Patriarchal Ideology Research Articles

Women as Subalterns: An Analysis of Khaled Hosseini's Novel The Kite Runner

This research article reports how Hosseini's novel The Kite Runner depicted subaltern women characters and their consciousness regarding the injustices imposed on them. There have been a limited number of female characters in the novel, albeit they have been enough to explore the ground reality of their contemporary time. This study utilized subaltern theories, particularly those developed by Ranajit Guha and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, to explore the depiction and consciousness of subaltern women characters in the novel. The findings of this article reveal that the majority of the women characters were victimized and ignored in society because of their socio-cultural stereotypes and national and international intervention in their lives. As a result, they were deprived of the opportunity to follow their passions and make their own decisions, not only in their society but also within their families. This study further shows how social, cultural, and religious milieus became responsible for making them invisible and unheard in their own society. In addition, this study sheds light on how patriarchal ideology became an indispensable component of women's marginalization by restricting their voices, freedom, and social mobility. However, the majority of the female characters developed their consciousness about injustices against them and resisted such injustices by breaching long-established social and religious norms and values in their society. In a broader sense, this study will have important significance in unfolding subaltern women's ground reality in further study.

The Forgotten History of Our Times: Revisiting Utpal Dutt's Titu Mir in Contemporary India

This paper is an exploration of the most recent revival of Utpal Dutt's play Titu Mir in 2019 by the ensemble group Theatre Formation Paribartak in India. Islamic religious reformer Titu Mir led a peasant rebellion from 1827 to 1831 in the Barasat region of Bengal and the play focuses on a narrative of revolutionary resistance to colonialism. Titu Mir becomes an articulation of political theatre against the Hindu right-wing agenda of expunging Muslim national heroes from Indian history. This essay seeks Titu Mir's relevance as a site and theory of materializing historical contradictions, and as part of a ‘gestic’ feminist criticism of theatre. The essay attempts to understand how critique of patriarchal ideology is enmeshed in critique of colonialism in Titu Mir, especially in those moments where the play addresses complexities of political violence, interracial romance, martyrdom, alienation in the colony and deep-rooted misogyny in the project of colonialism.

Patriarchal Ideology: A Feminist Study in Pakistani Short Stories Fiction

This paper intends to examine the position of women during the patriarchal structure to become strong enough for honorable survival. We apply Gerda Lerner's creation of Patriarchy (1989) in the present study. Patriarchy provokes Women voiceless through various assumptions and ideologies. The study has been conducted through textual analysis of Pakistani Short stories while focusing on different customs and events represented by Pakistani feminists to highlight the patriarchal structures. It shows that women have been treated as objects without caring for their desires. Their disrespect for patriarchal notions may deprive them of their existence as human beings. It also pinpoints that women are oppressed, and subjugated, through patriarchal structures. We discussed female characters in the Pakistani Short story writers' works Shahrazad's Golden Leopard and Masroor's The Monkey Wound. Any struggle to get liberation from oppression results in sexist violence.

Musha mukadzi: An African women’s religio-cultural resilience toolkit to endure pandemics

Life among most African families and communities revolves around women. In both African religion and culture, women’s lives oscillate between two opposite extremes of being at the centre and periphery at the same time. Women are both the healers and the often wounded by the system that respects them when there are problems and displaces them whenever there are opportunities. Their central role is expressed by a Shona proverb musha mukadzi (the home is a woman). This proverb expresses how women endure the pain of both religion and culture to create a decent society. Women also endure the pain of pandemics such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and COVID-19 and at times succumb to the same while taking care of some family members who would have fallen victim to the epidemic. Countless married women have been made susceptible to HIV and AIDS as they try to live according to the African cultural dictates of mothering and/or motherhood. Other women and girls also contract the disease because of how religion and culture exert them to some unbearable circumstances. For example, women and girls nurse their ill relatives without protective equipment and clothing. At times they are abused by men because of some cultural beliefs that unprotected sex is a remedy for HIV and AIDS. In addition, most women and girls were also victims of COVID-19 while serving their family members. In doing all the good work to serve families, women are driven by the proverb musha mukadzi. Using desk research methodology, this paper argues that musha mukadzi is both a toolkit for women’s resilience to endure pandemics and at the same time a subtly oppressive statement often used to manipulate and abuse women to stand in places that are too difficult for their capabilities.Contribution: African women bear the brunt of pandemic burdens such as HIV, AIDS and COVID-19. Sometimes they become susceptible to the same while taking care of their family members affected by pandemics in the name of fulfilling the Shona proverb, musha mukadzi. The topic has contributed to the scope of the journal as it advocates to inculcate a peaceful society. The article also challenges African societies not to use musha mukadzi to ill-treat women as objects of African religio-cultural patriarchal ideology.

