Happily Ever After? Essay

When our friends and family marry, the ultimate goal is “Till Death Do Us Part”, however, contrary to popular belief half of marriages end in divorce. This statistic has been proven to be accurate for the last 40 years. Due to the large number of divorces, they are a lot more acceptable than they once were. Now becoming a societal norm. Divorces are now a part of everyday life. This ethical shift has impacted a lot of people, mostly the children. Figuring out why most Americans are choosing divorce over marriage counseling will depend on many generalization factors.

In the 1970’s, divorce was relatively uncommon and difficult to happen. There needed to be adultery, abandonment, cruelty, intoxication or some other reason that made it necessary to end the marriage (“Why”). In today’s society, divorce happens every ten to thirteen seconds. Men and women fall in love, get married, and start a family. They make a vow to stay together forever and love each other unconditionally. However, not all marriages make it that far. Divorce occurs for multiple reasons such as financial problems, abuse, addictions, infidelity (cheating), and lack of communication. These factors, along with many others, not only affect the parents, but the children are affected as well.

There is a staggeringly large amount of divorces in the United States (US). In total, the US had a recorded total of 2,140,272 marriages in the year 2014 alone, and of those marriages, 813,862 ended up in divorce or annulment (Center for Disease Control). This means that as recently as 2014, there was a divorce rate of approximately 40%. This supports the statistics that the divorce rate for the US has stayed within 40-50% since the 1970’s (Austin Institute, 2014). While the numbers themselves are important, it is also important that the causes for the high divorce rate be explored, so that it can be known what pitfalls to avoid when participating in such an important union as marriage. There are many causes of divorce in the US such as conflicting gender roles, socioeconomic status, religious conflicts, physical abuse, emotional abuse, alcohol addictions, and many more (Amato & Previti, 2003). This paper will look at many of these reasons, but it will also focus on the differing reasons reported by men and women.

The United States of America is the land of the free and the home of the brave; however, it can also be called the country that holds the highest divorce rates. America’s divorce rate in 2010 was at forty one percent and is still currently growing (Divorce Rates by Country). Forty percent of these divorces had children involved (Divorce Rates in America). With such shocking statistics, it is easy to see that America’s divorce system is in dire need of change. Since divorce can ruin families, harm a child’s all around well-being, and holds the potential of being prevented, there should be more strict regulations to receive a divorce and a stronger push for covenant marriages.

Diverse ways of managing money, different financial incomes, and an absence of cash can create great tension in a marriage. In fact, statistics in a survey conducted by Citibank on the divorce rates in the United States suggested that more than fifty percent of divorced couples referred to financial problems as the cause of their divorce. If the couples have children, cash turns out to be significantly more crucial to the relationship. Many individuals refer to money as the reason for their separation. If there is not enough financial care, it causes a barrier in the relationship which is what essentially leads the couple to

Variables such as abuse, illness, death, and financial issues all factor into crumbling marriages; “irreconcilable

Throughout time, practices that were once never used, become more common. In the 1600s divorce was a forbidden practice or a last resort. Since then, laws have changed, and so hasn’t the stigma related with divorce. The guilt and fault that divorce once carried has vanished. According to the book Should I Keep Trying to Work it out, “In the United States, researchers estimate that 40%–50% of all first marriages will end in divorce or permanent separation. The risk of divorce is even higher for second marriages, about 60%.” (Hawkins 42). As it became more common for couples in America to separate, divorce gradually became a normal part of so many lives. Why are so many couples separating now? Through research on EBSCO, and other findings, I will attempt to explain this question that so many people ask in today’s world. The divorce rate in America is drastically increasing over time due to new laws, certain generations, and relationship issues.

The effects of divorce on the American culture are immense. Social scientists have been studying these effects for many years now. The studies are continuing to confirm that the climbing rate of divorce in the American culture is hurting the society and also frequently devastating the lives of many American children. There are many areas in which divorce has a negative effect in the life of a child or an adult. Many of these effects also directly correlate to the effect on a society. However, there is hope. Although divorce is being more widely recognized as being harmful to both our culture and to the individuals involved, there are many ways that we as a culture can seek to reduce this harm and attain our goal of being a culture

Divorce is such a personal and common thing in America. There are so many couples who go through the act of divorce every day. According to Kanewicher and Harris (2014), forty to fifty percent of couples will end in divorce within the first few years of marriage. Divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body. There are many factors that may lead couples into divorce. Some of those factors are, marrying too young, low education levels and overall just lack of preparation (Kanewischer, 2015). Although divorce is common now, it was not like this back in the late 1900’s. Divorce was not allowed and most of the time people did not want to get divorce because of all the time and effort they put into their marriage.

In the old days, it was so hard to get a legal divorce even if couples were unhappy. Courts would not dissolve a marriage without proof of misconduct. Today marriage educators, domestic violence experts, social workers, law makers and scholars are trying various ways to resolve marriage crisis through counseling, while divorce rates are still climbing yearly. Making it harder to obtain a divorce can have devastating effects long term emotionally, financially and physically, and socially on the children and adults as well. Making it harder for a marriage to be dissolved can have a great impact on children in positive and negative ways. Although reforming the laws of divorce should not be a primary source for solutions, but reforming

More often than not there is some type of financial issue when a divorce happens. Money is the top reasons for divorce and it is simply not a good reason to get divorced. Married couples tell each other they will be there no matter what, but when the money goes away, sometimes so does one of the partners. This is a horrible reason to get divorced and also a horrible reason to get married.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2011 there were 2,118,000 marriages in the United States and almost half as many divorces (2013). The CDC also reports that only half of all first marriages will reach their twentieth anniversary. Divorce is a topic everyone is familiar with and it has almost become a normal part of life. While it is assumed that more divorces occur now than in the previous generation, the CDC actually reports that divorce rates have dropped over the past twenty to thirty years, though this could be due to the increase in individuals who live together without ever getting married or those who simply separate and cannot afford to become legally divorced. However, it has become a more

The third cause for divorce is when there is infidelity in the marriage. In the past men were known for being unfaithful but now it is both men and women. Roughly, about sixty percent of men are unfaithful and forty percent of women are unfaithful. These numbers are outrages. Many men and women say they are unfaithful because there is no communication in the marriage. Their spouse does not know what is going on in their lives. Therefore, they turn to a coworker or friend for support and that became the gateway to their infidelity. Infidelity is one of the hardest things to cope with in a marriage. Because it makes the spouse feel insecure, self conscious, disgusted with their spouse, and embarrassed about him or herself, especially if the family finds out. Some spouses are not able to deal with the infidelity and they will end up getting a divorce.

The sanctity of marriage has seemed to have disappeared with the arrival of the 21st century. Though marriage rates have always fluctuated in the past, current events have caused divorce rates to increase. According to recent statistics made by the census bureau, the divorce rate in America is roughly 50 percent. There are a myriad of speculations as to why more people are not staying together. One reason is that people are getting married for the wrong reasons, such as unplanned pregnancies. Another reason is that women have become more independent so that they are not forced in to being in a marriage where they are not happy. Last, lenient divorce laws make it much easier for many couples to get divorced. Combined, these three

“DIVORCE” – Just the sound of such word in any married couple or children’s ear can cause great agony that can even become terminal. Research and personal experience, has proven that in today's society, divorce is more common amongst newlyweds. Since 2009 the rate of divorce has increased to approximately forty percent, There are three out of every ten marriage that ends up in divorce before it reaches the stage of maturity, and the most prevalent results are – lack of communication and infidelity.