Beauty, Family, and Household Kinship Relations and the Cultural Differences of Beauty

Review of Love Arranged Marriages Emphasis of bringing 2 families together (wealth) The norm until about 800 years ago Still the norm in many cultures Tristan and Isolde Love and Marriage… Related to love is beauty

Cultural Concepts of Beauty How do we define beauty? Not universal – cultural, individual Differences in most desirable mate Kayan Lahwi (Padaung), tribal culture, Thailand Cultural explanations (theories)? More slender necks seen as desirable Resemblance to a dragon, important figure in Kayan folklore Protected women from becoming slaves – made them less attractive to rival villages

Cultural Concepts of Beauty How do we define beauty? Not universal – cultural, individual Differences in most desirable mate China – round, moon-shaped face traditionally seen as beautiful Pale, fair skin This is changing as China becomes more western

Cultural Concepts of Beauty How do we define beauty? Not universal – cultural, individual Differences in most desirable mate Western Society Historically, plump was the most desirable form of body type Showed your wealth This has changed in the last years

Beauty Among the Nacirema Gender bias What is gender again? Gender is a social, not a natural, phenomenon, which is learned. Gender roles are the patterns of behavior in which women and men engage, based on the cultural expectations associated with their gender. Agree or disagree with: Men place more emphasis on physical attractiveness, while women place more emphasis on personality characteristics. What does the media tell us?

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Beauty Among the Nacirema Gender bias What is gender again? Gender is a social, not a natural, phenomenon, which is learned. Gender roles are the patterns of behavior in which women and men engage, based on the cultural expectations associated with their gender. Agree or disagree with: Men place more emphasis on physical attractiveness, while women place more emphasis on personality characteristics. What does the media tell us? Women in American society are told to be concerned about their appearance. Men are also told to be concerned about a womans appearance

Globalization of Love Love marriage (based on beauty and physical attractiveness) is spreading Media Message Missionization Changes in infrastructure - > changes in society Changing family structure

Family Structure Western Society – Neolocal Husband and wife create their own residence 4% of cultures worldwide

Family Structure Patrilocal – husband and wife move in with husbands family Common in cultures where men coordinate their work (agriculture) 67% of cultures worldwide

Family Structure Matrilocal – husband and wife move in with wifes family Common in cultures where men have to travel long distances for long periods of time (wars) 15% of cultures worldwide

Family Structure Ambilocal – move in with either husbands or wifes family (7% worldwide) Avunculocal – move in with husbands mothers brother (5% worldwide) Matrilineal societies, but still keeps males in the same household Natalocal – both husband and wife stay with their own families (2% worldwide)

Family Forms What do the households of a culture look like? Nuclear family (think 50s family) Extended family (multiple nuclear) Polygamous

Family Forms What can this tell us about a culture? Integrated with the environment, subsistence, family form, etc. Core cultural values