Male‐female sexual variations: Functions of biology or culture

Male-female disparities in sexual attitudes and behavior are so obvious, and pervade all strata of the society, that it would be easy to assume that this is the natural order of things. Howeverv any historical or cross-cultural analysis would challenge many notions concerning innate difference among males and females in sexual attitudesv desire or behavior. From both an historical and cross-cultural perspective, societies and epochs may vary greatly as to the kinds of behavior approved for different sex role groupings. These variations reflect the fact that while male and female are biological entities, they appear to be social roles as well (Maccoby, 1966). According to some nineteenth-century anthropologists (Bachofen, 1861 and Morgan, 1871) ancient societies allowed free sexual relations to prevail and the fathers of the children were unknown. Within certain tribal groupings, every woman belonged to every man, and there was unrestricted sexual intercourse between brother and sister, parent and child. In these primitive societies, there was absolute sexual equality between males and females. It was only after the emergence of private property that sexual freedom was restricted for either sex. As part of the evolution of civilization, man had to secure the faithfulness of wives in order to insure reliability of paternal lineage. This was required because the children would later on inherit the fortunes of their fathers. Not only did this stage of civilization mark the beginning of monogamous marriages but the double standard of sexual conduct as well. Only women were expected to be strictly faithful and adultery on their part was cruelly punished (Engels 1902). These theories and many similar ones have only historical interest today For the most part they are now recognized as undocumerlted metaphysics. As Leslie (1962) notes, the proposition that families everywhere have passed through similar stages or that there is any unilinear trend toward the monogamous family has long since been rendered implausible by more sophisticated anthropological study. In essence, he says, the question of family origins is lost in prehistory,