La guerre et le rétablissement de la paix parmi les matricultures: Introduction (français)

Abstract

“War,” says Éomer to his sister Éowyn in the blockbuster film The Return of the King, “is the province of men.” Éowyn’s subsequent trajectory as killer of the Witch-King of Angmar contradicts his assertion, but since Éowyn is the only woman fighting on the Fields of Pellenor (and she fights disguised as a man), Éomer’s assertion bears investigation. While it is a frivolous example from Western popular culture, Éomer’s gendered stereotyping of war-making men and (by implication) peace-making women nevertheless has deep cultural roots in societies around the world and extends beyond warfare and peacemaking to touch upon the very nature of femininity and masculinity.

This issue of Matrix pushes beyond gendered stereotyping into a challenging examination of the institutions and customs of matriculture by exploring a variety of situations in which the matricultural system either was weakened or became stronger as a consequence of warfare, and one in which a strong matriculture has contributed towards building peace. (French)

Image caption: March of Defenders of Ukraine on Independence Day, 24 August 2020. © Stanislav Nepochatov