How did monogamy become so normalized across almost all cultures and religions?
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Monogamy is a characteristic of large and complex societies, I believe. Harem style governance, where the strongest male has all the wives, causes much in-fighting among the men. But it is still going on in many rural parts of the world. I was just told of the villages in the jungles of southeast Asia where young girls were sold off to rich men (who already have a few wives) by witch-doctors. (The guy telling us about it had started a school and boarding house for these kids.) I’ve heard it said that when women get power, monogamy is the result. If that’s the case, to develop, a culture must empower women, allowing them to be more than harem objects, and some family based social structure can emerge.
I’m not sure about the eastern religions, but all three Abrahamic faiths have patriarchs who had very large harems. I think it’s a modernity thing.
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