The Nomadic Alternative – Page 243

IV

he will continue to depend on domineering females for life. The vicious aspect of the mother has nothing to do with the mother as such, but the over-mothering mother - the original shark's cunt.

Incidentally, the mother of the young hunter has deliberately weaned him from things. She may give him things to play with, but he has no toys. He is never allowed to crave for or possess a thing, apart from miniature reproductions of the essential material equipment needed for individual survival, such as the bow and arrow. These things are permitted as private property by the society - and nothing more.

But, so far, I have only mentioned the two positive aspects of the bond between mother and child - feeding and learning. They alone cannot explain the function of the bond, neither its intensity nor why it is directed to one mother figure only. Dr. Bowlby has said there is one way to understand it - by answering the question

"What were its advantages for the survival of the species in the primaeval environment of man?"

IV

To avoid being eaten, an animal must be able to run as fast as the mother immediately after birth; have the protection of a nest, lair or burrow; sit in a pouch like a baby kangaroo; or develop grasping hands to cling to the mother wherever she goes. We and our cousins, the apes, are graspers. The classic case of 'hanging on for dear life' comes from the Gibbon, which the masters of the Sung Dynasty loved to paint*, performing its acrobatics in the tree-tops. From birth the infant gibbon clings to its mother as she flies about on her daily vegetarian pilgrimage. It locks its arms and legs round her waist, and when it feels insecure or frightened, also has a third point of contact to steady itself. It hangs by the mouth onto its mother's nipple, regardless of whether it is hungry or not.

*See ill. - painting by Mu Chi.