Essay on “The Dowry System” Complete Essay for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.
THE DOWRY SYSTEM
OR
THE CURSE OF DOWRY
Essay No. 01
‘Dowry’ according to the dictionary, means the property which a woman brings to her husband at the time of her marriage. Originally, it must have meant property represented by the voluntary gifts given to the girl by her parents, relatives and friends out of love and affection, at the time of her marriage. May be these gifts were given to the girl in order to enable her to set up a new home out of a sense of social responsibility. The system of dowry must be as old as the institution of marriage itself. It must also have been a universal practice. Every father wants to give some presents to his daughter when she is leaving his home for good and starting life afresh. There is nothing unusual, bad abnormal about it.
But as time passed, the system degenerated into an evil custom. It came to be looked upon as an evil and a curse. The dowry became an all- important and a primary factor in marriage. It became necessary for the parents of the girl to give a good dowry to her whether they could afford it or not. Worse still, the married life of a girl came to depend upon dowry. Marriage became impossible in the absence of a handsome dowry. Several girls, whose parents could not afford a good dowry, had to commit suicide as their greedy in-laws made their lives miserable. Newspapers are full of reports carrying harrowing tales of brides being burnt to death or driven to hang themselves because of constant nagging by their in laws. Some of the step-daughters of fortune choose the hangman’s noose while others consume poison or jump down the multi-storeyed buildings to deliver themselves from the clutches of the inhuman dowry seekers.
It is really tragic that in the progressive world of today, the evil of dowry continues to exist in all its horrid forms. Many homes are broken and several families are driven to ruin only because they are too poor to afford a rich dowry. Previously, in the selection of a bribe, her family background, education and her intrinsic worth used to be the primary consideration. Now, dowry is the first and the only consideration in a majority of the matrimonial alliances. As a result, dowry, which was at one time a token of love and affection, has become a cause of oppression and exploitation of the worst order.
Some parents have to incur heavy debts for giving dowry. At times, they remain under debt for the whole of their life. Sometimes, the girl’s parents fill to raise the necessary funds for marriage. They are compelled to commit suicide in disgust and despair. No wonder, therefore, that the birth of a daughter is looked upon as a bolt from the blue.
In the recent past, the Government of India and many states have taken some anti-dowry steps. In some states, dowry has been made a cognizable offence. But legal steps are not enough. We have to create a social climate which does not favour giving and taking of dowry. Dowry seekers must be singled out and condemned. The Government should implement the anti-dowry bill strictly in the right spirit Nobody, however highly placed, should be allowed to violate the law. Expenses at the marriage celebrations should be cut down. Needy married couples should be given loans and grants to help them set up their homes. They can be asked to refund these loans in easy installments. Voluntary social service organizations and religious heads should encourage dowryless marriages in large numbers. Girls should come forward to raise a banner of revolt against the dowry seekers. They should refuse to marry such boys as expect a dowry.
There is another dimension to the anti-dowry act promulgated by the government. This law is being exploited by some girls or their parents to blackmail the boys or their families after marriage. On threat of charge of prosecution for asking for dowry, husbands are being forced to shell out huge sums of money to get a divorce. This practice must be looked into and steps should be taken to see that no family is unnecessarily harassed or exploited. Divorce should be made easier to obtain. Boys and girls should both be given equal rights in the matter of obtaining a divorce.
In order to root out the evil of dowry from the society, we shall have to build up a strong public opinion against it. Boys and girls in schools and colleges should be made to take a pledge that they would neither seek nor give dowry. They should be educated through films, television plays and talks, slides camps, lectures and radio talks. Such boys as refuse to accept dowry in their marriages should be honoured in public. If we succeed in removing the evil of dowry, it will be really a praiseworthy achievement.
Essay No. 02
Dowry System
The dowry system is an age old system and a peculiar phenomenon of the Indian society. It is, as today, a curse to the society.
Dowry is the name given to all that, the parents of a girl give to her when she gets married. At the face of it, the system seems quite appropriate, healthy and logical, for in this simple way, the parents of the girl help her in setting a new home. So far, so good and, originally also the purpose of dowry was very justified and understandable.
