Film Analysis: A Monsoon Wedding

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Crawford (2012) described many difference characteristics in mate selection which may potentially lead to marriage. She first describes marriage as being institutionalized because the laws (and certain religions) tells you who you can and cannot marry, when you can marry, and the responsibilities to each other while married. Yet people are infatuated with the ideology of love and romance. People choose their partners as individuals and expect to live their marriages according to their own needs and wishes (Crawford, 2012). Something that can explain why people choose to get married can be the marriage gradient. The marriage gradient states that women have the tendency to “marry up” and men tend to “marry down” (Crawford, 2012). This came about because women used to have little access to education and prestigious jobs so their only choice to gain economic security was through marriage. Today, both men and women admire qualities such as intelligence, desire for children, and great personality, but for women, wealth and status are very important qualities (Crawford, 2012).
In the movie, A Monsoon Wedding, the marriage that was about to take place was an arranged marriage. Aditi, a young woman who is still in love with an ex-boyfriend, has agreed to proceed with an arranged marriage, planned by her parents. In the beginning of the movie she states that she is ready to settle down. Her cousin, Ria, finds it “immature” that Aditi is deciding to get married to a man who her parents have chosen for and knows little of. Ria seems to believe that marriage should be based on love. When it comes down to Aditi’s marriage, culture influences why she has decided to get married.
To put the marriage gradient in perspective, Aditi’s future husba...

... middle of paper ...

...she was especially opened with her cousin Ria. This is an important factor for Aditi’s marriage, so she does not have to play housewife and mother when she is in the states with Hermant. You can tell that Aditi will not feel subordinate by Hermant’s side because she was able to be honest with him so she can have a fresh beginning with her future husband.
As you can see, marriage can come in different celebrations but they all constitute the fact that marriage is an institution in which man and woman come together as one. Aditi and Hermant’s marriage was no different compared those in this study. Al-Zu’abi (2008) states that urbanization plays a key role in influencing perceptions of marriage and that marriage patterns are formed and reformed according to culture. The final point is, marriage is a basic institution of any society no matter the culture difference.

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