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Gynocentrism

December 15, 2023

Gynocentrism is a dominant or exclusive focus on women in theory or practice.[1] Anything can be gynocentric when it is considered exclusively with a female or feminist point of view in mind.[2]

Etymology edit

The term gynocentrism is derived from ancient Greek, γυνή and κέντρον. Γυνή can be translated as woman or female, but also as wife.[3][4] In ancient Greek compounds with γυνή, the stem γυναικ- is normally used.[4] This stem can be spotted in the genitive case γυναικός,[3] and in the older form of the nominative case γύναιξ.[3] In ancient Greek, no compounds are known to exist with γυνή that start with γυνο- or γυνω-.[4]

The ancient Greek word κέντρον can be translated as sharp point,[4] sting (of bees and wasps),[4] point of a spear[4] and stationary point of a pair of compasses,[4] with the meaning centre of a circle related to the latter.[4] The meaning centre/middle point (of a circle) is preserved in the Latin word centrum,[5][6] a loanword from ancient Greek.[5][6] The English word centre is derived from the Latin centrum.[7] The word κέντρον is derived from the verb κεντεῖν,[4][6] meaning to sting (of bees),[4] to prick,[4] to goad,[4] and to spur.[4] When trying to explain etymologically the term gynocentrism, it is important to consider the ancient Greek κέντρον, with the signification middle point/centre, and not the more obvious ancient Greek word κεντρισμός (mirroring -centrism).

History edit

The term gynocentrism has been in use since at least 1897 when it appeared in The Open Court stating that Continental Europeans view Americans "as suffering rather from gynocentrism than anthropocentrism."[8] In 1914, author George A. Birmingham found American social life to be "gynocentric"; it was "arranged with a view to the convenience and delight of women."[9]

Beginning with second-wave feminism in the 1970s, the term gynocentrism has been used to describe difference feminism, which displayed a shift towards understanding and accepting gender differences, in contrast to equality feminism.[10]

Gynocentrism started to appear in the Middle Ages, when society became more and more male-dominated, and the role of women became subservient, who were "treated as delicate creatures to be loved and served by men."[11]

In contemporary society edit

The Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW) community, noted for their anti-feminism and misogyny, describes themselves as a backlash against the "misandry of gynocentrism".[12][13] According to University of Massachusetts philosopher Christa Hodapp, in modern men's movements gynocentrism is described as a continuation of the courtly love conventions of medieval times, wherein women were valued as a quasi-aristocratic class, and males were seen as a lower serving class. This viewpoint describes feminism as the perpetuation of oppressive medieval conventions such as devotional chivalry and romanticized relationships, rather than as a movement towards liberation.[14] It is the opposite of androcentrism, which is a focus on the male point of view.

J. Lasky has characterized gynocentrism as a potential response to androcentrism, [11] and that gynocentrism has been used as an argument by anti-feminists, who believe that gynocentrism is anti-male.[11]

Gynocentrism takes place within response to domestic violence, where "women’s [domestic violence] victimization is a call to action and a man's [domestic violence] victimization is seen as a distraction and a taboo."[15]

In a 2019 study of Trinidad society published in the Justice Policy Journal, researchers concluded that "gynocentrism pervades all aspects of the criminal justice system as well as society."[16][15]

Criticism edit

Christina Hoff Sommers has argued that gynocentrism is anti-intellectual and holds an antagonistic view of traditional scientific and creative disciplines, dismissing many important discoveries and artistic works as masculine. Sommers also writes that the presumption of objectivity ascribed to many gynocentrist theories has stifled feminist discourse and interpretation.[17]

Feminist writer Lynda Burns alleges that gynocentrism is a manification of celebration of women's positive differences—of women's history, myths, arts and music—as opposed to an assimilationist model privileging similarity to men.[18]

However observed in practice, the preeminence of women associated with gynocentric narratives is often seen as absolute: interpersonally, culturally, historically, politically, or in broader social contexts such as popular entertainment. As such, it can shade into what Rosalind Coward called "womanism... a sort of popularized version of feminism which acclaims everything women do and disparages men".[19]

