Dating Rituals: Issues with American Society Essay

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The dating ritual has been changing from time to time and it’s becoming more complex from one generation to another from the year 1900 to the current year. The dating rituals and styles have been changing in relation to the technological changes and the civilization changes within the world and this has been varying from one community to another depending on their various fundamentals where their cultures are based.

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In consideration of the history of dating in the 1920s to 1945, dating was somehow informal like no other time there before. There was no restriction on dates between the opposite sex, and they were characterized by fewer commitments to the dating persons and were somewhat full of freedom. Initially, the church and the community had the responsibility of setting rules that were to govern dating and it was a must that these rules were to be adhered to or else one was to be subject to punishment. For example, it was expected of the man to go to the woman’s house which has now changed into them going out to someplace where they will spend money. During this time of the 1920s, the woman was in control of the date but this has changed in such a way that if they are to go out, the man is expected to be in control of the date including the spending.

In the past, most activities that colored a date included dancing and watching movies and this was after the year 1920 but before 1920 dancing was an only a group activity. Dancing was fabricated by a couple of activities from the 1920s onwards. The presence of cars during those times truly made dating meaningful as the couples had a chance of at least becoming intimate and it also provided some kind of privacy which gave both partners a better chance of expressing themselves in real other than pretense. The petting issue also spread during this time where couples petted and also the inclusion of parties petting in showing some kind of commitment and assurances. This stage of dating evolution opened up channels in one partner understanding the other partner before they settle for more serious issues that are certain to end possibly in marriage. This form of dating was purposely to find the right mate who can make anything more than just a friend.

During the 1930s relationships grounded on dating had grown, where the bonding between the couples was accompanied by some rituals which involved the sharing of items like a class ring and also the leather jackets, where romantic love was the foundation that was to lead to marriage.

During the 1940s still, some of the rituals and dating styles of the 1920s and 1930s were being applied although the major difference is that during the 1940s, the average age for the couples who were dating had gone down in that for a man marrying was 22 years and for the female to marry was 20 years. Dating has now become a common feature among the youth and mostly those who were in high school by then. There was a pattern of youths marrying immediately after graduating from high school if they were not joining college and for the ladies, they were expected to get a man or join college after graduating from high school. The parents of these youths were against this habit of early dating amongst their youths because they saw it as a loophole to increase premarital sex, although great honor was given to girls who engaged in all activities of dating other than sexual intercourse on them remaining still virgins for the pleasure of their future husbands. It was understood that if a woman engaged in premarital sex then she was ready to get married, and love was all the foundation for any marriage that was to take place and perceived as the source of fulfillment and happiness in a family to be (Gray 102).

From the 1960s to the current times, dating rituals and styles have drastically changed and more especially on the side of the female participants in the sense that they do not perceive themselves as just women alone but as human beings equivalent to their male counterparts. The number of women in colleges greatly increased in the late years between 1960 and 1972, implying that there was a change in perception as most of them used to drop school at the high school level and get married. The youth’s dating pattern has also changed over time in them having a kind of a more liberal attitude towards pre-marital sex.

Conclusion. The dating rituals and styles have been undergoing a revolution for a long time and there have been drastic changes over time which marked the change in perceptions and independent states of judgments. Initially, the dating rituals were determined by the church and the community too, but this later changed including the roles that were expected to be played by a specified couple on a date. The changes also affected even the age group structure that was involved in dating and above all the issue of premarital sex has been an issue in all the generational changes of dating.

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Work Cited

Gray J., Mars and Venus On a Date; A Guide for Navigating the Five Stages of dating, Harpercollins Publishing Company, 1999.

Kristie R., Dating Mating and Relating; Dating and Courtship in Modern Society, Web. 2003.

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IvyPanda. (2021) 'Dating Rituals: Issues with American Society'. 25 October.

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IvyPanda. 2021. "Dating Rituals: Issues with American Society." October 25, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dating-rituals-issues-with-american-society/.

1. IvyPanda. "Dating Rituals: Issues with American Society." October 25, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dating-rituals-issues-with-american-society/.


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IvyPanda. "Dating Rituals: Issues with American Society." October 25, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dating-rituals-issues-with-american-society/.

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