Belopolska ACR

Women played an exceptional role in Final Paleolithic and Mesolithic societies

Argument	Counterargument	Rebuttal
Although performing minor household functions (such as dressing meat, making clothes, preparing primitive food), a woman played an exceptional role in primitive hunter societies.	A man remained the main daily breader.	Only a woman could produce a new generation of hunters.

As it is widely known the role of a woman in societies of any time was rather passive and secondary. The same can be said about societies of  Final Paleolithic and Mesolithic: this fact was proved by ethnographical researches by Borys Symchenko. Although at that time a woman did the secondary job, such as dressing meat, making clothes, preparing primitive food, her exceptional position cannot be underestimated. Still some researches (for example, Leonid Zalizniak) admit that the function of a daily breader was performed only by a man. Taking into account that the economy of the mentioned societies was of hunting character it is clearly understood that without the hunted food no woman would have survived. But here occurs another fact that should not be omitted. It is the main woman’s physiological function to deliver a baby. A new baby, namely a baby boy, meant a future hunter and a breader for the family. Thus, the exceptional role of a woman is obvious.

Симченко Ю.Б. Культура охотников на оленей северной Евразии. М., Наука, 1976 –  311 с., С. 191 – 193.

Зализняк Л.Л. Охотники на северного оленя Украинского Полесья в эпоху финального палеолита. — К.: Наукова думка, 1989. — 182 с.