Suchergebnisse

Joint family shrinkage, as caused by external forces, such as mechanization, industrialization-urbanization, increased mobility and acculturation with their stresses on individualism, affect patrilineal and matrilineal family patterns differently. The mother's brother plays in matrilineal families an important role, besides mother and father, thus forming a pluralistic family authority. Though this inculcates more family democracy than patriarchy, the mother's brother in Kerala (Malãyalam: kãranavan) is accused of dictatorial overbearing and neglect of his traditional duties. Ironically, this complaint against matriliny, eventually resulting in abolition, was the neglect of its pluralistic principle in South India, by dictatorial karanavans under the influence from Nambudiri Brahmanism, Westernism and northern India. Though essentially comparable, the matrilineal joint family pattern of the Khasi in north-eastern India, resisted acculturation and even Christianization better. The Garos, western neighbours of the Khasi, may have adopted the latter's matrilineal - though not so much their joined family pattern, the mother's brother's position being different. The asymmetry of pluralistic matrilineal family patterns, as compared to patriarchy, finds expression also in various other Khasi-Garo differences. Predictions for further developments hinge on future acculturation of feminist trends in various contemporary power-centres, such as Europe, the USA, USSR, China and their frequently changing patterns.