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Cultural practices about marriage
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When it comes to the topic of marriage, different cultures have different customs. Some of these customs have changed over the years and some have stayed the same. One type of marriage that interests me is arranged marriage and why there are arranged marriages still going on today. That is why I have chosen to write about them in this paper and discuss why they were/are an important staple in certain cultures. One of the more interesting marriage practices to me is the ones that are done by the Na and Nayar cultures. And technically, they are not marriages because they are the exception to the whole arranged marriage concept. In China, arranged marriages are somewhat common but in the southwest region the Na are a group of people that do …show more content…
When there were arranged marriages in the Middle Ages they were usually made then broken and then remade again and the reasons for this was to build relationships with rivals. Arranged marriages were more common among royalty or the rich because of the wealth they could bring to the table and they were primarily a custom in India, China, Japan, Eastern and Southern Europe. When it came to royalty more often than not the marriages were arranged before these kids were born or old enough to walk and they would not meet until their wedding day. During the Middle Ages, the parents would use their children as pawns in a game of who could gain the most wealth, and these children generally didn’t have a say in who they married or where they were sent to. The whole idea was that with an arranged marriage they were bringing together two separate families and combining them into one. Now in commoners there were still arranged marriages but they were not as popular, and most of the time they were able to marry whom they …show more content…
So instead of giving some type of wealth to the bride’s family the groom or his family will work for the family. This work is usually extensive and can be expected before or after the marriage ceremony happens. At 12% the third most common is known as indirect dowry and this is when the male will give goods to the brides family, mainly the father, but in turn the father gives the goods to his daughter. This can be done before the marriage or during, and if done during the marriage the male is almost getting some of his own wealth back through his
Wealth and family status was a determining factor upon marriage. Women were expected to have a dowry from their family that would allow them to be auctioned off to suitors. The marriage market was much like the stock exchange in that it allowed
According to the author, Lizette Alvarez, in the article “Arranged Marriages Get a Little Reshuffling”, Arranged marriages are better than modern marriages and parents can choose good mates for young. First, the arranged marriage has changed a lot in modern time. Arranged marriages are more flexible because young people can meet several times in some public venues without family members. Parents and elders have become more lenient. Second, arranged marriages have more advantages than modern marriages. Arranged marriages can preserve religion and identity and help people to find their mates in the same social class. Arranged marriages can outlast modern marriages because couples can avoid social and religions disharmony. Finally, young people prefer arranged marriage to modern marriage. Young people would spend less time to find their mate because their parents, chat rooms and dating websites help find mates for them. Young people can easily find their mates who have the same education level and social status. As a young person, I do not agree with the author because other people migh...
The head of the household has the authority to arrange marriage contracts for the members of his household (Barth-1961). Before the wedding, the groom’s family must pay a milk price which is written in contract by a non-tribal ritual specialist known as a mullah (Barth-1961). The milk price is the payment for the girl and the domesticated equipment she expected to bring along with her, along with the milk price the grooms expectations are to provide his girl with gifts at all calendrical events, the performing of various bride services and minor favors to his parents-in-laws (Barth-1961). After all transactions are cleared, the newly married couple will start their own
Arranged marriages are typically not practiced in the United States, however, they are still a part of other cultures. While arranged marriages are often seen as a barbaric or outdated practice, they can still be successful. It may not seem important to study arranged marriages since they are not widely practiced in modern America or other western cultures but some benefits of arranged marriages found could be used to lessen the negative image western civilizations have about cultures that continue the practice of arranged marriages. There are definitely drawbacks in the practice of arranged marriage but there are also benefits that are often overlooked.
On occasion of the Howkrah the “Walwar” (the money to be paid by the father of the boy to the girl’s father) money is specified. In accordance with the elders decision the groom’s parent agree to pay in cash the specified amount to the bride’s parents on the day of marriage. Some amount is paid in advance while rest of the money is paid on the marriage day. The father of the girl demands a huge sum of money from the father of the boy. The father of the boy and other relatives present on the occasion request him to reduce the amount for sake of God, sake of Prophet and other saints. The father of the girls on their request and for God’s sake and Prophet and other saints cuts down the amount to some extent. In some cases the father of the boy requests on reducing the amount for the sake of their dead forefathers too. Nevertheless, the amount is brought down to a reasonable level within the range of the boy’s father. Whenever the walwar amount is settled, some sweets and drinks are served to the people on the occasion.(Afridi:2002)
This provides information on the customs and traditions throughout the American culture and their marriage and wedding practices.
