Four Levels of The Savage Male

Literal Comprehension:

The Yanomamo males are fierce and war-like people. They are military sexists. They bruise, would, mutilate or kill their women. They take hallucinogenic drugs and have fantastic vision. These drugs also help to endure pain and to control fear while fighting. Males are highly valued while females are badly treated since early childhood. Women expect to be beaten. Their status as wives is measured by the beatings their husbands give them. The extreme case of male supremacy is shown in their different types of duels in which two men try to hurt each other to the limit of their endurance. Guests and hosts usually take part in such duels. Fighting is common among the Yanomamo males. There is no hope of peace among them because of treachery. All the time they are concerned with building up military power, which is necessary for their survival. They should be watchful all the time. And this has been their mechanism of life.

Interpretation:

This is a ‘true’ picture of the Yanomamo people given by an anthropologist. It shows that people have to struggle for existence. Those who are fit can survive and those who are weak cannot live freely. It also throws some light on the male supremacy in the society. The powerful always ruled over the weak. It also justifies the fact that human beings are basically savage. It also proves that the meaning of life to a man is to satisfy his ego. The Yanomamo people support the weak group but they expect something in return from them.

Critical Thinking:

Being a reader it is natural for us to look at the Yanomamo people from our won point of view. To us many of the things seem unbelievable. Do husbands kill or wound their wives for fault at all? If men expect women to serve them, how can they mutilate them? Why do they try to endure pain for nothing at all? Or do they so to prove their manhood? Why are these people ready to kill and get killed? Why do they expect unnatural death? Don't they regard life so valuable? Also, it is noticeable that the author of the text has relied all his drawings based upon a male anthropologist and gives a very little space for a woman anthropologist. This actually draws the margin that a study cannot illustrate a true picture of the subject when one practices partiality. I personally feel that the reality of the Yanomamo people might not the one that is depicted in the text.

Assimilation:

By learning about their societies, we can broaden own visions and gain insights into our own culture. We can judge critically what is right and what is wrong in our own society. Like in the Yanomamo society, wives are beaten in our society. Our society is also male-dominated. Boys are preferred to girls. Women at every menstrual period are kept separately. Boxing and wrestling among the students in the campuses remind us of the Yanomamo duels of different sorts. Group quarrels or fights in our society are similar to their fights. In many cases we find that our society is not different from theirs. In their society we find the cases to extreme points whereas we have a milder form.