传统婚姻
Marriage in a Confucian Context
儒家观点认为，婚姻对家族和社会有着举足轻重的意义。
In Confucian thought, marriage is of grave significance both to families and to society.
传统地说，近亲联姻是指同姓之间的婚姻。
Traditionally incest has been defined as marriage between people with the same surname.
从一个传统家庭角度出发，婚姻能联合异姓家族并且维系父系家族的延续。
From the perspective of a Confucian family ，marriage brings together families of different surnames and so continues the family line of the paternal clan.
这就是为什么生男孩一般比生女孩更受喜爱的普遍原因。
This is generally why having a boy is more preferred than a girl when giving birth.
因此，任何婚姻的好坏处都关乎整个家族的命运，不仅仅关乎一对夫妇的。
Therefore, the benefits and demerits of any marriage are important to the entire family，not just the individual couples.
社会角度出发，家庭是社会组成的基本单位。
Socially, the married couple is thought to be the basic unit of society.
中国历史上发生过许多类似的例子，婚姻曾经影响国家的政治稳定和国际关系。
In Chinese history there have been many times when marriages have affected the country’s political stability and international relations.
从唐代开始，蒙古、满族、匈奴、突厥等各强大部落的统领都与皇室联姻。
From the Han Dynasty the rulers of certain powerful foreign tribes such as the Mongolians, the Manchus, the Huns, and the Turks demanded women from the Imperial family.
在中国史上的许多时期，家族的妻子或者统治者的母亲曾统治过整个国家。
Many periods of Chinese history were dominated by the families of the wife or mother of the ruling Emperor.
所以婚姻和政治有联系。
Thus marriage can be related to politics.