Weddings and marriages today look very different from those held during the Elizabethan times. Some rituals seen in the Elizabethan weddings are no longer done in modern day weddings; modern day marriages no longer have arranged marriages, brides do not marry at a young age, and brides do not have a dowry.
One major aspect of Elizabethan weddings that is no longer seen in modern day weddings is arranged marriages. Some of the arranged marriages that went on during this time were organized at the birth of the child. In most cases, the women’s father would select the man he thought was most eligible for his daughter, but in other cases he would select the spouse he would most benefit from. It was very common very for the bride to first lay her eyes on her husband on the day of the wedding (wedding customs).
In today’s society, it is very uncommon for one to hear about at a girl marrying at 12 or 13 years, but during the
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Women were known as second class citizens. Women who were single for some reason were known as “witches” by their peers. Single women relied on their male relatives to support them (Alchin).
The main difference between Elizabethan weddings and modern day weddings is with modern day weddings one has the choice of selecting their own spouse. In modern day weddings, parents do not have a say in who their child marries. This a great change seeing that Elizabethan weddings where totally opposite of today’s weddings. Elizabethan weddings mostly did not allow women to have a say in who they were to marry.
Another difference between modern day and Elizabethan weddings is the proposal. In modern marriages, the man usually proposes to the woman with a diamond ring. This leaves the woman with the option to accept or to deny the man’s proposal. If the woman accepts she would then put on her new wedding ring and the preparation of the wedding