“We can see that both men and women lived with a sense of the divine female, and the idea that Earth itself is a mother has lasted in most languages” (Morris). In the world today, much of humanity’s culture can be traced back thousands of years to prehistoric times. The ideas and beliefs of ancient people still surface from time to time in different forms, while being appropriately adjusted to fit modern standards. Interestingly, many of these prehistoric social structures value women more than may be expected, in both a spiritual and practical way. Women were highly respected, with female goddesses being worshipped and praised. Women were also essential to the success and survival of prehistoric tribes and civilizations in many ways. However,
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As stated in The Women’s History of the World by Rosalind Miles, women were much more useful than men when it came to supplying food for their tribes: “At no point in prehistory did women, with or without their children, rely on their hunting males for food” (Miles). The food that women gathered, such as plants or berries, was far more plentiful than the meat gained from the males’ hunting. In prehistoric groups, women were also of great importance when it came to being mothers and watching over children. Women were not viewed solely as caretakers, but rather every person recognized the importance and vitality of life that was only possible due to them. Families did not revolve around a strong father or male figure as the only support: “In the woman-centered family, males were casual and peripheral, while both nucleus and any networks developing from it remained female” (Miles). Finally, ancient civilizations in which women were respected had less instances of senseless violence and brutality, whereas strong patriarchies (such as a Russian group discussed later) created war. A quote from Marija Gimbutas says: “The Goddess centered art with its striking absence of images of warfare and male domination, reflects a social order in which women as heads of clans or queen-priestesses played a central part” (Gimbutas). And, although women were essential to the people’s survival, they still did not dominate over the
As stated in The Women’s History of the World by Rosalind Miles, women were much more useful than men when it came to supplying food for their tribes: “At no point in prehistory did women, with or without their children, rely on their hunting males for food” (Miles). The food that women gathered, such as plants or berries, was far more plentiful than the meat gained from the males’ hunting. In prehistoric groups, women were also of great importance when it came to being mothers and watching over children. Women were not viewed solely as caretakers, but rather every person recognized the importance and vitality of life that was only possible due to them. Families did not revolve around a strong father or male figure as the only support: “In the woman-centered family, males were casual and peripheral, while both nucleus and any networks developing from it remained female” (Miles). Finally, ancient civilizations in which women were respected had less instances of senseless violence and brutality, whereas strong patriarchies (such as a Russian group discussed later) created war. A quote from Marija Gimbutas says: “The Goddess centered art with its striking absence of images of warfare and male domination, reflects a social order in which women as heads of clans or queen-priestesses played a central part” (Gimbutas). And, although women were essential to the people’s survival, they still did not dominate over the