arranged marriage essay

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Arranged Marriage Essays Examples

Type of paper: Essay

Topic: Social Issues , Freedom , Marriage , Love , Arranged Marriage , Family , Children , Relationships

Published: 02/21/2020

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Marriage is one of the critical issues in society. As a matter of fact, the roles and functions of marriage make it one f the important union in human race. Those who are religious will assert that marriage was actually instituted by God and this makes it a crucial issue. Arranged marriage is one of the types of marriage, but in this case the marital union is decided by third parties. It is a type of marriage where the groom and the bride are selected by other people rather than making their own decision on who to marry. In the past, this seemed to be the norm but the trend seems to behave continued in some culture or societies. The family members in most cases become part of those bringing the couples together. The parents are in the forefront in approving the potential partner for their children. In fact, the couples may even marry without knowing each other expecting that love will develop and become the best. In general perspective, this is unrealistic situation and brings out various reasons why being against arranged marriage is justified. Regardless of the religion that we belong, arranged marriage is not good. One of the main reason that drives many people to be against arranged marriage is the fact that there is no chemistry and physical attraction between the couples (Hylton, 2013). Research shows that in a marriage there should be bio-chemically compatibility between the two partners who want to get married. Hence, there is no need of putting people at risk. Marriage is actually a life time commitment and arranged marriages id putting the couples on a life time situation against their will. The chemistry between people who want to get married must grow and flourish automatically (Divakaruni, 2011). In arranged marriages love may not grow forever. There is a possibility that the partners do not like each other and focus more on their personalities. This means that the intimacy and the chemistry between the couples will never grow. An arranged marriage is not good because people have no time to learn various characters of the other partner. In most cases, people hide their personalities that may be abusive or flawed in nature. The abusive personality will come into play when individuals are already married, leaving one of the partner in marriage stressed (Hahn, 2011). Arranged marriage does not give the couples an opportunity to learn and tolerate each other characters and personality before getting married. This issue can also be said in non-arranged marriage but it becomes more harmful in arranged marriages due to the fact that you never made the choice. Arranged marriages denounce divorce leaving room for no easy escape. It is worth noting that divorce in arranged marriages comes with very severe penalties. The political, social and religious focus on divorce seems to be complex (Hylton, 2013). People focus more on the arranged marriage rather than focusing on the personal situation of an individual. In fact, people believe that abandoning arranged marriage can lead to lifetime problems. Arranged marriages have no room for free will and free decision making. Regardless of the fact that the couples are given an opportunity to meet before giving consent sound better, but if the couples refuse to consent the relatives go ahead and make the marriage official. In the 21st century, there are various risks associated to marriage, which may include STD and one could want to be tested before marriage. Arranged marriage leaves no room for this cautious and reasonable process. Arranged marriages have lead to abusive and exploitation, especially on the state of guise arranged marriage. In some occasions, arranged marriage may involve underage children, immigration fraud, and other forms of forced marriages. Therefore, the arranged marriages may be carried out in unlawful circumstances (Divakaruni, 2011). There are communities that arrange marriage for their children regardless of age, education schedule or other programs that individuals wish to accomplish before marriage. The arranged marriages violate the rights and freedom of people as stated by the law. Everyone has the right and freedom to choose who they want to get married to. The couples who are victims of forced marriage did not get an opportunity to enjoy this right and freedom. Those who arrange marriage for their children do not respect the desires and needs of their children. This means that the parents are nit sensitive to the desires of the children, which is not fair to the children (Hahn & Austen, 2011). Parents should be in the forefront on protecting the desires and needs of their children. Arranged marriages mostly driven by financial gain and social status at the expense of the happiness of children. There is a big possibility that arranged marriages will bring people who are not compatible. On the other hand those in support of arranged marriages have come up with reasons to support it. These include cultural and religious issues, financial and dynastic gain, and more so the parents take full control of their children life. In general perspective, arranged marriages are bad and should not be supported. Marriage should be a decision made by the couples in free will.

Divakaruni, C. (2011). Arranged Marriage. New York: Wadsworth Hahn, J. (2011). An Arranged Marriage. California: Wiley Hahn, J., & Austen, J. (2011). An arranged marriage. Oysterville, WA: Meryton Press. Hylton, S. (2013). An Arranged Marriage. London: Wiley

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Article Contents

I. introduction, ii. misunderstanding the arranged marriage, iii. understanding arranged marriage, iv. conclusion and suggestions for further research.

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Understanding Arranged Marriage: An Unbiased Analysis of a Traditional Marital Institution

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Naema N Tahir, Understanding Arranged Marriage: An Unbiased Analysis of a Traditional Marital Institution, International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family , Volume 35, Issue 1, 2021, ebab005, https://doi.org/10.1093/lawfam/ebab005

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This research asks one simple question, a question many studies on the arranged marriage omit to ask, namely “What exactly is the arranged marriage?” Author Naema Tahir, born and bred in the arranged marriage culture, but educated in the free-choice marriage culture, argues that much literature on the arranged marriage fails to offer full exploration of this traditional marital system. Instead, the arranged marriage is often analysed through the lens of the modern free choice marriage system. However, this is not a neutral lens. It considers the free choice marriage to be the ideal. As a result, the arranged marriage is perceived to be a “marriage of shortcomings”, one that fails to meet the standards of the free-choice marriage system. The author encourages readers to break this frame and offers a neutral perspective on this traditional marital system practised by billions around the world. Readers are invited to an in-depth and rigorous analysis of the foundations upon which the arranged marriage system rests. While this analysis zooms in on the case study of one particular focus group, the British Pakistani diaspora, it reveals broad insights into the arranged marriage system in general. This analysis highlights and critically examines social principles fundamental to the arranged marriage system and which are much misunderstood, such as hierarchy, patriarchy, collectivism, group loyalty and the role of parental and individual marital consent. The author argues that it is vital to first understand the traditional structures of the arranged marriage, before one can understand modernizing tendencies the arranged marriage system is currently undergoing. As such, this study hugely contributes to an unbiased understanding of the arranged marriage and changing arranged marriage patterns and is a valuable reading for those interested in marriage, marital systems and the future thereof.

There is a tendency in academic literature to view the arranged marriage from the lens of the autonomous marriage. In this literature the arranged marriage is compared in a binary to the autonomous marriage. 1 While a comparison of the arranged marriage to the autonomous marriage should be an unbiased one, the contrary is true. From this binary, both marital systems are not viewed neutrally. The autonomous marriage, thriving on individual choice, is perceived to be the ideal marital system, while the arranged marriage, supported by traditional kin authority, is not considered ideal. Resulting from this, the autonomous marriage sets the standards of an ideal marriage all marriages must aim for, including the arranged marriage. The arranged marriage is then measured by characteristics typical of the autonomous marriage system. However, the arranged marriage, even in its most modern manifestation, is not an autonomous marriage. Monitoring the arranged marriage as if it were or should be autonomous, emphasizes defects, deficits, lacunas in the arranged marriage on matters related to autonomy. Measured this way, the arranged marriage turns into something faulty. It becomes a marriage of shortcomings.

There is a necessity to study the arranged marriage on its own terms and not in a binary with the autonomous marriage. 2 This will enable judging the arranged marriage on the qualities and rewards it holds for its practitioners. At its core, this article hopes to contribute to an understanding of the arranged marriage from an unbiased lens.

This article is set up in three sections.

Section II will investigate biased understandings of the arranged marriage in more detail, by critically evaluating the binary approach in scholarly literature, illustrated further by a study of a variety of categorizations and close interpretation of definitions on the arranged marriage. Section II argues that in scholarly literature, the arranged marriage is framed as a lesser version of the ideal of autonomous conjugal union.

Section III will aim to construct a Weberian ideal type 3 of the traditional arranged marriage as a useful tool that offers neutral, unbiased insights into general features all arranged marriage systems, to varying degrees, share. The arranged marriage will be understood as a guardianship invested marital system, which is organized in a hierarchical, aristocratic manner, upheld by parental authority, group orientation and belonging. This section will provide a conceptual, theoretical analysis of the arranged marriage by drawing on literature that intersects between tradition and modernity, by leading scholars in the field. 4 Through this analysis a marital system will surface which is embedded in a cultural inherited belief that the young must be relieved of mate-selection which is perceived, not so much as a harmless liberty with mere individual impact, but as a burden that the strongest shoulders in the community must be bear, and as a choice that has broad implications for the family, extended family, and community.

Section IV will conclude as to how knowledge on the arranged marriage proper, as an aristocratic guardianship system, can be applied to the varied practices of changing patterns in arranged marriages, that include the increasing involvement of the young in mate-selection and marriage making. This section will also offer suggestions for further research.

This article will focus on analyses of conjugal practices of British immigrant Pakistanis residing in the UK, the largest Pakistani diaspora in the world that strongly upholds the arranged marriage system. While narrowing down the focus to one culture, norm and values will surface that typically underlie the arranged marriage system in general.

For this article, the following working definition of arranged marriage will be employed: marriage for which the mate selection is under the guardianship and authority of elders of the (extended) families of both marital agents and that aligns the families in a durable relational bond that allows for a legitimate space and belonging for the conjugal union. 5 The following working definition will be employed of the autonomous marriage: marriage for which the mate selection is undertaken by the marital agents, who base their selection on subjective criteria with the aim to align the agents in a durable relational conjugal union. 6

1. Biased Binary Approach

The so-called binary approach in the study or representation of the arranged marriage is much criticized in literature. 7 This binary is considered ‘liberal individualist’ 8 or Eurocentric. 9 Set in a binary with the autonomous marriage, the arranged marriage is judged by the idealized standards of the autonomous marriage. That which is idealized is individual freedom and conjugal choice. Individualism is considered progressive, there is free choice and the freeing of individual potential. 10 The autonomous marriage elevates the individual who emancipated themselves and rose from the bonds of a history in which marriage choices were not left to solely the individuals. 11 Individuals assume that this transformation from ‘arranged marriages to love matches is progressive and “healthy” … the result should be happier marriages’. 12 Central to the autonomous marriage is the nuclear family, otherwise known as the conjugal or the atomistic family. 13 The dissolving of the extended family into the nuclear family is also seen as a marker of modernity and progress. 14 Modernity signifies improvement, including modernity in the way one marries. 15 Through modernization, arranged marriage will be replaced by self-chosen unions. 16 ‘[A]lthough Western ideas about the family are often opposed or resisted at first, many of these ideas are nevertheless adopted, often in modified forms, because the Western style family is so closely associated with development.’ 17 And while this theory may have its critics, 18 this article claims that it still holds ground as regards arranged marriage.

As suggested by the convergence theory and developmental paradigm, 19 the arranged marriage is held to the expectation that it will one day adapt to the Western ways, and advance into the autonomous marriage, as a sign of emancipation, of progress.

Until then, the arranged marriage appears lacking in those very features so particular of the autonomous marriage: free choice, individual energy, emphasis on the idiocentric conjugal union and the self-centred nuclear family. Literature magnifies those very features and puts the arranged marriage to the test: can it fulfil standards of full and free autonomy? Failing to do so turns the arranged marriage into something faulty. The arranged marriage culture is seen as ‘deficient’ and ‘deformed’. 20 It becomes the ‘other’. 21 ‘[T]he “Orient” is constructed and represented in the binary opposition against the Occident as the “Other”.’ 22 This binary distinction ‘[p]roblematically contributes to the discursive portrayal of arranged marriages as certainly less than and other to mainstream marriage practices’. 23

The social principles of individual freedom and autonomy are given much weight in perspectives on the arranged marriage. However, such principles are not neutral. They are ‘European values, assumptions, cultural codes’, are ‘culturally-determined and biased’, and offer ‘limited historical perspectives’, 24 providing a lens through which the arranged marriage is evaluated. There then, is a free-choice system at one end of the spectrum, a space that cannot be shared with the arranged marriage, for that is a parent-orchestrated endeavour and parents’ ‘subtle coercion has a tainting effect on the child's quality of choice’. 25 Thus emerges at the other end of the spectrum the not so free system called the arranged marriage.

Of course, the arranged marriage is certainly not considered a forced marriage in the studied literature—though media often equate the two. 26 However, literature on the arranged marriage frequently mentions forced unions and thus frequently connects arranged marriage to forced marriage. Besides, an overlap between arranged and forced marriage is often recognized and referred to as a ‘grey area’ with the potential of ‘slippage:’ the slightest increase of duress can lead the arranged marriage to ‘slip’ into a forced one. 27 The arranged marriage is always haunted by force.

The heightened attention to freedom and the lack thereof highlights consent, arguably the most important legal principle the arranged marriage is expected to prove. This consent must be full and free. 28 A recurring question in literature is whether arranged marriage supports full and free consent. 29 If consent is present, the union is considered an arranged marriage. Without consent the union is considered coerced. Consent separates arranged marriage from forced marriage. 30 This leads to a preoccupation in legal and policy discourse with the presence of consent and the absence of coercion in the arranged marriage. 31 The presence of consent and the absence of coercion determine the value of the arranged marriage. In essence, the arranged marriage is framed in yet another binary: that between consent versus coercion, a binary that is damaging and limiting. 32 The culture of the arranged marriage in itself becomes problematic. 33 This culture needs to prove constantly that there is no coercion involved. In addition, the binary is limiting in a different sense too. Consent, full and free is a human rights standard, 34 as well as a legal tool to declare the legitimacy of marriage as an uncoerced union. 35 Yet, consent as it operates in the law is given a ‘Western individualistic bent’. 36 As such, read in ‘plain language’ ‘only “free market” or choice marriages —a hallmark of Western societies—meet the “free and full” requirement because “there is nothing to prevent men and women from taking spouses which do not meet their families” approval’. 37

Arranged marriage contexts do not evolve around the freeing of individual energy. They are characterized by collective dynamisms with a particular ‘distribution of power and wider familial and community involvement’. 38 ‘The arranged marriage process, heavily reliant on parental and sometimes extended family input, fails to measure up to the requirements of free and full consent.’ 39 The attention given to full consent ignores that something given an individualistic bent is a strange bedfellow in a system that is not primarily or fully individualistic, nor aims to be. Consent is a universal principle which certainly has its place in the arranged marriage system. Yet, the language of consent in the discourse on arranged marriage is an expression of the ‘rational individual with free will’ 40 or the ‘free self’. 41 It is the language of an atomistic individual, of ‘an autonomous agent who is able to choose and act freely’. 42 This is not the language of a member deeply engrained in community belonging, duty, and purpose.

To reiterate, individual autonomy, including the right to consent, dictates the preoccupation in literature on arranged marriage. Notions such as agency, control, freedom to date, freedom to reject a selected candidate, negotiating power, the right of marital subjects to fall in love, choice and the freedom to self-select, receive profound consideration as a consequence.

In this regard, it is illustrative that arranged marriage is often categorized in types which reflect differing amounts of yet again this very notion of individual autonomy. There are three main types of categorization: traditional, semi-arranged, or love-arranged marriage types. 43 Arranged marriages earmarked as traditional are described as offering no or very little involvement by the young, 44 as if involvement or the lack thereof is the only feature of traditional arranged marriage. Semi-arranged or hybrid types, also known as joint-venture types, point to control shared by the elders and the young alike, 45 which again only emphasize this control as a shared element, as if nothing is of any relevance other than control . Finally, the love-arranged types are embodiments of near full individual control and individual love. 46 This categorization according to a ‘sliding scale of control’ 47 does not highlight what the arranged marriage in general is or what it offers, other than control, to those practising it. Some authors even reject ‘arranged’ as a word to describe this marital system, as this word suggests a lack of control. 48 Individual control has become a dominating feature by which arranged marriage is judged. But it is again agency and control towards more autonomy that academics are consumed with and not agency or autonomy towards more traditional features arranged marriage offers. Those are simply ignored or not sought for. Those remain irrelevant and underexamined.

There could only be one reason why social principles that are founded upon the philosophy of idiocentrism and the freeing of individual energy, are tirelessly sought in a system that thrives on allocentrism, group-belonging and honour for group loyalty. Arguably, the arranged marriage culture only seems to satisfy the Eurocentric mind if it contains the same recognizable ingredients as the autonomous marriage culture. And as it does not, the arranged marriage represents a lesser marital version than the prized autonomous marriage.

2. Biased Definitions of Arranged Marriage

The above bias is reflected in descriptions and definitions of the arranged marriage. Many descriptions or definitions only really offer information as to who selects the mate, eg ‘parent orchestrated alliances’, 49 or ‘marriages that are instigated by the family’, 50 or ‘arranged by family members or respected members in the religious or ethnic community’. 51 Other definitions view the arranged marriage from a biased Eurocentric appreciation. These definitions accentuate ‘individualizing tendencies’. 52

While there is nothing wrong with individuation and autonomy, especially if so desired by those involved in arranged marriages, 53 headlining these modern notions points to a Eurocentric domination as to how the arranged marriage ought to be valued. Simultaneously, such one-sided promotion undervalues notions that cannot be grouped under ‘individualizing tendencies’ and the freeing of individual energy.

A case in point are the following definitions. Arranged marriages are featured as those ‘in which the spouses are chosen for one another by third parties to the marriage such as parents or elder relatives’, 54 or ‘the partners to which are chosen by others , usually their parents’. 55 In these definitions elders are referred to as ‘third parties’ or ‘others’. These wordings seem innocent, yet they are not. They suggest that marital subjects are the ‘first parties’. This qualification is justified if marriage is perceived to be an alliance between individuals, which is the case in the autonomous marriage system. This qualification is not correct if marriage is seen as an alliance between (extended) families, which emerges in the arranged marriage system. 56 ‘ First ’ parties suggests a hierarchy above ‘ third ’ parties, which is not an attribute of the arranged marriage system where singular members of the group, in this case the marital agents, are not valued above the elders or generally above one’s group. Similarly, mentioning that ‘parents rather than. spouses’ or ‘two families rather than individuals’ 57 contract a marriage is again pointing to a Eurocentric preference for self-selection.

Other definitions amplify attention to the individual more explicitly. For example in the definition ‘marriage arranged by the families of the individuals’, 58 the individual is seen as a separate entity, while, as we shall learn in Section III, a ‘tradition directed person … hardly thinks of himself as an individual’. 59 Indeed, ‘[t]he ideology that underpins a South Asian “arranged” marriage is that obligations to one’s immediate and more extended family have priority over personal self-interest’. 60 Ignoring this, is judging the arranged marriage from a ‘Western individualistic bent’. 61 In the same vein, many definitions contain the words ‘control’, ‘agency’ ‘choice,’ which all emphasize individual autonomy as the standard and which in effect draw attention to arranged marriage as primarily a space where marital agents negotiate increasing amounts of individual control. Other definitions refer to this ‘control’ highlighting dominion and power, suggesting that the arranged marriage is a battlefield between the elders and the young: ‘Traditional arranged marriage placed considerable power in the hands of the parents, and in particularly the father’. 62 Or, ‘In “traditional” societies, parents or the extended family dominate marriage choices’. 63 The power difference referred to suggests there are two parties with opposing aims and interests, which again is not an insightful reflection of unified interests so characteristic of group cultures. Also, culture here is presented as merely problematic: a father’s or parent’s role is that of power or domination, with negative connotations, and not much else.

A third set of definitions emphasizes the changing and flexible arranged marriage types, especially towards offering more control to the individual. It seems as if the arranged marriage is trying to prove that it is very capable of accommodating modernity and is progressive and evolving, for it has choice, agency, room for dating and romance, or the right of marital agents to say ‘no’ at any stage of the arrangement. This latter is illustrated well by Ahmad’s words referring to marriage as a dynamic process: ‘a family-facilitated introduction of a potentially suitable matched prospective candidate followed by a managed pattern of courtship prior to a potential, and agreed to marriage’. 64 Her words seem to suggest that the only acceptable arranged marriage is a progressive arranged marriage, one that resembles the autonomous marriage.

Love too, when mentioned, generally suggests lovelessness in arranged marriage as opposed to true love in autonomous marriage. 65 Arranged marriages are contrasted to marriage where there is romantic love 66 or to ‘love marriages’ based on romantic attachment between the couple’. 67 Arranged marriages when ‘a couple validates its love choice to their respective families’ 68 would be termed love-arranged or western type marriages. One commonly held view is that love will (hopefully) grow in arranged marriage as time passes. 69 Reference to ‘marriage, then love’, 70 supports this theory. Or when ‘love is not forthcoming’ the couple ‘are increasingly supported to divorce … ’. 71 In these examples it is yet again the love between the spouses, primarily romantic, sensual love, or individual affection that is stressed, which again celebrates the love so typical in the autonomous marriage system. 72

Families that are not conjugal have valued ‘not affection, but duty, obligation, honour, mutual aid, and protection … ’. 73 Such love for family or culture or any type of gift-love 74 are hardly mentioned in descriptions of arranged marriage. Even when ‘companionate’ love features, the focus remains on the spouse’s companionship for one another, and not for any(thing) other. Arguably the Eurocentric perspective holds little regard for other loves than the romantic.

3. Evaluation of Biased Science on the Arranged Marriage

The manner in which the arranged marriage is described in the literature studied is a marker of recognizing the arranged marriage as worthwhile only in so far it mirrors the characteristics of the autonomous marriage system. The words employed to describe the arranged marriage reflect autonomy-related values, but exclude community-related values that are foundational to the arranged marriage system. The arranged marriage is thus undervalued for the fundamental characteristics upon which it rests. These are ignored, not understood, arguably misunderstood, if at all known. Set against the autonomous marriage, the arranged marriage then becomes the other, deficient, deformed, a marriage of shortcomings, a marriage lacking in freedom and a marriage that is catching up and trying to prove it is not as traditional, thus not so backwards or rigid as analysts of the arranged marriage suggest.

