Asante Market Women: Disappearing World (Enhanced DVD)

This documentary captures the atmosphere of the market and shows the act of women bartering within the market. It emphasizes the clothing colors of the bartering women and the products they are bartering with. The men of the market are few and far between but are seen working as secretaries and laborers since women are the dominant workers in this market. Though they are predominantly in charge there, this is not the case on the homefront.

The Asante society is based on the idea of polygamous marriages. In these types of marriages the men are in charge of women when it comes to domestic issues at home. Though the society is a matrilineal one in the sense that when a man dies his wealth is given to the children of his sister, there are traditions regarding inheritances. These traditions make it possible for the family of a deceased husband to evict his widow from their home in an attempt to forcer her into working in order to be able to financially support the children.

Traditions within the Asante society are gradually changing over time. The supremacy of women in regards to the marketplace of the the Asantes has come to be because economic independance is so badly needed in this society. In today's Asante society girls have a high level of education and sense of independance that even their own mothers don't have.

This documentary discussing Asante market women is:

• a DVD with enhanced video quality
• a run time of 53 minutes
• a copyright date of 1984
• the option to turn in closed captioning to assist viewers who can't hear.