Naked marriage in China Information

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*For wedding ceremonies with nude participants, see Nude wedding.

Naked marriage in China (Chinese: 裸婚), sometimes called "bare marriage", is a form of marriage that is undertaken without the couple having first accumulated a solid financial foundation. Typically it does not include a wedding, a ring, a house, a car or a honeymoon and the couple simply get married at the registry. The practice contrasts with the traditional Chinese custom of parents helping to provide the assets for their children's marriages. Naked marriage has become increasingly prevalent in China ^[1] and is popular among people born in the country after the 1980s. It is generally recognized as a frugal way for loving partners to marry under the enormous economic pressure China's younger generation is facing in the 21st century.

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Causes

Social pressure

In the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2007–2008, the popularity of naked culture soared in China. Because of the high cost of living and intense job competition, people born after the 1980s found it difficult to have a car, a house, or savings. Many of them have been forced to choose a naked marriage due to this harsh reality. Statistics have shown that, over 50% of the young people turning 30 cannot afford both a car and a house ^[2]. The skyrocketing house prices make them feel powerless and frustrated. This is especially true in the prosperous cities or tier one cities in China where the housing prices are just impossible for most, if not all young couple to buy. These tier one cities are often said to be with full of opportunities regarding careers of the younger generation, hence tier one cities do tend to have a higher average income( disposable income per capita). But still, when taken into consideration of the housing prices, what is earned is usually far from enough.Therefore, out of frustration some may just choose naked marriage instead as it is a question of reality ^[3].

The pursuit of pure love

Traditionally, marriage in China has a basis in material possessions. However, some young couples choosing a naked marriage do so in pursuit of pure love, which they consider to be an important element in modern marriage ^[4]. From their perspective, in a world fraught with material temptations, the key consideration for matchmaking has taken the wrong path in pursuing a sound economic base rather than pure love. In their love philosophy, it is pure love that can stand the test of time and be the bedrock of a successful marriage. In order to express an enthusiastic plea for pure love, they choose to get rid of superficial marital accessories, and this has given an impetus to the boom in naked marriage. Despite the public's seemingly favorable response to these values, however, many of the people surveyed reject the impulse to disavow all the traditional trappings of marriage ^{[5] [6]}.

The rise of self-cognition

Naked Marriage can be said to be a product of the rebellious nature of China's younger generation on the topic of love. With an increasing awareness of self-cognition, young people of China grow to see themselves unique and independent with personal preferences ^[7]. In terms of marital form, their choices manifest their intense internal beliefs under the pressure of external restrictions, as well as their eagerness for independence. In this materialistic society, it is common that the masses deem a stable economic condition a crucial factor of marriage. However, young people gradually come to their own realization that sustaining their beliefs can also lead to a happy marital life. Despite the lack of a house, car and luxury wedding, they believe that, what really counts is to determinedly follow their heart for the sake of happiness instead of compromising to the secular values of the society ^[5].

Challenging traditions

Lacking the necessities of a blessed marriage, Naked Marriage is a sharp contrast to the established Chinese marital customs. In traditional values, a couple can only get married when there is an economic precondition ^[8]. The word " dowry"(Chinese: 彩禮、聘禮) is thus born to describe betrothal gifts from the bridegroom to the bride's family, which symbolizes a man's capability of providing a prosperous life for his wife ^[9]. In China, the transfer of dowries has evolved into an indispensable process of marriage ^[10]. Without a dowry transfer, Naked Marriage is tempestuously challenging the traditional values. The discrepancy in marital values is likely to cause family disharmony. Many parents strongly oppose Naked Marriage due to its lack of economic base, while China's youth often have a different idea. This conflict may give rise to family controversy, collision, or possibly even estrangement. This is an era when old and new ideas are in frequent conflict. Experts argue that even if traditions are still unshakable in many Chinese minds, it is evident that with the increasing acceptance of Naked Marriage, China's younger generation is becoming more and more open-minded ^[11].

Changing Aspects of Wedding Behavior in Chengdu ^[12]

	1933-1948	1949-1957	1958-1965	1966-1976	1977-1987
Gifts from husband to bride (% giving)	34	18	21	22	31
Brideprice (% giving)	18	9	5	6	9
Dowry to Bride (% giving)	56	36	26	32	71

Mate selection

Mate selection criteria post 1949 remained highly objective, with personal attraction have little to no significance, ^[13] although families rarely put their economic interests before their daughters well being. ^[13] The criteria underwent major changes as China's economy developed.

