Why Polygamy?

I suppose there are many reasons for polygamy. First and foremost is the traditional feminist view that polygamy is simply a result of patriarchal misogyny in a chauvinistic society. It is a way for men to control women and oppress and suppress them. In this ideology polygamy is portrayed as the ultimate way to objectify women; females become collector's items. Are there positive attributes to polygamy though?

Some would argue that polygamy does not show a disrespect for women, rather the opposite. While on the surface it seems that women become objects most polygamist marriages only exist provided the man is able to provide equally for his new and his old wife. While in a world with large feminist influences this seems wrong condemning women to be the dependents of men, in most polygamist societies the women are not fully capable of providing for themselves. So is a man in the wrong for taking on more than one wife? In polygamist societies a man is highly respected based on the number of wives he has, not because he is living some erotic polygamist fantasy but because he is capable of caring for so many people in his life.

Along with the current moral implications of plural marriage in the world, the past and origins must be taken into consideration. What is the societal imperative for polygamy? Well without digging too far it is evident. What conditions would make it important that one man marry many women? Polygamy exists in many primitive and sometimes warring societies. These are societies where men are scarce; gone off to be killed in warfare or in the hunt. However, women in polygamist societies are much safer and stay at home where they provide caring for families and cook for men. Because of this the gender demographic can become skewed. The only logical solution, in which marriage is imperative to community, is for men to take on multiple wives.

However, the unfortunate truth about modern polygamy is that it is not done out of necessity. Many young males are forcibly excommunicated to reduce competition for wives as gender demographics are more equal in modern polygamist groups, such as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Groups such as these seem to be dominated by chauvinist patriarchs who wish to maintain a needless hierarchy. While this is not morally accepted these groups do experience certain benefits. Polygamists enclaves tend to enjoy a higher sense of community as they all tend to rally around the a small number of patriarchs and the a small set of surnames, so simple personal events such as funerals can host 1000s of people in an otherwise small town.

Maybe there will be imperative for polygamy in our society one day. It is possible that with another World War the Western World could see a dramatic decrease in the population of males proportionately to females. In such a case plural marriages will begin to look more appealing. Though if past conflict is any indication, and with present trends of reduced casualties in modern warfare, I doubt we'll see a significant downturn in male population proportionately to women for quite some time.