In this section of the course, we discussed a copious amount of topics and their importance to society. In chapter 7 of Seccombe’s Families and Their Social Worlds, we discussed courtship, intimacy, and partnering. In class, we talked about gender differences, sexual orientation, cohabitation, and the issue of sexually transmitted disease. Chapter 8 delves into the topic of marriage, and how it is seen as not only a personal relationship, but a social institution. We discussed how something so universal as marriage can have different meanings in different parts of the world, how the idea of marriage is rapidly changing, and the benefits to a marriage, such as physical and metal health, as well as economic advantages and social support. Becoming
For this book summary, I chose to read Marriage, a History: from Obedience to Intimacy. In this book, author Stephanie Coontz discusses the how and why roles of marriage have changed over the years. The book starts by discussing how the idea of marrying for love is a relatively new concept practiced in today’s society, or more specifically it has risen in the last two centuries. In fact, in ancient Greece, the idea of a man being in love with his wife was actually considered morally wrong. Entering into a marriage based on love or passion was considered wrong because it was a distraction from the relationship that a person should have with God. Today it is more common for two people to enter a marriage because of love, however
Fidelity by Wendell Berry is a collection of five short stories that are united by their underlying theme of fidelity. Dictionary.com provides five definitions for fidelity:
Categorized into three styles called companionship, dependence, and interdependence, married couples can be ‘in love’, individual with their own separate interests, or maintain a healthy balance within their relationship. Marriage is a tricky institution to navigate, and no one person will get it right, but considering the evolutionary changes of society and popular movements in history, these three styles describe the different marriages and gender roles.
Marriage is a vital part of human life. It is important because it ties a man and a woman not only physically, but also spiritually and emotionally. Marriage is the beginning of a family, and a long commitment in human life. Marriage has been traditionally understood in every human society. Typically, there are many religions, different ideas and thoughts in different part of the world regarding the wedding customs. Although, the purpose of the marriage in all the world is to unite a man and a woman physically, emotionally and spiritually; the wedding customs and traditions differ from country to country. With some similarities, Afghan wedding customs are different from American wedding customs.
Anthony Esolen confronts every cliché and justification that seem to undermine the morality and social value as well as the civilizing influence of the traditional marriage in his book Defending Marriage: Twelve Arguments for Sanity. Esolen addresses the significant issues affecting marriages in America. The book is divided into 12 arguments. Esolen uses moral, theoretical, as well as cultural claims to defend the institution of marriage that he considers holy and ancient. He also brings into the spotlight, the issues the institution of marriage faces from present-day changes and the areas of public policy, sexual morality, and our laws. In this book, Esolen examines the pitfalls of gay marriages, and goes on to explain the history of the
Marriage is relationships between individuals which has formed the foundation of the family for most societies. The first thing that comes to mind about marriage is having a lasting relationship. Marriage is a commitment of two people to one another and to each other’s family, bonded by holy matrimony. When a couple plans to marry, they think of raising a family together, dedicating their life to each other. Many people promise many people promise to love their spouse ‘til death do them apart but after reading the stories ,” “55 miles to the Gas Pump”, “popular mechanics”, and the cranes” , through irony, the authors have proven the wrong meaning of marriage.
In expositions, writers usually tend to focus on certain techniques to not only enhance their writing, but also make their audience believe in whatever they are writing. These age old techniques have been used for so long for one common goal, to create clear messages from their writing that the audience are able to connect with. When their is a feeling of understanding of what the writer is attempting to portray, it makes it far easier to obtain a deeper knowledge. In Hope Edelman’s essay, The Myth of Co-Parenting: How it Was Supposed to Be. How it was, she doesn’t fall short on exemplifying these certain techniques through the act of making her audience feel sympathetic. In her piece, she utilizes emotion and first hand experiences to make the audience identify with the situation, enabling them to make comparisons between Edelman’s marriage and their own.
