Interest and Love Why Arranged Marriages are Better

Colonial Mexico differed greatly than their counterparts in France and England because marriage in the former was on marriage while the latter based on economic interest. Marriage was either promoted or discouraged based on the families’ ability to improve their social standing. However, in Mexico they felt the need to base their decisions on emotions rather than reason. The Catholic Church tried to promote marriages based on love in the colony by saying that love happened by reason, according to St. Thomas Aquinas.  The local Mexicans saw the interference of the families for financial stability and prosperity as malicious and wrong. This different with continental Europe that saw the need for people to try and gain new social status. It was more of a contract between families rather than two Romeo and Juliet figures. The story at the beginning of the book best demonstrates this. Geronimo and Juana were in “love” and tried to go against their families. Geronimo’s father locked him up because the two families were actually rivals; therefore, an economic incentive was used to discourage marriage. Yet, the Church, trying to do the “right” thing, intervened on behalf of the misguided youths and allowed them to marry against the parent’s wishes.

This is similar to our culture today. Rather than putting stock in the past, in arranged marriages, or in match making, Americans and liberalized states across the world feel the need to promote love among their children as a basis for marriage. This, I would submit, hurts society as a whole, rather than helping it. Sure, it makes people (feminists?) feel good about promoting “equality” by saying women have a choice in the marriage, but this demonstrates their lack of understanding concerning match making and arranged marriages. They are similar to dating websites, but instead of a random person choosing who will make the best match, it is the parents. I contend based on the book To Love, Honor, and Obey that the European continent had a better idea concerning marriage then the Mexican colony in the Americas. Patricia Seed describes a distinct phenomenon that occurred during the 16^th century. This tradition did not last well into the 18^th century, but it does set them apart from the Europeans.

It is difficult to say what this really means in a historical context. Were love matches better for society? Or arranged marriages for financial means more successful? A culture and society are too complicated to say whether these affected the success of the state and the people. But, for the individual families, it was clearly better for them when there was an economic motivation. Basing the relationship on love put the individual above the family and rejected the community for one’s personal ambition.