The Woman\'s Kingdom- PBS Frontline broadcast PDF

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Isabella Santana Africana Folklore Professor De Leon City Tech- T/TH 10-11:15 The Woman's Kingdom- PBS Frontline broadcast How has tourism affected the land? Tourism has brought people from everywhere to come and see the culture of “free love.” Although it has brought in much revenue for the larger villages, tourism has also had a negative impact on the community. Firstly, customs have changed to suit tourists needs and money seems to have gained in its importance in the lifestyles of people. Also, many people who come to these villages do not understand the ideologies surrounding the idea of free love, thus they assume it to be something that can be bought rather than felt. How has it affected individual ideology? Individual ideology has changed. When tourists come into a territory, they bring cultures and beliefs from the outside into one’s own culture. This being the case, individual ideology changes as exposure to the outside may or may not make someone become discontent with their lifestyle. Either they begin to want to venture from what they know, or they want to return to their prior state. Why does one begin to question one’s identity? One may begin to question their own identity as they experience a loss of culture when tourism takes over. For instance, much of Hawaiian culture has been lost due to tourism, thus only certain customs remain, most of which are for entertainment purchases and for the generation of revenue. The sad thing is, although cultural mixing may be a good thing (which is

wonderful when seeing a biracial couple), many need to consider that the lack of preservation for a culture means that there is something that can be lost and never have the capability to revert to what it once was. Tisese- A documentary on 3 Mosuo women Detail the ideology of the 3 women; explain the mail perspective and ideology. 3 Women you hear about are: > Dashilacuo- She tells viewers the story of her 1st bf who was Han and how he wanted her to leave her family to move with him. She said no to the thought of leaving her family and culture behind, and has since moved on. In her culture, four dressses have to do with adulthood. She also explains, when addressed as someone’s wife, she feels uneasy. Her thoughts are: You do not belong to one another, but rather are simply both referred to parents of a child. She expresses the belief that Han men was small family and the Mosuo people want a big family. In the outside city, the thought of things such as an elderly home is sad. >Gaa- An older woman in the village, explains the customs of the village. The idea that a big family means an easy life as everyone contributes. She also addresses the notion on young people’s sexuality being ok, not a taboo. The importance of how the elderly want to preserve certain customs like making clothes has to do with the history of their people. She throws the idea that women want development but have no experiences (the issues of illiteracy in the village). >Dema Emi- She explains that matriarch of a family is not decided by anyone and gives the example of how her family burden fell on her when everyone got old. Thus she was responsible for supporting the family and completing the work. In this society, she explains that the most competent person becomes matriarch.

The Male Perspective: >Daba (Father of dashilacuo’s children)- He works outside of village and thus has more exposure to outside of village environment. This being the case, he is better educated than most. In his opinion, he expresses the emotions regarding the hierarchy of people in his life. He states, “The most important person is my mother, she gives me life. Second is my wife. Third is my life.” This introduces the importance of family to the people of village, male especially, regardless of their level of education or individual beliefs. He throws out the idea that Mosuo women are quite conservative as they cannot accept extra-marital relationships. >Anawo (father of dashilacuo’s sister)- Anawo does not believe in Han custom for marriage and he refused to accept money for his daughter. He emphasizes that he is not selling her, but rather she chose him as a partner. He expresses the long-term belief that the mosuo male is very happy, very free. Their lives are easy as they do not make the overall decisions, but rather just do labor and/or as an uncle help raise children....