House ablaze: a case study of marital conflict in rural Sri Lanka

Udalagama, Tharindi

Abstract

Marriage and family are central aspects of life for women in Sri Lanka. The failure to marry or the absence of a family is considered a ‘lack’ in a woman’s life. As a result, we have come to notice how women put up with domestic violence and protect the perpetrator as he is her ‘husband’. Although legal statutes to deal with domestic violence exist, in practice they have limited effect. In attempting to understand the life of women after marriage in rural Sri Lanka, I engaged in an ethnographic study. In the course of the study, I have explored the suffering women undergo and the avenues that they take to resolve the suffering caused by marital conflict. Sorcery is a key tool they use to alleviate their suffering. In this article, using a case study of a marital dispute that spanned a period of fourteen-months in a rural Sinhala village in Sri Lanka, I highlight how women build their capacity to cope with marital conflict and alleviate suffering.

Citation

Udalagama, T. (2021). House ablaze: a case study of marital conflict in rural Sri Lanka. Contemporary South Asia, 29(4), https://doi.org/10.1080/09584935.2021.1995849

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Oct 2, 2022
• Publication Date: 2021
• Deposit Date: May 26, 2022
• Journal: Contemporary South Asia
• Print ISSN: 0958-4935
• Electronic ISSN: 1469-364X
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 29
• Issue: 4
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09584935.2021.1995849