Everything’s Arranged and A Question of Dowry

In the past, dowry is used as insurance for the bride if anything bad is to happen to the bridegroom. However, the concept of dowry has drift from its real purpose. Looking at the short stories “Everything’s Arranged” and “A Question of Dowry”, we can clearly state that dowry is not fairly treated in both stories.

Firstly, we look at the story “Everything’s Arranged”. In this story, the dowry acts as a bribe for the bridegroom’s family. This happens when Rukumani is rumored to have an affair with Johnny, a Chinese boy. In order to shut the rumor and continue with the marriage, Rukumani’s father increased the dowry from $10,000 to $20,000. Thus, we can see that the concept of dowry is not fairly treated.

Next story is “A Question of Dowry”. In this story, the dowry is a requirement in having marriage. If a bride’s family cannot prepare the requested dowry, the marriage will be cancelled. The wedding between Sivasothie and Thiruchelvam is cancelled due to the inability of Mr.Ramachandran’s family to fulfill the dowry requested. This happens because Mr.Ramachandran has no more land to sell for buying a gold necklace as a dowry. When Thiruchelvam heard of this matter, he immediately cancels the wedding.

In conclusion, dowry is not fairly treated in both short stories. In”Everything’s Arranged”, it acts as a bribe while in “A Question of Dowry” it acts as a compulsory fulfillment of marriage. The concept of dowry must be follow its true meaning so that married couple can live happily ever after.