ABSTRACT

Since the beginning of anthropological interest in the study of kinship, it was recognized that the key issue was the incest prohibition. From Tylor to Lévi-Strauss, the sociological utility of such rules has been unhesitatingly affirmed, and, far before Freud, the psychological affect surrounding incest has been a topic for considerable speculation. But despite this long period of interest, we know relatively little regarding the attitudes towards incest in other societies. For that matter, our understanding of such behaviour in our own society is still far murkier than many would like.