Various Views on Socially Acceptable and Legal Marriage

The type and functions of marriage vary from culture to culture. In the United States, Europe, and China in the early 21st century, legally sanctioned marriages are monogamous (although some pockets of society still sanction polygamy socially, if not legally) and divorce is relatively simple and socially sanctioned. In the West, the prevailing view toward marriage today is that it is based on emotional attachment between the partners and entered into voluntarily.

In the Islamic world, marriage is sanctioned between a man and a woman, however there are verses in chapter 4 of the Qur'an which state that in certain conditions a man is allowed up to four wives. In Imperial China, formal marriage was sanctioned only between a man and a woman, although a man could take several concubines and the children from the union were considered legitimate.

Same-Sex Marriage
Legally sanctioned marriages are generally conducted between heterosexual couples, although there are countries that recognize same-sex marriage, including The Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, the American state of Massachusetts, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Germany, France, and the American state of Vermont allow couples to enter legal partnerships, but these partnerships are not considered marriages even if they bestow many of the same legal benefits upon the couple.

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