The ravishing of the damsels

Abstract

The aim of this articles is to analyse the conditions causing a specific form of rural marriage in the state of São Paulo, in which the bride is traditionally "kidnapped" with the consent of both families. This form of marriage is associated with the living conditions of rural workers. These conditions cause the impossibility of the working family to articulate the institutionally defined interests of all its members. When a family member, most frequently young women, becomes either unemployed or underemployed, his position in the family then becomes problematic. The article also focuses on those women´s world views and their reactions to those alienating living conditions.