was it normal for women to be abused?

Question

by husbands/men? also couldn't men kill their wives if they refused them sex.
were men not ever punished for this?

Answer 1

I think Men started abusing women to make themselves feel more important. It's hard to compete with the overwhelming power and gift of child birth. By over powering her he feels like a big tough man...cue chest beating.

Any man that abuses a woman should have his bits cut off....we'll see how big of man he is after that! I'd be happy to offer my services for administering the punishment. I wouldn't even charge for it!

To answer the question...no it's not normal!

Answer 2

I wouldn't say it was normal per se, but yes, men were permitted to beat their wives.

In fact the "rule of thumb" was that men couldn't beat their wives with a stick wider than their thumbs. That's where the term came from.

Women's only role was to be obedient to her husband, she was nothing more than the "head housekeeper" of his household. She bore his offspring, he was the sole provider, and ruler of his household, and he ran the house the way he saw fit.

No men were not punished for mistreating their wives. So,i guess in a sense, back then it was considered "normal". Sick, huh?

He didn't have to kill her, very often women died giving birth because she bore the child alone, often. Sometimes there may have been midwives, who were not trained medically, they were other wives who gathered when the wife gave birth.

She was chastised by society and was thought of as the loser if she left her husband to escape the beatings and the amount of abuse she had to endure. When she did attempt to escape, her parents or neighbours would make her go back. There was no protection or any respect for women back then. They were nothing more than subhumans. Subservient, submissive, subordinates.

Womens rights movements have made big strides to make positive changes for women.

Answer 3

"Normal" is not the word I would use..."common"...perhaps. It also depends on "where" and "when" you're talking about. Old British law made it legal for a man to beat his wife, depending on her "transgression" with a whip or fists, or "lesser" corporal punishment for a lesser transgression. Someone mentioned Chaucer...the Wife of Bath in her prologue relates how her fifth husband beat her, and indeed, this would have been perfectly legal then. And while U.S. federal law never had any laws making it legal for a husband to physically "chastise" his wife, many states in the U.S. did. One old Florida stated that "a man may beat his wife on Sunday, but only on the courthouse steps" (??!!). As for men being punished for this, again, it depends on where and when we're talking about. Some New England colonies did condemn wife beating, and the husband could himself be whipped for beating his wife, but it appears that this is the only instance of men being punished for spousal abuse in Western society until the last century. As for men legally killing their wives for refusal of sex...they could divorce them, but not murder them.

Answer 4

No not at all,It is not normal for a woman to be abused,It mainly happens of lack of understanding between the couple.And in the present days women are proving that the r no way less than a male in all the fields. And coming to the point of killing a wife only happens at extreme end of the Patience of the husband.And there is a law to punish them if they are proved guilty.

Answer 5

Does your hubby refuse to give sex to you?

I think a guy is more likely to "cheat" if his wife won't have sex with him. He's not that likely to kll her.

Keep in mind that (in the old days when you needed a legal reason) not having sex was a legal reason to get divorced.

On the other hand, I've seen some real wacko women. And, I think they are more likely to get abused --- even if it's not right.

Keep in mind that for millions of years, women have likely been abused a lot --- until possibly the past 1000 years or so.

Answer 6

The question is not naive at all because many people in many cultures really believe that it is normal. It is called the STRUCTURAL VIOLENCE and that is why it gives the impression that it is normal. Where the whole system of hidden relations, explanations and justifications goes in favor of the abuser and not in favor of the victim, it gives him the full freedom to do with his victim whatever he wants. The victim is perceived as the only responsible for what happened to her and as it was all her fault. Finally it turns to protecting abuser from his own victim. Does it look normal? This system of believings is based on patriarchal mentality that accepts a man as the owner of his family members and having all rights, even upon their physical and mental integrity. That is why it was rather perceived as normal than as a crime - what it actually is. Even in our, Western culture, the law against domestic violence met many obstacles in its establishing. Even today, many women still don't trust enough to institutions and legal offices because their closest surrounding (family, friends, neighbors) is not yet supportive enough to protect them until the legal process is finished ("it is not of my business", "you should save your marriage", "you probably did something wrong", "you should understand HIM", blah, blah, blah).

Answer 7

The answer to this question depends on varying cultures. Here in Australia, where I reside, it is condemned to treat women this way, whereas, in other cultures it may be a normal practice for this type of abuse to occur.

Answer 8

Despite kooks ranting and raving about "patriarchal societies" it was never "normal" in western civilization to abuse women, and women were not "subservient" to men. Read Chaucer's Canterbury Tales from, oh, 600 years ago and you'll realize relations between the sexes were not much different than they are today.

Also, you can read the coorespondence between John and Abigail Adams and draw the same conclusion about the late 18th/early 19th century.

My comments apply to western civilizations, not, well, you know....

Answer 9

if you are talking about the 1800's then yes. men thought they were superior over women. but they never killed them for refusing them sex.

Answer 10

you are naive to ask such a question.
study the history of the world and you will see this abuse still goes on today..only a small group of criminals will be punished for their crimes.
no one is safe from abuse.men,women, children and animals.