When women talk about how men in the 40's and 50's used to beat their wives what they don't understand is that most men didn't actually beat their wives the way that we think of it today. Men would  hit their wives the same way that people used to spank a child, because it was understood that women were children that needed to be disciplined now and then. Obviousy thats abhorrent and shoudnt have happened but  that discipline we had gives us the current state of women we see today in the patriarchy