人类两性地位的变化，是与生产力的发展分不开的。原始社会时期，生产力极其低下，社会充满了恐惧与威胁，人们经常因为各种原因而死亡，导致人口数量锐减，而人口数量对于一个氏族的生存尤为重要。于是人们一方面想办法让自己活下去，另一方面则把希望寄托于生出 更多的孩子来，这使女性受到人们的崇拜，这应该是中国女性最值得骄傲的时期———母系氏族时期。生活在这个时期的女性应该说是“生正逢时”。虽然她们不能和现代的女性相比，但是最起码在男人面前还是有身份有地位的。然而封建私有制的出现却彻底改变了她们的命运， 而且这一改变就是两千多年。

Changes in the gender hierarchy are inextricable from the evolution of productivity. Primitive society was characterized by extremely low productivity and beset by a plethora of fears and threats. Mortality was high because of various causes of death, which led to a drastic population decline. As population size was crucial for clan survival, people looked for ways to extend their lifespans while pinning their hopes on increased procreation. As a result, women became highly venerated. China entered into what should have been the proudest period for its women—the matriarchal era. Women back then were supposedly “living in their golden age”. Though their status is not to be mentioned in the same breath as that of modern women, they did enjoy a respectable position that was at least comparable to that of men. Nevertheless, with the emergence of feudal private ownership, their fate turned around, and this state persisted for as long as two millennia.