2.Marriage

Question 1

What determines why people get married?

Answer 1

Structurally determined reasons:

1. Maintaining lineage
   a) secure inheritance [Europe] (Goody 1976)
   b) ancestor worship (Martin 1991)
   c) Inc Workforce [Africa] (Goody 1976)
   d) Levirate - financial reasons
   e) Avoid illegitimacy of concubinage (Goody 1976)
2. Love [rich] (Hufton)

Question 2

Does being single always mean that someone is alone?

Answer 2

No.

1. Siblingship can prefigure marriage in terms of kinship structure [Indonesia] (Allerton 2007).

Question 3

Is the stigma of not getting married universal?

Answer 3

No.

1) Bachelor and spinsters often have different amounts of stigma attached to them depending on context
2) Celibacy encouraged in some circumstances e.g. priesthood (Goody 1976)

Question 4

Is marriage a free choice?

Answer 4

1. Bourdieu argues that the structural position and the behavioural patterns of bachelors in France make it hard for them to get married.
2. GHOST MARRIAGE - Chinese believe that marriage is central to one’s life and they hold this belief to such an extent that even in death ghost marriages must be held for children by parents (Martin 1991)

Question 5

How has the meaning of marriage changed?

Answer 5

1. Romantic love is cross-cultural (Jankowiak & Fischer 1992) but often love is:
   - hidden in affairs
   - comes about after “arranged marriage” (Cannell)
2. In Xiajia (village in China) people used to have arranged marriages but with Communist changes in marriage law and collectivisation free-choice marriages become more popular & upon the basis of romantic love. (Yan 2003)
3. In China previously the bride was expected to be unhappy during her marriage ceremony but now she expects herself to be happy (Stafford).