Although western culture is considered advanced in many aspects, tradition continues to override modernization in respect to arranged marriages in Canada and India. The reasons why these marriages are enforced in certain families and their customs, such as dowry, are to be discussed in this essay. These marriages were forced upon children who wish to choose their own husband or wife. My argument will be structured by the following questions: How did arranged marriages first come about? What are some of the reasons why parents chose arranged marriages? What are the basic customs of arranged marriages? Why shouldn’t arranged marriages occur? What are marriages in Indian culture back in India and in Canada like now? How are traditions shown in Bollywood films? I will propose from this analysis, conclusions about why arranged marriages contain so many flaws, their reasons why these marriages are so common amongst Indian culture in the past and present, and their portrayal in a selection of Bollywood films. Whether the reason is for capital or saving one’s status, arranged marriages have continued to serve as the basis of Indian culture.
...d it is the main and yet crucial part of their tradition. The groom’s family demands many items including jewelry, household items and so on, and failing to fulfill their demand sometimes result in divorce or domestic violence.
Wedding Traditions Explained. n.d. - n.d. - n.d. Filipino Wedding Traditions and Spanish Influence. Flesche, F. L. (1912, March). Osage Marriage Customs -. ( A. A. Association, Ed.).
Marriage is by no stretch of the imagination a static institution. It is dynamic, which is to say that is always changing or evolving. The idea of marrying for romantic love is a relatively new phenomenon, or at least the resurgence of an ancient one. Anthropologists tell us that the earliest form of civilization, hunter-gatherer societies, seemed to have married for love much like western societies do today (Fisher, 2004). However, this practice did not last long. With the accumulation of wealth and possessions came the need to secure and control those assets. Therefore marriage became an economic consideration in agrarian societies. It was an arranged i...
Modern arranged marriages are arranged by the child's parents. They choose several possible mates for their child, sometimes with the help of the child (who may indicate which photos, biographic he or she likes). The parents then arrange a meeting with the family of the mate and they will often have short unsupervised meeting (an hour long walk around the neighborhood together for example) (Arrange Marriages). The child will then choose who they w...
The Western Religious leaders and moralists believe only one spouse for life is the highest form of marriage. Some of the most "primitive" peoples are strictly monogamous in their ideals, while some "highly advanced" cultures have moved away from the stri...
Arranged Marriage In general, arranged marriage has provided people with fundamental principles about the importance of marriage and how a person can find happiness. Arranged marriage defines marriage between a man and a woman, which arranged by the couple's parents and relatives based on family ties and traditions. Although marriage is described as the oldest and enduring human institution, the reasons for marrying have differed from culture to culture. In common circumstances, cultural, religious, economic, age, educational level, and racial factors play a role in determining who the person can marry and the form of marriage. Some statistics find that the rate of divorce is low in arranged marriages and high in love marriages.
The chapter with the topic that interested me the most in this Sociology course was the one dealing with marriages. I thought it was interesting to see how marriage can take on so many different meanings depending on what country or culture a person belongs to. To most people, especially here in the US, marriage is usually the union of two adults (usually heterosexual) who are in love with each other. This means that the two individuals get to choose who they want to be their future husband or wife. However, in India, it is not an uncommon practice to marry a person that your parents have approved/chosen for you.
Arranged marriage in India is the traditional and well respected way of getting married. Majority of the elderly were married through someone, some not even being able to see each other till after the wedding ceremony. Now a day families are a bit more lenient about getting the approvals of both bride and groom before setting a wedding a day. In some parts of India, arrange marriages are still a business transaction or marrying of little children due to poverty. Arranged marriages are still very common in royalties and high caste people to practice maintaining their status.