Dowry

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A dowry (also known as trousseau) is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings to her husband in marriage.^[1]

The opposite direction, property given to the bride by the groom, is called dower or mahr. Normally the bride would be entitled to her dowry in event of her widowhood, prior to the evolution of her dower rights; so common was this that the terms "dowry" and "dower" are sometimes confused.

The dowry should not be confused with a bride price, money or goods paid by the prospective groom to the bride's parents in exchange for her hand in marriage.

It should also be distinguished from sowry, which is the money obtained by a wife by filing false dowry case against the husband and his relatives.

1 History
2 In Europe
3 See also
4 References

[edit] History

It is described in the oldest records, such as the Code of Hammurabi as a pre-existing custom, prescribing only regulations for how it was to be handled and also included regulations for a bride price. If a woman died without sons, her husband had to refund the dowry but could deduct the value of the bride price; the dowry would normally have been the larger of the sums. It marks the first record of long-lasting customs, such as the wife being entitled to her dowry at her husband's death as part of her dower, her dowry being inheritable only by her own children, not by her husband's children by other women, and a woman not being entitled to a (subsequent) inheritance if her father had provided her dowry in marriage.

[edit] In Europe

In Homeric times, the usual Greek practice was to give a brideprice, and dowries were also exchanged in the later classical time (5th century BC). Ancient Romans also practiced dowry, though Tacitus notes that the Germanic tribes practiced the reverse custom of the dower.

Dowry was widely practiced in Europe at all times. In Victorian England, it was seen as an early payment of her inheritance, such that only daughters who had not received their dowry were entitled to part of the estate when their parents died, and if the couple died without children, the dowry was returned to the bride's family.^[2]

Failure to provide a customary, or agreed-upon, dowry could call off a marriage. William Shakespeare made use of this in King Lear: one of Cordelia's wooers ceases to woo her on hearing that King Lear will give her no dowry. And in Measure for Measure, Claudio and Juliet's premarital sex was brought about by their families' wrangling over dowry after the betrothal, and Angelo's motive for forswearing his betrothal with Mariana is the loss of her dowry at sea. Folklorists often interpret the fairy tale Cinderella as the competition between the stepmother and the stepdaughter for resources, which may include the need to provide a dowry. Gioacchino Rossini's opera La Cenerentola makes this economic basis explicit: Don Magnifico wishes to make his own daughters' dowry larger, to attract a grander match, which is impossible if he must provide a third dowry.^[3]

One common penalty for the kidnapping and rape of unmarried women was that the abductor or rapist had to provide the woman's dowry, which was until the late 20th century the wreath money, or the breach of promise.

Providing dowries for poor women was regarded as a form of charity. The custom of Christmas stockings springs from a legend of St. Nicholas, in which he threw gold in the stockings of three poor sisters, thus providing for their dowries. St. Elizabeth of Portugal and St. Martin de Porres were particularly noted for providing such dowries, and the Archconfraternity of the Annunciation, a Roman charity dedicated to providing dowries, received the entire estate of Pope Urban VII.

In some parts of Europe, land dowries were common. In Grafschaft Bentheim, for instance, it was not uncommon for people who had no sons to give a land dowry to their new son-in-law with the condition that the groom would take the surname of his bride.

In some cases, nuns would be required to bring a dowry when joining a convent.

In Europe and Western culture in general it is still common for the bride's family to pay for the majority of the wedding costs.

The bestowing of dowries is an ancient Indian tradition most commonly observed in northern India but seen across several regions of the country. It is social phenomenon that originated in the upper castes of India but eventually pervaded all socioeconomic classes. “Stridhan” refers to a bride receiving jewelry or clothing from friends or family at the time of marriage. This should not be confused with ``Kanyadan”, which refers to the ritual of "giving away the bride", ceremony that is usually performed by the bride's father. In recent years, owing to strict anti-dowry laws collected in Article 498A of the Indian Penal Code, coupled with effective police action and increased social awareness, the practice of dowry has taken a very significant hit, though there are parts of the country where the custom endures.