The arranged marriage proper then remains a much understudied marital system and can only be understood by abandoning the binary approach and adopting a neutral lens. One needs ‘to turn the picture round’ as Tocqueville puts, in his eloquent study of aristocratic systems. 75 Such an aristocratic system is the arranged marriage, as we shall learn below.

As mentioned before, arranged marriages are frequently categorized in types, varying from traditional to hybrid to loosely arranged modern versions. They are frequently studied individually, through empirical research which offers a rich, complex, and varied analysis of arranged marriage practices, in diaspora communities, transnational communities as well as in communities and cultures around the world that are globalizing and are in transition. Yet, while all arranged marriages are arguably different, all do share a basic set of similarities. This section aims to bring these to the surface, drawing on sociology, so as to arrive at an ideal type of the arranged marriage.

The arranged marriage as an ideal type is a theoretical construct. 76 The ideal type emphasizes typical features of the arranged marriage, which all concrete individual arranged marriages share with one another and which are presented ‘into a unified analytical construct’. 77 As such the ideal type, ‘in its conceptual purity … cannot be found empirically anywhere in reality’. 78 ‘It is a utopia’. 79 Yet, it is a necessary tool to bring to the surface a neutral, unbiased understanding of the arranged marriage. It is also a ‘measuring rod’ 80 to measure the reality of cultural differences or change the arranged marriage system is constantly undergoing. 81

Before I proceed, it is vital to address academic opposition against the essentialization of the arranged marriage system. This essentialization is criticized as it captures the arranged marriage in a binary opposition with the autonomous marriage, idealizing the autonomous marriage and ‘othering’ the arranged marriage. This essentialization exaggerates cultural difference. 82 It portrays the arranged marriage as a rigid, static, unchanging, unnuanced system. 83 It ‘assumes the complete hold over the migrant of traditional gender and family norms by underscoring the foreignness of … arranged marriages’. 84 Authors opposing this essentialization are quick to point out that the arranged marriage is a dynamic and highly flexible system, that is able to accommodate change, modernization, individualizing tendencies, agency, romantic love and negotiating spaces, in which especially women assume more control in their endeavours to navigate around victimization by patriarchy. 85

What these scholars are in actual fact doing, unknowingly, is trying to exhibit to the Eurocentric mind evidence that the arranged marriage resembles the autonomous marriage. These authors demonstrate that the arranged marriage is very capable of upholding choice, agency, and control. These authors preoccupy themselves with bringing those qualities in the arranged marriage to the surface of their research. Sequentially, traditional features of this marital system remain understudied.

This section will not essentialize the arranged marriage system from a Eurocentric viewpoint for it desires not to repeat the othering of the arranged marriage. It will not try to prove that the arranged marriage is a flexible modern institution able to accommodate a constant flux of variety and diversity. As valuable as an investigation of that change may be, one cannot study the arranged marriage by studying how it absorbs constant flux. ‘[W]eber defines reality as an “infinite flux” which cannot be apprehended in its totality’. 86 One cannot apprehend arranged marriage on its fundamental shared characteristics if only the constant flux and change towards autonomy dominate academic engagement.

Despite being diverse and different on individual level, there are common qualities that make a marriage an arranged marriage and thus a largely unexamined ideal type of the arranged marriage will be examined in Section III of this article. The rich diversity between cultures, countries, social and economic classes, between religions and religious denominations, between those that have migrated and those that have not, as well as the constant evolution of the arranged marriage, will be left to the efforts of other scholars. 87

At its core, all arranged marriage cultures have marriage arrangers, whether these arrangers operate on their own or co-jointly with the marital agents. All marriage arrangers are senior members of the family or community, whether these arrangers operate on their own or co-jointly with the marital agents. All arranged marriage cultures value marriage to be arranged by these senior marriage arrangers, whether these arrangers operate on their own or co-jointly with the marital agents. All arranged marriage cultures consider mate selection to be not primarily the responsibility of the marital agents, whether they share this responsibility substantially or subtly with the marital agents. All arranged marriage cultures consider mate-selection physically and mentally risky, shameful and burdensome for the young to be engaged in, whether the young engage themselves in such matters or not. Family is placed central to marriage in all arranged marriage cultures, as they all consider marriage an alliance between families, whether or not the marital agents emphasize their conjugal alliance above that of the family’s. All arranged marriages guard against an incoming candidate harming family unity or family interests. Objective reasons for marrying are always valued as these support aforementioned family unity and interests, regardless of whether there is room for individual desire and preference. Finally, all arranged marriages are voluntarily accepted by marital agents on the basis of legitimate parental guidance and authority.

As such, all arranged marriage cultures are hierarchical cultures, as they accord different roles and responsibilities to the elders and to the younger ones of a group; they are group cultures that strongly incorporate its members through loyalty to the group and its interests; they are all driven by parental guardianship and authority, rooted in protection, providence and voluntary compliance. These principles of community, hierarchy, guardianship and authority are foundational to the ‘way of life’ 88 of the arranged marriage system, and will be explained below.

1. Arranged Marriage is a Community Oriented System

Literature frequently makes reference to arranged marriage cultures as collectivist, community oriented, occurring in extended families, whether there is individualism or not. 89 Marriage concerns the whole family and families are characteristically extended with extended kinship ties. 90 Marriage choices ‘have a far-reaching impact upon … relatives, affecting the futures and socio-economic positions of a much wider range of kin than just parents and children’. 91 Beyond the conjugal alliance, marriage creates alliances between a variety of family-members. 92 ‘Strategic marriage choices enable social mobility even within the extended kinship network.’ 93 Fox argues that arranged marriage preserves family unity, ‘by felicitous selection of the new spouse’ which ‘allows for the furtherance of political linkages and/or economic consolidation between families … it helps keep families intact over generations; and … it preserves family property within the larger kin unit’. 94 Objective selection criteria are emblematic of the families’ desire to preserve a stable family. ‘Parents usually assess the reputation, economic standing and personalities of the potential in-laws and the educational level and occupation of the potential groom or bride.’ 95 The strong emphasis on pragmatic, unromantic reasons that guide mate-selection are considered wise: the new conjugal addition must suit family background and thus fit harmoniously into its organization. 96 As such, extended families remain strong in the social order. Less attention is paid therefore to subjective love. One learns that spousal love may come as martial time goes by. 97 This need not be romantic, it may as well be love in a ‘more all-encompassing sense’. 98 Typical of group cultures is that ‘[i]ndividual choice … may be constricted either through requiring that a person be bound by group decisions or by demanding that individuals follow the rules accompanying their station in life’. 99 The individual is ‘sacrificed’. 100 ‘The tradition-directed person … hardly thinks of himself as an individual.’ 101 He is a ‘collective being’ not a ‘particular being’. 102 But such sacrifice ‘is more than offset by the advantages of fulfilling one’s role within the family … ’. 103

2. Arranged Marriage is a Hierarchical System

The mere fact that marriage arranging requires some element of wisdom, experience and providence, suggests hierarchy. Not everyone is suited to make marriage choices, certainly not young children and this applies to all cultures, whether autonomous or arranged. In the latter culture, arranging marriages is a responsibility bestowed upon elders, mostly parents of the marital agents. 104 Elders, given their status and rank, are considered most able, equipped, wise and well connected to undertake the grave and delicate task of mate selection. It is their proper place to screen and select mates and it is the proper place of the young to trust and respect the judgment of the elders in this regard. Pande points to a case of a young woman called Shabnam appreciating this ‘proper place’ as she would never directly go up to her parents with her marriage wishes as ‘parents deserve their izzat ’ 105 (respect NT). And while elders are given the privilege of mate selection, they do not and may not select for their own benefit, but in the best interests and the good of the group, 106 into which are incorporated the interests and the good of the marital agents. 107

Arranged marriage cultures are thus hierarchical. 108 To understand arranged marriage, is to understand hierarchy. Yet, the social principle of hierarchy does not sit well with the Western mind. 109 The western mind views society from the lens of equality and freedom and hierarchical systems lack equality and freedom. Thus arranged marriage is rejected: it is a space where parents have the ‘power’ and upper hand and ‘dominate’ in marriage choices. 110 Arranged marriage becomes nothing more than a ‘chain of command’ 111 or a ‘power hierarchy’. 112 However, as Dumont argues, this is not true hierarchy. 113 To understand hierarchy one must ‘detach … from egalitarian societies’. 114 One must view hierarchical systems on its own merits, in an organic manner. 115

‘[H]ierarchy. comes from the very functional requirements of the social bond.’ 116 Literature offers the organism, a whole or the body as a metaphor to understand hierarchical systems. 117 Hierarchy is ‘the principle by which the elements of a whole are ranked in relation to the whole’. 118 The whole body and its parts are strongly bound together by rules, 119 social control, 120 and a common value system. 121 One accepts as necessary the rank order and the fulfilment of distinct obligations—without this the whole cannot function as it is supposed to function. 122 Decisions are taken by the most able in the interests of the whole and its parts. 123 The most able are the guardians and guardianship and hierarchy are strongly intertwined. 124

Families in arranged marriage cultures are organized hierarchically, with each member aware of its own and other’s status and social ranking, 125 with each member submitting to ‘group control’ and fulfilling ‘socially imposed roles’, 126 with each member keeping in one’s proper place, honouring order, 127 and subject to a ‘hierarchized interdependence’. 128 It is deeply understood that elders arrange marriages—it is their obligation to find matches from good families, and to exercise control as to who joins the family. 129 This applies whether or not they share this task with the marital agents. ‘From the viewpoint of many parents, arranging and seeing through your children’s marriages is a primary duty, to the extent that your role as a parent is unfulfilled until this duty is accomplished.’ 130 It is ‘a matter of great family honour.’ 131 It is a necessity too as ‘marriage normally confers the statuses of wife and husband, which have been and still are regarded in many societies as necessary to being seen as an adult rather than as a child’. 132 It is only through marriage that intimate life with a stranger turned into family is legitimate. So, the young depend on the patronage of the elders. 133 Amber, a twenty-four year old student ‘sought her parent’s intervention stating it was their ‘responsibility’. 134 Elders are not to abandon this role, nor to share it with the less qualified. They too are answerable to tradition and community. 135 But they are bound also, as good guardians and figures of authority, to choose wisely and in the best interest of the child. 136 Below a further exploration will be provided on guardianship, which is ‘a standard justification for hierarchical rule’ 137 and authority which too manifests itself through hierarchical relations. 138

3. Arranged Marriage is a System of Guardianship and Parental Authority

Arranged marriage cultures thrive on authority and entrusted leadership of guardians. Though literature never does, one could call arranged marriage a rule of guardians 139 or of parental authority or an aristocratic marital system. 140 In such a system ‘rulership should be entrusted to a minority of persons who are specially qualified to govern by reason of their superior knowledge and virtue’. 141 The entrusted uphold community values, such as ‘altruism, sacrifice, love … order, security, loyalty, duty’. 142 They govern as guardians, as figures of authority. 143 Traditionally, elders are the entrusted ones. 144 And the young honour their authority. 145 The arranged marriage of Manju and Jagdesh, both from Indian middle class families, offers a good example of these notions. 146 Manju, twenty-one years old at the time and Jagdesh, twenty three, were ‘both told that they would be a good match and should marry’ and soon after their agreement, the marriage took place. 147 Or the case of Saima, a 20-year old student who says that ‘my parents will obviously find the guy for me … I trust them for it … If they come out with a decent guy and say we’d like you to marry him, I’d say yes … ’. 148 In both examples parental authority occupies a central role in match making.

A. But what exactly is authority?

‘The need for authority is basic. Children need authorities to guide and reassure them. Adults fulfil an essential part of themselves in being authorities; it is one way of expressing care for others.’ 151

‘Deeply embedded in social functions, an inalienable part of the inner order of family … ritualized at every turn, authority is so closely woven into the fabric of tradition and morality … ’. 162 As such, traditional authority is embedded in arranged marriage cultures. It ‘roots in the belief that it is ancient’. 163 In arranged marriage cultures traditionally there is trust in parental leadership. 164 One is assured that parents know what is best for their child, as they know their child, sometimes even better than the child knows itself—they see through them. 165 This inspires obedience. 166

Parental authority is a necessary component in arranged marriage systems. Marriage affects a whole family’s stability and future, so marriage choices need to be supervised. 167 The young, inexperienced and not yet wise, are traditionally not considered well trained for this task, as they may be misguided by love. 168 So, arranged marriage societies isolate the young from potential mates. 169 In addition, social control, typical for group cultures, is applied to guard behaviour. 170 Young people can easily fall prey to romantic and sexual behaviour considered disruptive to the dignity and order of the family. 171 Here then arises the necessity for elders to authorize rational mate selection. 172 Of course, this does not exclude that young people may step out of their role. If they do, shame and dishonour may be brought to the family. 173 Such youngsters are considered deviants who must be blamed, heavily punished or re-educated. 174 As such being nourished by parental authority offers security, 175 and enables moral life. 176

4. Studying Arranged Marriage Practices

The idealized typology of the arranged marriage, as a Weberian theoretical construct, demonstrates that, at the outset, arranged marriage systems are traditionally systems of community, hierarchy, guardianship, and authority. So described, the arranged marriage finds its rationality in a system that safeguards mate selection by placing this under the guardianship and authority of elders of the (extended) families of both marital agents with the aim to align both families in a durable relational bond, that strengthens its economic and societal standing, and that allows for a legitimate space and belonging for the conjugal union.

This typology is an ideal construct, in the same way the autonomous marriage is also an ideal construct. Borrowing then from William Goode who arrived at an ideal type of the conjugal family, which was also seen as an ideal , the arranged marriage as typified above is also seen as an ideal in that a ‘number of people view some of its characteristics as proper and legitimate, no matter that reality may run counter to the ideal’. 177 Elders in arranged marriage contexts all around the world consider it an ideal to take upon themselves the role of proper guardians and authorities in marriage arranging, and children, in their turn, ideally accept the parental choice, understanding that this is wisely made, that it gains its majesty in legitimate authority. All around the world, this ideal is an inspirational reference point in arranged marriage cultures.

This said, of course reality does not always represent the ideal portrayed, however inspirational. Still, the value of the ideal and the ideal type remain: this construct, even if it is an utopia, is necessary as it provides a neutral and unbiased understanding of the arranged marriage, one that is detached from a restrictive binary approach that others the arranged marriage. The ideal construct serves also as a measuring rod to study the reality of arranged marriage practices that depart from that construct. It ‘[p]rovides the basic method of comparative study’. 178

Taking a look then into these realities, one will find that, for one, elders are not always capable of arranging marriages well. ‘The notion that parents will always act in the child’s best interests is … based on an idealized interpretation of the parent/child relationship and assumes that adults will be altruistic whenever they relate to children with love, care and empathy.’ 179 Elders may not always understand what guardianship truly entails. They may confuse parental authority with the exercise of parental power, force even.

In addition, elders continuously share marriage arranging duties with their children, as the variety of semi-arranged marriage types suggest. These hybrid arranged marriage types are expressions of transformations of marital agents’ role in exercising self-determination and self-realization in marriage matters. They also reflect the changes in traditional parenthood: where once it was the elders who decided for the collective, this is now scrutinized by marital agents’ desires for freedom to (also) decide. In the words of Aguiar ‘arranged marriage has become the locus of a set of liberal and communitarian discourses that articulate competing visions of individual and collective agency’. 180 This does not always run smoothly. Elders may not always believe that transitions towards freedom and individualism are proper. Families often act as buffers against ‘too much’ individualism that is perceived as an isolating and alienating force that disrupts family cohesion and hinders traditions to be passed on from generation to generation. Many, in arranged marriage cultures, parents as well as young people, are grappling with the blended agendas of the liberal and communitarian, of the individual and the collective that are shaping arranged marriage realities. A very sensitive portrayal of an intergenerational struggle in this regard can be seen in the drama film A Fond Kiss : protagonist Casim, son of Pakistani Muslim immigrants to the UK, asks his parents to accept his love choice for Roisin, a Catholic divorcee. In their turn, his parents, emotionally destroyed and shamed by Casim’s desires, plead to their son to accept an arranged marriage to his cousin Yasmin. This Casim refuses and the family breaks up. 181

As indicated earlier, the tendency is to view such realities from a Eurocentric lens, that prizes liberalism and equality, and that advocates the individual’s rise from traditional structures as a marker of sovereignty, supported by contract, geared towards independence and freedom from authority. 182

Again, such views monopolize examination of arranged marriage, are biased, ‘culturally-determined’ and entrenched in ‘limited historical perspectives’. 183 ‘Many people in this world have registers of well-being that are not the same as degrees of freedom, measures such as duty, devotion and responsibility.’ 184 Many people do not value, experience, nor desire full independence from parental authority.

Hybrid arranged marriages are in a sense partly separated from and partly belonging to traditional as well as liberal structures. It is vital to represent and express belonging to these traditional structures in the discourse on arranged marriage. It is important to acknowledge notions of guardianship, authority, and community when one measures change and modernization in arranged marriage realities, but also when one measures distancing from that very modernization in efforts to hold on to traditions.

The current tendency, when marital agents demand a stronger role in mate selection, is to capture this in a language of freedoms, control, agency and the rising individual. This language presupposes that marital agents’ main aim is to free oneself, become independent and ultimately exit the arranged marriage system. 185 It presupposes too that marital agents are very capable of acting independently of their parents. The fact of the matter is, that many marital agents are deeply connected to a system of parental guardianship and authority, they are hierarchically interdependent with family, they cherish strong belonging to their community and understand family cohesion as a necessary component of their family’s well-being in which their well-being is integrated. Marital agents granted or demanding a role in match making, challenge in essence (part of) the authority of parents, but do not act as fully atomistic units. When parents allow their child to jointly decide with them on marriage matters, this is articulated in literature mostly as a step that invests power in the child. However, this ought to also be valued as a sharing of parental authority or guardianship with the child. Adding authority and guardianship to the conversation on the arranged marriage gives rise to a language that relates to and represents community. For instance, why do some parents share their authority, why do others not? It might be possible that some parents deem their children disciplined enough to select wisely, pointing to the principle that ‘discipline is authority in operation?’ 186 It might be that some parents believe that their children can act as their own guardians, partly or in full, given that these children are educated and skilled in ways the elders are not? Might it be that in diaspora contexts elders are searching for new meaning to traditional concepts such as authority and guardianship and need a language to cope with this hybrid dynamic rather than a language that calls upon their children to exit anything traditional? Asking and addressing such questions will contribute to a discourse on arranged marriage that respects the very foundations it is built upon. It is knowledge about these foundations that is pivotal if we wish to understand the arranged marriage proper and change in that domain.

This article argued for a full renunciation of the binary approach adopted in literature in studying arranged marriage. In the binary approach, the arranged marriage emerges as a lesser conjugal union in comparison to the ideal and prized autonomous conjugal union. Recognizing that the arranged marriage must be valued on its own merits, this article sought for an ideal typical construct of the arranged marriage, as a neutral departure point in a study of this marital system and as a tool to explore arranged marriage realities. The arranged marriage is fundamentally rooted in the sociological principles of collective belonging, parental guardianship and the protective, provident authority of elders in match making. This article calls for a fresh discourse on arranged marriage and changing arranged marriage patterns that reflect these principles in order to arrive at a much needed and understudied fuller appreciation and conversation of a marital system that engages hundreds of millions.

In order to be as impartial as humanly possible, this article does not offer personal opinions on or preferences for the arranged or the autonomous marriage. It is of fundamental importance that any scholar on the arranged marriage system (and many other subjects for that matter) is an unbiased scholar or at least strives to be. Neither advocacy of nor opposition to the arranged marriage, and neither advocacy of nor opposition to the autonomous marriage should enter a scholar’s theories and findings. A scholar’s role is not to express any preference for either system, it is not to value one system as better than the other, it is to become independent from any prejudice of one over the other

This article is based on, The Arranged Marriage – Changing Perspectives on a Marital Institution (Unpublished Dissertation Utrecht University) Utrecht, 2019.

Authors referring to this binary are eg F. Shariff, ‘Towards a Transformative Paradigm in the UK Response to Forced Marriages’ (2012) 21 (4) Social and Legal Studies 549–65; M. Aguiar, Arranging Marriage, Conjugal Agency in The South Asian Diaspora (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2018); R. Pande, ‘Geographies of Marriage and Migration: Arranged Marriages and South Asians in Britain’ (2014) 8 (2) Geography Compass 75–86; S. Anitha and A. Gill, ‘Coercion, Consent and the Forced Marriage Debate in the UK’ (2009) 17 Feminist Legal Studies 165–84; M. Khandelwal, ‘Arranging Love: Interrogating the Vantage Point in Cross-Border Feminism’ (2009) 34 (3) Signs 583–609; F. Ahmad, ‘Graduating Towards Marriage? Attitudes Towards Marriage and Relationships among University-educated British Muslim Women’ (2012) 13 Culture and Religion 193–210.

M. Weber, Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Wissenschafslehre (Tübingen: J.C.B. Mohr, 1988) p. 191.

Notably, H. Arendt, Between Past and Future (New York: Penguin Books, 1977); M. Douglas, ‘Cultural Bias’ in M. Douglas (ed.), The Active Voice (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1982), as referred to by Thompson et al., Cultural Theory (Boulder, San Francisco: Westview Press, 1990); Thompson et al. ibid; M. Douglas, Risk and Blame (London, New York: Routledge, 1992); R.A. Dahl, Democracy and its Critics (New Have: Yale University, 1989); L. Dumont, Homo Hierarchicus (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1980); R.A. Nisbet, The Quest for Community (California: ICS Press, 1990); R.A. Nisbet, The Sociological Tradition (London: Heinemann Educational Books Ltd, 1966); R. Sennett, Authority (New York: W.W. Norton, 1980).

For origins of the term ‘arranged marriage’ see Aguiar (n 1) 14.

‘Autonomous marriage’ is used in I.L. Reiss, Family Systems in America (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1976) as referred to by G.R. Lee and L. Hemphill Stone, ‘Mate-Selection Systems and Criteria: Variation according to Family Structure’ (1980) 42 (2) Journal of Marriage and Family 319–26, 319.

Anitha and Gill (n 1); Shariff (n 1); Aguiar (n 1); Pande (n 1); Khandelwal (n 1).

Shariff (n 1) 556, on binary between consent and coercion.

Compare Ahmad (n 1) 194; see also Pande (n 1) 82; see also Aguiar (n 1) 14.

Nisbet 1990 (n 4) pp. 3–4; A.J. Cherlin, ‘Goode's “World Revolution and Family Patterns”: A Reconsideration at Fifty Years’ (2012) 38 (4) Population and Development Review 577–607, 580, 581; see for progress towards the atomistic family C.C. Zimmerman, Family and Civilization (Wilmington Delaware: ISI Books, 2008) pp. 124, 247–49; in general on progress see J.B. Bury, The Idea of Progress (New York: Cosimo Classics, 2008); R.A. Nisbet, History of the Idea of Progress (New York: Basic Book, Inc. Publishers, 1980); see also Arendt (n 4) 100, 101 on progress theory.

See S. Coontz, Marriage, a History, How Love Conquered Marriage (New York: Penguin Group, 2005) p. 25; See for more on this evolution J. Witte Jr., From Sacrament to Contract , Marriage, Religion, and Law in the Western Tradition (Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1997) pp. 194–215.

X. Xiaohe and M. King Whyte, ‘Love Matches and Arranged Marriages: A Chinese Replication’ (1990) 52 (3) Journal of Marriage and the Family 709–22, 709.

See for these terms W.J. Goode, World Revolution and Family Patterns (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1970) p. 1, and Zimmerman (n 10) pp. 30–36.

A. Thornton, Reading History Sideways: The Fallacy and the Enduring Impact of the Developmental Paradigm on Family Life (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005), as referred to by Cherlin (n 10) 581; see also, K. Allendorf and R.K. Pandian, ‘The Decline of Arranged Marriage? Marital Change and Continuity in India’ (2016) 42 (3) Population and Development Review 435–464, 435.

Cherlin (n 10) 581.

Allendorf and Pandian (n 14) 435.

Thornton (n 14), as referred to by Cherlin (n 10) 593.

Cherlin (n 10) 594.

On the ‘convergence theory’, see Goode (n 13) and Cherlin (n 10); on ‘developmental paradigm’ see Thorntan (n 14) as referred to by Cherlin (n 10) 581; see also A. Shaw, A Pakistani Community in Britain (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1988) pp. 2, 3 on the expected disappearance of Pakistani migrants’ culture.

M. Enright, ‘Choice, Culture and the Politics of Belonging: The Emerging Law of Forced and Arranged Marriage’ (2009) 72 (3) The Modern Law Review 331–59, 338.

R. Pande, ‘Becoming Modern: British-Indian Discourses of Arranged Marriages’ (2016) 17 (3) Social & Cultural Geography 380–400, 384; see on consequence of ‘othering’ of migrants, Pande (n 1) 75; Shariff (n 1) 562.

E. Said, Orientalism (New York: Penguin, 1978) as referred to by S.R. Moosavinia et al, ‘Edward Said’s Orientalism and the Study of the Self and the Other in Orwell’s Burmese Days’ (2011) 2 (1) Studies in Literature and Language 103–13, 104.

Pande (n 21) 384.

Moosavinia et al, (n 22) 104; Said (n 22).

P.J. Gagoomal, ‘A “Margin of Appreciation” for “Marriages of Appreciation”: Reconciling South Asian Adult Arranged Marriages with the Matrimonial Consent Requirement in International Human Rights Law’ (2009) 97 The Georgetown Law Journal 589–620, 601; compare Shariff (n 1) 557.

E.g.: ‘I fled in just the clothes I was wearing’: How one Muslim woman escaped arranged marriage, Mirror , 17 September 2012; L. Harding, ‘Student Saved from Arranged Marriage’, The Guardian , 14 March 2000, as referred to by R. Penn, ‘Arranged Marriages in Western Europe: Media Representations and Social Reality’ (2011) 42 (5) Journal of Comparative Family Studies 637–50, 639, for more examples, see 639–41; see also Aguiar (n 1) 11, 12.

Enright (n 20) 332; Shariff (n 1) 557; Anitha and Gill (n 1) 171; G. Gangoli et al, Forced Marriage and Domestic Violence among South Asian Communities in North East England (Bristol: University of Bristol, Northern Rock Foundation, 2006), as referred to by Anitha and Gill (n 1) 167.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), G.A. Res. 217A, (III), U.N. Doc A/810, 10 December 1948, Article 16 (2); International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), GA. Res. 2200A (XXI), 16 December 1966, Article 23 (3); International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), G.A. Res. 2200A (XXI), 16 December 1966, Article 10 (1).

Aguiar (n 1) 11–13, see also Anitha and Gill (n 1); Shariff (n 1).

Aguiar (n 1) 11, 67.

Anitha and Gill (n 1); Aguiar (n 1) 67.

Anitha and Gill (n 1); Aguiar (n 1) 13, 14; Shariff (n 1).

Enright (n 20) 338.

UDHR (n 28); ICCPR (n 28); ICESCR (n 28).

Aguiar (n 1) 13.

Gagoomal (n 25) 611.

R.W. Hodge and N. Ogawa, ‘Arranged Marriages, Assortative Mating and Achievement in Japan,’ in Nihon University Population Research Institute, Research Paper, Series No. 1986, as referred to by Gagoomal (n 25) 601.

Shariff (n 1) 562; see also Anitha and Gill.

Shariff (n 1) 557.

Aguiar (n 1) 67; see also Anitha and Gill (n 1) 171.

Anitha and Gill (n 1) 171.

Anitha and Gill (n 1) 171; see also Thompson et al, (n 4) 7 on the ‘individualistic social context’.

See for a slightly different categorization R.B. Qureshi, ‘Marriage Strategies among Muslims from South Asia’ 1991 10 (3) The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences , as referred to by A.U. Zaidi and M. Shuraydi, ‘Perceptions of Arranged Marriages by Young Pakistani Muslim Women Living in a Western Society’ 2002 33 (4) Journal of Comparative Family Studies 495–514, 496.

Qureshi (n 43) as referred to by Zaidi and Shuraydi (n 43) 496; Gagoomal (n 25) 592; Cherlin (n 10) 589; see also for modified traditional types, Shariff (n 1) 558; H. Siddiqui, ‘Review: Winning Freedoms’ (1991) 37 Feminist Review 78, 81, as referred to by Enright (n 20) 340, ft 45; see also R. Pande, ‘I Arranged my Own Marriage': Arranged Marriages and Post-colonial Feminism’ (2015) 22 (2) Gender, Place & Culture 172–87, 175; S.P. Wakil et al, ‘Between Two Cultures: A Study in Socialization of Children of Immigrants’ (1981) 43 (4) Journal of Marriage and Family 929–40, 935; see also Ahmad (n 1).

Qureshi (n 43), as referred to by Zaidi and Shuraydi (n 43) 496; S.A. Patel, An Exploratory Study of Arranged-Love Marriage in Couples From Collective Cultures (Dissertation Northern Illinois University, Ann Arbor: ProQuest LLC) 2016, 10; J. Kapur, ‘An Arranged Love Marriage: India’s Neoliberal turn and the Bollywood Wedding Culture Industry’ (2009) 2 Communication, Culture, and Critique 221–33, as referred to by Patel 10; Cherlin (n 10) 590; Shariff (n 1) 558.

Shariff (n 1) 558; S. Seymour, Women, Family, and Child Care in India: A World in Transition (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999) p. 212, as referred to by Kandelwal (n 1) 595; K. Kezuka, ‘Late Marriage and Transition from Arranged Marriages to Love Matches: A Search-theoretic Approach’ 2018 42 (2) The Journal of Mathematical Sociology 237–56, 237; N.D. Manglos-Weber and A.A. Weinreb, ‘Own-Choice Marriage and Fertility in Turkey’ (2017) 79 (2) Journal of Marriage and Family 372–89, 373; Pande (n 21) 389.

Shariff (n 1) 558, who refers to M. Stopes-Roe and R. Cochrane, Citizens of this Country: The Asian-British (Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 1990).

Ahmad (n 1) 195, 200; M.J. Bhatti, Questioning Empowerment: Pakistani Women, Higher Education & Marriage (Dissertation University at Buffalo, State University of New York, 2013) 153.

R. Huch, ‘Romantic Marriage’, in H. Keyserling ed., The Book of Marriage: A New Interpretation by Twenty-four Leaders of Contemporary thought (New York: Harcourt, Brace & Company, 1926) pp. 168, 177, as referred to by Gagoomal (n 25) 607/n 112.

S. Davé, ‘Matchmakers and Cultural Compatibility: Arranged Marriage, South Asians, and American television’ (2012) 10 (2) South Asian Popular Culture 167–83, 168.

F.B. Ternikar, Revisioning the Ethnic Family: An Analysis of Marriage Patterns Among Hindu, Muslim, and Christian South Asian Immigrants (Dissertation, Chicago, Illinois, August 2004) 41.

Ahmad (n 1) 206, see also 207.

See among others Ahmad (n 1) and Aguiar (n 1).

Enright (n 20) 331, italics added.

Pande (n 21) 384, italics added, referring to the Oxford English Dictionary.

K. Charsley and A. Shaw, ‘South Asian Transnational Marriages in Comparative Perspective’ (2006) 6 (4) Global Networks 331–44, 335; Zaidi and Shuraydi (n 43) 496.

Zaidi and Shuraydi (n 43) 496; see also Penn (n 26) 637.

Zaidi and Shuraydi (n 43), 496 (italics omitted).

D. Riesman et al, The Lonely Crowd: A Study of the American Changing Character (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1961) p. 17.

A. Shaw, ‘Kinship, Cultural Preference and Immigration: Consanguineous Marriage Among British Pakistanis’ (2001) 7 (2) Royal Anthropological Institute 315–34, 323.

G.W. Jones, Changing Marriage Patterns in Asia (Working Paper, Asia Research Institute, Series 131, 2010) 4.

P. Wood, ‘Marriage and Social Boundaries among British Pakistanis’ (2011) 20 (1) Diaspora 40–64, 41.

Ahmad (n 1) 200.

Charsley and Shaw (n 56) 338; Khandelwal (n 1).

Davé (n 50) 167, 168.

Charsley and Shaw (n 56) 338.

M. Aguiar, ‘Cultural Regeneration in Transnational South-Asian Popular Culture’ (2013) 84 Cultural Critique (2013) 181–214, 183.

Aguiar (n 1) 7.

A. Patel, ‘Marriage, then Love — Why Arranged Marriages Still Work Today,’ Global News , 26 July 2018.

K. Qureshi et al, ‘Marital Instability among British Pakistanis: Transnationality, Conjugalities and Islam’ (2014) 37 (2) Ethnic and Racial Studies 261–79, 276.

Pande (n 1) 75; for more on this love see K. Bejanyan et al, ‘Associations of Collectivism with Relationship Commitment, Passion, and Mate Preferences: Opposing Roles of Parental Influence and Family Allocentrism’ (2015) 10 (2) PLoS ONE 1–24, 3; Goode (n 13) 9, 12; Coontz (n 11) 149; Compare Zimmerman (n 10) 39.

R.A. Nisbet, Twilight of Authority (Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, Inc. 2000) 235.

C.S. Lewis, ‘The Four Loves’ in C.S. Lewis (ed.), Selected Books (London: Harper Collins, 1999) pp. 5, 15.

A. de Tocqueville, La Démocratie en Amérique (Paris: Gallimard, 1961, 2 vols.), English Translation by H. Reeve: Democracy in America (London: 1875) as referred to by Dumont (n 4) 17.

Compare the ideal type of the conjugal family, Goode (n 13) 7.

Weber (n 3) 191, translation by H. Ross, Law as a Social Institution (Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2001) p. 34.

L.A. Coser, Masters of Sociological Thought (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1977) p. 223.

Compare Goode (n 13) 7.

Khandelwal (n 1) 584, 586, 605.

Ahmad (n 1) p. 194; Pande (n 21) p. 384; see also R. Mohammad, ‘Transnational Shift: Marriage, Home and belonging for British-Pakistani Muslim Women’ (2015) 16 (6) Social & Cultural Geography 593–614, 596.

Pande (n 44) 172, 183; Pande (n 21) 384.

Khandelwal (n 1); Ahmad (n 1); Pande (n 1); Mohammad (n 83); Pande (n 44) 181.

S.J. Hekman, Weber, the Ideal Type, and Contemporary Social Theory (New York: University of Notre Dame Press, 1983) p. 20.

For existing analyses on the topic, see Goode (n 13); D. Mace and V. Mace, Marriage East and West (London: Macgibbon and Kee, 1960); for marriages and caste in India, see Dumont (n 4); for Pakistani immigrants in Oxford and arranged marriages, see Shaw (n 19); see also Pande (n 45); Ahmad (n 1); Aguiar (n 1).

Thompson et al (n 4) 1.

See e.g. Aguiar (n 1) 15, 25, 139–44; G.L. Fox, ‘Love Match and Arranged Marriage in a Modernizing Nation: Mate Selection in Ankara, Turkey’ (1975) 37 (1) Journal of Marriage and Family 180–93, 181; Lee and Stone (n 6) 320; Kezuka (n 46).

Lee and Stone (n 6) 320: see also Mate selection theories, Encyclopaedia of Sociology, The Gale Group Inc., Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/mateselection-theories (last visited 14 July 2019).

Shaw (n 60) 325.

See eg Goode (n 13) pp. 240, 241; R.O. Blood, The Family (New York: Free Press, 1972) pp. 293–96, as referred to by Fox (n 89) 187.

A. Shaw, ‘Drivers of Cousin Marriage among British Pakistanis’ (2014) 77 Human Heredity 26–36, 31.

Fox (n 89) 181.

Shaw (n 93) 31.

See also Fox (n 89) 181; Lee and Stone (n 6) 320.

Gagoomal (n 25) 611; Lewis (n 74) 5, 15 in general on gift-love.

Thompson et al. (n 4) 6, referring to the grid-group analysis.

Tocqueville vol 2 (n 76) 90–92, as referred to by Dumont (n 4) 17; Shaw (n 19) 6.

Riesman et al (n 59) 17.

Dumont (n 4) 7.

Shaw (n 19) 6, referring to immigrant Pakistanis.

Lee and Stone (n 6) 320.

Pande (n 44) 177.

Lee and Stone (n 6) 320 see also Fox (n 89) 181.

See for various examples Gagoomal (n 25) 615, 617, 618.

G.P. Monger, Marriage Customs of the World: From Henna to Honeymoon (Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, 2004) 13.

Dumont (n 4) 2, 239, 19, 20; Nisbet (n 73) 217.

Jones (n 62) 4; Wood (n 63) 40–64, 41.

P. Crone, Pre-Industrial Societies (Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 2003) p. 99; Dumont (n 3) 19.

Dumont (n 4) 19.

Ibid., 17, 2.

Compare Crone (n 111) p. 104 on an organic view of society.

Nisbet (n 73) 217.

Dumont (n 4) 66, 240, 243, 244; Crone (n 111) pp. 99, 107; Thompson et al (n 4) 59.

Dumont (n 4) 66.

Thompson et al (n 4) 6.

Ibid., (n 4) 6.

T. Parsons, ‘A Revised Analytical Approach to the Theory of Social Stratification’ in R. Bendix et al (eds.), Class, Status and Power (London: Glencoe, 1954), as referred to by Dumont (n 4) 19.

Thompson et al (n 4) 6; Dumont (n 4) 17–19; see in general on guardianship Dahl (n 4) 52–64, 73.

Parsons (n 121), as referred to by Dumont (n 4) 19, see also 239, 240.

Dahl (n 4) 52.

Monger (n 108) 13.

Crone (n 111) p. 105, who refers to pre-industrial societies and hierarchy.

Dumont (n 4) 18.

M. Shams Uddin, ‘Arranged Marriage: A Dilemma for Young British Asians’ (2006) 3 Diversity in Health and Social Care 211–19, 211; F.M. Critelli, ‘Between Law and Custom: Women, Family Law and Marriage in Pakistan’ (2012) 43 (5) Journal of Comparative Family Studies 673–93, 677; Fox (n 90) 186,181.

Shaw (n 60) 324.

Shams Uddin (n 129) 211.

G.R. Quale, ‘A history of marriage systems’ in Contributions in Family Studie s, Issue 13 (Westport, US: Greenwood press, 1988) 2.

Tocqueville II (n 76), as referred to by Dumont (n 4) 18; see also Sennett (n 4) 126.

Ahmad (n 1) 201; in a similar vein see Mohammad (n 83) 603; see also Wakil et al (n 44) 936 on this responsibility.

Tocqueville II (n 76), as referred to by Dumont (n 4) 18, 17.

A. de Tocqueville, Democracy in America II (London: Everyman’s Library, 1994) 196.

Arendt (n 4) 93.

On guardianship see Dahl (n 4) 52.

On aristocracy see Tocqueville II (n 76), see Dumont (n 4) p. 18.

See for an explanation on tradition and authority, M. Weber, The Theory of Social and Economic Organization , A.M. Henderson and T. Parsons (trans.), T. Parsons (ed.) (New York: Oxford University Press, 1947) 341, as referred to by Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 142.

Compare Pande (n 44) 177; Shams Uddin (n 129) 211; Ahmad (n 1) 201 on trust and respect for parents.

Gagoomal (n 25) 589, 590.

Ibid., 590.

Ahmad (n 1) 201.

Arendt (n 4) 92.

Sennett (n 4) 15; see also Arendt (n 4) 92.

Weber (n 144) 341, as referred to by Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 142; Zimmerman (n 10) 215.

Zimmerman (n 10) 215.

Arendt (n 4) 93, 103.

Sennett (n 4) 18; Arendt (n 4) 93.

Sennett (n 4) 15–22.

Sennett (n 4) 16.

Arendt (n 4) 111; Weber, as referred to by Sennet (n 4) 22.

Weber, without further reference, as referred to by Sennett (n 4) 22.

Derived from Sennett (n 4) 19.

Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 107, 108.

Ibid., 142.

Shams Uddin (n 129) 211: Ahmad (n 3) 201.

MTV Documentary, True Life: I'm Having an Arranged Marriage , 2007, as referred to by Gagoomal (n 25) 617; Pande (n 21) 387; Gagoomal (n 25) 615; see also Sennett (n 4) 17 on a conductor that sees through members of the orchestra.

Sennett (n 4) 17.

Lee and Stone (n 6) 320; Fox (n 89) 181.

See W.J. Goode, ‘The Theoretical Importance of Love’ (1959) 24 (1) American Sociological Review 38–47, 43–46; compare also Bejanyan et al (n 72) 3.

Goode (n 168) 43; H. Papanek, ‘Purdah in Pakistan: Seclusion and Modern Occupations for Women’ (1971) 33 (3) Journal of Marriage and Family 517–30, 520.

Goode (n 168) 43; Thompson et al (n 4) 6; Shams Uddin (n 129) 212.

See for more Bejanyan et al (n 72) 3.

Goode (n 168) 43; Papanek (n 169) 520.

F. Bari, Country briefing paper: Women in Pakistan, Asian Development Bank July 2000. http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/Country_Briefing_Papers/Women in Pakistan , as referred to by Critelli (n 129) 677; Shaw (n 60) 330; see also Riesman et al (n 59) 24.

Thompson et al (n 4) 59; see also in general on shame, N.P. Gilani, ‘Conflict Management of Mothers and Daughters Belonging to Individualistic and Collectivistic Cultural Backgrounds: A Comparative Study’ 1999 22 Journal of Adolescence 853–65, 854, 855; Riesman et al (n 59) 24.

A. de Tocqueville, Democracy in America II , 298, 303, as referred to by Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 114.

Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 151.

Goode (n 13) 7.

Coser (n 80) 223.

C. Breen, Age Discrimination and Children’s Rights. Ensuring Equality and Acknowledging Difference (Leiden: Brill Nijhoff, 2006) as referred to by A. van Coller, ‘Child Marriage – Acceptance by Association’ (2017) 31 International Journal of Law, Policy and The Family 363–76, 369.

Aguiar (n 1) 215.

Film A Fond Kiss , Ken Loach 2004; see also the Film What Will People Say , Iram Haq 2017 on a similar intergenerational struggle between an immigrant Pakistani father and his daughter in Sweden.

Derived from Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 116.

Moosavinia et al (n 22) 104; Said (n 22).

S. Mahmood, Politics of Piety: The Islamic Revival and the Feminist Subject (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2011), as referred to by Aguiar (n 1) 219.

For more on this exit see Anitha and Gill (n 3) 176–80; Shariff (n 3) 550, 551, 553, 561, 562.

Nisbet 1966 (n 4) 150.

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Arranged Marriages’ Advantages and Disadvantages

Welcome to our argumentative essay sample on arranged marriage: advantages and disadvantages. Here, you’ll find the disadvantages and advantages of arranged marriage, discussion, statistics, and other aspects of the debate.

Arranged Marriage: Essay Introduction

Arranged marriages in the modern society, arranged marriage advantages and disadvantages, advantages of arranged marriages, disadvantages of arranged marriages, arranged marriage: essay conclusion, works cited.

Arranged marriages were very popular in traditional societies across the world. Arranged marriage was considered the best way through which a man or woman of the right age could get the right life partner for the continuity of a given lineage. However, modernization and Westernization have changed this mindset about arranged marriages not only in Western countries but also in various parts of the world.

