Cynthia Eller

According to the myth of matriarchal prehistory, men and women lived together peacefully before recorded history. Society was centered around women, with their mysterious life-giving powers, and they were honored as incarnations and priestesses of the Great Goddess. Then a transformation occurred, and men thereafter dominated society. Given the universality of patriarchy in recorded history, this vision is understandably appealing for many women. But does it have any basis in fact? And as a myth, does it work for the good of women? Cynthia Eller traces the emergence of the feminist matriarchal myth, explicates its functions, and examines the evidence for and against a matriarchal prehistory. Finally, she explains why this vision of peaceful, woman-centered prehistory is something feminists should be wary of.

Why an Invented Past Won't Give Women a Future

The Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory

In this smart, intimate, and conversational book, Cynthia Eller delves into the twin thickets of gender theory and everyday experience to ask how we decide who is a woman-and why we find the answer important. Is a woman defined by her anatomy? Does she perceive the world differently than men? Is it her behavior that somehow marks her as inescapably female? Or is it a matter of how others evaluate her? Eller's answers demonstrate that the question is far more complicated, and its effects more pernicious, than it might at first appear.

A Skeptic's Guide to Gender

Am I a Woman?

Gentlemen and Amazons traces the nineteenth-century genesis and development of an important contemporary myth about human origins: that of a matriarchal prehistory. Cynthia Eller explores the intellectual history of the myth, which arose not from male scholars who wanted to limit the aspirations of the nascent women's movement and vindicate the patriarchal family model as a higher stage of human development. Eller tells the stories these men told, analyzes the gendered assumptions they made, and describes the moral lessons they drew from the presumed existence of prehistoric matriarchies. She reveals the astonishing variety of advocates who have supported the myth--feminists and misogynists, fascists and communists, sexual puritans and libertarians--and provides the necessary context for understanding how feminists of the 1970s and 1980s embraced as historical "fact" a discredited nineteenth-century idea.

The Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory, 1861–1900

Gentlemen and Amazons

Gentlemen and Amazons traces the nineteenth-century genesis and development of an important contemporary myth about human origins: that of an original prehistoric matriarchy. Cynthia Eller explores the intellectual history of the myth, which arose from male scholars who mostly wanted to vindicate the patriarchal family model as a higher stage of human development. Eller tells the stories these men told, analyzes the gendered assumptions they made, and provides the necessary context for understanding how feminists of the 1970s and 1980s embraced as historical "fact" a discredited nineteenth-century idea.

Eller delves into gender theory and everyday experience to ask how we decide who is a woman and why we find the answer important. Is a woman defined by her anatomy? Does she perceive the world different then men? Is it her behaviour that marks her as inescapably female? Eller's answers demonstrate that it is far more complicated than it might at first appear.

The Feminist Spirituality Movement in America A Choice Outstanding Academic Book of 1994 Through interviews, participantobservation, and analysis of movement literature, Cynthia Eller explores what women who worship the goddess believe; how they express those beliefs in private, in public, and in the political realm; and the place of feminist spirituality in the history of American religion.

Cynthia Eller

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