In the 2006 book Legalizing Misandry religious studies professors Paul Nathanson and Katherine K. Young claim that feminist calls for equality or equity are a subterfuge for gynocentrism.[20] Nathanson and Young state that ideologically, the overriding focus of gynocentrism is to prioritize women hierarchically, and as a result may be interpreted as misandry (hatred of and prejudice towards men).[20] They claim that gynocentrism as a worldview has become de rigueur in law courts and government bureaucracies, resulting in systemic discrimination against men.[20] They define gynocentrism as a form of essentialism as it focuses on the innate virtues of women and the innate vices of men.[20]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Staff writer (2009), "", in OED (ed.). Oxford English Dictionary - Vers.4.0. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199563838.
  2. ^ Staff writer (2010), "", in OED, ed. (2006). Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198614241.
  3. ^ a b c Kraus, Ludwig A. (1844). Kritisch-etymologisches medicinisches Lexikon (Dritte Auflage). Göttingen, Germany: Deuerlich & Dieterich. OCLC 491993305.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Liddell, Henry G.; Scott, Robert (1940). A Greek-English lexicon / a new edition revised and augmented throughout / by Sir Henry Stuart Jones; with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie and with the co-operation of many scholars. Oxford: Clarendon Press. OCLC 630078019.
  5. ^ a b Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879). A Latin dictionary founded on Andrews' edition of Freund's Latin dictionary. Oxford: Clarendon Press. OCLC 223667500.
  6. ^ a b c Saalfeld, Günther Alexander Ernst Adolf (1884). Tensaurus Italograecus : ausführliches historisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Griechischen Lehn- und Fremdwörter im Lateinischen. Wien: Druck und Verlag von Carl Gerold's Sohn, Buchhändler der Kaiserl. Akademie der Wissenschaften. OCLC 46301119.
  7. ^ Klein, Ernest (1971). A comprehensive etymological dictionary of the English language: Dealing with the origin of words and their sense development thus illustration the history of civilization and culture. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science B.V. OCLC 802030047.
  8. ^ The Open Court, Volume 11 (Open Court Publishing Company, 1897)
  9. ^ George A. Birmingham, From Dublin to Chicago: Some Notes on a Tour in America (George H. Doran Company, 1914)
  10. ^ Nicholson, Linda J. (1997), "Gynocentrism: women's oppression, women's identity, and women's standpoint", in Nicholson, Linda J., ed. (1997). The second wave: a reader in feminist theory (Volume 1). New York: Routledge. pp. 147–151. ISBN 9780415917612.
  11. ^ a b c Lasky, J. (2023). Gynocentrism. Salem Press Encyclopedia.
  12. ^ Daubney, Martin (November 24, 2015). . The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on April 15, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  13. ^ Smith, C. Brian (September 28, 2016). . MEL Magazine. Archived from the original on February 14, 2017.
  14. ^ Christa Hodapp, Men's Rights, Gender, and Social Media, Lexington Books (September 5, 2017) ISBN 1498526160
  15. ^ a b Joseph-Edwards, Avis; Wallace, Wendell C. (2020-09-13). "Suffering in Silence, Shame, Seclusion, and Invisibility: Men as Victims of Female Perpetrated Domestic Violence in Trinidad and Tobago". Journal of Family Issues. 42 (8): 1805–1830. doi:10.1177/0192513x20957047. ISSN 0192-513X.
  16. ^ Wallace, W. C., Gibson, C., Gordon, N. A., Lakhan, R., Mahabir, J., & Seetahal, C. Domestic Violence: Intimate Partner Violence Victimization Non-Reporting to the Police in Trinidad and Tobago. (2019)
  17. ^ Hoff Sommers, Christina (1995), "Transforming the academy", in Hoff Sommers, Christina, ed. (May 1995). Who stole feminism?: How women have betrayed women. New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 64–73. ISBN 9780684801568.
  18. ^ La Caze, Marguerite (2006), "Splitting the difference: between Young and Fraser on identity politics", in Burns, Lynda, ed. (2006). Feminist alliances. Amsterdam New York: Rodopi. p. 153. ISBN 9789042017283.
  19. ^ Coward, Rosalind (2000), "Introduction", in Coward, Rosalind, ed. (2000). Sacred cows: is feminism relevant to the new millennium. London: HarperCollins. p. 11. ISBN 9780006548201.
  20. ^ a b c d Nathanson, Paul; Young, Katherine K. (2006). Legalizing misandry: from public shame to systemic discrimination against men. Montreal Ithaca: McGill-Queen's University Press. pp. 58, 116, 209. ISBN 9780773559998.

