In today’s society the assumption asserts that there must be only two adults integrated in a relationship, however in polygamous environments, having more than one spouse is traditional. Some may argue that Polygamy is simply just an alternate lifestyle. This, however, ceases to be true. Young girls are being forced to marry older men and sometimes relatives. Little boys are often abandoned because it appears to be competition for older men. Children are victims of sexual and physical abuse. Whereas, for women, they generally become stripped of their money and experience competition against the multiple wives a husband. Although Polygamy is viewed as immoral by society, the main focus point should be saving young children and women because …show more content…
The boys’ pose appear as competition, “...while boys are seen by older men as competition for the girls”(Vere). As part of the polygamy beliefs, the young boys’ develop the idea that, they themselves are “Satan’s temptations”(Jessop). Many cases, young boys’ are abandoned and rejected from the compound. The FLDS serve as a community called The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a well known polygamous compound. This polygamous community is well known in North America, “Although the practice is widespread across cultures, we know it best in North America as characterized by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS)”(Mack). The FLDS in many cases, will find rather ridiculous offenses to banish the boys’. Clearly, the main goal here is to simply eliminate the competition, “FLDS leader Warren Jeffs 's insistence that parents expel their young male children from the community to eliminate competition for wives”(Billie 127). These youthful boys’ are forced into a society they are unaware of and with no family to guide them, a challenge young boys may …show more content…
Polygamy causes children to grow up faster than needed, experiencing adult like experiences. Becoming married as young as fourteen, and marrying a man that ages much older. Escaping a polygamous community clearly depicts a difficult task, as much as this idea appears to be emphasized and craved for, women are too afraid. Attempting to escape means risking the chance of them getting caught and taken away from their own children. They are deprived of their money and therefore, if they escape successfully, then they are already homeless. Competing for the attention and respect from the husband depicts a conflict many wives’ face. The social status of wives’ go down once the husband no longer longs for affection. Children are victims of both, physical and sexual abuse from father or other family members. Family members could also include step-family members. The abuse that these children face often cause them to have anxiety in the
All the way through Migdim's incident with arranged marriages, we can understand the old customs that has to do with marriage. It is obvious that, although women were believed to be obedient, they were capable to effectively convince men. Yet, today there seems to be a sign toward polygamous marriages that are eventu...
The article Breaking the Cycle Mother, Daughter Find It Can Be Difficult to Leave Polygamy behind Polygamy: It 's Tough to Break the Cycle by Joan O 'Brien is about a mother’s experience leaving a polygamous marriage. This mother, Betsy Barlow of Salt Lake City also inspired her daughter, Ellen to do the same thing. It is explained that Mrs. Barlow felt that being a part of a polygamous marriage was defeating for women and herself. O’Brien states, “Barlow believes that in practice, polygamy ``suppresses ' ' women”. Most women would drop out of High school to raise children for the one husband and Mrs. Barlow was taught that this was the only way to reach the celestial kingdom. Her parents taught her this and she openly admits to teaching her
Cults are dangerous institutions that have existed for many years, corrupting and reforming the minds of innocent people into believing outrageous doctrines that eventually result in disaster. Horrifying cases involving men such as Charles Manson, Jim Jones and David Koresh have bewildered people and raise the question: how could individuals be easily susceptible to the teachings of these men, so influenced that masses go as far as to commit the unthinkable? Individuals who are in a vulnerable position in search for an identity are attracted to cults because they offer a sense of belonging. In addition, isolation from society contributes to the functioning of a cult for it creates an atmosphere where submissiveness and obedience runs high. These two factors seem to hold true for one of the most notorious cults currently established in the United States and Canada. The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or, FLDS, is an international polygamist sect that incorporates belonging and isolation along with a dangerous mentality that have resulted in the abuse of women and children in the name of God.
Is monogamy really the best relationship dynamic for everyone? Are people being honest with themselves, their lovers, or even their spouses in regards to monogamy? Apparently they are not, due to the seemingly common occurrence of infidelity in society today. This is why I will explore alternative relationship dynamics, and the pros and cons of monogamy, polyamory and other non-monogamous lifestyles. The idea of non-monogamy seems to be on people’s minds, since it has been coming up in popular culture lately, with shows like “Big Love” and “Sister-Wives.” Why shouldn’t the topic be of interest to the public? It affects everyone, concerns the way we form romantic relationships with one another, and influences the future of American family dynamics beyond traditional coupling. While many people in American society do not consider any relationship style other than monogamy to be legitimate, we often think about people other than our partners in a romantic or sexual way, and some people may be better suited for a non-monogamous relationship dynamic. To support this conclusion, this paper will explore the various styles of non-monogamy, look at the influence of genetics and biology on our relationships and counter the common arguments against non-mongamy, to show that it is a viable relationship option.
“History of Fundamentalist Mormons.” Wheat & Tares. Wheat and Tares, 2011. Web. 19 Dec. 2011. .
Polygamy has been a worldwide issue for many years. It is the idea of one man having many wives and together they are raising one big family. Nonetheless, it may sound appealing to some people, yet dreadful to others. The focus here is a female being raised in a polygamist environment with three or more moms heavily informs her perception of the world and other cultures out of her community. They are taught that their education is insignificant, men are more superior to women, and outsiders are to be avoided.
