I found Evelyn Blackwood's article "Sexuality and Gender in Certain Native American Tribes" extremely interesting. Our previous readings have referred to intersexuals as abnormal and outcasts. In addition, we have been learning about the medical fields role in surgically chancing intersexual infants to better help them "fit into society." On the other hand, Blackwood described the Native American community as very accepting of cross-gender individuals. Commonly referred to as "berdache", these two-spirited people were highly respected and even thought to be more balanced than the average male or female. Cross-gender women were permitted to marry other women and even publicly acknowledged in a special ceremony upon becoming men. These new men were given male names, male haircuts and clothing, considered to be non reproductive, and became hunters and warriors. Unfortunately, Blackwood did not discuss the idea of cross-gender males who became women. I would have liked to see how well they were accepted in society and whether or not they commonly married men.
Not only were cross-gender people accepted by many Native American tribes, they were also sought out. For instance, a family with all girls would often times select one child to raise as a boy. This child would be allowed to play and hunt with other boys in order to become acclimated with the different role in society. Families might have chosen this alternate route for one of their daughters because "A daughter's marriage was not essential for maintenance of family rank...a woman's family did not lose wealth if she abandoned her role as a daughter." (p. 5) Instead, if a daughter was raised a boy and eventually married off to a woman, as a new male the individual could establish his own household and prosper.
However, with the introduction of Western white culture, Native American groups began to frown upon cross-gender individuals. Blackwood referred to an instance in which "the last cross-gender female among the Mohave, Sahaykwisa" (p. 8) was harassed and eventually raped by men in her community. Sahaykwisa's wife was often taunted for not being married to a "real man". I find it very interesting how one culture's, the West, beliefs and traditions can be forced upon and ultimately change another groups, the Native Americans, outlook.
I was also very surprised by the fact that men and women were treated as equal in many Native American tribes. Interestingly enough both gender's roles in society were viewed as important. Women recognized the importance of the men hunting for food and fighting in battles while men understood the role women played in rearing the children, cleaning the meat, and weaving. I wonder if this equality between genders still exists today among Native American groups.
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2 comments:
You might want to think about the last point you raise as a jumping off point for your final project.
I also noticed the general focus on the female to male berdache. While Blackwood herself writes predominantly about the male berdache and the acceptance of these new men into society, she provides valid reasoning. By pointing out that most anthropological study on the topic revolves around the male berdache role because there was a greater data base available, she exposes the misconception that males were incapable of crossing gender. It is a shame that the tendency is to study that which is most readily and easiest to observe. In this way, we are often left with inaccurate reflections of less readily observed events.
I think that the acceptance of the cross-gender role and the presence of gender equality within the Native American tribes are not unrelated. I believe that their ability to accept berdache stems from their equal treatment of the gender roles that function in their society. With equality and respect between gender roles, or social function, it makes sense that transfering from one role to another would not be much of an issue. As long as you perform within one of the gender roles, then you will be accepted by their society regardless of whether you anatomically match your preferred gender.
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