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1930s-90s, Marriage And Family Changes Of The Rural North China

Posted on:2003-05-12Degree:DoctorType:Dissertation
Country:ChinaCandidate:Y S WangFull Text:PDF
GTID:1117360065962098Subject:Demography
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
This dissertation is a study on marriage and family change in a region of the rural north China. It mainly analyzes peasant's marriage and family in response to the important social transformation during 1930s-90s.The primary data and information used in the dissertation are the sample surveys that 1 conducted in 6 villages of south HeBei in 1999 and collected archive materials of 5 villages about population change in different eras from the Ci County Archive Bureau in 1999 and 2000. On the date and information, I systematically probe into marital and familial changes under different ownership system, study change features of marriage and family, seek the relationships between the marriage family change and social transformation.I have explored marriage and family changes from a social and historical background. The focus of the dissertation is on marital and familial responses to macro political and economic change over the last 60 years. It divided 1930-1990s into four phases: The first phase, marriage and family under the private ownership during 1930-1940 of pre-the land reform.; the second phase, marriage and family in the interim, from the land reform to the founding of the higher level productive form (1946-1956); the third phase, marriage and family during the era of the collective economy forward, up to the implementation of household contract system( 1956-1980); the fourth phase, marriage and family under the household contract system(1980-now).l.The marriage changes are as follows:In the traditional society of pre- the land reform, marital affairs of sons or daughters were entirely decided by their parents. Except for enacting legal marriage age that actually hadn't restriction to the masses, government didn't intervene founding process of marriage. Women universally married below 1 Syears of age. At the same time, the early marriage and late marriage existed simultaneously among men. Family economic states of Bride and groom were emphasized. Generally the most of couples came from the families with same economic condition and social position. To protect clan interests, the marriages that man and woman belonged to the same village were limited. After the land reform, the traditional rules that parents decided son or daughter marriage were abolished. Government founded strict marriage register system that was an critical change and had important significance in the Chinese history. So that early marriage was restrained after the land reform, the mean age of male and female first marriage began to rise..Collective organization of villages helped government carry out marital age rule and late marriage policy. The marriage between male and female coming from same class andhad same property was replaced by new class designation. Some males coming from the landlord and rich farmer families(higher classes before the land reform) couldn't find spouse in time. The traditional clan organization was disintegrated. Males and female had certain self-determination right to their marriages(free love) ..but it was essential that girl's and son's marriage were acceded by their parents. Marriage that male and female came from same village began to increase in this settings.After the 1980s, collective economy organization was disbanded. When man and woman plan to marry, the legal marriage age is only a regulation that they should observe. The late marriage policy that had been before carried out forcibly was canceled in this phase, proportion of early marriage has increased. To establish relation network, some parents would rather choose spouse for sons or daughters in the same village. In the background of social development, the circle of marriage shows sign of gradually shrinking.2. Family changeHousehold division change. No matter in the private ownership society or collective ownership society of the north China, household division is unavoidable. In the private ownership society, the head of household suppressed members dividing demand .But the suppression mainly existed in the family th...
Keywords/Search Tags:1930s-90s, rural north China, marriage and family, social transformation
PDF Full Text Request
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