Chapter
The Economic Basis for European Nunneries
1:02:26 - 1:11:50 (09:23)
Nunneries served as a source of social welfare in medieval Europe, allowing families with many sons to send the excess to the church. Additionally, some nunneries incentivized young women into joining by allowing them to claim their sister's dowry and replace them if their sibling had not produced an heir before passing away.
Clips
Polygamy creates an issue in societies, where men with higher status get better wives and the others remain unmarried.
1:02:26 - 1:03:58 (01:31)
Summary
Polygamy creates an issue in societies, where men with higher status get better wives and the others remain unmarried. Managing this problem requires various strategies across history and cultures, such as dividing estates and giving equal shares to all children, as done by the Portuguese in the 15th century.
ChapterThe Economic Basis for European Nunneries
Episode#520 - Robin Dunbar - The Evolutionary Psychology Of Love
PodcastModern Wisdom
A discussion on how when the demand for potential mates outstrips the available supply, and there is a surplus of resources, men can be paid to go off and have an adventure in order to find more women, which used to happen when estates were owned by aristocrats.
1:03:58 - 1:06:50 (02:52)
Summary
A discussion on how when the demand for potential mates outstrips the available supply, and there is a surplus of resources, men can be paid to go off and have an adventure in order to find more women, which used to happen when estates were owned by aristocrats.
ChapterThe Economic Basis for European Nunneries
Episode#520 - Robin Dunbar - The Evolutionary Psychology Of Love
PodcastModern Wisdom
In medieval times, some families would send a younger daughter into a convent in hopes that if their older sister died childless, the younger one could leave the convent, reclaim the dowry, and marry her sister's widower.
1:06:50 - 1:11:50 (04:59)
Summary
In medieval times, some families would send a younger daughter into a convent in hopes that if their older sister died childless, the younger one could leave the convent, reclaim the dowry, and marry her sister's widower. This created perverse incentives for unwilling nuns and made a career in the church attractive for excess sons in the family.