Gender Roles in Dakota Culture

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I do not agree with scholars who argue that Dakota women were subordinate to Dakota men. Waterlily is “about a girl who lived a century ago, in a remote camp-circle of the Teton Dakotas [Lakotas].”(Deloria vi). Ella Cara Deloria, author of Waterlily, explains her writing, “it reads convincingly to any who understands Dakota life... and it's purely the woman's point of view, her problems, aspirations, ideals, etc.”. (Deloria vi). In general, when our [westernized] culture hears that women are inferior to men, we think of it as sexist and unfair, not as a culturally acceptable idea. Gender relations in the Dakota tribe were very specific and there were no crossing of the sexes.

To begin, I think it is important to analyze the difference between “sex” and “gender”. Up until researching for this paper, I though that the two terms were interchangeable in meaning, rather, they are separate ideas that are connected. According to Mary K. Whelan, a Doctor of Anthropology focusing on gender studies, sex and gender are different. She states, “Western conflation of sex and gender can lead to the impression that biology, and not culture, is responsible for defining gender roles. This is clearly not the case.”. She continues with, “Gender, like kinship, does have a biological referent, but beyond a universal recognition of male and female "packages," different cultures have chosen to associate very different behaviors, interactions, and statuses with men and women. Gender categories are arbitrary constructions of culture, and consequently, gender-appropriate behaviors vary widely from culture to culture.” (23). Gender roles are completely defined by the culture each person lives in. While some may think that another culture is sexist, or dem...

... middle of paper ...

...pical roles in our westernized culture, I don't think that the men had a sexist agenda. I picture Dakota women as strong and honorable women, not as women who were treated unjustly and as an inferior human. One of the largest themes that is seen throughout Dakota culture is honor. Everything they did revolved around honor, what it would bring to themselves or their families. Honor above all else was to be protected and respected. If Dakota women were subordinates to the men in their lives, they would not be living up to the honor they so strongly believed in.

Works Cited

Deloria, Ella Cara. Waterlily. Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 2009. Print.

Whelan, Mary K. "Gender and Historical Archaeology: Eastern Dakota Patterns in the 19th Century." Society for Historical Archaeology 25.4 (1991): 17-32. JSTOR. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. .

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