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Writer's pictureGisselle Pimentel
Oct 3, 20213 min read

Sexual Discrimination in Marriage



Marriage has not always been a process of uniting two individuals for the sake of love. The institution of marriage has been around since 1250-1300 BC, and it was first seen in Middle English. During the time of its origin and for a long duration of years, marriage was a form of gaining economic alliance. Through this process of economic alliance, several factors would be obtained by the individuals involved, which are usually the families of those being married and the groom. Money, land, property, and women were gained through marriage. Property and women may as well have been considered to be the same. Women were essentially to be owned, given within a marriage, and to be utilized by the man for numerous reasons, including sexual gratification, cleaning and cooking the household, carrying the groom’s family name through bearing his children, and an abundance of others. Women were given no power in marriages, and the powerless position they held has affected married women of our current day.


The patriarchy, established in time before Christ, is the principal contributor to the weak perspective of women throughout the history of the world. This historical establishment is believed to have risen partly from the practice of intertribal exchanging of women for marriage. The institution of which places the man as the lead of a family, and women as the secondary and weaker position, was inspired from the exchanging of women for economic security. An essential part of a woman’s life was to be married and eventually bear children. As highly as this process was encouraged, once the woman entered a marriage, any independence and sense of self was stripped upon entering, whether it was willingly or forcefully.


As women for years have been seen as property to own, they have hardly been able to possess things of their own, such as land, property, and even last names. Since the beginning of the concept of names, women have carried the last name of their fathers, who were to then adopt the last name of their husband. Women have never had their own last name that did not previously belong to a man. This ties into the concept of what is called coverture, which arose around the 19th century. The law was that upon marriage, women were to have no legal identity independent from their husband. The concept of coverture practically translated to “coverage,” a coverage that began at the birth of a female in which she adopted the last name of her father and ultimately the name of her husband. Although the law of coverture ended in 1839, the encouraged culture behind giving up the last name of your father and acquiring your husband has still prospered to this day.


Despite the information obtained for, which lead to the success of modern day gynecology having been raised from the medical experimentation of enslaved black women, women to this day have yet to have a rightful say in deciding what they wish to do with their bodies. Concerning married women regarding tubal ligation, or tube tying, women tend to have a more difficult time receiving the procedure. Many states previously required that a woman be mandated to receive their husband's approval and consent for the procedure, but began to drop the requirement during the 70s. Despite the passing of time, some hospitals still carry similar policies. It has been a common experience among women that doctors persuade them to ask for the approval of their husband before considering the procedure, or that they reconsider their decision to get their tubes tied. These hospitals, at times, refuse the request for a tubal ligation. On the other hand, getting a vasectomy is far easier to do for men. Given that the procedure is lower risk and reversible compared to a tubal ligation, men still have the privilege of choice.




 

References


Feder, Shira. “A Woman Was Told She Needed Her Husband’s Permission to Get Her Tubes Tied. Her Story Went Viral, but It’s Not Uncommon.” Insider, 25 Feb. 2020, www.insider.com/a-woman-needed-husbands-consent-to-get-her-tubes-tied-2020-2.


Holland, Brynn. “The ‘Father of Modern Gynecology’ Performed Shocking Experiments on Enslaved Women.” HISTORY, 29 Aug. 2017, www.history.com/news/the-father-of-modern-gynecology-performed-shocking-experiments-on-slaves.


“The History Behind Maiden vs. Married Names.” Seattle Bride, seattlebridemag.com/expert-wedding-advice/history-behind-maiden-vs-married-names. Accessed 11 June 2021.



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