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In the movie world of Barbie, all of the actresses play the titular character. There’s Doctor Barbie, President Barbie, Scientist Barbie. Actress Alexandra Shipp plays Writer Barbie (obviously the Barbie nearest and dearest to Choose Your Own Adventure’s heart). The first time she stepped onto the movie set she cried. Not only was Barbieland matriarchal (a society where women hold power and authority), but the real world film set was too, with female director Greta Gerwig and female producer Margo Robbie.
It gives none of the movie away to say that Barbieland is a matriarchy dream come true. Women govern, women discover, women build—even the Supreme Court in the world of Barbie is all women. But it begs the question: have societies like Barbieland existed before?
1967 'Twist and Turn' Barbie, The Strong Museum of Play| Shannon Gilligan
Powerful female societies remain for the most part a mystery. A theory that matriarchies preceded patriarchies (societies in which men hold the power and authority) in history hasn’t been proven, and no one really knows how many have existed in the world. Of course, women have held positions of power, but they tend to be singular events. In over 3,000 years of Egypt’s history, six women became female “kings.” Cleopatra was the most famous of these, but they were brief reigns and only happened as the last option in a failing family line. (In fact, most of them were only given temporary power to protect the throne for the next male in line.)
What we do know from a 2019 study published by the Royal Society is that there are around 160 CURRENT societies that are matrilineal (a system of belonging that runs through the mother’s lineage, meaning daughters inherit land or power).
A few notable matrilineal societies are the Akan in Ghana (where property is passed down through women), the Bribri in Costa Rica (where culture, tradition, and land are passed down through women), and the Khasi in the northeastern Indian state of Meghalaya (where the youngest daughter is seen as the head of the family and inherits her mother’s wealth and property). The Minangkabau in Indonesia is the world’s largest matrilineal society, with a population of over five million people. Women make the important decisions there, and everything from houses to land to livestock are passed down from mother to daughter. The husbands even move into their wives’ homes when they get married.
The Mosuo in southwestern China are deeply matriarchal. Property is passed down through the female line and women are the primary decision-makers in both the personal and public realms. They don’t get married; instead, they enter into what are called “walking marriages.” A man will literally walk to the woman’s house when they want to be together and must leave before sunrise. The children they have together are raised by their mother (and the mother’s brothers who live with her) and the relationships between the man and woman can be ended simply, even when children are involved.
Exploring The ‘Kingdom Of Women’ In China |Today
While most of the roots of these matrilineal societies are still hidden, one very cool object from antiquity has been unearthed. Science journalist and author Angela Saini writes in her book, The Patriarchs: How Men Came to Rule, about a particular clay figure found during an archeological dig in what is now the Republic of Türkiye (Turkey). In the midst of hundreds of small, female fertility figures, this one stands out. “Seated Woman of Çatalhöyük” depicts a woman sitting, her back perfectly straight and her hands on the heads of two big, wild cats on either side of her. She exudes a quiet and focused strength and, according to Saini, demands a sense of respect and maybe even awe. It is from her singular presence that the archeologist who dug her up—James Mellaart—claimed her ancient society, Çatalhöyük, (which existed approximately 6,000 BC—5,000 years before the pyramids) had not only been a matriarchy, but a society that worshiped goddesses. Perhaps. But no one actually knows.
Seated Woman of Çatalhöyük |Museum of Anatolian Civilizations/AAP
What we do know is that the “Seated Woman of Çatalhöyük'' is not pose-able because she is made of clay. On the positive side she is, of course, seated, which is more comfortable than standing 24/7 on tiptoes—which brings us back to Barbie and the world of MatriMattel. (We made that up. Not bad, right?) It’s not a spoiler to say that the movie’s ultimate message is more nuanced than “matriarchies are better than patriarchies.” And what about the idea that a matriarchy is not simply the opposite of a patriarchy? Just substituting women for men in a familiar structure may not be the improvement we’re looking for. What might be a totally different paradigm? Much like the current wildly popular film, it’s worth discussing!
Recommended Reading
Choose Your Own Adventure Spies: Spy for Cleopatra
by Katherine Factor
It is circa 400 A.D. and you are a young person living in ancient Egypt. You are studying with the powerful philosopher and mathematician, Hypatia. Hypatia's formulas and inventions will change the course of history, but she can't let go of an event from the past. She needs you to travel back in time to the age of Cleopatra in order to change history so the Library of Alexandria can be saved from destruction by fire. Can you do what's needed to preserve the world's most important knowledge?
Folk wisdom around the world has used animals for centuries to help predict weather. Wolves howl before a storm. Cows lie down in anticipation of rain. If a groundhog sees its shadow, spring will be delayed another six weeks. And if you see a woolly bear caterpillar with thick black bands around its rust-colored middle, get prepared for a cold, snowy winter.
