Q8 of 9 Page 80

How important were gender differences in early societies? Give reasons for your answer.

It was considered that early families were generally Patriliny. Matriliny Family was generally not in use but we could see some Historical sources mention the name of some rulers from inscriptions associated with the name of the mothers of the king.

Gender differences were very important in early societies due to the following reasons:-


1. There was gendered access to property. In ancient society patrilineal system of succession was followed; according to which the paternal state was divided equally amongst sons after the death of the parents. Women were not the part of the succession hence didn’t get any share from it. Attitude towards daughters were different. They had no claims towards the resource of the household.


2. Access to property determined social status. Although women were allowed to retain the gifts they received on the occasion of their marriage as “Stridhana” but Manusmriti warned women against hoarding family property without the husband’s permission both textual and epigraphic evidence suggest that all the resources- land, cattle and money were controlled by men.


3. Since women did not own property social differences between men and women sharpened.


4. Men enjoyed a higher status than women and this lead to the domination of women both in power and in household.


More from this chapter

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5

The following is an excerpt from the Mahabharata, in which Yudhisthira, the eldest Pandava, speaks to Sanjaya, a messenger:

Sanjaya, convey my respectful greetings to all the Brahmanas and the chief priest of the house of Dhritarashtra. I bow respectfully to teacher Drona … I hold the feet of our preceptor Kripa … (and) the chief of the Kurus, the great Bhishma. I bow respectfully to the old king (Dhritarashtra). I greet and ask after the health of his son Duryodhana and his younger brother ... Also greet all the young Kuru warriors who are our brothers, sons and grandsons … Greet above all him, who is to us like father and mother, the wise Vidura (born of a slave woman) ... I bow to the elderly ladies who are known as our mothers. To those who are our wives you say this, “I hope they are well-protected”… Our daughters-in-law born of good families and mothers of children greet on my behalf. Embrace for me those who are our daughters … The beautiful, fragrant, well-dressed courtesans of ours you should also greet. Greet the slave women and their children; greet the aged, the maimed (and) the helpless …


Try and identify the criteria used to make this list – in terms of age, gender, kinship ties. Are there any other criteria? For each category, explain why they are placed in a particular position in the list.

 6

This is what a famous historian of Indian literature, Maurice Winternitz, wrote about the Mahabharata: “just because the Mahabharata represents more of an entire literature … and contains so much and so many kinds of things, (it) gives(s) us an insight into the most profound depths of the soul of the Indian folk.” Discuss.

 7

Discuss whether the Mahabharata could have been the work of a single author.

 9

Discuss the evidence that suggests that Brahmanical prescriptions about kinship and marriage were not universally followed.