Women of the South American Yanomamo Society essays

Women of the South American Yanomamo Society essays Women of the South American Yanomamo Society The South American Yanomamo society is decidedly masculine. Yanomamo women are considered inferior to men. The superior/inferior male/female duality occurs in all contexts of the Yanomamos lives. It can be seen from the division of daily labor to the beatings that women are subject to. However, women have a role to play in Yanomamo society, albeit, not one many American women would find agreeable. The practice of infanticide plays a role in the lack of women in Yanomamo society. Yanomamo prefer to parent a male child rather than a female child. Many times a female child will be killed at birth because females are inferior to males. To the people of North American culture certain the Yanomamo procedures of murdering a newborn baby would be considered brutal, horrific and mutilation. Some Americans would also suggest that abortion is murder also. However, many Americans see a clear difference between abortion and infanticide. One argument for abortion is that a fetus is not considered a child until it is born. Infanticide kills a child that has already been born. The differences of men and women can be found in the early socialization of the children. Female children assume duties and responsibilities in the household long before their brothers are obliged to participate in comparable useful domestic tasks. Young girls tend to their younger siblings, and help their mothers with chores. By the time a girl is ten years old, she has become an economic asset to the mother and spends a great deal of time working. In contrast, little boys, spend hours playing and are able to prolong their childhood into their late teens. Most are promised in marriage by the time they reach puberty. Girls have almost no voice in the decision of whom they will marry. Their elder kin decide mate selection. The girls wishes are not considered. Boys, in...