Womanless wedding
A womanless wedding is a traditional community "ritual of inversion" performance, popular in the United States in the early 20th century.
The performances were so popular that
History
Early modern Europe, and America prior to the 20th century, used womanless weddings as a way to safely express social strains between classes. The actors were lower-class; would ridicule the social position of the upper-class through skits for entertainment purposes. The upper-class citizens benevolently approved of these acts as cultural acknowledgement of their status in society.[2]
Womanless weddings were performed throughout the United States, but most prominently in the upper Midwest and the South.
Social implications
A womanless wedding would include a skit of a wedding ceremony, sometimes followed by a reception. The skits would elaborately make fun of
Prominent male members of a community would typically be the actors of the womanless performances.[2] Their status would allow for their outlandish performances of stereotypical imitations of the minorities of a community, and the conditions of a community that went against the social norms of the culture in the spirit of entertainment to be accepted by the community with humor, rather than backlash and their masculinity being questioned by a community.[2]
See also
- Drag show
- Minstrel show
- Proxy marriage
- Weddings in the United States
References
- ^ a b c d Linton Weeks. "When 'Womanless Weddings' Were Trendy", npr.org, 16 June 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ^ )
- ^ Kemp, Bill (July 12, 2015). "Staged 'womanless weddings' once drew crowds". The Pantagraph. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
- S2CID 144301569.
- ^ "Encyclopedia of North Carolina: Womanless Weddings". Retrieved June 17, 2015.
- ^ "Forest City Courier from Forest City, North Carolina 1922". November 30, 1922. Retrieved June 17, 2015.