All of that together means polygamy causes wasted emotion energy, blurs who takes priority when it comes to distributing resources, and results in inferior children. Jacob specified that plural marriage may be practiced when god commanded it, but insisted that monogamy was otherwise the norm. The most important concept closely tied to monogamy is parental investment. Difference between monogamy and polygamy compare the. Why did such a large segment of human society switch from polygamy to monogamy.
Or at least, that is what the title monogamy, explained appeared to promise. Drawing from jacob 2, apostle orson pratt, in an 1859 sermon, taught that polygamy was positively forbidden to be practiced by the ancient nephites except as otherwise commanded by god. Im neither saying that im opposed to monogamy, nor in support of polygamy. Monogamy is widespread in modern humans which is rare for not only primates but also mammals. The churchs gospel topics essay on polygamy carefully suggests the marriage of one man and one woman is the lords standing law of marriage, meaning that while monogamy is the current mandate, exceptions can and have been made should the lord decree. For more than 2,500 years, the western tradition has embraced monogamous marriage as an essential institution for the flourishing of men and women, parents and children, society and the state. The concept of polygamy and the prophets marriages al. Polygamy plural marriage lds church perspective on polygamy. It is commonly found where the value of womens labor is high and may be practiced as a way of acquiring allies. Because i believe in serendipity, i listened as the book kept asking me to take it home. The insight offered by this book is new, unique, and encouraging. Its hard to say how many people in the united states practice polygamy estimates vary widely, from 20,000 to half a million but its clear most of their fellow americans disapprove. A groundbreaking examination of polygamy showing that monogamy was not the only form marriage took in early america today we tend to think of polygamy as an unnatural marital arrangement characteristic of fringe sects or uncivilized peoples. Thereafter, the practice of monogamy was the latterday saint standard.
You asked whether polygamy was of god or man, and the bible indicates that polygamy was at least tolerated. But by the time it was over, very little seemed to have been explained. Monogamy is not natural for human beings psychology today. The knowledge of how babies were created mixing mans sperm with females eggs created a scenario of possession and ownership over the product.
Generally speaking, there are two types of marriages in islam. Relationshipsmonogamy and polygamy wikibooks, open. From monogamy to polygyny a way through umm abdur rahman. This book examines, through a multidisciplinary lens, the possibilities offered by relationships and family forms that challenge the nuclear family ideal, and some of the arguments that recommend or disqualify these as legitimate units. What do the hindu vedas or puranas say about polygamy. John wittes magnificent western case for monogamy over polygamy is a book about western objections to polygamy, what westerners have traditionally seen as wrong with polygamy, how they have prosecuted and punished polygamy, and the reasons people have given for and against the ongoing prohibition of polygamy. Marry of the women that please you, two, three or four, but if you fear that you. I dont know that it is something where people are capable of having a preference. Although this book is geared mainly towards women, its vast content can give men insight into the emotional affects of polygyny on women, which they can use. I looked at the books surrounding it and realized that id ended up in the human sexuality category, not somewhere youd normally find me. Polygamy and monogamy this is an excellent book, published in the mid 1800s. From the period of the return from the babylonian exile, monogamy became the ideal and the custom of jewish married life. In the first episode of their new netflix series, entitled explained, the folks over at vox set out to explain monogamy.
Lukas explained to reporters, he and other biologists consider. From wikibooks, open books for an open world book out of eden, only 9% of mammals and 29% of primates are monogamous. Polygamy leads to a war within and between the sexes, while monogamy leads to shared interests, malefemale equality and mutual flourishing. The book, the myth of monogamy, seemed an unlikely subject to ever attract my attention. Senegals 1973 family code obligates grooms to register their intentions at the time of the first marriage opting for monogamy, limited polygamy with two wives, or full polygamy. The western case for monogamy over polygamy new books in. As david barash points out in his book out of eden, only 9% of mammals and 29% of primates are monogamous. In this answer i will be refuting the answer of rami sivan who says that some scriptures do promote polygamy. Polygynous males invest little or nothing in their offspring but males that form monogamous pairbonds invest a lot of resources in their offspring. The arc of biological and cultural evolution bends toward monogamy. A way through addresses the deep and complex issues and concerns the muslim women worldwide have with polygyny. The key difference between monogamy and polygamy is that while in monogamy the individual has only one spouse, in polygamy there are more than one spouses at a time. The same book of mormon and the same article that commanded the nephites that they should not marry more than one wife, made an exception.