External links edit

  • Peter Wright, 'Gynocentrism As A Narcissistic Pathology'
  • Peter Wright, 'Gynocentrism As A Narcissistic Pathology' (Part 2)
  • Iris M. Young, 'Humanism, Gynocentrism and Feminist Politics'
  • Gynocentrism and its Cultural Origins
  • Gynocentric Eco-Logics
  • International Academy HAGIA: Matriarchy

December 15, 2023
gynocentrism, dominant, exclusive, focus, women, theory, practice, anything, gynocentric, when, considered, exclusively, with, female, feminist, point, view, mind, contents, etymology, history, contemporary, society, criticism, also, references, external, link. Gynocentrism is a dominant or exclusive focus on women in theory or practice 1 Anything can be gynocentric when it is considered exclusively with a female or feminist point of view in mind 2 Contents 1 Etymology 2 History 3 In contemporary society 4 Criticism 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksEtymology editThe term gynocentrism is derived from ancient Greek gynh and kentron Gynh can be translated as woman or female but also as wife 3 4 In ancient Greek compounds with gynh the stem gynaik is normally used 4 This stem can be spotted in the genitive case gynaikos 3 and in the older form of the nominative case gynai3 3 In ancient Greek no compounds are known to exist with gynh that start with gyno or gynw 4 The ancient Greek word kentron can be translated as sharp point 4 sting of bees and wasps 4 point of a spear 4 and stationary point of a pair of compasses 4 with the meaning centre of a circle related to the latter 4 The meaning centre middle point of a circle is preserved in the Latin word centrum 5 6 a loanword from ancient Greek 5 6 The English word centre is derived from the Latin centrum 7 The word kentron is derived from the verb kenteῖn 4 6 meaning to sting of bees 4 to prick 4 to goad 4 and to spur 4 When trying to explain etymologically the term gynocentrism it is important to consider the ancient Greek kentron with the signification middle point centre and not the more obvious ancient Greek word kentrismos mirroring centrism History editThe term gynocentrism has been in use since at least 1897 when it appeared in The Open Court stating that Continental Europeans view Americans as suffering rather from gynocentrism than anthropocentrism 8 In 1914 author George A Birmingham found American social life to be gynocentric it was arranged with a view to the convenience and delight of women 9 Beginning with second wave feminism in the 1970s the term gynocentrism has been used to describe difference feminism which displayed a shift towards understanding and accepting gender differences in contrast to equality feminism 10 Gynocentrism started to appear in the Middle Ages when society became more and more male dominated and the role of women became subservient who were treated as delicate creatures to be loved and served by men 11 In contemporary society editThe Men Going Their Own Way MGTOW community noted for their anti feminism and misogyny describes themselves as a backlash against the misandry of gynocentrism 12 13 According to University of Massachusetts philosopher Christa Hodapp in modern men s movements gynocentrism is described as a continuation of the courtly love conventions of medieval times wherein women were valued as a quasi aristocratic class and males were seen as a lower serving class This viewpoint describes feminism as the perpetuation of oppressive medieval conventions such as devotional chivalry and romanticized relationships rather than as a movement towards liberation 14 It is the opposite of androcentrism which is a focus on the male point of view J Lasky has characterized gynocentrism as a potential response to androcentrism 11 and that gynocentrism has been used as an argument by anti feminists who believe that gynocentrism is anti male 11 Gynocentrism takes place within response to domestic violence where women s domestic violence victimization is a call to action and a man s domestic violence victimization is seen as a distraction and a taboo 15 In a 2019 study of Trinidad society published in the Justice Policy Journal researchers concluded that gynocentrism pervades all aspects of the criminal justice system as well as society 16 15 Criticism editChristina Hoff Sommers has argued that gynocentrism is anti intellectual and holds an antagonistic view of traditional scientific and creative disciplines dismissing many important discoveries and artistic works as masculine Sommers also writes that the presumption of objectivity ascribed to many gynocentrist theories has stifled feminist discourse and interpretation 17 Feminist writer Lynda Burns alleges that gynocentrism is a manification of celebration of women s positive differences of women s history myths arts and music as opposed to an assimilationist model privileging similarity to men 18 However observed in practice the preeminence of women associated with gynocentric narratives is often seen as