Patriarchy and “Closed Spaces”: Keeping Nigerian Women in “The Other Room”
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[Ibadan Journal of Sociology, Jun., 2018, 7 ] 5 [© 2014-2018 Ibadan Journal of Sociology] Patriarchy And “Closed Spaces”: Keeping Nigerian Women In “The Other Room” Aituaje Irene Pogoson Department of Political Science University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria Email: [email protected] Abstract Following the traditional belief that the place of the woman is in the kitchen, women are frequently relegated to the status of second-class citizen in Nigeria. In the Nigerian culture, not only do men have more social, political, and economic power than women, they are also imperceptibly treated differently. This is a consequence of an overriding social setting dominated by a general culture of male power and superiority. In this setting, men are treated with respect, their needs attended to, and their views treasured. What is not apparent however, is that women are not given the same respect as they are oftentimes less valued, ignored, or disregarded. In the public realm, women are not quite visible in positions of authority nor welcomed in certain spaces and situations where men feel absolutely comfortable; while in the private realm, they are subjected to the dictates of men. This trend was recently amplified by President Muhammadu Buhari’s ridiculing remark in Germany that his wife, Aisha Buhari, “belongs to my kitchen and my living room and the other room”- presumably the bedroom, following some unfavorable remarks she made to BBC Hausa Service about him. The President’s remark underscores the extent to which women’s rights and their value are undermined in the Nigerian patriarchal society. It is a “closed space” where existing stereotypes have reduced an average woman to an inferior citizen. Against this background, this article examines the theoretical and material bases of patriarchy and gender inequality in Nigeria and identifies the extent of gender inequality and discrimination. The article contends that if democracy allows for diversity of opinion and participation of different groups, it cannot be said to exist where women are continually disadvantaged. Real societal change will only ensue if we think differently and work differently to challenge the patriarchal structures that perpetuate all forms of gender discrimination and inequality in the society. Keywords: Patriarchy, private/public realm, gender, closed spaces Ib.J.Soc. Jun., 2018. Vol. 7 www.ibadanjournalofsociology.org [Ibadan Journal of Sociology, Jun., 2018, 7 ] 6 [© 2014-2018 Ibadan Journal of Sociology] INTRODUCTION: CONCEPTUAL BASES OF PATRIARCHY Patriarchy is the leading impediment to the advancement and development of women in most societies. It means the rule of the father or the ‘patriarch’- the power of the father as the head of a household; and its general principle is that men are in control though the character of that control differs. According to Sultana (2011), patriarchy was originally used to describe a specific type of ‘male-dominated family’ – the large household of the patriarch which included women, junior men, children, slaves and domestic servants – all under the rule of the dominant male. The term denotes “the systematic organization of male supremacy and female subordination” (Makama, 2013;116) that characterized post 1960s feminism, apart from the explanation of a dominant father as the head of a household. This same dominant authority is explained as a system that promotes male supremacy of women who “are kept subordinate in a number of ways” (Bhasin, 2006:3) in virtually all spheres of human endeavour. Two major themes accentuate the scholarly definitions of patriarchy: a subjugation and wanton control of the female gender by the dominant male exerting authority and a contestation of this supremacy. Such scholars as Mitchell (1971) Aristotle (Learner, 1989) support the former position. For Mitchell, patriarchy refers “to kinship systems in which men exchange women” (Mitchell 1971:24), while Aristotle sees males as active and females as passive. To him, a female is a “mutilated male,” someone who does not have a soul. In Aristotle’s assessment, women are made inferior by their biological inferiorities, their capabilities, intelligence and decision-making abilities. On account of man’s superiority, and woman’s inferiority, a man is born to rule while a woman is to be ruled. Aristotle says “the courage of man is shown in commanding of a woman into obeying” (Learner 1989:8-11). Wally’s conceptualization of patriarchy shares the characteristics of the two identified groups because while the scholar sees “patriarchy as an arrangement of social structures and practices in which men dominate, oppress and exploit women” (Walby 1990:20), he however rejects “the notion that every individual man is always in a dominant position and every woman in a subordinate one” (Walby 1990:20). The latter position is aptly expressed in the contribution of Sultana who contested the argument of a dominant male. The theories of male supremacy have been challenged and it has been proven that there