ABSTRACT
This chapter is an anecdote about fifty young Fox Indians. It was very difficult for these fifty Fox veterans to find ways to act like men. The women of the Fox seemed strong. They were usually busy; they appeared self-confident and capable when they went about the many household things that kept them busy. In 1800 what were the Fox women doing? They were bear-ing children and caring for them; they were tending gardens of squash, beans, and corn; they were cooking; they were making clothes, utensils, household equipment. Women the world over have one large advantage over men in seeking purpose: they bear children. They have guaranteed to them this one function, than which nothing could be more important, for societies must produce new generations. Societies must invent analogous acts for men; they must reserve certain of their tasks for men, invest them with honor, and call them manly.
