DOWRY AND PRESTIGE IN NORTH-INDIA

This paper explores the current practice and representation of dowry m arriage by members of Brahman, Gosain and Chamar families in semi-rura l eastern Uttar Pradesh. The paper approaches dowry not primarily as a n institution to do with the transfer of property at marriage, bur mor e importantly as the currently most significant means of assessing and representing social status, honour and prestige in the region. As the most comprehensive public measure of social prestige, dowry was an im portant arena within which people represented their social positions a nd their relations to others. The paper explores people's discursive c onstructions of dowry marriage and the manner in which they used their understanding of dowry to reflect upon social relations within their communities.