Unquiet Lives Marriage and Marriage Breakdown in England, 16601800 [Paperback]

A revisionary study of married life in eighteenth-century England.This study challenges traditional views of married life in eighteenth-century England by drawing upon vivid court records and newspaper advertisements to reveal husbands' and wives' expectations and experiences of marriage. Unusually, the focus is on the everyday life of marriage to reveal the extent of co-dependency between spouses. The book therefore presents a new picture of power in marriage and the household. It also shows that ideas about adultery and domestic violence evolved during this period, influenced by profound shifts in cultural attitudes about sexuality and violence.This study challenges traditional views of married life in eighteenth-century England by drawing upon vivid court records and newspaper advertisements to reveal husbands' and wives' expectations and experiences of marriage. Unusually, the focus is on the everyday life of marriage to reveal the extent of co-dependency between spouses. The book therefore presents a new picture of power in marriage and the household. It also shows that ideas about adultery and domestic violence evolved during this period, influenced by profound shifts in cultural attitudes about sexuality and violence.Drawing upon vivid court records and newspaper advertisements, this study challenges traditional views of married life in eighteenth-century England. It reveals husbands' and wives' expectations and experiences of marriage to expose the extent of co-dependency between spouses. The book, therefore, presents a new picture of power in marriage and the household. It also demonstrates how attitudes towards adultery and domestic violence evolved during this period, influenced by profound shifts in cultural attitudes about sexuality and violence.1. Introduction: assessing marriage; 2. 'To have and to hold': analysing married life; 3. 'For better, for worse': resolving marital difficulties; 4. 'An honourable estate': marital roles in the household; 5. 'lc