--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The androcentric, patriarchal cultures…" description: "\"The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you want to call it, are quite new. So, every economic statement should start with reproduction, not p..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg" --- # The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you want… ![“The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you want to call it, are quite new. So, every economic statement should start with reproduction, not production. Every statement for human rights ought to include reproduction as a basic human right, like freedom of speech.” quote by Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg) > “The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you want to call it, are quite new. So, every economic statement should start with reproduction, not production. Every statement for human rights ought to include reproduction as a basic human right, like freedom of speech.” [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Economic systems should prioritize reproduction and human rights over mere production. **In simple terms:** Reproduction is a basic right. Key Takeaway Advocate for reproductive rights. Themes feminism economics human rights Mood activist serious Type political educational When to use this quote - healthcare policy - family planning - labor laws Key Concepts reproductive justice social equity policy reform Questions to Reflect On - How can we shift economic focus? - What policies protect reproductive rights? A Different Perspective Implementation may face political resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Economic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economic/) [Freedom of speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-of-speech/) [Human Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-right/) [Human rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-rights/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Include Reproduction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/include-reproduction-4324605/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [Patriarchal Cultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriarchal-cultures-1466997/) [Productions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/productions/) [Reproduction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reproduction/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Statements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statements/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) ## Related quotes > [Rich cultures, patriarchal cultures, value thin women, like ours; poor ones value fat women. But all patriarchal cultures value weak women. So for women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/rich-cultures-patriarchal-cultures-value-thin-women-like-ours-poor/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [If we were going to address what involves the biggest number of women, reproductive freedom is a fundamental human right - like freedom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/if-we-were-going-to-address-what-involves-the-biggest-number-of-women/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“Domination of women has provided a key link, both socially and symbolically, to the domination of earth, hence the tendency in patriarchal cultures to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosemary-radford-ruether/domination-of-women-has-provided-a-key-link-both-socially-and/) [Rosemary Radford Ruether](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosemary-radford-ruether/) > [“Medusa reminds us that we must not take the female “monster” at face value; that we must not only weigh her beneficent against her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-robbins-dexter/medusa-reminds-us-that-we-must-not-take-the-female-monster-at-face/) [Miriam Robbins Dexter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-robbins-dexter/) > [Freedom of speech is a human right and the foundation upon which democracy is built. Any restriction of freedom of speech is a restriction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deeyah-khan/freedom-of-speech-is-a-human-right-and-the-foundation-upon-which/) [Deeyah Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deeyah-khan/) > [In liberal society we claim that freedom of speech is sacred and therefore has an absolute character. But we know (or should know) that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/talal-asad/in-liberal-society-we-claim-that-freedom-of-speech-is-sacred-and/) [Talal Asad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/talal-asad/) > [It's a fundamental human right to decide to have children or not to have children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/it-s-a-fundamental-human-right-to-decide-to-have-children-or-not-to/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Women well understood how to restrict birth through timing of sexual intercourse, herbs and abortifacients. I suspect the focus on men's control of women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/women-well-understood-how-to-restrict-birth-through-timing-of-sexual/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [It's going to take a while because for the last 500 years patriarchal societies have been devoted to controlling reproduction and that means controlling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/it-s-going-to-take-a-while-because-for-the-last-500-years-patriarchal/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Sexism is not inevitable. It's only about controlling reproduction and therefore controlling women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/sexism-is-not-inevitable-it-s-only-about-controlling-reproduction-and/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Violence against women is clearly not solved, not at all solved, and the reasons for it, which are controlling women's bodies in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/violence-against-women-is-clearly-not-solved-not-at-all-solved-and/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [We are still in various kinds of patriarchal systems. The very definition of patriarchy is that men control women as the means of reproduction,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/we-are-still-in-various-kinds-of-patriarchal-systems-the-very/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I think we're all enmeshed in this political system that is devoted to controlling reproduction. You didn't invent it; I didn't invent it. Thirty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-think-we-re-all-enmeshed-in-this-political-system-that-is-devoted/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Controlling women as the means of reproduction is made even more necessary by any race