E-text prepared by Turgut Dincer, Les Galloway,
and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
()
from page images generously made available by
HathiTrust Digital Library
(https://www.hathitrust.org/)
| Note: | Images of the original pages are available through HathiTrust Digital Library. See https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo1.ark:/13960/t2d79wm16;view=1up;seq=9 |
THE HISTORY
OF
HUMAN MARRIAGE
THE HISTORY
OF
HUMAN MARRIAGE
BY
EDWARD WESTERMARCK
LECTURER ON SOCIOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FINLAND,
HELSINGFORS
London
MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited
NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
1901
All rights reserved
Richard Clay and Sons, Limited
London and Bungay.
First Edition, 1891.
Second Edition, 1894.
Third Edition, 1901.
v
INTRODUCTORY NOTE
BY ALFRED R. WALLACE
Having read the proofs of Mr. Westermarck’s book I amasked by the publishers to say a few words by way of introducingthe work to English readers. This I have greatpleasure in doing, because I have seldom read a morethorough or a more philosophic discussion of some of themost difficult, and at the same time interesting problems ofanthropology.
The origin and development of human marriage have beendiscussed by such eminent writers as Darwin, Spencer,Morgan, Lubbock, and many others. On some of themore important questions involved in it all these writersare in general accord, and this agreement has led to theiropinions being widely accepted as if they were well-establishedconclusions of science. But on several of these pointsMr. Westermarck has arrived at different, and sometimesdiametrically opposite, conclusions, and he has done so aftera most complete and painstaking investigation of all theavailable facts.
With such an array of authority on the one side and ahitherto unknown student on the other, it will certainly bethought that all the probabilities are against the latter. YetI venture to anticipate that the verdict of independentthinkers will, on most of these disputed points, be in favour ofvithe new comer who has so boldly challenged the conclusionsof some of our most esteemed writers. Even those whoseviews are here opposed, will, I think, acknowledge that Mr.Westermarck is a careful investigator and an acute reasoner,and that his arguments as well as his conclusions are worthyof the most careful consideration.
I would also call attention to his ingenious and philosophicalexplanation of the repugnance to marriage betweennear relatives which is so very general both among savageand civilised man, an