Reading about a culture where women are valued more than men. Short (wanted it to be short but ended up explaining too much but I'll leave it in case anyone finds it interesting) summary: There are traditional gender roles in their society. Adult women tend not to compete in or pursue careers that involve physical skills befitting a warrior, though they are not barred from such a path. Men traditionally are expected to fill the more laborious roles so they can better protect and honor women, who are held sacred to their Goddess. Women normally pursue spiritual, scholarly and artistic matters. Though there are some exceptions to these gender roles, religious leaders are always women. Their government is organised by religion, with a High Council as the highest authority which is made up of High Priestesses. A priestesses role is as political as it is religious as one is expected to guide and lead their people in a way befitting their Goddesses wishes. Because only women can be religious leaders men can only find political power by being the lover, mate or consort of a woman. A lot of stuff to sort through if you were just looking for the specific part I wanted to know but I hope you find it interesting and hope I put it in the right topic/area/whatever as this is the first time using this site :)
Responses (1)
Dear irish,
Mate: Usually indicates a strong intimate bond, especially with children.
Lover: Usually indicates a looser sexual often secret relationship, especially without children.
Consort: Usually the mate or lover of someone prestigious married to someone else.
Technically all these words mean the same thing, but these are the subtleties of literature.
Hope this helps.
Thank you very much for the response! I find myself having difficulties differentiating these sort of things and if I hope to become a writer one day I'll need all the help I can get so thanks again for helping me with this! When I become an award winning author I may make a reference to the great Moe of House Biggley :)