Matriarchal or Patriarchal societies in ME ???

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by Lalaith

I would also say that Numenor always sounded about as patriarchal a society as you can get, to me. Even after the law was changed, the queens were mostly rather diffident and lacklustre....more along the lines of Anne than Elizabeth I, to take a real-life analogy.

Interesting point in an interesting thread. Lalaith's mention of Anne and Elizabeth reminds me of a folk saying common during Tudor times, that when the throne fell to a female, bad times were portended. This was a social attitude which Elizabeth I constantly had to face and work with, if I recall my history correctly. Whenever I have read over the Numenorian kings I recall this attitude and wonder if there isn't something applicable to Numenor here.