Inasmuch as arranged marriages are still common all over the world. Many people now prefer selecting their life partners through unarranged processes. The debate about the relevance of arranged marriages is still raging in various societies across the world.

The practice is still common among Muslim communities, but the current generation is very keen on selecting their life partners based on love other than through arranged processes. This does not mean that arranged marriages are non-existence in the modern society. According to Tseng (127), arranged marriages are still common in the current society. The researcher seeks to determine the benefits and shortcomings of having arranged marriages.

Arranged married were very common in past societies. Many factors made arranged marriages to be very important in traditional societies. Entezar (52) gives an example of a typical Muslim society in Saudi Arabia, where arranged marriages were very common in the past.

In this society, morality was highly valued. As children grew up, they had to understand and appreciate their identity. Boys had to grow up knowing that they would be heads of their families and had to work hard towards making their future life as good as they desired. On the other side, girls had to grow up knowing that they were responsible for household chores. They had to know how to prepare their homes and take care of their children.

At the adolescent stage, there were strict rules concerning the manner in which adolescent boys and girls were expected to interact. At this delicate stage of development, boys were not expected to mingle freely with girls (Lamanna and Riedmann 33). This was important because the elders knew that if this happened, then these teenagers might find themselves engaging in irresponsible behavior that may ruin the future of the girls. Society highly cherished the virginity of a woman at marriage, and this was one of the ways of protecting it.

In this kind of social setting, it was very difficult for young adults planning to marry to mingle with the members of the opposite sex so that they could understand each other and determine whether they were in love and could live together. This made it necessary for the parents or the society to arrange the marriages for their children.

With all the experience they had and knowledge about other families, parents could determine the appropriate life partner for their children. In most cases, they would conduct an investigation on the family and the man or woman who is planned to be the life partner of their children.

When they were satisfied, they would inform their children about the intended union. According to Roberts (78), although the two who were to be unionized were given the liberty to give their verdict over the issue, especially the man, they were expected to respect their parents’ opinion. However, rejecting a partner that the parents had approved was considered rude and unethical. For this reason, the parents’ decision would prevail, and the marriage would proceed with the blessings of parents from both sides.

The social structure of many communities around the world is changing very first due to the changes brought about by science and technology. It is common for an Emirati girl to travel to the United Kingdom or the United States at a tender age for further studies. Similarly, people from other parts of the world are flocking to the United Arab Emirates for various reasons, from tourism to trade. For instance, Dubai is currently one of the most diversified cities on earth because of its relevance as a strategic business hub.

As Tseng (43) puts it, the current society is a global village. The emergence of modern technologies and the relevance of the Western education system have redefined the social structure of society not only in the Middle East but also in the entire world. A child does not need to leave Abu Dhabi for the United States in order to be Westernized. The movies they watch and the music they listen to make them question some of the established systems in their traditional setting.

In the current society, it is not possible to prevent close interactions between adolescent girls and boys in Muslim communities. Parents have realized that the best gift they can give to their children is formal education, irrespective of their gender. For this reason, boys and girls will mingle freely at school.

They share classrooms, and sometimes, they are assigned tasks together. According to Lamanna and Riedmann (33), teachers have been forced to bear the pressure from human rights activists who insist on giving both boys and girls equal opportunities at school. This involves treating them equally in every activity, especially at higher levels of learning.

In this highly integrated setting, young adults can get to understand each other. A young man planning to marry should know that different women behave differently. The same case will apply to a woman. She will know the kind of man she would want as a life partner. Entezar (39) calls this liberation. The education system liberates the mind of the younger generation from tight control from their parents.

They can look at the world from their own perspective to determine what they want in life. The main question that many people have been asking is the relevance of arranged marriages in the current liberated society. In the past, young adults would not mingle easily, and this made it difficult to choose the right life partner. In the current society, this has changed as the education system makes it possible for these people to interact very closely.

In the past, knowledge and wisdom were believed to rest with the elders, and their views were almost considered a sacred command that was not to be questioned, even if it was apparent that they were in error. In the current society, the younger populations have been liberated, and they have the capacity to advise the elders about the future.

Despite these facts, a number of people still find arranged marriages very important for the well-being of the couple and the community at large. At this stage, it will be important to analyze the benefits and shortcomings of arranged marriages.

Arranged marriages remain popular not only among Muslims but also in other societies around the world. According to Tseng (81), even in the West, it is common to see parents trying to influence the choice of life partners for their children.

This is an indication that even with all the education that their children may have and the westernizations- having been born and brought up in the West, the parents always have the feeling that their children could make a mistake when choosing their life partners. This creates a feeling that they should play a role in making this important choice. This is a strong suggestion that arranged marriages have benefits that should not be ignored.

One of the biggest advantages of arranged marriages is that the partners will have a perfect match when it comes to culture, religion, social status, lifestyle, and many other factors that always affect the compatibility of couples. As Browne (83) notes, basing marriage on love is great, but sometimes when love defines everything, then one would be blinded to some of the social incompatibilities that may make life difficult for the couple after marriage.

It will force the partners to make compromises, some of which may go against one’s own beliefs and customs. At the early stages of life, making such compromises may be simple because of the infatuation brought about by the feeling of love.

However, as the couple settles down in marriage, these realities start setting in, and it may cause serious strains in the relationship. Unless the couple is strong-willed and determined to make everything work in their favor, the marriage can be brought to an end after a short while. The following figure shows the rising cases of divorce in the UAE from 1960 to 2008.

This problem can easily be solved when the marriages are arranged. The people arranging the marriage will ensure that the couple is perfectly compatible before they can be allowed to marry.

It is a fact that in arranged marriages, the couple gets to benefit from the support they get from their parents and family members. When parents and members of the community are allowed to play a part in arranging the marriage, they will feel honored. They will take all the responsibilities in the entire marriage process. The parties who are getting into this union will be relieved of the financial burden that is involved in organizing the marriage.

Members of the community will ensure that all the expenses are addressed because it is their responsibility. All the tasks will be addressed from the communal level, meaning that the couple will get maximum support when organizing the wedding. The feeling that family members are happy with the marriage also has a positive psychological impact on the partners.

They will start life knowing that they have the full support of members of their communities. In such weddings, people will come and celebrate together as they witness the union. Given the fact that they were the organizers, make feel responsible. They will bring many gifts to help the couple start life without struggling much.

Marriages are designed to last forever, whether it is in the traditional setting or in modern Westernized society. When two people come together in marriage through the support of the parents and community members, they get a wide base of moral support whenever they have problems in their families.

Given the fact that members of the society organized their marriage, they have the moral authority to go back to them in case they are experiencing problems. Parents from both sides can be called to help solve the problem, and they will feel obliged to extend their help. The two will realize that their union is not limited to their family. Such unions bring together the entire community, and this minimizes the chances of divorce.

Every member of the community will try to help the couple work out their way in life, even in the face of challenges. The partners from both sides will also find themselves with a moral obligation to the community. They will know that their families and society cherish their marriage. This will make them determined to find solutions to the problems that may affect their marriage as a way of respecting their family members. In such unions, even children group up knowing the importance of love and family ties.

According to a survey conducted by Roberts (2), arranged marriages are becoming less common in modern society. This is so because people have come to realize that arranged marriages have a number of flaws that make them undesirable. Below are the results obtained from the survey in four countries about the attitude of members of society towards arranged marriages.

From the statistics shown above, it is clear that most of the participants in this survey noted that they do not have favorable attitudes toward arranged marriages. They noted a number of factors that make them feel that arranged marriages are a practice that should not be encouraged in modern society. The following are some of the specific disadvantages of arranged marriages. According to Browne (73), in arranged marriages, the decision to choose one’s partner is taken away from one’s hands.

The elders have the sole discretion of choosing a life partner for an individual who plans to marry. Marriage is a complex process that involves bringing together two completely different individuals into a lifetime union. The personality of the life partner will define the quality of life one has.

Given the sensitivity of this issue, one should be allowed to take time to understand the other person who is supposed to be the life partner. This would require a long time of interaction, trying to understand the personality of the person to determine if a life together can be a personality. The opportunity is denied to people who engage in arranged marriages.

According to Lamanna and Riedmann (33), in most cases, couples in arranged marriages find themselves in union with people who have contrasting personalities. It is important to appreciate that sharing religious beliefs, cultural practices, or social status may not necessarily make them compatible. The personalities of an individual may not be rigidly defined using demographical factors. Sometimes people of a completely different caste may find themselves more compatible than those that share their caste.

What makes the whole system very complex is the attachment that members of the family will have to that marriage. The two couples may be forced to stay together even if they find fundamental contrasts in their personalities simply because their parents and community members arranged their marriage. Such people will stay in their marriages because of the wish of their parents. As Entezar (67) notes, the marriage will cease to be blissful, and it will turn into a prison, as demonstrated in the figure below.

As demonstrated in the above figure, the partners will have more questions than answers in their union. Happiness will be gone, and in most cases, they will regret why they accepted the union in the first place. According to Lamanna and Riedmann (33), love in arranged marriages takes a secondary position. The partners are not given time to bond and develop love towards each other before their marriage.

Those who are involved in arranging the marriage always assume that the two will develop an attraction and love towards each other once they are in a marriage. However, this fallacy should be avoided. Chances are high that if the two entered into a marriage without love, then they may spend their entire lives without loving each other.

Entezar (56) describes such unions as marriages of convenience. The parties involved in the marriage will not be doing it for their own sake and for the sake of love. They will be doing it for the sake of their parents. They will be trying to please people around them, disregarding the importance of a strong bond that is always created by love. This weakens the foundation of their marriage.

The research by Browne (47) shows that arranged marriages are vulnerable to interferences from external forces. When family members participate in bringing the couple together, they will develop a feeling that they have the right to define the way the family is run. Each of the family members will make an effort to define the way the couple will be leading their lives. In some cases, these family members may find themselves positions in the newly created family.

They will want to visit the new family at wish, and whenever they have a personal problem, they will demand help from the couple simply because they participated in bringing them together. As Tseng (112) says, such environments are not good for the growth of the new family. Sometimes the demands of these family members may be unrealistic. Such negative forces are uncommon when the couple makes their own decisions when marrying.

Arranged marriages are still commonly practiced in the modern society. It is clear from the above discussion that this form of marriage was more common in traditional societies than it is in the current society. However, even in the current society, it is clear that one cannot dismiss the relevance of arranged marriages.

These marriages help in bringing family members together when choosing a life partner. This research reveals that despite these advantages, arranged marriages also have shortcomings that should be considered before a family can subject one of their own to it. Based on this discussion, using a blend of arranged and unarranged marriages may be of great benefit to the members of the family and, most importantly, to the couple.

Browne, Ken. An Introduction to Sociology . Cambridge: Polity Press, 2011. Print.

Entezar, Eshan. Afghanistan 101: Understanding Afghan Culture . New Jersey: Xlibris Corporation, 2008. Print.

Lamanna, Mary, and Agnes. Riedmann. Marriages & Families: Making Choices and Facing Change . Belmont: Wadsworth, 2006. Print.

Roberts, Kathleen. Communication Ethics: Between Cosmopolitanism and Provinciality . New York: Lang, 2008. Print.

Tseng, Wen-Shing. Handbook of Cultural Psychiatry . San Diego: Academic Press, 2001. Print.

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125 Arranged Marriage Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

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Arranged marriages have been a longstanding tradition in many cultures around the world. While the practice may seem unconventional to some, it continues to be a prevalent way of finding a life partner in various societies. If you are tasked with writing an essay on arranged marriages, you may find it challenging to come up with a compelling topic. To assist you in this endeavor, we have compiled a list of 125 arranged marriage essay topic ideas and examples. Whether you are in favor of this practice or wish to explore its drawbacks, this comprehensive list will provide you with a plethora of options to choose from.

• The history and evolution of arranged marriages.
• Analyzing the reasons behind the persistence of arranged marriages.
• Cultural differences in arranged marriages: A comparative analysis.
• The impact of arranged marriages on gender equality.
• The role of religion in arranged marriages.
• Exploring the psychological effects of arranged marriages on individuals.
• Love vs. arranged marriages: Which is more successful?
• The changing dynamics of arranged marriages in modern society.
• Arranged marriages and family dynamics: A closer look.
• The ethical implications of arranged marriages.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health.
• Arranged marriages and societal expectations: A complex relationship.
• The role of parental involvement in arranged marriages.
• Arranged marriages and marital satisfaction: Are they correlated?
• The influence of arranged marriages on family bonds.
• Arranged marriages in Western societies: Cultural appropriation or acceptance?
• The role of love in arranged marriages.
• Arranged marriages and divorce rates: Is there a connection?
• The consequences of refusing an arranged marriage.
• The impact of arranged marriages on children's well-being.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of consent.
• The influence of arranged marriages on economic stability.
• The changing perceptions of arranged marriages in younger generations.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in LGBTQ+ individuals.
• Arranged marriages and domestic violence: Is there a link?
• The role of caste and class in arranged marriages.
• Arranged marriages and societal pressure: An in-depth analysis.
• The influence of arranged marriages on marital longevity.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of romantic love.
• The impact of arranged marriages on individual autonomy.
• Arranged marriages and dowry system: A critical examination.
• The influence of arranged marriages on career choices.
• Arranged marriages and cultural preservation: A symbiotic relationship.
• The role of matchmaking agencies in arranged marriages.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in immigrant populations.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of marital bliss.
• The influence of arranged marriages on sexual satisfaction.
• Arranged marriages and intergenerational conflicts.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with disabilities.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of love at first sight.
• The influence of arranged marriages on reproductive choices.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of personal happiness.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with mental illnesses.
• Arranged marriages and the role of extended family in decision-making.
• The influence of arranged marriages on educational attainment.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of marital compromise.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with chronic illnesses.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of loyalty.
• The influence of arranged marriages on cross-cultural understanding.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on future generations.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in survivors of abuse.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of sacrifice.
• The influence of arranged marriages on language preservation.
• Arranged marriages and the role of astrology in partner selection.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with addiction.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of shared values.
• The influence of arranged marriages on political alliances.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals from different religious backgrounds.
• The role of arranged marriages in reducing divorce rates.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with body image issues.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of companionship.
• The influence of arranged marriages on cultural assimilation.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with eating disorders.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of compromise.
• The role of arranged marriages in preserving cultural traditions.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with anxiety disorders.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of shared responsibilities.
• The influence of arranged marriages on interracial relationships.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with depression.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of family loyalty.
• The role of arranged marriages in maintaining social order.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of personal growth.
• The influence of arranged marriages on migration patterns.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with phobias.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of trust.
• The role of arranged marriages in preventing social isolation.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with personality disorders.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of shared aspirations.
• The influence of arranged marriages on cultural identity.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of resilience.
• The role of arranged marriages in maintaining familial harmony.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of compromise in decision-making.
• The influence of arranged marriages on language preservation in immigrant communities.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with bipolar disorder.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of emotional support.
• The role of arranged marriages in preventing social exclusion.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with schizophrenia.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of shared values in parenting.
• The influence of arranged marriages on cultural assimilation in diaspora communities.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with substance abuse disorders.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of intergenerational understanding.
• The role of arranged marriages in preserving cultural heritage.
• The impact of arranged marriages on mental health in individuals with eating disorders.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of companionship in later life.
• The influence of arranged marriages on interracial relationships in multicultural societies.
• Arranged marriages and the impact on mental health in individuals with anxiety disorders.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of family loyalty in blended families.
• The role of arranged marriages in maintaining social order in diverse communities.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of personal growth in long-term relationships.
• The influence of arranged marriages on migration patterns in transnational marriages.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of trust in long-distance relationships.
• The role of arranged marriages in preventing social isolation among immigrant communities.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of shared aspirations in career choices.
• The influence of arranged marriages on cultural identity in multicultural societies.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of resilience in overcoming challenges.
• The role of arranged marriages in maintaining familial harmony in extended families.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of compromise in decision-making within relationships.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of emotional support in long-term partnerships.
• The role of arranged marriages in preventing social exclusion in diaspora communities.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of shared values in parenting across cultures.
• Arranged marriages and the concept of intergenerational understanding in family dynamics.
• The role of arranged marriages in preserving cultural heritage in multicultural societies.

This extensive list of arranged marriage essay topics provides you with a wide range of options to explore this complex and multifaceted subject. Whether you want to delve into the psychological effects, cultural implications, or societal expectations surrounding arranged marriages, these topics will surely inspire you to write an engaging and thought-provoking essay. Remember to choose a topic that resonates with your interests and aligns with the purpose of your essay, ensuring an enriching and insightful exploration of arranged marriages.

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Arranged marriage - Essay Samples And Topic Ideas For Free

Arranged marriage refers to marital unions where parties are introduced by family or intermediaries, rather than forming organically through personal relationships. Essays on arranged marriage might explore its prevalence in different cultures, the sociological and psychological implications, or the contrast between arranged and love marriages. Other topics might include the changing attitudes towards arranged marriage, or the impact of modernization and global cultural exchange on this traditional practice. We’ve gathered an extensive assortment of free essay samples on the topic of Arranged Marriage you can find in Papersowl database. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Arranged Marriage Around the World

Can you imagine not having any say in who you marry? Can you imagine your parents, another family member, or depending on the culture, a matchmaker choosing the person that you spend the rest of your life with? This is called arranged marriage, or a marriage planned and agreed to by the families or guardians of the bride and groom. These young people have little or no say in the matter themselves. Arranged marriages normally happen depending on a person's […]

All Aspects of Arranged Marriage

Marriage: a formal union by which two people make their personal relationship public as a couple. The choice of spouse is one of the most important decisions most people ever make. In Western societies, physical attraction and love plays a huge part in who a person decides to spend his/her life with. But in Eastern societies, such as India, and in some parts of Africa, the bride and groom have little to say in the matter because the marriage is […]

Gender Inequality: Causes and Impacts

Gender Equality is “A state of having same rights, status and opportunities like others, regardless of one’s gender.” Gender inequality is “unequal treatment or perception of an individual based on their gender.” In the United States of America Gender Equality has progressed through the past decades. Due to different Cultural context, countries around the world lack Gender Equality. Gender inequality remains a issue worldwide, mainly in the Middle East and North Africa. Equality of Gender is normalized in the United […]

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Love Marriage and Arranged Marriage: from Business to Affection

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice provide a thought-provoking perspective on marriage, suggesting that marriage is a form of business. Since both mediums are mostly about marriage, it is intriguing to wonder whom or what establishes the idea that marriage is not as simple as falling in love and living happily ever after. Although the two mediums are spanned nearly two hundred years apart and the film is a more cultural heavy adaptation of the […]

Arranged Marriages

AGD Marriage is a controversial decision various people get caught up on. There are two different concepts of marriage in the modern world, one being very traditional. The first is having a wedding based on love and emotion. The more traditional one is a marriage arranged by a third party, most commonly the parents. Although an arranged marriage diverges from a marriage based on love, the dominant differences inhere in choosing a potential partner and social inferences. For Indian American […]

Forced Marriage

The result of forced marriages has been traditionally treated with hesitation by governments, for fear of offending cultural sensitive. Many people think forced marriage and arranged marriage the same. But both are not the same . An arranged marriage is performed with the complete and free assent of both parties and is still the chosen practise for numerous individuals all over the world. Forced marriages are a result of social factors, and no major religion within the world advocates forced […]

Old Traditions: Modern-Day Transformations

The ultimate goal of any link between couples is marriage. Various ways are used today for which can be used to help individuals to meet that someone special; whether you meet them on your own, get introduced by friends, through blind dates, or website dating; there is something out there to assist you. But there is an old tradition from the Medieval Era in history that is making its way back into Modern-day society and relationships – arranged marriages. Modern-day […]

Cultural Relativism in an Age of Globalization

After spending an entire life in the U.S. or the relative shelter of Western Europe, perhaps visiting a country where women cannot show their hair in public, drive or own property could come as a shock. In some places, gender differences continue to create deep power rifts, especially where the divides come from religion (Levine & Robbins, 2017). How would a westerner react to what is (from a western perspective) a clear infringement on gender equality and human rights? Culture […]

‘The Big Sick’ Movie Review

The Big Sick is a movie that features culturally specific material that is extremely engaging and interesting. The main character of the film is Kumail, a Pakistani immigrant that lives in Chicago with the rest of his family. This includes his brother and his wife, his father and his mother. It is very important to note that Kumail’s family are all very devoted muslims. They adhere to all of the five pillars and very much expect and believe Kumail is […]

The Idea of Romantic and Marital Relationships

The idea of romantic and marital relationships has changed and evolved over time into a much different concept than it used to be. In the Elizabethan Era, the concept of love and marriage was much different than the typical marriage between two people in today’s age. Not only marriage, but the relationship between a parent and their child has also adapted significantly over time. In the playwright William Shakespeare’s time, fathers chose their daughter’s husband for them. This decision that […]

About Khaled Hosseini’s a Thousand Splendid Suns

Depending on which culture you come from and who you are asking arranged marriages could be seen as just an everyday fact of life or they would even be seen as a blasphemous tradition that should be done away with entirely. In Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns you get a taste for what it is really like for a young woman who is forced into an arranged marriage. The story begins with Mariam, an Afghani woman, remembers her mother […]

Swahili People Group

The people group I decided to chose was the Swahili people group. The Arabic culture has proved to have had the biggest influence in determining Swahili traditions. A major component of the Arabic culture is the Islamic religion. Islamic traditions have been adopted by the Swahili people and take part in almost every aspect of the Swahili tribe’s daily life. It affects the food they eat, the clothes they wear, and their general lifestyle. Swahili children are required to attend […]

A Marriage that Means Nothing but Necessities

Marriages of convenience are undertaken for many other reasons than that of a relationship of love and affection. Instead, the marriages are based upon personal gain for either one or both people in the marriage. In most cases, people typically marry only so one of them can have a visa. Women in poor countries often marry men in exchange for a better life, uprooting themselves and leaving their families, children, and everything they have ever known behind. First, I will […]

Changes in Dating and Courtship Methods in Japan

In the last 100 years, courtship and mate selection in Japan was almost nonexistent as young people relied on arranged marriages. Male and female youths were kept separate and never mingled as opposed to Western countries. Culturally, the morals and manners that were prevalent at that time did not allow young people to engage in a sexual relationship unless they were married. In addition, girls got married to suitors chosen by their parents, and they did not date other men […]

Parents in Indian Family

AGD Many Indians who have traditional parents do not get their say in who they want to marry. The parents are the ones who ultimately decide who will be their child’s husband or wife. BACKGROUND This is how it is in India. While India has culturally and independently changed over the past decades, arranged marriages is something that has not and will likely not change in a long time. THESIS An arranged marriage can be a good for some things, […]

Personal Thoughts about Opportunities

Stated despite being a first generation, Hispanic student, has thrived to do well for school. Did not take any additional courses for boosting test scores (lack of money and knew parents just could not afford). Stated that an arranged marriage between her parents did cause somewhat of a problem to later be created due to religion. Nothing too big which had affected her academic life however. Had received support from both parents. Parents are a chosen love marriage- has 5 siblings […]

Marriage in a World

AGD Blind dates are usually made when someone is setting up two people together and the participants are willing to interact with each other.BKGRD In Eastern societies, blind dates are just step 1 to becoming an arranged married couple. ISSUE Despite the standard of various traditions, arranged marriages tend to display their own pre-eminence and downsides.B1 Some women disagree with this method because they are on the shorter side of the stick.B2 However this may be true, becoming a wife […]

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Field Notes

Modern Lessons From Arranged Marriages

By Ji Hyun Lee

• Jan. 18, 2013

WHETHER arranged marriages produce loving, respectful relationships is a question almost as old as the institution of marriage itself. In an era when 40 to 50 percent of all American marriages end in divorce, some marriage experts are asking whether arranged marriages produce better relationships in the long run than do typical American marriages, in which people find each other on their own and romance is the foundation.

