Yesterday, I saw a news report about a wedding in the Chaozhou-Shantou region, where the father escorted his daughter, who was wearing a wedding dress, into the ceremony. Onlookers exclaimed that the father-daughter duo looked like siblings or even sister and brother, with many feeling that the father appeared even younger than his daughter. The father apparently desired this effect, as he made a point of wearing a youthful-looking round-neck T-shirt for the occasion. In an interview, he stated that he was born in 1986 and is currently 41 years old, having had his daughter at the age of 19, who is now getting married. In the comments section, aside from praises for the father's youthful appearance, many people discussed "genetics" and even "family traditions," saying they had seen families like this before, where generations often marry early.
Many Chinese people have a habit of not understanding big data or probability, and as soon as they open their mouths, it's "I've seen one". In everyday discussions, when someone wants to refute your general views, they often use individual cases like "my neighbor", "my cousin", "the family upstairs", or "that person from the next village".
Not to mention becoming a father-in-law at 41, I have seen people become grandfathers at 35 or 36. However, "I have seen" is often just an idiomatic expression, and in this case, it is indeed rare, which is why it makes the news. This has nothing to do with "genetics" or "family tradition," but is rather the result of a small number of immoral individuals. The reason it is rare is that they do not conform to the basic trends of modern civilized society.
Some people are definitely resistant to the term "scoundrel", saying why curse others, I dislike this kind of pseudo-rational objectivity. Lu Xun scolded people every day, and didn't scold wrongly, yet some big Vs are "refined and polite" but still rotten to the core.
Marrying and having children early is a matter of personal freedom, but to be honest, which good family would have a 35-year-old grandfather or a 41-year-old father-in-law? It's normal for one generation in a family to marry and have children early, but the situation of a "35-year-old grandfather" implies the incompetence of three generations: the first generation (the great-grandfather's generation) failed to educate their children properly, resulting in their son getting a girl pregnant before the age of 18 and rushing into marriage. Then, this second generation, who also married and had children before 18, again failed to educate their own next generation properly, and also got a girl pregnant before 18, thus becoming a grandfather prematurely. Such a family is simply rotten to the core. If only the second generation had gained some understanding of the world after getting married and provided their children with a normal education, even if they didn't attend college, they could have graduated from high school or vocational school and gone to work, and it's unlikely they would have produced a fourth generation so quickly.
The situation of becoming a father-in-law at 41 is slightly more optimistic, but still limited. A father who appears young had a daughter at 19, meaning he got someone pregnant at 18, and his educational background is obviously limited. His daughter got married at 22, which is not a problem in terms of age, and there is a certain probability that she received higher education and got married immediately after graduation. However, data shows that the probability of divorce is extremely high for those who get married immediately after receiving higher education, far exceeding those who graduate from high school or vocational school and get married at 22. This is because women who receive higher education tend to postpone childbearing (this tendency does not apply to everyone, and there are certainly exceptions, so please do not counter my argument with individual cases).
This is because normal people generally need several years of work, accumulation, and free time before they have a relatively mature direction in love and marriage. While it's not impossible for couples who get married right after graduation to live happily ever after, many such cases are the result of parental pressure or unplanned pregnancy. In either case, the individuals involved may not have the sufficient emotional maturity and capability to face real marriage, and the likelihood of the relationship falling apart is high. Moreover, getting married right after graduation often means that one's emotional experience in interacting with society is extremely limited, and the saying "the less one sees, the less one can resist temptation" holds true in any field.
In ancient China, people married early because the average life expectancy was only around thirty years old, and once a person turned thirty, they could call themselves "old". As a result, not only was early marriage encouraged, but also having many children. Having more sons was particularly desirable, as labor was the foundation of a family's survival.
In modern civilized society, why is there a natural tendency towards late marriage and late childbearing? It's because the problem of basic subsistence has been solved, and individuals have more things to pursue. For example, they can pursue free love and won't be like people in ancient times who had arranged marriages, nor will they need to rely on "matchmaking by organizations" like the older generation; they can pursue their careers and ideals, and leave some free time to fight for their goals before considering marriage and childbearing; they can also pursue relatively free and easy days, travel everywhere while they're young, and put off marriage and childbearing. There are countless motivations that drive individuals, influencing the overall marriage and childbearing choices of society.
Beyond this internal drive, shifts in the social structure are also objectively shaping individual life trajectories. The expansion of education is especially significant: in an ordinary family, a typical child follows the standard educational path. With the rapid growth in university admissions today, the odds of attending college are increasingly high, which naturally pushes up the average age of marriage.
It's the same old saying, it's not unusual for one generation in a family to marry early, but for two consecutive generations to marry early and even have children right at the age of majority, it means the entire family has major problems, at the very least in terms of education.
"I top of a of a top of a top of a common place," " place of a place of a top of a common place." " place of a top of " " place of a top of a " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " more common place," " " " " " " " " " " " " ". " " " " " " " of a common place," " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " ". " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " of " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " more common " " " " " " " " of " " " " of a " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " "elling," " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " " "ering," " " " " " " "
In today's media landscape, it's common for journalists to go against their conscience, writing in an official tone and using grandiose language to showcase the wisdom and prowess of local government officials. However, when these leaders suddenly fall from power, the previous praise becomes a source of embarrassment. Nevertheless, this is a price that must be paid, as journalists often have to curry favor with officials - particularly those with significant influence - in order to advance their careers or secure transfers. For those without scruples, being caught in a lie is a small price to pay. Moreover, this is often an unavoidable situation, as journalists must cater to the whims of local government officials, and even low-ranking officials can wield significant power over a journalist's work, demanding revisions and changes at their discretion.
Fawning over those in power, whether forced or voluntary, is a social norm. The media is no more noble than other industries, but it's not particularly base either. However, beyond the "required actions," sensationalizing news like "41-year-old becomes father-in-law" is a decline. I can guess the intentions of the editors, and this news, apart from its built-in traffic-generating function, also appears to be "positive energy" that aligns with population trends. But anyone with a bit of sense would understand that if this society were full of such people, it would be better to have fewer of them.
Having grown accustomed to groveling, even when no one tells you to kneel, you still choose to put on a show; this is really pointless.