Synopsis of THE CREATION OF PATRIARCHY by Gerda Lerner, 1986. Oxford University Press

In the Creation of Patriarchy (1986), Gerda Lerner provides a foundational feminist historical analysis that challenges the idea that male dominance is “natural” or biological. Instead, she argues that patriarchy is a historical construct—something created by humans over nearly 2,500 years (roughly 3100 B.C.E. to 600 B.C.E.) in the Ancient Near East.  

Core Synopsis

Lerner traces the shift from egalitarian tribal societies to the formation of Mesopotamian states. She argues that the subordination of women actually predates the formation of the State, private property and class society.

According to Lerner, the “domestication” of women was the very first form of hierarchy. By controlling women’s reproductive capacity, men established a template for the later enslavement of other humans.  

Major Themes

1. The Commodification of Women’s Sexuality

Lerner identifies the exchange of women between tribes as the origin of the patriarchal system. Before men owned land or slaves, they “owned” the reproductive potential of women. Women were traded to cement alliances, making their bodies the first form of private property.  

2. The Development of the “Double Standard”

As states formed, legal codes (like the Code of Hammurabi) began to formalize the control of women.  

• The Veil: Lerner highlights how veiling was used to distinguish “respectable” women (protected by a specific man) from “unattached” women or slaves.

• Legality: Adultery became a property crime against the husband, rather than a moral failing.

3. The Shift from Goddesses to One God

A major turning point in Lerner’s thesis is the symbolic “dethroning” of the Mother Goddess.  

• Early societies often worshipped female deities associated with fertility/birth, relationship to the flora and fauna, transformation, cycles in tune with Mother Earth, and creation.  

• The rise of monotheism and the Abrahamic religions replaced these figures with a single, male God.  

• This transition effectively removed women from the realm of the Divine, making their subordination appear divinely ordained.

4. Class as a Gendered Experience

Lerner argues that class is not experienced the same way by men and women.

• Men gain status through their relationship to the means of production (their work/wealth).  

• Women historically gained status through their relationship to a man (father or husband).

5. The “Internalization” of Inferiority

Perhaps her most poignant theme is how women became complicit in the system. Because women were denied education and history, they lacked the tools to conceptualize their own oppression. They were offered “protection” in exchange for subordination, a bargain that kept the system stable for millennia.