What is the patriarchy?

[EatsBrainsAndLeaves]

I am aware that we use words here like the patriarchy as if everyone understands what this means. I know when I first came on FWR I didnt. So I thought it mght be helpful if women who do understand it, explained what they understand the term patriarchy to mean.

Joyful, no, but I don't feel sorry for them either, especially her. She knew full well what she was getting into when she entered a relationship with him.

She fell in love with her university flatmate. I'm sure she thought a lot about whether that love was worth all this crap she is having to put up with.

Given she still got a fair amount of nasty articles when they weren't going out and her sister gets plenty of press attention (funnily enough, not her brother), it seems as soon as you are in any way associated with the second in line to rhe throne and you are a young woman, you are stuck. Yes, I do feel sorry for her.

TheDoctrineOfSnatch Tue 18-Sep-12 12:44:17
She fell in love with her university flatmate.

Mmm. Bit more than that, given her nickname round here is "stalker". Went on the same OB expeditions (gap year) made sure she went to same university. She very definitely set her cap at him.

Still, we like her, and think the treatment of her is appalling. Still thinks she looks desperately thin, mind.

So go ahead and feel sorry for her.

My point about the King and his position in the patriarchy stands.

I'm not sure where "round here" is, OMC.

Happy to contribute to a thread about the royal family and the patriarchy if you want to start one, UC.

Patriarchy for me is the default setting.

Feminism challenges the deafult setting and asks that we at least look at things through the eyes of being a woman.

Still thinks she looks desperately thin, mind

summerflower not terribly relevant to anything, perhaps. Just concerns me that we may see another generation of women thinking it's necessary to look stick thin so they can look attractive.

TheDoctrineOfSnatch Tue 18-Sep-12 12:58:22
Sorry "round here" is chez OMC. Actually DW's name for her.

So you and your DW think of her as a stalker?

OMC I am also concerned about her weight as I think she has lost weight and I am not sure that she is at a healthy weight. Again if I was subject to her level of scrutiny I would feel under a lot of pressure also.

TDoS yes, bit of a stalker see some scuttlebutt

So William and Catherine both participated in Raleigh International expeditions in Chile. William's was from October to December 2000, while Catherine's was from January to March 2001.

CATHERINE Middleton had set her sights on snaring Prince William even before she met him at university, according to a South African who knew her during her gap year

Not too serious, which is why she's in air quotes "stalker"

Sounds more like a calculating social climber to me.

My sympathy for her grows exponentially.

I am sure most people would be happier with her if she had taken up some kind of career like the rest of her family. She is a really bad example to British girls sadly - housewife extraordinaire, Stepford Wife incarnate and yet her mother has done so very well in business and her mother in law has ruled this land so well for 60 years. The Thatcher/ QEII combination as so wonderful in its day.

And she is now set to work for the rest of her life. She is one person who will have to have childcare and she will have to put work first.

Subsidiary minor role, though. She's only a supporting spouse. I prefer the examples of Cherie Booth and Mrs Cameron to Gordon Brown's wife and Obama's. Even better of course are Angela Merkel and her ilk. Anyway I wonder if Cameron can get permission from all the colonies to agree that a first born daughter would inherit the throne. That would be an improvement in feminist terms although why the oldest has priority over the youngest in anything even if they are not best for that role I am not sure. It is ageist really.

I think she is fairly major! They are hardly a normal couple - I expect they will spend a lot of time with the DCs if not on duty. No you can't work part time in RAF (wondering quite how you manage that fom Afganistan he isn't exactly a normal member of RAF though and has other state duties.

I can't see any reason for the outdated male succession to continue.

Xenia it was difficult for her to work given scrutiny and security.

Err they both spent time in Chile with a major gap year organisation but at different times. Dont understand how that is stalking.

In the other, Kate's yacht boss describes her as reserved but also says she told everyone she'd set her sights on William. If serious, seems contradictory.
As an asideI bet half the female students that year at St A made that joke to their mates abyway. Did you see that Derren Brown programme about a horse betting system? The system was - film all the participants equally but only show the one that won all 5 bets.

Did I really just read the words "set her cap at him" on a feminist forum?

Yes, sadly Rosa, you did.

It obviously doesn't exclude them reading historical romances.

The fact the showing of a woman's breasts is something to be stopped by a protective man of his housewife is not particularly feminist. We would rather the Duchess was joining bare breasted marches on the right to show your breasts down the Mall surely.... Is she saying there is something wrong with breasts?