Outline of Marriage in the Victorian Era
In the Victorian era, marriage was not as romanticized or fairytale-like as depicted in many novels of the time. On the contrary, love actually played a very minor role in the majority of matrimonies that took place. An engagement was entered into as one would approach a business deal, and there were some generally accepted rules and guidelines to follow.
The Rules
* It was illegal to marry your deceased wife’s sister. You could marry first cousins, but attitudes changed towards the end of the 19th century, and this became frowned upon.
* Victorians were encouraged to marry within the same class (remember the views on social mobility!). They could marry up, but to marry down meant marrying beneath yourself (Soames).
* A woman entering into the institute of marriage had to be equipped with a dowry. The husband-to-be had to prove that he could support his new bride in the lifestyle she was accustomed to.
* An unmarried woman could inherit money and property after she reached the age of 21, but once married, all control would revert to her husband. A woman could not have a will for her own personal possessions; since the control was in her husband’s power, he could distribute her property in any way he likes, even to his illegitimate children (if he has any).
* Women married because they had a lack of options; they were not formerly educated, and were only instructed in domestic duties. They needed someone to support them, and were encouraged to marry and have children ("The Rules of Marriage").
The Courtship
* Marriage was a carefully contemplated subject for a woman; since she would lose control over any possessions once married, it was not somethin...
... middle of paper ...
...and helped to strengthen the family line, divorce was neither economically or socially practical. It would guarantee the family losing some of its strength and influence by giving up property and wealth.
Works Cited
“Marriage and Divorce in Victorian England.” Charlotte's Web: A Hypertext on Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. .
"The Rules of Marriage in the Victorian Era.” .
Soames, Enoch. “Marriage in the Victorian Era.” The Charlock’s Shade. 18 February 2004.
Wells, Richard A. “Manners Culture and Dress of the Best American Society.” King, Richardson, & Co. Publishers. Springfield, MA. 1893. .
Wealth and family status was a determining factor upon marriage. Women were expected to have a dowry from their family that would allow them to be auctioned off to suitors. The marriage market was much like the stock exchange in that it allowed
once married, women lost all property rights to her husband (did not matter how rich or how poor they were
Women during the medieval period had certain role with their husbands, depending on his social status. The wives were placed into a class according to their husband’s line of work or social status (Time Traveler’s 54). This social status may be favorable, but not all wives were able to make it into the elite social status. Once the woman was committed, and married to her husband, she was totally controlled by her husband. Even though the wife was able to maintain the same social status of the husband, she lost a lot of rights after she married. Women during the medieval period not only lost a lot of their rights, but also became somewhat of a slave to the husband in many ways.
women to be married, married, and widowed. In the state of marriage, women were forced to be the
“What’s yours is mine and what’s mine is mine” (Women’s Rights). This quote may sound ridiculous. However, this quote gave a clear reflection of women’s lives before the 1900’s; women were not considered “people”. Once a woman got married, she lost all their rights! This continued until Ontario passed The Married Women’s Property Act in 1884. The movements for the right of married women grew in momentum as other provinces began passing the Act too. Before the Act was passed when women married, all of her possessions turned over to the husband. The husband could spend all of his wife’s money and leave her, although immoral, he would not be found guilty. Wealthy families tried to put a stop to the chance of their daughter’s wealth being taken advantage of by creating prenuptial contracts. These contracts were signed before the couple got married; it outlined...
the life of the women, therefore marriage was often viewed as imprisonment and a burden. The
In the 14th century women were not allowed to own property. There was no possible way for women to receive property under their name. It would have either gone to her husband or father. Women were not even allowed to inherit property. If a woman’s husband died, the property would go to their son, not her. Even if she has enough money to buy
Women were confronted by many social obligation in the late nineteenth century. Women were living lives that reflected their social rank. They were expected to be economically dependent and legally inferior. No matter what class women were in, men were seen as the ones who go to work and make the money. That way, the women would have to be dependent since they were not able to go to work and make a good salary. No matter what class a woman was in, she could own property in her own name. When a woman became married she " lost control of any property she owned, inherited, or earned" ( Kagan et al. 569). A woman's legal identity was given to her husband.
" SECTION 1. The property, both real and personal, which any married woman now owns, as her sole and separate property; that which comes to her by descent, devise, bequest, gift or grant; that which she acquires by her trade, business, labor or services, carried on or performed on her sole or separate account; that which a woman married in this State owns at the time of her marriage, and the rents, issues and proceeds of all such property, shall, notwithstanding her marriage, be and remain her sole and separate property, and may be used, collected and invested by her in her own name, and shall not be subject to the interference or control of her husband, or liable for his debts, except such debts as may have been contracted for the support of herself or her children, by her as his agent. The Married Women 's Property Act 1882 (45 & 46 Vict. c.75) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that significantly altered English law regarding the property rights of married women, which besides other matters allow...
Before the eighteenth century, marriage was far less complicated. Verbal consent and consumation constituted legal marriage: "once the knot was tied by such verbal exchanges it could not be undone: a valid marriage was technically indissoluble. Such vows could be made, moreover, by boys the age of fourteen and girls of twelve" (Outhwaite xiii).
Even though married women could not own property or anything of the sort, single women were able to own land, make a contract, initiate lawsuits, and pay taxes. Even with the privelages bestowed upon the...
Marriage is another aspect of families in the 1700's that is very different from today. Most girls in the 1700's married extremely early around th...
The role of a woman remains the same throughout human history. Many women prepare for the role of wife and mother from an early age. If one is not married at a certain age then they are labeled as a spinster, a prude. Hedda Gabler and Emma Bovary fearful of being dubbed as a spinster, marry men whom they both despised. During the mid 1800’s, Emma Bovary’s period: women considered inferior to their male counterparts, they could not divorce their husbands, and their husbands essentially own them. Alas during Hedda Gabler’s setting, nothing changes. Because of their society, they are alienated individuals thwarted due to their social status, gender, and misguided intentions.
Women in the fourteenth century had almost no legal rights and were claimed as their husband’s property for dowry. Presently and thankfully, such tremendous circumstances are uncommon. What men do not understand is that women already have control over everything. They just hide it in subliminal messages so that the man will think of any idea his own and find himself brilliant in his pronouncement of resolution. All the while, the woman has been furtively planting the idea in his head.
Within these marriages, readers get a sense of how education plays an important role in a successful marriage, as this fulfills both of their dreams of personal identity. Although women in the nineteenth century were viewed to be superior wives and mothers, manage the household, and perform domestic tasks, it was important for women to become educated as “an education was supposed to enable these girls to become successful women in society” (Leigh 117). Women were not meant to be “trained” in some way to become good wives, but needed to be formally educated in order to be a successful wife and