Women's Rights

Being interested in women's rights, without being obsessed , I love to read about what life is like for polygamous women.

What are their thoughts and feelings as they live without freedom, love, even without sex if they are past child-bearing potential. Heck, my one polygamous friend is so in need of a hysterectomy she is anemic and "troubled" almost constantly, but giving up her uterus is unthinkable to her.
She is  a "first" wife, and she is hanging on as best she can.

After all, the scriptures say Sarah conceived at age 60.
Miracles are possible.

But not without your uterus!

"I demand my right to try to conceive!"

There are two groups of polygamous women who share some common background.
Religious background, of course.
Mormons and Muslims.

Mormons handle humor better than Muslims seem to,
 and so I don't ever want to try to be funny about Islam.

I feel comfortable being funny about the Mormons, some of whom I am related to.

Both religions started in a terrifying manisfestation to their male founders.  So many similarities.   Yet Muhammad, not having cut his teeth on personal rights. ran from his revelation,
  while Joseph Smith went "deeper" into the revelation, being an American with tons of rights and all.

So currently I am reading "Tell It All" , a Mormon polygamous expose' by Fanny Stenhouse published in the 1800's.

https://archive.org/stream/storyoftellitall00stenrich
I thought it would be all pathos and drear,  and it is pathos and drear, but not all.
It's quite sprinkled with the grassroots politics of the day.
And Fanny is a little bit funny.  

Here's one of Fanny's observations from polygamous life in the 1800's :

“Many a wife would be happier were she a widow.  In fact, widows are the happiest class of women in Utah, for they realize it is better to have a dead sorrow than a living one.”

So much for women's rights!

Let's keep focused.

I appreciate you.

Riverwatch the Rebel

PS   I am the mother of 3 sons and the sister of 6 brothers, so I always think of the guys' viewpoint  also!  Men have very different viewpoints from women, I have learned.
I heard that many a man would rather be dead than put up with a flock of women clucking behind him,
but that is only a rumor.  
I cannot validate it.  

However, there are men with humor in their bones 
                                                                             who enjoy a good spectacle.

Me? I am a woman who is horrified yet mesmerized by the spectacle.  

I do think it is worth watching.  

Wait and see.

One of the good things about aging is you sometimes live long enough  to see how it all turns out.