Thunder and rumble, I feel the wrath of God on the ocean we are sailing. Suddenly I hear a crash, and I fly across my cage violently, the yelling of the voices on the vessel in shock and suddenly I hear the words “We’re going down!” A zoo keeper comes down the the hull of the ship and begins opening the cages of animals- the zebra, the monkeys, the hounds, all released waiting patiently for my turn the zookeeper falls over. He does not move and water comes crashing into the hull-I’m going to die. I lie down on the ground as water pours in accepting my fate. Suddenly I see something, no somebody, swim into the half flooded room, he drgs into his pocket forceful and pulls out a ring of keys and unlocks my cage. Freedom at last, I bite the boys shirt and drag him up onto the main deck, I drop him letting him choose his
In the article, “To Arrange or Not: Marriage Trends in the South Asian American Community” by Farha Ternikar, which explorers the occurrences of arranged marriage among the South Asian immigrants in America. The author investigates the differences in arranged marriage by interviewing second generation South Asians of three different religions: Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity. The second generation of these cultures have taken upon themselves to take more freedoms in the pursuits of getting married such as organizing events, being more open to dating, and negotiating and changing the terms of arrangement. The youths are securing more freedoms and a choice. However, marriage is still the number one goal in the families in these cultures. Ternikar
This essay was inspired by Joan Diddinś essay Marrying Absurd in which she discusses how the conventions of marriage have changed for the worse. Didion writes her essay with a blend of personal knowledge, scientific fact, and personal observation, a combination which allows her to express her opinion without making the essay a personal narrative.
Humans have a need to bond with other people, it’s psychological. This bond is expressed in many aspects of society exemplified through the idea of love and marriage. We celebrate marriage through wedding ceremonies; every country and religion has its own traditions, rituals, and laws for this grand celebration. America is distinctive in that it was founded on its rich history of immigration, creating a melting pot of cultures and religions. Whether happening in a church or a courthouse room, American wedding ceremonies are based on rituals, folklore, and superstitions; these ceremonies give insight to how history has influenced American society by maintaining and creating cultural and social needs, as well as expressing gender and evolving gender social roles.
Cultural relativism is the understanding of other cultures in their own terms. To achieve the understanding of the rituals used in the cultures of another, one must be able to look at them from an emic (insider) perspective. One must also be able to look at his own culture from an etic (outsider) perspective. The ability to look at one’s culture from the etic point of view will make it easier to explain the rituals to someone from a different culture, for example, rites of passage. Rites of passage are used to mark a life stage and are celebrated by tradition or religion, meant to separate a specific group. These differ in every culture and some may even appear brutal or abusive to many outsiders, an example would be a Maasai warrior must kill a lion single handedly, tattoos and mutilation after a certain milestone in age. The ones that are more familiar to all would include the courtship, wedding or funeral. According to our text, “ceremonies such as christening, puberty rituals, marriage and funerals, which we hold whenever a member of society undergoes an important change status, within the lifecycle of the group, are considered rites of passage.” (Crapo, 2013 para. 2) Rites of passage are an important part of tradition that often symbolizes a transition from childhood to teenager to adulthood and they even give off a sense of manhood to their family as well as their community. This paper will dig into the rites of passage we call marriage in the American culture, from
Is there really a need to be married anymore? Does marriage actually benefit your relationship, or is it an outdated institution that we’ll be better off without? In this speech, I’ll convince you that marriage is a thing of the past, and that society’s views on marriage have changed enough in the past decade that marriage really isn’t necessary anymore.
According to this theory, nature of love is changing fundamentally and it can create either opportunities for democracy or chaos in life (Beck & Beck- Gernsheim, 1995). Love, family and personal freedom are three key elements in this theory. This theory states that the guidelines, rules and traditions which used to rule personal relationships have changed. “Individuals are now confronted with an endless series of choices as part of constructing, adjusting, improving or dissolving the unions they form with others” (Giddens, 2006). For instance, marriage nowadays depends on the willingness of the couples rather than for economic purposes or the urge to form family. However, these transformations have also brought freedoms and tensions as there are also high divorce rates underneath high marriage rates. The contradiction of interests among love, family and freedom has affected the perspective of relationships nowadays and hence people need to recognise their priority of personal