The Marriage Practices Of The Village Of Southwest China

Marriage is important in human society. Marriage is “the customs, rules, and obligations that establish a special relationship between a sexually cohabitating adult male and female, between them and any children they produce, and between the kin of the bride and groom” (Arenson, and Miller-Thayer 520). Most of the cultures are used to seeing only female and male getting married but looking deeper into the society; we can see there are more to it. There are many different types of marriages. In an ethnography called, Guest of the Sheik, by Elizabeth Warnock Fernea, she talks about her experiences in a small rural village of El Nahra in southern Iraq. Ethnography is “comprised of the writings of the anthropologist, detailing the life ways of a particular culture, investigated by means of direct fieldwork” (1). As she gets accepted by the women of the villages, she gets a more inclusive view of the culture.

Marriage practices vary across cultures. Every culture has its own way of conducting marriage according to their traditions and customs. Most cultures share common customs and practices, while some cultures have unique practices. Marriage refers to a social union agreed upon by the couples to unit as spouses. The union of couples implies sexual relations, permanence in union, and procreation. This research paper focuses on comparing marriage practices in American and Indian culture. There is significant difference between the two cultures in marriage practices.

As a beginning of this film, a myth is told by the Nyinba people of Nepal: a story of fearsome spirits thought to kill children and the weak. Their crime was adulterous passionate love and it was this that had condemned them to live eternally between life and death. In this film, we learn about and explore marriages in tribal societies. We can clearly identify the differences that challenge both side’s ideas and sensibilities about marriage bonds.

Marriage is a fundamental practice that influences village dynamics and political processes in many societies in past and present human cultures. Not only is marriage a process that supports human kinship systems, it allows for alliances and reciprocity systems between groups that create variation in human social organization (Walker et al. 2011). This paper explores the sources of variation in marriage and mating systems in two very different societies, the !Kung San and the Yanomamo, in terms of the vastly different environments each of them inhabit. The !Kung San, a traditional nomadic hunter-gatherer society, reside in the Dobe area on the edge of the Kalahari desert of Botswana (Shostak 1981, p.7). Due to the demanding environment of

In Millennium: Strange Relations, presented by David Maybury Lewis examines the concept of marriage by focusing on three different groups the Nyimba of Nepal, Wodaabe of Niger, finally a Canada (Western European viewpoint). Lewis also examines the concepts of monogamy, fraternal polyandry, and polygyny with the respective case studies.

Established with Adam and Eve, still surviving, marriage is the oldest institution known. Often the climax of most romantic movies and stories, whether it may be ‘Pride and Prejudice’ or ‘Dil Wale Dulhaniya Ley Jaein Gey’, marriage has a universal appeal. It continues to be the most intimate social network, providing the strongest and most frequent opportunity for social and emotional support. Though, over the years, marriage appears to be tarnished with high divorce rates, discontentment and infidelity, it is still a principal source of happiness in the lives of respective partners. Although marriage is perceived as a deeply flawed institution serving more the needs of the society than those of the individuals, nevertheless, marriage is

As Anthropologist Kimber McKay challenged the world’s outlook on what we believe to be a traditional, normal marriage, I was intrigued by the results of her fieldwork that displayed the different types of marriages occurring around the world. In her research in the Nepalese Himalaya, she lived within the community of polyandrous people participating in their daily life. In Humla, it was common for a polyandrous woman to marry a man and his brothers. McKay shared a video from a polyandrous woman that described the relationship she had with her two husbands. Here are her words: “If the husbands agree with it (polyandry) then it’s good. One can take care of the local work and the other can do outside work.” I hypothesize the reason polyandry

Marriage celebrated in the Persian culture ceremonial wise, as well as its values has been proven to be different to the western ideals of marriage in its traditional sense. For a questionnaire response, participants were asked if the tradition, concept and values of marriage were changing for the Persian women who migrate to Australia. 69 of the 81 (85.18%) respondents believed so and the remaining argued against.

