Monday 2 April 2007

Marriage Today Essay

I have an essay to write. I must choose a topic first. There are a few: is downloading a crime, abortion, marriage today, Bologna process, affirmative action, capital punishment. And you know I have an opinion on everything! But I don't know if I have enough opinion on any of those topics to actually write an essay. I'm pretty sure it'll be about marriage. Cuz it's not an essay if I write "Capital punishment is good. Death to all rapists and pedophiles!", right? Yeah, didn't think so...

Update: Well, I wrote it and decided to put it here.

Marriage Today

"I am never going to get married." I realize that this sentence sounds quite radical but at this point I am perfectly willing to sign my name under it. I might change my mind some day but I sincerely doubt that I will.

There are a few reasons I have against getting married. It seems to me that no one takes marriage seriously these days. The newest statistics show that every fourth marriage ends in a divorce today. To me it shows that people get married without actually thinking it through, without taking into serious consideration what getting married really means. A lot of people cannot see beyond the wedding day. They do not realize that marriage is actually what follows the wedding, that marriage is living day after day with the same person seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year. So many times it happens that people really get to know each other when they start living together and then realize the other person is not who they thought they were. This leads to a divorce so often and it does not really matter if the marriage does not work since the divorce is not shameful anymore. That means that, instead of working on their marriage, people tend to take the easy way out and simply give up.

Marriage is supposed to be an institution that lasts. It must be wonderful to have a partner to lean on while struggling with the problems of everyday life. Marriage brings security, both emotional and financial. Or at least, it should bring security. Further more, growing old with someone has to be much easier than growing old alone. Companion can truly be a blessing. And above all, bringing children up in a stable home probably fills one with a sense of accomplishment.

However, I believe that getting married to someone requires a great amount of courage and maturity because love is simply not enough. One has to be ready to compromise a lot and I am not so sure people are willing to do that today. I know I am not. I am the first one to leave when the going gets tough. I can't even imagine making a commitment to one person for the rest of my life. With that in mind, I prefer not getting married at all to signing a contract that I know I could never honour, not "till death do us part" anyway.

Marriage is not what it used to be. It is taken lightly and it does not have the significance nor the
value it used to have in the past. I believe it is outdated. That is why that is exactly where it
should stay – in the past.

0 spoke back: