Kinship, Islam, and the Politics of Marriage in Jordan

Hughes has written a one-of-a-kind study of the politics and textures of Muslim marriage in contemporary Jordan. The beautifully-written book explores marriage on multiple scales, from the necessary house to the housing market, the wedding feast to the courthouse, the home wedding to the mass wedding. Engaging multiple theoretical approaches and scholarly traditions, and using rich ethnographic research in Jordan, Hughes shows the importance of the Islamic Movement, the Jordanian government, and major banks to understanding the shape and workings of "affection and mercy" in the country.

~Frances S. Hasso, Duke University

Hughes is a versatile ethnographer. His accounts of Jordanian weddings, the inner workings of the sharia courts, where marriages are certified, the gender counseling and sex education offered to engaged couples by Islamist NGOs, the building and buying of homes for newlyweds — all are captivating and complexly rendered. The centrality of marriage to Jordanian political economy emerges vividly on these pages, as do the joys and frustrations of married life. It is a remarkable study, from start to finish.

~Andrew Shryock, University of Michigan

In this compelling and illuminating account, Geoffrey Hughes vividly demonstrates the productivity of marriage as a lens through which to understand society. Engagingly written, nuanced and ethnographically rich, his rendition of houses, proposals and weddings in Jordan enlarges our comprehension of marriage's enduring significance-a tour de force.

~Janet Carsten, University of Edinburgh