19 - Medium of Marriage

In Marrying Absurd, Didion describes Las Vegas as “the most extreme and allegorical of American settlements.” This claim mostly relates to the sacrifice of morals in return of materialism and convenience as seen in American society, as even the ritual of marriage has been transformed into a consumerist venture in the desert city. Personally, I think the institution of marriage is a good medium that can also be used to reflect on the morals of other countries, some that can be considered much worse than the commercialization of marriage in Las Vegas. 

In many developing countries, the institution of marriage is often much more asymmetrical than in developed countries, with the bride, for the most part, having less of a say in such circumstances. In South Africa and other parts of Africa and Asia, the bride’s family usually must pay a dowry to the groom, whether it be in the form of material possessions or land ownership. There have been many instances of violence in the discussion of paying dowry and it encourages having a son instead of a daughter, mainly due to its prominence in developing countries. In South Asia, the idea of arranged marriages are still quite common, in which the bride and groom are forced in a marriage, usually due to relationships between the families, with little regard of romantic interest. 

In how marriage in Las Vegas acted as an example of American consumerism and materialism, other rites show how marriage is seen more as a show of relations in terms of maintaining the status of families at expense of married couples, holding up a world view mainly focused on the groom and his family and disregarding love for power.