are marriage rates decreasing Flashcards
definition of marriage
Is a legal union of two people through a religious or civil ceremony.
yes- influence of feminism
Sharpe agues that before many young girls dreamed of getting married but now they changed their attitudes. She interviewed secondary school girls in 1976 and again in 1994
– In 1976 girls’ dreams included marriage, love and children; in 1994 it was education and career. So, marriage has lost its importance in the eyes of women. So marriage rates are declining due to women aspiring for jobs and becoming more independent +C= Many e/m and w/c women still see marriage as important as they hold traditional views of it.
Yes-fear of divorcce
With the divorce rates rising some people may be put off marrying because they see the increased likelihood of marriage ending in divorce. Furthemore another reason why marriage rates are declining is because of secularisation. If people are more secular then they do not feel pressured to marry someone. This is why cohabitation is widely excepted as there has been a decline in stigma to sex before marriage. Also if people are less secular than they wouldnt think that sex before marriage is a sin. For eaxmple 40% of people said that sex before marriage is not wrong. Furthermore church weddings have decreased because people are becoming more secular. And churches refuse to marry divorcees. +c= some religions such as protestants allow divorcees to remarry
yes- changing attitudes of marriage
There is less pressure to marry and more freedom for individuals to choose the type of relationship they want. There is a widespread belief that the quality of a couples relationship is more important than its legal status. The norm that everyone ought to get married has greatly weakened.
no-cause of remarriages
Marriages have been increasing due to the fact that more people that are divorcing are getting remarried and hence creating reconstitute families. Since the number of divorces are increasing, the number of people getting re-married also increases. Functionalists would argue that the high rates of re-marriages show people’s continuing commitment to the idea of marriage.
no- age of marrying
The age at which couples marry is rising because young people are postponing marriage in order to spend longer in full-time education and establish a career first. Another reason is that people are first cohabiting for a period of time and then getting married afterwards. Coast argues that 75% of couples cohabiting end up marrying each other later in their lives.Young people see cohabitation as a trial marriage. Bejin argues that cohabitation attempts to create a more equal relationship rather than conventional patriarchal marriages. For example, Shelton and John found that women who cohabit do less housework. +C= If people delay their marriages then due to the rising life expectancy women would live longer than men, making it a more lonely and distressing experience when their husband dies.
