Anthropology: Marriage and Family

Marrige

Socially approved sexual and economic union; a contract that contains both marriage license and vows. Considered permanent

Mating vs. marriage

Mating is biological, while marriage is cultural.

Types of marrige

Exogamy, endogamy, arranged marriage, levirate, sororate, monogamy, polygamy, polyandry, and fraternal polyandry.

Exogamy

Marriage outside of a certain group

Why is exogamy practiced?

It strengthens the ties between neighbors.

Endogamy

marriage between people of the same social category.

Example of Endogamy

India: Caste system where you are born in a class, you cannot move around in the class system.

Arranged marrige

Parents choose who their children are marrying.

Examples of arranged marrige

Japan, India, China; brings families together

Levirate

Widow marries brother or close relative of dead husband.

Sororate

Widower marries sister of dead wife.

Monogamy

Marriage to only one person at a time

America's marriage system

Serial monogamy; for mobility, economic, and geographical reasons

Polygyny

Marriage of man to 2 or more women.

Soral Polygany

Many marrying sisters; mark of prestige

Polyandry

Women with more then 1 husband

Example of polyandry

India and Nepal (Traditionally), less the 1 percent of population

Fraternal polyandry

One girl marries many brothers in order to keep land

Economic aspects of marrige

Bride price, bride service, and dowery

Bride price

the required payment by the groom's family to the bride's family. Paid because family is loosing bride as a worker. Practiced in Africa.

Bride service

Groom works for bride's family; found in nomadic cultures.

Dowery

Compensation from brides family to grooms; girls inherentence

Danger of dowery in India

In laws demand more and more $ until they end up killing the bride (holding her hostage); "kitchen fires"

Nandi, Kenya

Livestock and land run by men, passed by women and given to son. Polygynous, and if no sons are in family they have inversion ceremonies.

Inversion ceremonies

Female becomes socially male

Female husbands

Marry other female, no sex, but wife has children and gives to future son.

Benefit of female husband

Can raise status, cattle, and speak in meetings. Young wifes can get husband that wont beat her and is less strict.

Family dynamics

Nuclear and extended

Nuclear family

Parents and children, seen in urban societies

Decline of nuclear family

Women not having kids due to cost of child rearing. Increase divorce rate.

Extended family

2 or more families related by blood, agricultural

Homosexuality

Sexual attraction to the same sex

Prefrence vs. Practice in Homosexuality

You prefer homosexual activity versus practicing homosexuality without preferring it.

population regulating negative feedback model

Societies that have food shortages are more tolerant of homosexuality because less mouths to feed

Gender is..

Ways members of sexes are perceived and expected to behave.

Gender stratification

members ranked based on gender. EX: India and China; male>women

Negative affects of gender stratification

Female have less education, reproductive health, and high female infanticide

Gender specific body alterations

chinese foot binding, women only.

Female genital mutilation

removal of cliteria and labitia, "stitched up"

Universal incest taboo

all cultures have prohibited marriage in the direct line of descent, parents to children

Exceptions to universal incest taboo

Royal Egypt and Ancient Hawaii

Natural aversion theory

aversion to sex with individuals you have grown up with

Inbreeding theory

Biological theory that humans learned genetics turn bad when getting with family members

Family disruption theory

mating between family members would create intense jealousies and the family would not be able to function

Expanding alliances

mating outside of family gives more alliances