Informative Essay: Should We Save A Marriage In America?

There comes a point in everyone’s life that this question or subject is brought up - “Are you dating anyone?” “When are you guys getting married?” When these questions are asked from family and friends, it pressures people into finding that special one. Even though, people do experience those desires and questions for themselves; does it make it right to feel that need? What is marriage? Is marriage a contract or love? What if marriage is not what people perceive it to be? What if marriage is not the happily ever after often seen in the movies? Laurie Essig and Lynn Owens are two scholars that wrote a piece entitled, What If Marriage Is Bad for Us? that contended the institution purpose of marriage is obsolete and in reality bad for society, and how marriage can lead to changed, unhealthy, and distressed.

Marriage was put into rolls in the 1950s. Men would work and supply the money. Women would stay home, clean the house, and tend to the children. Now, in the twenty-first century, we no longer have rolls in marriage. Both parties work and supply money. Marriage has changed in many ways throughout the years.

In the United States of America, family life has been greatly important to the structure and function of society. A large part of this family life is the institution of marriage itself. Over the past few decades, the role and presence of marriage has been transformed. What once was a standard assumption in the home life of Americans has become increasingly less consistent. The Changing Landscape of Love and Marriage by authors Kathleen E. Hull, Ann Meier, and Timothy Ortyl discusses how and why these changes may have taken place on the basis of two primary conclusions. The first of these is the idea that marriage has lost it’s taken-for-granted status, and the second being the fact that both adults and children are experiencing more upheaval in their personal lives than in the past.

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

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.

In the modern era, with economic independence available for both men and women, many people are choosing not to marry these days. Williams reports that marriage rates have dropped to a forty-year low while divorce rates continue to hover just above 50 percent. In addition to the high divorce rate, the report issued by Rutgers University’s National Marriage Project indicates that the percentage of married people who reported “being happy” in their marriages fell from 53.5 in 1973-76 to 37.8 in 1996 (1). Williams attributes these phenomena to social changes such as legalization of cohabitation between

Marriage: a fairy tale where every moment leads to happiness and everlasting love. In the article “What’s Happening to Marriage?” the authors David Popenoe and Barbara Dafoe Whitehead reverse the fairy tale of marriage. The article conveys a different aspect of marriage that marriage is weakening and divorce is on the rise. The authors believe men and women of this time have more struggles when marrying one another than when their parents or grandparents got married. The authors’ arguments are well supported, but their use of fallacies outweighs their theories.

Marriage is a very common thing in today’s society, but along with the popularity of marriage comes divorces that end marriages. With divorce becoming more common, men may second guess popping the question or women might think twice about saying yes. With divorce making an appearance more often in marriage it is a given that today’s marriages have changed, and there is all time high divorce rate to prove it. In the article “What’s Happening to Marriage?” by The National Marriage Project, provides possible reasons and answers to why and how today’s marriages differ from past marriages. This paper was constructed with well credible sources and numerous logos appeals.

About four-in-ten (39%) Americans hold the view that “marriage is becoming obsolete.” An over ten percent increase from merely forty years ago when only twenty-eight percent of the population held that view (A Record Low). We are living in a society where the role of marriage has been largely diminishing, on the rate of every 1,000 people 6.8 of our population had entered a marriage in 2010. Yet nearly half of that of our population got divorced in the same year. For the past ten years our divorce rate has maintained that same rate of around fifty percent (Divorce Rate Trends). Showing that the rate of failed marriage over people entering marriage maintains a higher rate, while our public view of marriage has not reflected this enough.

Given that divorce rates steadily rise and marriage rates fall, marriage and family emphasis on marriage does not seem like a stable social institution. An institution where the partnership of a couple flourish psychically, emotionally and as well as mentally. However, it is important to know what you are getting yourself into before saying “I do”. People experience different things out of marriage, good and bad. Whether or not if marriage works for you, you need to find out what helps you thrive and flourish. In this instance, this is where positive psychology plays its essential role in helping you figure out what works best in your interest and well-being. While marriage seems to be predominantly negative, resulting

Although marriage traditions have drastically changed over the past century with the rise of feminism and increased acceptance of diversity, the traditions of western marriage have remained prominent throughout the United States. The common practices of having a white dress and wedding cake have remained; however, weddings have become progressively more extravagant. Additionally, home life and responsibilities for men and women have undergone changes, as well as the prospect of divorce becoming more common. While the main principles of marriage have continued to be classic or taboo, society is on its way to more contemporary

In todays globalized world a lack in social welfare can affect the social function, and result in divorce. Marriage is an important social institution between two families and not just two individuals. Women play the passive and motherhood gender role while men primarily the dominant role. Although customs play a role in parents grooming and prepare their daughters for marriage, sometimes the benefits outweigh the costs. Some young women are too naïve thinking they will be compatible with their mate simply because their parents and grandparents did without realizing the good and bad that come with marriage. There is situation where women are forces into marriage due to economic prosperities through dowry payments. As wonderful a person may

The first major change of America’s view on marriage and the family is the concept of marriage itself. In today’s “Middle America,” marriage rates are declining rapidly in what is termed the “moderately educated middle” which is described by the research as those who have graduated from high school but not college. Those in this class are less likely to get and stay married than their peers who have a college degree. For many Americans, marital happiness rates are at a low point due to numerous reasons which include the later age in which people get married, the

Marriage is a social structure. When couples get married they enter into a relationship that is societally recognized and to some degree societally regulated. Laws, customs, traditions and cultural assumptions are intrinsically involved in defining the path that a marriage will take. In the late 19th century many Americans had to come to terms in some way with the societal expectations of marriage, guided by the Victorian mores. But as the 20th century began these elements began to evolve. As personal expectations became more important societal expectations lost prevalence.

Marriage has become more about the glitz and the glam of planning/ having the perfect wedding, finding the perfect wedding and living a fairly tail life. Rather than focusing on planning your life together with someone, finding a compatible mate, and learning how to deal with the person you are about to commit to. People spend thousands of dollars and months