Feminist legal scholars are united in their basic belief that society is patriarchal and founded on issues of knowledge, truth and power; a masculated code of justice which inadequately represents the feminine in consciousness. It is this essentialism of the masculine system that has cultivated concern and inaccuracy in definitions of both gender roles and cultural practices alike, providing feminist jurisprudence then, with an analysis and critique of the role of law in maintaining and perpetuating both patriarchy and female subordination. Feminine discourse and awareness of its significance is often grounded in experience and interpersonal truths whereby women are liberated from the constraints of misogynous language based practices and culture, both of which construct a very particular and rigid form of gender identity. This paper will explore and analyse the contribution of law, cultural practices and expectations in constructing, maintaining, reinforcing and perpetuating patriarchy, as well as concepts of power, control and expectation related to gender which attribute the enacting of sexual violence to a dominant masculine force or sexual agent. (more…)
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