ABSTRACT
Sexual antagonism, like sexual desire, can be exaggerated, often with humor. In Mundurucu Religion, Robert F. Murphy relates the bawdy myth of a man who made sexual overtures to frog. After he left, the frog changed herself into a beautiful woman who seduced the man and, in the midst of coitus, transformed herself back into a frog, hopping away with his penis caught in her vagina. This chapter explores the powerful sexual tensions evident in Mundurucu society and how they are symbolized, relieved, and sanctioned through occasional play. Marriage among the Mundurucu entails the man simply moving his hammock and few belongings into his wife's family's house. Mundurucu women play the dominant role in preserving their culture. Because women tend to remain in their natal villages throughout their lives, their strong female cores cling more steadfastly to their traditions, their manner of behaving, and their ideas than do the men, who confront the outside world more intensively.