Subversion of Patriarchal Ideology and Alternate Sexuality: A Gendered Anatomization of Vijaydan Detha's “New Life”

This paper explores the intersection of sexuality, gender, and folk culture in the context of Vijaydan Detha's short story “Dohari Zindagi” translated as “New Life”. The paper delves into the ongoing debate between essentialism and social constructivism in understanding sexuality, highlighting the challenges of defining sexuality across different cultures and times. It discusses how Detha's storytelling draws from Rajasthan’s native culture and combines it with contemporary socio-political themes, promoting a more democratic and inclusive mindset through narratives of dissensus and resistance. It argues that Detha's work blurs the lines between traditional folklore and modern storytelling, emphasizing the relevance of these themes across time. Furthermore, the paper references Judith Butler to provide theoretical frameworks for understanding the fluidity and performance of gender and sexuality. It also explores how Detha's narratives challenge normative structures and open up possibilities for reshaping gender identity and subjectivity. It examines Vijaydan Detha's storytelling as a means to subvert patriarchal ideologies, challenge gender norms, and explore alternate sexualities within the context of Indian folk culture. Detha's work is seen as a bridge between traditional folklore and contemporary socio-political discourse, shedding light on the complexities of gender and sexuality in society.

Cultural violence: feminist power analysis on Ronggeng performing art

ABSTRACT Ronggeng performing art is preserved as one of Indonesian cultural heritages. However, this art is negatively stigmatized and associated with liquor, gambling, and prostitution. Through the novel Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk, Ahmad Tohari highlighted that several practices in this art leave women vulnerable to violence and intensify the negative stigma toward this art. This paper highlights that the cultural shifts during the colonial era are main reason Ronggeng performing arts were associated with drinking, gambling, and prostitution. Interviews with five Ronggeng dancers highlighted that although the violence described by Ahmad Tohari does not occur today; however, the dancers often get abused both verbally and sexually during performances. Employing the feminist theory of power, this paper emphasizes that cultural violence often occurs at the micro and meso levels. At the micro level, the dancers are powerless to control the income and behavior of the audience. The dancers also often experience psychological violence due to verbal abuse by society against them. At the meso-level, this study finds that parents, especially in rural areas, perceive education as unimportant for girls due to patriarchal ideology in the prevailing culture, making women structurally dependent on men and ultimately placing them in vulnerable positions.

Bureaucratizing like a girl: Objectivity and the reinforcement of patriarchy at an Israeli government committee

AbstractWhat does it mean for women bureaucrats to work “objectively?” How does the attempt to work objectively affect the hierarchal structure and the preservation of women in lower positions, two interrelated key elements of patriarchal ideology? The bureaucratic staff of the Israeli Sal Committee offers a unique case study to examine this question. Aware of the life‐and‐death implications of committee decisions, this all‐women staff attempt to work “objectively,” which they interpret as compiling and presenting data that carries no marks of their positions. To fulfill this ideal, staffers inhibited themselves from speaking in committee discussions. Consequently, they were treated as “good bureaucrats” but also as “women bureaucrats” and their work remained mainly unacknowledged. Aspiring for non‐positional objectivity thus contributed to preserving their lower positioning and reaffirming their bureaucracy's hierarchal structure. But this disposition also forged an a‐hierarchal work style within the staff, presenting a feminist alternative to mainstream bureaucracy. This ethnography suggests that an ethics of objectivity may carry more diverse possibilities than is commonly hypothesized in feminist critiques of objectivity.