Let us now analyze how and why this system took birth at all? In the earlier times of Indian society, the daughter had no share in the father’s property so, by way of dowry the girl would get at least some portion of her share. Besides this, in those days, the girls were not educated so, this dowry could serve the girl as a back up support system in case of any emergency after her marriage. Seeing this as the ground reality and the reason for the system for having taken birth, no right thinking people would call the system wrong or unjustified. However, with the passage of time this same fine system has taken the ugly shape of begging for dowry, bargaining for dowry, auctioning the boy to the highest bidder and finally suicides. This is because, taking advantage of the system, the parents of the boys, have Started demanding dowry. This was never done in the original shape of the system. The girl’s parents would give whatever they could and, there would be NO – yes, No demands from the boy’s side. Besides demanding items of dowry, now parents of the boy’s family keep items of the dowry for their own use. This was also not in the original system for, whatever was given was for the girl only- and never for the boy’s family. These two additions in the original system have converted the blessing for the girl into a curse for her. The parents who cannot afford to meet the demands of the boy’s family are forced either into taking loans that they can never return, or use unfair means of corruption to make money to meet the demanded expenses In turn, this has led to even committing suicides by the girls murders of girls by the in-laws. At times even before the marriage, the girl is led to kill herself to save her parents from the trauma of collecting money for her marriage.
Thus, we see that, a system that was at one time very wise and discreet, has taken an ugly shape just because of the deed of men and women in today’s world. This system of dowry has become a slur on the Indian society. Besides being a shame, in today’s scenario, the system as it was even in the initial stages of its existence, has become quite irrelevant. This is because, both the reasons for its birth are now not in vogue. These days, girls are usually educated and can earn a livelihood if need arises, and, they now also have a share, an equal share as the brothers have in the father’s property. That means the necessity of the girl having an amount to reach out in the days of crisis or emergency does not hold good any more. So, when the very basis of the system does not exist, the system should be scrapped altogether. This is because; the system instead of bringing solace, only generates greed and even crime in several cases
My view is that, the system as it exists should be put to an end and all those who indulge in it should be punished severely.
Essay No. 03
The Evil of Dowry System
It is one of the tragedies of modern times that despite the spread of education, change in traditional beliefs, customs and manners, the condition women remains largely unchanged. Despite the promulgation of several laws designed to ameliorate the lot of women, evils such as dowry continue causing havoc in the lives of parents and the young girls.
The custom of dowry was started by our forefathers with a practical purpose. Pie girl was given gifts and jewellery at the time- of her marriage so that she could start life afresh without feeling weighed down by everyday needs of life. Another reason for giving away part of the possessions was that the girls were not entitled to any share in the property by right. Only the boys could be the legal heirs to the wealth and property left by the parents.
But over the years, the custom of dowry has degenerated. Marriage has become like a business transition, where the terms are dictated by the boy’s parents. The financial terms are settled much in advance of the actual marriage ceremony. Even if the girl’s parents do everything in accordance with the wishes of the groom and his parents, there is no guarantee of a happy future for their daughter. Every day the newspaper headlines bring this fact home that the evil of dowry is playing havoc with the lives of young girls. The suicide pact of sisters in Kanpur some time back is still fresh in public memory. The girls, unable to agony of their parents, took the fatal step and ended their lives. Such incidents should shake the public out of its apathy, but it is sad that after a little noise by women activists, social workers, etc. the controversy died a natural death.
The custom is widely prevalent in the country among the rich, middle class ,as well as the poor. Almost all communities practice this custom. The custom is inseparably connected with the institution of arranged marriages. An overwhelming majority among young girls, are brought up to believe that their final destination is marriage. Lately, many girls are opting for careers. But it is at best a secondary aim, which might be pursued in conjunction with and not to the exclusion of marriage. The law that Manu, the ancient Hindu law-giver, once laid down; that a woman must remain subject to her father in childhood, to her husband in youth and to her sons when she becomes a widow, holds good as well today & it did thousands of years ago.
