The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy

by Allan Johnson

Overview

New Third Edition!

The Gender Knot, Allan Johnson's response to the pain and confusion that men and women experience by living with gender inequality, explains what patriarchy is and isn't, how it works, and what gets in the way of understanding and doing something about it. Johnson's simple yet powerful approach avoids the paralyzing trap of guilt, blame, anger, and defensive denial that often results from conversations about gender.
 
This edition features:
• Updated references, data, resources, and examples, especially in relation to issues of sexual orientation and gender identity (e.g., gay marriage, transgender/cisgender)
• A glossary of terms
• A new chapter, "What Changes and What Does Not: Manhood and Violence," that provides an extended analysis of the causes of men's violence as a patriarchal phenomenon 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781439911846
Publisher:	Temple University Press
Publication date:	10/19/2014
Edition description:	3rd Edition
Pages:	322
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Allan G. Johnson is a nationally recognized sociologist, nonfiction author, novelist, and public speaker best known for his work on issues of privilege and oppression, especially in relation to gender and race. He is the author of numerous books, including Privilege, Power, and Difference. His work has been translated into several languages and excerpted in numerous anthologies. Visit him online at www.agjohnson.us and follow his blog at www.agjohnson.wordpress.com.

Table of Contents

Preface

 

Acknowledgments

 

Part I | What Is This Thing Called Patriarchy?

1 Where Are We? 

2 Patriarchy, the System: An It, Not a He, a Them, or an Us

3 Why Patriarchy? 

4 Ideology, Myth, and Magic: Femininity, Masculinity, and ‘Gender Roles’ 

5 Feminists and Feminism 

 

Part II | Sustaining Illusions, Barriers to Change

6 Thinking about Patriarchy: War, Sex, and Work 

7 What Patriarchy? 

8 It Must Be Women 

 

Part III | Unraveling the Patriarchal Legacy

9 Shame, Guilt, and Responsibility 

10 What Changes and What Does Not: Manhood and Violence 

11 What Can We Do? Unraveling the Gender Knot 

 

 Appendix: Resources for Unraveling the Knot 

 

 Notes 

 

 Glossary 

 

 Index

Editorial Reviews

"The Gender Knot illuminates vast areas of previously unexamined and unnamed effects of 'power over' social systems, and provides a beacon of hope and a message of courage. This book is brilliant and life-changing"-Judith V Jordan, Ph.D., Director of the Jean Baker Miller Training Institute, Wellesley Centers for Women, and Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School

From the Publisher

From Selma Miriam, Bloodroot Feminist Bookstore: \ "At last a man who got it right . . . . he creates a unique political context in which women and men can have feminist conversations . . . . and brings a freshness to . . . feminism that encourages us and gives us hope." \

Selma Miriam

From Michael Kimmel, author of Manhood in America: A Cultural History: \ "As any knitter will tell you, the way to untangle a knot is not to pull hard on one end, but to gently shake the entire skein until all the threads are loosened. In this book, Allan Johnson gently and patiently shakes the patriarchal knot until each of the constituent threads becomes analytically clear. In doing so, he gives men a way to be part of unraveling that oppressive knot, rather than simply tugging defensively on their end." \

Michael Kimmel