Summary
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the history of marriage.‘To have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part.’ These marriage vows have been recited at church weddings since 1552, whenever two individuals have willingly pledged to enter into a relationship for life. But before the wedding service was written into the Book of Common Prayer, marriages were much more informal: couples could simply promise themselves to one another at any time or place and the spoken word was as good as the written contract. The ancients permitted polygamy and the taking of concubines so how did monogamy come to be the favoured mode in the West? Were procreation, financial stability, companionship, or love the reasons to get married? And what role has the state and the church played in legislating on personal affairs? With Janet Soskice, Reader in Modern Theology and Philosophical Theology, Cambridge University; Frederik Pedersen, Lecturer in History, Aberdeen University; Christina Hardyment, Social historian and journalist.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Just before this BBC podcast gets underway, here's something you may not know. |
| 0:04.7 | My name's Linda Davies and I Commission Podcasts for BBC Sounds. |
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| 0:36.0 | Thanks for downloading the In Our Time Podcast. |
| 0:39.0 | For more details about In Our Time and for our terms of use, please go to BBC.co. UK forward slash radio for |
| 0:45.6 | I hope you enjoy the program. Hello to haven to hold from this day forward for |
| 0:50.2 | better for worse for richer for poorer in sickness and in health the love and to cherish till death us do part. |
| 0:56.2 | These marriage vows have been recited at church weddings since 1552 whenever two individuals |
| 1:01.6 | have pledged to enter into a relationship for life. |
| 1:04.0 | But before the wedding service was written into the Book of Common Prayer, |
| 1:08.0 | marriages were much more informal. |
| 1:09.0 | Couples could simply promise themselves to one another at any time or place and the spoken word |
| 1:13.6 | was as good as the written contract. |
| 1:16.0 | The ancients permitted polygamy and the taking of concubines, so how did monogamy come |
| 1:19.9 | to be the favoured mode of the West? |
| 1:22.1 | What was the purpose of marriage, property, procreation, |
| 1:24.8 | financial stability, companionship, or love? And what role have the state and the church played |
| 1:29.3 | in legislating on personal affairs? With me to discuss marriage are Janet Soskis, reader in |
| 1:34.2 | philosophical theology at Cambridge University, Frederick Peterson lecturer in |
... |
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