TO THE EDITOR:
In the Nov. 20 DTH, the Daily Dose reported a case in India in which a “relative” of a bride married her when the groom did not show up to the wedding. You commented that this is incest.
Well, to begin with, please remember that “relative” is, well, a relative term, based on culture.
Similarly, “incest” is a term that has different meaning in different cultures. Leaving aside sexual relations at the most basic level of closeness, that of parents and children and sisters and brothers — which seem to be viewed negatively almost universally — many other types of unions, for example, between cousins, are fully accepted and sometimes endorsed in many cultures.
Even in the U.S., in many states, they are legitimate. In many cultures, a marriage between an uncle and niece is also considered acceptable.
I do not know the exact details of the event in India you described, but I am pretty certain that according to the local culture, it was not considered incest.
In order to understand better the relative value of such concepts, I can highly recommend taking courses in religious studies.
Evyatar Marienberg
Assistant professor
Religious studies
