For centuries, we’ve been conditioned to believe that the patriarchy, a societal construct dominated by men, was built to benefit men and men alone.
This assumption, though convenient, misses a deeper and perhaps more profound truth: men, consciously or not, have built society for women.
Think about it.
If the motivations behind humanity’s greatest advancements were purely self-serving, wouldn’t the story have ended at the discovery of fire?
With warmth, sustenance, and an endless supply of fermented indulgences, what more would men need?
Survival, after all, doesn’t require skyscrapers, symphonies, or satellites.
Yet, humanity didn’t stop there.
Men, often driven by what can only be described as a primal, almost spiritual need to create, protect, and provide, moved beyond the basic.
They built civilizations, established institutions, and achieved breathtaking feats of science and art.
Was this for themselves?
History and human nature suggest otherwise.
The heart of the matter lies not in dominance but in devotion.
Beneath the layers of ego and ambition exists a quiet truth: men have strived, toiled, and sacrificed for the woman who waits, for the possibility of love returned, for the hope of a better world that she might inhabit.
This isn’t to suggest that women owe men a debt for these efforts.
Far from it.
If anything, this dynamic underscores the interdependence of the genders, the way men and women inspire, challenge, and complete one another.
Where men have built, women have shaped.
Where men have pushed boundaries, women have defined meaning.
But this is where the narrative shifts.
Recognizing this truth doesn’t erase the inequities or excuse the injustices perpetuated by the very systems men created.
Patriarchy, as we know it, has been flawed and oppressive.
Its mechanisms have often silenced the very voices that inspired its existence.
What if we reframed the conversation?
What if we acknowledged the why behind the patriarchy’s creation, while also challenging its failings?
By understanding the motivations—both selfless and selfish—that shaped society, we can dismantle what doesn’t serve us anymore and rebuild a structure rooted in mutual respect, equity, and shared purpose.
Because the truth is, outside of “you, milady,” all else is trivial.
And perhaps it’s time we built a world that reflects that sentiment in its truest, most inclusive form.
With love, yours truly, Cristian, in collaboration with ChatGPT.