Are any of these true? Sometimes. (A broken clock tells the right time twice a day, as the saying goes.) But sometimes not. (Woolly bear bands indicate the age of the caterpillar, not if a long winter lies ahead.)
Veery in Central Park, NYC | Rhododendrites
One species of bird, though, does predict the weather. A twenty-year-long study published in Scientific Report in 2018 found that the Veery Thrush can predict hurricanes. In fact, in three of the last four Atlantic hurricane seasons, Veeries have been more accurate at forecasting hurricanes than meteorological computers.
The Veery is a bright, cinnamon-colored, medium-sized thrush. These songbirds weigh about thirty grams (the weight of twelve pennies) and have round bodies and heads, thin beaks, and long wings and legs. They live in the spring and summer in deciduous forests in the northern United States and southern Canada. They migrate in the colder months to South America. Honestly, Veeries seem fairly unremarkable. They blend in with their landscapes and don’t draw attention to themselves—except at dusk and dawn when they sing a distinctive song; a sort of downward-spiraling sound that is uniquely theirs.
Veery Research at White Clay Creek State Park | Delaware State Park
In fact, Veery Thrushes have a super power. They can sense hurricanes extremely accurately. Their fall migration to South America coincides with the hurricane season (from August through October), but long before that—when they are summering in South America—they know how bad the hurricanes will be. Then they hold onto that information and adjust their breeding and migration habits in North America and Canada. When the hurricane season is going to be bad, they nest earlier, lay fewer eggs, and leave for South America early. Thus avoiding travel during a hurricane allows them the best chance for survival!
Range Map for the Veery (yellow = breeding, blue = wintering) | Stongey, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Hurricane divining (or prediction) is a brilliant evolutionary skill, but it is mysterious too. Orinologist and researcher Christopher Heckscher says more study is needed to fully understand how Veeries are able to do what they do. After years of tracking Veeries with GPS loggers looped around their wings like tiny backpacks, Heckscher hypothesizes that the species is attuned to “precipitation patterns linked to the El Niño and La Niña cycles that influence hurricane activity.” Once the birds sense these patterns, something shifts in their blood chemistry or hormone levels, which alters their behaviors.
But climate change is messing with the Veeries’ crystal ball abilities. Hurricanes are tending to grow from smaller storms to larger ones, while traveling across the ocean at slower speeds. This could result in all migratory birds—Veeries included—facing more danger as they fly, with a bigger risk of heading into a storm and being blown off track, being forced to land in the wrong place, or even killed. This, combined with shorter breeding seasons, may cause these amazing birds to become endangered.
However, there is one more weather prognosticator who may be just fine with any bird endangerment: crickets! These insects can give you accurate temperature information by the number of chirps they emit. A scientist named Amos Dolbear figured this out in 1897.
You count their chirps for 15 seconds, then add forty, and voila! That’s the temperature in Fahrenheit degrees. Seriously. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration even has a cricket chirp converter!
Learn more about the Veery Thrush and flocks of other birds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s online guide to birds or by taking Britannica’s ultimate bird quiz!
College newspapers are a vital part of a college community. They report on breaking local news and are integral to holding the history of the school. (“Who played on the 2001 women’s soccer team?” Check the archives. “What stance did the college take during the Vietnam War?” Check the archives.) Most importantly, though, college newspapers do three things: they provide a foundation for healthy debate on campuses, train future journalists, and place checks and balances on school administrations. They can also boost student activism and protest, evidenced during the Black Lives Matter movement.
Original Vermont Cynic Masthead
Recently, though, these pillars have been on shaky ground. Many school newspapers are not truly independent anymore. They often rely on the university for funding. And while this is not necessarily a free speech issue in and of itself, too often it becomes one. Will this make the school look good? Print it. Will it make us look bad? Nix it. Administrative business at universities is increasingly conducted behind closed doors, student journalists struggle more to obtain school records, new procedures mean that articles are previewed before they are published, and faculty advisors have even been threatened with being fired.
And while jobs in newsrooms seem to be on a steady decline, it’s more important than ever for college newspapers to thrive and foster careers in independent journalism. They are able to reach a unique audience of local residents and a diverse student body—and they are fueled by the energy, passion, and perseverance of young adults on a mission.
The Vermont Cynic
We are lucky enough to have one of those energetic, passionate, and gritty students on staff this summer here at Choose Your Own Adventure. Eamon Dunn is entering his senior year at the University of Vermont (UVM) and is the co-Editor-in-Chief of The Vermont Cynic.
Hi Eamon! Can you tell us a little about The Vermont Cynic?
The Vermont Cynic is one of the oldest college newspapers in the country, dating back to 1883. Now we create a bunch of content beyond traditional journalism, including podcasts and various forms of digital media. The staff is made up completely of students, the vast majority of whom are volunteers. It’s a space where all sorts of artists and writers from different backgrounds come together to create something really wonderful. The sense of community that’s born through that shared sense of purpose and our work toward a common goal is really special.
