Encyclopedia of Opinion
Question
Was patriarchy invented or inevitable?
Position1 of 2›

Patriarchy was invented

This position holds that male dominance is a historical creation rather than a given: on this account it emerged from particular arrangements of property, kinship and labour, and because it was made by human choices it could have been made otherwise.

Supporting arguments · 2

  1. Patriarchy varies too much across societies to be a fact of nature
  2. An arrangement that has to be enforced against resistance is a human settlement, not a law of nature