Introduction to Marriage in Anthropology

Despite having gained some degree of understanding concerning the narrative within Judges 19–21, it is, nevertheless, impossible to progress from the narrative itself to evaluation of the text in terms of marriage by capture without initially gaining an adequate understanding of the modern practice in its own terms. As such, this chapter attempts to survey, analyse and contextualise marriage by capture through discussing some of the complexities associated with defining and describing the practice.

In order to introduce the convoluted nature of the debates surrounding marriage by capture within social anthropology, it is sensible initially to grasp the longstanding, contentious debates concerning the definition of “marriage” itself. In much of the modern, Western world, marriage is dominated by romanticised ceremonies and monogamy, and it often involves the nuclear family as the primary unit of kinship. Despite this observation, marriage throughout history, and in many other parts of the world, has remained a fruitful source of variation. Indeed, save for a vague and general sense of marriage having a part in the regulation of sexual intercourse for particular purposes, there is little theoretical agreement on its purpose in human societies. For example, one could claim that it legitimates children or property relations, yet it is equally possible to argue that its primary purpose is the provision of channels of communication or gifts and services, between social groups. As Parkin and Stone illustrate,