Description
Part of a larger project on dynastic marriage and the borders of state and empire, this paper looks at two cases of the building and maintenance of dynasties which rely heavily on the constitution of the son-in-law relationship. First, it engages the building and early stabilization of the Qing dynasty in China using efu, or son-in-law, relationships to convert members of the Ming dynasty and secure loyalty to the Qing (would-be) rulers. Second, it analyzes the crucial role of the father-in-law and son-in-law relationship in the transition between Jahangir and Shah Jahan in what is known as the Mughal dynasty. Looking at these two transitional moments, this paper suggests that the signification of the ‘son-in-law’ relationship can be important to the establishment, maintenance, and inheritance of empire(s), reified even through denaturalization. Theoretically, it engages three constructs: the family:state metaphor, the construct of paternalism, and the utilization of the body of the ‘daughter’ as a political bargaining chip.
