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Marriage is a controversial topic, and the views held by people vary greatly. The discrepancy in beliefs has led to this question: does marriage today retain the same value that it once possessed? People are choosing to remain unmarried  because they believe that it does not fit their needs or they believe that it is a failed institution which they do not wish to experience or support. Other people believe that there is a huge benefit to getting married and that marriage presents innumerable values that cannot be derived from any other relationship. Marriage is the cornerstone of many other relationships including the following: sibling relationships, parental relationships, and extended familial relationships. However, lack of knowledge of how to maintain relationships and what constitutes a healthy relationship can result in unhealthy or broken marriages. This results in divorce which is another huge problem that frequently impacts modern marriage, creating another issue that leaves even more to contemplate when one considers the importance of marriage and triggering social, psychological, and physical destruction on everyone affected by the act of divorce. People who are considering marriage need to be instructed on its value in a manner which emphasizes its importance to a healthy and functioning society while also educating the population on the common causes and reasons for divorce. If a large percentage of the population understand the facts that surround the topic of marriage, the choice to avoid it will become much less of an issue because there will be fewer biases against marriage. People will know how to obtain a healthy marriage and how all of the positive effects of marriage benefit society, spouses, and the family unit.

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Ortiz-Ospina, Esteban and Roser, Max. "Marriages and Divorces". Our World in Data, 2020. https://ourworldindata.org/marriages-and-divorces. Accessed 2 Nov. 2023

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Declining Rates of Marriage and Reasons for This Decline

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Declining Rates of Marriage and Reasons for This Decline

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Marriage, traditionally a cornerstone of society, has been on the decline in recent years. People are avoiding marriage for a wide variety of reasons which can be summed up by one sentence: “Its returns are insignificantly small compared with the investments” (Goldman 96). Many individuals that make up modern society speculate that the advantages of marriage are so negligible that they are choosing to remain single to avoid what they perceive to be pitfalls in marriage. This belief is compounded by the impression that if they embark on a campaign of marriage they will not be free to pursue other endeavors such as an appealing career or further education. And finally, there is the issue of being faithful to one partner for the rest of one’s life. People do not want to commit themselves to a single person believing that limiting their options limits their freedom. Overall, the contemporary aversion to marriage can be attributed to fear of commitment and a self-centered worldview that places the desires of the individual above the good of society.

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Although many people have a negative view of marriage, there is much good that can result from marriage. John Legend does an amazing job bringing light to some of the benefits of marriage including: acts of commitment, support, assurance, care, attention, and a healthy attraction to a counterpart. Spouses support each other’s health and well-being. People who are married are typically more financially stable and more affluent than unmarried people (Waite and Leher 257). This can be attributed, in part, to the benefit of a dual-income household in which spouses work together and depend on each other, sharing cost and stressors of life. Finally, marriage can improve one’s psychological wellbeing. Having someone to talk to, counsel you, support you, and give you consoling and advice greatly improves psychological health. These are just a few benefits of marriage and a small sample of the importance of marriage.

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John Legend - All of Me (Official Video)

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Relationships have a huge positive impact on society. They give one physical and psychological support, as well as love, instruction, and encouragement. Relationships can be very beneficial, and most relationships are a product of marriage. The most obvious one, spousal relationships can give a person someone to always love, support, and care for. A spouse will always be there to support you no matter what you are going through, and they can give you love and advice to get through it. Relationships with one’s children can teach responsibility and give someone a person to love. Sibling relationships can give you someone to care for and learn responsibility, and they can also give you a friend. There are also other family and friend relationships that can be a product of marriage that also greatly benefits someone. Relationships do so much good and a lot of them can be attributed to marriage.

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There are many reasons that people may choose to remain single.Perhaps they are unable to  find someone that they are willing to marry and this can be for many different reasons. One reason could be that many of the people they have met are not able to fulfill basic needs that the person might be looking for, such as a high enough income to support a family or people they meet might possess a different set of morals that they do not agree with. Another category could be labeled “unattractive traits.” These traits might include substance abuse, children from a previous relationship, or personality disorders. No matter how much someone desires to marry, it is always very hard to find someone you might want to spend your life with.

