okay, having dropped the 'Shampoo is a brainless bimbo' arguement until I
can provide solid arguements, let's touch on other points.

Furthermore, if Ranma did marry Shampoo, he would have to go back to
China and become a househusband while Shampoo led the Amazons on to
glory. Not the preferred career plan for a martial artist.

I think Ranma would do his share of the fighting as well.  He's not the
type to sit down for long.

Only if he is *PERMITTED* to, which from the little we know of the Amazons
is extremely unlikely.

Oh? Explain Mousse.

What's to explain? He was refused Shampoo's hand, so he trained in order to
force her to marry him and to prevent any other male from marrying her.
You'll notice that he performs the most menial and demeaning chores Cologne
can find. Some might say this is Cologne testing a potential suitor for
Shampoo; I believe it to be SOP for males in the Amazon society.

Likewise, I believe Shampoo would want to

have a child at some point, giving Ranma some of the responsibility of
leadership.

And from what little we know of the Amazons, it is all too likely that
Shampoo would have the baby and hand it straight over to Ranma- who most
definitely would NOT be in any position of leadership for any period of time.

Maybe, maybe not. However, I have the impression that the Amazon villiage
has at least experienced Men's Lib, and more likely to be only barely
matriarchal.

>From what? I've seen nothing to suggest this at all.

 In a strict patriarchal society, women aren't allowed to

fight. By extension, if Amazon society is that strict, Mousse would never
have been taught the martial arts. 

We are given to understand that he studied on his own.

Another is that outsider law; a strict

matriarchal society would also have the defeated Amazon kill the MEN as
well as the women, because it would be an insult to everything the tribe
stands for.

That's not a matriarchal society, that's a monogender society. Matriarchal
means women-rule, not women-only.

Indeed, seeing how Shampoo prostrates herself to Ranma instead of just
grabbing (or killing) him and go. You see her _kneeling_ before him
offering a tray with a bowl of steaming ramen on it. (Her reappearance,
immediately prior to the Cat Tongue arc.) Strictly matriarchal? HAH!

I don't recall this, and based on her later, more infamous behavior, I don't
buy into it as being anything other than coincidence. Especially since in
Japan you sit to table on your knees.

More likely, the women of the Amazons still do the majority of the work,
BUT they keep the power to themselves and out of the hands of greedy men
who don't deserve it (seeing that they don't lift a finger ;). The women
wait on their husbands hand and foot, but will gladly chastize an uppity
male.
Of course, this is speculation.

<irony> NO KIDDING. </irony> I really don't see this at all.

We have only a handful of Amazons to go on, and only one Amazon male that I
know of. From their behavior, it's apparent that males are expected to obey
females unconditionally, and that Shampoo's behavior towards Ranma is
'unnaturally lenient.'

(and visions of LinLin and RanRan dance in my head... brrrr)

Redneck

Kris Overstreet, will write for food... | "The universe is already mad.
http://www.txdirect.net/users/redneck   | Everything else is redundant."
Antarctic Press Webmaster               | --- Londo Mollari, BABYLON 5
http://www.antarctic-press.com/         |   ***QUESTION EVERYTHING***