Violent Women
Background: In the movie Enough starring Jennifer Lopez, a woman who is the victim of assault by her husband fights back and uses physical violence to kill her abuser. The theme of the violent woman grows out of a patriarchal culture that privileges violence above most other things. Some popular culture ads feature situations of women inflicting violence on men, others features woman on woman violence. All seem to derive from a similar source—the patriarchal privileging of violence and conflict. Discussion Questions: (1) How do the following ads create a psychological construction of patriarchy in the bodies and actions of women? (2) Have you know any women who enact patriarchal norms in their own lives?