What Offends You, the War on Women or That It’s Being Discussed? | Clarissa's Blog
If I am a woman speaking about women’s issues, a man may stand up and say, “Let’s try to be rational about all this.”
On the surface that statement would be impossible to disagree with. It’s good to be rational. Everyone should be rational. Let’s progress rationally.
However, beneath the surface, it has the opposite meaning. The way most people will hear it, because our ears are attuned to patriarchal symbolism, and because the issues being discussed concern gender, will be: “She’s going on and on, in an emotional and irrelevant way, and it’s time someone put a stop to this, so we can focus on what’s important.”
That’s what makes for the confusing aspect of the situation. The words have the opposite meanings to what they seem to have. Yes, in that sense it’s about like Orwellian language, because patriarchal metaphysics is like The Ministry of Peace. And, unless you have been exposed to its reverse logic, you won’t quite believe it. You will think that patriarchy is all about promoting rationality and aiding progress. I notice, though, that many women in the Labor party, Nicola Roxon. Penny Wong and Julia Gillard, all have a very shrewd understanding of how this game is played, which is why they have managed to reach high positions without being knocked down. Most women don't fully understand this. I was a late learner.
The booby trap in the patriarchal construct is that always, if try to oppose it’s method of silencing, you end up looking like you’re opposed to rationality — like you desire chaos to reign.
Gillard and others have done a remarkable job in side-stepping many of the patriarchal booby traps.
If I am a woman speaking about women’s issues, a man may stand up and say, “Let’s try to be rational about all this.”
On the surface that statement would be impossible to disagree with. It’s good to be rational. Everyone should be rational. Let’s progress rationally.
However, beneath the surface, it has the opposite meaning. The way most people will hear it, because our ears are attuned to patriarchal symbolism, and because the issues being discussed concern gender, will be: “She’s going on and on, in an emotional and irrelevant way, and it’s time someone put a stop to this, so we can focus on what’s important.”
That’s what makes for the confusing aspect of the situation. The words have the opposite meanings to what they seem to have. Yes, in that sense it’s about like Orwellian language, because patriarchal metaphysics is like The Ministry of Peace. And, unless you have been exposed to its reverse logic, you won’t quite believe it. You will think that patriarchy is all about promoting rationality and aiding progress. I notice, though, that many women in the Labor party, Nicola Roxon. Penny Wong and Julia Gillard, all have a very shrewd understanding of how this game is played, which is why they have managed to reach high positions without being knocked down. Most women don't fully understand this. I was a late learner.
The booby trap in the patriarchal construct is that always, if try to oppose it’s method of silencing, you end up looking like you’re opposed to rationality — like you desire chaos to reign.
Gillard and others have done a remarkable job in side-stepping many of the patriarchal booby traps.
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