Marriage?

[jackfaire]

The woman being the property that was transferred from father to husband.

There were actually cultures where women chose the men and if the men didn't like it they could screw off.

[kiwi]

There were actually cultures where women chose the men and if the men didn't like it they could screw off.

which cultures were those

I'm not denying their existence, I want to know

[ThePhoneGoddess]

My hypothesis is that marriage was designed by women way back when to protect themselves. This is when religion stepped in to take it upon themselves to control more aspects.

Rapscallion

Actually anthropologists say evidence indicates that in almost all societies, access to women was institutionalized in some way so as to moderate the intensity of the competition for nubile young women.

In other words, it was enacted to protect them from being fought over, which caused not only danger to the women but could affect an entire tribe, village or society. In many primitive cultures nubile women were often a source of jealousy and strife, and so it was necessary to enact rules about having sexual access to them.

that's what I've read, anyway.

[jackfaire]

which cultures were those

I'm not denying their existence, I want to know

I wish I could remember back in roman days or earlier my history teacher taught us about them and that was like a good 5 years ago.

[kiwi]

I wish I could remember back in roman days or earlier my history teacher taught us about them and that was like a good 5 years ago.

I did my degree in history and took some ancient history courses, I don't remember any specific Greek or Roman (for that matter) city states that allowed women to choose their partners. Even in Sparta, probably the most liberal city state for women, had little or no choice in the matter.

To my knowledge for the best part of recorded history the vast majority of cultures around the world organised marriage with women being handed from the fathers "protection" to the husbands with little or no say. At least in the cultures/countries I studied about social constructs. That would be Asia, Western and Eastern Europe.

If anyone would like to provide any kind of source for these cultures were women were given the primary choice of their mate I would be more than happy to know I'm rather curious now

[BroomJockey]

If anyone would like to provide any kind of source for these cultures were women were given the primary choice of their mate I would be more than happy to know I'm rather curious now

I'd assume one that was more matriarchal, instead of patriarchal, as most of the ones you studied likely were.

[jackfaire]

http://viruscomix.com/page475.html

Web comic representation of some of the things we talk about.