Note 42 — Chapter III

In comparing the position of woman during the period in question with that in the earlier periods (excepting the lower agricultural period) we see that in general her condition is but little ameliorated. Monogamy existed in reality for one of the parties only, since the man was free to keep concubines, while he took every means in his power to prevent the infidelity of his wife, by isolating her from the outer world. Hence it is not true, as some would have us believe, that monogamy is the consequence of an instinct, nor that it is due to a higher degree of culture, made possible by the increased productivity of labor.42 On the contrary, among the lower agriculturists, much less civilized than the ancient Greeks, the position of women was better than with the latter; being more free, the woman enjoyed in general a higher degree of consideration.