ther is but cannot be certain of one's father. In any case, while this society is matrilinear in a social sense, it is thoroughly patriarchal in the political sense.
With respect to sex itself, Ward is more uncertain, but it does seem that "Pohnpeians . . . regard sex with more fun and less seriousness than most westerners do" (36). Perhaps the strong political structure, male-dominated, allows for greater light-heartedness in sexual matters. That is, perhaps the society is not as threatened as Westerners by sexuality, with Western societies increasingly more open to the role of women in places of political power.
In any case, Ward reports contradictory findings with respect to sexual activity among these people, but finally concludes that the public claims vary from the private practices:
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