Experts also ask whether there are lessons in how arranged marriages evolve that can be applied to nonarranged marriages in the United States. Among them is Robert Epstein, a senior research psychologist at the American Institute for Behavior Research and Technology in Vista, Calif., and author of a new study, “How Love Emerges in Arranged Marriages.”

He found that one key to a strong arranged marriage is the amount of parental involvement at its start. The most important thing parents of the couple do, he said, is to “screen for deal breakers.”

“They’re trying to figure out whether something could go wrong that could drive people apart,” Dr. Epstein said.

Some couples who have entered into satisfying arranged marriages do attribute the success of their unions to the involvement of their parents. A. J. Khubani was 25 in 1985 when his parents tried to get him to visit Inder Sen Israni and Maya Israni in Jaipur, India, friends of the Khubani family, and meet the couple’s daughter Poonam.

“I just refused,” said Mr. Khubani, who was not keen on settling down because he had just started Telebrands, a company in Fairfield, N.J., that sells inventions via infomercials on late-night television. “I didn’t see why it was so important that I had to fly across the world to see one girl,” Mr. Khubani, now 52, remembered.

Ms. Israni, now Mrs. Khubani, was not ready, either. At the time she was a soap opera star and rising Bollywood actress.

Getting them to meet took some prodding: Mr. Khubani’s father, knowing that his son was going to Asia on business, offered to pay his way if he stopped in Jaipur. The young man and woman both relented, with the casual assumption that they would just please their parents “and that would be the end of it,” Mrs. Khubani said.

When they finally met, neither was impressed. Mrs. Khubani recalled, “It wasn’t love at first sight at all.” Love did not kick in until Mr. Khubani became sick and the young woman he had just met stayed by his bedside to care for him. “Nobody understood his accent because he was so American,” she said, and so she was his translator. For Mr. Khubani, her caring and elegant manners sealed the deal.

“Spending a couple of days in the room with her, alone, I fell in love with her,” he said.

They have been married for 27 years.

Arranged marriages can work “because they remove so much of the anxiety about ‘is this the right person?’ ” said Brian J. Willoughby, an assistant professor in the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University. “Arranged marriages start cold and heat up and boil over time as the couple grows. Nonarranged marriages are expected to start out boiling hot but many eventually find that this heat dissipates and we’re left with a relationship that’s cold.”

He also credited supportive parents.

“Whether it be financial support for weddings, schooling or housing, or emotional support for either partner, parents provide valuable resources for couples as they navigate the marital transition,” Dr. Willoughby said.

But does it really take a village to build a strong marriage?

“I don’t think love marriage and arranged marriage are as different as we make them out to be,” said Michael J. Rosenfeld, an associate professor in the department of sociology at Stanford University. “The people we end up married to or partnered up with end up being similar to us in race, religion and class background and age, which means that they might not be all that different from the person that your mother would have picked for you.”

Divorce rates have climbed in countries like South Korea , Iran , China , and even in India, where parents traditionally have had a strong hand in the marriages of their children. And while India may boast of having one of the lowest divorce rates in the world — below 3 percent by some estimates — divorce there still carries a great stigma. It is also a country in which divorce sometimes is not an option for many women and those seeking dissolution have encountered violence .

In the United States, both parents and young adults still value marriage, Dr. Willoughby said. Their differences, he wrote in an e-mail, “are in sequencing and timing. It’s more about parents and children disagreeing about how they get to marriage and when it happens.”

With “free-range” marriages predominant, this approach discourages parental intervention.

“We celebrate autonomy,” noted Dr. Epstein, which, he explained, is why adult children bristle at the idea. But given the speed at which couples meet, greet, cohabitate and separate these days, he said, he thought there was some logic in trying a method that has worked for so many couples and in so many cultures.

Orthodox Jews in the United States are known for arranging marriages, with some parents using professional matchmakers.

“In the secular world, a lot of the times a couple will fall in love with each other and then at that point they lose objectivity,” said Rabbi Steven Weil, the executive vice president at the Orthodox Union in New York. In arranged marriages, however, “there is a lot of homework, a lot of energy spent, before a young man and woman fall in love with each other. For that reason, the parents are involved. But obviously it’s the decision of the young man and woman, but a parent knows a child.”

For many Korean mothers, the prospect of marriage for their children is not a wait-for-it option. These parents also call in professional matchmakers to direct their career-minded children into becoming marriage-minded.

Diane Kim of Janis Spindel Serious Matchmaking in New York reported that some 40 percent of her clients in the agency’s Asian-American division are mothers calling on behalf of their sons. Many have a “demand” list of expectations. Among them: the woman must be beautiful, have an Ivy League education, come from a good family whose members are also educated, and have professional goals similar to their son.

“And then they say, ‘Can you find somebody that fits that mold?’ ” said Ms. Kim, whose matchmaking fees start at $5,000 and include 12 introductions. “My job is not just about setting people up; it’s about educating the parents.”

Bringing about these mother-tested, child-approved marriages is not easy. “I have instances where parents pay without the knowledge of their children,” Ms. Kim said, “and I would have to contact the children and tell them, ‘Hey, this might be a little awkward — and a big surprise — but your parents have signed you up. Don’t freak out.’ ”

It was through the efforts of Ms. Kim, while she was employed at another matchmaking service, Duo, that Neil Hwang, 34, a management consultant for a Manhattan investment firm, married his wife, Patty, last July.

“My mother was very proactive about getting me set up to meet women,” said Mr. Hwang, who also noted that both his parents were members of a social club that those in Mr. Hwang’s age group had nicknamed Korean Parents United for Unmarried Children.

Mrs. Hwang, a social studies teacher at a public high school in Bergen County, N.J., had also reached the crisis age of 31 and was under pressure from her parents. She was gently coerced into trying out a matchmaking service at the recommendation of her father, who had already paid for it. When the couple married last summer, Mrs. Hwang recalled her parents saying with some degree of triumph, “We knew it was going to happen!”

When his first marriage ended in divorce, Deepak Sarma, 43, a professor of religious studies at Case Western Reserve University, said he learned a valuable lesson in doing things in accordance with family approval. When it came time to make a second go at marriage, he approached his parents, asking, “Who’s out there for me?” But as an Indian-American divorcée who was not a doctor, lawyer or engineer, it was clear to his parents that his “low desirability” would make any marital arrangement difficult.

Once, while Professor Sarma was in India, his parents arranged for him to meet with a few prospective fathers-in-law. Although his offer implicitly included “a passageway to America,” he said they immediately discarded his candidacy as a groom.

“I wasn’t good enough,” he said.

Instead, he met a woman at a networking event in Cleveland in 2004. She was an internist at a clinic nearby and happened to see Mr. Sarma, a Hindu, on a panel speaking about Jainism, a religion practiced by her family, who had long insisted on her marrying within the faith. Hearing Mr. Sarma talk about a world that had closed her off to so many people, that woman, now his wife, Dr. Rita Sarma, felt a connection.

“I could hardly stay in tune with the lecture itself because I was thinking, ‘Who is this guy?’ ” Dr. Sarma said. “He was looking kind of dash. So I lingered around, and I kind of waited.”

The two bonded over their experiences in the culture of American Born Confused Desis, slang for Americanized Indians.

“It was serendipitous,” Mr. Sarma said. But he still had to persuade her father, and ultimately had to call on his own father to intercede on his behalf. It was only after all of the in-laws passed one another’s criteria that the green light was given.

Dr. Epstein admitted that the tradition of arranged marriages had no hope of gaining wide acceptance in this country.

“We celebrate rugged individualism that is antithetical to the arranged marriage culture,” he said. He argues instead for deeper parental involvement. “When you realize what it is that the families are doing, it makes excellent sense,” he said.

Which is not unlike the experience of the Sarmas, who found an American-style “love marriage” with a familial twist. Mr. Sarma now revels in the fact that he is living what has long been held up as an American marriage ideal.

“The great irony is, like, I came back here and I married a doctor, right?” he said.

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Arranged Marriage Essays (Examples)

335+ documents containing “arranged marriage” .

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Arranged marriages v traditional dating which method.

Arranged Marriages v. Traditional Dating: Which Method Results in the most Successful Union? According to Yumiko Asano, success in marriage is characterized by longevity, financial stability, compatibility and a strong commitment on the part of both the man and the woman to keep the union together. Yumiko Asano also asserts that successful marriages arise more frequently from using a matchmaker than the traditional dating method as preferred by the majority of Americans. He believes that the dating method is frivolous, and marriages that are formed by young, immature people who do not realize the commitment that is needed to make a marriage work often ends in divorce. Additionally, Yumiko Asano cites statistics that reveal that more than 40% of American marriages end in divorce, he proudly boasts that Japan's divorce is half that of America's. Mr. Asano further contends that arranged marriages lead to success since both people have a common objective:….

Arranged Marriage in India vs Traditional American Marriage

ARRANGED MARRIAGES IN INDIA VS. AMERICAN TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE Arranged marriages are common in South Asian communities and India is thus no exception. People with traditional bend of mind hesitate to even mention any other form of marriage and for them, love-based marriages are a threat to family honor and values since it involves dating and pre-marital mingling. In India, youth whether educated or illiterate, modern or traditional, religious or not are fully aware of the possibility of an arranged marriage for them since they have grown up in this system, knowing that arranged marriages have as great a chance of success as love-based unions. Majority of marriages in India are arranged so this is not something new or strange for people in that country. (Kurian, 1991) An arranged marriage is defined as a "contractual agreement, written or unwritten, between two families, rather than individuals" where " ... The principle of familialism and….

4) Shuraydi, Muhammad Perceptions of arranged marriages by young Pakistani Muslim women living in a Western society *. Journal of Comparative Family Studies; 9/22/2002;

5) Kurian, George Cross-Cultural Perspectives of Mate-Selection and Marriage. Connecticut: Greenwood Press. 1979

6) Phillips, A. 1969 (1953). Introduction. Family and Social Change in an African City, pp. vii-xiv. Evanston IL.

Arrange Marriage Among Adolescent

Arranged Marriages The social custom and institution of arranged marriages makes up a large part of the history of marriage and society. However the custom has been criticized and often condemned in the contemporary Western world. Many people see arranged marriages as unethical and as a deprivation of human rights and of the right to free choice of life partner. However, this view is sometimes contradicted by many modern youths from cultures that have traditionally approved of arranged marriages. The view in favor of arranged marriages is that it promotes social integration, security and the continuation of worthwhile cultural traditions and norms. There are many modern youths living on counties like the United States who accept and approve of their arranged marriages. oth these views will be explored in a modern context in this paper. Arranged marriages still take place throughout the world. There have however also been many changes to these….

Bibliography

Arranged Marriage. Video Letter from Japan: My Family, 1988, p. 36-37.  http://www.askasia.org/frclasrm/readings/r000153.htm  ( Accessed November 24, 2004.)

Arranged Marriages and Dowry. http://www.pardesiservices.com/tradition/arrangedmarg.asp (Accessed November 24, 2004)

Ramaswami Srikant 1995. MARRIAGES IN LITTLE INDIA: ARRANGED MARRIAGES Union of Families. Little India, July 31.

Applbaum, Kalman D. 1995. Marriage with the Proper Stranger: Arranged Marriage in Metropolitan Japan. Ethnology 34, no. 1: 37+.

Roles of Marriage Partners in the US With Those of a Less Industrialized Nation

Marriage in Eastern and Western Nations A Comparative Analysis of Marriage Rituals and Customs in the North America and Asia Throughout the history of humanity, distinctions and differences between the Eastern and Western cultures had been studied, most especially during the 20th century, wherein anthropological studies uncovered the various cultures extant in the world during the said period. Indeed, between the 20th century and the present time, these differences prevail, primarily because there are still evident distinctions that characterize both Eastern and Western cultures. One important aspect of these numerous distinctions is the differences in marriage rituals among peoples of the Eastern from the Western cultures. Take as an example the differences in the marriage practices between North American and Asian nations: the latter are considered as subsisting to more elaborate and implicitly meaningful ceremonies while cultures in Western societies are often considered as straightforward and practical. Furthermore, religion plays a vital role….

Coeyman, M. (2002). "Western weddings in Japan." Christian Science Monitor, 94(115).

Goldstein-Gidoni, O. (2000). "The production of tradition and culture in Japanese wedding enterprise." Journal of Anthropology,65(1).

Kim, R. And B. Reed. (2004). "State of the Union: The Marriage Issue." Nation, 279(1).

Nowak, B. (2000). "Dancing the Main jo'oh: Hma' Btsisi' celebrate their humanity and religious identity in a Malaysian world." Australian Journal of Anthropology, 11(3).

Marriage & Family Marriage and

In J. Smith (Ed.), Understanding families into the new millennium: A decade in review (p. 357-381). Minneapolis, MN: National Council on Family Relations. Ferree, M. (1984). The view from below: Women's employment and gender equality in working-class families. In .. Hess, & M.. Sussman (Eds), Women and the family: Two decades of change (p. 57-75). New York: Haworth Press. Fung, J. (2010). Factors associated with parent-child (dis)agreement on child behavior and parenting problems in Chinese immigrant families. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 3993), 314-327. Hewlett, S., & West, C. (1998). The war against parents: What we can do for America's beleaguered moms and dads. New York: Houghton Mifflin. Hwang, K., Chang, S., Chen, S., Chen, C., & Yang, K. (2001). Chinese relationism and depression. Unpublished manuscript. Lai, E., & Fang, S. (2001). Sex role attitude and housework participation among men and women in Taiwan. Paper presented at the 11th iennial International Congress….

Beutell, N. & Wittig-Berman, U. (2008). Work-family conflict and work-family synergy for generation X baby boomers, and matures: Generational differences, predictors, and satisfaction outcomes. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 23(5), 507-523.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). Contexts of child rearing: Problems and prospects. American Psychologist, 34(10), 844-850.

Carlson, J. (2009). Family therapy techniques: integrating and tailoring treatment. Florence, KY: Brunner-Routledge.

Chen, F. & Li, T. (2007). Marital enqing: an examination of its relationship to spousal

High Rate of Marriages to

"..." In a Pakistani family, a person who get married with kin, will be having a life long obligation with the relatives from the same caste. In this frame work, there is a bit of flexibility but as socio economic considerations are significant for particular marriage choices. In such cases, an individual who is involved in such situation, calls upon an idea of a shared blood concept even if there is no inherited relationship. This way, participants considers themselves as the nature of the relationship between the inherited kinship and the household. This however, it effect's the rule of fraternal solidarity, which is explained in various ways. It highlights the give and take concept forming a mutual bond between the households. This concept does involve the members of family or friends clearly reflecting both kinship relationships plus fraternal solidarity between kin and non-kin. Anthropologists describe the exchanging of gift as a….

Shaw, Alison. Kinship and Continuity: Pakistani Families in Britain. Published: 2000. Routledge. Retrieved on November 23, 2007.  http://books.google.com.pk/books?id=KVQ5Lxd8rNMC&dq=kinship+and+continuity&psp=1

Sex and Marriage When a Person Gets

Sex and Marriage: When a person gets married to another, one of the first rules is that there should be 'exogamy' in the selection of the partner, which also means that the partner has to belong to a well defined outside group, or there should be 'endogamy', which means that the partner must be within some large defined group of people, and both of these two rules work within any given society at any given time, so that there are limits maintained as to the preferability and the acceptability of the marriage partner. The number of spouses that an individual is allowed to marry, however, is generally dictated by the culture and the religion to which the individual belongs. In most of Europe as well as in America, the general rule followed by almost everyone is that of 'monogamy', and this means that one person is only allowed one spouse at….

Definitions. Retrieved From

http://academic.regis.edu/areich/definitions.htm Accessed on 20 March, 2005

Glossary of Terms. Retrieved From

http://anthro.palomar.edu/kinship/glossary.htm#bilineal_descent Accessed on 20 March, 2005

Politics and Marriage Discuss Two

I do not feel that the state should be allowed to draft marriage terms that do not adequately protect the liberty and equality of each spouse. I believe that cultures of the world are slowing moving towards a global culture that embraces liberty and equality through globalization and advances of information technologies. In fact, this point seems evident in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Article 16 of this document states (the United Nations, N.d.): (1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution. (2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses. (3) the family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and….

Works Cited

Exploring Constitutional Conflicts. (N.d.). The Right to Marry. Retrieved from Exploring Constitutional Conflicts:  http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/righttomarry.htm 

The United Nations. (N.d.). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Retrieved from the United Nations:  http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml 

Younus, F. (2013, January 28). Why Ban Cousin Marriages? Retrieved from Huffington Post:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/faheem-younus/why-ban-cousin-marriages_b_2567162.html

Nature of the Japanese Marriage and Culture

Japanese Family and Marriage Life Understanding the family and marriage life of the Japanese people has been a challenge to most in the current global society. The constant changes of the Japanese family structure, roles, and marriage system as explained in the nuclearization theory attests to the challenges most face in understanding their family and marriage life. Demographic transitions witnessed over the last four decades also compound to the challenges people encounter in the quest of understanding the family and marriage structure of the Japanese people (Kumagai 87). As such, this research paper analyzes in detail the family structure and marriage life of the Japanese people. The analysis considers both the traditional and the modern family structure and marriage life of the Japanese people. Japanese Family Like many families of the Asian region, the Japanese family has extended family system that includes the distant relatives to the family as well as the dead.….

Works cited

Fujimura-Fanselow, Kumiko. Japanese Women: New Feminist Perspectives on the Past, Present, and Future. New York: Feminist Press at the City Univ. Of New York, 1995. Print.

Helm, Leslie. Yokohama Yankee: My Family's Five Generations as Outsiders in Japan. Seattle: Chin Music Press Inc., 2013. Internet resource.

Kumagai, Fumie, and Donna J. Keyser. Unmasking Japan Today: The Impact of Traditional Values on Modern Japanese Society. Westport, Conn: Praeger, 1996. Print.

Peterson, Gary W, Suzanne K. Steinmetz, and Marvin B. Sussman. Handbook of Marriage and the Family. New York [u.a.: Plenum Press, 1999. Print.

Kung San Trial Marriages and U S Divorce

Kung San Trial Marriages and U.S. Divorce Rates. The!Kung San are a hunter-gatherer people that inhabit the Kalahari desert in Africa. They are the ushmen who have managed to live a contented, self-governed life while the rest of the world has sprung up around them in a mass of technology and dysfunction. They live a community life where the economy is based on sharing and "among the first words a child learns are na ("give it to me") and ihn ("take this")" (Shostak 2000:44) giving outsiders the impression of a quaint carefree nomadic life. Nevertheless there are many similarities shared between Americans and the!Kung San, some of which are as simple as equal love for their children, to the interesting arrangements of a 'trial marriage'. A!Kung trial marriage could be acquainted with people living together before getting married, or cohabiting as part of a condition before marriage, depending on religious or multi-cultural….

Family, Marriage and De Facto Unions

Pontifical Council for the Family, Vatican November 2000

Online copy: www.catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=3242&CFID=488458&CFTOKEN=13604336

US Divorce Rates

How Shape of Marriage Depends on Where Home

Shape of Marriage Depends on Where "Home" Is In the story, the definition and shape of marriage was shown to depend on the sense of what and where "home" is by the characters of Mala and her husband. oth of the characters live in Calcutta, India. Despite of the fact that their marriage was arranged, it was a responsibility in their culture to live as husband and wife. For the couple, marriage is to be shaped by this responsibility and by their togetherness. Thus, when the husband went to America for a job, Mala followed after some time to live with her husband. America was not their home but the sense of being a "home" was there in America, as it was in Calcutta, for the couple. Even though they were in another land, America, their second "home," helped them to establish their marriage as well as their family. From the….

