HONOR by Umrigar Honor Killing in India is Still Happening

Arranged marriages are still prevalent in many cultures, particularly in India. In fact, there's a lot to be said for this custom which is viewed by modern society as outdated and obsolete. However, "honor killing," a family's condoned murder of their daughter/sister who marries outside her culture, caste or without approval. As modern, liberated Americans who've only recently abandoned abolished eugenics, we tend to judge others freely and dismiss forced marriages, mutilation of female genitalia, and honor killings as far from our shores and as becoming remote. Thrity Umrigar's novel HONOR is a contemporary story taken from recent news article on the barbaric torture and murder of a newlywed couple, a Hindu woman and a Muslim man. Umrigar (b. India 1961) is an Indian-American journalist, critic and novelist. HONOR is written from the point of view of a journalist, Smita. Smita was born in India where she was raised until she moved with her family to the US at 13. Smita, now in her mid 30s, accepts an assignment inIndia to cover the verdict in a murder trial. Meena, a Hindu, accused her brothers of setting fire to her home, killing her husband and leaving her to die. Meena was pregnant at the time. Her daughter, Abru, was delivered by C-section. Meena was left maimed and horrribly disfigured. Meanwhile, Smita begrudgingly accepted the help of Mohan to drive and protect. As a single woman she would face harassment and  be barred access to interviews. The significance of Umrigar's novel doesn't arrive until midway when Smita finally meets and speaks with Meena, her brothers and the village's corrupt shaman. Still, she experiences harsh misogynistic treatment and caste discrimination. The poignant full-story of Meena's life, love and convictions are revealed only in Meena's mind; not in interviews. Smita becomes swept up in Meena's turbulent life, India's corruption and its caste system as she confronts her own suppressed ties with India.  Smita's journalistic integrity and drive are measured against her unsurprising attachments to Mohan and Abru. The novel's integrity is diminished given within Smita's story.  The construct of using Smita's modern lifestyle was needed to place events in the present and shine a light on abhorrent practices, societal constraints and cultural traditions in India. Unfortunately, Umrigar journalistic skills would serve these factual cases better reported as news rather than mitigate the horrors within a melodramatic romance story that is uninspiring and unworthy of the serious issues being considered. These so-called "cultural norms and traditions need current attention in order to be abolished immediately; chief among them are horrific and unlawful "honor killings."