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Marriage in the United States was traditionally viewed as a union, based on love, between a man and a woman. This union was sanctioned by either the church or by civil authorities. Societal standards of the 1700s and 1800s reinforced the notion of marriage as a partnership in which each gender had fairly defined roles. Both the law and customs were based on patriarchy, the idea that the male, or father, was head of the household and leader of the family.