Piety and Patriarchy: Intersections of Religious Dominance, State Power, and Misogynistic Attitudes in Pakistan

This study aims to critically examine the forked interaction between religious dominance, state power, and misogynistic attitudes in Pakistan, finding how these forces construct and regulate the roles of women in society. The present research deeply analyzes religious sermons, state policies, and media narratives through Foucault's CDA model to unveil the gender-based subjectivity that is constructed and maintained by religious discourse. The investigation further highlights the strategic use of religious discourse, sometimes state-endorsed, that presents women chiefly as bearers of piousness and morality, strengthening the patriarchal norms and limiting feminine authority with an intentional erasure of socially established female figures from the early Islamic period. Focusing on Pakistan, this investigation critiques the prolific power of religious discourse as it is articulated through socio-political structures, including jurisprudence and public controversies, to constrain female agency and codify patriarchal norms. The paper ends with a recommendation for an interpretation of religious texts to avoid patriarchy and prevalent misogynistic behaviour.