Abstract
The active presence of women in any form of armed combat has been considered an anomaly, indeed a state of perversion. There are several reasons for this. Throughout history, hegemonic masculinity has been constructed and performed through exclusive access to armed aggression and warfare: recourse to violence has been considered the supreme male prerogative, even the most gendered of all privileges. When women challenge this by staking their claim on these seemingly unalienable rights — be it within rigid, state-authorized parameters or a social insurgency — the very structure of patriarchal society is undermined.
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Notes
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© 2015 Carol Mann
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Mann, C. (2015). Women in Combat: Identifying Global Trends. In: Shekhawat, S. (eds) Female Combatants in Conflict and Peace. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137516565_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137516565_2
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
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