Sexuality in Usada Rukmini Tatwa Lontar in Balinese Society

This study aims to understand the structure, content, and aspects of sexuality based on patriarchal ideology in Lontar Usada Rukmini Tatwa, considered as a cultural text. Thus, to pursue the aim of this study, critical discourse analysis was applied to analyze the text since this analysis technique could deconstruct, interpret, and read cultural texts. The lontar's contents then were analyzed through the following steps, namely conceptualization, conceptualization results, proof, and objectivation. The results of the analysis showed that the structure of the lontar consists of the opening, introduction, content, and the space and time of writing. The results also revealed that the lontar contains recipes for women's beauty and health, husband's courage, sperm health maintenance, and ways to have children for married couples. The contents of the lontars are legitimized religiously and magically so that people believe more in their efficacy. And, it is also found that the contents of this lontar are dominated by erotic and reproductive sexuality discourses based on patriarchal ideology associated with Hinduism. This is symbolized through the phallus as a medium to control women. In conclusion, Lontar Usada Rukmini Tatwa can not only be referred to as an erotic and reproductive sexuality cultural text, but also an ideological cultural text based on Hinduism.

Why Does Domestic Violence Against Women Still Happen in Rural Areas of China? A Systemic Review of Previous Studies on Cultural Factors

A great deal of attention has long been paid to domestic violence against women owing to its long-lasting harm, whether physical or psychological, on the victim. The factors associated with domestic violence have been discussed by previous research. Among them, the impact of traditional culture is an indispensable part that can't be neglected. The pertinence has been proved by past studies, however, the comprehensive interpretation of the association between domestic violence and gender culture hasn't been stated. This study investigates the relationship between traditional gender culture and domestic violence against women in China. And the exact cultural influence on family violence is presented. The journal articles on intimate partner violence (IPV) and domestic violence over a period of 24 years covering 1998-2022 were systematically reviewed in this article. And the cultural factors mentioned in the previous articles were carefully analyzed. Our analysis shows a strong relationship between culture and family violence against women. We conclude that traditional culture has somehow promoted the occurrence of family violence against women in China. The patriarchal ideology and filial piety (important parts of Chinese culture) are related to the occurrence and durative of domestic violence.

Patriarchal Ideology in Good Wife, a Horror Episode of Korean Webtoon Shriek

When the couple of man and woman have become husband and wife, it means that the husband becomes the head of family and father of his children while the wife becomes the breadwinner of the family and mother of her children. However, there is a misconception of the ‘head and breadwinner of the family.’ The misconception is that since the husband is the head of the family, it means the husband can order his wife. While the wife, since she roles as the ‘breadwinner’, she must obey and be submissive to her husband and her in-laws. If something bad happens to the husband, the wife will be blamed, even when the wife gets angry at her husband for some reasons, still the wife is the one to blame.

Logan (2017) and the lost object of masculinity, or the trouble with Shane

James film, Logan, offers up a future world in which the X-Men are no more. All that remains are a few old and ravaged mutants, including Logan and Xavier whose worsening dementia is having a catastrophic impact on his psychic abilities that is becoming increasingly dangerous for others. Both of these former X-Men become roped into assisting a group of synthetic mutant children as they run from those who attempt to subdue and destroy them. Principal among these children is X-23, Laura, who has been created from Logan’s DNA. By staging this potential daughter along with a suggested queerness of the other mutant children the film seemingly offers up a critique of patriarchal ideologies often at the heart of the superhero genre. However, this article is concerned with the way the film intertextually references the 1953 Western film Shane, which creates an ambivalence in Logan’s meaning. The presence of Shane, the article argues, disturbs the surface gender critical storyline offering up instead the sense of a redemptive heroic masculinity that wrangles patriarchal ideology in through the backdoor.

