The Right of Paternal Power, Natural or Conditional?

In his article, Charles Reid discusses the role of paternal power through the Medieval Era. The article begins with research strongly supporting the unconditional role of fathers in the household, but then weaves its way in and out of such an argument. Reid uses his article to bring both sides of the paternal argument to the table.
The overriding theme for the article was law, state, and church, discussing carefully each of the points as if it were the given requirements for writing the article. Gender was an associate theme, taking the role of assistant to the main role, and family relationships and family economics made a short appearance inside the article.
After citing classical Roman law and its uncontestable paternal power, Reid takes the reader through a labyrinth of philosophers, affirming and contesting the all-authoritative role of the father in the household. Reid goes in depth, explaining the responsibilities of the father to the family, the rights of the children—both in and out of wedlock, and the governing laws of family. A powerful argument made on behalf of the church argues that men and women are equal within a marriage, and that one cannot stand without the other. Other philosophers, however, present the argument that Eve was given as a helpmeet for Adam, and this is subordinate to him in all things. In all cases, the relationship between rights and responsibility were not ignored, pointing to the partial purpose of marriage to be procreation and the consequences of procreation being that man must provide for the children in educational and nutritional ways.