The Explorer Islamabad: Journal of Social Sciences

ISSN: 2411-0132(E), 2411-5487(P)

Vol-1, Issue (8):286-289
www.theexplorerpak.org

AN ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE ON ANNULMENT OF FAMILY TIES

Aniqa Rukhsar, Hira Rehman
Department of Anthropology, PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
Corresponding Author:
Aniqa Rukhsar
PMAS Arid-Agriculture University, Rawalpindi
aniqarukhsar.annie@gmail.com
Abstract: Divorce or separation characterizes an unstable marriage. Our society which previously demonstrated strong
familial institution has now become visibly weak showing an increase in the divorce rates. The rise in divorces cannot be
and should not be, attributed to a single factor but rather be seen as a multifaceted issue. The research type was
qualitative which used structured questionnaire and in-depth interviews for data collection. The study was conducted
in Amar Pura, Murree Road, Rawalpindi, to identify the major variables associated with marital discord. The results
strengthen the hypothesis that divorce does not occur for a single reason and that frequently there are number of
factors like infidelity, mental harassment, lack of compatibility as well as economic and social issues.

Key Words: Divorce, Psychosocial variables, Family adjustment

INTRODUCTION
Family is a fundamental social group; which consists
of one or two parents and their children. Marriage
is a union between man and woman such that the
children born to the woman are recognized as
legitimate offspring of both partners (Kottak
2011). Social changes and changing social values
include the emergence of new family configurations
and rising divorce rates. During this critical time
maintaining a healthy family relationship is
significant.
A legal procedure which cancels a marriage
between man and woman is known as annulment.
While the separation between things that were or
ought to be connected is known as divorce
generally. Varieties of factors are known to affect
the process of adjustment in marriage. Several
factors contribute to poor adjustment including
social, economic, psychological and cultural
reasons. Moreover, it is a fact that there is always a
probability of certain amount of conflicts in family
life. Recently, there has been a sharp increase in
the divorce rates and number of cases pending in
family courts. Stable marriages have visibly
decreased and the success rate has declined. A
weak relationship is due to lack of interaction and
understanding. Some of major reasons are poor
communication, economic issues, infidelity, woman
independence, family and social adjustment, as well
as economic factors following a breakup (McKeever
and Wolfinger 2001).
Divorce is not a single event rather it is a process
that influences peoples entire lives. The problems

include life course variables like age of marriage,

race, religiosity, class and parental divorce (Amato
and Roger 1997).It is rare for a single cause to lead
to divorce. Successful marriages depend upon both
partners clarifying and agreeing upon the
expectations and goals. Marital discordance is a
situation in which one of the partner is not satisfied
from the relationship causing family breaking and
conflicts, early marriage, poor intellectual, sexual
factors, difference between the partners leading to
acrimony (Lowenstein 2005).
Family plays a significant role structurally as well.
Separation is more likely to occur in troubled
families affecting the whole family structure. Family
adjustment is one of the most difficult adjustments
to make (Thomas and Ravindranadan 2006). Type
of family also plays its part when it comes to
divorce. A survey show that 67 percent of
Pakistanis prefer to live in extended family system.
Divorce effects are not without problems either, as
it becomes difficult to derive substantial meaning
from causal estimates that have been purged of all
types of selection effects (SigleRushton, et al.
2014).
Since divorce brings an end to the husband and
wife relationship; the children from the union thus
are also highly affected both psychologically and
socially. Have low measures of social development,
self-concept and physical health (Furstenberg and
Kiernan 2001). Hence a change in family
configurations negatively affects the children
mentally, socially and emotionally. Most divorced
parents
quickly
enter
into
post-divorce

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relationships that lead the children into new lives as

