Sorry I didn't reply earlier Jae, my brain wasn't working too well at that point.
Well personally I would say that the subordination of women often begins with the onset of the male body ! 
LOL
Let's face it, though some guys are supportive, we live in a male dominated world where women aren't paid as well as men are, given as many opportunities, given as much leeway for error, or recognised properly for their achievements. Expectations and rewards are very differently distributed between the sexes.
Having said that, from a neurologist's point of view, or the perspective of physiology, women's brains can almost be regarded as "Human, Mark 2". They are more plastic (that is, adapt more easily and frequently), more able to analyse abstract notions, more able to communicate, more emotionally responsive...and all this, very much as a result of the wonder neurohormone that is oestrogen. 
If men's brains are clunky old pick-ups, women's are more like racing cars.
And therein lies the problem. From all the reading I've done, I'd be inclined to say that women's brains, with their far superior versatility and biochemical "responsiveness", have as well a greater vulnerability to all the ills of the flesh. (It's harder to dance on a tight rope without falling off, than it is to just walk it.)
This conclusion is particularly hard to avoid when you look at the massive imbalance of percentages as regards sex, where many mental illnesses are concerned. Generally, women are in the majority, often by a long way.
(Of course a cynic might say that this is because what seen as crazy in a woman is just "boys will be boys" for men...)
There's no doubt about it in my mind, the social and environmental cues that men can so often blithely ignore or fail to even notice, that can erode self-confidence and bring despair to a more sensitive person, are more often picked up on by women. And where men generally compete non-stop almost as a matter of course, for women it is usually much more stressful, co-operation being a preferred option. So where sexual competition is concerned, body shape and self-esteem are much more closely linked than in males, and women tend to be "relative-evaluators"; their attitudes reflect those of the people around them.
So what to a man is a throwaway comment to be ignored, "Oh you'll never manage !" can be to a woman, a confidence-shattering indictment.
But then what would I know ? I'm a man !