What are the true origins of gendered oppression?  Why does gender inequality persist despite efforts for change? What part do we all play in keeping patriarchal structures alive?  

In June 2023 award-winning science journalist Angela Saini came to Intelligence Squared to address these questions and challenge long-held beliefs about gender and power. In conversation with acclaimed zoologist Lucy Cooke she draew on the themes of her radical new book, The Patriarchs: How Men Came to Rule, and reveal the complex history of how male domination became embedded in societies across the globe from prehistory to the present.

By drawing on extensive research in science, archaeology and cultural and political history, Saini exposed the fragility of the idea that gender inequality is rooted and unalterable and showed the extent to which patriarchy has varied across different geographical and cultural contexts. She also asks the vital question: what role do we all – women included – play in perpetuating patriarchal structures? 

Praise for Angela Saini’s The Patriarchs: How Men Came to Rule

‘I learned something new on every page of this totally essential book. And for such a serious topic, I was surprised to be greatly entertained too. Angela is the best possible guide.’ – Sathnam Sanghera

‘The Patriarchs is an optimistic book, therefore. Not least, it shows that more equal societies are possible and do thrive – historically, now and everywhere. Seeing things from other cultural perspectives really does reveal the way we live in a very different light’ – The Guardian

‘This is a truly excellent, important and insightful book. By unpacking the terms “patriarchy” and “feminism”, Saini reveals that the words themselves have complex histories … A glorious work!’ – Janina Ramirez