Lahiri, Jhumpa. The Third and Final Continent.

Dequinix.Com. 17 Nov. 2004.

 http://www.dequinix.com/a/continent.php

Islamic and Christian Marriage Rights

estern world thinks of Muslim women, it is often in terms of Muslim women as an oppressed stereotypes. This includes images of women in hijabs, Turkish women in chadors and women who must be veiled in public at all times. Distorted beliefs about Islamic beliefs regarding polygamy and the subservient role of women further contribute to the stereotype that Muslim women are more oppressed than their Christian counterparts. However, while strict laws do present limits to the public lives of many Arab and Muslim women, these stereotypes do not present a complete picture of their lives. As ethnographer Susan Schafer Davis observed, Muslim women have and continue to exert considerable influence in the private sphere of family and women's associations. This gave them much more autonomy and power than Christian women of the same era. This paper examines the scope of a Muslim woman's authority and power within the private sphere,….

Al Faruqi, Lamya. 1994. Women, Muslim Society and Islam. Plainfield, IN: American Trust Publishers.

Davis, Susan Schaefer. 1985. Patience and Power: Women's Lives in a Moroccan Village. Cambridge: Schenckman Books.

Harik, Ramsay M. And Marston, Elsa. 1996. Women in the Middle East: Tradition and Change. New York: Franklin Watts.

Islam-Husain, Mahjabeen. 1997. "It's Up to Muslim Women to Reclaim Our God-Given Rights," in Islam. Jennifer A. Hurley, ed. San Diego: Greenhaven Press.

Tammie Martin English Marriage What

According to this research, these trends are due to changes in the association of husbands' and wives' education rather than by changes in the relative supply of more- and less-educated partners. In addition to income and education, individuals select marriage partners along racial lines (Fu, 2001). In fact, although racial homogamy has declined over time, it remains as the strongest pattern in assortative mating according to Fu. Further, many individuals remain particularly resistance to marriage between whites and blacks than they do between whites and other minorities. Fu (2001) also reveals that African-Americans and Hispanic-Americans who are in interracial marriages tend to have a higher socioeconomic status than others from these groups. Fu theorizes that this higher socioeconomic status helps to equalize their status with majority group partners. In summary, forced marriages may be dead, at least in the modern Western world, but individual preferences are alive and well. Ironically, these….

"Assortative Marriage and Inequality." Economist's View.  http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2007/05/assortative_mar.html 

d'Addio. Anna Christina. "Intergenerational Transmission of Disadvantage: Mobility or Immobility across Generations? A Review of the Evidence for OECD Countries." OECD

Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers no. 52. 2007.

Fu, Vincent Kang. "Racial Intermarriage Pairings." Demography. 38(2) 2001: 147-159

Homosexual Marriage Does Not Pose a Threat

Homosexual marriage does not pose a threat to me or my manhood therefore I am for it." Although I am heterosexual, I know what it means to long for union with another human being. I will choose a woman for my partner, but if another man desires to choose one of his own sex, there is no harm for me in his choice. In fact, since we are both part of humanity, his legal union, as does mine, brings positive reinforcement to the institution of marriage. As early as 400 BC Plato in his Symposium discussed the mystery of sexual desire, concluding that humans are always searching for their other half, having been cut in two as punishment by Zeus. The whole humans that existed before this action, according to Aristophanes, Plato's debating companion, all had two heads, four legs and four arms. They were of three types: some with….

Eskridge Jr., William N. "Equality Practice: Liberal Reflections on the Jurisprudence of Civil Unions." Albany Law Review, 2001, Vol. 64, Issue 3, p 853, 29p. (EBSCO Host version unpaged.)

Eskridge Jr., William N. The Case for Same-Sex Marriage: From Sexual Liberty to Civilized Commitment. New York: The Free Press, 1996.

Ettelbrick, Paula L. "Domestic Partnership, Civil Unions, or Marriage: One Size Does Not Fit All." Albany Law Review, 2001, Vol. 64, Issue 3. ((EBSCO Host version unpaged.)

Halpern, Jake. "Out for a Buck." The New Republic. 8 May 2000, Issue 4451:23.

Feminist Analysis of Dryden's Marriage

Adultery and any sort of infidelity turns out to be a different story for men as Rosenthal stresses: "prohibition against adultery is not about property, pregnancy, misdirected male desire, or bloodlines, as one might have thought, but about the prevention of female comparison" (Rosenthal, 2008) as sharing men would be established by the size of their sexual organs. A recurrent theme in the play from a gender perspective relates to the fact that the play is generally a patriarchal type of play in which paternal figures are predominant and the evolution of the other characters is a direct result of this way of using power. The women in this play, especially Doralice and Melantha are victimized as women had lesser rights to speak their minds or act according to their decisions. The paternalistic environment is also observed in the way Palamede and Rhodophil behave, as all four of them find….

Denman, J. (2008) "Too hasty to stay": Erotic and Political Timing in Marriage a la Mode. Restoration: Studies in English Literary Culture, 1660-1700, Volume 32, Number 2, pp. 1-23

Dryden, J. (1981) Marriage a la Mode. University of Nebraska Press

Frank, M. (2002) Gender, Theatre, and the Origins of Criticism: From Dryden to Manley. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Hansen, C. (1993) Woman as Individual in English Renaissance Drama: A Defiance of the Masculine Code. New York: Peter Lang

I\'m struggling to write my essay about how the individuals pursuit happiness in Romeo and Juliet, so I was wondering if I could get any ideas on how to get started. Thanks!

Romeo and Juliet is one of the best-known of all of Shakespeare’s plays.  The tale of star-crossed lovers has made the names Romeo and Juliet synonymous with hopeless love stories, though their questionable decision-making and shallow view of love has prevented many from completely embracing their story as a romance.  What is clear is that while the stories in the character all play lip service to the idea of family, community, and clan loyalties, they all act in their own self-interest in an effort to pursue their own happiness.  Focusing on that would be a....

I\'m looking for a unique and fresh essay topic on east asia women. Any ideas that stand out?

1. The changing role of women in East Asian societies: A comparison of traditional gender norms and modern feminist movements 2. The portrayal of East Asian women in Western media: Stereotypes and misrepresentations 3. The impact of Confucianism on women's rights and gender equality in East Asia 4. Beauty standards for women in East Asian cultures: The pressure to conform and the rise of the beauty industry 5. Intersectionality and the experiences of East Asian women: Examining how race, gender, and nationality intersect in shaping women's identities and experiences 6. The rise of feminist movements in East Asia: Challenges and successes in advocating for gender....

Family and Marriage

Arranged Marriages v. Traditional Dating: Which Method Results in the most Successful Union? According to Yumiko Asano, success in marriage is characterized by longevity, financial stability, compatibility and a strong commitment…

ARRANGED MARRIAGES IN INDIA VS. AMERICAN TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE Arranged marriages are common in South Asian communities and India is thus no exception. People with traditional bend of mind hesitate to…

Arranged Marriages The social custom and institution of arranged marriages makes up a large part of the history of marriage and society. However the custom has been criticized and often…

Marriage in Eastern and Western Nations A Comparative Analysis of Marriage Rituals and Customs in the North America and Asia Throughout the history of humanity, distinctions and differences between the Eastern…

In J. Smith (Ed.), Understanding families into the new millennium: A decade in review (p. 357-381). Minneapolis, MN: National Council on Family Relations. Ferree, M. (1984). The view from…

"..." In a Pakistani family, a person who get married with kin, will be having a life long obligation with the relatives from the same caste. In this frame…

Sex and Marriage: When a person gets married to another, one of the first rules is that there should be 'exogamy' in the selection of the partner, which also means…

I do not feel that the state should be allowed to draft marriage terms that do not adequately protect the liberty and equality of each spouse. I believe that…

Japanese Family and Marriage Life Understanding the family and marriage life of the Japanese people has been a challenge to most in the current global society. The constant changes of…

Kung San Trial Marriages and U.S. Divorce Rates. The!Kung San are a hunter-gatherer people that inhabit the Kalahari desert in Africa. They are the ushmen who have managed to live…

Shape of Marriage Depends on Where "Home" Is In the story, the definition and shape of marriage was shown to depend on the sense of what and where "home"…

estern world thinks of Muslim women, it is often in terms of Muslim women as an oppressed stereotypes. This includes images of women in hijabs, Turkish women in…

According to this research, these trends are due to changes in the association of husbands' and wives' education rather than by changes in the relative supply of more-…

Women's Issues - Sexuality

Homosexual marriage does not pose a threat to me or my manhood therefore I am for it." Although I am heterosexual, I know what it means to long…

Sports - Women

Adultery and any sort of infidelity turns out to be a different story for men as Rosenthal stresses: "prohibition against adultery is not about property, pregnancy, misdirected male…

18 Arranged Marriages Advantages and Disadvantages

Arranged marriages were considered the standard way to organize a relationship for families until deep into the 18th century. These arrangements were usually created by a couple’s parents or grandparents to create a mutually beneficial coupling so that both families could maintain or improve their status in society. Unless there were specific exceptions permitted to avoid this tradition, many children knew before the age of 13 who it was that they were going to marry one day.

The United States was not immune to the process of creating arranged marriages. There were families creating these relationships well into the golden age of the 1950s, especially in the Japanese culture pockets found in the country. Some couples would only exchange pictures of one another until the day that they met, which will happen to be their wedding day.

We see a lot of individualism in today’s marriages because there is a higher standard of living typically available in the developed world. Some Orthodox families in the U.S. still practice this tradition today. For Fraidy Reiss and others like her living in Brooklyn, it would become a fight between her culture and the need to be safe since her husband was violent and abusive. She would eventually leave and never go back.

The advantages and disadvantages of arranged marriages typically involve what occurs to the extended family more than the actual couple. Some people believe that love can come from any relationship, while others feel like destiny is going to bring them a soulmate one day. The truth for each person typically lies somewhere between these two extremes.

List of the Advantages of Arranged Marriages

1. It allows a couple to form a relationship on more than just emotion. Arranged marriages can sometimes have a foundation of emotion, but it isn’t just love that is the emphasis when a couple comes together. The formation of this relationship becomes more like a business partnership then a personal one. That’s not to say romantic love is not a priority for the individuals taking advantage of the structure. What many couples do in this situation is placed a priority on the actual partnership, and that they make the rest of the relationship work afterward.

This design won’t work out in instances like Reiss’s marriage when domestic abuse or violence in the home takes place. When both parties make a commitment to support one another, arranged marriages tend to have more stability for everyone to enjoy.

2. You can still find someone that you love with an arranged marriage. The idea that you cannot find love because our relationship is being created on your behalf is a perspective that comes from individualism. Societies which have high levels of wealth no longer have a need for this structure because a person can be successful without having someone by their side thanks to modern economic circumstances. Many people fall in love and have long marriages even though their parents or grandparents arranged them. Even when the final relationship feels more like a good friendship instead of intimate love, most people can fall into a niche that allows them to have a happy and fulfilling life.

3. Arranged marriages can reduce the levels of conflict in the home. 55% of the marriages that happen each year around the world are arranged in some way. That figure can be as high as 90% in some countries like India. Although there are concerns about underage girls being forced to marry men much older, the global divorce rate from these relationships is about five times lower than it is for couples to have a priority on their individualism.

This level of stability makes it much easier for the children produced by such a relationship to find themselves and pursue their dreams. Most arranged marriages create similarities in spirituality, education priorities, discipline, and home structure. Because the parents have already agreed on the structures through the arrangements made by their families, the home life tends to be happier for everyone.

4. It maintains the traditions of a family’s culture, ethnicity, ethics, and identity. When you look back at the person you were just five years ago, how many things in your life have changed? The reality of the modern world is that a person can change on a daily basis because of the amount of information we can access through the Internet. The amount of data that you receive in your email inbox every day is equal to what someone in the 19th century would consume on a weekly basis. That is why staying in touch with our heritage is becoming such a priority for Millennials and future generations.

Our ideas of a perfect relationship can change just as quickly. When an arranged marriage is what forms the foundation of the union, the partnership qualities of this coupling make it easier for families to adjust to one another. This structure helps everyone to stay routed to who they are and what they become when they are together as a family unit.

5. You create harmony within the structure of multiple family units. Brittany Wong wrote a piece in 2016 entitled, “9 Ways to Deal with a Mother-in-Law Who Feels more Like a Monster-in-Law.” She starts the piece by saying this: “Meddling in-laws can wreak absolute havoc on an otherwise healthy relationship – even if they mean well.” Deferring to this outside interference from a perspective of individualism can place a significant amount of stress on the relationship.

Because both families are involved in the selection process of an arranged marriage, this issue is rarely present. Instead of each generation being seen as its own entity, the young couple, their parents, and any married siblings are seen together as a single family unit.

6. Arranged marriages create a sense of togetherness. Family estrangement occurs frequently from the perspective of individualism because each person is looking to carve out their own success in the world. It is a problem that can result from direct interactions between those were affected that can include traumatic experiences, or it can be due to logistics like living far away and not having enough money to call home. Arranged marriages work hard to create a sense of togetherness because there is more than just love on the line if it fails. This business partnership is a reflection of both families. Everyone stays invested throughout the entire process when the approach is correct since there is so much on the line.

These families cannot afford to see a rift form that could last for years – if not generations. By keeping the parents involved (or the grandparents) with each step of the marriage, this structure can work to foster high levels of community success.

7. You eliminate the stress and expense of finding a life partner by yourself. The number of tools which are available today to help you find a life partner are almost countless. From dating websites to connection apps to the traditional methods of meeting someone at a bar, church, or a school function, there are plenty of ways to let destiny help you find your soulmate. The amount of stress that occurs during this process, especially if you need to break up with someone, can be enormous. Arranged marriages help to take this problem away entirely.

Families often work with one another when they come from a similar financial and social background. There is a desire to maintain the family culture and embrace the traditions of their ethnicity while still providing some freedoms for the couple to explore who they can become once the union is created. Because there is certainty with most of these arrangements, couples have more time to get to know each other while pursuing interests that are personally important without the stress of wondering who might really be the right one for them.

List of the Disadvantages of Arranged Marriages

1. Arranged marriages create relationships that often lack trust. Some arranged marriages occur while the children are still in primary school, allowing them to discover a friendship as they grow up. Although some of these relationships are formed legally way too early, many cultures are shifting their traditions to allow for their children to get married once they become an adult. Times have changed, so the need to have children immediately is no longer present in many societies.

That set of circumstances is the perfect scenario. The reality of arranged marriages is that they tend to happen quickly, and without any input from at least the woman involved in the future relationship. When there is only a handful of days or a few weeks to get to know someone, then there is a pervasive lack of trust that exists in the marriage for an indefinite period.

2. It allows men to maintain control over the women in that society. The societies and cultures who still support arranged marriages typically take what we would consider to be a conservative or traditional view on family structures. Men are usually responsible for bringing home an income, while women are expected to maintain the home and raise the children according to the traditions and values that their father wants. This structure makes it challenging for a woman to leave if her husband is abusive because she has no support system. Unless her family is willing to step in to help, men typically receive more control in this partnership structure than women do.

3. There is an increased risk of mental health issues for people in an arranged marriage. Although there is a lower divorce rate and more stability found in the average arranged marriage compared to couples who “found” each other, these benefits come with extensive disadvantages. Many people find themselves trying to make a relationship work when they feel no attraction to the other person. There are circumstances where an individual might decide to stay quiet instead of speaking their mind because they want to protect themselves or their children.

When a person feels trapped in a relationship, whether it is arranged or not, then the amount of stress that they encounter every day is damaging to their health. Unless there are coping skills available, this disadvantage can increase the risk of depression and other mental health issues.

4. Arranged marriages can force someone to live with an individual they don’t know. Some arranged marriages encourage the couple to get to know each other in the days and weeks that lead up to the wedding. Then there are the cultures which do not permit any interaction until that special day. When a relationship falls into the latter category, then you are marrying someone that you don’t really know. Even in the best-case scenario, you have an idea of their physical appearance, but you have no way to judge how that person will be when there’s no one around but you to watch them.

From the perspective of an individualistic society, people want to find someone who will be the best friend. That is what the definition of a soulmate typically is without the structure of an arranged marriage. The alternative is that you are marrying a stranger who could become your best friend… Or they could become your worst enemy.

5. It makes love a secondary reason to get married. There are countless arranged marriages throughout history which have found success because the couple was able to discover a love for one another. It is ignorant to suggest that there is no emotion present in this situation. This disadvantage applies because love isn’t the top priority. Marriages are arranged for a purpose that benefits everyone else in the family instead of the couple.

If you find yourself in the situation, then your parents and grandparents care less about the idea of falling in love than they do about what the outcome will be with a successful marriage. When the families are getting along well and the relationship is mutually beneficial, then love becomes a third tier of importance. If one person falls in love and the other does not, then there can be an exceptional amount of misery in this relationship.

6. There are lower levels of personal accountability in an arranged marriage. When a couple gets married through the perspective of individualism, that each party is personally responsible for the success or failure of the arrangement. You choose to make things work with that person every day because there is no safety net. In an arranged marriage, there is a lack of accountability because the relationship is based on the family contract instead of a mutual love and respect for one another.

Neither party in an arranged marriage is responsible to the other. If the marriage doesn’t work out for some reason, then the couple can blame whomever created it in the first place. That is why you will often see large family groups together when this structure is the primary way to form relationships in a culture or society. When the blame rolls downhill, the families do their best to limit whatever damage could occur.

7. Arranged marriages can create feelings of alienation. During the final phases of an arranged marriage, it is not unusual for everyone in the family to want to leave a mark on the new relationship. For the couple who gets placed together, it can feel like this whirlwind is about everyone else except for them. Some families may not allow the bride or groom to have any say in what happens during the ceremony, the honeymoon, or even the initial days of the marriage. In this situation, the only job that each person has for the marriage is to show up to share their vows. It is a process that can make you feel like you’re going along on a ride that is out of control.

8. It takes away the process of courtship. This disadvantage does not always apply because some couples know well in advance that their families want them to get married. When there is enough notice for a bride and groom to get together before the wedding, then the process of courtship can occur. It is still not the same as what you would experience through the lens of individualism where every step of the process is under the control of the couple.

You don’t get to experience the ups and downs of love. There is no realization about the importance of an emotional connection or trying to get to know someone because that’s what you want to do. There are no opportunities to explore different personalities, preferences, or looks. You just need to do what you’re told to do with this form of a relationship.

9. This process limits personal choices. Arranged marriages often limit the choices that a couple has one selecting a life partner. The only way to change your life circumstances is to locate a family who is willing to let you “marry up.” Sometimes families even use the structure as a way to limit the outside influences of “undesired” genetics, cultures, or stereotypes from entering into their family structure. Imagine Christian parents creating a marriage to prevent their son from marrying someone who practices Islam or Sikh parents choosing a partner because they fear that societal discrimination won’t permit individualism and you’ve got an idea of how severe this disadvantage can be.

10. Arranged marriages place the burden on the woman in the relationship. Families in the developing world rarely have enough money to set aside anything for savings. The meager amount that they bring in from whatever employment they can find goes directly to the food that they need for survival. All of the sons in these traditional structures will often work because that means there is an additional income source for the family. When a daughter is born instead, then she becomes another mouth to feed – just like her mother. Because women are not given the same priority for education or employment, there are few ways to help everyone lift themselves out of poverty.

The only way to do so in many circumstances is to arrange a marriage so that the family can receive a stipend for the relationship. It becomes a transaction that is akin to sexual slavery or exploitation since intimacy is expected. When children are traded in such a way, the harm that they encounter can be indescribable.

11. It can increase the rates of child marriage in some countries. Children who are forced to get married under the age of 12 are unprepared for the choices that lie ahead for them. This practice is outlawed through much of the world, but poverty and desperation can cause it to be actively permitted in many global cultures. For many families, the arrangement of a child marriage is a choice between having food on the table for everyone or not having enough to stave off hunger. There are no good choices here. That is why it is up to the developed world to reach out to these communities, provide solutions, and offer a path out of poverty.

Conclusion of the Advantages and Disadvantages of Arranged Marriages

Arranged marriages are seen as being beneficial or not based on the lens of society. People who come from a culture that emphasizes individualism will see this relationship structure in a very different light when compared to those who do not experience this freedom. With more than half of today’s marriages using this structure to expand the family, it is an issue that is not going to go away anytime soon.

The advantages and disadvantages of arranged marriages show us that it is up to each family, and each individual, to decide what they want to have in life. Forced marriages may technically fall into an arranged category for some statistics, but anything that falls into the categories of exploitation, violence, or other forms of harm must be stopped. If the relationship is consensual, then who are we to judge how someone decides to find their definition of happiness?

344 Marriage Essay Topics & Examples

Whether you’re writing about unconventional, traditional, or arranged marriage, essay topics can be pretty handy. Consider some original ideas gathered by our experts and discuss divorce, weddings, and family in your paper.

