false 932911 2 The Na of China, farmers in the Himalayan region, live without the institution of marriage. Na brothers and sisters live together their entire lives, sharing household responsibilities and raising the women&rsquo;s children. Because the Na, like all cultures, prohibit incest, they practice a system of sometimes furtive, sometimes conspicuous nighttime encounters at the woman&rsquo;s home. The woman's partners--she frequently has more than one--bear no economic responsibility for her or her children, and "fathers," unless they resemble their children, remain unidentifiable.<br /> <br /> This lucid ethnographic study shows how a society can function without husbands or fathers. It sheds light on marriage and kinship, as well as on the position of women, the necessary conditions for the acquisition of identity, and the impact of a communist state on a society that it considers backward. 917899 2001 A Society Without Fathers or Husbands: The Na of China 0 0 8 0 0 0 false false Sun Oct 25 14:20:40 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 25 14:20:40 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Aug 21 12:02:52 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 21 12:02:52 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jul 20 20:01:38 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 20 20:01:38 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Apr 23 17:55:18 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 23 17:55:20 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Jan 27 22:01:57 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 22:01:57 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Tue Oct 28 09:44:52 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 28 09:44:52 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Wed Oct 22 09:12:31 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 22 09:12:31 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Mon May 26 20:03:01 -0700 2008 Mon May 26 20:03:51 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=932911