Patriarchal Usurpation of the Modjadji Dynasty: A Gender-critical Reading of the History and Reign of the Modjadji Rain Queens

The setting of the Modjadji dynasty is on the one hand in a South African democraticspace with an appraisal of women’s rights, and on the other hand in a rural traditionalistsetting where women have a designated place under patriarchy. How the queensnavigate their rule, in circumstances where the modern and traditional seek to occupythe same space, requires a gender-critical reading. Questions about their ability toautonomously dispense their duties as queens and exercise freedom over theirlivelihoods in a culture that emanates from a patriarchal rule, inform the core objectivesin this article. Diverging from the western form of feminism, which has been suspected ofuniversalising challenges faced by women like Vashti and Esther, to African feminismthat is more context-based, helps in unearthing patriarchal traits directly affecting Africanwomen. The intention is not to discredit one form of feminism or the other, but to explorehow such a fusion can help in the emancipation of women, as this is the goal of Africanfeminism.