Issues of sex and food are often inscribed in male/female relationships. Frequently in a western context sex is perceived as a site of male power and female subordination, while food and cooking are seen as female domains, but still sites of subordination, as elements of women's household chores. In this article, looking at issues of sex and food in a rural matrilineal setting, power aspects of male/female relationships as mediated through sex and food emerge somewhat differently. Sexual proficiency is here a woman's art, mastered by old women and transmitted to the young. Also, in a setting where daily life is largely based on subsistence production, food and cooking become domains of power, again with old women in control. Based on fieldwork in northern Mozambique and with reference to African feminist conceptualizations of male/female power relationships, the article makes a case for rurality and ‘tradition’ not necessarily being adverse to female power in social relationships.

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The article argues for an approach to studies of sexuality in Africa that considers the subject of female sexuality from the perspective of capacity and power. Based on data from Mozambique, and informed by conceptual frameworks as well as by research findings from other African countries, the article investigates preparations of the erotic female body such as body tattoos, hip belts of glass beads, and elongated labia. It also discusses how "traditional" sexual capacity-building has been transferred from rural contexts into urban settings, empowering young women in love relationships with older, richer men.Résumé: L'article fait valoir une approche des études sur la sexualité en Afrique qui considère le sujet de la sexualité féminine du point de vue de la capacité et de la puissance. Il est basé sur des données en provenance du Mozambique, et éclairé par des cadres conceptuels ainsi que par les résultats de recherches provenant d'autres pays africains. Ce faisant, il examine les préparatifs du corps érotique de la femme tels que les tatouages du corps, les ceintures de hanche en perles de verre, et les lèvres allongées. Il explique également comment le renforcement des capacités "traditionnelle" sexuelle a été transféré de contextes ruraux en milieu urbain,

ResumoCom base em trabalho de campo realizado em Moçambique entre 1981 e 1984 e através da análise de extensivos dados sobre mulheres e relações de gênero, a autora discute os chamados processos de desenvolvimento na África, a partir do que pode observar do seu desdobramento em Moçambique e de seus efeitos sobre as mulheres. Do ponto de vista particular da vida das mulheres, as políticas de desenvolvimento, inicialmente socialistas e mais tarde, neoliberais, levadas a cabo pelo FRELIMO não fizerem muita diferença, o que a autora explora a partir de material etnográfico de diversas regiões do país Palavras-chave: Moçambique; Desenvolvimento, Modernização, FRELIMO.

I dette nummer er følgnde bøger blevet anmeldt:Jo Doezema: Sex Slaves and Discourse Masters – The Construction of Trafficking. Zed Books. London & New York. 2010.Naila Kabeer et al (eds.): Global Perspectives on Gender Equality. Reversing the Gaze. Routledge. 2008.Jane Parpart and Marysia Zalewski (eds.): Rethinking the Man Question. Sex, Gender and Violence in International Relations. Zed Books, 2008.