The Deepening Darkness: Patriarchy, Resistance, and Democracy's Future
Gilligan and Richards leave few stones unturned in this exploration of patriarchy throughout time, beginning with ancient Rome, focusing on its diametric relationship with democracy: "we lack a critical public understanding of this tension, in part because... Roman patriarchy has been absorbed into our religion and political culture." The authors examine patriarchy in many literary sources, from Oedipus Rex and the Bible to Hemingway, Joyce and Freud. Among other themes, they find repeatedly that "exposing the psychology underlying patriarchy touches a nerve so sensitive that it becomes inflammatory," for reasons that include "the dynamics of shame and violence... how closely questions of honor are aligned with questions of gender," and "how intricately gender is woven into the body, into language, and into identity and culture." Authors and gender scholars Gilligan (Kyra, In a Different Voice) and Richards (The Case for Gay Rights, Disarming Manhood) make it clear that patriarchy is omnipresent in our society; discussion of matriarchal societies and literature would have made an enlightening counterpoint. This exhaustive study will be of particular interest to gender studies professionals and students.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.