Chapter 7 Part 2 Flashcards
“Instinctive horror” theory of incest argues
Homo Sapiens is genetically programmed to avoid incest but this theory has been refuted.
Endogamy rules dictate
Mating or marriage within a group to which one belongs
Most cultures are endogamous units, while
Classes and ethnic groups within a society may also be quasi-endogamous
India’s caste system is
An extreme example of endogamy
Castes
Stratified groups in which membership is ascribed at birth and is lifelong
Occupational specialization often
Sets off one caste from another
Belief that intercaste sexual unions lead to ritual impurity for the higher-caste partner has
Helped maintain endogamy and ensures the pure ancestry of high-caste children
While castes are endogamous groups,
Many are internally subdivided into exogamous lineages
Edmund Leach observed that several
Kinds of rights may be allocated by marriage
Marital rights establish
Legal father of a woman’s children, vise versa
Marital rights give either or both spouses a
Monopoly in the sexuality of the other
Marital rights give either or both spouses rights to
The labor of the other
Marriage can give either or both spouses
Rights over the other’s property
Marital rights establish a joint fund of property—
A partnership, for the benefit of the children
Marriages establish a socially significant
“Relationship of affinity” between spouses and their relatives
There are no logical reasons why same-sex marriage
Cannnot allocate all of the rights discussed by Leach
Same-sex marriage is illegal in the US, same-sex couples are denied
Many of the rights and benefits enjoyed by different-sex couples
Same-sex marriages have been recognized
In various historical and cultural settings
Native American berdaches:
Marriage of two women among the Igbo and the Lovedu in Africa
In nonindustrial societies, marriage often is more
A relationship between groups than one between individuals
Bridewealth
A customary gift before, at, or after the marriage from the husband and his kin to the wife and her kin
Bridewealth compensates the bride’s group for
The loss of her companionship and labor
Bridewealth aka progeny price because
It makes the children born to the woman full members of her husband’s descent group
Bridewealth is common in
Patrilineal groups
As the value of Bridewealth increases,
Marriages become more stable thus is insurance against divorce
Dowry
Marital exchange in which the wife’s group provides substantial gifts to the husband’s family
Dowry correlates with
Low female status
Much less common than bridewealth
Dowry
In societies with bridewealth,
A woman’s ability to bear children is essential to the stability of her marriage
Most nonindustrial food-producing societies allow
Plural marriages or polygamy
Polygyny
A man has more than one wife (common)
Polyandry
A woman has more than one husband (rare)
Polygyny may result from
An infertile wife still married to her husband after he has taken a substitute wife
Durable alliances
Customs that highlight the importance of marriage as an alliance between groups
Sororate marriage
A widower marries one of his deceased wife’s sisters
Levirate marriage
A widow marries one of her deceased husband’s brothers
The ease of divorce
Varies across cultures
Marriages that are political alliances between groups are
Harder to break up than are marriages between individual affairs
Substantial bridewealth discourages divorce and
Replacement marriages also help to preserve group alliances
Divorce is more common in
Matrilineal and matrilocal societies (Hopi of the American Southwest)
Divorce is harder in patrilocal societies,
A woman may be less inclined to leave her children, who are members of their father’s lineage
In contemporary Western societies, divorce may occur when
Sex, romance and/or companionship fade
In contemporary Western societies, marriage stay intact when
Economic ties, obligations to children, concern about public opinion or simple inertia
Polygamy
Marriage to more than one person
Polygamy is illegal in contemporary North America but
North Americans do practice serial monogamy
Monogamy
Remarrying after divorce
Even in cultures that encourage polygyny,
Monogamy still tends to be the norm
Customs of men marrying later than women promotes
Polygyny
Context and function of polygyny vary from
Society to society, even within the same society
Polyandry is quite rare, being practiced almost exclusively in
South Asia (Tibet, Nepal, India and Sri Lanka)
Polyandry seems to be a cultural adaptation to mobility associated with
Customary male travel for trade, commerce, and military operations
Fraternal polyandry is
An effective strategy when resources are scarce
Brothers with limited resources can
Pool their resources in expanded (polyandrous) households
Since Polyandry restricts the number of wives and heirs,
Lands can be transmitted with minimal fragmentation
Polygamy was banned in Turkey in 1926 but
Continues to be practiced, leaving second wives unprotected by laws that cover marriages
Aga Mehmet Arslan has
5 wives, 55 children, 80 grandchildren
Aga Mehmet Arslan doesn’t think he has done anything wrong in
Practicing polygyny
Aga Mehmet Arslan admits there are problems with plural marriages, like
Jealousy and financial obligations
Turkey is trying to reconcile secularism and
Acceptance into the world community with Muslim traditions
