| caption: |
Chapter Three. Phases of Life |
| caption: |
betrothal; age differences of spouses |
| text: |
In the case of betrothals arranged by the parents there was often a great age difference between the prospective spouses. Thus, I knew a very pretty Balang girl of about eighteen who was engaged to a boy of the Oukheang morung aged about eleven. This betrothal did not condemn her to a life of continence, however, for she was free to indulge in love affairs with the older boys of the Oukheang, Thepong, and Ang-ban, and if one of them wanted to marry her the earlier engagement could be dissolved without much difficulty. If the prospective spouses were adult, a betrothal did not last very long, and the wedding ceremonies followed soon after the partners and their parents had reached agreement. |
