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MarriageAnswering Service > Call Center Resource > Home and Family > Marriagemarriage, socially sanctioned union that reproduces the family. In all societies the choice of partners is generally guided by rules of exogamy (the obligation to marry outside a group); some societies also have rules of endogamy (the obligation to marry within a group). These rules may be prescriptive or, as in the case of the incest taboo, proscriptive; they generally apply to kinship groups such as clan or lineage; residential groups; and social groups such as the ethnic group, caste, or class. Marriage is usually heterosexual and entails exclusive rights and duties of sexual performance, but there are instructive exceptions. For example, Nayar women of India would ritually marry men of a superior caste, have numerous lovers, and bear legitimate children. Among the Dahomey of West Africa, one woman could marry another; the first woman would be the legal father of the children (by other men) of the second. These examples highlight the functions of marriage to reproduce both a domestic division of labor and social relationships between different groups. Such functions are served even by the more common type of marriage, the union of one or more men with one or more women. In most societies men and women are valued for their different roles in the household economy. Marriage therefore often occasions other economic exchanges. If a woman's labor is highly valued, a man may be required to offer valuable goods (bride-price) or his own labor (bride-service) to his wife's family. If a man's labor is more highly valued, the bride's family may offer goods (dowry) to the husband or his family. Marriage as a Societal Bond In many societies marriage links not just nuclear families but larger social formations as well. Some endogamous societies are divided into different exogamous groups (such as clans or lineages): Men form alliances through the exchange of women, and the social organization regulates these alliances through marriage rules. In some cases, two men from different groups exchange sisters for brides. Other instances involve an adult man marrying the young or infant daughter of another man; sexual relations would be deferred for many years, but the two men will have formed a strong bond. Marriages are often arranged by the families through the services of a matchmaker or go-between, and commence with a ritual celebration, or wedding. Some cultures practice trial marriage; the couple lives together before deciding whether they should marry. Society generally prescribes where newlywed couples should live: In patrilocal cultures, they live with or near the husband's family; in matrilocal ones, with or near the wife's family. Under neolocal residence, the couple establishes their own household. (http://www.reference.com/browse/columbia/marriage) 8 cheap honeymoon ideas for couples on a budget Beyond the Traditional in Mens Wedding Rings Budgeting for Your Special Wedding Day 6 Handy Tips on Buying The Right Diamond To Cheat or Not to Cheat Is Your Marriage A Bonding Or A Battle 10 Things Sex Over 60 Can Teach You About Sex Under 40 Romantic Trust or Trust is Sexy Five Ideas for a More Romantic Honeymoon Why Arent YOU Using This Marriage Saving Tip Todays Children How To Look After Your Pregnant Cat Creating a Unique and Distinctive Civil Wedding Ceremony Are Prenuptial Agreements Affected by Changed Circumstances |