Today we ask ourselves, what defines a family? Will we ever be able to pinpoint one exact answer? Meanings and explanations of our past have been rightfully challenged. The family structures and dynamics that we see today have evolved great lengths from what they once were in the 1950’s.
Divorce was truly a rarity during the 1950s. According to (Wilcox, 2009), the divorce rate was less than 22 percent in the year 1950, but it more than doubled to 50 percent in the year 1970. Former President Ronald Reagan’s no-fault divorce bill, which was signed in the year 1969, was one of the reasons why the divorce rate increased. Back then, in order to proceed with a divorce one must present the spouses wrong-doing. Today, because of the no-fault divorce, gives the spouse the opportunity to depart from marriage for no reason at all. Furthermore, decades ago, people respected their marriages and were willing to spend most of their times with the newly wedded partners. However, today, one rarely gets time to spend with their loved ones
In this reading, Andrew J. Cherlin talks about the changes in American marriage, their causes and how the transformation of marriage is likely to affect American children.
During the late 1800’s, divorce was a word affiliated with “Tyranny, Misrule, and Injustice” (“Divorce and Desertion” 2). It all started in 1849, when divorce was made federally illegal. The punishment was harsh, having women put to death or thrown in prison for “abandoning their mate,” and the punishment usually fell upon the woman. As a result, many women were trapped in abusive relationships, many of which ended up with the woman fleeing or being worked to death. If a woman ran from her husband, the law was involved. Wanted posters would be hung up, and occasionally search parties would be formed. If a divorce took place, the woman had officially committed an “infamous act of crime by destroying the happiness of her mate” (“Divorce and Desertion” 2). Not only was it illegal however, it was also coined “morally and religiously heinous” (“Divorce and Desertion” 3). Horace Greely, with his anti-divorce campaign, attacked women’s divorce issues. In 1890, Indiana made divorce legal for everyone. Greely perused and attacked this law publicly, and claimed that “people who live in Indiana or visit Indiana can get unmarried nearly at pleasure” (“Divorce and Desertion” 3). After Horace labelling Indiana a divorce mill, they tightened their laws. After Indiana however, Utah, Fargo, North and South Dakota, Soux Falls, and the Oklahoma Territory became the
Since the inception of the no-fault law, divorce rates in America have increased. Wardle found that twenty-five of the thirty-five states with no-fault divorce laws in effect before 1980 experienced increases in divorce rates. In eleven states, the rate of divorce was more than twice the previous rate of increase (Wardle). Michael S. Berger, a Columbia University graduate with a Ph.D. in Philosophy of Religion, believes the entire family suffers when the parents are unhappy or are in conflict. However, the parent’s respective happiness should not be the sole basis for the decision to dissolve the union (Berger). Of all parties involved in a divorce, children have fared the worst. Jennifer Tyree, who received her B.S from the University of Tennessee and her J.D. from The American University, believes the innocence of childhood evaporates the day the parents announce divorce (Tyree). Step-families, a decline in income, a stressed single parent, or a family move are all dramatic adjustments for children. Today, the high school drop out rate of children with divorced parents is thirty-one percent, compared to thirteen percent for children with married parents (Wilcox). When divorces are handled in court, it is not uncommon for the judge to make biased decisions on factors such as child custody and property. An unjust divorce leads to bitterness between spouses. In many cases,
The Feminist Movement was a series of campaigns for changes on issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, women's suffrage, sexual harassment and sexual violence all of which fall under the label of feminism and the feminist movement during the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. The Purpose of the Women's Liberation Movement was to recognize a woman’s dignity and worth, and to enable women to enjoy equal rights with men in the workplace and to allow women to have more more control of their lives.
The movie the Lobster is a satire that ridicules the relationship structure put in place by our society. It is full of metaphors that represent that in modern society there is an enormous amount of pressure for young adults to be in relationships, and it displays how this can be harmful. If more people knew about how damaging this pressure is, they may change their outlook on the topic. This information could be used to inform people that have never given this topic much thought, and may cause them to question the idea that humans are incomplete without a significant other in their life.
