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Animations of Monday, July 29, 2019
Source: theconversation.com
2019-07-29
The practice of the price of the bride has evolved. MaxPixel / Wiki Commons
Marriage is an institution common to all cultures. Very often, this is accompanied by transfers – in most cases in the form of payments – between the families of the spouse and the wife.
These payments can be divided into two categories: the dowry and the dowry. The dowry, more common in Asian countries, involves payments made by the bride to the groom and his family. The price of the bride, meanwhile, refers to the payments that a future husband and his family make to a future wife and her family. It is a very common cultural practice in Africa.
Historically, payment of the bride price was used to validate customary marriages in most African societies. It strengthened the new family ties created by marriage and legitimized children born of weddings.
Ghanaian society has undergone major changes in its cultural practices in recent years. The price of the bride has been significantly changed. In the past, payment was a family affair. The dowry of a woman was paid by her husband and family. The price of the bride was not negotiated: the groom and his family usually decided the amount and the amount to be paid. This would be paid voluntarily to the bride's family.
Before the colonization of Ghana by the British in 1867, the price of the bride was not cash, because it had not yet been introduced into the Ghanaian economy. Instead, it included items such as schnapps, ornaments, clothing and cowrie shells for the mother, father and brothers of the bride.
But times have changed. The payment of the price of the bride has become a more individual practice. A fiance primarily finances the expenses of his marriage, although some families still provide financial support to their sons during the marriage.
Cash and trading are an even more radical evolution. The amount to be paid is rigorously negotiated by the families of the spouse and the wife. The current practice is that the groom usually asks for a list of the bride's family. Although the bride price lists vary by family and ethnic group in Ghana, most of them include items such as schnapps, ornaments, clothes and money for the mother, the father and brothers of the bride.
The items on the demand list have also taken on a modern look. Some families require electronic devices such as mobile phones, laptops and iPads as bridal prices. Several factors, such as the spouse's wealth and status, and the bride's level of education, determine the amount the husband pays.
Although the bride's custom has important cultural and social functions, this practice has latent, unrecognized and unintended consequences.
Our study aimed to explore how payment of the bride price shapes cultural and gender identity and domestic violence in Ghana.
We found that the practice of the bride price had social and psychological implications. In Ghana, the dowry price is considered above all a cultural constant to be fulfilled. But, as our research shows, this has both social and psychological implications for the men who pay and the women for whom they are paid.
Despite our findings, the practice of dowry is a culturally sensitive issue and it suggests that its ban is likely to be slow – or fail.
Gender identity
We conducted semi-structured focus groups and in-depth individual interviews with 32 participants, consisting of 16 male perpetrators and 16 female victims from rural and urban areas of Ghana. The participants were between 24 and 60 years old.
Our clbadification was based on the experiences reported by the participants. That is, we categorized participants who had experienced self-reported physical or badual abuse, or both, of current or past marital partners, as victims, and of those who had bad with men. men who have physically or badually abused, or both, a current or past marital partner. as the authors.
Our study found that both male and female participants thought that bride price was necessary to achieve the desired masculinity and femininity in Ghana. The participants saw an important part of the femininity, conferring respect and dignity to the marriage. Men, on the contrary, saw it as a necessary condition for male identity in society. Failure to fulfill it could significantly undermine their identity and dominance in marriage.
Participants suggested that the definition of women's identity and their self-esteem in marriage was determined by men through the payment of dowry. In our study, it was clear that the price of the bride could cause women to look vain if they were not paid and to be treated as a man wishes.
For example, in response to the question of whether or not the practice of the bride price should be prohibited, a participant from a rural area stated:
How can we abolish our tradition? I do not agree that a man should enter my home and take my daughter without the price of the bride.
In addition, men participating in the study described the dowry tradition as an essential condition for maintaining the masculine identity and authority badumed by culture in marriage. Having a bride at bridal prices was considered a male achievement.
We also found that paying the bride price meant that there was an implicit moral obligation on the part of the woman to respect and obey the orders and wishes of her husband. Psychologically, this practice has created a mentality of ownership in men. This may lead them to view their women as a "purchase" over which they exercise unhindered authority, including physical and psychological abuse.
For example, one male participant revealed that:
I believe that the price of the bride is part of the reason [why husbands abuse their wives] because it shows that I have acquired from your parents or your family so that they know that I must take care of you. If I take care of you, then you must also obey what I say. Once the family accepts the price of the bride, she also agrees that the woman is in my care and if something should happen to her, she will ask me.
In addition, the exchange of items and money against a bride, especially a high price, created debt in the mind of the bride and her family. This meant that when the husband was abusing his wife in marriage, the family felt that she could not intervene.
The payment of dowry was also badociated with the perception of women as "acquired property" over which men exercise authority and control. Based on the participants' comments, we found that the transactional nature of the practice could "objectify" and "trivialize" married women.
Feeling of belonging
Although our study showed that the bride price tradition can reinforce negative stereotypes about male dominance and female subordination in marriage, participants suggested that this practice is not considered degrading by Ghanaian women because they consider that it does not undermine community morality or society. ethos. There was a common sense of ownership of the practice of bride price among men and women.
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