The Factors Contributing to Patriarchy in Contemporary Rural Bangladesh

This study examines factors that have contributed to the persistence of patriarchy in rural Bangladesh. Patriarchy is a social structure and practice in which men have power and privilege over women, subjecting them to various forms of oppression and exploitation. Previous studies have claimed that government and NGO-led development policies promote gender equality by improving women's access to education, microfinance, employment, political representation, and legal protections. Government and NGO-led development initiatives have improved women’s socioeconomic conditions in Bangladesh. However, gender inequality and discrimination against women remain prevalent. I argue that discriminatory cultural practices such as child marriage, dowry, and domestic violence uphold patriarchy, which perpetuates gender inequality in rural Bangladesh. This study employs ethnographic research, unstructured interviews, and participant observation to examine views held by Bangladesh’s rural population regarding discriminatory cultural practices. The findings of this thesis indicate that local sociocultural contexts determine women's empowerment in Bangladesh. Patriarchal gender norms, conservative Islamic views, and social acceptance of gender-based discrimination perpetuate gender inequality in rural Bangladesh. Rural women's economic and social stability is primarily derived from patrilocal marriage, which upholds their subjugation. Moreover, conservative gender norms and discriminatory Muslim personal laws continue to govern Muslim women's family and social status, despite their rising socioeconomic participation. Since 1975, political parties have countered weak electoral legitimacy and justified their hold on political power, by cultivating ties to conservative Islamic groups and emphasising party commitment to Islam, in line with societal norms and expectations. They have sought to maintain a balance between the role of modernisers (i.e., involving women in socioeconomic activities) and the incorporation of gender discrimination into the National Women's Development Policy, family laws, and laws around child marriage and dowry prohibition. In addition, the government refuses to challenge conservative voices that promote child marriage, wedding gifts (typically dowry), and domestic violence. Profit-driven microfinance NGOs and legal system corruption further limit women's protection against such patriarchal traditions. Based on these findings, this thesis argues that locally driven development policies involving conservative Islamic groups can advance gender equality in rural Bangladesh by shifting community support towards the promotion of women's rights.

Grantor dc:publisher

UNSW, Sydney

Year dc:date

2023

Author dc:creator

• Kutub, Md Juel Rana

• Patriarchy
• Women's empowerment
• Conservative Islam
• Gender
• Bangladesh
• anzsrc-for: 440107 Social and cultural anthropology

Statement dc:rights

• open access
• CC BY 4.0
• free_to_read

Licence

• https://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_abf2
• https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Language dc:language

en

Identifier

https://doi.org/10.26190/unsworks/25263

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:unsworks.library.unsw.edu.au:1959.4/101556