The Manus of the Admiralty Islands

Mead, Margaret

essay

The Manus of the Admiralty Islands

cooperation and competition among primitive peoples • New York • Published In 1937 • Pages: 210-239

By: Mead, Margaret.

Abstract
This is a comprehensive general summary of Manus society, with emphasis on economic cooperation, condensed in part from the author's previous works on Manus appearing as documents 1-2, 4-7 of this file. After a general introduction to the Manus, Mead discusses the functioning of the society (which is tied up with kinship structure, mutual aid and financial assistance in marriage, debts and their discharge, leadership and the all pervading Sir Ghost cult); the early training of the child and his introduction to societal norms; Manus social personalities (e.g., leaders, dependents, and independents); degree of integration of the cultural life; correspondence between actual economic conditions and social behavior; displacement of competitiveness into the supernatural world; war; and sex and marriage. A short summary and bibliography conclude the work.

Culture summary

Social personality

Functional and adaptational interpretations

Borrowing and lending

Internal trade

Status, role, and prestige

Social relationships and groups

Ingroup antagonisms

Regulation of marriage

Mode of marriage

Arranging a marriage

Family relationships