An Informative Speech On Polygamy

Kelly Swanson

Topic: Polygamy

Organization: Cause/Effect/Solution

Specific Purpose: To influence my audience to believe that polygamy is unhealthy

I. INTRODUCTION

A. Attention getter: In April 2008, 416 children from San Angelo, Texas were taken from their home and were led into a world that they were constantly taught to fear. These children grew up in a polygamist community consisting of 139 women and one man. (Hilton/Austin, 2008).

B. Relevance: For those of you who don’t know, polygamy is the practice of having more than one wife or husband at a time. Although it is illegal in all 50 states, many still practice polygamy in secrecy effecting many lives. I would say a reasonable amount of us may plan on getting married in the future. Some

II. Body A. Many religions have practiced polygamy and still do today.

1. The most common religions were Muslims and Mormons. It was actually banned from the Mormon Church in earlier years and those who still wanted to practice polygamy were removed from the LDS church (Latter Day Saints Mormon Church) (Layton, 2004).

2. Mormon men who still practice polygamy today refer to Joseph Smith’s (founder of Mormonism) ideas and believe that if they have at least three wives, that they will become “Gods” in Heaven. And women who refuse to join polygamist families will be denied entree into Heaven. (Layton, 2004).

3. In other countries, a reason why people engage in polygamous relationships involve the increase of children for labor. Another indicator is dealing with the overpopulation of women and maintaining control over them. It is also mainly in societies that consist of men with intense sexual desires and “lengthy post-partum sexual taboos” (Religious Tolerance, 2001).

Transition: Now that we have a basic understanding of polygamy, we need to know about the negative side effects from it.

B. Polygamy can cause a lot of destruction in

The children who grow up in these communities are taught that the outside world is very satanic and that gender inequality is okay. The men also become terrible fathers. Studies show that poor men’s children have higher survival rates than rich men’s children, but only surviving to the age of 15. One study found that children under 10 were 11 times more likely to die because of malnutrition, poor health and abuse. (Henrich, 2011)

2. Polygamous relationships contain a great deal of domestic violence. Co-wife conflict can also be a source of abuse in means of jealousy. Dr. Henrich, a psychologist, “reveals no case where co-wife relations could be described as harmonious”. Most relationships actually set up sleep schedules to prevent that from