The Culture of Polygamy in the Philippines

SAS 1 | Self and Society

Thecultureof inthePhilippines

Background of polygamy A little bit of history

Monogamy Polygamy

Perception of Filipino Society towards Polygamy

Application of SAS 1 topics

Summary

Implications of polygamy to future Filipino dating scene Our group's opinion on Polygamy

Conclusion

Polygamy is the concept of having multiple spouses at a given time which usually takes on different forms such as polygyny, polyandry, and group marriage Polygyny is a practice in which a man is allowed to have more than one wife while polyandry permits a woman to have more than one husband. On the other hand, the idea of group marriage guarantees the sexual ingress of several men and women to one another and considers themselves married to all members of the group (Zeitzen, 2008).

85 p p addressing the public stating that polygamy is one of the principles of the Mormon Church From that year on up to 1890, church leaders encouraged people to engage in multiple marriages and commitments (Embry, 1994).

In this magazine, you will have a glimpse of the concept of polygamy in different parts of the world; but it will center more on the perspective of the people in the Philippines Through this, audiences are expected to have a better understanding of this type of relationship and be accepting of others’ cultures which was aligned with their belief system.

hi s o Alittle bit f to ry

Philippines Monogamy

Monogamy is particularly practiced in the Philippines, whereas polygamy occurs among non-Christian groups.

During the colonial period, Christianity was introduced and a monogamous marriage was considered morally and legally acceptable, but before the colonization of the Spaniards the Filipinos already had their own sexual and relationship practices, one of which was having a polygamous relationship.

Polygamy

In Other Countries

Africa

Polygamy is most common in places where pre-colonial economic activity is centered around farming and manpower Because of high levels of infant mortality, a family needed more than one childbearer to be economically viable.

The need to have more wives is due to a large number of men dying from war. So if a man has more wives, he can forge a bigger alliance, and a big family also affects their status. A larger family is a source of pride

NorthAmerica

Joseph Smith, the Prophet of the Mormon or the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints believed that God wanted him to spread polygamy among his people

This revelation is based on a simple principle: Godwantedhispeopletomultiply.

The Mormon Church refers back to God’s directive in Genesis 1:28, “be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth ”

However, polygamy was slow in spreading throughout the Church and only lasted for 60 years. The principle was still respected by the LDS Church but was not practiced. The LDS issued a decree that there would be no new plural marriages in the Church, and Mormons still forming new polygamous unions were excommunicated. The excommunicated Mormons became the Fundamentalist sects that still engage in polygamy today.

In the Philippines

The Manobo tribe practices polygamy, and therefore should not be sued as it is part of their culture. Pantaleon Alvarez belongs to the said tribe. He wanted to push legislation that allows the dissolution of marriage, where couples who can no longer stand each other won’t undergo annulment.

Muslim

Polygamy is now rare among Muslim Filipinos for3reasons:

1.

2. 3.

The trend in Islam is generally away from the practice Laws of the Republic forbid it

It is expensive

There is a growing consensus that most Muslims preferred monogamy and that the Quranic permission for four wives was meant as a limitation It was not an encouragement of polygamy

Muslims cannot simply marry new wives. He must seek permission from his first wife and her parents. He also must be able to prove that he can support more wives and children, and must be able to treat all his wives and children equally

Polygamy is not a common norm in the Philippines, but it is adopted by the Muslims under the Shari’ah or Islamic Law.

The women married in a polygamous relationship tend to have dichotomous perceptions on polygyny. Women who had favorable experiences in their marriage tend to favor polygamy, and those who had unfavorable experiences perceive polygamy unfavorably.

WomeninPolygamyvs. MonogamyMarriage

Comparing women from polygamous marriages and monogamous marriages: Women in polygamous marriages showed higher psychological distress, and psychological problems.

WivesinPolygamousMarriages

In polygamous relationships, senior wives have lower self-esteem and poorer relationships with their husbands compared to junior wives.

Women married to the same man might view one another with jealousy and animosity; and some women in polygamous marriages view their relationship with other wives as enriching and valuable.

Children in Polygamous Families

The children from polygamous families reported more mental health than their counterparts from monogamous families

Correlation of the husband’s father to polygamy

If the husband’s father is polygamous, this increases the union of becoming polygamous by 43% at each marriage duration.

