The author I have chosen to use to write about is Laura Kipnis and her essay: Love’s Labors. For this Capstone Essay I have chosen to write about Divorce rates, and how they have been increasing over the years. Divorce can come about in many different ways, each unique in the reason of interest/motivation to get a divorce. Kipnis speaks entirely to an audience ripe for divorce; adulterers, fantasizers, the side chick/guy, or even the suspicious spouse. The reasons of increased divorce vary depending on the period of time that you are looking at, or the situation in which the divorce is taking place.
Due to the increased rates of divorce it seems even the states themselves at one point took recognition, and tried to take action. They have taken it upon themselves to try and better the divorce rate. How? They have created something they call “Covenant Marriage”. It was founded in Dallas, Texas, by Phil and Cindy Waugh, a Baptist minister and his church-worker wife, in 1999. Covenant Marriage is a legally distinct kind of marriage, in which the marrying couple agrees to obtain pre-marital counseling and accept more limited grounds for divorce. This moves more towards the past, specifically back towards the “At-Fault Divorce” era (pre 1969). Covenant marriage is supposed to limit divorce through education and planning. It is said that pre-marital counseling and those who take the time to get educated before they are wed are statistically better off in terms of divorce. At the time of its invention covenant marriage took off, looking to be a possible solution to not only contribute to the lowering of the increase in divorces but possibly eliminate them all together. “This however is just a reaction to the past 50 years of increasing divorce, and unmarried births” says Steven Nock. Nock was also quoted as saying “At the moment, covenant marriage appeals to a small
Marriage is the legal or formally recognized union of a man and a woman, or two people or the same sex as partners in a relationship. Marriage rates in the United States have changed drastically since the last 90’s and early 2000 years (Cherlin 2004). Marital decline perspective and marital resilience perspective are the two primary perspectives and which we believe are the results from the decline. The marital decline perspective is the view that the American culture has become increasingly individualistic and preoccupied with personal happiness (Amato, 2004). The change in attitudes has changed the meaning of marriage as a whole, from a formal institution
With the current "no-fault" divorce laws in most states, the couples can obtain a divorce without a reason. No fault divorce allows an adult to apply for a divorce without proving that one of the adults has done wrong, like adultery, desertion, drugs, or abuse. No-fault divorce also allows an adult to divorce him/her without his/her consent. No-fault divorce is allowing the divorce rate to rise, therefore there is a need for a different law. The solution to the increasing rate is covenant marriage. Covenant marriage requires couples to take counseling before the divorce and there has to be a fault in order to divorce. Even though divorce is a very...
While, approximately 45% of marriages in America end in divorce, there are various amounts of sociological reasons for this number being so high (Hyde). Truly, while thinking about all of the factors that go into a divorce, they can be overwhelming. The first reading for this class, “Taking a New Look at a Familiar World” had examined the reason for a girlfriend breaking up with her boyfriend. During this reading the author had examined the reasons for a break up and said that there are a significant amount of other possibilities for the break up (Newman). Michael and Louise had broken up and Louise was the one to initiate the break up (Newman). People tend to use an individualistic explanation for the break up and blame it on one or both of the individuals personally (Newman). If the break up is looked at from a sociological standpoint, then one can see that there are many of other factors that could be the reason for Michael and Louise breaking up. Other circumstances that could of led to a break up could have been the availability in the dating market, as well as a change in what a partner needs in a relationship
Divorce is prevalent in many parts of the developed world, it has been estimated that roughly 50% of marriages in America up until the 1980’s ended in divorce (Rutter). Divorce is arguably a personal hardship for both partners and their children, in that the stress of the divorce places both men and women at varying risks of psychological and physical health problems (Hetherington, Stanley-Hagan and Anderson 1989). However, using C. Wright mills’ definition of the “Sociological Imagination” we begin to view divorce as not just a personal problem of a particular man or woman, but as a societal concern that affects a wider category of people at a personal level. Therefore this essay will examine the societal structures which contribute to divorce
According to Wikipedia – the free encyclopedia[4], “From 2002 to the latest survey data as of 2012,[2] 29% of first marriages among women aged 15–44 were disrupted (ended in separation, divorce or annulment) within 10 years. [3]” This is alarmingly a high rate of marriage failure. After reading the novel by Jordan Sonnenblick, “Notes From the Midnight Driver” [1], I am submitting a research paper on the topic, “Family Divorce” using the situation of the novel as an example.
Marriage is a commitment that seems to be getting harder to keep. The social standards placed on an individual by society and influenced by the media inevitably lead some to consider divorce as a “quick-fix” option. “Have it your way” has become a motto in the United States. It has become a country without any consideration of the psychological effects of marriage and divorce. The overwhelmingly high divorce rate is caused by a lack of moral beliefs and marital expectations.
