History documentary on bedrooms

[Ettina]

I've been watching a series of British documentaries on the history of the different rooms of a typical home, and the bedroom episode, towards the very end, starts discussing the idea of the 'companionate' marriage in the 1950s. The idea was that instead of getting married and then living separate but intertwined lives, a married couple should spend as much time as possible with each other.

 

https://youtu.be/A_WPeZ9U228

[Louis On Air]

That is interesting. Who'd've thought before then there was just negligable between the husband and wife (plus they were probably marrying for money anyway)

[Mark]

On 15/02/2017 at 1:24 AM, Ettina said:

I've been watching a series of British documentaries on the history of the different rooms of a typical home, and the bedroom episode, towards the very end, starts discussing the idea of the 'companionate' marriage in the 1950s. The idea was that instead of getting married and then living separate but intertwined lives, a married couple should spend as much time as possible with each other.

Whereas now this behaviour seems so ubiquitous a part of romantic relationships that it's unremarkable. If anything there might need to be a term for couples who don't spend as much time as possible together, even to do absolutely nothing.

 

On 15/02/2017 at 10:29 AM, Louis Hypo said:

That is interesting. Who'd've thought before then there was just negligable between the husband and wife (plus they were probably marrying for money anyway)

I've heard a few ideas about why there has been this radical change in the last half century.
One which appears rather radical involves a shift from gendered to non gendered social activities. Possibly with a consequential shift towards things becoming couple rather than person focussed.