Marriage is regarded as “forever” and separation is not considered as a viable option. Scholars have suggested that the ancient Roman “conferreatio” marriage, which means “marrying a wife by capture”, is a model that Hindu marriages resemble, though this may be disputed. In fact, a very well documented practice in ancient India, particularly among the princely classes was that of “Swayamvara”, which may be translated as "choosing a husband by oneself". As part of this practice, the bride's father invited several suitors to a public ceremony, where the bride would survey them one by one and indicate her choice by putting a garland around his neck.

In India, when a woman marries she then becomes a part of her husbands family. The family consists of her husband's parents, brothers (married or unmarried) and unmarried sisters ^[4]. This is different from customs in more westernized countries of the world where a man and woman typically begin to establish their own financial independence upon marriage. The additional financial strain an Indian woman places on her extended family obligates her family to pay a dowry. Dowry negotiations are all made verbally, and sometimes the demands for gifts will increase as the wedding day nears. Again, demands for dowry payments might continue indefinitely beyond the actual wedding ^[5]. However a distinction must be made between asking for a dowry and a request from the groom or his family for financial assistance. The failure to make this distinction has resulted in the abuse of anti-dowry laws. Recently, the Supreme Court of India upheld this distinction and spelled out clearly, in an instance where a farmer groom who was in dire financial straits requested his wife's family for help with buying fertilizer, that this was not a demand for dowry.

There have been instances in which, if the father is unable to pay a handsome dowry, the bride puts herself at risk of abuse at the hands of her husband and in-laws. Although the bride’s life may be in jeopardy, she often has no viable options of escape.Even a bride’s own parents may express an unwillingness to take her back into their home ^[6]. The cultural importance of 'family honor' has a lot to do with the parental reluctance to help. In India, it is considered disgraceful for a married daughter to return to her father's home after marriage. On the flip side, there is increasing concern in India over the rampant misuse of anti-dowry laws for harassment of the groom's family. ^[7] In fact, in 2007, the Parliament noted that close to 11300 false cases had been registered under the dowry act during the year 2007.^[8]

The Economic Impact of Dowries

Generous dowries are a source of pride for a groom and his family because it, in essence, provides “bragging rights”. Economically, dowries generate an increase in household income and wealth. Dowries can potentially relieve households of ongoing economic stress. By increasing the income and wealth of the marital household an elaborate dowry likely minimizes economic and social stress experienced within a household ^[9].

Dowries and Social Status

Sharada Srinivasan considers dowries today as a strategy for men to acquire higher standards of material wealth, status, and security. On the other hand, dowries have almost exclusively negative consequences on women’s status, let alone their own survival Among high status families, dowries are considered an essential part of “hypergamy”, or, upward status mobility through marriage ^[10].

Further Implications:

The practice of bride burning exhibits the growing exertion of patriarchal power and violence against women in India. The on-going dowry tradition highlights the power of gender and caste-based social and political structures. Such structures aim to continually oppress women and individuals of lower castes. Such widespread oppression allows men of the upper caste to maintain their sociopolitical power and influence over others.Partha Banerjee says, “women of India are an epitome of oppression and exploitation in the name of religion practiced by the conservative male chauvinist and social patriarchs”^[11]. Furthermore, ongoing research shows that dowries have led to the manifestation of myriad negative impacts on parenting practices. Parents may begin investing less time and resources into their daughters in order to save money for her future dowry. A study done in rural south India found that the expectation of a large dowry payment is one of the leading causes for sex selective abortion and female infanticide ^[12]. The potential burden of a dowry greatly influences parents’ decisions about the number of daughters they are willing to conceive. Data also shows that in areas where bride burning is more prevalent, the number of men outnumbers that of women when compared to areas of India where bride burning is not as commonplace.