BY CAITLYN ESTES, Junior AND JANELLE FITE, Sophomore
BLYTHEWOOD -- In previous generations, marriage was thought of as a stage of life that everyone goes through.
However, views have shifted and younger people now are starting to view marriage as optional.Only 36% of young adults think that marriage is necessary, according to a poll done by the Pew Research Center.
As the age of those surveyed increased, so did the percentage of those who thought that marriage was important.
“I feel like over the years, marriage has become less of a religious service and more of just a union,” sophomore Caitlin Maisonville said. “To me the importance of marriage is for two people to officially and legally announce their love for each other, and to get financial and legal rights from that.”
As the views of the importance of marriage have changed, so has the definition of a family. In a survey done by the Pew Research Center, it was found that “86% say a single parent and child constitute a family; nearly as many (80%) say an unmarried couple living together with a child is a family; and 63% say a gay or lesbian couple raising a child is a family.”
“Family structure has completely changed because it’s no longer the mother, father and children. So you have some single parents, and even now with the structure of two moms and two dads, so that’s definitely way different than what it used to be,” Webber said.
It is true that in modern traditions, marriage may not mean anything besides legal and financial technicalities. Otherwise, love between two people is valid and enjoyable without it.
Originally, marriage was meant to create “a stable structure” for a couple looking to have children and deal with “the tasks of daily life,” an article on The Week about how marriage has recently changed said. But since then, divorce rates have “become more commonplace.”
“I think a couple should only get married if they are ready to have that full on commitment,” math teacher Ms. Webber said about marriage and the importance family. “Family and structure has completely changed. So that’s way different than what it used to be.”
Because of today’s changing views, cohabitation has become more popular. The Pew Research Center also states that cohabitation has nearly doubled since 1990.
With marriage less popular and cohabitation rising, it is apparent that people are seeing that love itself may be better than a very expensive wedding.
