Essay about The Deinstitutionalization of Marriage

Andrew Cherlins article The Deinstitutionalization of Marriage is an analytical evaluation of the changing themes of the American approach to the relevance of marriage and its evolution over the past century. Through a method of statistical analysis of the changing ideologies and practices of Americans in regards to the institution of marriage Cherlin is able to show that marriage has now become an option rather than a necessity. In analyzing the recent growth of cohabitation he finds that its practice began as a short term method of reducing the possibility of divorce as cohabitation was viewed as a sort of trial marriage. However, as time has progressed this trial period has been severely lengthened and has less frequently†¦show more content†¦The article then goes on to explain that as societal expectations become less imposing and an individuals options increase, this changes the manner in which marriage is approached. The results, as he says, of increased option and a lessening of cooperative marital rewards have led to the deinstitutionalization of marriage. The next area that is assessed by this article is the reasons that people would continue to get married. Cherlin develops the ideas that people continue to get married because of symbolism or to display social status. The latter point is extremely well evidenced in the statistics that he shows that support a rise in the peripheral events that accompany a wedding of high social significance, notably that the wedding reception has increased by twenty four percent since 1925. Lastly, Cherlin shows that while it is likely that the current state of affairs regarding marriage will continue, the major changes that have occurred in the past were not predictable. Taking that into account he estimates that marriage practices could do one of three things. Marriage practices could regress to more traditional standards, continue on their current path, or evolve further into just another sort of ro mantic relationship on par with the rest of the lot. In his estimation, the second option is the most likely as he says that marriage, even though it has been deinstitutionalized, will remain distinctiveShow MoreRelatedThe Deinstitutionalization Of Marriage And The Sanctification Of Gendered Marital Roles1316 Words   |  6 Pages Baker, E. H., Sanchez, L. A., Nock, S. L., Wright, J. D. (2009). Covenant marriage and the sanctification of gendered marital roles. Journal Of Family Issues, 30(2), 147-178. This article contains research on the deinstitutionalization of marriage and the changing gender roles by focusing on a unique group of marriages. The authors use quantitative and qualitative research data from previous studies. 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