Why is marriage a universal trend independent of knowing other cultures do it (historically speaking)

IamNSFW- · 2017-06-17T18:45:24+00:00

Google says it's because humans are social animals. I prefer Google over using PPD.

Atlas_B_Shruggin · 2017-06-17T19:20:02+00:00

marriage is considered by anthropology to be a human universal. it marks the liminal state transition from childhood to adult member of the tribe and the formation of a new family in the tribe(which is different than earlier individual transition from child to "womanhood" or "manhood" liminal ceremonies)

TheGreasyPole · 2017-06-17T20:40:25+00:00

Because it's a clear and obvious cultural response to the deals that all humans are genetically pre-disposed to needing to make.

For a females strategy she wants a man who has good genes (alpha traits) and can provide well for their children (beta traits).

For a males strategy he wants a women who will be faithful to him, who has good genes so he can have high-value children he invests in (heirs) and also (optionally for max potential) further liaisons he can have with many women producing many children he will invest no resources whatsoever in (Bastards).

They're the two genetic strategies. This is where the instincts formed by our evolutionary past push humans. There are som wrinkles, but we'll leave them aside for now.

Marriage is an obvious cultural response to this setup. Thats why every culture re-discovers the same thing.

Women promise not to get the "alpha/genes" from one guy and the "beta/provision" from another. She promises to stick with the one guy.

The male promises to provide for her and her children (Heirs) because he can ensure her faithfulness with these promises. In some cultures he also swears meaningfully to not also pursue bastards, in others this part is a token promise. The real promise is to not provide for them and so take resources away from the heirs he shares with the women.

They do a deal. In order to make it as binding as possible everyone in the community witnesses the promises. If there are other ways to make it even more binding (laws, sacred oaths, pinkie-swearing, whatever) these are also applied. The intention is to make the deal binding in front of everyone.

Ta Da. That tribe just re-discovered marriage, again. Like every society does, if it doesn't import it from it's predecessor.

It's universal....because the genetic drives underpinning it are universal, and it's a cultural deal in which those genetic interests trade with each other such that each gives up a little, and gains a lot.

So. Genetics drives the culture. And because we've all got the same basic genetic setup supporting the alpha/beta model this works everywhere.

In RP parlance..... It's a deal where the woman promises only to pursue AB (monogamous) strategy, and eschews AF/BB (polyandrous strategy).... which in return the man commits to providership, in order to get the fidelity required to pursue the heirs part of the male polygynous heirs and bastards strategy OR monogamous heirs strategy.

DemonConsulting · 2017-06-17T19:15:25+00:00

It conserves wealth, creates alliances between families/clans and provides a clear framework for inheritance by creating legitimate heirs.

RedPillDetox · 2017-06-17T19:26:13+00:00

Because humans partly evolved for monogamy. In fact, Humans probably evolved for monogamy more than for polygyny and polyandry/promiscuity. Anthropologist Justin Garcia describes humans are "Mostly monogamous, slightly polygynous". A recent survey states that 61% of births in hunter-gatherer societies happen in monogamous unions vs 27% polygyny vs 13% polyandry. Indeed marriage is one of the human universals, consistent accross most cultures:

By 1945, American anthropologist George Murdock had developed an atlas of ethnographic information, and listed items all modern cultures have in common. Murdock`s list of cultural universalities in modern humans: Athletic sports, bodily adornment, burial ceremonies, calendar, cleanliness training, community organization, cooking, cooperative labour, cosmology, courtship, dancing, decorative art, divination, division of labour, dream interpretation, education, eschatology, ethics, ethno-botany, etiquette, faith healing, family feasting, fire-making, folklore, food taboos, games, gestures, gift-giving, government, greetings, hairstyles, hospitality, housing, hygiene, incest taboos, inheritance rules, joking, kin groups, kinship nomenclature, language, law, luck superstitions, magic, marriage, mealtimes, medicine, obstetrics, penal sanctions, personal names, population policy, postnatal care, pregnancy usages, property rights, propitiation (gain the favour of supernatural beings), puberty customs, religious rituals, residence rules, sexual restrictions, soul concepts, status differentiation, surgery, tool-making, trade, visiting, weather watching and weaving.

DarkLord0chinChin · 2017-06-17T21:31:11+00:00

Because human beings require VERY long nurture times. A human newborn takes 15 years before it can reproduce and become independent, which means human females cannot do it alone. That's why there are many subtle things we have eloved for monogamy. Tits. Hidden ovulation. No heat season.

Princeso_Bubblegum · 2017-06-17T23:04:44+00:00

Marriage is something human have done argueably before culture even exists, we know, for example, that the Proto-Indo-Europeans had a concept of marriage over 10 thousand years ago.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErXa5PyHj4I

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Shipcake · 2017-06-17T23:03:27+00:00

Monogamy is an adaptation humans have practiced for thousands of years. It's related to mate-guarding and reduces female sexual selection (reducing overall genetic fitness in the population) in exchange for most men gaining the opportunity to become fathers. Mothers also gain the benefit of a father to help provide and raise her children.

fuxdpus · 2017-06-18T00:07:05+00:00

Because it makes sense. Man has x, woman wants x. Woman has y, man wants y. Men and women tend to have different and complimentary traits. Marriage is also a cornerstone of child rearing. Marriage gives a mother more legal/contractual/customary access to a man's resources to help raise he kids. And, for a father, marriage is an investment in his offspring.

Love8Death · 2017-06-18T02:44:30+00:00

More babies. Better war.

blackedoutfast · 2017-06-17T20:45:36+00:00

And why is it so similar in how it's done

the short answer is that european christians colonized most of the world and forced conquered cultures to eliminate their traditional practices and embrace Christianity (and a European Christian model of marriage)

if you look at the traditional marriage practices it's a different story. lots of polygyny and polyandry, extra-marital sex was ok or even encouraged in some cultures, etc.

Title	Why is marriage a universal trend independent of knowing other cultures do it (historically speaking)
Author	IamNSFW-
Upvotes	2
Comments	30
Date	June 17, 2017 6:33 PM UTC (9 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/PurplePillDebate
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/PurplePillDebate/comments/6hv09l/why_is_marriage_a_universal_trend_independent_of/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/PurplePillDebate/why-is-marriage-a-universal-trend-independent-of.267541 https://theredarchive.com/post/267541

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