Title variants
The Issue of Sex Relations in Australian Myths – the “Matryoshka Principle”
Languages of publication
Abstracts
This paper discusses the ambiguity of sex identity within Aboriginal mythology. Male/female relations are the main point of the well-known Wawilag Sisters myth from Arnhem Land, based on a series of equivalent mythical unions: the penis in the vagina (male in female) ≡ the serpent in the hut (male in female) ≡ Wawilag sisters pregnancy (male in female) ≡ Wawilag sisters devoured by the serpent (female in male) ≡ subincised penis (female in male). The effect of such equivalencies may be compared to a “matryoshka” doll: the male (child) is in the female (sisters) which is in the male (serpent), which in a way also renders the male symbols female (this is why the serpent is called “pregnant”). The basis of such a construction may be understood as the creation of a series of transformations male>female>male>female etc., which eventually leads to realisation of the exchange of female with male blood; their equipoise is necessary for initiation ceremonies.
Journal
Year
Volume
Issue
Pages
117–124
Physical description
Dates
online
2012-12-19
Contributors
author
- Instytut Religioznawstwa UJ
References
Document Type
Publication order reference
Identifiers
YADDA identifier
bwmeta1.element.desklight-2f51c4f9-693f-4cfe-b68f-abe6ba12d049
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