The Gender Knot: Unraveling our Patriarchal Legacy

In The Gender Knot, Johnson explains how the sexism people experience is a direct result of the patriarchal structure of our society. He details how the average person helps reinforce the patriarchy by avoiding questioning the status quo, arguing that since men directly benefit from patriarchy, they must contribute to the feminist movement by addressing their own male privilege. He dissects the phenomenon that men can be both privileged and made to feel powerless by the patriarchy. He uses the Tree of patriarchy as a way to visualize the system of patriarchy. He also criticizes the use of the word misandry and the motives of the men's rights movement.

Johnson does not put patriarchy in an historical box. He claims it comes from how men believe in the strength of their role as key providers and being naturally more independent than their female counterparts. He thus purports that it is the belief of men and how they act on that belief that has resulted in a lack of willingness to eliminate the patriarchy. Johnson also discusses how hard it is to protest to the current status patriarchy holds in society today.

In the last section of the book Johnson brings up his personal notions on how the gender knot can indeed be unraveled. Given the existence of the knot, it is hard for anyone to see their personal role in it. Ultimately though, every one of us are the victims of a patriarchal society and the only way to combat it in America today is to become aware of it and take responsibility for it.

Critical reception for The Gender Knot has been positive.[2][3] Abby L. Ferber, writing for Gender and Society, called The Gender Knot "a unique book that fills a void in the literature on gender."[4] In Off Our Backs, Karla Mantilla called it "a brilliant accounting of patriarchy."[5] In a review for Contemporary Sociology, Rebecca Bach states that Johnson follows the tradition of "the best of feminist theory" in his writing.[6]