Diamond Engagement Rings

535 Words2 Pages

(P1) Diamond engagement rings were a replacement for the heart balm laws, the breach of promise to marry.

(SP1) Starting in the seventeenth century up until around 1935, if one person decided to break the promise of engagement it would have been considered a break of legal contract. The breaker could then be sued for damages by the opposite party. This law was mostly aimed to protect women who would be deemed unchaste and therefore unfit for remarry. These damages could potentially ruin a woman's life as during that time women had no other option but through marriage to gain security. Even if the woman had not engaged in pre-marital intercourse prior to the break of promise she would still be view as used goods. Men however would not be affected as harshly in this manner by a broken engagement. …show more content…

(SP3) The breaker could also be sued for any financial damage accrued during the engagement.

(SP4) Once society decided to veer away from meddling in personal affairs and the stigma behind pre-marital intercourse began losing its influence, many states repealed the heart balm laws. A need for a representation of engagement arose and the diamond ring fulfilled it.

(SP5) The diamond ring then became an extralegal means of binding the contract of engagement. If one person in the couple decided to break the engagement, then the ring would be given to the other person as payment for ending the promise.

(P2) Engagement rings were popularized through advertising and Hollywood in movies that showed proposals and actresses who wore diamond rings off the screen.

(SP1) Around 1939 a diamond trading company by the name of De Beers began a vigorous ad campaign with a New York advertising agency known as Ayers. They debuted diamond engagement rings to stimulate

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