Modern Man - Back to basics.

A brief look at the habits of all the animals that we classify as uncivilized will convey to us that their lives are nothing more than a repeating sequence of eating and sleeping punctuated by acts of species propagation in their respective mating seasons. Only the species of Human beings evolved into a life of more complex and inter-twined individual and social life with duties specified as diverse as keying in obscure code into computers, creating and disposing of the garbage, taking care of parents, families, children, and cheering for home team. Well, I am not delving into a Human's life other than the one that concerns him at the most basic level. The basic duty as chosen by nature for many animals, and especially for monkeys if we believe in Darwin's theory, is that male hunts, gathers food, eats, sleeps and occasionaly finds a female to mate with, while the female hunts, gathers food, eats, sleeps, occasionaly finds a male to mate with, and more importantly, propagates the species forward by giving birth to its young ones, introducing them to the big bad world, and teaching them the techniques to survive and multiply.

In most of the species, the male is the stronger sex, the strength being used to impress the female and thus presenting strong credentials to be deemed eligible for mating. Not that health is not an important eligibility for a female, but strength is solely in the male domain, and a distinguishing feature between the males of the species. Human, it seems, was (or should I say, is) no different going by the information that historians have gathered about the cave-men.

As Humans evolved, responsibilities were added to the male's life. There were duties assigned to him with respect to his family, his herd, his community, his land etc. At the primary level, a man was supposed to earn bread for his family while the female took care of their children. As the Human race went through various struggles, it became more important for the male to protect females who were not as strong as him. It would not be far from the truth to assume that the institution of marriage was established only as a consequence of this need for a man to protect females in his community.

This institution underwent numerous changes for thousands of years to evolve into the form we know it as today. However, in the meantime, the roles of the male and the female have undergone innumerable changes, more significantly in the female domain. The female is not only interested in just raising her children, but also in earning bread for herself, in devising schemes and methods to protect herself. The man, on the other hand, has remained limited to the job of earning bread and protecting his family. However, even this job has become redundant given the female propensity to be more and more independent of her male counterpart.

This brings us to a very basic question. What will be the role of the Human male if the female attains more and more independence in her life? Will it boil down to just eating, sleeping, and occasionally oblige a female by participating in the process of copulation with her? A life, I dare say, not many males will mind leading.