Evolution of Courtship
CHAPTER 1
I. Introduction
A. Definition
Courtship is the process or period of courting. Through the years, it is evident that there has been a significant change in the way courtship is done. Especially in the Philippines, where culture is dynamic and ever-changing, it has to the researcher’s attention that there has been great changes in the way courtship is done between Filipino males and females. With this, the researcher would like to interpret the evolution of courtship.
The landscape of male and female interaction has changed over the past 100 years, revealing a very sharp contrast in shape and form. One significant area where this is clearly seen is in the area of courtship and dating. In 1896, the word “dating” was known to be lower-class slang in reference to prostitution. Basically, going on a date was an understatement for paid sex. By the 1900s, the word “Calling” (or courtship) was introduced into households. Calling was the process of a man, the suitor, coming into the home of a young woman to meet her and get to know her and get to know her better and eventually end up marrying her. This was highly preferred by parents since the meeting between the man and young woman was highly supervised – everything from the length of the meeting to what food they would eat (Discroll, 2009). Furthermore, it gave parents a sense of safety since it protected adolescents from any kind of danger like rape, and involved the maximum participation of family members. In this, however, the process of courtship was not always perfect. It was seen that it only placed itself in the households of the rich and not the lower-class (hence the lower class slang). It would seem that courtship was too expensive an activity for the lower-class. They simply could not affor the luxury of fine dining in a parlour and/or traveling to meet with their sweetheart (Discroll, 2009). In this, the progression and seeming perfect balance did not last long.
As population, poverty,
I. Introduction
A. Definition
Courtship is the process or period of courting. Through the years, it is evident that there has been a significant change in the way courtship is done. Especially in the Philippines, where culture is dynamic and ever-changing, it has to the researcher’s attention that there has been great changes in the way courtship is done between Filipino males and females. With this, the researcher would like to interpret the evolution of courtship.
The landscape of male and female interaction has changed over the past 100 years, revealing a very sharp contrast in shape and form. One significant area where this is clearly seen is in the area of courtship and dating. In 1896, the word “dating” was known to be lower-class slang in reference to prostitution. Basically, going on a date was an understatement for paid sex. By the 1900s, the word “Calling” (or courtship) was introduced into households. Calling was the process of a man, the suitor, coming into the home of a young woman to meet her and get to know her and get to know her better and eventually end up marrying her. This was highly preferred by parents since the meeting between the man and young woman was highly supervised – everything from the length of the meeting to what food they would eat (Discroll, 2009). Furthermore, it gave parents a sense of safety since it protected adolescents from any kind of danger like rape, and involved the maximum participation of family members. In this, however, the process of courtship was not always perfect. It was seen that it only placed itself in the households of the rich and not the lower-class (hence the lower class slang). It would seem that courtship was too expensive an activity for the lower-class. They simply could not affor the luxury of fine dining in a parlour and/or traveling to meet with their sweetheart (Discroll, 2009). In this, the progression and seeming perfect balance did not last long.
As population, poverty,