First of all, America has the highest divorce rate among western nations. Divorce rate increased after every major war, and decreased during the Post-World War II economic boom. The divorce rate has more than doubled since 1940, when there were two divorces for every 1,000 persons. Now for the same number of people, there are over five divorces. Studies indicate that there is more divorce among persons with low incomes and limited education and those who marry at a very young age. Teenage marriages are much more likely to end in divorce than are all other marriages. And women who marry when they are over age 30 are the least likely to become divorced. There has been a decline in divorce in the number of couples who have children under 18. Almost 45 p...
Stephanie Coontz, author of The Evolution of Matrimony: The Changing Social Context of Marriage, writes that there has been more changes in marriage in the past 30 years then there was in the 3,000 years earlier. With these changes there are no religious or cultural exclusions. Coontz claims, “Right here is America’s Bible belt exist some of the highest rates of divorce and unwed motherhood in the country, and born again Christians d...
More Americans are getting divorced at an astonishing rate, according to the McKinley Irvin Family Law, there are about 16,800 divorces per week. This phenomenon has triggered a general panic among young adults. Therefore, animated by their fear of getting divorced, young adults have elaborated a new solution to avoid divorce which is cohabitation. They see cohabitation as a test to avoid divorce. However, does cohabitation really work? Meg Jay in her text entitled “The Downside of Living Together” defends the idea that seeing cohabitation as a preventive way to avoid divorce leads to increase the chance of divorce. I believe that cohabitation
Cook, Joe. "What Should We Do About Divorce Law? No to Covenant Marriage." World & I. Jan. 1998: 302-317. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 04 May. 2014.
Every year approximately 2.4 million marriages occur.Out of those,2.1 millionwill file for divorce in the United States. These marriage and divorce rates have significantly increased since the years past(Coltrane and Adams, 364).According to Schoen, in the 1950’s, 15 out of 1,000 marriages ended in divorce.In the 1970’s, the rates of divorcedoubled,increasing to 40 per 1,000 marriages. Currently, the rate of marriages resulting in divorce remains the same. Most marriages are ending within seven years ofthemarriage for multiple different reasons. Sociologists haveestablisheddivorce as a social problem from the rise in divorcerates due to the early year of marriages (2006).
Lach, Jennifer. “The Consequences Of Divorce.” American Demographics 21.10 (1999): 14. MAS Ultra – School Edition.Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
One direct way is to vote for laws to start sending individuals to counseling before the problem even starts. If a petition were started to pass a law, that would definitely kick start the process. I have started a petition using www.thepetitionsite.com that targets the state of Tennessee as my starting point. If one state can change its laws to support marriage counseling and it goes successfully, then it is possible that other states will follow suit. The petition is named HELP PUT AN END TO DIVORCE TODAY!!! and it outlines what I think should be done to start this process. The body of the petition says, “Marriage is the backbone of successful families. This is true in the United States as a whole, in the South, and in the First World in general. Marriage is sacred in most religions but yet it fails continuously. Our goal is to fix divorce rates in the United States but no one seems to be trying. I propose to the State Legislature of the state of Tennessee that we provide more incentive for couples to go to premarital counseling. Premarital counseling has been proven to increase the chances of a marriage to survive but there is not enough incentive to go to marital counseling. The current incentive is that if people go to counseling then they get a discount of $60 on their marriage license. My proposal is to make a law stating that people should go through marriage counseling before marriage and that the counseling must
Divorce is a plague that is destroying numerous families across the United States of America. Sadly, when husbands and wives divorce, the children are often caught directly in the middle. Throughout the years divorce has been becoming more and more common. In the 1920's it was a rare find to know a person whom had been divorced, today it is a rarity not to know of one who has been, or will be divorced. Divorce has numerous effects on the structures of families, and many devastating effects on the children that must experience it, although sometimes necessary, divorce radically changes the lives of adolescents and adults alike.
Another cause to confirm the recent increase in divorce rates is stress in modern living. Many people, who live in globalisation, have considerable pressures to earn money. It can be obviously seen that the stress has occurred since they are children. For instance, in Thailand, students generally want to go to famous school so that they take advantage to go to well-known universities. Studying in celebrated universities mostly causes having a good opportunity to find a job or earn a lot of money. This circumstance not only happens in Thailand, but also occurs in many countries. Some people are laid off from their companies; consequently the stress occurs in their family, which leads to divorce. Some families can earn money, but inadequate for covering their expenses, therefore it is easy to think about divorce. Nevertheless, the rates of unemployment trend to continually increase as a result the divorce rates can also rise.