Kelley Walker wrote:
>
> there is an argument that women's
> subordination was the result of advancements in technological knowledge of
> reproduction and the attempt to limit women's sexual activity so that
> wealth could be passed to the 'right' offspring.
This a fairly old argument, and has a sort of instant acceptability. I accepted it for a long time. But I wonder -- what was the origin of the desire to pass on wealth to the 'right' offspring? A ruling class has strong motives to prevent the parcellization of wealth. If I remember correctly, that was what destroyed the 'first' French feudalism. But (a) this motive is satisfied merely by restricting heirs to one. right or wrong, and (b) more importantly, it presupposes a ruling class -- the origin of which is what needs to be explained.
Most attempts to 'explain' the origins of women's subordination seem to simply read current motives into the past.
Carrol