Social support and rights protection of disabled women in anti-trafficking in China

In China, women with disabilities are one of the main victims of human trafficking against women. The victims of abducting crimes and the buyers are both concentrated in rural areas, which implicit profound social and cultural causes. Demographic and social-culture factors under the influence of patriarchal ideology and marriage squeeze have jointly caused the crimes, while China’s urbanization and poverty in rural areas deeply affected the lives of women with disabilities and protection against trafficking and other crimes. This study examines the influencing factors of trafficking in women in China and the inadequacies of social support and care for disabled women in anti-trafficking. Furthermore, this study recommends a set of countermeasures and suggestions on the aspects of social support and assistance for the prevention, timely rescue, and elimination of crimes.

Women’s Equality in Islamic Teachings Seen Through the Perspective of Fair and Civilized Humanity (Kemanusiaan Yang Adil Dan Beradab)

The Islamic vision of women’s equality challenges the view of patriarchal ideology that has been established in the culture of society in various parts of the world. It is important to analyze Islamic teachings regarding women’s equality through the philosophical meaning of a fair and civilized humanity principle. Philosophical analysis produces a paradigmatic and universal understanding. The problem studied is the description of Islamic teachings regarding women’s equality and the analysis results are reviewed from the perspective of a fair and civilized humanity. The aim is to obtain a paradigmatic and universal concept of gender equality. The analysis uses the method of philosophical hermeneutics, through the stages of understanding, interpretation, description, internal coherence, and holistic analysis. The study results show that Islam teaches the position of women to be equal in gender relations, that is, not to demean, not indulge, nor to equate (blurred emancipation) between men and women. The humanity taught by Islam and the second precept of Pancasila is the same, that is, it is based on the nature of human nature. Humanity taught by Islam and the second precept of Pancasila do not differentiate between gender, social status, religious affiliation, ethnic background and race in the contexts of life. Men and women are components together in humanity, because men and women are responsible for realizing fair, civilized and democratic relations.

Time to Lay the Man to Rest: On Gender, Trauma and Father Figure in Spider-Verse

‘Being Spider-Man is sacrifice.’ said Miguel O’Hara in the latest Spider-Man movie Across the Spider-Verse. As the theme of trauma and loss was revealed in this Spider-Verse film, the film has also brought up the pattern that was shown in every Spider character’s story arc across the spider-verse: they all have to go through certain trauma to become independent beings and discover their nature as a ‘hero’. In the original Spider-Man story, it is through the death of his uncle Ben that Peter Parker discovers that “with great power comes great responsibility.” In the spider-verse narratives, it is revealed that all variants of Spider-Man have a similar traumatic moment of origin. The pattern that through every trauma there will be character growth, however, is problematic when applied to the female characters in the Spider-Verse story. Although they do go through traumatic events, their voices echo the sounds of patriarchal ideology ---- Instead of following their own pathway of character development often substituting their own desires in order to repeat the pattern of the classic Peter Parker storyline; supplanting their own values ideas, beliefs and identities and replicating a spider-man made ideological trope. Moreover, these Spider-women are often operating in the shadow of patriarchy, with no strong female role models to guide them into an alternative way of being. In the 2014 Amazing Spiderman#08, Mayday Parker, daughter of Peter Parker forcefully goes through the trauma of the death of her father. Similarly in Spider-Woman, Gwen Stacy faced the trauma of the death of Peter Parker. But both of their development was influenced by society and father figures, which lead their development to an unsatisfying result ---- the repeat of Peter Parker. This paper will begin with the use of Helvie's trauma theory to examine the pattern of the classic Peter Parker storyline, followed by the close focus on female characters (Mayday Parker, Gwen Stacy) in the Spider-Verse comic line, and to see how they will eventually become the vessel that withholds nothing but patriarchal ideology under the influence of father figures.

