Information AboutWife |
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A wife is a Female participant in a Marriage . ORIGIN AND ETYMOLOGY The term originated from the . American Heritage Dictionary on "wife" RELATED TERMINOLOGY Although "wife" seems to be a close term to Bride , the latter is the female participant in the Wedding ceremony (to her Groom ), while a wife is the status of a married woman after the wedding, during her marriage. Upon marriage, she or her family may have brought her Husband a Dowry , or the husband or his family may have needed to pay a Bride Price to the family of his bride, or both were exchanged between the families; the dowry not only supported the establishment of a household, but also served as a condition that if the husband committed grave offences upon his wife, the dowry had to be returned to the wife or her family; for the time of the marriage, they were made Inalienable by the husband.Britannica 2005, ''dowry'' A former wife whose spouse is deceased is a Widow , and may be left with a Dower (often a third or a half of his Estate ) to support her as Dowager . Merriam-Webster, ''dower'' Wife refers especially to the institutionalized form in relation to the spouse and offspring, unlike , ''midwife'' A wife may, in some cultures and times, share the title of her husband, without having gained that title by her own right. Sharing the husband's title DIFFERENCES IN CULTURES The various divisions of the following chapters share the previous terminology in English Language , notwithstanding religious and cultural, but also customary differences. CHRISTIANITY Western culture, that is Western Europe and also many of their former colonies, were guided by the Bible in regard to their view on the position of a wife in society as well as her marriage. This image changed considerably in the age of Modernity . Historical status In the . Though the wife was generally expected to support the Political Faction favoured by the husband, satirists like Joseph Addison suggested ironically that the marriage contract might allow the wives to join the political faction independently in order to suit the expectations of their environment, or their Peer Group . Joseph Addison , '' The Spectator '', No.81 Until late in the 20th century, women could in some cultures or times sue a man for Wreath Money when he took her Virginity without taking her as his wife.Brockhaus 2004, ''Kranzgeld ''. If a woman did not want to marry, another option was entering a and the Pope .] Both a wife and a nun wore veils, which proclaimed their state of protection by the rights of marriage.Silvia Evangelisti, Wives, Widows, And Brides Of Christ: Marriage And The Convent In The Historiography Of Early Modern Italy, Cambridge 2000 Contemporary status In the , but only the husband was allowed to exercise this right. The second change was the dissolution of family life, when in the 1960s wives began to work outside their home, and with the social acceptance of Divorce s the single-parent family, and Stepfamily or " Blended Family " as a more “individualized marriage”. Stepfamily as individualized marriage Today, a woman may wear a Wedding Ring in order to show her status as a wife.Howard, Vicki. "A 'Real Man's Ring': Gender and the Invention of Tradition." Journal of Social History. Summer 2003 pp837-856 In Western countries today |
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