Polygamy, Policy and Postcolonialism in English Marriage Law

Download or read book Polygamy, Policy and Postcolonialism in English Marriage Law written by Zainab Naqvi and published by Policy Press. This book was released on 2023-01-25 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Slaves, mistresses, concubines - the English courts have used these terms to describe polygamous wives in the past, but are they still seen this way today? Using a critical postcolonial feminist lens, this book provides a contextualized exploration of English legal responses to polygamy. Through the legacies of British imperialism, the book shows how attitudes to polygamy are shaped by indifference and hostility towards its participants. This goes beyond the law, as shown by the stories of women shared throughout the book negotiating their identities and relationships in the UK today. Through its analysis, the book demonstrates how polygamy and polygamous wives are subjected to imperialist and orientalist discourses which dehumanise them for practising a relationship that has existed for millennia.