Financial

In a polygamous union, more can contribute to supporting one another It results in higher income

ofFilipino Society towards Polygamy

In a video created by Filipina YouTuber, The Filipina Pea, she interviewed Filipinos regarding their perception of polygamy. Some of them answered that they do not agree with polygamy given that it may increase the risk of pregnancy and that it does not align with the belief system in their religions, most commonly Catholicism where monogamous marriages are practiced.

However, most of the interviewees in the video agreed with the practice of polygamy in relationships. Finance is a common theme that is always mentioned by the interviewees they believe that polygamy grants the partners financial stability given that their finances are shared in the case of marriages. They also believed that polygamy should be practiced as long as the man can provide the needs of his partners and families. Generally, financially-capable Filipino men often want more than 1 partner to become emotionally stable.

In the case of pre-marital relationships, the interviewees believe that polygamy relationships will only work when it’s casual (for instance, when they live in separate houses) because this grants them their wanted space

The group also looked for discussion forums regarding polygamy on Reddit They found that some people perceive it as a form of cheating and that it is an unhealthy practice

For the other half of the commenters we found, they believe that polygamous relationships are acceptable as long as consent is given. This is because polygamy can provide structure in life, given that multiple people can guide their partners in the relationship

Therefore, it can be concluded that most Filipinos still prefer monogamous relationships. However, non-religious Filipinos believe that people should be free to practice whichever kind of romantic relationship they want to pursue Polygamy is illegal in most parts of the Philippines and adultery is considered a serious offense in the country. However, it rarely becomes a criminal case

Despite this, polygamous relationships are established informally and usually, secretly among marriages. In cases where it is not a secret, Filipino women in polygamous relationships often feel forced to be in such arrangements because they are financially in need and they feel like they do not have the freedom to protest it despite their jealousy

SAS1 TopicsApplicationof

Relationship of self and society

Aside from different cultures practicing and engaging in a polygamous connection, society today has already become permissive to entering into this kind of romantic relationship However, this notion has been rejected by several individuals or groups because of the criticisms received by “cheating” - which is also part of the enacted laws in the country Because of this, polygamy is said to be not solely accepted in the Philippines Because of the norm practiced by Filipinos which was represented by monogamy, it is quite difficult for all the citizens to accept the idea of polygamy, given that they have a preserved history of dating in the country Considering this, society in this case has a great role for an individual in defining the self - their desires, the principles they live in, and the values they hold, among others

N a t u r e & N u r t u r e

Are humans monogamous or polygamous? It turns out that we are somewhere in between. Looking at the mating system of people in modern society; sexual arrangements in human history; and the behavior and anatomy of a person’s closest relatives help us determine whether a person and even human beings, in general, are polygamous or monogamous in nature (Farah, n d) In fact, polygamy is a successful evolutionary strategy to stabilize mating and offspring-rearing behaviors within the same species (Klein, 1980) Mammals are naturally polygamous but the modern monogamous culture has only been around for 1,000 years. Although polygamy is practiced in various cultures, humans are generally still monogamous given that this is not always the norm among our ancestors—monogamy emerged so that males could protect their infants from other males in ancestral groups who may kill them in order to mate with their mothers (Senthilingam, 2016)

On the other hand, it was found that men and women are likely to take part in a polygamous relationship if their father was in a polygamous relationship and, similarly, they are also likely to have monogamous relationships if their parents are monogamous. Therefore, if a person’s romantic preference is to have a monogamous relationship, his chances are higher when his spouse’s father is also monogamous

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory of Development

Polygamy has been practiced throughout different groups of communities (Tribes, religious practices, Traditional, etc.) It has been practiced as a standard because it symbolizes wealth and pride. Polygamy was respected by some religions but was not practiced in every part of the world as it was considered taboo. Some kept the tradition as it was passed on within their community Some groups of Filipinos used to practice polygyny during the pre-colonial period as it was part of their tradition Monogamy was then introduced during the colonial period, and it became a moral and legal norm among Filipinos as it was passed on through the years, and polygamy was only practiced by certain religions.

Summary

SSummary ummary

Polygamy is an idea of having multiple spouses in a lifetime It started when Orson Patt addressed to the public that it was a principle in the Mormon Church. It was practiced due to religious and cultural beliefs.