Patriarchy Without Masculinity in Homa-Bay County of Kenya (1894-2022)

Purpose: The purpose of this treatise is to justify the existence of patriarchy without masculinity because of the existence of patriarchal shell as evidenced in the male failure to meet the societal expectation of a functioning masculinity. This study is premised in the pre-colonial belief that in patriarchal society men made far-reaching decisions, they were the breadwinners and wielded exclusive authority and power.
 Methodology: The study used historical research design of Gottschalk Louis to collect, verifies, and synthesizes evidence from the past to establish facts that defended the existence of patriarchy without masculinity in Homa Bay. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to identify the individuals and gender groups informants during the primary data collection. Primary data was also gathered from the National Archives to triangulate oral and secondary data. Secondary data were collected from, thesis, journal articles, books, and other publications from the internet, university, and other libraries.
 Findings: The data collected is given thematic content analysis based on study question. Primary and secondary data sources were corroborated to attain the validity and reliability of findings. The publication utilizes patriarchal theory of Robert Filmer which highlights the role of culture on gender performance roles and explains the role of patriarchal ideology in elevating men and making woman to depend on them for survival. In this study masculinity is viewed as a quality or set of habitual performed roles which were stereotypically connected with male gender as opposed to inherent in male. Contrary to the above, this study established that men still claim to have socio-economic and political entitlement in Homa Bay but the level of degeneration and reduction on the same is below expectation. Such degeneration makes patriarchy a shadow of its original reality. This premised in the study findings that there exists a widening masculine gap between the pre and postcolonial men of Homa Bay. The evidence in Homa Bay shows that most men fail to meet the societal expectation in their performances but grapple with vulnerability as they helplessly stare at the systematic loss of pre-colonial socio-economic and political patriarchal authority.
 Unique Contribution to Theory, Policy and Practice The existence indicators of the decline of patriarchal dominance in Homa Bay such as long-life expectancy among women, high birth rate among baby girls and the socioeconomic and political degeneration, make patriarchal; theory to be rethought. This paper shows that in the pre-colonial society, there was a concept of valorized hegemonic masculinity which men strived to emulate that consequently established patriarchy. Therefore, the policy makers, governments and the non-governmental organizations should reorganize their strategies to save masculinity from extinction for the purpose of gender egalitarian societies.

Tafsir Al-Qur'an Dalam Perspektif Kaum Feminis (Pemikiran Asma Barlas Dan Kontribusinya Terhadap Perkembangan Hukum Islam)

The interpretation of the Qur'an is important in giving meaning to the purpose and purpose of the Qur'an. Because with this interpretation, Muslims can know and even carry out the teachings of Islam as contained in it. On the one hand, admittedly or not, Looking at the mufassir in the classical era, that most of them, or it can be said that all of them are men, so that unconsciously in carrying out their interpretation is always subjective and tends to side with their people (the men) and they do not accommodate the interests of women. Therefore, it is natural that the interpretations produced still reflect patriarchal biases, especially when they are read in the present context. 
 Asma Barlas as one of the female feminist figures appeared to provide solutions, one of which was the need for a re-reading of the texts of the Qur'an whose interpretations were dominated by patriarchal ideology, thus giving rise to the spirit of liberation towards women and upholding the perspective of egalitarianism in the re-reading of verses from the Qur'an. She tried to deconstruct and paradigmatically reconstruct models of interpretation that tend to marginalize the role of women, both in religious, political, and social settings. Asma wants the truth of understanding of how to read religion (the Qur'an) and also wants women to be free from the negative image in Islam as it has been developing.
 Based on the problems that occurred above, the researcher formulated the following problem: How does the classical era's interpretation of the Qur'an relate to women? And what is the concept of Qur'anic interpretation in Asma Barlas's perspective?
 Looking at the variables, this study wants to examine the opinions of the mufassir, so this study can be called the character study approach. However, the character study approach is part of qualitative research and the method uses qualitative research as is customary. The study of figures was chosen as an approach, because the researcher wanted to inventory, critically evaluate, and conclude about the thoughts and opinions of the mufassir regarding the concept of Qur'anic interpretation of the Qur'an and Women or gender similarity in the perspketive of the Qur'an.

