The Socio-Economic Forces Of Marriage In 18th Century France

Discuss about the 18th century society in France.

Marriage as a sign of wealth in 18th century France

The industrial revolution was seemed to creep in the eighteenth century in France. The individuals earlier then this lived in the country side and they made their living through farming. Later there was a shift of the people from the countryside to the towns and the individuals got involved in works like mining and manufacturing industries. It was observed that owing lands was considered to be a sign of wealth. The century witnessed the influence of the politics that were held in the hands of the rich landowners and there was a line difference between the rich and the poor. All the attractions remained in the town and the people made their journey to town to become socially famous or to make huge income. Marriage was considered to be the most serious part of life. Every individual was considered to be noble if they got indulged in a marriage relationship. In order to explain the life of an individual in the eighteenth-century France, the aspect of marriage has been highlighted in the essay. To explain it in a more vast sense the essay of Christopher has been taken into account. The marriage relationship of Marie and Rolland has been taken into account in order to understand the scenario that prevailed in France and the way every individual was judged. It is considered to be fake to some extent and every aspect of the marriage is left without any charm. In order to understand the scenario more appropriately the crimes of Louis Davory has been considered in the essay.

Marriage is an institution in itself that has been used as a tool to establish a good social status in the society. The colonial society and the characteristics of the same have been portrayed in the essay of Christopher. The concept of marriage was considered to be the point of focus in the essay. Marriage has been considered to be the union of two different individuals and the other aspects related to marriage are supposed to occur only behind the doors. The other shade of the marriage consists of the idea that the vows are taken in front of the society in a particular social framework. Marriage is always judged from the vision of the society. The social consequences are attached with the marriage. It has a flat concept. The colonial 18^th century society in France consists that marriage rewarded the individuals with certain designation. It awarded the designation of husband to the man and the designation of wife to a woman. There were certain set of rules that were imposed on the husbands as well as the wife. The rules sometimes turned out to be compulsion. The husband was expected to indulge himself in earning and feed his family. He was considered to be the bread winner of the family and be responsible for the financial stability of the family. The wives on the other hand were expected to be submissive to her husband. They were expected to maintain the household duties and be answerable to their husband. The wives were supposed to manage the household works and they were solely responsible for the internal affairs of the house.

Role of marriage in establishing social status

It was judged from the angle of the the societal thoughts. The idea of the marriage was served as the background of analyzing the marital relationship between Jacques and Marie. The marriage was absolutely an alliance. The marriage was a fake one, which was done to maintain the social status. The protagonist was aware of the fact that his activity was making him famous in the town of Louisebourge. He had this idea that if he married someone from a local family he would be able to flourish himself as a businessperson. This is the reason of marrying Marie. This scenario already prevailed in France. The other characters in the essay like Novice merchant Blaise Lagoanere married the eldest daughter of a wealthy employer Michael Daccarette who had good number of clients. The good reputation was a matter of concern in france. Rolland tried to make a good social circle in France and tried to be renowned in the social spheres in France. They tried to acquire a good appearance in the social strata of France and they were successful to some extent. Later in the essay, it was however found that this made them unsuccessful to some level. It did not last for a longer time. The pretension could not last till the end. The point that needs to be considered in this context is the fact that with the fall of the social status the image of the person was ruined. This was the prevailing idea in France.

The socio-economic forces forged into the union of the Rolland the Cruchon at Louisebourg. The intention behind it was the formation of New France. The concept was single life was something that was completely denied in France. The people of France avoided this idea. They believed that marriage could give a partner for the lifetime. It was a matter that was to be considered on a serious note. This was not a matter that could be taken casually. It was considered that marriage could let the people to fight against all the odds and it could give the strength to live a good and a healthy life. In other words this can be commented that marriage was an idea that was a necessary part of life and having children was another part that was treated as a necessary thing. Marriage and children therefore was held to be an important concept. This is the reason to fulfill the requirements of the society and to be held as a social human being Rolland married a logical girl who proved to be beneficial for him.
Social standing in New France demonstrated the perception of marriage and how it was considered in the then society. In several parts of the society, the perspective of marriage was just considered to be a private domestic act. The institution of marriage is being considered from a large point of view. However, the essay mainly focuses on the social aspect by taking into consideration the marriage of Jacques Rolland and Marie Louise Cruchon, which gives a clear view of the then society of New France. Jacques Rolland was a businessman who tried to establish his new venture at a new place.

Expectations of husbands and wives

On the contrary, Therese Boudier Cruchon, mother of Marie Louise Cruchon’s mother was actually trying to maintain a social standing for the family. After the death of her husband, Therese Boudier Cruchon and her kids had to struggle for life. They had to live on the meager income and however, she managed to present a deceptive outlook of their family. This struggle of holding a fake image did not last long. In a social gathering, the family got introduced to Jacques Rolland, where Therese tried to build a relationship with him.

The whole situation took a new turn, when Jacques Rolland ended up marrying her eldest daughter that is Marie Louise Cruchon. However, it is being mentioned that Rolland was neither a civil officer nor a military officer. He married a local girl in order to set up his new venture over there. This marriage was kind of an alliance. Therefore, the socio and economic forces which came into play was typical for the place. Allan Greer mentioned about the social history of New France, in his book, titled ‘The People of New France’. The book presented a similar image just like the marriage which took place in the then society of France.

Greer in his book, suggested that the arrange marriages were the concepts, which the society never even heard of. He stated that it will be more beneficial for the society if the individuals find out their counterparts and set up a household. In his book, he also mentioned about the challenges one has to face, while leading a single life. The individuals of New France always avoided singlehood and completely believed that being single is a challenging job. They had a notion that nobody can stay single or alone forever, as individualism haunts people. They took weddings and marriages very seriously.

Conclusion

To conclude, the marriage institutions have a major impact on the societal consequences. The conception of marriage is regarded as a private matter in the North America, which should reside behind the four walls. Moreover, majority of the men thought that by marrying, they are becoming the bread owner of the house. From the story of Marie Louis Cruchon and Jacques Rolland, it can be said that marriages of the then society was more related to business. Jacques Rolland had huge sense of business and thus he ended up marrying Marie. The essential characteristics of eighteenth century New France is deeply rooted inside the socio and economic factors.

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