The reasons of polygamy in the meaning system of second wife s (A case study of Malekshahi city of Ilam province)

The family is usually formed by marriage. Among all social rituals, marriage is very important to meet the emotional and security needs of individuals, and communication with the spouse is a central aspect of emotional and social life (Afra, 2010). Marriage can also be structurally divided into monogamy and polygamy, which have different positions in different societies (Aref Nazari & Mazaheri, 2005). Although monogamy has always been the most common and desirable style of matrimony (Javid, 2010), but polygamy has been common in some societies. The term polygamy does not etymologically refer to the diversity of spouse, but its historical use has always been in the sense of a man marrying more than one wife (Ramazan Nargesi, 2005). In the present research, the term. Islam is not the originator of this phenomenon, but these are the reality and social phenomenon that have linked Islam with polygamy (Shariati, 1981, p 526). In Iran, since the existing laws are in accordance with Islamic standards, this phenomenon has been considered permissible and conditions have been met for it (Zainali, 2008). Although polygamy is not the dominant structure of the family system in Iran, polygamy significantly increased in the country is 1986 due to the critical situation caused by the Iran- Iraq war. Polygamy is very high in some parts of the country such as Sanandaj, North Khorasan, West Azerbaijan, Lamerd, Kahnooj, Bushehr, Khuzestan and Zahedan (Sheikhi & Mohammadi, 2008). In some parts of Iran, especially nomadic and rural communities, due to the influence of custom and social ethics, polygamy phenomenon is considered as a part of the custom and social norms of those communities. In these societies, polygamy phenomenon is a sign of the social status and dignity of men (Rafiei, 2010). Second wives are often identified as looters of feelings and affection in family relationships of the first cohabitation (Taqipour, 2008). However, it should be noted that these women enter into this marriage for reasons that can be common or different for everyone, and their rights should not be ignored. Protecting the family from pollution to chaos and moral degeneration is one of the duties of the Islamic State (Sharif Qoreishi, 2003, p 10). This phenomenon is not considered a problem in Iran due to the Islamic nature of this country, and for this reason, little research has been done in this regard and this issue has not been addressed in detail. As mentioned, the negative effects of this phenomenon on women, children and even men in the family prevent the realization of peace and stability in family relationship and, consequently, by harming the family as an essential element, a healthy and progressive society cannot be expected.
The present study seeks to retrieve the reasons for polygamy in the semantic system of the second wife. There is usually a negative view of women who become second wife in society, and this is because everyone believes that they are destroying the warm circle of family by their entering. But they never ask themselves why a women is willing to put herself in this position of accusation, which brings problems for her. In general, the purpose of present research is to discover the problem of polygamy in the semantic system of the second wife and to create a grounded theory in this regard. To achieve this goal, qualitative research method and grounded theory strategy are used.
Partial purpose of the research:
Understanding the factors that make the second wife accepts this type of marriage.
The method of present research is qualitative. Grounded theory method was used to analyze data and present the final theory. The data collection technique in the research was in- depth interview. The participants included 23 women who were second wives and lived in Malekshahi city of Ilam province. In the grounded theory approach, which is the selected strategy of this research to achieve its goal, two types of theoretical and purposeful samplings were used. Grounded theory includes three basic steps of open coding, axial coding and selective coding. Of course, the methodological steps of grounded theory are not necessarily sequential, but are based on simultaneous analysis (Kalaki, 2011). Samples of the research were selected from married women in polygamous families in Malekshahi city. Being the second wife and being alive of both wives were the conditions for choosing these people. Based on the conducted analyses, 6 concepts were obtained in the open coding stage, 3 categories were obtained by studying the relationship between the concepts, and finally a core category was obtained. Given that qualitative research is a type of methodology that is based on human interactions and communication, the observance of ethical principles and considerations in qualitative research is of particular importance compared to quantitative research. This arises from the intrinsic feature of qualitative research, which requires close and long- term personal contact with the research field and in- depth interview with the studied subjects and participatory observation (Hariri, 2006, p 29).
In the present research, ethical considerations have been observed in relation to the participants. The interviews were conducted by stating the goals and nature of the research for the participants and assuring them about the confidentiality of what they note in the interviews. Confidentiality of the profile of the research participants is also another ethical consideration that needs to be observed (Christian, 2003, p 218). An attempt had been made to keep these people unknown using aliases in the research.
The results of research included 6 concepts (being old, coercion, widowhood, destiny, financial poverty and being interested in the man) . Based on these concepts, we achieved three main categories (social contexts, sociability and cultural stereotypes). Finally, patriarchy was identified as the core category. In the patriarchal model, the relationship of power is vertical and the important and fundamental decisions of the family are made by the man. In this model, women have a marginal role and their opinion, even if it is considered important, is only affirmative and not decisive. In a patriarchal system, men have social, political and economic dominance over women, and women in such a system are considered purely sexual beings who must meet the needs of men. Socialization is considered as one of the strengthening levers of this system. A strong lever that well internalizes all its commands and desires in a way that makes them look completely natural. Despite the dominance of patriarchal culture’s values and patterns in Iranian society, especially the family institution, transformations have been made in the dominance of patriarchal ideology due to the confrontation of Iranian society with modernity and the impact of the social and cultural structure of society from the created space. Modernity, especially its cultural forms, has provided opportunities and abilities for women to confront traditional values and present new cultural patterns through which they can protest against the masculine definition of existence. Women’s advocacy associations, non- governmental organizations and at the macro level, the emergence of feminist movements are the achievement of modern discourse that have been organized in response to patriarchal structures (Yazdkhasti & Shiri, 2008).