Note 39 — Chapter III
Henry P. (Henry Pomeroy) Horton translation
It is easy to see why the position of woman at this stage is in general better than at those which preceded. Ordinarily it is the woman who tills the soil and cares for the household, while the man hunts and prepares the necessary tools; and since agriculture gives a more regular and surer production than hunting, it follows that the position of woman is improved. The woman becomes less dependent upon the man, to such a point that, for example, she is able to break the marriage, a condition very different from those in which the wife was the property of her husband. (The somewhat numerous exceptions are explained by the fact that in those cases the man takes part in the cultivation of the soil.) This is especially the case when a domestic community is formed in which the women govern (matriarchate).39 Thus a situation is developed at times in which the women have an important position even outside of the family (gynecocracy).