Using Verbal Art to Deal with Conflicts: Women’s Voices on Family and Kinship in Kāmākhyā (Assam) (2019)
Emilie Arrago-Boruah
India
Performance
ethnopoetics
gender
family
kinship
Assam
Kāmākhyā
goddess
ritual
verbal art
tale
song
house
space
women
conflict
women's voices
article
open access
scholarly
Abstract: "Analyzing two women’s rituals in which verbal art on family and kinship is prominent, this article explores situations in which tales and songs in Assamese are staged by newly married and about-to-be-married young women. Active participation in stories and song sessions, under the guidance of older storytellers or singers, imparts practical knowledge to young women about the possible ways by which to retaliate against male domination and domestic tensions with one’s mother-in-law. The