In the early nineteenth century, a new pattern of family arose based primarily on companionship and affection. Many of productive tasks and jobs of married women were assumed by unmarried women working in factories, and the workplace moved some distance from the household. So, a new kind of urban middle class family had begun to emerge and a new division of domestic roles appeared, which assigned the wife to care full-time for her children and to maintain the home. The divorce rate during the early and mid-nineteenth century began to rise, many states adopted permissive divorce statutes and judicial divorce replaced legislative divorce. If marriages were to rest on mutual affection, then it divorce had to serve as a safety valve from loveless and abusive marriages.
“Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then to do it.” – Ann Landers. This quote by Landers hits close to home for me. Being a child of parents who divorced in my adolescent years, I understand that it took them more courage and strength to separate instead of sticking it out for my siblings and I. Also, this quote is a perfect example of the way people view divorce today than the way they did in the 1900’s, where it was frowned upon and nearly impossible to survive without the husbands’ financial support. Divorce is defined as a judicial declaration dissolving a marriage in a whole or in a part, especially
A main concept in the play Antigone is pride. In class, we discussed the topic of pride and watched a Ted Talk along with it about the fear of being wrong. It relates to King Kreon because as a leader, he wanted to be powerful and make his own decisions. This turned for the worse however, when the decision he made was selfish and went against the people’s beliefs. Kreon’s son Haimon warned him before the execution of Antigone that it was not what the God’s wanted. He stated, “Father, the God’s implant intelligence in humans. Of all our properties, that is the supreme one. I lack the power and the training to tell you you’re wrong, and that’s just as well. But perhaps a second opinion will be valuable.” (Page 48 lines 828-832). Haimon did not say this to disrespect his father, yet Kreon took it personally and dismisses Haimon. Kreon stated, “Men our age, learn from him?” (Page 50 line 875). Rather than listening, he stuck to his pride and belittled Haimon based on his age.
Marriage in this society is not really important since the mutual love that they should have is not present. Marrying more than once is very common in the society since there should not be any feeling toward your husband or wife. The percent of divorces has been increasing dramatically according to the Midwest Quarterly and the reasons for it have changed throughout time having money be one of the issues, “Now [wives] are held by financial force,” (Levitt, Paul M. "Marriage and Divorce in Early Twentieth Century Drama."Student Resources in Context. 2015. Web. 25 May 2016.) Today many people do not take marriage seriously. There are many that find an excuse to divorce and get married again.
In this case study, it analyse how the concept of family has changed in the past 20 years as it will be depicting modern family forms and past norms. It is important to look at how families have developed throughout the years up until the 21st century as we compare the two and elaborate on the difference and what makes it so significant. In this case study, it contrast and compare the television series Modern family which is a 21st century concept of family and The Simpsons which was adapted 27 years ago and how things have changed with family dynamics and what is the norm now which was not the norm years ago.
Beginning with the essential historical and social context of divorce, the authors go on to provide some interesting trends and facts about marriages and divorce rates. This book also contains statistics on the distribution of separation by the duration of marriage in the United States. It additionally examines the effect of marital breakup on children, adults, and society. The author asserts that children from divorced families are two times likely to see their marriages end in divorce. Furthermore, the author says adults from divorced families are much less likely to trust, and constantly feel unsure to engage in romantic relationships which can lead to problems of not getting married in the future.
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 Cherlin (1992) a divorce is a judicial declaration of separating a husband and wife from all matrimonial obligations. Divorce cases have been rising drastically since the 1970s, when the divorce laws were eased. In the past divorce was a very rare occurrence but today it’s like the song of the day. Today marriage can be dissolved in a court of law or any other competent body. In this essay we are going to discuss the causes and effects of divorce on children.