Changes in Aspects of Freedom of Mate Choice in ChengDu ^[12]

	1933-1948	1949-1957	1958-1965	1966-1976	1977-1987
Type of Marriage
Arranged	68%	27%	0%	1%	2%
Intermediate	15%	33%	45%	40%	41%
Individual choice	17%	40%	55%	59%	57%

Pre-1949

Before 1949 most marriages were prearranged, typically before the child entered puberty, and matchmakers played a key role in this process. ^[14] Matchmakers operated similar to real estate agents, receiving a monetary reward or gifts for a successful match, therefore they often exaggerated the facts such as wealth and beauty. ^[14] Homogamy and hypergamy were equally common, matchmakers would aim to 'match gates' 门当户对 (men dang hu dui), meaning match families or similar economic and social standing. ^[14] Matching gates when seeking a daughter-in-law was a more than acceptable outcome, however when families were seeking a son-in-law matching gates was the bare minimum. ^[13] The task of mate selection was considered too important to allow the young to make their own decision, ^[14] extended family often operated as one economic entity due to poverty. ^[14]

Post-1949

The New Marriage Law of 1950 abolished arranged marriages, greatly decreasing them in urban areas, however they remained commonplace in rural China. ^[14] This law aimed to shift responsibility of marriage from the extended family to the individual. ^[14] The practice was still commonplace amongst farmers who, at the time, made up two thirds of the nation. ^[14] Women and the younger generation began to work outside their family home. ^[14] This resulted in a generation with greater economic freedom from their parents and introduces them to broader social groups. ^[14] Mate selection was now in the power of the individuals instead of matchmakers. The average cost of a wedding also decreased during this era. ^[12] Marrying for wealth was replaced by political standing such as cadres and soldiers. ^[14] For rural women, the family's social status she marries into will determine her social status for the rest of her life. ^[13]

Criteria for Choosing Spouses in Shanghai from Liberation On ^[15]

	Qualities or kinds of persons preferred by men	Qualities or kinds of persons preferred by women
1949-1957, The early years of Liberation	a junior or senior high school education a young worker who is good at housework a woman from an ordinary, politically sound urban family a woman from a wealthy, formerly capitalist family	someone who took part in the Liberation War or a demobilized soldier college graduate, government employee technologist, scientist or political worker of the same mind skilled worker from a politically sound family
1958-1960, The Great Leap Forward	a schoolmate or colleague an active League member or activist model worker, pacesetter or teacher	vigorous intellectual of the same mind Party member or politically respected person model worker, technical innovator or technician
1961-1964, The three years of natural calamities	a readiness to share hardships, frugality and gentleness advanced activist a woman from a formerly capitalist family	Party or League member, official or technician with a higher income a well-to-do intellectual with a higher educational background a man from a formerly capitalist family a man with relatives in Hong Kong, Macao or abroad
1965-1960, First period of the Cultural Revolution	a woman from worker, peasant, solider or other politically sound family a woman from a well-to-do family without any politically unsound relations someone with a perfunctory attitude towards the call to work in the countryside	someone of a higher of at least equal political status good connections, eloquence a man from a worker, peasant or government-official family someone with an equally unsound political background
1970-1976, Later period of the Cultural Revolution	an actress, or another artist in a theatrical troupe a quiet, elegant woman from an intellectual family a woman from a "clean" family that did not come under political attack	eloquence, cleverness, good connections, authority access to backdoor favors new Party member, young cadre, would-be leader, or an old pal who held the same views in the Cultural Revolution
1976-1982, After the downfall of the Gang of Four	a woman with relatives abroad or from a politically rehabilitated family open-mindedness; skill in singing or dancing someone who is neither a Party member, model worker, League member, advanced worker nor a political official intelligence, good breeding, good looks, and gentleness someone from an ordinary, practical-minded background, rather than a political official's family a woman from the south of China	scientist, technologist, engineer, or other kind of university graduate a man with relatives abroad or from a politically rehabilitated family artistic skills, specialized skills, interest in a foreign language, enterprising spirit a man in a high position showing capability and authority wealth, spacious home, few siblings someone who is not a party member or a political worker, someone who isn't from northern Jiansu
1982-1987, Later years of Mao era	good education, knowledge-ability, considerateness open-mindedness, loft interests, sociability a woman who is a couple of years younger and good looking similar family background; any kind of job	cleverness, certified skills a capable young factory director, manager or administrator a young scientist or technologist any kind of family background, economic condition or age manliness, charm, and character

Modern Society, after 1978

Naked Marriage on Media

Idolization of ceremonious events

Why is a expensive ceremonious event significant? Marriage has always been a very important matter to the Chinese people. It does not only concern the two people who are getting married but also the two respective families. Ceremonious events such as a big wedding, a transfer of dowry are a major part of the process of getting married as these two elements can represent the 'face' or’ 面子‘（ mian zi) of the two families, hence may symbolize social status. People also believe that getting married is a once in a life time experience therefore it is normal to spend a little money. ^[16] According to Statista ^[17], the market size of wedding industry in China reached a stunning number of 1.7 trillion yuan(334,262,082,650 CAD) in the year 2021. During the range between 2017-2021, its highest peaked at 2.1 trillion yuan in the year 2019 before covid-19.

