Definitions of Patriarchy
- (noun) A society, system, or group in which men dominate women and have the power and authority.
- (noun) A group or family where the father or oldest male is the head of the family, with descent typically traced through the male.
Patriarchy Pronunciation
Syllabification: pa·tri·ar·chy
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /pAY-tree-ahr-kee/
- British English – /pAY-triah-kee/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˈpeɪtriˌɑrki/
- British English – /ˈpeɪtrɪɑːki/
Usage Notes
- Plural: patriarchies
- In contrast to a patriarchy, a matriarchy is a society or group in which women dominate men and have the power and authority.
- Also called patriarchate.
- A (noun) patriarch or (noun) patriarchist heads a (adjective) patriarchic or (adjective) patriarchal society.
Related Quotations
- “‘Hegemonic masculinity’ is always constructed in relation to various subordinated masculinities as well as in relation to women. The interplay between different forms of masculinity is an important part of how patriarchal social order works” (Connell 1987:183).
- “Patriarchy literally means ‘rule of the fathers‘ and comes from the Old Testament—all power was given to male elders. Today, its meaning is more general: male domination of all the major institutions of society including government, religion, education, the economy, the military and the media” (Kaufman and Kimmel 2011:112).
- “[T]he advantage to men as a group from maintaining an unequal gender order. Money income is not the only kind of benefit. Others are authority, respect, service, safety, housing, access to institutional power, emotional support, and control over one’s own life. The patriarchal dividend, of course, is reduced as overall gender equality grows” (Connell 2009:142).
Related Video
Additional Information
- Family and Kinship Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Sex and Gender Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “patriarchy” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Bennett, Judith M. 2006. History Matters: Patriarchy and the Challenge of Feminism. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
- Biaggi, Cristina. 2005. The Rule of Mars: Readings on the Origins, History and Impact of Patriarchy. Manchester, CT: Knowledge, Ideas and Trends.
- Case, Charles E., and Cameron D. Lippard. 2009. “Humorous Assaults on Patriarchal Ideology.” Sociological Inquiry 79(2):240–55. doi:10.1111/j.1475-682x.2009.00282.x.
- Daly, Mary. 1978. Gyn/Ecology: The Metaethics of Radical Feminism. Boston: Beacon.
- Dragiewicz, Molly. 2008. “Patriarchy Reasserted: Fathers’ Rights and Anti-VAWA Activism.” Feminist Criminology 3(2):121–44. doi:10.1177/1557085108316731.
- Firestone, Shulamith. 1970. The Dialectic of Sex: The Case for Feminist Revolution. London: Jonathan Cape.
- hooks, bell. 1981. Ain’t I a Woman? Black Women and Feminism. Boston: South End Press.
- Jain, Jasbir. 2005. Women in Patriarchy: Cross-cultural Readings. Jaipur: Rawat.
- Popenoe, David. 1996. Life Without Father: Compelling New Evidence that Fatherhood and Marriage are Indispensable for the Good of Children and Society. New York: Free Press.
- Walby, Sylvia. 1991. Theorizing Patriarchy. Oxford: Blackwell.
Related Terms
References
Connell, R. W. 1987. Gender and Power: Society, the Person, and Sexual Politics. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Connell, Raewyn, and Rebecca Pearse. 2009. Gender: In World Perspective. 2nd ed. Malden, MA: Polity.
Kaufman, Michael, and Michael S. Kimmel. 2011. The Guy’s Guide to Feminism. Berkeley, CA: Seal Press.
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Cite the Definition of Patriarchy
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “patriarchy.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved March 25, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/patriarchy/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
patriarchy. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/patriarchy/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “patriarchy.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed March 25, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/patriarchy/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“patriarchy.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 25 Mar. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/patriarchy/>.