Deconstructing Gender

The Power is an inherently feminist work that explores gender’s social constructions through the lens of inequality and divisions between the ideas of male and female in modern society. The narrative introduces this focus with its introductory frame narrative, in which writers Neil and Naomi inhabit a society that is very similar to the real world aside from the fact that it is matriarchal as opposed to the patriarchal societal structures of the real world. After skimming through parts of Neil’s novel, Naomi reacts with surprise at “scenes with male soldiers, male police officers, and boy crime gangs” (2), which both emphasizes the patriarchal state of these power structures in the real world while also indicating that Neil and Naomi’s world is reversed in this regard. Thus, the novel prepares the reader for a thematic exploration of gender divisions as manifestations of cruel...