Gender Stereotyped Roles (Matriarchy vs Patriarchy)
Introduction
As simplified by Kelbert and Hossain (2014), patriarchy is the dominance of the male gender within a community, society or social setup whereby lineage and family inheritance is traced from the men’s descent. On the other hand, matriarchy is the exact opposite whereby the female gender of supremacy over the male gender, and that inheritance is traceable via a woman’s lineage. Although rare, matriarchy societies do exist, particularly in small organizations whereby power resides with the women. Historically, matriarchy was in existence in the past centuries whereby different cultures had several thoughts over female dominance.
Nonetheless, Goswami and Sen (2018) notice that patriarchal setups portray difference in belligerence from matriarchal structures. Hence, this paper aims at examining the difference in matriarchal and patriarchal societal settings. The paper then determines if a matriarchal society is less belligerent compared to patriarchal society.
Matriarchy and Patriarchy in Workplaces
Without a doubt, our current society has more men as CEOs than women. According to Carli and Eagly (2017), women are holding a meagre 22 per cent of executive positions, and that less than 5 per cent is on the CEO level. Despite this scanty representation, women make up more than 51 per cent of the entire workforce. This has been such a problem such that women are leaving school 30 per cent less confident than men because they fear of ever going through the ranks to the top leadership and CEO status. Worse, compared to men, women make an average of 0.79 on the dollar whereby they are more likely to be deemed as “unworthy of hire” (Divakar & Natarajan, 2018). Such abysmal statistics are plausible due to a narrow-minded standard for success in the workplace.
As a patriarchal society, men in workplaces have always felt challenged by women’s entrance into the workplace. Men were used to be seekers of economic independence through appropriate investments, farming, and land ownership. On the other hand, women were mainly confined at home whereby their works mainly involved domestic works. Women who would seek work were unmarried, who looked to build the wealth of their own and perhaps get a husband in future. However, things have changed to the extent that women are now the dominant sex at workplaces. This has come with its effects. For instance, according to Lare (2014), organizations with a female leader usually characterize improved performance in terms of CSR (corporate social responsibility).
Other than improved social responsibility at workplaces, matriarchal leadership has proven to improve both equality and equity amongst the employees. That is, with female leadership, hierarchical systems are usually faded off, but gradually. A sense of equity and responsibility is a norm such that all sexes are viewed as equals and the disabled are treated fairly. The outcomes of such viewpoints have resulted in a company’s improved performance. Conversely, a patriarchal workplace lacks in appreciating women’s contribution to an organization. Blatant evidence is the gender stereotyping in terms of assigning of roles. Women tend to be assigned “weak” roles whereby tasks involving decision-making are limited to men (Goswami & Sen, 2018). Moreover, men are assigned roles with the opportunity to influence power.
Matriarchy vs Patriarchy in Family Setups
No doubt, family setups have changed completely when compared to four or five decades ago. Women are no longer expected to settle for housewifery. Just like men, women can now comfortably pursue a career of her choice while balancing the requirements of a mother and a wife. Men, too, have evolved their roles such that some of them are embracing the role of a stay-at-home dad. Therefore, it is safe to say that patriarchy and matriarchy in family settings have tremendously progressed to ensure fairness. Unlike in workplaces, the level of equality and equity between a man and a woman has improved; however, this is yet to be evidenced in other societies, like in the Middle East nations (Kelbert & Hossain, 2014).
Unlike the past, where husbands would dominate their wives, domestic violence has been on the decline. This is due to the implementation of laws such as the Violence Against Women Act, which has ensured safety for wives and young girls from vicious men. Such acts and various other factors have contributed to reduced patriarchal dominance in families. Thus, with increased matriarchal ascendancy in families, it is without a doubt that matriarchy is less belligerent compared to patriarchal leadership in a family setup.
The revolution from patriarchal to matriarchal fairness in families has been enhanced by feminism, which received some serious recognition from the 1970s onwards. It was not until the 70s that women were allowed to use their maiden names without being obligated into taking their husbands’ last names. This was the beginning of the matriarchal revolution. Again, an argument against a patriarchal society can be pointed to the times before the 1970s. For instance, when was the last World War?