This presupposes that in a woman’s life marriage is as inevitable as birth and death. First because she needs physical protection at all stages in her life and secondly because she is economically less productive than man. The accepted popular notion that the ultimate destiny of a girl is marriage, is symbolic of her inferior status in a male dominated society. The girl if, first educated and then pushed into a marriage. She is expected to surrender totally and completely forget her identity. In some communities in face: the girls are given a new name to remind them of their new life. Parents out of social pressures, try to many off their daughters as early as possible. But a young educated girl inwardly rebels at the prospect of entering a home where her sole qualification is the dowry that she brings with her. The girls have not been able to show courage to defy these traditions. The Centre for Social Science Research has found after a study that 91 per cent of dowry victims were educated young girls.
Today, dowry .has cut all barriers of caste, colour and creed. Growing materialism is responsible for the custom of dowry becoming moil widespread. People have become more materialistic. Values have changed Money has become the yardstick to judge a man. Human greed has become limitless. Human life is sacrificed at the altar of greed without any qualms.
In recent years there has been a lot of agitation against this evil social practice. The Dowry Prohibition Act was passed in 1961. It was again amended in 1986. The Bill to amend Dowry Prohibition Act made dowry offences non-boilable; raised minimum punishment for taking dowry Id,: five years; imposed ban on any advertisement in any newspaper etc. offering, share of property in consideration of marriage. However, these legislation efforts of social workers and woman activists seem to have been largely ineffective in exorcising the ghost whose shadow darkens the lives of many, young girls.
It is said that law is a poor instrument of social reform. Efforts to arouse collective conscience of the community against the evil have to be made. There is hope for change only if there is a social awakening and the crusade against dowry crystallizes into a public movement, a social protest. Above all, what is needed is a change in social attitude towards women. The education should inculcate among them a sense of dignity and self-respect. It should create self-confidence in them and equip them-so that they can become economically independent. Marriage should not be their ultimate, inevitable goal. More employment opportunities should be made available to them.
Education is a very powerful instrument of social change. Efforts should be made to educate the young from an early age about such evil practices, their origin and need for change, etc. in the present context.
The media too plays a very crucial role in molding public opinion. In fact advertising industry must realize its social obligation and not encourage advertisements which have an unhealthy effect on the society.
Joint efforts by the government, women’s organizations, socially enlightened people are likely to yield results. Of course, the change will come slowly. It will be long before the evil can be completely stamped out. But once a collective effort is made, there is hope of the social evil being wiped out. Indeed, the crusade against dowry needs to be crystallized into a public movement and a massive social protest.
Essay No. 04
Dowry System
Dowry system is one of the greatest evils of our society. The sacred institution of marriage is reduced to a business transaction. In fact, the whole affair has assumed the proportion of a scandal. It is the system which lowers the dignity of women. The parents of the girl are made to pay not only huge amounts of cash but also give luxury items like television sets, refrigerators, scooters, etc., all in the name of dowry. Poor parents borrow huge sums of money on high rates of interest to provide dowry. Many girls have to face a lot of trouble, and some of them even commit suicide.
The system has been in practice in India from times immemorial. As the Hindu law in the past did not give the girl the right to property, the father gave away a part of his property to the daughter in the form of dowry. It was also thought to be a sort of help to the young couple to set up a new home. The custom became an evil as the greed of bridegroom’s parents mounted. Thus from a grace it became a shame of our society.
Today girls are educated and some of them are employed and are economically independent. They are in no way inferior to the boys. The argument that since bride’s parents are very particular about boy’s income, qualification, etc., does not hold weight. Giving of dowry is no problem for the rich. In order to enhance their false social prestige, they give maximum dowry. The poor try to imitate the rich and in the process ruin themselves.
This inhuman practice must be put to an end. Law cannot produce any desirable results. The Dowry Prohibition Act, first passed in 1961, remained ineffective and the Amendment Bills of 1976 and 1985, which declared taking and giving of dowry as a punishable offence, have brought little respite to the people. The evil of dowry is grinning at us as never before.
This social evil needs a treatment at the social level. The social organizations carry out intensive anti-dowry propaganda. To combat the evil, young boys and girls should come forward and resolve not to give consent to such marriage which involves dowry. Marriages should be performed in the presence of some legal authority. The services of a government employee demanding dowry should be terminated. Above all, if more and more girls are educated and made to enter employment through various competitive examinations, the evil can be eradicated. Inter-caste marriages should be encouraged. The question of marriage should not be tackled by the old who lack constructive vision. The young should have more say in the matter. Thus, the most heinous of the social evils can be fought in our country.
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