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Subjects · Leaving Cert Politics & Society

Leaving Cert Politics & Society: Patriarchy & gender inequality

How often Patriarchy & gender inequality comes up on the Politics & Society papers, every year it was asked, and questions to try.

HL Asked on 7 of the last 7 Higher Level papers, most recently in 2025. banker

OL Asked on 7 of the last 7 Ordinary Level papers, most recently in 2025. banker

Patriarchy & gender inequality, Higher Level(7 marks)

Quick ones on Patriarchy & gender inequality.

(a)What is patriarchy?
  1. A society ruled by the elderly
  2. A system in which men dominate women
  3. Rule by religious leaders
(b)Walby says Western societies moved from private to public patriarchy. What is public patriarchy?
  1. Men and women sharing fully equal power in public life
  2. Women kept out of paid work and public life altogether
  3. Women in public life but segregated and lower paid
(c)Which of these is one of Walby's six structures of patriarchy?
  1. Household production
  2. Religious institutions
  3. Social class relations
Show the answers

(a) A system in which men dominate women

(b) Women in public life but segregated and lower paid

(c) Household production

Your turn: Higher Level questions on Patriarchy & gender inequality.

Higher Level

Asked on 7 of the last 7 Higher Level papers, most recently in 2025. banker

Every paper, year by year

YearWhere it came up
2025Q1e
2024Q2
2023Q1j, Q1l
2022Q6
2021Q7
2019Q1g, Q2
2018Q1k, Q4a

Links open the State Examinations Commission’s paper for that year.

More Patriarchy & gender inequality questions

Patriarchy & gender inequality, 2 marks

Which of Walby's structures covers laws and policies that disadvantage women?

  1. Culture
  2. Paid work
  3. The state
Show the answer

The state

Walby argues the state has often acted in men's interests, e.g. through laws on work, family and violence, even though it has also passed equality laws.

Patriarchy & gender inequality, 3 marks

Why does Walby treat male violence as a structure of patriarchy, not just individual acts?

  1. It is caused by alcohol alone, not by power
  2. It is patterned and shapes women's behaviour
  3. It happens only in wartime and conflict zones
Show the answer

It is patterned and shapes women's behaviour

Walby argues violence against women is systematic, and the fear it creates limits women's freedom, often with weak state response.

Patriarchy & gender inequality, 2 marks

What was the 'marriage bar' in Ireland?

  1. A rule making women leave public jobs on marrying
  2. A ban on divorce written into the Constitution
  3. A rule barring married women from voting in elections
Show the answer

A rule making women leave public jobs on marrying

Married women had to leave the civil service and other jobs. It was lifted for the civil service in 1973, an example of the state as a structure of patriarchy.

Ordinary Level

Asked on 7 of the last 7 Ordinary Level papers, most recently in 2025. banker

Every paper, year by year

YearWhere it came up
2025Q1f
2024Q1r, Q7
2023Q1k, Q1p
2022Q1r
2021Q1b, Q1c, Q1m, Q4
2019Q1q
2018Q1i, Q6

Links open the State Examinations Commission’s paper for that year.

More Patriarchy & gender inequality questions

Patriarchy & gender inequality, 2 marks

What does 'patriarchy' mean?

  1. Rule by elected parents' groups
  2. A system where power passes to the eldest daughter
  3. A social system in which men hold most power
Show the answer

A social system in which men hold most power

In a patriarchy men dominate key positions in politics, work and family life. The course asks you to judge whether modern Irish society is still a patriarchy.

Patriarchy & gender inequality, 3 marks

Sylvia Walby describes 'private patriarchy'. What does it mean?

  1. Men running private schools
  2. Women's lives controlled mainly within the home
  3. Women excluded only from private companies
Show the answer

Women's lives controlled mainly within the home

Walby said women were once confined to the household under a husband or father (private). Now women are in public life but face lower pay and fewer top roles (public patriarchy).

Patriarchy & gender inequality, 2 marks

What is the 'gender pay gap'?

  1. The difference in average pay between men and women
  2. The legal rule that men and women get equal pay
  3. The gap between minimum and average pay
Show the answer

The difference in average pay between men and women

Under the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021, larger Irish employers must publish their gap. It reflects fewer women in top jobs and more women in part-time or care roles.

Other Politics & Society topics

All of Leaving Cert Politics & Society