The native people of the plains, prior to European influence were a hunter-gatherer society whose economy was centered around survival. As in all survival situations, work has to be distributed equally in order for a group of people to be able to prosper and prepare. With this in mind, gender roles were not a form of oppression, but a way that tribes would be able to better split up work. For example, “men were responsible for hunting” whereas women “were responsible for gathering wild vegetation and for doing domestic tasks and child care.” Furthermore, “women were also responsible for tanning hides” (and later on, preparing them for market). From the records found, prior to European influence, the native plains people were an “egalitarian society.” According to Webster’s dictionary, this means that everyone was considered equal and deserved equal rights and opportunities.

 

Women were not forced into domestic tasks but were also able to participate in hunts. The only thing that mattered at the end of the day to the plains people is that tasks were completed by the end of the day. However, this all changed when the Europeans arrived. It seems that even a people who were “salt of the earth” could not resist the temptations of capitalism and the prospect of better living conditions, economic stability, and comparable security. The Europeans were not very concerned about the plains people’s way of life; they were concerned about one thing that plains people had that could make a serious profit. This thing was animal hides (more specifically buffalo hides). The hide trade completely changed the way that tribes operated all the way down to social structure.

 

For animal hides, the plains people to get money, weapons, and even horses from the Europeans. This made them focus on getting more hides and getting them ready for market. This economic shift transformed the bilateral society that the plains people had before into a patriarchal society were the men were in charge of the trade deals and ultimately became the dominate figures in the household. In order to keep up with the number of buffalos being killed that needed to be prepared for market, men began taking on multiple wives. The wives were not allowed to have any sexual partners besides there husband. Furthermore, “premarital sex was prohibited” for females but encouraged for males.

 

As far as the roles of men and women go in the United States, things have changed drastically over the past 50 years. More women are beginning to enter the work force, the number of “stay at home moms” is declining, and there are no real defined gender roles. As far as men go, there are less men trying to get married, less trying to have kids, and less (who are married) trying to keep their wives domesticated. This is for a few reasons. First off, the United States has gone through a major social shift and women are seeing the benefits of working. Second off, it is no longer financially smart to get married if both partners are not working. And lastly, with divorce rates so high, marriage just doesn’t make sense anymore with the financial obligations that come after a divorce.