Evolution of the Chinese wedding industry since 1949

‘上世纪50 年代一张床, 60 年代一包糖, 70 年代红宝书, 80 年代三转一响, 90年代星级宾馆讲排场, 21 世纪特色婚礼个性张扬。'

This is saying that in the 1950s, all it takes for a wedding is a bed; in the 1960s, a bag of candy; a canon of Chairman Mao's quotes int 70s; in the 1980s, a bike, a watch. a sewing machine and a radio which were necessities at the time; in the 1990s, it became splendid weddings in large and luxurious hotels and in the 21st century, the wedding has evolved into a showcase for individual personalities ^[18]. As we can see, there seems to be an ever changing form of a wedding and it tends to get more and more sophisticated. At the beginning of this time frame up until the 80s, the definition of a wedding seems to be down to the earth and simple but things started to change during the 90's and beyond. So what makes the time after 90s different?

Internet and media

Internet became popular at the time around 1990s and soon became a primary way of receiving/releasing new information for the mass ^[19]. It did not take long for the internet and media to become the 'eyes' of the people, internet and media have opened up the world to the people, that is, you do not need to be physically present at the certain time and space to learn about something new, maybe an idea, a concept or even a different race of people and their culture. You can read about it, and even see it through that monitor that is sitting on the desk in your home. For a lot of the Chinese population around that time, internet might be the only efficient way to learn about the Western world. Internet and media have served like a bridge which is capable of transporting information and new ideology. As the Chinese people begin receiving information from the greater virtual sphere, their ideal wedding ceremony has also been inspired by the western culture ^[16].

Impacts

Equality in marriage

Men were previously considered as the "head of household", with exclusive power over their family ^[20]. According to social conflict theory ^[21], the origin of household patriarchies comes from economic stratification. Owners of property have a definite advantage ^[22] and men are more likely to have a higher income, hence obtaining a higher status in their family. For China's younger generation, couples are more likely to possess similar economic status and agree to strive together for a better life. This agreement birthed the idea of Naked Marriage, where couples are likely to share the same discourse and decision-making power when confronting critical issues, such as household decisions and distribution of possessions. Therefore, they may attain real equality in marriage. As supporters of Naked Marriage argue, it is the joint effort of life partners that constitute the most precious element of marriage ^[11].

Potential problems

In Chinese traditions, love and bread (i.e. livelihood) are considered as two cornerstones in marriage. Young couples choosing Naked Marriage appear Utopian since they are firmly convinced of love, which pertains to spiritual comfort, rather than economic and often materialistic foundations ^[23]. However, some critics think that their lack of material basis may exacerbate stress and other relationship-related problems over time, leading to diminishing romantic feelings. The quote from ancient Chinese poet Yuan Zhen (Chinese: 元稹), "Everything goes wrong for the poor couple (Chinese: 貧賤夫妻百事哀)" is sometimes referenced in this regard. Consequently, their marriage may be vulnerable or even short-lived, which could lead to an increase in divorce rates. Therefore it may seem to be the case that the pursuit of love or romance could be defeated by the challenges generated in reality.

Historical Precedence

Frugal weddings during Mao era

Following the Communist's victory in 1949, the government condemned traditional rituals and feasts, including elaborate weddings, in favor of frugal weddings. ^[12] Despite the governments attempts to promote gender equality with the Marriage law of 1949 ^[24], ancient practices and traditions remain prominent, especially in rural China. ^[14] However, the transition to collectivism and it's impacts economically and socially had a much greater impact than government policy. ^[12] The 1980 new marriage law forbade the exchange of money or gifts for a hand in marriage, ^[12] however this had little effect in practice.

Wedding Behavior in Chengdu; Total spent on wedding ^[12]

	1933-1948	1949-57	1958-65	1966-1976	1977-1987
Under 500 Yuan	82%	89%	94%	80%	15%
500-999 Yuan	10%	8%	6%	13%	32%
1,000+ Yuan	7%	3%	0%	7%	53%

References