Feminism, Gender and the Possibilities of Maria Penha Law

This article discusses the limits and possibilities of the Maria da Penha Law or Law 11.340 / 2006 in Brazil, from a critical and feminist perspective. The entire Law allowed a broad treatment of women victims of domestic violence or intra-family and managed the recognition of private space as a political site, should also cover institutions. Although the legal approach has advanced still face obstacles to their applicability in view of the impediment produced by androcentric imagery present in the law and in all other social areas, structured and symbolically dominated by patriarchy