Female Oppression as the “Safe Path”

In Allan Johnson’s “Patriarchy, the System: An It, Not a He, a Them, or an Us,” he describes that the root of many social problems (including female oppression) are reflected in individuals’ behavior. Thus, as a whole, our society is not a patriarchy in itself; instead, as members of this group we merely participate in the idea of patriarchy. Therefore, as we develop, we are provided with social cues that elicit certain behaviors within us, leading to the establishment of a male-dominated world. This thought connects to Douglas’s ideas regarding embedded feminism and enlightened sexism, since Johnson explains that our participation in patriarchy stems from the media’s demonstration of how the world works (and they do so in a highly male-domineering sense). Thus, from childhood and onward, we know nothing else but patriarchy, we then continuously fall into gender-assigned roles, and ultimately, oppression continues.

One interesting point that Johnson makes is that this quality of patriarchy unfairly blames the entire male race for female oppression. This point connects to that of Jonah Gokova in that he demonstrates that not all men strive to control society. In fact, many men try to surpass socially constructed gender roles, thus rejecting our current image of manhood. For example, even when bombarded with estrogen (from me, my mom, sister, and dog) my dad tries to take on many typical feminine roles in our house, such as washing the dishes, making dinner, and even sewing my ballet shoes for me.

Another important part of Johnson’s chapter is in his description of how men and women all try to take the path of least resistance when it comes to female oppression. This means that as separate sexes, in the face of female oppression we will often make decisions based on what is safest and most comfortable, instead of standing up for one another. This further relates to Marilyn Frye’s example of women being caught in a bind of sexuality. She explains that women who are highly sexually active are viewed and talked about with the negative connotation of “sluts”, while women who refrain from such activity are viewed and talked about with the negative connotation of “virgins.” I find this to be true throughout Colgate’s campus, even though we are considered to be an informed and elite institution. Both sexes use these terms, and it seems that this double standard will continue to remain a rule of society unless individuals stand up to it. Perhaps instead of maintaining the status quo in society, it is time to begin to jump off of the path of least resistance, thus allowing for social change and enlightenment as opposed to female entrapment.