ng marriage. In the early 1800s, the church governed marriage laws and customs; as problems arose, such as legality and promiscuousness, legislators began to pass laws and restrictions on marriages (Outhwaite, 1995). Due to the rise in government laws, courtship at this time was not taken lightly, and marriage usually only occurred when both parties were sure of their decisions.Much of the courtship in early America was done in the household with a chaperone present. For the majority of the upper classmen, courtship was to be a mannerly and regulated activity that occurred between two people, usually adolescents. The bulk of the date or visit usually took place in the family parlor, and activities usually were restricted to supervised conversation. On rare occasions, the upper class couple was permitted to possibly take a walk on the girls familys property, and if a male was lucky, he was able to sneak in a kiss from the object of his affections. On another side of the spectrum, the lower classes were usually allowed many more freedoms. Young men and women met each other during work, at dances, alehouses, and during church (Macfarlane, 1986). Friends instead of parents often made matches, and young couples were often permitted to be off on their own. At this time, fondling and kissing were considered acceptable, but sexual intercourse was not (Outhwaite, 1995). Although pre-marital sex was not only frowned upon by the church, but it was considered illegal by the government, and was thought to be as binding as marriage itself. Unfortunately, since many men and women of the lower classes were permitted to spend times by themselves, women often became pregnant. Instead of shaming both of their families with a bastard child, the couple was often forced to be married, and the steps usually taken during courtship ceased to exist (Plucket, 1956).As American progress continued, so did the freedoms regarding courtship. Although dates were still ...