absolute interpersonally culturally historically politically or in broader social contexts such as popular entertainment As such it can shade into what Rosalind Coward called womanism a sort of popularized version of feminism which acclaims everything women do and disparages men 19 In the 2006 book Legalizing Misandry religious studies professors Paul Nathanson and Katherine K Young claim that feminist calls for equality or equity are a subterfuge for gynocentrism 20 Nathanson and Young state that ideologically the overriding focus of gynocentrism is to prioritize women hierarchically and as a result may be interpreted as misandry hatred of and prejudice towards men 20 They claim that gynocentrism as a worldview has become de rigueur in law courts and government bureaucracies resulting in systemic discrimination against men 20 They define gynocentrism as a form of essentialism as it focuses on the innate virtues of women and the innate vices of men 20 See also edit nbsp Society portalAndrocentrism Gynocriticism Princess sicknessReferences edit Staff writer 2009 Gynocentrism in OED ed Oxford English Dictionary Vers 4 0 Oxford University Press ISBN 9780199563838 Staff writer 2010 Gynocentric in OED ed 2006 Oxford English Dictionary Oxford University Press ISBN 9780198614241 a b c Kraus Ludwig A 1844 Kritisch etymologisches medicinisches Lexikon Dritte Auflage Gottingen Germany Deuerlich amp Dieterich OCLC 491993305 a b c d e f g h i j k l m Liddell Henry G Scott Robert 1940 A Greek English lexicon a new edition revised and augmented throughout by Sir Henry Stuart Jones with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie and with the co operation of many scholars Oxford Clarendon Press OCLC 630078019 a b Lewis Charlton T Short Charles 1879 A Latin dictionary founded on Andrews edition of Freund s Latin dictionary Oxford Clarendon Press OCLC 223667500 a b c Saalfeld Gunther Alexander Ernst Adolf 1884 Tensaurus Italograecus ausfuhrliches historisch kritisches Worterbuch der Griechischen Lehn und Fremdworter im Lateinischen Wien Druck und Verlag von Carl Gerold s Sohn Buchhandler der Kaiserl Akademie der Wissenschaften OCLC 46301119 Klein Ernest 1971 A comprehensive etymological dictionary of the English language Dealing with the origin of words and their sense development thus illustration the history of civilization and culture Amsterdam Elsevier Science B V OCLC 802030047 The Open Court Volume 11 Open Court Publishing Company 1897 George A Birmingham From Dublin to Chicago Some Notes on a Tour in America George H Doran Company 1914 Nicholson Linda J 1997 Gynocentrism women s oppression women s identity and women s standpoint in Nicholson Linda J ed 1997 The second wave a reader in feminist theory Volume 1 New York Routledge pp 147 151 ISBN 9780415917612 a b c Lasky J 2023 Gynocentrism Salem Press Encyclopedia Daubney Martin November 24 2015 George Lawlor s story shows how universities have become hostile towards men The Daily Telegraph Archived from the original on April 15 2016 Retrieved January 14 2016 Smith C Brian September 28 2016 The straight men who want nothing to do with women MEL Magazine Archived from the original on February 14 2017 Christa Hodapp Men s Rights Gender and Social Media Lexington Books September 5 2017 ISBN 1498526160 a b Joseph Edwards Avis Wallace Wendell C 2020 09 13 Suffering in Silence Shame Seclusion and Invisibility Men as Victims of Female Perpetrated Domestic Violence in Trinidad and Tobago Journal of Family Issues 42 8 1805 1830 doi 10 1177 0192513x20957047 ISSN 0192 513X Wallace W C Gibson C Gordon N A Lakhan R Mahabir J amp Seetahal C Domestic Violence Intimate Partner Violence Victimization Non Reporting to the Police in Trinidad and Tobago 2019 Hoff Sommers Christina 1995 Transforming the academy in Hoff Sommers Christina ed May 1995 Who stole feminism How women have betrayed women New York Simon amp Schuster pp 64 73 ISBN 9780684801568 La Caze Marguerite 2006 Splitting the difference between Young and Fraser on identity politics in Burns Lynda ed 2006 Feminist alliances Amsterdam New York Rodopi p 153 ISBN 9789042017283 Coward Rosalind 2000 Introduction in Coward Rosalind ed 2000 Sacred cows is feminism relevant to the new millennium London HarperCollins p 11 ISBN 9780006548201 a b c d Nathanson Paul Young Katherine K 2006 Legalizing misandry from public shame to systemic discrimination against men Montreal Ithaca McGill Queen s University Press pp 58 116 209 ISBN 9780773559998 External links editPeter Wright Gynocentrism As A Narcissistic Pathology Peter Wright Gynocentrism As A Narcissistic Pathology Part 2 Iris M Young Humanism Gynocentrism and Feminist Politics Gynocentrism and its Cultural Origins Gynocentric Eco Logics International Academy HAGIA Matriarchy Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gynocentrism amp oldid 1189692330, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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