Matriarchal or Patriarchal societies in ME ??? - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

littlemanpoet · 01-06-2007, 06:31 PM

On Galadriel, you can bet that if she had accepted the Ring, there would have been an outright matriarchy ... but not a good one. (Note that I distinguish between "matriarchy" and "evil/bad"; they are not necessarily the same thing.

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Regarding Melian, you are still dealing with a patriarchal society. Thingol was still the one who made the decisions, usually listening and making use of Melian's wise counsel, but not always; and when he failed to take her counsel, his decisions failed.

I find it very interesting and gratifying how Tolkien consistently included wise women as powerful influences for good within patriarchal societies.

01-06-2007, 06:31 PM	#7
littlemanpoet Itinerant Songster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: The Edge of Faerie Posts: 7,066	On Galadriel, you can bet that if she had accepted the Ring, there would have been an outright matriarchy ... but not a good one. (Note that I distinguish between "matriarchy" and "evil/bad"; they are not necessarily the same thing. ) Regarding Melian, you are still dealing with a patriarchal society. Thingol was still the one who made the decisions, usually listening and making use of Melian's wise counsel, but not always; and when he failed to take her counsel, his decisions failed. I find it very interesting and gratifying how Tolkien consistently included wise women as powerful influences for good within patriarchal societies.