In North America, the Mormons were split into 2 groups: One who does not practice polygamy and the other who does. Africa practiced polygamy because they needed more manpower, and it was a status of wealth and pride.

Religions such as Muslims, practiced polygamy but they must be able to support all wives and children equally.

Polygamy is now only practiced by some groups in the Philippines. Today, it is not viewed as a norm. Society now practices monogamous relationships as it is a legal and moral norm.

Our group’s opinion on polygamy

"Polygamy is not bad especially if it’s religiously or culturally inclined. Those who practice this benefit from it in a lot of aspects

For me, I don’t think I would practice this not because it’s illegal in my religion and country, but because it’s something that I’m not used to Plus seeing videos from Tiktok where a lot of people glorify and use polygamy as a way to satisfy their sexual fantasies isn’t something to encourage on the internet " - Kate Carandang

“Entering a polygamous relationship is a great avenue for individuals experiencing identity confusion especially in terms of their sexual orientation People have different capacities to love someone romantically and this typically has distinction depending on the person or their partner However, polygamy shall be agreed upon by both parties to avoid conflicts in the future. One shall communicate this first to their potential partners before making exclusive agreements and ensure that each one of them shall acknowledge the feelings of one another even though they are in that kind of relationship ” - Jophanie Fermin

“In some aspects, polygamy is a fun way for people to discover more about themselves their likes and dislikes, identity, sexual preferences, and more Though it has been proven in the magazine that polygamy is natural in human nature, I believe that it is being weaponized by men for sexual abuse and fantasies, as well as sexist behavior

Polygamy is inherently misogynistic as it can be a source of oppression for women ” - Isabelle Dela Paz

References

Boltz, M, & Chort, I (2015) The Risk of Polygamy and Wives Saving Behavior https://shshalscience/halshs-01183453/document

Ebrahim, AU, Lingga, JU, Boquia, AH, & Samama, NC (2017) Women in polygynous marriages: Their perceptions and experiences. Philippine Journal of Psychology, 50(1), p. 27-45. https://wwwpapph/assets/files/journals/women-in-polygynous-marriages-their-perceptions-andexperiencespdf

Farah (nd) Chapter 6: Polygamy and the Nature of Men (The Red Queen) Retrieved from: https://unearnedwisdom.com/chapter-6-polygamy-and-the-nature-of-men-the-red-queen/

Klein, ER (1980) Nature vs nurture revisited Between the Species Retrieved from: https://digitalcommonscalpolyedu/cgi/viewcontentcgi? referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1726&context=bts

Layton, J (nd) What’s the History of Polygamy in North America? Retrieved from https://peoplehowstuffworkscom/polygamyhtm

MEDICAL TRENDS (2022) Polyamorous Relationships: Ultimate Guide for Filipinos Medical Trends Retrievedfromhttps://medicaltrendsnowcom/psychiatry/polyamorous-relationships/ PINOY ATTORNEY (2016, June 24) The Elements Of Adultery Attorneys of the Philippines Retrieved from https://attorneyorgph/legal-news/tag/9adultery#:~:text=As%20defined%20under%20Article%20333,marriage%20be%20subsequently%20decl ared%20void%E2%80%9D

Porcalla, D (2017) Speaker: I’m a Manobo; Polygamy Allowed Retrieved from: https://wwwphilstarcom/headlines/2017/07/26/1721904/speaker-im-manobo-polygamy-allowed

The Filipina Pea (2022) When One Filipina Isn’t Enough - Polygamy and Harems in the Philippines

Retrievedfrom:https://youtube/Qpo 2WqJf4M

Vallely, P (2010) The Big Question: What’s the history of polygamy, and how serious a problem is it in Africa? Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/the-big-question-what-sthe-history-of-polygamy-and-how-serious-a-problem-is-it-in-africa-1858858html

Wikipedia (2022) Sexuality in the Philippines Retrieved from https://enwikipediaorg/wiki/Sexuality in the Philippines

Wiley Online Library (1964) Muslim Filipinos Today Retrieved from: https://onlinelibrarywileycom/doi/abs/101111/j1478-19131964tb01398x

Francis

Fornillos