stepfamilies (Goldscheider and Sassler 2006).
The separation of parents for wellbeing of children
has consistently shown that the children of
divorced parents face worse on different measures
of wellbeing than children living in intact families
(Paul 2001). Following divorce, approximately 20 to
25 percent of children in divorced families
experience long term adjustment problems
(Hetherington and Stanley-Hagan 2000).
Type of marriage is also the indicator of changing
family configurations. Though the reason that leads
to separation is often unique to the couple, most of
the problems in the family as well as society stem
from problems in marital relationship (Mahoney, et
al. 1997).
For many couples the process of divorce leads to
remarriage (Peterson and Zill 1986). Sometimes
serious allegations and mental harassment leads to
the breakage of family ties. Most of the family
members undergo distress and disrupted
functioning following divorce (Hetherington 1989).
It is irrational to focus on a single reason behind
separation. Type of marriage also plays a vital role
in the maintaining the family structure. Marriage in
and out of family (endogamy & exogamy) also
contributes to the level of divorce rates in society.
The following study focuses on the variables which
are likely to lead to discord among married couples.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The locale of the study is Amar pura, Murree Road,
Rawalpindi (Punjab Pakistan).To gather primary
data, structured questionnaire and an intensive
interview schedule method was used for the case
studies of divorced respondents. The secondary
information was collected by books, articles and
internet.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Marriage is really about attachments, and such as,
is governed by a curious strict set of relationship
rules. Failed attempts to restore or reestablish
bonds in any relationship lead to the loss of
connection, which cause emotional disconnection
and finally separation. Public discussion treats
divorce as an undifferentiated and uniform
occurrence resulting in similar outcomes.
There will be many shifts in a relationship that are
not within control. A variety of marital problems
predicted divorce up to 12 years in the future. A
parsimonious set of marital problems involve
infidelity (Amato and Rogers 1997).
Case study.1
A male respondent of 25 years was interviewed. He
got married at the age of 30 and got divorced at the

age of 40.The type of marriage was exogamy. He

had no child during his 10 years of married life.
According to him, due to infidelity of his wife he
took the decision of divorce. In his nuclear family
system, the decision was planned without the
involvement of any family member. Divorce was
registered and all allowances were given. The
respondent is now satisfied with his present
married life. He shared that due to infidelity the
martial quality deteriorates, as one remains
discontent, depressed and isolated all the time.
Compatibility between partners plays a vital role in
the stability of marital relationship. High or
persistent conflicts in intact family also related to
behavior problems (Peterson and Zill 1986).
Case Study .2
A female of 26 years was interviewed who got
married at the age of 24 and divorced at the age of
25. During her one year of married life the
respondent faced serious allegations, regarding her
character from her in laws. There was lack of
compatibility between the partners and thus she
faced serious mental harassment from her male
counterpart. The type of marriage was exogamy
and she did not want to live with her extended
family or in-laws. She took the decision of
separation and her family fully supported her. She
has no child and thus also faced the allegation of
infidelity and character assassination. Multiple
reasons are behind the separation in this case. Her
case is pending in court. She is hopeful for justice
from court. Socio-economic variables are also taken
as a factor behind breaking of family ties.
Case Study. 3
Another female of 28 was interviewed who got
married at the age of 22 and divorced at the age of
26 with two girls. The type of marriage was
exogamous and she was living in a neo-local setup.
The respondent was working a full time job for the
betterment of her daughters, while her husband
was a drug addict. The respondent faced constant
physical and mental harassment so she took the
decision of separation. Apparently economic issues
were reason behind the separation while the
empowerment of woman through education,
knowledge and awareness is also an important
variable due to which the respondent took the
decision of divorce which is known as Khula. Now
she is married again and satisfied with her personal
decision. The children in this case suffered the
most, yet as the children of divorce family show
remarkable resilience in the face of multiple life
stressors (Hetherington 1989) it all worked out in
the end. The major reason here for the divorce is
seen to be addiction to drugs and domestic

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violence. As, high risk of divorce is also related to

drug use and smoking (Lowenstein 2005)
Case Study. 4
Mutual understanding among the partners has
always been a central point in maintaining smooth
marriage ties. A female respondent of 35 years
reported that she got married at the age of 24
while got separation at the age of 29. At the time of
divorce she had one male child whose age was 9.
According to the respondent from the very
beginning of marriage, the couple lacked mutual
understanding. In her nuclear family, the
misunderstandings extended and turned to serious
conflicts and allegations. Her ex-husband took the
decision of divorce in aggression. Now the
respondent has re-married for the better future of
her only son. In this case the woman takes the
responsibility of her kid and second marriage is
conducted. She was not satisfied with judicial
system because she is neither getting maintenance
allowance for her son nor received her Mehr. Her
only child still suffers from the trauma of her
divorce and remarriage. Thus divorce alters certain
childrens developmental trajectories (Furstenberg
and Kiernen 2001).
CONCLUSION
The case studies indicate the major causes of
termination of marital relationships by divorce that
has always been preceded by different factors. It
was found that the maximum divorces were due to
accused infidelity while mental and emotional
harassment were common in all cases. The type of
family and marriage also plays a vital role in the
stability of marital relationship. From the above
case studies it was concluded that the woman
today are empowered and brave enough to take
decisions for her safety by demanding Khula
(separation right given by Islam to the Muslim
women). However breaking family ties affected
their children badly. Family plays an integral role in
the unification of the community; breaking of
family ties negatively affects the community over
all.
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