In recent years, marriage has become not only a relationship with one man and one woman, but in America same sex couples and men who have multiples wives are able to wed as well. Indian and Japanese men and women are able to wed through an arrangement of both families. In ancient China, Chinese couples also had arranged marriages, but in modern times the tradition has faded. Although the way people get married is different a woman’s role in the marriage is similar culture to culture throughout ancient India, China, and Japan, divorce is a common practice in American now, but thousands of years ago there were still laws and criticisms among couples in Indian and Chinese Civilizations preventing such action, and life after a death of a

In the eastern side of the world, arranged marriages are very common. It is not like the western world where couples date to know each other then choose whether they are the perfect match. Arranged marriages are often chosen by the elders in the family. This practice has been handed down for centuries. Throughout the marriage process, there are certain procedures that must be followed in eastern matchmaking. Once a match has been chosen, the couple will learn over time that commitment and acceptance comes prior to emotions and happiness. Even though our western ways may seem normal to us, the traditions of eastern marriages are custom through procedure, commitment and acceptance within their society.

Marriage is a ritual that marks a change in status for a man and a woman and the acceptance by society of the new family that is formed (Rosman & Rubel, 1981). Marriage, like other customs, is governed by rules (Rosman & Rubel, 1981). Anthropology has represented marriage as the definitive ritual and universally translatable regulative ideal of human societies (BORNEMAN, 1996). Marriage also the act of joining two persons of opposite sex together to become as husband and wife. Many people in the society have different opinions or outright misconception of the meaning of marriage. While some people see it as a union between a man and woman, others take it to mean an agreement made between a man

Arranged marriages are set up by friends and family, and sometimes by a matchmaker that sets up the marriage. But the bride’s father has the most responsibility in arranging marriage for his daughter, and is the one who approaches the father of a potential bridegroom. Important aspects when considering a possible match are financial status, caste, and the bride and bridegrooms horoscopes matching. The role of astrology is important, and if a Hindu priest finds that the horoscopes of the potential spouses do not match, they will not marry, and must begin the search all over again (Livermore, 2009). India’s view of marriage first and then love is very different from the Western view where love comes before marriage, seems to be successful. The

Marriage is one of the important institution in human society as it is a universal phenomenon that has been developed over time and currently, still continues to grow. In the Oxford dictionary, marriage is defined as, “The legally or formally recognized union of two people as partners in a personal relationship.” In other words, it is a union between two people, particularly regulated by law in which they become partners. Therefore, selecting a husband or a wife is considered one of the most important decisions of a person’s life. As a result, in today’s world, people think of many questions before getting married. Who should I marry? What should I look for when choosing a partner? Would it be more likely to be successful if it the same culture as mines or would cross-cultural marriage be as beneficial? Nevertheless, today, cross-cultural marriage is not as frowned upon as it once was. Romano (2003) claims, “Interracial love were once quite rare and were almost uniformly negative” (p. 2). That is because the world is now an interesting and a diverse place to live in. Thus, there is more and more marriages of people from different cultures. In a marriage with a person from the same culture, there is already some distinct differences. Each individual was taught by different families, went to different schools, and grew up in different surroundings, therefore, their idea of the world is different and in general, their way of life is different. Walsh (2012) mentions, “Although

In many cultures, marriage is not considered a bond agreed upon by two people in love, but instead is a social agreement that redefines the parties relationship. Rarely does this social agreement take the participants’ individual wishes into account. These arrangements can create a strain, mostly on the woman, between loyalty to her blood family and loyalty to her new husband’s family. According to Lila Abu-Lughod, the author of Veiled Sentiments: Honor and Poetry in Bedouin Society, this is the “problem with marriage.” This problem created, in Bedouin societies, is a conflict with agnation and the dominant bond agnation is meant to carry. It may allow for a person to become more connected with their spouse than with their agnate bonds, which is not the ideal.

Just imagine the person you will spend the rest of your life with waiting for you at the altar. Once you wed, life together begins. The phrase, “Welcome to the rest of your life”, is often heard when a couple becomes engaged. Marriage is defined as the union between two individuals that make a permanent and exclusive commitment to each other (Kavya, CN and Pavan Kumar 531). Essentially, when to people get married their hearts and mind unify as well. Historically, marriage was a union with no ceremony. The Bible mentions several couples being married but does not mention any ceremony. The actual union is more important than having an enormous celebration. However, as time went on, many cultures formed traditions that are part of the marriage ceremony. India is one of the most populated countries in the world and one of the oldest. Indian marriage celebrates Dharma. Dharma is essential guidelines in order to live a fulfilling life and afterlife. The Southern Hindu wedding lay emphasis on three essential values: happiness, harmony, and growth (Knott 10). Each step of the marriage process outlines each value.