Eamon Dunn
It sounds special. Can you tell us a little about your role at the paper?
I started at The Cynic during the fall semester of my sophomore year as a culture writer. I really fell in love with culture writing—
Why?
—because of the possibilities for different types of stories you could write in that section. My junior year I became the culture editor. I did that for a year until I transitioned into my current role of co-Editor-in-Chief, which I’ll be doing alongside my partner, Grace Visco, who was the former opinion section editor. It’s already proving to be a tremendous amount of work, but I have a really fantastic team of editors and I’m really excited to see what we can get done.
Do you know the history and evolution of The Cynic?
It started back in 1883, but was originally titled The University Cynic and more closely resembled a literary magazine than a traditional newspaper. It evolved into what it is today in the early 1900s and served as UVM students’ main source of global news for about the next hundred years, until the internet was able to offer more comprehensive coverage of worldwide events. The Cynic stopped printing during the COVID-19 pandemic and switched to completely online, then when things with the university started ramping back up to in-person, we went with a hybrid model of printing and digital. Last year, we decided to make the switch to completely digital for the foreseeable future.
Why?
Like so many community newspapers, we decided it just wasn’t worth the cost and effort for an increasingly online readership.
What is the newspaper’s main focus and purpose these days?
The main focus of the paper is based in community. I mean both internally, giving our staff a place to develop their skills and showcase their talents, as well as work towards a common goal, and also in the broader sense, serving the community by providing unbiased information about what is happening and what people are thinking.
A lot of that for me, as the former culture editor, has been focused around art and joy. The fact that UVM is a place where people are doing such fun and adventurous things—from starting bands to creating new clubs—is really wonderful. A lot of the news we consume is focused on heavy and difficult topics and, of course, they need a space to be brought to our attention, but there’s also a lot of value in saying “this is your community, these are the people doing amazing things, we’re making the time to celebrate them.”
Oh yes, that is so true!
That being said, we’re also focused on uncovering injustices in our community. If the administration breaks a promise or violates students rights, we’re the ones who report on that. It’s up to us to make sure those things come to light. If people don’t know what’s going on, there’s no pathway toward justice.
Is The Cynic truly independent?
We are completely independent. We get money from the school allotted through the Student Government Association, and we have a student media advisor, but nobody outside of the team of student editors has any prior review of articles. Nobody tells us what to report on or has the capacity to block us from publishing a story. That editorial independence is really critical to the mission of our organization. It has allowed us to really hold the feet of UVM’s administration to the fire and challenge what’s happening on campus without having to worry that the doors to our newsroom will close as a result.
That’s so good to hear because that kind of freedom isn’t a given. Have book banning, censorship, education challenges, and politics in general affected the paper?
One of my biggest fears is that students will be worried about being honest in their columns. I think, in general, there’s a shift happening on college campuses toward groupthink and people not voicing their opinions for fear of being called out. A really important pillar of The Cynic is our commitment to free speech, and of course this is nuanced and there are things we won’t tolerate and give a platform to, but the reality is that UVM, like our country, is made up of people of all different identities and beliefs. We need to be able to tolerate people having a different perspective in order to make progress, and if people who might see things differently feel like they can’t voice their opinions, it will lead to further polarization and push people toward extremism.
Making it so people aren’t comfortable voicing their opinions doesn’t mean those people and those opinions disappear, it means that the discourse through which we can understand each other and reach common ground erodes. To me, that is scary and I’m not sure how to really make sure people know that even if I, on a personal level, disagree with what you’re arguing, The Cynic and I (as co-Editor-in-Chief) are committed to letting you articulate yourself. I think that’s the biggest shift that I have noticed, a lack of tolerance for different ideas as the political climate has gotten more contentious and polarizing.
Why do you think a college newspaper is vital to a college campus (and beyond)?
Without newspapers like us, we lose a sense of community. I think a lot of feelings of despair and hopelessness come from this constant flow of global media that we consume. There are a lot of terrible things happening in the world that we don’t have a lot of control over, but you absolutely can make a difference in your own backyard. For that to happen, though, you need to know what's going on. That’s why I would say community media and college newspapers are so vital, they give you a place to start the conversation and open up discourse that leads to change.
Perfectly said. Thank you. And finally, Eamon, what does the word adventure mean to you? And do you see your work with The Cynic as adventurous?
The word adventure means braving the unknown. Adventure is all about taking risks and embracing uncertainty, all while having fun. I think the work I do with The Cynic is extremely adventurous! Nobody knows what’s going to happen next. People might react strongly to an article we publish, there might be a piece of breaking news or we might get a tip that unfolds into something really shocking. Anything could happen, and it’s really exciting.
Thank you, Eamon!
CYOA staff favorites that are giving us nostalgia vibes.
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