Kontakt 2010, 12(2):159-169 | DOI: 10.32725/kont.2010.021
Certain questions concerning the family in terms legislation (conditions in Czech countries at the end of the existence of Austro-Hungary)Health and Social Sciences
- Jihočeská univerzita v Českých Budějovicích, Zdravotně sociální fakulta
The target of the work is to provide basic characteristics of legal arrangements of traditional families, establishing of marriage, possible divorce and principal relationships between parents and children in Czech countries at the end of the existence of Austro-Hungary.
Considerations are recently being ever more frequently encountered not only in expert publications, indicating that the traditional family faces a big crisis. This is usually documented by different statistical data about high rates of divorces, low numbers of marriages, i.e. not establishing marriage of young persons or older partners, particularly over the last 15 years, replacement of the marriage by partnerships and in general arguing that the basic task of the family, particularly reproduction and upbringing of children can be provided in other or better way within these forms compared to improperly functioning family.
The serious consideration of the development over recent years and expression of opinions about the magnitude of its importance for the future is impossible without a retrospective look; the family actually passed through a long process of development, which was affected in the territory of the currently existing Czech Republic (and of course also in the other areas) by economic, political, social, religious and further relationships in different time periods.
The view into the past is also possible in a rather non-traditional manner and without excess quoting of historical events, where the law should be particularly helpful, if we consider the fact that the law comprises opinions of the majority in the society concerning given problems or is at least respected by an important majority of the society.
The drawback of the method chosen is certainly a fact that in the first consideration of the legal problems of the family, these were laws established by a monarch, whereas further considerations concern laws adopted by parliaments of either democratic or totalitarian states. Given the assumption that texts of legal rules are prepared by experts in an objective manner or within the framework of a given intention of the law, the author is convinced that the above mentioned drawback of the method chosen steps aside.
Keywords: family; law; living together without marriage; marriage
Received: October 5, 2009; Accepted: March 12, 2010; Prepublished online: June 14, 2010; Published: June 14, 2012 Show citation
