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{{trope}}
In a fantasy world where women are considered to be the ruling gender and men are not, unlike the opposite that occurs in the overwhelming majority of civilizations in the real world, it raises some problems. Most writers do not have experience living in a civilization where women are the ruling class, and, as [[Most Writers Are Male]], they can often be a little less mindful of what about female behaviour is naturally female and what is a sexist distortion. And if they're writing a Sexy Matriarchy for personal gratification purposes, they aren't going to really care. This is all very well and good, but it can cause [[Selective Squick]] for viewers who are seeking examples of genuinely assertive female characters in a believable speculative fiction setting.
That's when you get a Matriarchy In Name Only - a world where, despite women technically being in charge, the society contains very strong elements of a patriarchy. Maybe the men are supposedly treated as sex objects, but women dress in sexy clothes to impress their male slaves. Maybe the women rule by staying at home, and the men go out to [[Men Act, Women Are|actually influence the plot]]. Or maybe the main arbiters of power are women, but they all bow to a male demon that mind-controls their entire race. Whatever it is, it's clear that this world reflects our [[Gender Dynamics Index|beliefs about gender.]] For those not used to this kind of analysis, it could be worth asking some of the following questions to a prospective "matriarchy":
# Ignoring ceremonial titles, who gets their ideas realized in this society?
# In practice, which gender has the most to choose from in terms of lifestyle?
# Following that, who is representing the culture to the outside world as well as to the audience?
# Is it possible to see the [[Male Gaze]] in how the society is depicted?
# How do male and female characters actually value the genders and things associated with them?
A subtrope of [[Matriarchy]]. Can overlap with, or be the cause of, Sexy Matriarchy and Sexist Matriarchy. May also occur in Enlightened Matriarchies. Also includes societies that are supposed to be gender-equal, but show signs of still being skewed towards men. This can be done as a serious satirical point, and is not automatically sexist.
Can be a subtrope of the [[Rule
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{{examples
== Anime and Manga ==
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== Literature ==
* ''[[The Wheel of Time]]''
* The dragons in ''[[Dragonriders of Pern]]''
** Pern itself is a straight-up patriarchy for the most part, but within the Weyr, the Weyrwoman (the queen dragon's rider) is also at the head of an alleged matriarchy: as the queen's rider, she's supposed to be the main player in the Weyr...but only in terms of the domestic, day-to-day running of the place. In
* Intentionally reversed in [[
* In ''[[Nobodys Princess]]'' of the ''Princesses of Myth'' series a woman is talking to the brothers of Helen of Troy, about how they'll be king someday. When she finds out that in their country the daughter is going to inherit the crown she wants to talk about how the sons will be warriors.
== Live-Action TV ==
* The Romulans of ''[[Star Trek]]'' are often described by [[Word of God]] as matriarchal, but in practice this seems to have almost no effect on what we see of
== Tabletop RPGs ==
* The Drow in ''[[Dungeons
* [[Traveller]]: Played with among Aslan. Male and Female Aslan are roughly equal in status but their domination of separate roles make them a [[Fantastic Caste System]].
* The Realm in ''[[Exalted]]'' is described as a mildly matriarchal society (albeit one where other prejudices matter a lot more than sexism). However, the canonical books have a lot of information about life in the Realm, and there's absolutely no sign that men face any kind of discrimination whatsoever, or that male authority figures are considered even slightly unusual. To all appearances, it's really a strictly gender-egalitarian society that happens to be led by an Empress.
== Video Games ==
* The salarians of ''[[Mass Effect]]'' have strict "matriarchal" gender roles, but in practice this results in all the women being [[Stay in
* ''[[
* The Night Elves of ''[[World of Warcraft]]''. On the surface it looks
* The Qunari of [[Dragon Age]] are said to have women hold the political power at
* The Liontaurs of ''[[Quest for Glory]] III'' are described as having a social structure that mimics that of real-world lions. Males are believed to be too emotional to make good decisions, so the society is governed by a ruling council of females; while there's a king, he's supposedly a powerless figurehead. In the actual game, though, you spend a lot of time trying to influence the king's opinion and very little on the council, just as if his opinion was the one that actually counted.
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[[Category:Speculative Fiction Tropes]]
[[Category:Gender and Sexuality Tropes]]
[[Category:
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