Why do we always eat too much at Christmas? 21 December 2018 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Patriarchy , No Comments Amid all the jollity of Christmas—much of it genuine, some of it forced—it’s an awkward question to ask. It disturbs the glossy patina of pre-Christmas rituals. Putting up the tree and decorating it, […]
Sex in patriarchy – how the past shapes sex today 15 December 2018 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Patriarchy , Sexuality , 1 Comment In A brief history of shame, I wrote how patriarchy arose some 6,000 years ago, giving rise to male dominant, anti-female, anti-sexual societies. Here I’m going to examine the way […]
Meatloaf’s Bat Out of Hell – a rock opera on patriarchy 29 September 2018 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Arts , Patriarchy , 1 Comment Some years ago I wrote how Pink Floyd’s 1979 epic double album The Wall was a complex 26-song cycle about patriarchy and its institutionalised sexual shame. I don’t know […]
Excess, patriarchy and the murder of Stanford White 22 April 2018 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: History , Patriarchy , 1 Comment The media dubbed it—perhaps for the first time—the ‘crime of the century’. On the night of 25 June 1906, Harry K. Thaw shot architect Stanford White at point-blank range in the rooftop […]
Hostiles – no peace with patriarchy 29 December 2017 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Arts , Patriarchy , 1 Comment The advertising hoardings of the London Underground are currently filled with posters for a new film, Hostiles. Scheduled for release in January 2018, Hostiles is described as “a landmark cinematic experience” that “might well […]
The opposite of a patriarchy is not a matriarchy 7 November 2017 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: News , Patriarchy , 1 Comment Recent revelations of sexual abuse in the highest corridors of Hollywood have caused a fundamental shift in gender relations. Suddenly, abuse claims are gaining traction. Hard on the heels of the […]
Why is the 3rd finger our wedding ring finger? 6 October 2017 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Patriarchy , No Comments You know the deal. The bride and groom stand before the altar. The celebrant asks for the ring or, these days, rings. The best man fumbles them—accidentally or on purpose—before handing them over. […]
Shame-based issues #5 – Honour-based violence 3 March 2017 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Patriarchy , Shame , 1 Comment While the term ‘honour-based violence’ is often used in the context of the British Asian community, it includes all violence meted out for infidelity or perceived sexual slights, which all communities are prone to. […]
A brief history of shame 3 March 2017 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Cornerstones , History , Patriarchy , Shame , 12 Comments In What is unconscious shame? I’ve written about how shame affects us today. In What is ancestral trauma? I’ve written about the shame we still unconsciously carry from the dim and […]
If war is to end, so must war stories 20 February 2016 Posted by: Michael H Hallett Category: Arts , Patriarchy , 1 Comment Ca-ching! Multiplex cash registers around the world are still sizzling hot from the record-breaking box office performance of The Force Awakens, episode seven of the long-running Star Wars saga. Star Wars Inside […]