Why Is Marriage Viewed More Negatively Today?

After reading chapter five on the topic of Cohabitation, I was left with a variety of different thoughts and questions on the topic and was mostly just trying to sift through my own personal beliefs as well as the information that we have been presented in this chapter and the variety of different research studies that have been done on the topic. The question I decided to pursue for my thought paper was relatively broad, but yet something that I couldn’t seem to stop asking my self, which was: “Why is marriage viewed more negatively today?” and often as a second choice following cohabitation?”

When thinking about this question a variety of different answers came to mind. Automatically, I referred to the concept of divorce and how prevalent

Generation Y is typically defined as a more selfish generation: wanting to fulfill our own needs therefore does not see marriage as something that is of need. There has been a rise in more people fulfilling their careers first and if choosing to marry it is much later than normal. Does this have to do with marriage being viewed as something that holds someone back, or ties them down? Perhaps, and if this is the case then maybe this could also be another reason marriage is looked upon more negatively; it takes a lot of time, and a lot of effort that simply just doesn’t fit into a busy schedule. With cohabitation becoming more socially acceptable in this generation, it is often seen as a more self-satisfying alternative to marriage. Today cohabitation seems to be a win-win scenario as a test for a future relationship while being a stepping-stone to marriage. What happens in these cohabiting relationships is poorer quality relationships are formed to “see how things will work out” as opposed to a formal commitment and dedication to one another, which means that when these relationships dissolve and you begin another relationship in the future, you enter your next relationship with more skepticism which could be what is pushing the thought of marriage further and further

Our society is viewing things different and is every changing in these views, while the traditional concept of marriage remains basically the same. So why is marriage viewed so negatively now? I believe it’s due to a combination of many social and cultural changes that our society is experiencing. With cohabitation being viewed as a stepping-stone towards marriage, I do still that that marriage is something that is still highly regarded. The only problem being that the outcome for couples that cohabit and then proceed to wed is typically negative, therefore also resulting in a negative view of marriage. So I think we can take this information in one of two ways. We could continue to view marriage negatively and proceed with short-lived, unhappy relationships through cohabitation, or use this research to help find a way to help make relationships better. My thoughts toward this topic is that our generation will continue to seek self gratification, until we hit a point where we realize there is more to a relationship than fulfilling our own needs and realize that marriage isn’t what should be viewed as negatively, but instead, how we go about relationships should be viewed