The Marriage Book Read Online Free PDF Page B

ancestral tablet and we had fallen upon our knees before thine Honourable Parent, I then saw for the first time the face of my husband. Dost thou remember when first thou raised my veil and looked long into my eyes? I was thinking, “Will he find me beautiful?” and in fear I could look but for a moment, then my eyes fell and I would not raise them to thine again. But in that moment I saw that thou wert tall and beautiful, that thine eyes were truly almond, that thy skin was clear and thy teeth like pearls. I was secretly glad within my heart, because I have known of brides who, when they saw their husbands for the first time, wished to scream in terror, as they were old or ugly. I thought to myself that I could be happy with this tall, strong young man if I found favour in his sight, and I said a little prayer to Kwan-yin. Because she has answered that prayer, each day I place a candle at her feet to show my gratitude.
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    EERO SAARINEN
    LETTER TO ALINE BERNSTEIN SAARINEN, 1954
    Aline Bernstein Louchheim was an art critic for the New York Times when she interviewed the architect and designer Eero Saarinen (1910–1961) about the splash he had made with his General Motors center in Michigan. By all accounts—including Saarinen’s, below—they fell hard. It would be the second marriage for both of them.
    Saarinen would go on to design the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, the TWA terminal in New York, dozens of other buildings, and iconic furniture; Aline remained a successful author and, later, art critic on the Today Show and head of NBC’s Paris news bureau.
     
I
FIRST I RECOGNIZED THAT YOU WERE VERY CLEVER
II
THAT YOU WERE VERY HANSOME
III
THAT YOU WERE PERCEPTIVE
IV
THAT YOU WERE ENTHUSIASTIC.
V
THAT YOU WERE GENEROUS.
VI
THAT YOU WERE BEAUTIFUL
VII
THAT YOU WERE TERRIBLY WELL ORGANIZED
VIII
THAT YOU WERE FANTASTICALLY EFFICIENT
IX
THAT YOU DRESS VERY VERY WELL
IIIA
THAT YOU HAVE A MARVELOUS SENSE OF HUMOR
X
THAT YOU HAVE A VERY VERY BEAUTIFUL BODY.
XI
THAT YOU ARE UNBELIEVABLY GENEROUS TO ME.
XII
THAT THE MORE ONE DIGS THE FOUNDATIONS THE MORE AND MORE ONE FINDS THE SOLIDEST OF GRANIT FOR YOU AND I TO BUILD A LIFE TOGETHER UPON.I KNOW THIS IS NOT A GOOD SENTENCE.
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    GROUCHO MARX
    MEMOIRS OF A MANGY LOVER , 1963
    Most famous of the famed Marx Brothers, Groucho Marx (1890–1977) was not only a stage, screen, radio, and television performer but also a determined author who published more than half a dozen books. The excerpt below is from his second autobiography and appeared in the chapter titled “On Polygamy (And How to Attain It).”
    What attracted him to her? Her eyes? Her legs? Was it something mysteriously feminine about her that no other girl seemed to possess? She is young, cute, and romantic and her speech is fairly intelligent. As they get to know each other more intimately (I mean in a nice way, of course), they both discover that they are ecstatically happy when together and miserable when apart. And then, oh happy day, if she is smart enough not to spring her mother on him too unexpectedly, they will get married.
    No matter how many married couples they know, some unhappy, some happy, it seems inconceivable that anything could ever mar the joy they presently find in each other. I am sure that if they ever had any doubts or misgivings about their future happiness, neither wild horses nor her father could drag them to the altar.
    It is well known that young love is a temporary form of insanity and that the only cure for it is instant marriage.
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    ARMISTEAD MAUPIN
    TALES OF THE CITY , 1978
    Tales of the City was the first in a series of nine novels by the American author Armistead Maupin (1944–). The books are set in a San Francisco apartment house and feature memorably eccentric characters, including the landlady, Anna Madrigal, who recollects for a tenant this piece of advice.
    The ellipses are the author’s.
    Mona . . . Lots of things are more binding than sex. They last longer too. When I was . .