First off, divorce was always something that happened to other people's parents as far as I was concerned.
Boredalt wrote:
year after year?
Also, I have to do this.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXdNnw99-Ic[/youtube]
Boredalt wrote:
Hmm. Sounds like lawyers win again.
Well, don't they always, one way or another? Anyway, to actually answer the questions:
Azelma wrote:
1. What do you think of marriage as an institution?
2. Why are divorce rates so high?
3. Do people have unrealistic expectations for relationships?
4. Why did divorce rates used to be so much lower?
5. Do you ever want to get married?
1) As seems to be the prevailing attitude, I like the French-style requirement that any marriage be civil first and religious second (or not at all), because a legal union between people has all the nice and necessary bits that make it happen in the eyes of the State. As for what it actually accomplishes, I'd like to think that it's an assurance that shouldn't have to be made between two people who actually want to dig in and be together, but when assets (and children) exist, something has to be on paper.
2) Because people marry for what they think is love, instead of marrying for money and having mistresses/lovers on the side like they did 100 years ago. We're not any less faithful than we used to be, it's just less acceptable to be banging someone who isn't your wife/husband and that leads to divorce.
3) Who knows? I don't know what I want out of one, and I submit none of you do either. My best guess is comfort when I want it, in a way that my partner is willing to grant. Boredalt's the only one who's close to knowing anything about this one.
4) As I said in #2, it's because now people get divorced when they cheat on each other, instead of this being acceptable practice. In the past, you had workers who got married because they had been tricked into thinking it was the right thing to do after they got each other pregnant (like they had any rights, hah), while the middle and upper class got married for convenience and just kept lovers on the side when bed with their spouses stopped being interesting. Again, just because they didn't get divorced doesn't mean they weren't doing it with the wrong person.
5) We'll see. I haven't been making plans, if that's what this is asking.
If destruction exists, we must destroy everything.
Shuruppak Yuratuhl Slaad Shrpk Breizh