Paper Example on Monogamy, Polygamy, and Polyandry

Introduction

Monogamy is the process of getting married to one partner at a time, and only having sexual relations with them. Marriage involves having more than one spouse at a time, also when an animal has more than a single mate, also called polygyny by sociologists. Polyandry is when a woman is married to more than one husband. Different cultures have different beliefs and practices when it comes to these marriage practices. In this essay, I will focus on the Maasai and polygamy, the Nepal and polyandry and

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Polygamy in the Maasai Community

It is known worldwide that the Maasai do well in cattle herding, thus making them the face of tourism in Kenya. Their dress code includes; safari packages and colorful robes. In their diversity, they value polygamy, each man paying cows as the dowry to their wives, which she does not own but can use to feed the family. Usually, a Maasai woman is given off as a wife in their teenage years, and they live with other wives until they get pregnant and have a place of their own (Hartung et al., 1982). Three women could make breakfast, one fetching milk, the other making pancakes, and another tea. They accept this culture as their way of life since they grew up with fathers who married several wives.

Pros and Cons of Polygamy in This Society

This practice is described as being discriminating against women. Though by further studies, this practice ensures that there is the acquisition of greater wealth for wives and their children. Household has greater access to food and own more cattle as compared to those with fewer women and kid (Marlowe, 2000). s. A man in this society benefits sexually through getting satisfaction from more than one woman. The further study, however, shows that women are deprived of their rights as compared to men, leading to high levels of emotional deprivation; also women are not able to make decisions of their own.

Polyandry in Nepal

In Nepal, It was common for a wife to marry many brothers since the rocky landscape required cultivation by more than one hand. Local farmers in Nepal say that monogamous marriage is expensive regarding the economy. For instance, in the Mountains of Himalayan, the practice is associated with scarcity of land. Women feel happy about this form of marriage because one husband can work in the fields, another can weave carpets and baskets while the other can work and earn money in the city. Most elders in this society consist of senior women, with men bearing less authority. All children born in this marriage are children to all men and during intimacy; the husband that enters the woman's bedroom leaves the shoe outside to signal the others.

Pros and Cons of Polyandry in Nepal

This form of marriage ensures control of the population in this society. There is the distribution of financial burden among the husbands, and the family is strengthened through doing life together. To its advantage though, there are disadvantages that come with this form of culture. For instance, it is easier for women to get health issues since a woman gets sexually involved with more than one man. There are increased instances of divorce, for example, the marriage is hard to maintain, bareness among women if a common trend in this society.

Monogamy in Greco-Roman

Early Greeks and Romans were not allowed to marry more than one spouse at a time. They were not allowed to cohabit with each other before marriage either; to them, it was abnormal to do so. Laws on anti-polygamy made the Greco-roman society become egalitarian sexually. Lower ranking men ability to acquire men of their own was improved through preventing elite men from getting multiple wives. This culture was well established by the time Christianity started spreading across the Roman Empire. This led monogamy to spread further into the western world.

Pros and Cons of This Culture to the Greco-Romano

There were many benefits of monogamous marriages to the western civilization as stated; it was the best way to ensure joint investment in children and paternal certainty since children were born vulnerable and full depended on their parents for mutual care, and it remained so over the years. Monogamy marriage was the most important way to ensure treatment of both males and females with equality, dignity, and respect guaranteeing that wives, husbands, and children provided each other with protection and support, and adjusted the needs of each other throughout the cycle of life. According to others the practice of monogamy led to the boredom of spouses which led to unhappiness since, at some point, people felt sexually incompatible with their partners. A lot of people who settled early with one partner thought they did not find fulfillment when they noticed resentment and that their partners did not fulfill who they were.

Comparisons Between Polygyny, Monogamy and Polyandry Marriages in These Societies

In these societies, in all the three form of unions, there is an ultimate goal o satisfaction among partners, sexual, financial and social benefits. Though they differ in the number of partners, sex of partners and duties of each of the partners, they all enjoy the benefits of marriage that include; the beginning of making families for a lifetime, and an opportunity to take care of one's family with less selfishness. They all enjoy emotional and spiritual reunions.

References

Hartung, J., Dickemann, M., Melotti, U., Pospisil, L., Scott, E. C., Smith, J. M., & Wilder, W. D. (1982). Polygyny and inheritance of wealth [and comments and replies]. Current anthropology, 23(1), 1-12.

Marlowe, F. (2000). Paternal investment and the human mating system. Behavioural processes, 51(1-3), 45-61.