ucu people talked about in the Nadelson article, are the least ritualistic in regards to manhood. While it is held that manhood is very important in their society, and that there are certain rites given to men and not women, they do not suffer the great pains illustrated in other societies. “For the Mundurucu, one mode of “maleness” is achieved by shunning women, while another mode consists in seeking them” (Nadelson, 240: 1981). They do not perform any rituals which constitute their voyage onto manhood. It is only believed, that when a male child is old enough, he moves from his mother’s hut into the male house. A symbol very much similar to the Sambia and Samburu tribes who send the boy away from the mother’s hut for several years. Within the Mundurucu traditions, however, they are not required to engage in any rituals which would transform them from boys to men, or from the mother’s hut to the men’s house. The only thing that constitutes young boys turning into men, is their move into the men’s house, and when they take on a wife in which they must provide for. It is through these types of rituals in which the young boys of the Mundurucu society become men.The different societies mentioned above all seem to illustrate a universal understanding of what occurs there. In order for a boy to become a man, he must engage in vigorous activities and rituals to prove his manhood. Manhood is not something that is just developed naturally, it is a process in which a young boy must earn the right to be called a “man”. It is through these understandings of other cultures, that the Western way of life seems to be much easier when it comes to manhood in the making. Whoever said that becoming a man was an easy task, must not have ever studied about the different societies around the world who can prove them wrong. Thank goodness I am a woman!...
