Introduction -- The traditional base : civilizations and patriarchy -- Early contacts : influences from cultural diversity -- Buddhism and Chinese women -- Islamic standards outside the heartland : changes and continuities in India and sub-Saharan Africa -- The Chinese influence -- Europeans and Native Americans -- Men and women amid British imperialism in India -- Western influences and regional reactions : Polynesia and Africa -- Westernization and gender : beyond the colonial models -- Immigration as culture contact -- New international influences : feminism and Marxism -- Contact and retract : the Middle East in the twentieth century -- Global consumer culture : the question of impact -- Globalization and resistance -- Conclusion: patterns and trends.;