Marriage and Family
Dutt had refused to enter into an arranged marriage which his father had decided for him. He had no respect for that tradition and wanted to break free from the confines of caste-based endogamous marriage. At this time, he converted to Christianity. His knowledge of the European tradition convinced him of the superiority of marriages made by mutual consent (or love marriages).
Dutt married twice. While living in Madras, he married Rebecca Mactavys, of English descent. They had four children together. He wrote to Gour in December 1855:
| “ | Yes, dearest Gour, I have a fine English Wife and four children. | ” |
Dutt returned from Madras to Calcutta in February 1856, after his father's death. There he married Henrietta Sophia White, who was also ethnic English. His second marriage lasted until the end of his life. They had a son Napoleon and daughter Sharmistha.
The tennis player Leander Paes is a direct descendant of his.
Read more about this topic: Michael Madhusudan Dutt
Famous quotes containing the words marriage and/or family:
“Yes, marriage is hateful, detestable. A kind of ineffable, sickening disgust seizes my mind when I think of this most despotic, most unrequited fetter which prejudice has forged to confine its energies.”
—Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822)
“I had rather be shut up in a very modest cottage, with my books, my family and a few old friends, dining on simple bacon, and letting the world roll on as it liked, than to occupy the most splendid post which any human power can give.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)