is no historical or scientific evidence for such explanations. Whilst biological differences exist between men and women, these differences do not engender “the basis of a sexual hierarchy in which men are dominant” (Sultana, 2010-2011:4). Ib.J.Soc. Jun., 2018. Vol. 7 www.ibadanjournalofsociology.org [Ibadan Journal of Sociology, Jun., 2018, 7 ] 7 [© 2014-2018 Ibadan Journal of Sociology] Central to patriarchy “is a set of symbols and ideas that make up a culture embodied by everything from the content of everyday conversation” (Aggarwal, 2016: 60). As further observed by Aggarwal, “patriarchal culture includes ideas about the nature of things, including men, women and humanity, with manhood and masculinity most closely associated with being human and womanhood and femininity relegated to the marginal position of “other” (Aggarwal, 2016:60). Feminists principally use the term to elucidate the power relationship between men and women and to understand women’s realities. In feminist theory according to Sultana (2010-2011:2), “the concept of patriarchy often includes all the social mechanisms that reproduce and exert male dominance over women”. Feminists characterize feminism as a social construction that can be overcome by exposing and critically assessing its manifestations (Ann, 2001). Radical feminists (Brownmiller, 1976, Firestone, 1974, Jensen, 2017) believe that the subordination of women by men is a result of patriarchy; that a socially just society needs a radical overhaul of the prevailing patriarchal structures and that the ultimate goal of feminism is the end of the patriarchal gender system. “…they [Radical Feminists} do not believe that patriarchy is natural or that it has always existed and will continue to do so” (Saltana, 2011:5). They also affirm that it preceded private property and the original and basic contradiction is not economic classes but between the sexes. Socialist-feminists, because of their commitment to a historical, materialist method as well as of their own observation of variety in the sexual division of labour, do not consider patriarchy to be a universal or unchanging system (Sultana, 2010-2011:5). They regard the struggle between women and men as a historical phenomenon that changes with modes of production (Beechey, 1977) and they “are committed to understanding the system of power derived from capitalist patriarchy” (Eisenstein, 1977:3). The link between patriarchy and capitalism is analyzed by Hartmann (1981) who maintains that irrespective of their class, all men are linked by patriarchy. Hartmann (1979) defines patriarchy 'as a set of social relations between men, which have a material base, and which, though hierarchical, establish or create interdependence and solidarity among men that enable them to dominate women' (Hartmann, 1979:11). She further notes that, 'The material base upon which patriarchy rests lies most fundamentally in men's control over women's labour power. Men maintain this control by excluding women from access to essential productive resources (in capitalist societies, for example, jobs that pay living wages) and by restricting women’s sexuality‟ (Hartmann, 1979: 11). This point is accentuated by Oyekanmi (2005) who describes patriarchy as “a set of social relations with a material base that enables men to dominate women. In other words, patriarchy describes a distribution of power and resources within the family in a manner that men maintain power and control or resources, and women are powerless and dependent on men”. Ib.J.Soc. Jun., 2018. Vol. 7 www.ibadanjournalofsociology.org [Ibadan Journal of Sociology, Jun., 2018, 7 ] 8 [© 2014-2018 Ibadan Journal of Sociology] Whilst not implying “that women are either totally powerless or totally deprived of rights, influence, and resource” Lerner (1989:239) maintains that “in its wider definition”, patriarchy “means the manifestation and institutionalization of male dominance over women and children in the family and the extension of male dominance over women in society in general. It implies that men hold power in all the important institutions of society and that women are deprived of access to such power” (Lerner, 1986:239). Indeed, it is a system of social stratification and differentiation based on sex; it provides material benefits to males while simultaneously placing harsh constraints on the roles and actions of females (Koenig and Foo, 1985). Not only does it describe the established system of male supremacy, it is seen as a set of social relations between men and women, which has a material base, and which, despite being hierarchical, establishes independence and cohesion among men that empower them to dominate women (Koenig and Foo, 1985). In reality, “the patriarchal system is characterised by power, dominance, hierarchy, oppression, exploitation and competition” (Sultana, 2010;2011:3) and the implication is that “men hold power in all the important institutions of society” whilst “women are deprived of access to such power”. The patriarchal system operates some social customs, traditions and roles and perpetuates them through the socialisation process aimed at keeping women under men’s control.