Feminist analysis of the royal wedding

[DontdoitKatie]

This is one of the times when you realise how very lonely seeing things through a feminist lens can make you.

Patriarchy in all its glory.

"That's why it always annoys me when people dismiss the likes of Jane Austen as only being about women finding husbands. For women in those days it was crucial to find the right man - their lives could literally depend on it, given how much power he was going to have over them.

This is very prevalent in pride and prej, where the house was entailed away. Despite being a ghastly character Mrs Bennett wanted her daughters married as soon as possible as on their father's death they could be rightly turfed out of the house (as indeed happened with the Dashwoods).

I don't mind the women in high heels - pregnant or not. It can be hard sometimes when you feel a bit heavy and bloated and heels can give you a little boost and sense of occasion. I do worry for them on the 6" though and the cobbles. But I would regardless of whether they were pregnant or not.

I saw a man wearing tartan trousers and thought it a bit strange. Why not wear a kilt? He looked a bit like something out of Chumawumba on the bottom, morning suit on top.

Yes, the desire to catch a husband was pragmatic for them, the romantic notion would be to have a career.

Wasn't it a full time job running a house in Austen times? As wife you had to manage the servants.

Doubt Kate will be doing much work of that nature tbh.

Surely the whole thing is on the way out? Most children don't spend their whole childhoods being brought up by a married couple. The average age for a first marriage is 30, and a lot of them get divorced. So I don't think the whole idea that a couple meet, marry at 20, have kids, and stay together for their whole lives really happens much anymore.

I aree with you all about the wedding. It was very nice , with two people who are in love and i dont want to be cynical either but..

Im wondering if she knows what she is letting herself in for ? I mean how could she not ? Shes going to be watched every waking second , for pregnancy , bad dress , weight gain , aging, everything really and William will more or less left to it by the press. Do you think she hopes it will be different for her ? Or maybe she doesnt mind/care ? Or does she want to be with him so much it doesnt matter ?
If she cant produce a baby what then ? And im assuming shes already been checked out for possible fertility issues as Diana was before she married Charles.

The elements of the wedding that are problematic aren't exclusive to the Royal Wedding (where they used the ordinary CofE service) - like the giving away (I'm not so much bothered by the walking down the aisle, but the actuall passing of her hand during the ceremony - which is the passing over of a piece of property). Also, the all-male choir isn't exclusive to the wedding, nor is the lack of female bishops. And the question of which sex does which part of the commentary is a broadcasters one, not that of the participants.

But I agree that the world-wide focus on is event does throw all these wider issues into a sharper light.

Yes that is true meditrina but surely the point is why this is the case and why various broadcasting decisions have been made.

But there is no evidence for that Lenin, the only group that has been known to not know the origins of children were Aboriginals and that was probably down to their culture. If other animals can know where their offspring are coming from pretty sure most people would have known too.

I just think that people would live more communally, they would take an interest in others children but first and foremost would be their own. There are plenty of nature programmes showing groups of people that have had virtually no contact with the outside world and live very similar to how we would have a long time ago and they are still have paired relationships.

Topics being offered by Mumsnet:

Wedding chat - wave the virtual bunting!
Kate's dress - a hit with you?
RW commentary bingo - you playing?
Hats and that - RW fashion verdicts?

Nothing that looks like a feminist analysis, eh.

I can imagine serial monogamy being quite 'normal', fall in love, fall out of love, move on.
Can't imagine non-monogamy, but then I'm a terrible old romantic.

the Queen Mother got her heel stuck in a grating in St Paul's Cathedral at one of the rehearsals for Charles and Diana's wedding (school trip there shortly after and they told us).

We know from genetic evidence that genetic monogamy is very rare in humans and has never been the most common form of mating in hominid species. We know from social anthropology that social and sexual monogamy is uncommon.

Apropos of not very much, but Gloucester cathedral choir has girls. Not adult women in the male choir but would imagine that would have something to do with musical range.

the thing is Royal weddings have always broken with tradition when the will was there - Charles and Diana getting married in St Pauls, all the ordinary people on the guest list today. So if someone had decided that, for example, there should be a mixed choir, they could have done it somehow, bringing in girl choristers from another cathedral or something.
I doubt William has had much of an education in feminism though, and he is probably in a better position than Kate to have an influence on the wedding.

Have nothing useful to add, beyond being more than slightly relieved to find this thread

...the spectacle of it all, was in fact impressive, but the sheer propaganda of good marriage being the 'ultimate fantasy' for a woman is overwhelming.. particularly since we know that now the media etc will really go for Kate now and she will have to start paying.

I think a ceremony of marriage doesn't have to be patriarchal at all, but that every religious wedding I've ever been to has had elements of anti-feminism which make me uncomfortable.

I think it's a hell of a lot easier to have a secular marriage ceremony which is genuinely about celebrating the love a couple have for each other, and the promise in front of all your friends and family to make a decent go of building a life together

IMO it's religion that's the problem, not weddings per se.

Agree with all the comments about the lack of female roles - Pippa could've done more, female choir members (although loved the Rutter) and bishopy types, and his lack of ring.

I'm sure they had a wonderful day and enjoyed it, but it is disappointing they didn't break with tradition more - just so bloody impossible to fight the religious loons.

(I loved Pippa's dress, both of them are so beautiful)

LeninGrad.. I think we have just been told it is important.