The Family Way

[JJR512]

The media attention and comments on this site regarding Alaska Governor Palin's teenaged daughter Bristol's pregnancy have made me curious. Bristol Palin is 17 years old.

Wasn't it once common for girls of 16, 15, maybe even younger to get married and start their families under the age of 18? Partly because people didn't live as long so it was good to start earlier, and partly so the fathers could stop bearing the expenses related to putting up their relatively less-productive* female offspring. [*Please note that IS NOT my own opinion, just what the thinking was at the time!]

Those times are long gone by and those reasons don't exist anymore, and now it's taboo for girls under the age of 18 to get married and/or get pregnant. And there is also the issue that Bristol Palin isn't married, like those girls back in the "old days" were when they got pregnant, but the outcry doesn't seem to be as much about premarital sex as it does about pre-age-18 pregnancy.

So how do morals change over time? How does something that was once commonplace and no problem become such a big deal?

 

[MrBishop]

Ye Gods, talk about a big ass question!

I'll start with the outcry in this case... it isn't about pre-18 sex in this case, it's about pre-marital sex. Her mother is outspoken about abstinence-only sex ed - that is, virgin brides and grooms. Her daughter obviously didn't follow her Mom's advice. This would've been the case if her daughter was 19 as well.

As for the rest of the question. That'll take a while.

 

[paul_valaru]

The media attention and comments on this site regarding Alaska Governor Palin's teenaged daughter Bristol's pregnancy have made me curious. Bristol Palin is 17 years old.

Wasn't it once common for girls of 16, 15, maybe even younger to get married and start their families under the age of 18? Partly because people didn't live as long so it was good to start earlier, and partly so the fathers could stop bearing the expenses related to putting up their relatively less-productive* female offspring. [*Please note that IS NOT my own opinion, just what the thinking was at the time!]

Those times are long gone by and those reasons don't exist anymore, and now it's taboo for girls under the age of 18 to get married and/or get pregnant. And there is also the issue that Bristol Palin isn't married, like those girls back in the "old days" were when they got pregnant, but the outcry doesn't seem to be as much about premarital sex as it does about pre-age-18 pregnancy.

So how do morals change over time? How does something that was once commonplace and no problem become such a big deal?

Slavery
Lynchings
Segragation

Where all common place at one time.

 

[MrBishop]

In the 1930's there was no such words as racism, sexism and discrimination...it was all "Just the way things are".

 

[MrBishop]

Those times are long gone by and those reasons don't exist anymore, and now it's taboo for girls under the age of 18 to get married and/or get pregnant. And there is also the issue that Bristol Palin isn't married, like those girls back in the "old days" were when they got pregnant, but the outcry doesn't seem to be as much about premarital sex as it does about pre-age-18 pregnancy.

So how do morals change over time? How does something that was once commonplace and no problem become such a big deal?

Pre-18 pregnancy nowadays seems more about wasted opportunities than it does wasted morals. Women can and do have careers, can and do go to higher education etc etc...and although having a child early doesn't prevent women from following those opportunities, it is one hell of a wall to get over.

In addition, if she's pregnant at 18, that means that she was having sex before 18...which, although not illegal or rare, is frowned upon - especially by the religious right.

My great-grandmother married at 13 and had lots of kids. Her husband was 19 and she outlived him by a fair margin. At the time, this was the statistical norm. Now, the statistical norm is married at 25 and first child at 27. Anyone who marries/has kids earlier is looked at as "so young/too young".

Most of that has to do with our longer lifespans and the older generations' desire to live vicariously through their kids/grandkids. The "Let them be kids" argument. Protect them from the evil world of sex, drugs, alcohol, violent movies etc... keep them innocent for as long as you can.

It's a wasted effort. Kids will grow up no matter what do allow them to do or not.