Weddings: A Look at the History and Our Current Obsession

In today's generation, the culture upheld throughout weddings has drastically changed, from what it was many years ago. From the cake, the dress, the venue and more a wedding can run more than twenty-six thousand dollars for an average person, and so many are not ashamed of spending more. People today treat marriage and weddings as if they are playthings, something you can play with for a little while and then throw away, but it was not like that once upon a time ago. Wedding have changed so much that there is now a negative effect on the general population of wannabe brides, who are marrying just for the fun of it.

In the beginning of time women were pawns in a man’s everyday life and were not deemed important unless it was dealing with the wills of a power hungry, sex derived man. Weddings were not even weddings; they were just women being traded or sold to men for chores or personal gain; emotion was not a winning factor. When weddings became weddings around the 1800's, they were not the big extravagant weddings that are now seen today, but small and elegant. Usually found in the home of the bride or groom.” By the 1820s and 1830s, upper class weddings had begun to evolve a bit more into the recognizably modern wedding (complete with a lavish cake, dinner reception, and toast to the bride and groom), but the ceremonies remained small and private”(Here Comes the Bride: A history of the American Wedding). The tradition of the white dress was not exclusively popular until Queen Victoria married Albert of Saxe-Coburg. She wore white to incorporate her favorite lace she prized.” In reaction, young women in England and America, enamored of the newly married queen's style, immediately began clamoring for white wedding dresses of thei...

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...be happy. Being single and living alone can bring just as much joy as being married can.

The concept of a wedding has changed a lot over the years and has had a negative effect on the general population. However, by arguing how different weddings have become over the years the concept has been made clear that there has been a negative effect. While some traditions stay true to their form, our obsession with weddings have gone far and beyond, and there is still more to come.

Works Cited

Black, Pam. "Wedding, Then and Now ." Pam Black Weddings. 2012: n. page. Web. 14 Feb. 2014.< http://pamblackweddings.com/weddings-then-and-now/>.

Fileta, Debra. "Behind Our Culture." Relevant. RelevantMagazine.com, 20 Jan 2014: n. page. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.

"Here Comes the Bride: A History of the American Wedding." Random History. Random History.com, 08 may 2007. Web. 13 Feb 2014.