In class this past week we discussed a lot about different cultures and their health practices. In discussing African cultures and their practices with women and questioning if that’s any different than our American practice of circumcision, it made me think about my Intro to Modern Africa Class. One issue that came to my mind – Polygyny. Why is it that we are so quick to assume that it is so awful and so wrong?

Maybe it’s that show “Sisterwives,” which I have not seen a lot of but have a feeling it gives the Polygynist, an awful reputation. Or maybe its like what we talked about in class about how we “see the world from our own cultural vantage point.” This vantage point makes it so hard to understand any other culture OR our own culture. We don’t question monogamy, but we automatically think polygyny is wrong because its something we are not used to.

In my Modern Africa class we discussed many reasons why Polygyny happens in Africa:

• It brings social stability and allows people to have large families
• Large families provide more economic stability
• Large families helps combat the frequently “inevitable losses of children due to disease”
• If a woman is widowed, she is then allowed to marry her husband’s brother. If he already has a wife than the widow would be left on her own. Polygyny fixes this.
• If a woman is barren, her husband is allowed to divorce her, leaving this woman completely on her own. Allowing him to have another wife allows the new wife to bare a child for the first wife and for herself.

We also discussed how many African woman had no complaints or regrets against polygyny.

Now, all of this doesn’t mean that polygyny is right or wrong, or that men should be able to do whatever they want and that all African woman are perfectly fine with it. That is certainly not the case. However, I think it’s important to think before we jump to conclusions. Admit it, it’s so easy for us to think that something is wrong because we don’t do it, no matter how sad that may be. In some cases polygyny may just be about the man wanting to have as many wives as he wants, but certainly not always. It’s important for us to think about cultural practices and beliefs before we make these conclusions. As I learned in my class, polygyny may be what’s saving many African woman from being left on their own to fend for themselves.

-Megan DeBanto