GUARDIANS OF THE FLUTES: Idioms of Masculinity: A Study of Ritualized Homosexual Behavior

Text/BRAND NEW & Bright. Illustrated bi-color linen boards/Fine. DJ/NF w/a whisper of edge wear. Maps to endpapers. Socio-cultural institutions. Practice of manhood rites in conjuction with ritual homosexualty. Anthropological study of the Sambia tribe (pseudonyn to protect true tribal identity), New Guinea. All boys become initiates of the Warrior group. Supported by an elaborate ideological system, homosexuality is practiced within the group (including ceremonial use of flutes), with heterosexual experiences postponed until marriage. The tribal belief, alien to the world at large, is that it is within the homosexual period that boys become men. Volume based on 2 years (1974 - 1976) of field studyf by Gilbert H. Herdt, Assistant Professor at Stanford Univ at the point of publication, who specializied in gender identify. 382 pgs in 9 chapters followed by 5 appendices.