Don't Marry Me to a Plowman!

In this lively and unique volume, Patricia and Roger Jeffery challenge mainstream perceptions of women in India by presenting a fresh perspective. Based on information collected by the authors during their research in northern India, the volume offers eight life histories of Hindu and Muslim women. Interspersed with thematic discussions as well as brief dialogues, episodes, songs, and commentary, each of the life histories deals with topics of vital concern for women in rural north India: the birth of children, worries about dowry, arranging weddings, sexual politics in marriage, relationships with in-laws, relationships with natal kin, and widowhood.

Roger Jeffery teaches in the Sociology Department at the University of Edinburgh.