Shifting the Ground of Fatherhood: Matriliny, Men and Marriage in Early Twentieth Centuary Malabar

Abstract

Central to the project of comprehensive reform of matriliny in early twentieth century Malabar was the affirmation of the conjugal bond as the principal property/material relation between men and women and parents (fathers) and children. In contrast to forms of property relations facilitated by matriliny, this constituted a demand for centering property relations arising from marriage. This paper attempts to capture the processes of reform that established, i.e., gave legal and social frame and detail to husbands and fathers among the matrilineal Hindus in early twentieth century Malabar. It is argued that the father as a distinct masculine identity was premised on the reconstitution of norms of female sexuality and maleconjugai responsibility, within a framework of closely wrought patriarchal marriage.