Summary Of Serena Nanda's Arraranging Marriage

Arranging a marriage in India as an important process in cultural system is still preferred among Indian population. Serena Nanda, a famous anthropologist, in her article “Arranging a Marriage in India” discusses the marriage process in India. The author wants the audience to think about various ways of getting married around the world and its disadvantages and advantages. The article “Arranging a Marriage in India” is understandable and informative material because it clearly explains that arranging a marriage is cultural value for Indian society. Serena Nanda’s article "Arranging a Marriage in India" was included on One World, Many Cultures, which is a textbook for college students in the United States. In this article the author describes the way of getting married in India and analyzes the process of arranging marriage. Serena Nanda wants the audience to think about negative and positive sides of marriage traditions around the world. In addition, in order to impress the readers, Serena Nanda used the 2 types of persuasive strategies. The first strategy is personal experience, which is about her experience in India and observation on how people get
married. The second strategy is compare-contrast, which is about how the marriage in USA is easy and how the marriage in India is difficult and would take a long time.
Even though the article is valuable and helpful for person who is interested in Indian culture, it has some disadvantages.
As a researcher, who was born and raised in the United States, Serena Nanda has bias toward the process of arranging marriage because it was quite challenging to understand the cultural system in India. In the beginning of research, as a young woman from the United States, Serena Nanda found the custom of arranging a marriage “oppressive”. As she mentioned, “Had anyone tried to arrange my marriage, I would have been defiant and rebellious!” Furthermore, the author observed the arranging marriages on one social class and did not mention about the lower and higher social classes. For instance, as she reported, “In India, almost all marriages are arranged” (Nanda, 2000,
p.43).
On the other hand, in order to impress the reader and engage in reading, Serena Nanda used the examples and stories from real life and her own experience, which make the article persuasive and understandable. The author’s discussions with young informant Sita counteracts American prejudice against arranged marriage; as a result, author understands that arranging a marriage can be more successful than dating or romantic love. As Serena Nanda argues, “Her response made further sense, and I began to have second thoughts on the matter”. As a consequence, after the responds of informant Sita, Serena Nanda overcomes her prejudice about arranged marriages and changes her opinion positively. In the article, arguments of Sita, a young Indian bride, assist the author to achieve the intended goal and clearly explain to readers the importance of arranging marriages in Indian culture. Author persuades the readers that experience of parents is important in choosing a mate, that arranged marriage allows young people to focus on personal development rather than on dating with opposite sex, and that arranged marriages contribute to the low divorce rate in India In the article “Arranging a Marriage in India” Serena Nanda explains the significance of arranged marriage in Indian cultural system and the logic of this form of marriage. In addition, she describes how the concept of marriage can be sufficiently different in two cultures, such as in Indian and American cultures. It is recommendable to read this article about the arranging a marriage because it is well-written and informative for people who are interested in Indian culture.