The traditional marriage ceremony in Western Culture ends with the bride carried over the threshold by the husband. How many modern couples realize that this ancient custom symbolizes rape and the unwilling capture of women for breeding purposes.
The myth of the founding of ancient Rome included the so-called "Rape of the Sabine Women" where women from a neighboring community were forcibly captured and forced to join the nascent Roman polity. These women were not, according to tradition, given any choice in the matter, but were the founding women of Rome's aristocricy.
The custom of carrying the bride over the threshold dates back to this ancient Roman myth. It is meant to symbolize the UNWILLINGNESS of the woman in the marriage. To quote from the Chronicle of the Roman Republic by Philip Matyszak:
To symbolize the fact that their first brides did not come willingly, later Roman men carried their brides into their new homes--a tradition continued in Western countries today.
I bet few couples today who participate in this ancient custom realize that the symbolism is the unwillingness and rape of the women forced (according to legend) to participate in the founding of ancient Rome.
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