Many people would happily accept an opportunity to have their daily stress reduced by employing help with not only their children but also with daily household responsibilities of cooking and cleaning. Especially in this fragile economic state the average family living in America cannot afford the luxury of hiring a house cleaner, cook or nanny. However, there are polygamists families in America have the abilities of multiple adults contributing to the same household because of the lifestyle choice of having multiple spouses. The extra help comes at a price for woman, by having to share her husband with other woman and raising her children in the difficult and uncommon lifestyle. Polygamy takes a total acceptance and understanding of it by the mothers, in order for polygamy not to have a negative psychological impact on her children. Children are the innocent victims of polygamy; consequently, they grow up witnessing a tense environment filled with their mother’s insecurities and rivalries with the other wives, which sequentially end up harming the child in the end. Furthermore, polygamy can be psychologically damaging to children because of the increased rates of not only welfare fraud, domestic violence, and underage marriages but also child abuse and neglect.
Men in polygamous marriages are more likely to partake in extramarital sex and are at greater risk of contracting sexual diseases and infecting their wives. Wives are not the only ones affected by polygamy; children from polygamous families may be at a greater risk of several harmful effects. For example, research has shown that it is more common for children of polygamous families to be exposed to a higher incidence of marital conflict, family violence, and family disruptions than children of monogamous families’. As a result, children from polygamous marriages are at a greater risk of both behavioral and developmental problems. As you can see, there are numerous factors that prove polygamy in marriage can be damaging emotionally and physically to both the wives, and children involved.
Polygamy is becoming a part of the question, Is this is an alternative lifestyle that should be allowed? There are television shows and criminal cases about polygamy ( Kiesbye). Some common tv shows about polygamy are Sister Wives and Big Love. Since this is a new upcoming type of marriage the tv shows are showing all the good parts about polygamy ,or “fluffing” it up, rather than show any negatives aspects about it. There are multiple things associated with polygamy not just the side where all the family members are happy. There is a darker side to polygamy that the media has not been showng. Polygamy is deleterious to marriage and society because women are treated horribly unequally and horribly during marriage, children are abused, and
“Polygyny is the marriage of one man to more than one woman at the same time” (Powell 167). This structure of marriage is prevalent among the families of Okonkwo’s village, and Okonkwo himself has three wives. A man with many wives was looked upon in a better light than a man with only one wife or no wife at all. In the novel, Okonkwo is said to have had a hard start as a young man because “he neither inherited a barn, nor a title, nor even a young wife” (Achebe 18). Men view wives as a means to gain titles and respect as well as extra labor power for thier combines. Women bring a number of benefits to a man: sexual services, reproductive power, labor, farms for women’s crops, in-laws with goods, land, and livestock. Men typically have only one wife if they lacked wealth (Amadiume 30-31). This is a feminist issue because the people of the village treat women as property that can be inherited. A feminist critic sees how polygyny devalues women and treats them the same as animals. According to Nigerian law, a woman is categorized “as an object who is not quite human” (Bazza 176). In Nigeria, if a woman is involved in polygyny and her husband divorces her for whatever reason, she cannot remarry and often turns to prostitution or extreme poverty for herself and her children (Kunhiyop 44). There is no good that comes from polygyny for
Throughout the history of the world, polygamy has played an integral part of the religious practices of various societies. For example, anciently, Jews, Muslims, Christians, and other religions have practiced polygamy. Today in America many people from many different cultures and spiritual backgrounds co-exist, including some who feel that God would have them marry more than one person at a time, all guaranteed, by the Constitution, the right to believe and worship as they see fit. Considering the diverse religious climate in America, polygamy, as a religious practice, must be protected under the first amendment to the Constitution.
The recognition of same-sex marriage is a political, social, and religious issue. Because of this same-sex marriage is a very controversial topic. Legal acknowledgement of same sex marriage is commonly referred to as marriage equality. Many advocates of marriage equality argue that laws restricting marriage to only heterosexuals discriminate against homosexuals. On the other hand advocates against same-sex marriage argue that it would undo long-standing traditions and change the meaning of marriage in a damaging manor. In this essay I will be arguing for same-sex marriage. The arguments mentioned as well as others will be discusses throughout this paper.
Polygamy seems to have always been an issue to people who practice other religions as well as the people within the law system. The term polygamy comes from the religious practice where one man has multiple wives at the same time. Just based off of the definition alone people have issues with those who practice this religion, which is understandable. However, do those people who judge, most of which are Christians, truly know much about the religion and its origins, or do they just automatically judge the fact that a man would marry multiple wives and the wives not seeing an issue with it? People are so quick to judge those who practice something that they do not agree with, which is very wrong. Giving a better understanding of this religious practice will help people form factual opinions that can actually back up their argument or agreement.
In recent years, same-sex marriage has become a more controversial topic on whether it’s right or wrong. People should not feel coerced to agree with something they believe is wrong; clearly, same-sex marriage is immoral and unnatural. Many complications come with same-sex marriages including financial pressures, social pressures, moral pressures, and health risks.