What sounds suspicious here is that diamond rings are not particularly good as the performance bond. Sale value of the ring usually much less than the purchase price (which means the woman loses part of the value that the man is willing to commit) and this sum is much smaller than the price of rearing a child alone and even the price of the marriage prospects destroyed. Of course, the woman may refuse to accept anything but a super-expensive ring but in reality the rings that get accepted are not that expensive, compared to the value that it is purported to be the bond for. It can not really be otherwise - if it is too expensive for an average person, it can not become a tradition among these people.
So this theory, while it looks plausible, does not seem to properly explain the rings, unless I am very wrong about the prices in play - are there any data about it?
So this theory, while it looks plausible, does not seem to properly explain the rings, unless I am very wrong about the prices in play - are there any data about it?