SOC: The Myth of Monogamy

From: Chris Rasch (crasch@openknowledge.org)
Date: Mon Feb 12 2001 - 18:20:07 MST


The myth of monogamy
By David Barash
Salon
Jan. 23, 2001

"For most biologists, the fact that the
Rev. Jesse Jackson had an illegitimate child by one
of his staffers is neither surprising nor a revelation.
We've known for a long time that males from
many species tend to be interested in sexual variety,
particularly in having more than one partner.

Consider, for instance, this story: A missionary
visited a Maori village in 19th century New Zealand
and there was a feast in his honor. After the feast,
the Maori chief called out, "A woman for the
bishop." Noting the scowl on the prelate's face, the
obliging chief roared again, even louder: "Two
women for the bishop!"

http://www.salon.com/sex/feature/2001/01/23/monogamy/index.html



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