c. The Dispossession/Oppression of Women
There are detailed explanations for women’s oppression. For Engel’s theory, it arrays far and wide–some with complete unbelievable and as well some are based far more on mere assumptions than on any concrete evidence. One assumption is that, men’s greater physical strength led them to be more capable and responsible which mean that men dominate the women. There were debates about the origin of women’s oppression that took place within the field of anthropology- study of human societies. The study is focusing on human’s own cultural prejudices. The most obvious is the male sexism that subjected the field until a few decades ago, which led most anthropologists to assume that all of the important functions in any given society were performed by men.
Several women’s movement of the late 1960s began to challenge male chauvinism/sexism, sexist assumptions provided the basis for broad generalizations. Claude Levi-Strauss, a leading anthropologist within the structuralist school, goes so far as to argue that "human society...is primarily a masculine society." He argues that the "exchange of women" is a "practically universal" feature of human society, in which men obtain women from other men–from fathers, brothers and other male relatives. Moreover, he asserts that "the deep polygamous tendency, which exists among all men, always makes the number of available women seem insufficient." Therefore, "the most desirable women must form a minority." Because of this, "the demand for women is an actual fact, or to all intents and purposes, always in a state of disequilibrium and tension."8 According to Levi-Strauss, then, women have been the passive victims of men’s sexual aggression since the beginning of human society.
Meanwhile, Western observers have normally brought along their own cultural biases (including, often, cultural chauvinism) when they study hunter-gatherer or horticultural societies. For example, the common practice among Eskimo women of sleeping with male visitors is often interpreted as an example of Eskimo women’s low status–of women offered up as gifts or property. This sexual custom tells little about women’s status in Eskimo society today, when it is fairly integrated into the capitalist system–much less, what women’s status has been historically.
There are detailed explanations for women’s oppression. For Engel’s theory, it arrays far and wide–some with complete unbelievable and as well some are based far more on mere assumptions than on any concrete evidence. One assumption is that, men’s greater physical strength led them to be more capable and responsible which mean that men dominate the women. There were debates about the origin of women’s oppression that took place within the field of anthropology- study of human societies. The study is focusing on human’s own cultural prejudices. The most obvious is the male sexism that subjected the field until a few decades ago, which led most anthropologists to assume that all of the important functions in any given society were performed by men.
Several women’s movement of the late 1960s began to challenge male chauvinism/sexism, sexist assumptions provided the basis for broad generalizations. Claude Levi-Strauss, a leading anthropologist within the structuralist school, goes so far as to argue that "human society...is primarily a masculine society." He argues that the "exchange of women" is a "practically universal" feature of human society, in which men obtain women from other men–from fathers, brothers and other male relatives. Moreover, he asserts that "the deep polygamous tendency, which exists among all men, always makes the number of available women seem insufficient." Therefore, "the most desirable women must form a minority." Because of this, "the demand for women is an actual fact, or to all intents and purposes, always in a state of disequilibrium and tension."8 According to Levi-Strauss, then, women have been the passive victims of men’s sexual aggression since the beginning of human society.
Meanwhile, Western observers have normally brought along their own cultural biases (including, often, cultural chauvinism) when they study hunter-gatherer or horticultural societies. For example, the common practice among Eskimo women of sleeping with male visitors is often interpreted as an example of Eskimo women’s low status–of women offered up as gifts or property. This sexual custom tells little about women’s status in Eskimo society today, when it is fairly integrated into the capitalist system–much less, what women’s status has been historically.