Marriage, Dawn Depouli

I definitely learned a lot of new cultural perspectives on marriage after reading Chapter 7. First of all, the idea that marriage involves a "need to regulate sexual access" was a shocking way to start the chapter. Obviously, one can agree that marriage is a way to help with the care of children, the economic exchange of products and services, and the extension of social alliances. As Americans, we are encouraged to find our soulmates, find true love, and make those relationships last a lifetime. However, the text states that in most societies, marriage is less about individual romantic love and more about linking two families or kinship groups together. When I got married, the last thing I was thinking of was linking my in-laws to my nuclear family. It's true that monogamy is a more European and American concept or ideal, but I had no idea that most societies permit and prefer plural marriages, usually in the form of polygyny. The statistics involving 415 societies out of 554 in the world actually prefering plural marriage (75% of the world!) was mind-blowing. Also, I was actually unfamiliar with the concept of polyandry, one woman being married to several men. Overall, this was definitely an eye-opening read, and definitely leaves me with a new perspective of worldwide romance.