Oppression of Women

Women go through distressing cruelty and oppression mostly because America is a patriarchal society, a male dominated society in which older men are in positions of power. Many unfortunate evils run loose and free in this society because either society does little to stop it, or at times, even encourages this destructive behavior. In the articles “Battering: Who’s Going to Stop It” and “Protecting Male Abusers and Punishing the Women Who Confront Them” we see one of these unfortunate evils and the damaging effect of it against women. Women are beaten helplessly without the aid of any of our patriarchal authorities in achieving justice, as if justice falls solely on the footsteps of men. In the articles “The Politics of Housework” and “The Price of Motherhood”, we see more of these unfortunate evils of how sexism infiltrates into the household and of how the accomplishments of mothers are degraded and humbled.
The roots of intimate partner violence lie in the grounds of the patriarchal family. The belief that the wife is the possession of the male, who should have the behaviors of all the other family members under control, lead the man to abuse the relationship and take advantage of her vulnerability. Women’s unpromising careers and their continued responsibility over the children reinforce their need to financially depend on their husband, making it very hard for them to leave the abusive relationship. In the article “Battering: Who’s Going to Stop It”, battering is brought out of the private household and into the spotlight. We see how violence toward women by the very people they love, make it a very frightening and dangerous place for millions of women who are abused each year. Numerous women live with the effects of male violence. To find a reason for this high rate of male violence, we look to the culprit. Many people still mistakenly believe that batterers are somehow crazy and lose control of themselves and blow up. However, it is quite the opposite.