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Language
English (en)
Date of Award
3-1-2012
Author's Department
International and Area Studies
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts (A.B.)
Restricted/Unrestricted
Restricted
Abstract
The Maasai of East Africa are idealized in the West as an example of a "traditional" African ethnic group. In addition to their decorative dress and pastoralist production methods, the sexual practices of the Maasai are often viewed as "promiscuous," "primitive," and distinctly non-Western. The purpose of this study is to de-mystify Maasai sexual practices through the use of twenty sexual narratives of Maasai women. This study was conducted between April 8 and April 30, 2011 in Mto wa Mbu, Tanzania and surrounding villages. Twenty females belonging to three different generations were interviewed about their "lived" sexual experiences as well as the future of Maasai sexual traditions. Four main sexual practices were discussed: esoto, female circumcision, marriage, and sexual intercourse itself. I analyze the data using descriptive analysis. The variation present among the narratives highlights the dichotomy between the historical "ideal" and lived experience. These gaps underscore the complexities of Maasai sexuality, challenging the Western notion of an "African sexuality." The women's personal experiences and opinions about change demonstrate that sexual practices are indeed undergoing major changes. Esoto, a night ritual during which ndito (girls) and i/murran (warriors) flirt and have sex, is going out of practice in the area. While female circumcision is still practiced, it is done so in private. In terms of marriage, the number of wives per man is decreasing and educated women now have the option of choosing their own husbands. Women are also becoming more active participants in sexual intercourse. Furthermore, the interviewees highlighted the following as causes for these changes: government influence, education, contact with outsiders, and religion. I found that women of older generations supported a shift in morality when it allowed them to make claims to gerontocratic power and protested a shift in morality when it challenged their claims to this power.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.7936/yea8-m066
Mentor
Shanti Parikh
Recommended Citation
Glickman, Alannah, "“My Daughter Will Choose”: Shifting Centers of Morality and Accessing Claims in Maasai Sexual Narratives" (2012). Senior Honors Papers / Undergraduate Theses. 144.
The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.7936/yea8-m066
Comments
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