Social Organization, Part 2
Question 1: Discuss same-sex marriage rituals in certain cultures and contemporary society.
Answer 1: There are some cultures that recognize forms of same-sex marriage for social or practical purposes. In the Sudan, it is acceptable for two Nuer women to marry if the father of one of them has no male heirs. The woman whose father has no male heirs acts as the pater or socially recognized father to continue the kinship line, but men are chosen to have sex with and impregnate the “wife” in the pair. Various Native American groups had arrangements where individuals of the same sex were paired and assumed roles of the other gender for practical purposes. Today, we think of same-sex couplings in terms of homosexual pairings, and the union called marriage is unavailable to most. Some countries such as Canada have passed legislation to secure full marriage rights to same-sex pairs, and a few states in the United States allow legal unions with most of the benefits of marriage.
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Question 2: Discuss the customs of bridewealth and dowry.
Answer 2: In certain societies, particularly nonindustrial ones, marriage is viewed not only as a union between two people but also as an alliance between groups. Bridewealth and dowry are vestiges of this viewpoint. Bridewealth or progeny price refers to marital gifts given to a wife and her kin by the husband’s group. Conversely, dowry refers to considerable gifts bestowed to the husband’s family by the wife’s group. In societies (mainly patrilineal) that practice bridewealth exchange, it is used to pay back the wife’s family for loss of her services and companionship and to legitimize the progeny. Dowry, which is also a product of patrilineal type cultures and a lower status for females, has been practiced mostly in India. In cultures that practice dowry, the women are seen as additional responsibilities being transferred to the husband. Obligatory dowry was proscribed in India in 1961 but the tradition continues to an extent.
Question 3: Explain what sororate and levirate mean.
Answer 3: There are two forms of maintenance of marital alliances when a spouse dies. Sororate refers to the practice in which a widower marries the sister of his late wife or, if she had no sister, another women from her group. By doing so, the man can keep his bridewealth and maintain group alliances. Both patrilineal and matrilineal cultures are known to practice sororate. Levirate is the practice in which a widow marries the brother of her late husband. It was an ancient Jewish custom and is practiced in many African cultures today. The purpose again is to continue established alliances. Often, the widow and her new husband do not actually live together.
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