9780130259738

A cross-cultural study of gender roles and relationships, this book presents a synthesis of a wide range of ethnographic and historical data concerning the roles of women and men in wide range of different kinds of societies--with a focus on both material conditions and ideological valuations that affect and reflect cultural models of gender. First looks at the impact of material conditions on gender roles: Foragers; Farmers; Agricultural States; Industrial Economy: The United States; and Women and Global Economic Development. Then explores ideological constraints on gender constructs: Gender and the Body; Gender and Religion; Gender and Language. For anyone interested in gender roles from an anthropological, sociological, and psychological perspective.

Preface

vii

PART I THE IMPACT OF MATERIAL CONDITIONS ON GENDER ROLES

1

(228)

Summary List of Cultures

3

(1)

Prologue

4

(12)

References

15

(1)

Egalitarian Foraging Societies

16

(35)

Traditional Foraging Societies

16

(19)

The Ju/'hoansi of Botswana and Namibia

18

(6)

The Inuit and Inupiat of Arctic North America

24

(8)

Comparing the Ju/'hoansi and Inuit

32

(3)

Transformation of Foraging Societies

35

(14)

The Ju/'hoansi

35

(4)

The Inuit

39

(7)

The Montagnais-Naskapi of Labrador

46

(3)

Summary

49

(1)

References

49

(2)

Pastoral and Horticultural Societies

51

(46)

Pastoral Economies

51

(6)

Native Peoples of the Plains of North America

51

(6)

Mixed Pastoral and Farming Economies

57

(12)

The Navajo of Southwestern North America

57

(5)

The Nuer of Sudan

62

(5)

The Luo of Kenya

67

(2)

Horticultural Economies

69

(23)

The Huron and Iroquois of Northwestern North America

70

(8)

The Yanomamo of Brazil and Venezuela

78

(5)

The Jivaro of Peru

83

(2)

The Igbo of Nigeria

85

(7)

Comparing Pastoral and Horticultural Societies

92

(2)

Summary

94

(1)

References

95

(2)

Stratified Economies

97

(28)

The Haida and Tlingit of the Canadian Pacific Coast

97

(11)

The Kpelle of Liberia

108

(3)

The Mpondo of the Transkei

111

(2)

The Tonga of the South Pacific

113

(9)

Summary

122

(1)

References

123

(2)

Agricultural States

125

(31)

The Inca of Peru

126

(7)

India

133

(11)

China

144

(9)

Summary

153

(1)

References

154

(2)

Industrial Economy: The United States

156

(35)

Early Industrial Development

156

(14)

Marginalization of Women in Industry

160

(2)

The Cult of Domesticity

162

(4)

Occupations for Women

166

(1)

Scientific Housework

167

(2)

Changing Attitudes toward Child Care

169

(1)

Women and Work through the Middle of the Twentieth Century

170

(3)

Women, Men, and Work in the Late Twentieth Century

173

(10)

Housework

181

(2)

Patriarchal Society and Capitalist Economy

183

(5)

Recent Ideological Attacks on Gender Equality

184

(4)

Summary

188

(1)

References

189

(2)

Global Economic Development

191

(38)

Latin America

196

(4)

Africa

200

(3)

India

203

(2)

Asia

205

(2)

The Pacific

207

(5)

Socialist Societies

212

(4)

United Nations Social and Economic Data

216

(9)

Summary

225

(1)

References

226

(3)

PART II IDEOLOGICAL CONSTRAINTS ON GENDER CONSTRUCTS

229

(103)

Gender and the Body

231

(35)

A Third Gender

232

(6)

The Body and Its Role in Reproduction

238

(15)

Puberty

238

(5)

Reproduction

243

(3)

Birthing

246

(3)

Women's So-Called Reproductive Illnesses

249

(4)

Nutrition

253

(3)

Healing and Healers

256

(7)

Ju/'hoansi Healers

256

(3)

Sri Lankan Healers

259

(1)

Health Practitioners in the United States

259

(2)

Women's Informal Healing Roles

261

(2)

Summary

263

(1)

References

264

(2)

Gender and Religion

266

(29)

Creation and Creators

266

(3)

Menstrual Taboos

269

(3)

Purity, Pollution, and Sexuality

272

(11)

Hinduism

272

(2)

Hindu Deities

274

(1)