🏆 Best Marriage Essay Examples & Topics

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• Women, Friendships, Marriage in Lynn Nottage’s “Poof!” Maybe Loureen and Florence treat their problems a little differently depending on the fact of having children or the degree to which the husband’s attitude can be tolerated. The general opinion about women and their […]
• Marriage in the Importance of Being Earnest: Analysis Although Algernon’s view on love and marriage is not known during the conversation with his butler, we get to know his thoughts on the subject in a monologue where he claims that marriage is an […]
• Early Marriage Advantages In addition to this, there is a positive correlation between marriage and the increased mental and physical well being of an individual.
• Christian vs. Muslim Marriages Comparison and Contrast A wedding is a civil or religious ceremony conducted in the presence of the family and friends of the bride and groom, to celebrate the beginning of their marriage.
• Marriage in A Midsummer Night’s Dream The main theme of the play revolves around the marriage between Thesus, the Duke of Athens, and the Queen of Amazons called Hippolyta, as well as the events that surround the married couple.
• Early Marriage and Its Impact on Education Given the significant impacts that early marriage has had on education, this paper builds on the available recent research to establish the extent of early marriage and its impacts on the lives of children.
• The Pros and Cons of Gay Marriage Counteracting the argument that prohibition of gay marriage appears similar to discrimination is the idea that marriage, in the traditional understanding of the word, is the union of necessarily different sexes, a man and a […]
• Qualities of Successful Marriages Faith makes great differences in marriage and this is why it is very important to share your individual beliefs and values with the partner prior to marriage in order to understand each other and plan […]
• Why Gay Marriage Should Not Be Legal Therefore, because marriage is a consecrated unification of a male and a female, ready to sacrifice all that is at their disposal for the continuation of the human species and societal values, I believe all […]
• Marriage and Family Challenges As a rule, one of the principal reasons for a difficult adaptation is the initially inflated requirements of one of the spouses or even both of them.
• Statement for Marriage and Family Therapist Applicant My personal experience in marriage, long-term work with families within the framework of my occupational duties, and the desire to help people through life’s difficulties motivate me to become a Marriage and Family Therapist.
• “Why Marriages Fail” by Anne Roiphe It is a productive way to end the essay because people are reassured that in every situation there is a way out and it all depends on the individuals and their want to work things […]
• Islamic Marriage and Divorce The family being the basic unit of a society which is also a principle in the Islamic society its genesis is the relationship between a husband and a wife.
• Marriage in the Postmodern Society Circa 900BC, the world only knew one type of marriage, at least the Judeo-Christian history, which is the best documented type that indicates that marriage was between a man and a woman with the option […]
• The Marriage of Heaven and Hell The contraries used by the poet in “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell” are the backbone of this poem. The structure of “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell” is the first feature of the contraries […]
• Process Philosophy’s Impact on Marriage and Education The growth in the popularity of gay marriages in America provides evidence of the impact of process philosophy on government policies.
• Marriage and Adultery Laws of Emperor Augustus The laws were enacted to deal with marriage avoidance, the preference for childless unions, marriage of lower class women by the Roman elite, and adultery, all of which threatened the continuity of the Roman aristocracy.
• Marriage is Outdated and no Longer Suits Modern Lifestyles and Attitudes They do not perceive the essence of entering in to marriage when they can accomplish most of the above mentioned issues outside marriage.
• The Marriage Traditions of Wolof Culture These include the role that marriage plays in the family formation in the Wolof society, what the economic background of the plural marriages is, and which traditions describe the marriage ceremony of the Wolof culture.
• Definition of Marriage. Reward of Marriage For many years, social scientists have argued on the reward of marriage due to the distinctiveness of the populace who get married and stay married. As a result, the definition of marriage can be broadened […]
• How to Have a Happy Marriage In life, although a number of strategies of enhancing happiness in life exist, it is important for all individuals to note that, success of these strategies depends on the commitment levels in spouses hence, the […]
• Marriage in “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin News about the death of her husband arises and owing to her heart problem, carefulness is vital for the one to deliver the news to her.
• Argument for Gay Marriages Enacting laws that recognize gay marriages would be beneficial to the society in the sense that it promotes equal rights among members of the society.
• Christian Marriage Rituals From the ancient times, parents of both the bride and groom were the primary parties to the marriage covenant. According to the biblical times, marriage was a legal covenant between the parents of the bride […]
• Marriage Relationships in “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” by Hemingway Harry and his wife, Helen, are stranded in Mount Kilimanjaro and their interactions reveal that their rocky relationship is a result of a mixture of frustration, incorrect decisions, getting married for wrong reasons, and unreciprocated […]
• The Marriage in Norway in the 1800s The paper reviews the tendencies of matrimonial and reproduction life in Norway in the 19th century. The research study is based on the academic peer-reviewed article that analyzes marriage in the country in the 1800s.
• The Benefits of Marriage This essay aims to identify the benefits of marriage, compare the level of happiness between married couples and cohabitors and analyze the conditions that contribute to the marriage advantage.
• Marriage Differences in Botswana The body part discusses the history of life and marriage, marriage now, marriage in the book, the similarities and differences of life and marriage in the book and real life.
• The Future of Marriage Although today marriage is still a significant stage in the personal life and family is discussed as the fundamental factor for the social development, the role of marriage declines, the rate of divorces increases, and […]
• Absolute Gender Equality in a Marriage Despite the fact that the principles of gender equality in marriage will clearly affect not only the relationships between a husband and a wife but also the roles of the spouses considerably, it is bound […]
• From Collectivism to Individualism in Marriage A marriage that is established on a collectivist ideal tends to be focused more on the interests of the in-group more than self interests.
• Importance of Communication in Marriage Marriage is the first step in establishing a family and the kind of communication that exists between the partners determines the kind of family that they will establish.
• Child Marriages in Modern India The practice of child marriages among the Shaikh and the Rajasthan community at large has been exacerbated by the government’s reluctance in preventing it and to make the matter worst, it seems to be very […]
• Taqiya and Mut’ah in Islam: The Legal Status of Mut’ah Marriage in Indonesia It is essentially a temporary contract marriage, in which a man and a woman agree to assume the roles of husband and wife for a limited period.
• Temporary Marriage in Lebanon: Pros and Cons Supporters of temporary marriage in Lebanon argue that, since the union does not involve use of force, it cannot be termed as a violation of the right of women.
• Marriage and Family Therapy Even though she is the one instigating therapy, she is suggesting that the therapist speaks to Leon and not her. This case, the problems is Marceline’s indecision and lack of set goals of what she […]
• Cultural Traditions: Arranged vs. Autonomous Marriage Given the aforementioned reasons, this is possible to convince people that pre-arranged marriages can be admitted as culturally permissible, and the concept of cultural relativism is an objective tool.
• Marriage Vs. Living Together: Pros and Cons Marriage is simply a ceremony that was imagined and enacted by man in order to signify the decision of a man and a woman to live together in a forever sense of the word.
• Interracial Marriage and Emirati Identity Issues According to the Federal National Council, the prevalence of interracial marriages in the UAE is threatening Emirati women, in terms of their ability to be married by a fellow Emirati man.
• Cohabiting Before Marriage: Reasons and Benefits The concept of cohabitation is traditionally looked down at by the representatives of the contemporary society, which is quite weird given the fact that the phenomenon of diversity and plurality of opinions have been promoted […]
• Interracial Marriage in the 1950s The central problem was that the period was characterized by racial segregation laws that did not allow people of a different race to attend the same restaurants, cinemas, and other public places. Moreover, parents often […]
• Traditional Marriage and Love Marriage Comparison In this paper, the pros and cons of love marriage and traditional marriage will be discussed to clarify which one is a better or just more appropriate option for modern people.
• Social Issues: Arranged Marriages Even though research has shown that some arranged marriages result in loving and stable relationships, I think it is important to give individuals the freedom to choose their partners and decide whether they are prepared […]
• Arguments against Young Marriage and Their Rebuttal For the most part, these arguments point at the current social flaws and the need to address them. Instead, such experience is acquired in the course of social interactions, which young people are engaged into […]
• Cohabitation vs. Marriage It is not only crucial to the couple but also to the whole society since it is the foundation by which a society is based.
• Family and Marriage Therapy The theory explains clearly how change is brought about because it suggests that the main objective of the therapist is to advice the client on how to achieve the best results in the future using […]
• The Ethics of Early Marriages in the American Society In the United States, division of matrimonial property takes the form of a fifty-fifty percentage share between the marriage partners at the time of the dissolution of their marriage, which means that the law perceives […]
• Interracial Marriage in the United Arab Emirates One of the main problems is the population ratio of the country. The increased presence of foreign wives in the country can create an appearance that the identity of the country changed.
• Cultural Differences in Arranged Marriages All the expenses of the marriage are taken care of by the parents of the couple. The reason why arranged marriages are encouraged among the Hindus is that there is utmost respect compared to marriages […]
• Marriage and Family: Life Experience When we got married, a man was perceived to be the head of the family, and in his absence the wife was expected to guide the family.
• Benefits of Remarriage for Happy Life Remarriage allows a person to find love and comfort from the other partner. When a person chooses to be remarried, they would likely accumulate their financial sources to focus their economic development with the partner.
• The Concept of Same Sex Marriage and Child Adoption It is as a result of this approach that an individual sexual orientation cannot be used to limit them from adopting children least it is proven beyond doubt that the relationship will be harmful to […]
• Institution of Marriage and Its History Due to the nature and intentions of marriage, numerous definitions and viewpoints have emerged that continue to dictate what the institution ought to be.
• Love, Marriage, and Divorce He weighs the possible outcomes, and mostly, these were negative elements such as discrimination of his side of the family who are expected to wait only for food and drink during the wedding, other wedding […]
• Biblical Marriage and Divorce – Religious Studies The outstanding fact is that the Bible discourages the practice. Divorce is harmful to both society and the Church.
• Assessing in the Field of Marriage and Family Therapy Through assessment, the family therapist can influence the outcome of the conversations in a consultative meeting between the troubled individual and the therapist.
• Genograms Role in Family and Marriage In my second marriage, the major challenge was to find a unified approach to my son and the children of my new partner.
• Marriage and Alternative Family Arrangements In the selection of the marriage partners, individuals are required to adhere to the rules of endogamy as well as the rules of exogamy.
• Marriage in The Yellow Wallpaper She has failed to recognize that she is the driver of her own life, and blame should not be put on man. Therefore, she is not able to work her creativity and ends up drawing […]
• Pre Marriage Counseling: One Year Before Getting Married On the other hand, pre-marriage counseling may lead to the end of a relationship. Unfortunately, some people refrain from consulting pre-marriage counselors due to breach of privacy or if the counselor is not in a […]
• Marriage in Saudi Arabia The elders of the prospective bride propagated marriage in Saudi Arabia, and afterward, it was the responsibility of either the groom or the groom’s parents to propose to her father.
• Girls Not Brides Organization’s Commitment to Eliminate the Forced Child Marriage Graca Machel, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu are the champions of Girls Not Bride, and they advocate to end child marriage in our society.
• Interracial Marriage Explained Secondly, an interracial marriage promotes the general acceptance of people from a different race in the new society or community and also promotes the appreciation of other people’s values in the new community and their […]
• Inter Caste Marriages and Mixed Identity They do not experience the practices of a particular religion due to which they are perturbed when other children know and talk about their religion and its practices with a sense of pride and belonging.
• Let Me Not to the Marriage of Two Minds by William Shakespeare The reader can interpret starting lines as the response to the question of the priest in the wedding ceremony about the reasons preventing the couple from getting married The structure of the phrase “Let me […]
• Effect of Stress on Relations and Marriage Therefore, this paper had the aim of discussing the effects of stress on a marriage and relationships and how the stress can be reduced and controlled.
• The Nature of Aristocratic Marriage and Family in the Mid-Heian Period The poorly defined Heian marriage system denied the women the ability to react and advocate for their human rights, Seidensticker Edward.
• Role of Marriage/Family & Singlehood Unfortunately, there are claims that the prevailing social factors within the American society have been unfavorable thus preventing women from choosing their life partners thereby leading to an increase in number of single women in […]
• The Importance of Premarital Counseling Before Marriage It is thus essential for couples contemplating to enter into a binding contract to go through premarital counseling program in order to get skills and knowledge on how to maintain their marriage.
• Love and Marriage during the Era of Mao in Communist China In the Mao era, the law did not allow polygamous marriage in the Chinese community and through such, the sale of young females within the society ended.
• Polygamy in Islam: Marriage Issues Thus, the faith of people in their prophet is also the basis and rationale for the practice of polygamy. The fact that Islam views marriage as a sacred act of goodness and mutual help is […]
• Effects of Same Sex Marriage to the Society Therefore, the paper will seek to elaborate on the effects of same sex marriage to the society. The number of children being raised in the available families has reduced leading to a declining population and […]
• Marriage in the Modern World For instance, there is no common agreement over the number of parties required in a marriage; who should select partners for marriage; whether or not the rearing of children is the core idea of marriage; […]
• Sex and Marriage Relations Analysis The problem of the modern married couples is that the notion of sex became the dominant in the relations and the faithfulness in the family is not in honor now.
• Arranged Marriages: A Critical Analysis While discussing the points in favor of arranged marriage, the writer does not seem to have taken a stand in favor yet he has provided evidence to show that arranged marriage is an outlet for […]
• Christians Holy Orders and Marriage To a great level the society itself is constitutive of the symbol, and is thus vital in calling forward the gifts of the occupation in which each individual is well-known and established in each sacrament […]
• Marriage Decline as a Social Problem in the US To discuss the social illness of declining marriages in the US, the incorporated is the social constructionist perspective. The origins of the constructionism can be traced back to the attempts to establish the nature of […]
• Same-Sex Marriage Legalization and Public Attitude Therefore, it is hypothesized that the same-sex marriage legalization affected the public attitude and decreased the level of homophobia. The process of same-sex marriage legalization started at the end of the XX century in the […]
• Arranged Marriages are Less Successful This research aims to establish the reasons why arranged marriages are less successful when compared to love unions in the realms of commitment, passion, intimacy, and marital satisfaction.
• Common Sexual Problems Experienced During a Marriage Dissatisfaction with the relationship, a lack of shared activities, old age, poor health, and daily stress also contribute to a decrease in sexual satisfaction in a marriage.
• Marriage Decline Among Black Americans The marriage rate in the United States of America has generally declined in the current decade. Incarceration of the African American community has played a significant role in promoting their marriage decline for decades.
• Unforgiveness in Marriages and Families I think true forgiveness in the context of marital or familial relationships cannot be achieved without a complete understanding of the causes of the transgression and the reasons behind one’s inability to forgive.
• Life in Marriage or Single Life? However, in recent decades, the world has begun to actively change, society has become more inclusive, and more and more people who refuse to marry for different beliefs have begun to appear.
• Marriage Types and Their Critical Components Increasingly, variations have also encompassed how one of the traditional expectations of marriage, that is, siring children, is construed and whether spouses are of the same or different sexes.
• Privacy in Marriage: Rights Violations While this approach differs from the notion of the Living Constitution, which holds that the constitution should be read in the context of current times and political identities, even if such interpretation is at odds […]
• Premarital Cohabitation’s Impact on Marriage Though premarital cohabitation used to be linked to an increased probability to a divorce.recent studies confirm that cohabitation enhances the power of a marriage.
• The Importance of Marriage Education In such cases, the importance of attending marriage education is highlighted, the usefulness and importance of which is to provide knowledge not only about the marriage union but also in general about interaction and proper […]
• Women in Marriage & Sex, Abortion, and Birth Control The historical period chosen is from the eighteenth to the twentieth century to demonstrate the advancement of social structures for women.
• Creating a Survey About an Institution of Marriage If I were to create a poll or a survey, I would want to study the institution of marriage from the viewpoint of people who have gotten a divorce at least once.
• Comparison of Marriage in Elizabethan Times and in “Othello” The man was believed to be the head of the family, and he had the legal right to punish his wife.
• Family Behaviors, Inequality, and Outside Childbearing Marriage The gap between the poor and the rich is widening in the US, making the American dream impossible for many people, especially children and families.
• The Meaning of Marriage: A Comparison of Articles In addition to the titles of academic journals and articles, it is possible to determine which field of science an article belongs to from its content, the language used, and the focus of the study.
• The Love and Marriage Relationship Analysis This shows that the researcher was determined to obtain accurate results from the subjects with the least, and that is the strength of the research.
• Institution of Marriage: The Sociological Perspectives However, sociological studies played a pivotal role in defining the main tendencies of marriage as a social institute development from the end of World War II to the current realities.
• Same-Sex Marriages and Equality Some oppose gay marriage on religious grounds and others- on an individual or group basis, but some tussle against the inequitable portrayal of gay marriage with zeal, such as Senator Dianne Feinstein.
• Newlyweds’ Optimistic Forecasts of Their Marriage The first instrument used was the Quality of Marriage Index, a six-item scale requiring partners to describe the level of their agreement and disagreements regarding their marriage in general.
• The Supreme Court Decision on the Right to Same-Sex Marriage The decision of the Supreme Court on the constitutional right of citizens to same-sex marriage is a significant event in the history of the development of modern democratic society.
• “Do Student Loans Delay Marriage?”: Participants, Measures, and Results The purpose of this article is to discover: the relationship between student loan debt and marriage in young adulthood; whether or not the relationship differs for women and men; if this relationship becomes weak over […]
• Aspects of Marriage and Family Life At the time of Colonial America, during the consequent period of the emerging modern family, and after the formation of the contemporary family, the situation of this institution differed drastically.
• Institution of Marriage in China Marriage is one of the oldest social institutions that regulate interpersonal and sexual relations, a society recognized by the union between spouses to create a family, giving rise to a married couple’s mutual rights and […]
• How Marriage Affected the Economic Status of Women On the other hand, in Twelfth Night, written in the early XVIIth century, the reader is shown the more romantic side of a marital union.
• The Church’s Attitude Toward Homosexual Marriage Erickson Millard claims that Jesus’s teaching about the permanence of marriage is based on the fact that: God made humanity as male and female and pronounced them to be one.
• Future of Marriage: Non-Monogamy, People’s Needs in Marriage Another condition explaining the likelihood of the shift in the meaning and form of this institution is the fact that some of the values underpinning it remain intact.
• Arranged Marriages in India According to Bertolani, marriage in Indian society is strictly arranged by the parents of potential marriage partners and does not necessarily have to involve love. Thus, arranged marriage in the context of Indian society is […]
• Marriage in Muslim Cultures and America In the Muslim religion, which is most widespread in the Arabian countries and among the Arabian people, marriage is perceived differently than in the American culture.
• Gay Marriage Should Be Repealed The institution of marriage has changed dramatically within the first two decades of the 21st century due to the gradual acceptance of gay marriage.
• Interracial Marriages in “Like Mexicans” by Gary Soto Therefore, Soto’s decision to marry a Japanese woman should encourage Mexican people to change their negative attitude towards other ethnic groups and practice interracial marriages.
• COVID-19: How Race, Gender and Marriage Contribute to Humanity A study by Landivar et al.about the effect of the virus on gender and marriage in the US reveals that the pandemic has worsened gender inequality in employment.
• “Social Attitudes Regarding Same-Sex Marriage and LGBT…” by Hatzenbuehler It relates to the fact that the scientists failed to articulate a research question in the proper form. However, it is possible to mention that the two hypotheses mitigate the adverse effect of the lacking […]
• Cuban Americans Views on Marriage The representatives of different racial and ethnic groups tend to share dissimilar views regarding marriage, parenting, and divorce that are based on their cultural traditions and beliefs.
• Specific Communication Styles That Make for Happy Marriages The next style of communication is submissive, characterized by a desire to please other people, and avoid conflicts by all means.
• Does Marriage Bring Happiness?: Based on “The Story of an Hour” In this case, marriage is not a union of the loved ones but is a social obligation where a wife is a subject of a husband.Mr. Millard’s family seemed a perfect example of the social […]
• The Defense of Marriage Act: LGBTQ + Community One of the milestones in the development of the struggle of members of the LGBTQ + community for their rights in the United States is the adoption of the Defense of Marriage Act.
• Marriage and Divorce: Problems of Couples This seems to be the same stand that is taken by Paul in regards to the position of the man and the woman in the marriage, where the man seems to be the sole determinant […]
• Legalization of the Same-Sex Marriage: Advantages In this particular section, I would like to find out by which percent the economy of different countries will grow when the government legalizes homosexuality due to the excess expenses that it uses in buying […]
• Controversies Surrounding the Topic of Same-Sex Marriage In particular, the emergence of same-sex relations is the sign of the deinstitutionalization of the concept of marriage in society. The changes that occurred at the beginning of the 90s of the past century were […]
• The Gay Marriages: Ethical and Economic Perspectives Among the key ethical dilemmas that are related to the issue in question, the conflict between religious beliefs and the necessity to provide the aforementioned services, the issue regarding the company’s needs v.its duty to […]
• Marriage and Crime Reduction: Is There a Relationship? It is clear that marriage plays an integral role in reducing crime through a shift of priorities that are family centered and the transition to adulthood.
• Effects of Mastectomy on Marriage This is because the husband has to deal with the fact that his wife has one breast. The husband is affected by his wife’s condition of a missing breast.
• California’s Proposition 8 on Same-Sex Marriages However, in other states, obtaining the right for same sex marriages is only one of a series of the issues that have arisen since much controversy as the U.S.same sex marriages movement rose in the […]
• “Why Marriages Succeed or Fail”: The “Bang” or “Whimper?” As mentioned above, it is common for people to assume that if something is wrong in a close relationship between a wife and a husband, there is a profound and apparent conflict to blame.
• The Role of Marriage on the Example of Two Plays The plays Waiting for Godot and A Long Day’s Journey into Night indirectly imply the topic of the marriage’s role and how it impacts the individuals.
• Stephanie Doe: Misyar Marriage as Human Trafficking in Saudi Arabia In this article, the author seeks to highlight how the practice of temporary marriages by the wealthy in Saudi Arabia, commonly known as misyar, is a form of human trafficking.
• The Opinion of Americans on Whether Gay Marriage Should Be Allowed or Not Based on the political nature of the population, 43% of the democrats think, American society supports gay marriages and only 18% of the republicans hold the same view.
• Millennials Say Marriage Ideal but Parenthood the Priority However, it is still believed that the joy of giving birth to a child is one of the greatest joys in life.
• Doomed Marriage in “The Girls in Their Summer Dresses” by Irwin Shaw The most common answer to this question is that these people love each other. The article The Girls in Their Summer Dresses testifies to the fact that marriage is doomed.
• Sexuality, Marriage, Gay Rights The supremacy of law and protection of people right lie in the heart of the protection of the freedom of personality.”Part of the basis of democratic government in the United States is a system of […]
• Cross-Border Marriages Between Japan and China: Reasons and Results Besides, the statistics of Japanese men and women dissatisfied with their marriages is humbling; consequently, determined to find a more gratifying alternative, men are engaged in cross-border marriage enterprise.
• Same-Sex Marriage Policy & Social Impact Reflection Creation of public policies and laws are significantly influenced by the diversity in culture forcing the government to engage with the society when developing policies.
• Marianne Weber’s Views on Marriage Traditionally, the role of a husband was that of a breadwinner and a patriarch of the family, whereas a wife’s duties were to take care of their children and keep the family hearth.
• Same‐Sex Couples, Families, and Marriage The article under consideration is a systematic review of the recent scientific literature that addresses the range of issues that same-sex couples face and the peculiarities of their inner structure.
• Marriage Premium for Professional Athletes Researchers in the sphere of the labor economy agree that there is a connection between marital status and the number of wages earned by men.
• “How I Met Your Mother”: Ideas of Marriage The central relationship throughout the series is Marshall and Lily’s marriage, with its ups and downs, individual quirks, and their influence on each other.
• Woman’s Position in Marriage: Similarities in History With time she began to see the creeping figures in the pattern of the wallpapers in the room; with an absence of any physical and mental activity, her anxiety began to increase and resulted in […]
• For Richer (Not for Poorer): The Inequality Crisis of Marriage An example of a factual claim made by the writer is where she states that the number of marriages in the United States dropped by 5% from the year 2009 to 2010.
• In Defense of Marriage Act 1996 As the editorial holds, the power of the law is lower than that of the congress and therefore its application on the subject of marriage is like depriving the congress of its powers of regulating […]
• Effect of Same-Sex Marriage on the Legal Structure of Gender in All Marriages Despite the fact that the current article does not address the gender roles in the family, parallels can be drawn showing that in no way the institutionalization of same-sex marriage can have an effect on […]
• Gender, Love and Sexuality: Healthy Marriage Formation Parties in marriage must have trust in each other because it is a basis for the growth of their union. Parties in a marriage need to be romantic as it harnesses love and loyalty.
• Same Sex Marriages: Definition and Main Problems In essence, the opposition of same sex marriages practically comes out of the use of the word “marriage”; such that, same sex couples enjoy the same rights as partners from contemporary marriages.
• Emotionally Focused Therapy Effectiveness in the Instituion of Marriage The suitability of the elements of the methodology determines the appropriateness. They indicate the main themes of the study and provide a beginning for the reader to understand the problem that is being researched and […]
• Marriage and Mothering Challenges In the modern world, the institution of marriage and the issue of motherhood have experienced challenges due to changes in perception.
• Interventions in Institution of Marriage Analysis This paper helps to understand the principles of evaluation research, the effectiveness of the intervention selected for settling marital discord and the use of evidence elicited in the research analysis for the purpose of enhancing […]
• The Case Against Gay Marriage The Constitutional protection to equal rights under the law has been invoked over and over again to try and afford homosexuals “equal right” to the social institution of marriage and to social security when one […]
• Conflict and Marriage Satisfaction To manage solving differences effectively, individuals in a marriage relationship should learn the thinking and positive and negative behaviors of their partners and have a positive perception towards these partners. This leads to unresolved conflicts […]
• Marriage and Physical Well-Being The dissolution of a marriage combined with the poor quality of the marriage leading up to the divorce is associated with the decline of both mental and physical health resulting in the increased use of […]
• Cohabitation Before Marriage One of the many disadvantages of cohabiting is that in this condition, you are never sure of your partner’s next move.
• Irony of Marriages in an Indian Set Up On the contrary, it is a belief, which can well be attributed to the rigidity of an Indian cultural norm that forces its followers to believe that the institution of marriage is indeed a handiwork […]
• Marriage and Family Systems: Western Society and Kadara of Nigeria The institution of marriage in the modern culture holds a distinct development over the years. In these cultures, marriage is negotiated by the parents of the betrothed.
• Re-Thinking Homosexual Marriage in Rational and Ethical Fashion We demonstrate that the way out of the hysterical debate is to consider soberly the basis for supporting the ordinary family as the basic unit of society and protector of the next generation.
• Gay Marriage and Bible: Differences From Heterosexual Practice When respected the bonds of marriage leads to the good not only of the couple and their children, but also to the good of society as a whole.
• Gay Marriage: Evaluation Argument The basic theme of the article was to present advocacy of gay marriage and a thorough presentation of arguments in favor of the legalization of gay marriages.
• Same Sex Marriage Morality: Discussion Patterson further concluded that as long as the homosexual parents could let their children understand the real scenario, there is a strong indication that children could very well accept and love their parents even though […]
• Do Young Couples Marriages Always End in Divorce? The reasons for the failure of the marriage is supposed to stem from the immaturity of the parties involved and the ill preparedness of the couple to deal with the changes that married life brings […]
• The Concept of Marriage: Discussion They control their language and behavior and this is a prime example of symbolic interactionism that is instrumental in the institution of marriage.
• Marriage Rates in Oklahoma and Illinois This essay dwells much in the states of Illinois and Oklahoma and the differences and the reasons for this differences will make up the body of this discussion. Marriage rate differs a lot in the […]
• Interracial Marriage: History and Future Developments Sigler in- “Civil rights in America: 1500 to the present” is of the opinion that the civil rights of the citizens of America is helpful to make and end to the racial segregation in America.”Politics […]
• Civil Union: Legal Recognition of Same-Sex Couples’ Marriages Once the readers are influenced by the argument it is assumed that they would move a social memorandum in favor of the argument and insist the authority to grant the gay couples the status of […]
• Marriage and Family Problems as Social Issues Sociology as a discipline has an extremely wide range of interests and it is next to impossible even to enumerate them, however the issue that has always been of the utmost importance for the sociological […]
• How Is Marriage Related to Health? We can only surmise how marriage is related to health, but those who have been through a lot of problems and hassles as a result of bad marriages, literally know what marriage can bring to […]
• Marriage and Family: Women as Love Experts and Victims As evidenced in the case of Roberta, it is essential for women to continually reiterate emotions of love at regular intervals, in the absence of which she begins to lose faith in the very basics […]
• Views on Marriage and Family Throughout Chinese History in Relation to Religion
• Successful Marriage Conditions
• Domestic Violence in Marriage and Family
• The Definition of Marriage
• Advocacy Plan for Forced Marriage in Sudanese Tradition
• The Effects of Social Media on Marriage in the UAE
• Marriage in Contemporary America
• Marriage Lawsuit in the State of Florida
• Gender Role Attitudes and Expectations for Marriage
• First and Second Marriages: Psychological Perspective
• Happiness: Health, Marriage, and Success
• Gay Marriage: Societal Suicide
• Early Arranged Marriages in Indonesia
• Child Marriage in Egypt: Changing Public Attitudes
• Same-Sex Marriage Discriminatory Law in Alabama
• Family, Marriage, and Parenting Concepts Nowadays
• Marriage and Divorce Statistics in the United States
• “The Case For Same Sex Marriage” Video by Savino
• The Rejection of Marriage and Social Stability
• Family Life Cycle: The Institution of Marriage
• Marriage Expectations in Newlyweds
• Marriage Stages: Mother and Daughter’s Interview
• Marriage Process in Saudi Culture
• Advices for a Happy Marriage Life
• Marriage: The Good, the Bad, and the Greedy
• Same-Sex Marriage National Legalization
• Long-Lasting Marriage and Its Psychology
• Marriage: Economic, Social and Political Meanings
• Interfaith Marriages in Islamic Views
• Child Marriage in Egypt as a Social Problem
• Arranged Marriage and Its Ethical Dilemma
• The Smart Stepfamily Marriage
• Gay Marriage and Its Social Acceptance in the US
• Relations and Social Distance in Kinship and Marriage
• Infidelity in Sexual Relationships and Marriage
• Five Filters of Communication in Marriage
• Same-Sex Marriage as a Positive Tendency Nowadays
• American Marriage Trends and Government Measures
• Same-Sex Marriage Representation in American Media
• Relationship and Marriage Coaching
• Marriage and Family Class Ideas
• Marriage and Politics in 3500 BC-1600 AD
• Marriage Peculiarities in the United Arab Emirates
• Marriage Life in the Film “The World of Apu”
• Does Marriage and Relationship Education Work?
• High Marriage Costs in the United Arab Emirates
• Marriage in the New Millennium
• Homosexual Marriage: Causes of Debates
• Interpersonal Communication Issues in the Marriage
• Marriage in the Films: The Mirror Has Two Faces and Sunrise
• Weddings, Marriage, and Money in the UAE
• Physical Health Problems in Marriage
• Marriage in the United Arab Emirates
• Tthe Defense of Marriage
• Sociology: Marriage and Reasons Why People Get Married
• The Changing Landscape of Love and Marriage
• Asian American Women and Marriage
• Legalizing Gay Marriage in the US
• The Miseries of Enforced Marriage
• “Gay Marriages” by Michael Nava and Robert Dawidoff
• Fairy Tale Marriages Are Not Real
• Marriage as Depicted in Soloveitchik’s Typology of Human Nature
• Why Do Conservatives Disagree on the Topic of Marriage Equality?
• Same-Sex Marriage in the United States of America
• Legalization of Same-Sex Marriage in San Francisco
• Boundaries in Marriage: A Healthy Marital Association
• Gay Marriage’s Social and Religious Debates
• Interracial Marriages in the US
• Marriage and Family Therapy in Connecticut
• Interview of a Marriage and Family Therapist
• Gay Marriage in The UK
• Marriage and Love are Incompatible
• Marriage in the Bible
• Marriage & Family Therapy
• Legalization of the Same Sex Marriage in California
• Constitutional Amendment that Allows Same-sex Marriage
• Gay Marriage: Debating the Ethics, Religion, and Culture Analytical
• Marriage and Family Counselling
• The Problems of Marriage and Divorce
• The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
• Homosexuals’ Right to Marry
• Conservative Views on Same-Sex Marriage Campaigns
• The Effectiveness of Marriage Conflict Resolution Programs in the USA
• Self-Expansion and Marriage
• The Government Should Sanction Marriages of Same Sex Couples
• Millennials Say Marriage is Ideal but Parenthood is the Priority
• The Effect of Marriage on Crime Rate
• Current Trends Affecting Marriage and Family Formation in Asia
• Gay Marriages and US Constitution
• The Issue of Gay Marriages: Meaning, Importance and Cons
• Legalizing Gay Marriage
• Incest – How Did Society’s View on Consanguineous Marriage Change Throughout History and Science Development and Why
• Naked Marriage and Chinese Society Research
• Marriage in Early Modern Europe
• Gay Marriage, Same-Sex Parenting, And America’s Children
• Gay Couples’ Right to Marriage
• Human Behavior: How Five General Perspectives Affect Marriage
• Marriage and the Limits of Contract
• Defending Gay Marriage
• Relation of Gay Marriage to the Definition of Marriage
• Marriage Concerns in Al-Khobar City
• Concepts of Gay Marriage
• The Idea of Marriage: Why So Eager?
• Effects of the Social, Economic and Technological Change on Marriage
• Defense of Marriage Act
• Medieval Introduction to the Basic Principles of Marriage Sovereignty
• Gay Marriage: Culture, Religion, and Society
• Factors Influencing Perception on Same-sex marriage in the American Society
• Gay Marriages in New York
• Should Same Sex Marriage Be Legal?
• Why Gay Marriages Should Not Be Legalized?
• Interracial Marriage in the U.S.
• Making Marriage Work
• Concept of Representation of Marriage
• Gay Marriage as a Civil Rights Issue
• Low Income Marriage and Divorce VS. High Level of Income Marriage and Divorce
• Anti-same-sex Marriage Laws and Amendments Violate the Constitutional Guarantees of Equality for all Citizens of the United States
• Arguments for Supporting Same-Sex Marriage
• Interracial Marriages and Relationships in Asian American Communities in the US
• Same-sex Couples and Marriage: Causes and Claims
• Children in Interracial Marriages
• Gay Marriage and Parenting
• Feelings about Marriage and Family Life
• The Women’s Career Role in the Institution of Marriage
• Should Gay Marriages Be Allowed?
• Reasons of the High Homosexual Marriage Rate
• Marriage systems of the Gikuyu and San Communities
• Gay Marriage and Decision Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
• Cohabitation: Is It Wrong?
• Arguments for Gay Marriages
• Opposition to the Legalization of Same Sex Marriage
• American Marriage in transition
• Marriage and Family Imagery in the Cinematography
• Religious, Governmental and Social Views on Same-Sex Marriage
• The Changes that has Occurred in Transpacific Vietnamese Marriages
• Gay Marriages: Why Not Legalize Them?
• 19th Century Norms of Marriage
• Should We Allow Gay Marriages as Civil Unions?
• Same-Sex Marriage: Sociopolitical
• Marriage Equality: Same-Sex Marriage
• Monogamy as an Acceptable System of Marriage in America
• Must gay marriage to be legal?
• Gay Marriage in the U.S.
• Marriage as a Basic and Universal Social Institute
• Concepts why marriage matters
• Gay marriage and homosexuality
• Problems in Marriage – The Weakening of Families
• Same Sex Marriages Impact on the Children Social Growth
• Gay Marriage Legalization
• The Effect of Divorce on a Person After Long Marriage
• Rebuilding Families and Marriage in America’s Society
• Problems in Marriage: Is Divorce the Only Option?
• American vs. Asian Marriages
• Sex Marriage: Personal Opinion
• What Are Factors Aid Determining Societal Norms Marriage Family?
• Who Did First Love Marriage in the World?
• How Does Marriage Affect Physical and Psychological Health?
• How Has Same-Sex Marriage Decision of Supreme Court Impacted Lives?
• What Are the Stages of Marriage?
• How Does the Perspective of Gay Marriage?
• Why Should Couples Not Live Together Before Marriage?
• How Do Cohabitation and Marriage Effects Childhood Well?
• What Are the Types of Marriage?
• How Do Legal Constraints Affect Marriage and Family Formations?
• How Has Marriage Changed Over the Last 30 Years?
• Can a Marriage Survive Different Political Views?
• Why Do People Stop Fighting for Their Marriage?
• How Does Same-Sex Marriage Affect Decreasing Population Growth?
• Why Do Men Change After Marriage?
• Why Married Couples Drift Apart After Marriage?
• Why Was Marriage Originally Created?
• How Does Same-Sex Marriage Affects Society?
• What Does the Bible Say About Marriage?
• What Do the Parental Pressures Affect Your Own Desire for Marriage?
• How Did the Utopian Communities Challenge Existing Ideas About Property and Marriage?
• How Does Infidelity Affect the Marriage and Family?
• How Was Marriage Back in the 1800s?
• Why Should Couples Live Together Before Marriage?
• How Does Infertility Effects Marriage?
• How Does Interracial Marriage Affect Children?
• How Similar Are Cohabitation and Marriage?
• How Far Would You Agree That Marriage Is Based on Social Class?
• When Marriage Loses Its Value?
• What Benefits Are There of Marriage Today?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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Essay on Arranged Marriage

