Relations between the sexes among the Nuer: 1930

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Abstract
Opening Paragraph As this important Nuer myth suggests, men's control of the disruptive forces around them is limited and problematic. In part this limitation stems from relations of mutual dependence which continually restrict the power and authority of men in Nuer society. In speaking of their dependence upon cattle, Nuer say: ‘“They will be finished together with mankind”, for men will all die on account of cattle and they and cattle will cease together’ (1940:49). Similarly, the dependence of men upon the reproductive and nurturing powers of women assures the latter an important source of control: mutual dependence implies a mutual independence. Women have an exclusive realm of activity and hence an exclusive domain ofxontrol and influence. Moreover, they can subvert political alliances and aggravate divisions within the male hierarchy through the manipulation of their children's loyalties. In this essay, I examine these bonds of mutual dependence uniting men and women in Nuer society so as to outline some of the sources, characteristics and limitations of male domination and authority.

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