Читать книгу Sex Rules! - Janice Z. Brodman - Страница 23

Sex scrooges need not apply…

The Aché of eastern Paraguay believe the most important human trait is to be a “good giver.” They share everything with one another—food, houses, chores, childcare, spouses. Skilled and savvy hunters and foragers, the Aché have roamed thousands of acres of forest over the centuries, from the spectacular Guairá waterfalls, south along the Cordillera de San Rafael mountains and the Paraná River. Wherever they go, they make sure that everyone gets a share of the meal. Afterwards, the women make sure that all the men they like get a piece of the pie.

That doesn’t mean Aché women don’t believe in marriage—they do! Lots of marriages! Women choose their own husbands, and most Aché women have had at least a dozen marriages, with short romances sprinkled along the way.

Think that makes it tough to figure out baby’s dad? No problem! The Aché believe every baby is a mix of all the lovers mom chose just before and during her pregnancy. Babies are, after all, developed by the application of lots of semen while mom is pregnant. The result: all kids have several fathers—the man she had sex with just before pregnancy, the man she thinks is responsible for getting her pregnant, any men who donated food while she was pregnant, and her husband.

So no one worries if mom disappears for a week. She’ll be home soon…with another dad!

Aché OF PARAGUAY