or caste or class system. It just comes together,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/controlling-women-as-the-means-of-reproduction-is-made-even-more/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Whatever each individual woman is facing; only she knows her biggest challenge. However, if we add up the problems that affect the biggest numbers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/whatever-each-individual-woman-is-facing-only-she-knows-her-biggest/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## More by Gloria Steinem > [People waste more time waiting for someone to take charge of their lives than they do in any other pursuit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/people-waste-more-time-waiting-for-someone-to-take-charge-of-their/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Nothing will happen automatically. Change depends on what you and I do every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/nothing-will-happen-automatically-change-depends-on-what-you-and-i-do/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Women are never again going to be mindless coffee-makers or mindless policy-makers in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/women-are-never-again-going-to-be-mindless-coffee-makers-or-mindless/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [The state of female artists is very good. But the very definition of art has been biased in that 'art' was what men did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-state-of-female-artists-is-very-good-but-the-very-definition-of/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [We will live to see the day that St. Patrick's Cathedral is a child-care center and the pope is no longer a disgrace to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/we-will-live-to-see-the-day-that-st-patrick-s-cathedral-is-a-child/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Just when you thought multi-nationals and crazed consumerism were too big to fight, along comes Naomi Klein with facts, spirit, and news of successful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/just-when-you-thought-multi-nationals-and-crazed-consumerism-were-too/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I don't know Beyoncé, but I have the impression that she's sincere, that she really is a feminist and wanted to put the word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-don-t-know-beyonc-but-i-have-the-impression-that-she-s-sincere-that/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I started out life as a writer, and writers write in part because they don't want to talk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-started-out-life-as-a-writer-and-writers-write-in-part-because-they/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Proust's tea cake has nothing on one hour in a college dorm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/proust-s-tea-cake-has-nothing-on-one-hour-in-a-college-dorm/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Sadomasochiasm - which we know very well doesn't exist in societies that don't have child abuse - is regarded some sort of natural sexual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/sadomasochiasm-which-we-know-very-well-doesn-t-exist-in-societies/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Behave like everything you do matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/behave-like-everything-you-do-matters/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“Part of traveling over years means coming back to the same place and knowing it for the first time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/part-of-traveling-over-years-means-coming-back-to-the-same-place-and/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [If you say, I'm for equal pay, that's a reform. But if you say. I'm a feminist, that's a transformation of society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/if-you-say-i-m-for-equal-pay-that-s-a-reform-but-if-you-say-i-m-a/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I think that part of everybody's success is due to their looks, but it just works in different ways. If you're whatever society calls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-think-that-part-of-everybody-s-success-is-due-to-their-looks-but-it/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Of course, we can change. We're very adaptable. But it takes a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/of-course-we-can-change-we-re-very-adaptable-but-it-takes-a-while/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) [Explore all 766 Gloria Steinem quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## More Communication quotes > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/) [John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/) > [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/) [Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/) > [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/) [Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/) [Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [Disability, in general, hasn't been included in the conversation about inclusivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/disability-in-general-hasn-t-been-included-in-the-conversation-about/) [Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/) > [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/) [Yoram Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoram-wind/) > [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/) [Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/) [Browse all 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you want to call it, are quite new. So, every economic statement should start with reproduction, not production. Every statement for human rights ought to include reproduction as a basic human right, like freedom of speech.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gloria Steinem" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-whatever-you-want-to-call-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Communication" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-whatever-you-want-to-call-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfa/gloria-steinem-277_communication_the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-wh_2120723.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you want to call it, are quite new. So, every economic…” — Gloria Steinem", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gloria Steinem", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The androcentric, patriarchal cultures, whatever you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-whatever-you-want-to-call-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-androcentric-patriarchal-cultures-whatever-you-want-to-call-it/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```