Bride price and dowry are part of traditional culture, but they may also bring negative effects. Excessive bride price and dowry not only increase the burden of newcomers, but also easily lead to interest disputes, moral disputes and corruption.
In order to balance the issue of bride price and dowry, the following points can be considered:
Legal protection: the government should strengthen the legal supervision and regulation of bride price and dowry, strengthen the crackdown on illegal acts, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of newcomers.
Change the concept: the whole society should promote the change of the concept of marriage, attach importance to the equality and respect of marriage, avoid paying too much attention to material conditions, and reduce the show-off and comparison of bride price and dowry.
Cultural inheritance: While retaining traditional culture, we should reasonably and moderately improve marriage etiquette, so that bride price and dowry can become a cultural inheritance, rather than a means to seek benefits.
Social support: the society should provide more marriage support and resources, such as wedding planning, venue leasing, wedding dress leasing and other services to reduce the pressure and burden of new couples.
In a word, bride price and dowry are part of China traditional culture, but they cannot be used as tools for personal gain and comparison. Balancing bride price and dowry requires the joint efforts of the government, society, families and individuals to create a good marriage atmosphere and cultural environment.
Both bride price and dowry are important parts of traditional marriage customs in China, but they have different meanings and expressions. The bride price is a certain amount of money or goods paid by the man to the woman's family to show his sincerity and bear the cost of the wedding. Dowry is the property or articles provided by the woman's family for her daughter's married life, which reflects the family's care and support for her daughter.
In modern society, with the improvement of women's status and the change of social concept, bride price and dowry gradually lost their original meaning and became a manifestation of material exchange and mutual pleasure. So, how to understand and balance the bride price and dowry?
First of all, we should realize that marriage is the marriage of two families, not just the relationship between men and women. Therefore, the bride price and dowry should be mutual, not unilateral. While the man pays the bride price, the woman should also provide necessary support for her daughter's marriage life, which is also a manifestation that women should be respected and cared for.
Secondly, appropriate bride price and dowry should be paid and accepted according to the actual situation and economic situation of the family. Bride price and dowry should not be a burden that crushes the family's financial resources, but should be carried out within the range that the family can bear, so as not to affect the family's life and development.
Finally, we should advocate the concept of marriage based on love and affection, and abandon the traditional concept of marriage custom that relies too much on bride price and dowry. Only on the basis of mutual respect, equality and understanding can bride price and dowry truly exert their significance and value and become the expression of true feelings and commitments between new couples.
To further illustrate how to balance bride price and dowry, the following are some practical examples:
In some areas, traditionally, the groom's family has to pay a lot of bride price. However, some modern families have begun to consider adopting a reciprocal approach, that is, each family contributes part of the money as wedding funds to ensure that the bride price is not excessive and there is no shortage of necessary expenses during the wedding.
In some areas, brides traditionally have to pay dowry, which may be unbearable for some poor families. Therefore, some local governments and charitable organizations began to provide funds and resources to support these families.
In some areas, the bride's family may pay the dowry and the groom's family the bride price, but some families adopt a more modern way, that is, let the bride and groom pay the wedding expenses together, which can reduce some excessive expenses and be more equal at the same time.
In some countries, the government has taken legal measures to prohibit bride price and dowry to ensure equality and justice in marriage.
Generally speaking, to balance the relationship between bride price and dowry needs to take into account the local tradition, culture and economic situation, and solve the problem in a modern, equal and just way. This requires the joint efforts of families, communities and governments.