American Culture and the White Wedding Essay

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How is the white wedding (think of the dress and so much more) constructed in American Culture? What does it mean- what does this wedding symbolize? How does the construction of the wedding differ for men and women? For same sex couples?

The white wedding, and the significance of an elaborate wedding that symbolizes purity, is a relatively recent cultural development, but one which has spawned an entire industry. Even women who have liberated lives covet the image of innocence, of being a princess for a day, as suggested in the essay “The Trouble with Charlotte.” As many problematic products such as makeup and clothing have coopted the language of choice to be marketed to women who might lead independent career-driven lives, but who still long for the traditional symbolism of dependency. Women are sold a white wedding as a special day for themselves, as if the groom’s worthiness did not matter, and as if women have no right to claim a special day if they are unmarried. Much like motherhood (“Miranda and the Myth of Maternal Instinct”), the desire for the perfect wedding is often portrayed as ingrained within the female consciousness, while males are presented as more resistant.

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Of course, one of the benefits of single-sex marriage to society, as well as the personal benefits of two individuals who love one another being able to be joined and enjoy the legal sanction of matrimony, is that the gender dynamics of the institution of the white wedding are being questioned. Rather than the traditional presentation of the reluctant male and the eager bride desiring to tame the man with monogamy, or the emphasis on female purity, same-sex marriage allows for greater personal, creative redefinition of the institution, and also places same-sex love front and center, rather than solely presenting gay people as the friends of straight people, as was typical of sitcoms in the early 90s (“Fabulousness as Fetish: Queer Politics in Sex and the City”). Redefining marriage suggests its potential to affirm happiness for all couples, not simply the woman of a heterosexual union.

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