by J D

Created on: June 02, 2009

Marriage, the legal, emotional, and social binding between two or many people is perhaps one of the most important symbols in all cultures of all societies. An indicator of a successful future, many cultures promote the union between its members not only it builds everlasting love, loyalty, and trust but also because marriage implies a sexual relationship or eventual sexual relationship, ensuring the continuation of future generations and supply of labor. Although the methods in which they are carried out, the meanings they are associated with, the purposes they serve, and the values that are implied vary from culture to culture, marriage universally serves as the foundation upon which society can continue to grow because it strengthens relationships between its members, builds alliances, promotes cooperation, and increases interaction and stability of the society. It also serves as a method for economic exchange to take place whether it be valuable goods, labor, or inheritance, and religious fulfillments as a right of passage. Cultures associate and invest so much time and wealth into a marriage that it is implied to be an eternal commitment. The legally bound are expected to spend the rest of their lives with one another through the good times and the bad, the ups and downs, for eternity. If such a binding is tied to a marriage, why are so many couples seeking divorce in the United States, approximately sixty percent? This high statistic indicates that the marriage system in America no longer serves a purpose, no longer is functional, or no longer is viewed in the same contexts as it used to be.

Perhaps there is such a high divorce rate in the United States because Americans were raised with the consumer mentality that we can buy everything we need and if it does not live up to our standards, we have the option of discarding it aside in search of one that better fits our needs. We view and treat people as if they were material objects in which we do not have an obligation to. They are rather just another item on our list, and if our partner does not fit exactly into our cookie-cutter profile we are unwilling to settle for less and adjust our ideals. For example, if one were to buy a new computer and found that it was not compatible with a certain computer game software, one would buy a different computer even so you could play the computer game even though you could function without it. This is exactly how Americans view marriage. In today's

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