Judaism

275

(1)

Islam

276

(1)

Female Genital Mutilation

276

(3)

Christianity

279

(1)

Religion and Homosexuality

280

(3)

The Identity of God

283

(1)

Women's Spirituality

284

(1)

Spirit Possession

285

(2)

Ritualists

287

(4)

Asian Shaman

287

(2)

Specialization of Men's and Women's Ritual Roles

289

(2)

The Language of Religion

291

(1)

Summary

292

(1)

References

293

(2)

Gender and Language

295

(32)

Gender-Exclusive Patterns

295

(3)

Linguistic and Stylistic Preferences

298

(16)

Gender Differences in English

298

(10)

Gender Differences in Japanese

308

(1)

Gender Differences in Javanese

309

(2)

Gender Differences in Malagasy

311

(1)

Gender Differences in Kuna

312

(2)

Gender Images in Languages

314

(10)

English

314

(5)

French

319

(1)

German

320

(1)

Spanish

320

(1)

Russian

321

(1)

Japanese

321

(2)

Mohawk

323

(1)

Summary

324

(1)

References

325

(2)

Epilogue

327

(5)

Glossary

332

(2)

Index

334

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

Preface This book aims to present a synthesis of a wide range of ethnographic and historical data concerning the roles of women and men in different kinds of societies. It focuses on both material conditions and ideological valuations that affect and reflect cultural models of gender. The third edition ofWomen and Men: Cultural Constructs of Gendercontains a new chapter, a revision of chapters on gender and language, as well as expanded discussions of a number of topics interspersed throughout the book. The new chapter (7), "Global Economic Development," discusses the effects of economic development programs on women's and men's economic, social, and political roles. Chapter 10, "Gender and Language," is a revision of material covered in two chapters in the previous edition. It combines data on language and language from English and from several non-Indo-European languages spoken in other parts of the world. Part 1: The Impact of Material Conditions on Gender Roles Chapter 1 considers the notion of gender as a social construct. It discusses interrelationships of gender and other aspects of culture (economy, social and political organization, and religion), which form the basis for the presentation of data and theory in subsequent chapters. Chapter 2 considers gender roles and relations in several societies whose economic base is centered on foraging. Comparison is made between the Ju/'hoansi ( ju-TWAN-si) in Namibia and Botswana and the Inuit and Inupiat of Arctic Canada and Alaska. Gender roles in pastoral and farming societies are discussed in Chapter 3. The groups considered include nomadic pastoral societies of the American Plains, mixed pastoral and farming societies (the Navajo, Nuer, and Luo), and horticultural societies such as the Iroquois of North America, the Yanomamo and Jivaro of the Amazon, and the Igbo of Nigeria. In Chapter 4 is a discussion of gender roles in stratified societies, concentrating on peoples of the Canadian Pacific coast (the Haida and Tlingit), the Kpelle of Liberia, the Mpondo of the Transkei, and the Tonga of Polynesia. Interrelationship between increased stratification and gender inequality is demonstrated to varying degrees in these societies. The existence of marked gender inequality in agricultural states is discussed in Chapter 5, exemplified by the Incan society of Peru and the modern states of India and China. Chapter 6 analyzes the historical development of industrialization in the United States in terms of its use of and impact on gender inequalities in preexisting societies. Utilization of women's labor in early industrialization and the subsequent marginalization of women in advanced industrial nations are discussed. Finally, Chapter 7 reviews processes of global economic development and demonstrates their effect on women's and men's roles and relationships. Part 2: Ideological Constraints on Gender Constructs Chapter 8 examines several worldwide issues concerning the interrelationships among gender, health, and survival. It also contains a new, detailed discussion of a third gender, a social category existing in many native cultures of North America that was distinct from the genders of woman and man. In addition, women's so-called reproductive illnesses--namely, premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and menopausal disorders--are discussed as examples of societal attitudes that label women's normal biological functions as illnesses requiring control and correction. The function of religious beliefs and practices in justifying and reinforcing gender roles and relations is the focus of Chapter 9. It now includes three new sections on topics dealing with gender and religion. Female genital mutilation is described and analyzed within the context of negative attitudes toward women's sexuality and the social/religious justifications given to control and punish women's natural desires. A discussi

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

Women and Men

Women and Men

013025973X

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials

Excerpts