In the Harper Hall Trilogy, Menolly, the main character, is subjected to a great injustice. She grew up in a place where no one appreciates her talents. In an isolated hold where everyone is needed to support the fishing industry, music is viewed as a waste of time. Menolly has an amazing musical talent, but not only is music not "productive" where she is from, she is also a girl. In this world, girls can't be harpers, a type of music and history expert of the world of Pern who also act as teachers and a news spreading system. Girls cannot become harpers, at least, that is what everyone thinks. Everyone is against her, going so far as to purposely failing to heal her hand so she could never play an instrument again.
In primitive communities like this one, women were often seen as secondary to men. It doesn't make sense, yet it was often so. Thus, we must think why it would be so. It is a popular theory that it was because men were more suited to heavy-lifting and endurance needed for hunting and farming based communities. Some people might have taken certain useful qualities for overall superiority, and that notion has bled into an age where physical skill is not the primary function needed for running a society. So though there is no evidence saying men are superior in the field of music, they are viewed as superior. By giving women no chance to prove their skill in music, this view is not contested. Eventually, though, Menolly challenges this view and wins. She becomes the first female harper.
