n the early 19603, wife beatingwas still regarded as nothing more than a common way by which a husbandcould make things right at home.
I wonder if the 1950 Marriage Law and the other legal reforms addressed wife beating. It seems that patriarchal norms persisted despite all of these reforms.
A good friend told me that beforehis parents asked the matchmaker to make a proposal he had already devel-oped a strong emotional bond with his future wife.
Who were these matchmakers? Were they relatives of the groom or bride? Was it a common practice to have matchmakers in these villages in China?
Pressured by financial difficulties, however, this father was interestedin the potential profits from his daughter's marriage, and this was obvious toeveryone, including the two lovers.
The financial hardships of these families could explain why arranged marriages were so prevalent in this village. The profit aspect is present in almost all of author's stories of arranged marriages in this village.