How have society's views on marriage changed since Elizabethan times?Points to consider: age consent choosing of partners role of women

Society's view of marriage has changed a great deal since
Elizabethan times.

It was not at all unusual for a girl to
be married by the age of eighteen. In fact, a woman in her middle to late twenties would
often have been considered a "spinster," and doubt would abound as to whether that woman
would ever marry. Men could marry at any age. It was not unusual
for a man to marry later in life.

A single woman's consent
was not at all necessary in marriage. A woman was expected to respect her father's
choices for her, and she would be expected to do so with her husband as well. This only
changed if a woman was a widow. The social requirements regarding lifestyle and marriage
did not apply to widows. With enough wealth left by a husband to support herself, she
could live as she chose. Without provisions made by a husband, she might marry again, or
become a companion for a wealthy female relative or a member of elite society, in order
to support herself.

Choosing a spouse for a young lady
would have been left to a father or male relative if her father was deceased. Often
times, between families of means and high social standing, a love match was
not the usual way of things: marriages were arranged between the
father of the bride and the father of the groom. Contracts of marriage might even be
drawn up while the "male and female" in question were very young, perhaps still infants.
If the marriage was not arranged, a young man could speak to a girl's parents for
permission to court their daughter.

In terms of the roles
of women, girls were not educated in the same way as boys. Young
ladies might have tutors to teach reading and writing, and perhaps
language (this was specific to the home), but she was primarily instructed in sewing,
perhaps music and dance, comportment, and learning to "manage" a
household, if she came from a home of wealth and forward-thinking
parents.

When a woman married, she
belonged to her husband. She was expected to support him in all
things and do what she was told. She had no legal voice. She, ideally, brought wealth to
her marriage, and then she provided her husband with an heir. Because of primogeniture
(where wealth was inherited by the oldest male child of the family), boy children were
more desirable than girls.

Failing to be a submissive,
obedient and dutiful wife was considered a sin against God. Women were ostensibly
supportive of their husband in all things.