Well, World War II ended in 1945, and ever since, the world has not witnessed some seriously damaging wars. Perhaps, the influence can be placed on the few women who remained after the war, when most men had been involved in wars. It is no surprise that after female involvement in world politics (Margaret Thatcher and Angela Merkel), the world has become a safe, better place. Of course, such matriarchal leadership is attributed to have influenced wives and single, unmarried women to empower themselves. As a result, society has evolved into a peaceful place to live.
Should Roles Change?
It is impossible to argue against the reversed roles taking place in our current society. However, this is demonstrated in certain parts of the world. Some cultures still practice strong patriarchal supremacy. The question involving reserved roles is subjective, whereby different scholars have different opinions. There are situations and occasions where matriarchal dominance has been disadvantageous while patriarchal setups have also shown some signs of positive effects. Therefore, although patriarchy is gradually losing its dominance, not everyone supports the changes. Once again, this depends on a scholar’s viewpoints.
Nonetheless, Carli and Eagly (2017) illustrate that society can tremendously benefit from a matriarchal system. The argument is that patriarchy has been plagued with violence, which is male-dominated. The explanation for men’s love for violence is based on their nature rather than nurture. Even though society is still patriarchal, women’s influence is all over the place, from families to workplaces, and even in sports.
Although feministic movements are still fighting for women’s equal rights, and a possible matriarchal dominance, today’s society is still a patriarchy. However, male dominance has lessened in recent decades. This has resulted in a rather peaceful era compared to previous centuries where wars and violence were like a norm. Therefore, with a lessened patriarchal dominance, it is safe to argue that a matriarchal society is less belligerent. However, matriarchal has also influenced some other forms of societal imbalance, some of which can be categorized as violent. For instance, gender favouritism in workplaces has forced organisations to consider female dominance whereby some women are promoted into higher positions to guarantee equal opportunities but not on merit. As a result, an unfair treatment on male counterparts goes unnoticed. As noted by Tan (2017), this has brought about an increase in violence against men, most of whom are victims of laws and acts to protect women.
Conclusion
On whether matriarchy is less violent than patriarchy, the argument is explainable by examining history in the past centuries compared to today’s modern world. Due to laws such as the Violence Against Women Act, domestic violence has not only reduced, but the world has witnessed men embracing equal treatment of female sex. This shows reduced violence against women and thus a less belligerent society. At the same time, evidence-based in today’s society shows that matriarchy can be less violent than patriarchy. The reason for this is based on lack of wars, whereby the world has not experienced any war since the end of World War II in 1945.
Nonetheless, although a gender favouring community is okay and acceptable, gender centrism is not okay. That is, although patriarchy is more violent, it would be a mistake to replace it with matriarchy. This is because some women can still influence violence. Violence is more of human nature rather a sex issue; thereby, belligerence is not reliant on either matriarchy or patriarchy.
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References
Carli, L., & Eagly, A. (2017). Gender, Hierarchy, and Leadership: An Introduction. Journal Of Social Issues, 57(4), 629–636. DOI: 10.1111/0022–4537.00232
Divakar, A., & Natarajan, V. (2018). Understanding Patriarchy through Characterization of Feminine Features in Films: A Semiotic Analysis of Sairat and Kabali. Research Journal Of Humanities And Social Sciences, 9(1), 61. DOI: 10.5958/2321–5828.2018.00011.6
Goswami, P., & Sen, S. (2018). Who Are the Victims of Gender Discrimination in the Choice of Stream of Education: Boys or Girls? A Study on Undergraduate Bengali Students of West Bengal, India. SSRN Electronic Journal, 33(4), 97–102. DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.985272
Kelbert, A., & Hossain, N. (2014). Poor Man’s Patriarchy: Gender Roles and Global Crises. IDS Bulletin, 45(1), 20–28. DOI: 10.1111/1759–5436.12064
Lare, D. (2014). Debunking Patriarchal Legacy In African Traditional Setting: A Reading Of Efo Kodjo Mawugbe’s In The Chest Of A Woman. Littera Aperta. International Journal Of Literary And Cultural Studies, 2(2), 103. DOI: 10.21071/ltap.v2i2.10826
Tan, C. (2017). Rebellious women in men’s dystopia: Katniss and Furiosa. Pamukkale University Journal Of Social Sciences Institute, 2017(26), 32–46. DOI: 10.5505/pausbed.2017.22599
