This essay will explore two types of marriages in China, uxorilocal and minor marriage. In a uxorilocal marriage, the man moves into the woman's home. Usually, women's family does not have a son and economically it is necessary for him to help support them. Uxorilocal marriages are very rare and do not occur very often. In a minor marriage, the in-laws will adopt their future daughter-in-law at a very young age who will then marry her “adopted brother”. As a granddaughter-in-law, the future husband's family adopts the girl they would like their son to marry when he is a child. This gives the future mother-in-law an advantage. She is able to shape and control her to fit the type of girl she would like her son to marry. Often, this power of the mother-in-law was abused. She does not benefit from the treatment that her biological family would give her and is sometimes treated like a slave. The girl would be neglected and given a huge amount of work for the family. On the other hand, it also helps the girl during her transition to adult life. Growing up in the same village in which she will live during her mature years gives her the advantage of having a social network. Being married under patrilineal descent is very difficult for women, especially socially. When she first marries, her social relationships are left completely at home. At first, the village is very suspicious of the new bride because she is new and they don't know much about her. Once she is able to find her place in the community, she is able to gain allies as well as elders from whom she can gain knowledge and support. As women age and their families grow, their position and strength change. She can gain protection......middle of paper......st-Mao China. American Ethnologist, 30: 578-596. doi: 10.1525/ae.2003.30.4.578James L. Watson (1982). Chinese Kinship Reconsidered: Anthropological Perspectives on Historical Research. The China Quarterly, 92, pages 589-622. doi:10.1017/S0305741000000965.Johnson, Kay Ann. Women, the family and the peasant revolution in China. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983. Print. Lee, Liu. “China’s demographic trends and their implications for fertility policy.” Asian Population Studies 6.3 (2010): 289-305. Premier Academic Research. Internet. April 16, 2014.Spradley, James P. and David W. McCurdy. Conformity and conflict: readings in cultural anthropology. Boston: Little, Brown, 1971. Print. Zuo, Jiping. “Rethinking family patriarchy and the position of women in pre-socialist China.” Journal of Marriage and Family 71.3 (2009): 542-557. Premier Academic Research. Internet. April 2. 2014.