Gender Roles in Moso - 806 Words

The Moso is a society that still maintains matrilineal system, which is a rare and unusual practice nowadays in contemporary urban societies. In Moso, all ancestors are traced back through the female line instead of the fathers side. Male relatives, regardless whether he is a childs biological father or not, are called uncle. A family properties are inherited through the female line. Men seem to have less authority in dealing with family matters. That is why Moso has been depicted as â€Å"a kingdom of women†. This essay will try to argue that women are not superior to men in Moso. The essay will first delve into the gender roles, which refers to roles assigned by culture to the biological differentiation of the sexes, performed in family and economic aspects, followed by some major restrictions imposed on women in order to show that male and female are both equally important in this society. Men and women perform their own duties, which are organized in a balanced way, in Mo so households. There is a female administrator called Dabu in each family. Dabu, who is chosen by other family members to manage and distribute earnings. She is believed to be the most capable person among all family members and is revered by others. Indeed, Dabu is not the only member who holds authority in the household. A research pointed out that men are supposed to give support to female in the matrilineal society. For instance, uncles, the closest male relative of the children, playShow MoreRelatedMatriarchal in Moso Society940 Words   |  4 PagesMoso is a Chinese ethnic group that is famous for being a matriarchal society with minimal contact from the outside world. In Moso matrilineal system, woman is the pillar of the family. As the head of a family as well as a mother, a Moso woman is responsible to determine family’s name, decision, and inheritance. No one has right to replace woman’s authority, even a man. This is the primary point of a matriarchy which traces the side of Moso family’s lineage through the descendant of woman. What isRead MoreMoso Matrilineal System813 Words   |  3 PagesMoso society, better known as Na, is a small ethnic group living in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces in China. For decades, they have implemented a matrilineal system in their culture. Matrilineal system is defined as a system in which their descendants are traced using their mothers’ lineage. Since Moso society applied the matrilineal system in their culture, there are several implications and characteristics that can be analyzed from that point. One important feature of matrilineal is called â€Å"walking