Buried alive in the dungeon

Abstract The church is still an unsafe terrain that breeds patriarchal ideologies. These ideologies are entrenched through religion and culture, sanctioned within the institution of marriage. In conversation with Denise Ackermann and Mercy Oduyoye’s West African Women Theology as a theoretical lens, this article amplifies the voices of African women in the context of the Anglican Church of South Africa (ACSA) on their lived experiences of GBV. This essay seeks to establish the life-denying theologies or acts of faith within ACSA that encourage married women to stay in abusive marriages. Data used in this paper emerged from the semi-structured interviews collected between January 2021 and July 2021 from the Diocese of Natal. Data revealed that teachings on male headship, silence and forgiveness and marriage and divorce play a role in the abuse. Unmasking toxic theologies is fundamental for interventions to be relevant.

Subversion of Patriarchal Discourse in Meridian

Walker in her novel Meridian, criticizes patriarchal society’s expectations of woman's roles and advocates about women's individuality and independence. The novel examines its title character Meridian’s emergence as a liberated strong woman. It observes Meridian's attempts to break the patriarchal tradition and how she brings an end to the racism and segregation. It also studies the lives and revolutionary activities of black women who played crucial roles to bring subversion in patriarchal discourse. Initially suspended black woman of patriarchal society, Meridian, the protagonist of the novel, becomes a liberated woman as she knows what she should borrow from the past for the present to create a new future. She breaks most of the generally accepted patriarchal norms and values that govern her society. Though she grows up in the racist, sexist and patriarchal society, she rebels against oppressive systems to attain her self-identity and selfhood. She considers marriage a false institution and deserts it as a challenge to the patriarchal ideology. She challenges the patriarchal image of womanhood and motherhood and presents herself as a liberated woman rather than a submissive wife and loving mother. She disobeys the patriarchal rules made for women and rejects any of the life-narratives of her patriarchal society. She starts her journey in search of meaningful personal and political life. She subverts all sorts of patriarchal discourses dominant in racist and sexist society. She finally paves a path of liberty with self identity and selfhood for herself and for the whole women. The paper tracks Meridian’s experiences from her college life to her self-determining liberated woman of present. She is free to love men without the burdens of marriage, sexual restriction and motherhood. It also explores black women's hidden strength, their beauty and feelings of sisterhood and wifehood. The study reveals how Meridian, revolts against the patriarchal ideologies to regain her lost identity and wholeness.

Fighting the Patriarchy: A Feminism with Chinese Characteristics

This paper examines the status and challenges of feminist movements in 21st century China. While the state has implemented laws and policies promoting gender equality, traditional patriarchal ideology persists in fostering discrimination against women. Through a socio-historical lens, the paper traces Chinese feminism from early 20th century reforms to current issues. It contends that the internet has enabled tech-savvy young activists to initiate theatrical protests against gender violence, catalyzing China’s #MeToo movement in 2018. However, structural barriers inhibit working-class and marginalized women from speaking out. Moreover, censorship, online harassment, and anti-feminist rhetoric have stifled the movement’s progress. Recommendations include public education campaigns to engage male allies, counteracting stereotypes that stigmatize feminists. Greater representation of women in the political sphere is required to enact substantive reforms protecting gender rights. In conclusion, the paper emphasizes interdependence and collective organizing as central tenets for Chinese feminism to overcome patriarchal constraints and achieve enduring social change.

İbrani Mitinin Yıkımı: Anita Diamant’ın Kırmızı Çadır’ında Dişil Yazı

Anita Diamant’s first novel The Red Tent (1997) retells the story of Dinah, Jacob’s and Leah’s daughter, Joseph’s sister in the Genesis chapter of the Old Testament. In this revised story, Diamant creates Dinah, the silenced woman of the Old Testament, as the narrator of the novel. Weaving a different narrative than the Hebrew myth, the narrator tries to subvert hierarchical structures of phallogocentrism by focusing on women’s bodies, femininity, and sexual power. This study, basing its argument on post-structuralist feminist theory, examines how patriarchal ideology and discourse are challenged through female language and ‘feminine writing’. The analysis of the rewritten text reveals that feminine writing frees the female body and female sexuality from the authority of androcentric ideology. Additionally, the textual strategies, used by Diamant to deconstruct the patriarchal order and to create a gynocentric myth, present alternative definitions of female identity.