assignment 6

1) Identify one of the examples of ancient marriage described by the author and discuss how it differed from the "one man, one woman idea" of marriage

According to the text, one of the ancient marriage examples that took me by surprise was the tradition in Tibet. Many of the marriages, about one quarter, involved brothers sharing one wife. The text also goes on to say how even today they live in sibling clusters, where brothers and sisters are raising children together, rather than focusing on the two-parent family. This is particularly different from the “one man, one woman” outlook because, in today’s society, it is unacceptable for a man to have more than one wife at a specific time. In the United States, the only way to have another wife is by divorcing one or by being a widow. It is not allowed to have more than one spouse.

2) Among which two groups has postponing marriage become the most likely? Why?

The two specific groups who have been postponing marriage are the poor and middle class people. Referring to the text, poor women have a fear of economic dependency, both within the marriage and in the event of the marriage ending. Poor women prefer postponing marriage until they are financially fit and can be dependent on themselves. The middle class, however, choose to postpone marriage in order to gain more knowledge. They want to further their education before settling down, which has become a growing trend of more women going to college and earning degrees.

**The Sex and the City video clip was taken down on youtube.**