ABSTRACT
In rural southern Malawi it is widely held that, while marriage ought to be consensual, it is also highly relational in that it concerns wider networks of kin. The most tangible instantiation of the role of matrilineal kin is the institution of unkhoswe, or marriage guardianship. The decisive role marriage guardians play in resolving marital disputes raises questions pertinent to the discussion of personal autonomy and the essential relationality of human life. The author presents a case study of a marital dispute, concluding that, despite the potential constraints that unkhoswe entails, agency is expressed in people’s ability to commit themselves to these relationships.