In his upcoming book, witte also demonstrates how polygamy is harmful to men. The book we are presenting here covers a subject that has not been discussed or published before. Western peoples, especially, have embraced monogamy. Polygamy may enable a man to sire more offspring, but monogamy. When i read it, i couldnt help but think of some of the vociferouslystated original justifications for mormon polygamy which deplored monogamy as a system that created serious familial and societal problems. At the same time, polygamy has been considered a serious crime that harms wives and children, correlates. Jacob 2 describes how the prophet jacob condemned materialism and sexual immorality, including unauthorized plural marriage. In sociobiology and zoology, researchers use polygamy in a broad sense to mean any form of multiple mating. Popular polygamy books showing 150 of 475 escape hardcover by. Polygamy has been practiced by many cultures throughout history 3 there are numerous examples of polygamy among close followers, devotees, and the faithful to god in the old testament, but it is generally not accepted by most contemporary christians, though other christian groups permit the.
Monogamy is a problem, said dieter lukas of the university of cambridge in a telephone news conference last week. Worldwide, different societies variously encourage, accept or outlaw polygamy. If you want this digital book download link sent to a different email, please indicate in the special instructionscomments section at checkout purchasing grants one user license for the. The title of the book was, the history and philosophy of marriage, or, polygamy and monogamy compared. Although one finds books on polygamy or polygyny some. Both ancient and modern writers have argued it is inherently unnatural, unfair, and unjust to wives and children. Sociobiologists would say marriage pattern whether a society allows polygynous and monogamous marriage, or only monogamy.
This article is not put together in defense of polygamy plural marriage for allah has already confirmed its validity as clearly stated in the noble quran. The western case for monogamy over polygamynook book. While i am pleased that the book was historically written long before the 1900s, the author who wrote this book dived into contents highlighting. Notably, an oped piece by evolutionary biologist professor david barash, of the university of washington has written a book on polygamy, and i. Monogamy and polygamy in philosophy of gender, race, and sexuality. Monogamy the union of one wife to one husband is the prevalent form almost everywhere. From monogamy to polygyny a way through umm abdur rahman hirs. It was originally published in 1869 by a nonmormon christian philanthropist, named james campbell. Through this article let us examine the differences between these two practices with some examples. Polygamy and monogamy are compared with polygamy the victor.
The reality being that, as i mention in my book and other articles, if we want to have successful relationships we need to learn to grow together in this ever evolving world where distractions are aplenty and adultery is oh so easy to pursue. Why monogamy goes against our nature from testicle size to our slutty ancestors, a new book explains what human history teaches us about sex and couples. But from reading the text as its written it appears that at least among common people monogamy was the norm throughout both old and new testaments. Hales is the author of seven books dealing with mormon polygamy. In the book of genesis, god creates eve from one of adams ribs or sides. If monogamy wasnt the best way, monogamous societies would not have taken over societies with a more open approach to relations. Polygamy bookinitiation of the practice fairmormon. Although this book is geared mainly towards women, its vast content can give men insight into the emotional affects of polygyny on women, which they can use to. And so weve gone from horny papillae to faithful partnersfrom polygamy to monogamous humanity.
In judaism the law tolerated though it did not enact polygamy but custom stood higher than the law. Monogamy safer than polygamy monogamy has replaced polygamy because societies where men can marry more than one woman are more violent, researchers say. Long before these commandments were given there were codes of laws in. This essay is a revision ofpolygamy among james strang and his followers john whitmer his torical association journal 10 1989. How saints and jacobs teachings can help contextualize. The book itself was so old that the library would not even let the book be taken out. Polygamy is the practice or custom of having more than one wife or husband at the same time. The western historical case for monogamy over polygamy is the 28th book for witte, a prolific author who has also published 220 articles and 15 journal. Although this book is geared mainly towards women, its vast content can give men.
Practical advice is brought forth to aid in moving past the negative feelings that are commonly associated with polygyny, ultimately helping the muslim woman progress to a higher level. The first of these essays in book order was called the overdue demise of monogamy by aubrey degrey, a noted gerontologist and author. Zakir naik who said that hinduism promotes polygamy and only quran says marry only one dr zakir na. The digital book download link is sent to your email address used to place the order, usually within 24 hours or next business day. How might readers make sense of this connection between polygamy and material wealth. This is a high quality reproduction with new cover art work by lauren hawkins and a short introduction by pastor don milton. Joseph smith and polygamy by jerald and sandra tanner also a photomechanical reprint of. Books on affairs have been exploding in the selfhelp market in the past. While the book hasnt been published under a specific name, it was noted that a christian philanthropist wrote it. The central arguments, as i understand them, are that monogamy didnt exist until after the invention of agriculture.