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Ortiz-Ospina, Esteban and Roser, Max. "Marriages and Divorces". Our World in Data, 2020. https://ourworldindata.org/marriages-and-divorces. Accessed 2 Nov. 2023

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When people are in a happy marriage the benefits are numerous, but, sadly, this is not always the case. Divorce rates are very high, and, although they are not as high as they once were, these statistics are still very sobering. Some people who hold a negative view of marriage use the high divorce rates as a justification for their belief. “One has but to glance over the statistics of divorce to realize how bitter a failure marriage really is” (Goldman 96). These high divorce rates can be attributed to a loss of interest in their spouse or the relationship, a lack of desire to commit to the relationship, and a dearth of education on the value of marriage. Other reasons focus on substance abuse and other psychological issues that can lead to a toxic relationship. If people are properly educated on what marriage is and they have an idea of what might happen, then these high divorce rates will level out.

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Divorce rates have been increasing resulting in significant negative impacts on those who get divorced and society. The negative impacts of divorce can be physical, psychological, and socioeconomical. “Divorced individuals, compared with their married counterparts, have higher levels of psychological distress, substance abuse, and depression, as well as lower levels of overall health” (Scott 131). Divorce harms both spouses and results in serious problems. There is a litany of issues that result from the legal action of divorcing. Divorce reasults in assets, money, and even children being separated between the two divorcees. Even if the relationship is toxic, divorce can still have negative effects. “Even in poor marriages, the effect on depressive symptoms is positive, showing that people do not improve their well-being after divorce” (Kalmijn and Monden 1210). Divorce is a predicament that harms those it touches no matter what condition the relationship is in.

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Salman, Nihal. “Developing and Evaluating the Marriage Education Program: The Example of the Turkish Cypriot Community.” Qeios, 2023. https://www.qeios.com/read

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Divorce can lead to many negative consequences, and the best way to avoid these is to be properly educated about marriage. Marriage education programs can help people better understand marriage, communicate better, and prepare for any other “what ifs” that might happen. Many of the positive reports from research of marital education programs reinforce that “The participants stated that they were happy with the education, that it had a positive effect on their married life, and that they understood their spouses better.” (Salman 15). Marriage education programs prove very beneficial and can help to mitigate high rates of divorce. If people take the time to be properly educated about the complex relationship that is marriage, marriage rates will increase and divorce rates will decrease.

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Goldman, Emma. Anarchism and Other Essays Emma Goldman. The Project Gutenberg EBook of Anarchism and Other Essays, Dover Publications, 1969, Gutenburg, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2162/2162-h/2162-h.htm, Accessed 7 Nov. 2023.

Kalmijn, Matthijs, and Monden, Christiaan W. S. "Are the Negative Effects of Divorce on Well-Being Dependent on Marital Quality?" Journal of Marriage and Family, vol. 68, no. 5, 2006, pp. 1197-1213. ProQuest, https://pgcc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/are-negative-effects-divorce-on-well-being/docview/219766212/se-2, doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2006.00323.x. Accessed 2 Nov. 2023.

Ortiz-Ospina, Esteban and Roser, Max. "Marriages and Divorces". Our World in Data, 2020. https://ourworldindata.org/marriages-and-divorces. Accessed 2 Nov. 2023.

Salman, Nihal. “Developing and Evaluating the Marriage Education Program: The Example of the Turkish Cypriot Community.” Qeios, 2023. https://www.qeios.com/read/HNFH3N. doi:10.32388/HNFH3N. Accessed 18 November 2023.

Scott, Shelby B., et al. "Reasons for divorce and recollections of premarital intervention: Implications for improving relationship education." Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice, vol. 2, no. 2, 2013, pp. 131-145. ProQuest, https://pgcc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/reasons-divorce-recollections-premarital/docview/1399262711/se-2, doi:https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032025. Accessed 2 Nov. 2023.

Stephens, John. “John Legend - All of Me (Official Video).” Youtube, Uploaded by John Legend, 2 October 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=450p7goxZqg, Accessed 21 November 2023.

Waite, Linda J., and  Lehrer, Evelyn L.. "The benefits from marriage and religion in the United States: a comparative analysis. (Notes and Commentary)." Population and Development Review, vol. 29, no. 2, June 2003, pp. 255+. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A105644282/AONE?u=pgcc_main&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=fc24a51d. Accessed 2 Nov. 2023.