These shots constitute one set of pictures one comes across in a platform called ‘New Africa’. The Facebook page has many interesting pictures, mostly of Africa and Africans. For instance, the pictures of all African leaders above 80 years of age or who have spent decade mostly misruling their people can be found there, amongst others.
This set is, however, troubling. How two adults pair and make it as husband and wife is a bit too personal to intervene in. But the look of the bride in these photographs do not suggest a contented pairing. Rather, it suggests lack of consent and mirth. That is if it was not drama.
Too many things are just puzzling about the event. There is a fully robbed ‘man of God’. What could he be doing there if it was a marriage? Agreeing to give Heavenly validity to such a structurally violent marriage?
And would the man be happy with a wife who looks like lost and unhappy with what was going on? The man is obviously older than the woman although age gap may not be such a strong factor in marriage. Chemistry is the issue. It is possible there is a context (cultural, religious, poverty) to this seeming absurd outing.
Of course, it could be a case of looking at it from the distance. In those days in the hamlets, it used to be that young girls were even dragged on the ground to their husband’s house. Their resistance is understood to be indicative of their innocence and virginity. The assumption is that ‘they’ will grow to enjoy it all after the first taste of the forbidden fruit.
But today is not those days in the hamlets. Today is the height of informationalised capitalism and the pictures must be sickening to the extent of making one lose sleep all night. Couldn’t ‘they’ persuade the lady to consent?
Unfortunately, Intervention has no idea of when and where it could have taken place or whether it is even real.
What a wonderful world!
