„Dlaczego się nie żenią?” O przyczynach starokawalerstwa w humorystycznych narracjach polskich publikacji popularnych od drugiej połowy XIX do początków XX wieku

Abstract

The article discusses the motives and causes of the phenomenon of “unmarried men”, which were included in popular humorous texts from the second half of the 19th to the beginning of the 20th century. During the discussed period there were some significant social transformations. One of the manifestations of these changes was the increasing number of men who were living alone. In the context of nineteenth-century norms of morals, this situation aroused social concern. Lack of acceptance and stigmatization of people who were living alone, that was expressed in the epithets of the “confirmed bachelor”, as well as the “old maid” and in the widespread stereotypes, rose the question: why do not the bachelors marry? The aim of the article is to examine the arguments appearing in selected sources in the context of the following questions: Was this situation a result of a bad fate or rather a choice? If the reason was hidden in external – social and moral factors and what role economic reasons played in this situation?