includes masculinity. In boys, society expects them to be strong, not cry, and fight, but if the same characteristics are placed on women, they will be regarded as masculine and unfeminine. Finally, men tend to remove the life experiences, emotions and opinions of other genders, and arrange and plan with a male-centered thinking logic.

So should we blame men?

No, what we have to do is recognize that this is a system problem, both men and women. British modernist writer Virginia Woolf shows the difference and isolation between men and women gory in her work "My Room". Women often only recognize themselves through the perspective of men, and men also gain majesty and self-esteem because of their comparison with women. But men are not only the beneficiaries, but also the victims. Under the patriarchal system, boys are unreasonably required to be competitive and have the courage to swallow all their dissatisfaction and troubles, even if they are full of grievances.

What about women?

The fact is that the patriarchal system has "domesticated" women, and it is better to involve women in such a system than to have women rise up against it. Patriarchy, in the form of “concession”, allows women to shake patriarchy slightly (such as sexual assault issues, abortion issues, etc.), but it can never touch the deep structure of patriarchy (ideology, social customs, etc.). Patriarchy provides a field for women to resist, but at the same time oppresses women. The system is a system precisely because it can circulate and consolidate itself.

But there are also successful women aren't there?

Yes, but these successful women are often seen as women filled with masculinity, so they are criticized and even discriminated against. The most famous example is the gender discussion in the 2016 US presidential election. You can see how Hillary Clinton, as a "survivor" of the patriarchy, contradicts femininity and masculinity. Look for the search results for "Hillary Woman".

How could it be so serious! ?

Voices like this often appear in society: "I'm not oppressing women!", "How could there be inequality!", "We are all free and have choices!", "Women are also privileged. !”…

In reality, people are often reluctant to change the status quo, let alone those with vested interests. At the same time, society does not see gender issues as systemic issues, but as a single case. Because of this, indifference becomes the nutrient of the whole system. The patriarchy is able to surround our society with a rigid and soft posture that we cannot look directly at, but face him.

This is exactly where we are...

Ruthless business:

In the construction of the Bar Learning Community, welcome to create a friendly and decentralized learning community together! Join us to supervise each other and learn from each other!

In the recent book club, we will read the book "Gender Ties: Demolition of Patriarchal Illegal Buildings" . Those who haven't read the book are fine. Friends, welcome to join our DC group to discuss

Welcome to Yuba Discord and learn with us! (At 9:30 tonight, the second "Gender Knot" book club)