I read somewhere that societies that practice dowry tend to be societies that do not practice divorce. So women with dowries simply don't leave a relationship for another. In Mother Nature, Sarah Hrdy writes that dowries explicitly tends to be reserved for the grandchildren of the dowry-givers. If a married woman dies, for example, her d…
I read somewhere that societies that practice dowry tend to be societies that do not practice divorce. So women with dowries simply don't leave a relationship for another. In Mother Nature, Sarah Hrdy writes that dowries explicitly tends to be reserved for the grandchildren of the dowry-givers. If a married woman dies, for example, her dowry is not supposed to support children her husband has with another woman.
That's interesting. Yes, dowry as a social norm for the sustenance of the woman's children makes sense. I hadn't thought of it that way. So having it tied to the family unit rather than the wife discourages divorce.
You have very interesting things to say about how this applies to western society which I'll have to think more about.
I read somewhere that societies that practice dowry tend to be societies that do not practice divorce. So women with dowries simply don't leave a relationship for another. In Mother Nature, Sarah Hrdy writes that dowries explicitly tends to be reserved for the grandchildren of the dowry-givers. If a married woman dies, for example, her dowry is not supposed to support children her husband has with another woman.
That's interesting. Yes, dowry as a social norm for the sustenance of the woman's children makes sense. I hadn't thought of it that way. So having it tied to the family unit rather than the wife discourages divorce.
You have very interesting things to say about how this applies to western society which I'll have to think more about.