An Article On The National Marriage Project

All it took was one google search for marital statistics to prove me wrong. According to a 2016 publication by the ABS, marriage rates have been on a high compared to the mid and late 1900’s. The very play that made me question the future of marriage was a pioneering play of the 1950’s by Ray Lawler, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll- a tale about unconventional relationships that don’t stand the test of time.

People believe that marriage is easy and is the key to love and happiness, but in reality marriage is harder than it looks. Everyone marries for different reasons, for good or for bad. People today don’t understand the meaning of marriage; it is more than just money and appearance. Seeing today’s world of marriage is being influenced by media shows like Jerry Springer, Judge Judy, and Murray makes you realize how society today identifies marriage different. Couples who live unmarried will be happier and have more choices than those that are married in agreement with Catherine Newman’s essay called I Do. Not.: Why I Won’t Marry in the book “Acting Out Culture: Reading and Writing “, by: James S. Miller. Catherine Newman is a writer and an author

Marriage is steady and stable for the highly educated Americans; marriages are still weak for the lower class, but according to the State of Our Unions, middle American marriages are in trouble. This article stresses that marriage is not just important for two people who are in love with one another, it stresses that marriage is important for America to thrive. The article separates Americans into three different groups: poor, middle class, and highly educated Americans. Marriage has always been feeble for citizens that are labeled as poor. The middle class, which is fifty- eight percent of America, are defined as a person who did attend high school and wasn’t a drop out. Middle class Americans are also defined as a person who has some form of college or training the goes beyond high school. The middle class is most people and since there are so many this is why we have to find out why are marriages are failing in this groups. This article also talks about the highly educated, thirty percent of our population, who have at

If one were to read any article by the average woman in the media – and some males for that matter – regarding the declining state of marriage rates today. One could reasonably think that the reason marriages are on the decline is that women are choosing not to get married or some other such tripe that ineffectively attempts to hide the truth of the matter. (Ayanna, G. 2010), (Dewitt.1992), (Rosenbloom, 2006), (Campbell, 2001)

In “For better, for worse: Marriage means something different now,” Stephanie Coontz reveals the worldwide changes in people’s attitudes and behaviors towards marriage. According to Coontz, education and the social norms are the reasons why marriage has become nonessential. Being single and going through a divorce are more acceptable now. The motivations of marriage have turned from economic dependence into personal willingness. In fact, Coontz’s words make me wonder the true meaning of marriage. Even though the meaning has changed over times, I believed that I still hope to get married.

Marriage has changed dramatically over time in the many years it has been around. What do think Marriage was like 100 years ago? The article, “American Marriage in Transition”, describes how many different types of marriage there are and how people have changed their view on it. Andrew Cherlin (the sociologist of the article) does a great job going in depth explaining American marriage. He arranges the different marriages in three different categories; Institutionalized which was the earliest type of marriage, then Companionship around World War II, and currently we are considered Individualized.

Last, and most important, is that studies have not shown that more hours spent on homework leads to more knowledge. Time spent on homework does not correlate to better test scores. Some students can spend twice as much time as others and still not do as well. Grades do not necessarily improve with more hours of homework.

In the article “What if Marriage is Bad for Us?” Laurie Essig and Lynn Owens summarize the things that

Besides, I also learned that even though marriage is popular, the social norms governing marriage have become weaker. This happens may be because there is a change from institutional to companionate marriage and also there is a larger emphasis on marriage meeting individualistic and self-fulfilling need. People hold many expectations on marriage. People expect marriage can help

In over half a century, marriage has transformed from being a social requirement to simply being an option in today’s society. What has caused this change? Many institutions in our society have changed drastically along with marriage. Although these institutions have not caused marriage to be optional, they do strongly correlate with the decreased value. The economy, education, religion, and government have all altered since the 1950s. When any institution encounters a change, all other institutions are affected. Family is a major institution in society, and I believe that marriage is an important aspect of this institution. Cohabitation, religion, women in the work world and divorce have all effected the way marriage is viewed today.

Another huge factor in the article states that people with higher paying jobs and schooling tend to marry off and stay married. This is because they have a more stable environment and when you have a stable environment you tend to have good relationships with your peers, family and loved ones.

Is Marriage Bad for Us? Laurie Essig and Lynn Owens assert at the end of their article “Is Marriage Really Bad for Us?” that “Americans haven’t failed at marriage. Marriage has failed us” (163). Their main point in the article seems to be that marriage is indeed bad for us (a claim of value in the terminology of the Toulmin model).

A survey of 14000 adults states in ‘A Guide to Family Issues: The Marriage Advantage’ that marriage was a pertinent factor contributing to happiness and satisfaction with forty percent of the married individuals being happy as opposed to 25 percent of either single or cohabiting individuals. The same study shows that ninety eight percent of never married respondents wished to marry and out of those 88% believed that it should be a lifelong commitment. Even though, divorce rates are rising numerous researches show that young people aspire to have a lasting marriage.

The simplest and most basic foundation of a sociological civilization or group begins at the core center of sociology; which is marriage and the inner-fabric creation of a family. It is said that matches are made in heaven, however finding and defining your “soul mate” differs from one social group to the next. The social institution of marriage changes and adapts consistently through time, religious practice, and national beliefs. Many people believe they lead happy and satisfying lives without a marital partner, as others highly value and desire a life-long marital partner as the pinnacle achievement of their life.

Today, the idea of marriage conjures images of bashful brides beautifully draped in all white, of grandiose flower arrangements climbing towards the ceiling, of romance personified. As an institution in this modern world, marriage represents the apex of romantic love, with an entire industry of magazines, movies, and television shows devoted to perpetuating marriage as an idealized symbol of the ultimate love between two people. Contrarily, as a sociological institution, marriage comes from much more clinical and impersonal origins, contrasting with the passion surrounding modern understandings of the institution. Notably, french anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss theorizes that the institution of marriage emerged from a need to form alliances between groups, with women functioning as the property exchanged so that such alliances could be solidified (Levi-Strauss).