Bachelor 4881 223625133 2008-07-04T23:16:06Z 68.49.45.142 /* Notable Bachelors throughout History */ {{Unreferenced|date=December 2007}} {{otheruses}} A '''bachelor''' is a man above the [[age of majority]] who has never been [[marriage|married]] (see [[single (relationship)|single]]). A man who was formerly married is not a bachelor but rather is a [[divorce|divorcé]] or a [[widower]] (except in cases where the marriage was legally [[annulment|annulled]], in which case there was legally no marriage—especially if it was never consummated). The term is sometimes restricted to men who do not have and are not actively seeking a spouse or other personal partner.<ref>Cole, David. "Note on Analyticity and the Definability of "Bachelor"." Philosophy Department. 1 Feb. 1999. 14 Feb. 2008 <http://www.d.umn.edu/~dcole/bachelor.htm>.</ref> For example, men who are in a committed relationship with a personal partner (female or male) to whom they are not married are no longer generally considered "bachelors,"{{Fact|date=February 2007}} but neither are they considered married. Thus, a broad grey, unnamed status has emerged between the concepts of "bachelor" and "married man." <ref name="Definalibility of Bachelor">[http://www.d.umn.edu/~dcole/bachelor.htm Note on the Definability of "Bachelor"<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Research done by sociologists Richard Pitt and Elizabeth Borland sharpens the definition of bachelor to mean "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating" for just this reason. They discovered that these bachelors were more liberal in their attitudes towards women's roles in society; this was not the case for those men who were only "unmarried".<ref> Pitt, Richard and Elizabeth Borland. 2008. "Bachelorhood and Men's Attitudes about Gender Roles" ''The Journal of Men's Studies'' 16:140-158</ref> During the [[Victorian Era]], the term '''confirmed bachelor''' often was used as a [[euphemism]] for a [[homosexuality|gay man]] and is currently still in use in the United States and Great Britain.<ref name="list of sexual slurs">[http://www.biologydaily.com/biology/List_of_sexual_slurs biology - List of sexual slurs<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref name="Lord Browne=comfirmed bachelor">[http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/may/07/mondaymediasection8 Peter Wilby on the Lord Browne saga | Media | The Guardian<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> In spite of the wider acceptance of gay people and same-sex relationships in recent years there are only little changes in this historic usage. Meanwhile, the term "confirmed bachelor" can also refer to heterosexual men who show no interest in marriage or classes of committed relationships. '''Most eligible bachelor''' is a generic term for a published listing of bachelors considered to be desirable marriage candidates. Usually '''most eligible bachelor''' lists are published on an annual basis and present listed men in a ranked order. ==Etymology and historical meanings==<!-- This section is linked from [[Folk etymology]] --> *The word is from [[Old French]] ''bacheler'' "knight bachelor", a young [[squire]] in training, ultimately from [[Latin]] ''baccalarius'', a [[vassal]] farmer. *The Old French term crossed into English around [[1300]], referring to one belonging to the lowest stage of [[knighthood]]. [[Knight bachelor|Knights bachelor]] were either poor vassals who could not afford to take the field under their own banner, or knights too young to support the responsibility and dignity of [[knight banneret|knights banneret]]. *from the 14th century, the term was also used for a junior member of a [[guild]], otherwise known as "yeomen", or [[university]]. *Hence, an ecclesiastic of an inferior grade, e.g. a young [[monk]] or even recently appointed [[Canon (priest)|canon]] (Severtius, de episcopis Lugdunen-sibus, p. 377, in [[Charles du Fresne, sieur du Cange|du Cange]]). *Those holding the preliminary degree of a [[university]] (or of a four-year college, in the [[United States|American]] system of higher education). In this sense the word ''baccalarius'' or ''baccalaureus'' first appears at the [[University of Paris]] in the 13th century, in the system of degrees established under the auspices of [[Pope Gregory IX]], as applied to scholars still in statu pupillari. Thus there were two classes of baccalarii: the ''baccalarii cursores,'' i.e. theological