The Universality of Marriage

In the book Anthropology by Ember and Ember several arguments are presented to explain why marriage is a universal concept between cultures. Each of these arguments also has a flaw which goes with it.

The first reason listed for why marriage is universal is because of the division of labor by sex. The theory behind this is that if "male-work" and "female-work" need to be done, then marriage is necessary to link together the laborers for each kind of work. There are a couple flaws for this, the first of which is explained in the text. Marriage is not the only solution for this problem, a different grouping of men and women could be culturally bound to work together. Instead of a married couple completing this work, a grouping of brothers and sisters could complete both male and female work. The second flaw in this theory, which is not listed in the text, is that it assumes there is different work for men and women. While this is true for some cultures it is not a universal problem, in many developed societies men and women are allowed to do the same work in which case there would be no need for marriage. But, people in developed societies continue to marry despite this fact.

An additional argument for the universality of marriage is the prolonged infant dependency of human children. Because the child is dependent on others, mainly the mother, for an extended period of time after birth, the mother is unable to complete the same work she would have been able to without a child. This can make it difficult or even impossible for the mother to care for herself and the child without assistance. When a father is bound to the mother through marriage he will be able to assist in completion of tasks and make it easier on the mother. This could once again be done in a way other than marriage, with a grouping of males and females working together to care for the children and provide for the members of the group.

Sexual competition is another reason for why marriage is a universal part of cultures throughout the world. It is argued that if it weren't for marriage men would be constantly fighting over women. This seems to be the most flawed of the arguments as there is no solid evidence to support the claim that there would be constant fighting over women without marriage. The alternative solution given in the book is that men and women could circulate between partners over time, which would provide each man with a partner at all times and prevent fighting. Though it seems unlikely that any fighting would occur without marriage there are surely other ways of preventing the fighting without marriage and sexual competition cannot be the reason for marriage.

The final argument presented in the text, and the one which is presented as flawless, is the postpartum requirements for mothers. Because mothers have to care for their children after childbirth they have difficulty participating in other tasks which must be done. As is stated in the book, when humans began hunting for food the mothers could not hunt with their children and had to rely on the help of others. In a promiscuous society the men would not have as strict of an obligation to help the women with the tasks they were unable to complete because of the presence of their children and it would be much more difficult for women to take care of themselves with the added burden of a child. The logic of this reason for marriage is flawed however, in that it implies there are no safe ways for women to care for their family with a child present. It is not dangerous to bring a child when gathering food or maintaining agriculture, which would provide the needs of the woman's family. In many societies today providing for a family can be done by visiting a local supermarket, which is not a dangerous activity. Because it is possible for mothers to care for their selves and their family without the assistance of a father, the postpartum requirements argument is also flawed and does not explain the reasoning for marriage.

Overall there is no argument, without significant flaws, which explains why the concept of marriage exists. It seems that marriage is just a universal cultural bias, where the custom takes place, but not for any currently understood reason.