Mail Order Brides
Mail Order Brides Don’t Just Yearn For Citizenship
It has been a long held prejudice that women from countries where their opportunities are limited, marry men from more financially developed countries just to gain citizenship. These women were long thought to be pursuing an international marriage in order to gain more preferable rights, have a more sophisticated lifestyle, and gain an abundant amount of money. Although these could very well be the motives of some, not all international or mail order brides marry for these reasons.
Although many people may not realize, the concept of mail order brides had an ample responsibility in the progression of North America. The first mail order brides were women from England in the 17th and 18th centuries (Fleischmann). Essentially, men from America would send letters back to England in the hopes of finding women to help them settle down and start families (Fleischmann). The practice then resurfaced again in the 1970’s when men that were displeased with the Women’s Movement in the United States started searching elsewhere for women with old-fashion values (Chun).
In today’s society, mail order brides have received a bad reputation. This is mostly shown through the select brides-to-be that have come to America to marry men for reasons that would attempt to enhance their own circumstances. For instance, a Philippine woman by the name of Tessie Buhawe Spotts allegedly poisoned her multimillionaire husband with a lethal dose of arsenic in order to inherit his money and estate (Broadbent). It is cases such as this that taint the image of mail order brides, and add to the negative connotation they have received.
Media has also been a culprit in the stereotype against mail order brides. Films such as Mail Order Wife and Mail Order Bride have hindered the images of these international brides, portraying them as very conniving women with condescending motives. For the average person, the films confirm that these women only
It has been a long held prejudice that women from countries where their opportunities are limited, marry men from more financially developed countries just to gain citizenship. These women were long thought to be pursuing an international marriage in order to gain more preferable rights, have a more sophisticated lifestyle, and gain an abundant amount of money. Although these could very well be the motives of some, not all international or mail order brides marry for these reasons.
Although many people may not realize, the concept of mail order brides had an ample responsibility in the progression of North America. The first mail order brides were women from England in the 17th and 18th centuries (Fleischmann). Essentially, men from America would send letters back to England in the hopes of finding women to help them settle down and start families (Fleischmann). The practice then resurfaced again in the 1970’s when men that were displeased with the Women’s Movement in the United States started searching elsewhere for women with old-fashion values (Chun).
In today’s society, mail order brides have received a bad reputation. This is mostly shown through the select brides-to-be that have come to America to marry men for reasons that would attempt to enhance their own circumstances. For instance, a Philippine woman by the name of Tessie Buhawe Spotts allegedly poisoned her multimillionaire husband with a lethal dose of arsenic in order to inherit his money and estate (Broadbent). It is cases such as this that taint the image of mail order brides, and add to the negative connotation they have received.
Media has also been a culprit in the stereotype against mail order brides. Films such as Mail Order Wife and Mail Order Bride have hindered the images of these international brides, portraying them as very conniving women with condescending motives. For the average person, the films confirm that these women only