Naked marriage in China

Naked Marriage (Chinese: 裸婚), a newly developed concept derived from the Internet in 2008, serves as a description of the increasingly prevalent form of marriage popular among people born after the 1980s in China. In Naked Marriage, loving partners get united without solid material foundation. It typically bears the characteristics of "no house", "no car", "no ring", and "no ceremony", and is generally recognized as a frugal way of tying the knot under the enormous economic pressure China's younger generation is currently facing.

Under the influence of the global financial crisis, the popularity of naked culture has been soaring sharply in China since 2008. Because of the high cost of living and intense job competition, it is difficult for these young people, born after the 1980s, to have a car, a house, or savings. A great number of them have been forced to choose a naked marriage due to this harsh reality. Statistics have shown that, over 50% of the young people turning 30 cannot afford both a car and a house. The skyrocketing house prices make them feel powerless and frustrated. Therefore, they can do nothing but choose a naked marriage.

Traditionally, marriage has a basis in material possessions. However, some young couples choosing a naked marriage are unswerving in pursuit of pure love, which they deem an important element in marriage of this period. From the perspective of them, in such a world fraught with material temptation, the key consideration for matchmaking has gone on the wrong path towards sound economic base instead of pure love. In their love philosophy, it is pure love that can stand the test of time and be the bedrock of a successful marital combination. In order to express enthusiastic plea for pure love, they choose to get rid of superficial marital accessories, thus giving rise to the boom of Naked Marriage. Despite the strengthening call for pure love, however, there are also people reckoning this opinion as rather idealistic, rejecting the impulse to disavow all traditional trappings of marriage.

Naked Marriage can be said to be a product of the rebellious nature of China's younger generation on the topic of love. With an increasing awareness of self-cognition, young people of China grow to see themselves unique and independent with personal preferences. In terms of marital form, their choices manifest their intense internal beliefs under the pressure of external restrictions, as well as their eagerness for independence. In this materialistic society, it is common that the masses deem a stable economic condition a crucial factor of marriage. However, young people gradually come to their own realization that sustaining their beliefs can also lead to a happy marital life. Despite the lack of an apartment, a car and a luxury wedding, they believe that, what really counts is to determinedly follow their heart for the sake of happiness instead of compromising to the secular values of the society. According to a China Daily's research, however, opposition voices call for awareness of responsibility in marriage, and strongly reject this self-centered, immature behaviour.

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