CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

Man is an entity but does not survive alone, that is he does not live in isolation but lived in relationship with those around him. This idea of living together calls for cooperation which is expressed in all the institutions man has ever known. The family is the institution.

Since the inception of marriage which was ordained by nature, it has gone a long way of influencing the society both positively and negatively depending largely on the co-actors.

Marriage though defined by the Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary of current English is an instance of legal union of a man and a woman as husband and wife that is a state of being married.

On the other hand, marriage is a basic institution of any culture. The state and the church powerfully support it. It is a cornerstone of any culture through which companionship and sex relationship of man and woman achieve their fullest and richest expression. It is through it that children are revival maintain.

The marriage institution dates back as far as the creation of man according to Christian religion belief and stated in Genesis when God said let make man in his image after our own likeness. And God said “it is not good that man should be alone, I will make a help mate for him” and he made a woman and brought her into man to be his wife. God institutionalized marriage.

Historically, most societies encourage marriage and give high status to married persons. Parents particularly, fathers are actively involved in the choice of marriage partners for their children (both male and female) especially females. This is because women do not only marry their husband but the whole of its extended family. They do not join since the woman’s future is wrapped up in her choice and often which the woman lies access to maintain their judgment. The parents have lived longer than have seen more deeply or more days than them (children) because they know the people and know the families into which the girl is going because the couple have to marry with full approval of their families or will break away sharply and probably painful. The role of the husband and wife were predetermined that the husband is to cam the wing and act as a protector and channel of communication with the outside world. That of the wife being to maintain the well being of the family and household and that these roles were expected by society to the extent that it was prepared to take little or no responsibility in the extent of tension and unhappiness. Perhaps in some ways the rigidity determined boundaries.

The African society (of which Oredo is a typical example) is very complex at least spiritually. Many things that happen in the water world where there exist match making and marriage which they consider age, proximity, social class, education, physical character, family influence and care to make the marriage successful. Today, the ideal of the arranged marriage seem old and the recently avoided Asian immigrants who still follow this practice are regarded by their fellow citizen as primitive and behind the time. Yet it has many advantages, one of the importance of which is the likelihood of greater tolerance of disharmony simply because the unhappy spouse does not feel the need for self-blame and can project the responsibility for the unhappiness upon the parent who choose unwisely.