candidates passed for admission to the divinity course, and the ''baccalarii dispositi'', who, having completed this course, were entitled to proceed to the higher degrees. The term ''baccalaureus'' is a [[pun]] combining the prosaic ''baccalarius'' with ''bacca lauri'' "[[Bay laurel|laurel]] berry" -- per the American Heritage Dictionary, "bacca" is the Old Irish word for "farmer" + laureus, "laurel berry," the idea being that a "baccalaureate" had farmed (cultivated) his mind. *Modernly, in Anglophone academia, the [[Bachelor's Degree]] is part of a distinct hierarchical ranking of six degrees. From lowest to highest, they are: [[Associate's Degree]], a two-year degree most typically conferred in the United States by junior and community colleges; [[Bachelor's Degree]], a three-, four- or five-year undergraduate degree conferred by universities and, in the United States, also by senior (four-year) colleges; [[Master's Degree]], the first graduate degree above the baccalaureate; [[Specialist Degree]], a degree that ranks above the Master's but below the Doctorate; [[Doctoral degree]], the highest degree awarded in most fields of study, the doctorate may be a research degree (i.e., Ph.D. or D.Phil) or a professional degree (e.g., J.D./D.Jur., D.Min., Ed.D., M.D., D.M.A./A.Mus.D., etc.); and the [[Post-Doctoral Degree]], which is a doctoral degree that requires the conferee to have previously earned another doctoral degree. For example, the S.J.D./D.J.S. is conferred upon people who already possess the J.D./D.Jur. degree. *At [[University of Oxford|Oxford]] and [[University of Cambridge|Cambridge]] the bachelor can proceed to his mastership by simply retaining his name on the books and paying certain fees; but generally, further studies are necessary. But in no case is the bachelor a full member of the university, meaning that he does not have the right to teach. With the admission of women to universities from the late 19th century, the term in its academic sense could also apply to women. *The sense of "unmarried man" dates to 1385. The feminine ''[[bachelorette]]'' is from 1935, replacing earlier ''bachelor-girl''. In 19th century American slang ''to bach'' was used as a verb meaning "to live as an unmarried man". ==Penal laws and customs== Bachelors, in the sense of unmarried men, have in many countries been subjected to ridicule and draconian [[penal laws]]. In [[Sparta]], citizens who remained unmarried after a certain age suffered various penalties. They were not allowed to witness the gymnastic exercises of the maidens; and during winter they were compelled to march [[nudity|naked]] round the marketplace, singing a song composed against themselves and expressing the justice of their punishment.{{Fact|date=December 2007}} The usual respect of the young to the old was not paid to bachelors. In [[Athens]] there was no definite legislation on this matter; but certain minor laws are evidently dictated by a spirit akin to the Spartan doctrine. In Rome, though there appear traces of some earlier legislation in the matter, the first clearly known law is that called the [[Lex Julia]], passed about 18 BC. It does not appear to have ever come into full operation; and in AD 9 it was incorporated with the [[Lex Papia Poppaea|Lex Papia et Poppaea]], the two laws being frequently cited as one, Lex Julia et Papia Poppaea. This law, while restricting marriages between the several classes of the people, laid heavy penalties on unmarried persons, gave certain privileges to those citizens who had several children, and finally imposed lighter penalties on married persons who were childless. Isolated instances of such penalties occur during the Middle Ages, e.g. by a charter of liberties granted by [[Matilda I]], countess of [[Nevers]], to [[Auxerre]] in [[1223]], an annual tax of five solidi is imposed on any man ''qui non habet uxorem et est bache-larius''. In [[Great Britain]] there has been no direct legislation bearing on bachelors; but, occasionally, taxes have been made to bear more heavily on them than on others. Instances of this are an Act passed in [[1695]]; the tax on [[servant (domestic)|servant]]s, [[1785]]; and the [[income tax]], [[1798]]. In some cultures, the "punishment" of bachelors is no more than a teasing game. In small towns in [[Germany]], for example, men who were still unmarried on their 30th birthday were made to sweep the stairs of the [[town hall]] until kissed by a [[virgin]]. This "punishment" is still practised today in parts of Northern Germany [[:de:Treppe fegen|[1]]]. Similarly, in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the rest of Scandinavia, a male is called a "pebersvend" and may receive a giant pepper grinder on his 30th birthday if unmarried [[:da:Pebersvend|[2]]]. ==Notable Bachelors throughout History== * [[Adam Smith]], economist * [[André the Giant]], wrestler * [[António de Oliveira Salazar]], [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]] [[dictator]] * [[Antonio Vivaldi]], composer * [[Archibald Butt]], military aide to Presidents [[Theodore Roosevelt]] and [[William Howard Taft]]. Died in the sinking of the [[RMS Titanic|Titanic]] * [[Arthur Balfour]], [[British Prime Minister]] * [[Atal Behari Vajpayee]], former [[Prime Minister of India]] * [[Baruch de Spinoza]], Dutch philosopher of Portuguese Jewish origin * [[Benjamin Banneker]], scientist * [[Cesar Romero]], actor * [[Christopher Hewett]], actor * [[Ed Koch]], [[Mayor of New York]] * [[Edward Heath]], [[British Prime Minister]] * [[Eugène Delacroix]], painter * [[Franz Schubert]], composer * [[Friedrich Nietzsche]], author * [[George Eastman]], founded [[Eastman Kodak Company]] and invented [[roll film]], helping to bring [[photography]] to the mainstream. * [[George Frideric Handel]], composer * [[George Gershwin]], an American composer * [[George Tobias]], Actor * [[George Washington Carver]], scientist * [[Gianni Russo]], entertainer * [[Heath Ledger]], actor * [[Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec]], painter * [[Henry Brandon (actor)|Henry Brandon]], actor * [[Herbert Spencer]], English philosopher and political theorist * [[Immanuel Kant]], German philosopher * [[Isaac Newton]], scientist * [[Israel Shahak]], Polish-born Israeli Professor of Chemistry at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, the former president of the Israeli League for Human and Civil Rights * [[J. Edgar Hoover]], [[FBI]] Director * [[James Buchanan]], 15th [[U.S. President]], the only president who was never married. * [[Jean-Paul Sartre]], philosopher * [[Jesus Christ]], central figure of [[Christianity]] * [[Jimmy Savile]], radio personality * [[Jim Nabors]], American actor and singer * [[Jimi Hendrix]], an American guitarist, singer and songwriter * [[Johannes Brahms]], composer * [[Justin Theroux]], actor * [[Karl Lagerfeld]], fashion designer * [[Kārlis Ulmanis]], first Prime Minister of Latvia, later authoritarian ruler of Latvia 1934-1940 * [[Langston Hughes]], poet * [[Leonardo da Vinci]], [[Italy|Italian]] [[inventor]], [[artist]], and [[scientist]] * [[Lindsey Graham]], [[U.S. Senator]] from [[South Carolina]] * [[Ludwig van Beethoven]], composer * [[Luther Vandross]], singer/songwriter * [[Maurice Ravel]], composer * [[Meriwether Lewis]], explorer * [[Nicola Tesla]], inventor * [[Nipsey Russell]], comedian * [[The Wright Brothers| Orville Wright]], [[aviation]] pioneer * [[Paul Erdos]], [[Mathematician]]; died as a [[celibate]] * [[Pierre Boulle]], French author * [[Plato]], Greek philosopher * [[Richard Bedford Bennett]], 11th [[Prime Minister of Canada]] * [[Richard Mentor Johnson]], [[U.S. Vice President]] * [[Robert Schuman]], [[French Prime Minister]], regarded as a founder of the [[European Union]] * [[Samuel J. Tilden]], candidate for U.S. Presidency after the [[US Civil War|Civil War]] * [[Vincent van Gogh]], painter * [[Voltaire]], author * [[The Wright Brothers| Wilbur Wright]], [[Aviation]] pioneer * [[William Donald Schaefer]], the 58<sup>th</sup> [[Governor of Maryland|Governor]] of [[Maryland]] * [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]], 10th [[Prime Minister of Canada]] * [[Wilt Chamberlain]], basketball player, athlete * [[Władysław Raczkiewicz]], [[President of Poland]] during [[World War II]] * [[Kārlis Ulmanis]], [[President of Latvia]] * [[Ralph Nader]], [[activist]] ==See also== * [[Bachelor's degree]] * [[Marriage strike]] * [[Bachelor group]] * [[Bachelor party]] ==Footnotes== {{reflist|2}} == Further reading == * [http://marriage.rutgers.edu/Publications/SOOU/TEXTSOOU2002.htm Why Men Won't Commit: Exploring Young Men's Attitudes About Sex, Dating and Marriage by Drs. Barbara Dafoe Whitehead and David Popenoe] * [http://www.intellectualconservative.com/article3609.html The Marriage No-Shows by Carey Roberts] [[Category:Marriage]] [[de:Junggeselle]] [[hu:Agglegény]] [[nl:Vrijgezel]] [[nn:Ungkar]] [[uk:Холостяк]]