Culture of Honor

What do the Ancient Greeks, the Nuer tribe in Africa, the Navaho, the Celts, and the archetypal American Cowboy have in common?

Well, if you read the title...you're right, a strict code of honor.  Yeah, sorry, this wasn't some setup for a hilarious man-walks-into-a-bar joke.  But there's more to it.  According to the book I'm reading (Evolution for Everyone; I don't always agree with it, but it's been quite thought-provoking in areas), these cultures are ruled by a rigorous code of behavior that rewards honorable intentions - more importantly, actions - and punishes transgressions through violence.  The violence bit especially is not only useful for these cultures, but a necessary way of life.  Interestingly (the author points out), young children live by this same standard...but I haven't put them into the above list because they don't fit this next statement.

Because another thing all of these societies have in common is that they're all based on herding.  When you're manning flocks of sheep, herding goats, roping steer, etc., you're dealing with mobile property.  You're usually alone, vulnerable, and there usually isn't a governing, law-enforcing body in easy access.  Self defense, therefore, means having a strict honor code where everyone in the in-group knows it's 'toe the line or die'.

Sounds like a man's world, eh?  But then, a couple paragraphs onward in this book, we get a passage by a Confederate soldier from America's Civil War, who describes his mother giving him a musket, telling him not to disgrace it, and that she would rather her sons all died honorably than turned their back on battle; and then giving him a golden ring inscribed simply "honor".  After the Civil War ended, when asked why the South continued to fight, the reply was given, "We were afraid to stop...Afraid of the women at home...they would have been ashamed of us."

...And this has been reported to you LIVE! from Richmond, VA, capital of the Old South (although sadly I'll be leaving in a very few days).