Kyriarchy
In
Etymology
The term was coined into English by Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza[4] in 1992 when she published her book But She Said: Feminist Practices of Biblical Interpretation.[5] It is derived from Greek: κύριος, kyrios, "lord, master" and Greek: ἄρχω, árcho, "lead, rule, govern".[5][2] The word kyriarchy (Greek: κυριαρχία, kyriarchia), already existed in Modern Greek, and means "sovereignty".
Usage
The term was originally developed in the context of feminist theological discourse, and has been used in some other areas of academia as a non–gender-based descriptor of systems of power, as opposed to patriarchy.[6] It is also widely used outside of scholarly contexts.[7]
The Kurdish-Iranian asylum seeker Behrouz Boochani has described the Australian-run Manus Island prison as a kyriarchal system:[8] one where different forms of oppression intersect; oppression is not random but purposeful, designed to isolate and create friction amongst prisoners, leading to despair and broken spirits.[9] He elaborates on this in his autobiographical account of the prison, No Friend But the Mountains.
Structural positions
Schüssler Fiorenza describes interdependent "stratifications of gender, race, class, religion,
To maintain this system, kyriarchy relies on the creation of a servant class, race, gender, or people. The position of this class is reinforced through "education, socialization, and brute violence and malestream rationalization".[5] Tēraudkalns suggests that these structures of oppression are self-sustained by internalized oppression; those with relative power tend to remain in power, while those without tend to remain disenfranchised.[2] In addition, structures of oppression amplify and feed into each other.[10]
See also
- Anarchism
- Bullying
- Competition
- Cultural hegemony
- Culture shock
- Exploitation
- Feminist theology
- Hierarchy
- Identity politics
- Intersectionality
- Iron cage
- Job strain
- Male privilege
- Marxism
- Might makes right
- Murray Bookchin
- Nationalism and sports
- Occupational prestige
- Othering
- Passing
- Patriarchy
- Postmodernism
- Social dominance orientation
- Social stress
- Toxic masculinity
- White privilege
References
- S2CID 144562065.
- ^ ISBN 8884921414.
- ISBN 9004130527.
- ISBN 1608332527.
- ^ ISBN 978-1451412840.
- ISBN 978-0813935515. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
- S2CID 145700378.
- ISSN 0799-4354. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ Manne, Robert (10 August 2018). "No Friend But The Mountains review: Behrouz Boochani's poetic and vital memoir". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 30 October 2018. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
- ^ S2CID 143768692.
Further reading
- Giannacopoulos, M. "Kyriarchy, Nomopoly, and Patriarchal White Sovereignty." Biography, (2020) 43(4), 736–747.
- Thompson, Margaret Susan. "Circles of sisterhood: formal and informal collaboration among American nuns in response to conflict with Vatican Kyriarchy." Journal of feminist studies in religion 32.2 (2016): 63-82.
- Thompson, Margaret Susan. "Sacraments as Weapons: Patriarchal Coercion and Engendered Power in the Nineteenth-Century Convent." Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion 38.2 (2022): 89-104.
External links
The dictionary definition of kyriarchy at Wiktionary
