Western patriarchy has become deeply ingrained in Indigenous Nations. Patriarchal ideology takes many harmful forms in Indigenous communities, most notably sexism, misogyny, family violence, and violence against women. Indigenous feminists are identifying and resisting patriarchy in Indigenous communities. However, Western patriarchy is so deeply rooted that many people believe it has always been there. Additionally, several Indigenous people resist all forms of feminism, believing the word "feminist" is synonymous with "white," and therefore suspicious. In order to increase trust in Indigenous feminisms, it must be proved that Indigenous feminist theories stand up to scrutiny. The characters in Debra Earling's Perma Red and Eden Robinson's Monkey Beach, particularly the protagonists Louise White Elk and Lisa Hill, are negatively affected by Western patriarchal ideology in their communities. By examining these texts through Indigenous feminist lenses, my thesis seeks to prove that Indigenous feminisms are viable additions to Indigenous Studies.

The purpose of this study was to explore how Black men and women negotiate ideas about masculine performances within the context of romantic relationships. The New York Times Bestselling book Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, which communicates a particularly patriarchal understanding of masculinity, was used as a point of reference. Six focus groups were conducted with 28 Black males and females between the ages of 19-60. Three general conclusions about masculine performances within Black male/female relationships were drawn from the findings.

Lou, the heroine of Marian Engel's Bear, attempts to confront the difficulties she has with male domination in a relationship with a semi-tame bear, but fails to resolve them because both female subjectivity and the patriarchy are socially constructed.

ABSTRACT OVERCOMING BARRIERS: WOMEN IN THE SUPERINTENDENCY by Claire M. Miller Women currently represent the largest number of teachers in the United States but remain underrepresented in the superintendent position. This suggests that the superintendency has been influenced by patriarchy. If women are to break through the barriers that prevent them from attaining a superintendency, we will need to understand the social construction of the position and women superintendents’ experiences with barriers. What do women in the superintendency think about what it means to be one of a few women in a male-dominated occupation? How does gender consciousness play a role in the ability to examine and understand barriers? How do characteristics of the position interacting with gender? Literature is reviewed surrounding these questions and includes barriers with feminine expectations, career mobility, good old boy network, mentors, family obligations, and the selection process. A qualitative approach was used to examine the experiences of five female superintendents. Additionally, race was masked to protect the identities of the women. Patriarchy was identified as the central structure for understanding the women’s experiences with barriers. This study also sought to draw on the theoretical model of sociocultural explanations for the underrepresentation of women in the superintendency. This model analyzes gender differences and focuses on sex role stereotyping, career socialization, and women’s culture to describe women’s experiences. The findings indicate that women are beginning to overcome some of the barriers; however, many of them are still present. This inquiry is important because it allows us to examine the barriers within the superintendency in order to provide a new perspective to the body of literature that has historically been grounded in almost exclusively white, male, and heterosexist epistemologies. This new perspective includes methods to overcome the barriers rather than navigate them.

No description available.

<p>This thesis is a small scale in depth exploration into the perceptions of power held by eight Muslim women residing in the Cape Town Metropole area. Using a Qualitative Feminist approach the study aimed to explore and shed light on the multiple ways in which Muslim women negotiate, construct and co-construct agency, power and authority in their everyday lives. This study also sought to explore whether Muslim women who appear independent or empowered actually feel in control of their own lives / and how their ability to make choices is mediated by intersecting identities such as race, class, age, etc. The research highlights a number of emergent themes in which discussion of the women‟s views around education, finance, reproductive responsibilities, patriarchy, etc. takes place and also explores the ways in which the women contest and resist traditional cultural norms in their everyday experiences. Furthermore this study also sought to create a space where the researcher focused and refocused her gaze on the theoretical and epistemological aspects of her chosen method of enquiry in order to interrogate its merits and limits. Upon reflection the researcher also acknowledges that, similar to the participants, she also holds contradictory views on some of the issues discussed.</p>

This dissertation focuses on Zulu men‟s interpretation of masculinity in the context of changing gender relations in South Africa. It seeks to achieve this objective by taking into consideration the cultural and faith practices that influence the formation of Zulu men‟s masculine identities. The formation of masculine identities is crucially important especially with regard to the current gendering order of society where masculinity is often implicated in the violent acts and spread of HIV. However, this study seeks to show how the advent of the democratic transition in South Africa, especially with regard to the Constitutional values of 1996, has dismantled some of the dominant cultural and faith practices of Zulu men. There are number of types of masculinities including hegemonic, subordinate, complicit, and marginal which are in contestation and tension with one other. The current level of violence against women and children, substance abuse, famicide, HIV infection, reckless driving and crime are some of the outcomes of hegemonic masculinities in turmoil. The „new way‟ of becoming men is non-violent, nurturing, and mutual in relationships, and committed to the principles of the South African Constitutional values. They represent an ideal type of being a man in South Africa that is admired by women who have lost trust in and fear men. However, the traditionalists perceive these characteristics of being a man as compromising their masculinity. Their response to change suggests that men feel disrespected in the home, community, and society are not favored by law, which now has high regard for women. In some sectors of society, women still experience “dis-empowerment” in the workplace and the home but do not necessarily project their anger on men. Instead, they join hands and challenge unjust structures, and fight to be valued as citizens in the state, home and society. Hegemonic masculinities have shown vulnerability to change which is often manifest in immature behavior, low self-esteem, uncertainty, and fear. This suggests that there is a struggle to come to terms with change in traditional masculine norms. This study has also shown that in religious institutions the gender hierarchy is evident in places of worship, images of God, understandings of Christ as man, liturgies, and use of biblical texts. Religious men tend to perceive themselves as representing and speaking on behalf of God with women relegated to submissive roles. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2002.

Since the 1990s, suicide and stress amongst farming individuals in Britain has gained increasing attention. This is because restructuring of the farm sector has placed greater economic pressure on farm family businesses and led to dramatic socio-cultural change in rural communities. Academic research has been dominated by a medical, reactionary approach to the examination of stress. This ignores the cultural and gender processes which are embedded in a patriarchal family farming ‘way of life’ that may, in reality, underpin medicalised outcomes. This ethnographic research, utilising repeated life history interviews with multiple members of farming families, based in Powys, Mid Wales, provides a crucial first step in a more proactive understanding of stress by tracking the dynamics, construction, enactment and maintenance of relational farming identities. From such a perspective, behavior according to a farming ‘way of life’ is brought sharply into focus as a course and source of components of stress. Drawing upon a range of theoretical positions, a robust conceptualisation of farming stress is developed. In particular insights from feminism inform the non-medical approach adopted by this research. Ideas are drawn on from emerging, feminist international perspectives of relational farming gender identities and by closer integration of theoretical post-modern insights from cultural, rural studies which has persistently neglected farming individuals. This research contributes to theoretical and empirical development within agricultural geography by providing an example of how micro contextualisation of farming/ rural lives can be contextualised within the macro-economic framework of agriculture. Results are drawn from 7 case study farming families, with scale of analysis utilised to reveal from birth the construction, maintenance and enactment of relational farming gender identities. Farm survival is found to be heavily dependent upon socialisation within the ideology of family farming, the enactment of farming identities beyond the farm gate, and the necessity for individuals to adhere to a patriarchal ideology. This patrilineal ‘way of life’ ideology and its gendered components are revealed to demonstrate that adherence to gender roles is becoming increasingly difficult within the current context of agricultural and rural change. The struggle that individuals have to maintain their place and sense of belonging in family farming emerges as a key source of contemporary stress. Further work is needed to ensure that the gendered understanding of farming stress formulated in this research is applied to rural stress policy and practice.

No description available.