Is marriage all that?
What you need to know:
Man Talk. Women are putting more effort into getting hitched. But should marriage be what defines a woman’s value?
Eugene Mugisha.
Marriage as an institution is not overrated. Statistics show that married men are healthier and tend to live longer than single or divorced men, I do not know if that holds true for women as well. It works well to position a person as more responsible, dependable and “mature”, as compared to their single counterparts. Marriage certainly has earned its place on the high table, it is the earliest institution known, even before religion.
It has its flaws, and they are all traceable back to the couple in question; they fail to make their marriage work. This should not mean that all marriages do not work, and are therefore “overrated”.
Jamie. Well, to each his own. Grownups are expected to have lived long enough to realise there are ideals that will seem they are the best to some people while other people will look down on those same things. Marriage is not overrated. It is people who do not understand the meaning of the institution.
Usually, people get into it without really spending time thinking on it. When they have lived the lie for a few years (or a few months), they realise they have no desire to live with this person, certainly not for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately, by then, they have been disillusioned and their experience colours their outlook.
Benjie. Conservative men are the ones who judge women by their marital status. A woman can be respectable, and achieve greatness, without necessarily having to feed off the prestige that comes with marriage.
That is not to say that marriage is useless. I think that besides bearing children and the values that come with having a family, marriage brings a new perspective to someone’s life.
How you solve issues, how you relate to others, being disappointed or having to celebrate with those dearest to you...all of that is an experience you cannot substitute, an experience that gives more to your life than meets the eye. However, you need not be judged for opting out of it.
Andrew Wallace. Most men judge women by their looks really. The marital status is secondary.
