Multicultural Aspects/Gay & Lesbian Communities, Native North American Peoples - General & Miscellaneous, Native American Studies - General & Miscellaneous, General & Miscellaneous Gay & Lesbian Studies
Log in to track your reading progress.
Overview
In many Native American tribal societies, it was not uncommon for some men to live as women and some women to live as men. In this land, the original America, men who wore women’s clothes and did women’s work became artists, ambassadors, and religious leaders, and women sometimes became warriors, hunters and even chiefs. Same-sex marriages flourished. Berdaches—individuals who combine male and female social roles with traits unique to their status as a third gender—have been documented in more than 150 North American tribes. By looking at this aspect of non-Western culture, Roscoe challenges the basis of the dualistic way most Americans think about sexuality, and shakes the foundation of the way we understand and define gender.
Editorials
Booknews
Describes the role of the berdache, a previously overlooked aspect of Native American life. Occurring in over 150 tribes in pre- Colombian North America, the berdache were individuals who embodied both genders and combined male and female social roles with traits unique to their status as a third gender. The author draws on the historical record and examines berdache lifestyles among the Crow, Navajo, the Cheyenne, and many others. He looks at female warriors and chiefs, explores the mythological background of shamans and berdaches, develops a theory of gender diversity, and looks at the implications of all these for contemporary homosexuals in the Native American community. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.Book Details
Published
June 18, 1998
Publisher
New York : St. Martin's Press, 1998.
Pages
334
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780312175399