From Christian Science Monitor: “Now, for the first time on a wide scale, Chinese may pursue a spouse of their own choosing. Only 2 in 10 young Chinese used to choose their life partner; today, 9 in 10 say they have or will, according to a China Daily report. Along with this, a discourse of “feeling” and ’emotion’ that used to exist mainly in elite circles is now heard at all levels, from tycoons to taxi drivers. Shops advertise “passion styles” for cars and kitchens. Romance novels are a rage.
In the past, couples often did not demonstrate affection inside a strict, loyalty-based family hierarchy. It was better not to, as Harvard sociologist Martin Whyte points out, since it might suggest a son’s loyalty was not entirely clear. Couples always lived with the husband’s parents, and in times of argument, sons were expected to side with family elders, not wives. Sons were dependent on parents. Divorce was discouraged and nearly non-existent. Marriages were arranged among families or inside ‘work units;’ a main criterion was the communist or “revolutionary” credentials of the spouse’s family”
