Views Of Marriages By Continent

Marriage practices are wide and varied across the world, usually governed by culture and of religion. However, although there are a number of practices and beliefs governing the act of marriage, from law to religion, these marriages are usually viewed by two different countries, the Western views and Eastern views of marriage.

Western View of Marriage The main difference of western views from the eastern is their recognition of monogamy and polygamy. In the US and European countries, they legally and religiously presume that marriages are monogamous (although some pockets of society accept polygamy socially, if not legally, and some couples choose to enter into open marriages). This view of marriage is mainly because of their religion, which is Christianity.

In the Christian tradition, a "one man one woman" model for the Christian marriage was advocated by Saint Augustine (354-439 AD) with his published letter The Good of Marriage. To discourage polygamy, he wrote it "was lawful among the ancient fathers: whether it be lawful now also, I would not hastily pronounce. For there is not now necessity of begetting children, as there then was, when, even when wives bear children, it was allowed, in order to a more numerous posterity, to marry other wives in addition, which now is certainly not lawful."

Another difference is with the ending of the marriage. In these countries, divorce is relatively simple and socially accepted. In the West, the prevailing view toward marriage today is that it is based on a legal covenant recognizing emotional attachment between the partners and entered into voluntarily.

Eastern View of Marriage Some societies permit polygyny, in which a man could have multiple wives; even in such societies however, most men have only one. In such societies, having multiple wives is generally considered a sign of wealth and power. The status of multiple wives has varied from one society to another. In Imperial China, formal marriage was sanctioned only between a man and a woman, although among the upper classes, the primary wife was an arranged marriage with an elaborate formal ceremony while concubines could be taken on later with minimal ceremony. After the rise of Communism, only strictly monogamous marital relationships are permitted, although divorce is a relatively simple process. For more information visit to our site at http://philippineweddingplanner.com

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