The document discusses the concept of matriarchy in relation to Ernest Hemingway's novel 'For Whom the Bell Tolls', examining the character Pilar as a matriarch and how matriarchy differs from feminism. It explores the historical context and definition of matriarchy, its implications in societies such as the Khasi in Meghalaya, and the potential for women's empowerment in matriarchal settings. The discussion includes references to feminist literary criticism and various examples of matriarchal representations in literature and media.

1. ● Name: Rajeshvariba H. Rana
● Roll No. : 16
● Enrollment No. : 4069206420220023
● Semester: 2nd
● Paper No.: 108
● Paper Code: 22401
● Paper Name: The American Literature
● Topic: ‘Matriarchy’
● Submitted to: Smt. S.B.Gardi, Department of English, MKBU
● E-mail: rhrana148@gmail.com

2. Points to Ponder:
● About Author
● ‘For Whom The Bell Tolls’
● Matriarchy
● Character: Pilar
● Matriarchy and Feminism: Difference
● ‘Khasi’-Meghalaya
● Example
● Conclusion

3. About Author:
Ernest Hemingway (1899 - 1961) was an iconic American
journalist and author, known for his brief and
straightforward style of writing and for the gusto with
which he lived his life.
He served as a war correspondent during the Spanish
Civil War.
He is best known for his novels; most readers are familiar with The Sun Also Rises
(1926), A Farewell to Arms (1929), For Whom the Bell Tolls (1940), and The Old
Man and the Sea (1952).
he received the Pulitzer Prize in 1953 for The Old Man and the Sea and the Nobel
Prize in Literature in 1954.

4. ‘For Whom The Bell Tolls’
‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ is a novel by Ernest Hemingway
published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a
young American volunteer attached to a Republican
guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter,
he is assigned to blow up a bridge during an attack on the
city of Segovia.
It was published just after the end of the Spanish Civil War
(1936–1939).
The title of the novel "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is taken from a poem by John
Donne, which Hemingway also quotes in the novel: "No man is an island, entire of
itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.

5. Matriarchy:
The term ' matriarchy " has been interpreted
by various in various ways . The historic
origins of the word ' matriarchy ' can be traced
to the terms ' matriarch ' and ' patriarch '
which were used to denote the female or male
head of the family or tribe. (Banerjee)
Gradually , in the 19 century , the word "
matriarchy ' came to mean governance by
women over family and the state in the early
human society . ' Matriarchy ' was discussed in
detail by the cultural evolutionists such as
Johann Jakob Bachofen , McLennan and
Morgan . According to the cultural
evolutionists , society evolved from the stage
of ' matriarchy ' to the stage of ' patriarchy '
due to certain factors. (Banerjee)

6. Women started yearning for a better , safer and secure life . ' Matriarchy ' arrived
as a superior stage of cultural evolution where women were accorded a very high
status . In this stage of human life , children took on the names of their mother
and property was also transmitted along female lines . Women were powerful in
all walks of life .
McLennan observes,
“We shall endeavour to show that the most ancient system , in which the idea of
blood relationship was embodied , was a system of kinship through females
only”(Banerjee)
Since the blood ties between the mother and the child was the most natural and
undisputable , it was given great importance by McLennan.

7. Pilar:
In the context of "For Whom the Bell Tolls," Pilar's
leadership role as a matriarch in the guerrilla group
is portrayed positively and is seen as essential for
the group's survival and success.
In the character of Pilar, there is an element of
matriarchy.

8. Matriarchy and Feminism: Difference
According to Cuddon (1999) “Feminist literary criticism questions the long-standing,
dominant, male, phallocentric ideologies (a kind of male conspiracy), patriarchal
attitudes and male interpretations in literature.
(Rana and Rashid)
While matriarchy and feminism share the goal of empowering women, they differ in
their approach.
Matriarchy and feminism are related concepts, but they are not interchangeable.
Matriarchy refers to a social system in which women hold primary positions of
power and authority, while feminism is a social, political, and cultural movement
that seeks to achieve gender equality and dismantle patriarchal power structures
that oppress women and other marginalized groups.

9. While matriarchy has mostly fallen out of use for the anthropological description
of existing societies, it remains current as a concept in feminism. (Weisberg)
Gynarchy generally mean 'government by women over women and men'.
(Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary)

10. The Khasis are a group of people inhabiting the state of
Meghalaya in North - East India.
The Khasis believe that the clan grew out of the family. At the very
beginning of this clan or family was, a woman. The present day
clans of the Khasi society are more or less overgrown families .
(Banerjee)
Khasi :
The Khasi society is almost always considered to be a matrilineal
and not a matriarchal one . A matrilineal society is one which
traces lineage and descent through the mother . A matriarchal
society on the other hand is much wider in context and
encompasses much more aspects than mere descent and lineage.

11. According to H. W. Mawrie,
“One of the foundations of traditional Khasi society is
the recognition of the special and unique role of
women in the fabric of society." (Banerjee)
The relation between the
husband and the wife is not of
superiority or inferiority but
that of mutual understanding
and cooperation which is
essential for the fabric of a
family.

12. Into the Hearts of the Amazons:In Search of a Modern Matriarchy
"Overwhelmed by women's seeming dominance of economic and
ceremonial life , some outside observers came to the conclusion that
Juchitán is a kind of pre - patriarchal , feminist paradise."(DeMott)
TV show: Balika Vadhu
Directed by: Sidharth Sengupta Pradeep Yadav
Character: Dadisa, played by Surekha Sikri
Movie: Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela
Directed by: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Character: Dhankor Baa, played by Supriya Pathak

13. Conclusion :
Matriarchal societies may offer greater opportunities for women's
empowerment and creativity.

14. Works Cited
Banerjee, Roopleena. “‘MATRIARCHY’ AND CONTEMPORARY KHASI SOCIETY.” Proceedings of
the Indian History Congress, vol. 76, 2015, pp. 918–30. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/44156662. Accessed 13 Mar. 2023.
DeMott, Tom. Into the Hearts of the Amazons: In Search of a Modern Matriarchy. University of
Wisconsin Press, 2006. Accessed 13 March 2023.
Rana, Md. Masud, and Amina Rashid. “Feminist Literary Criticism: A Paradigm of Matriarchy in
Literature.” Journal of Literature and Art Studies, vol. 10, no. February,2020, 2020,
https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/68529153/Journal_of_Literature_and_Art_Studies_Issue_2
_Vol.10_2020_February.pdf?1627964038=&response-content-
disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DJournal_of_Literature_and_Art_Studies_Is.pdf&Expires=167
8676541&Signature=Hx.
Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary. Random House, 2001. Accessed 13 March 2023.
Weisberg, D. Kelly, editor. Applications of Feminist Legal Theory to Women's Lives: Sex, Violence,
Work, and Reproduction. Temple University Press, 1996.

15. Thankyou