In addition to diving to harvest seafood to earn money for their families’ survival, they grow and tend to crops in dry fields, do all the cooking and housework, chores and raise the children. The inter-generational story unfolds in the context of colonialism and political struggle. The divers are paired up for safety in the water, and bond together as a collective before and after each day’s diving. Younger, less skilled or experienced divers learn from their more experienced elders. The localized collective groups operate with a matriarchal social structure, where women hold the positions of power and appoint a leader by a vote. Set on the South Korean island of Jeju, it describes the lives, joys and hardships of haenyeo – professional women divers in all-women diving collectives. The Island of Sea Women is a novel about family, friendship and community, centered on women. We hear a lot about the ubiquitous problems with the patriarchy, but what are the alternative social structures around the world?
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