Students are often asked to write an essay on Arranged Marriage in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Arranged Marriage

Introduction.

Arranged marriage is a tradition where families choose the life partners for their children. It’s a practice common in many cultures worldwide.

Understanding Arranged Marriages

In arranged marriages, parents or elder family members select the spouse based on shared values, culture, and compatibility. It’s not about forcing children but about helping them find a suitable partner.

Benefits of Arranged Marriages

Arranged marriages often result in strong bonds as they bring two families together, not just individuals. They also ensure cultural continuity, and compatibility is often high.

Challenges in Arranged Marriages

Sometimes, individuals may feel pressured or unhappy if they don’t share a connection with the chosen partner. It’s important to ensure mutual consent in these marriages.

Also check:

• Advantages and Disadvantages of Arranged Marriage

250 Words Essay on Arranged Marriage

Arranged marriage, an age-old tradition practiced in several cultures worldwide, is a marital union where the bride and groom are selected by a third party rather than by each other. This essay explores the concept, its pros and cons, and the cultural significance of arranged marriages.

Arranged marriages are often confused with forced marriages, but there’s a clear distinction. Arranged marriages involve consent from both parties, while forced marriages don’t. In arranged marriages, families take the lead in choosing potential partners, but the final decision rests with the individuals.

The primary advantage of arranged marriages is compatibility in terms of culture, religion, and socioeconomic status, reducing potential conflicts. Moreover, arranged marriages often foster a deeper sense of family unity and commitment.

Disadvantages

However, arranged marriages have drawbacks. They often limit individual autonomy in choosing a life partner, potentially leading to marital dissatisfaction. Also, they can perpetuate harmful societal norms, such as casteism and sexism.

Cultural Significance

Despite these issues, arranged marriages remain prevalent due to their deep-rooted cultural significance. They symbolize the merging of two families rather than just two individuals and are seen as a means of preserving cultural heritage and values.

In conclusion, arranged marriages are a complex phenomenon, with both merits and demerits. While they can foster stability and cultural continuity, they can also limit personal freedom. As society evolves, so too does the concept of marriage, and it’s crucial to balance tradition with individual rights and happiness.

500 Words Essay on Arranged Marriage

Arranged marriages, a traditional form of matrimony where families or matchmakers select partners, have been practiced for centuries across various cultures. Despite the increasing shift towards love marriages, arranged marriages continue to hold significance in many societies. This essay explores the nuances, merits, and demerits of arranged marriages.

Arranged marriages are often misunderstood as forced marriages. However, they are fundamentally different. In arranged marriages, the consent of the individuals getting married is paramount. The families or matchmakers merely introduce the potential partners, and the final decision rests with the individuals. This practice is prevalent in many parts of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East and is deeply rooted in cultural, social, and economic contexts.

Merits of Arranged Marriages

Arranged marriages have several merits. They foster a sense of community and shared responsibility as the union is not just between two individuals but also their families. This can provide a strong support system for the couple, especially during challenging times.

Furthermore, arranged marriages often take into account compatibility in terms of social status, religion, caste, and economic background, which can lead to less conflict and more harmony. The partners enter the relationship with realistic expectations, understanding that love and affection develop over time.

Demerits of Arranged Marriages

However, arranged marriages have their share of criticisms. The most significant concern is the potential lack of freedom for the individuals involved. Often, societal and familial pressure can influence the decision, leading to a compromise on personal happiness and compatibility.

Additionally, the emphasis on social and economic compatibility might overshadow personal compatibility, leading to an unhappy marriage. The notion of love and affection developing over time might not always hold true, resulting in a lack of emotional intimacy.

Arranged Marriages in the Modern Context

In the modern context, arranged marriages are evolving. The advent of matrimonial websites and dating apps has transformed the traditional process into a more individual-centric one. These platforms allow individuals to have a say in choosing their partners while still considering important compatibility factors. This shift represents a blend of traditional values with modern aspirations, offering a new perspective on arranged marriages.

Arranged marriages are a complex phenomenon that cannot be wholly labelled as good or bad. They are deeply intertwined with cultural norms and societal structures. Their merits and demerits vary across different contexts, and they continue to evolve with societal changes. Understanding this complexity is essential in appreciating the relevance of arranged marriages in today’s world.

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ESSAY SAUCE

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Essay: Arranged marriages

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Believe it or not, arranged marriages do last longer than loved ones. Arranged marriage is a marriage arranged by family members, usually the parents. In other words it is defined as a marriage where the marital partners are chosen by other, based on their considerations. Although an individual’s marriage is arranged by their family members but it reveals the dedication of two hearts, the marriage is successful and compared to love marriages the divorce rates are low. Despite of arranged marriages being set by family members, they can be more thriving, flourishing and long lasting compared to love marriages. To begin with, arranged marriage couples have the demand and desire to understand each other. In arranged marriages, love grows more by time for the couple, day by day. ‘Love is expected to grow as the spouses learn more about each other as the years go by’ (Myers, Madathil and Tingle, 2005). As a couple spends more time with each other the bond gets stronger. Therefore, understanding each other over a period time eventually will result in long lasting union. In arranged marriages, couples with different perspectives, ways of thinking and goals are committed to live together. ‘When you’re appreciative toward your spouse, he reciprocates’ (Seth, 2008). The partners in arranged marriages have a type of understanding where the couple spends time with each other to understand their needs and desires. Moreover, as the couple approaches to understand each other, this results in a western dating mode; where each partner tries to impress the other, in order to make the couple successful. In arranged marriages, the partners have the potential time to know each other well. They both try to adapt to each other’s culture and traditions with logic in order to keep the relation to last longer. By questioning rather than accepting traditional statements about the need to be together, the original collection both make us understood that what makes a couple and what deepens the appreciation for the human needs that coupling meets (Kimmel, 2002). As a matter of fact Kimmel states that questioning your spouse may lead to better understanding rather than expecting what it is and how it is. The more questions asked, the more the couple would understand each other. The arranged marriage couple tends to respect their partner’s culture and traditions. Therefore, this relationship results in a respectful relationship. Above all, couples in arranged marriages tend to spend more time with their partner to make their relationship long lasting, flourishing and passionate. Involvement of parents in arranges marriage is beneficial as they know their child’s desires more than anyone. One should marry someone whom their parents know very well. As parents raise up their child and they are aware of their child’s preference. The key consideration is that the potential mate should be situated with a set of relations who are known through prior association to another person in that effective network (Epstein 1961). As a matter of fact, parents ensure that what is right and what is wrong for their child. Therefore, approaching the decision of their child’s spouse, they are comprehensible and specific on their decision to ensure the right match for their child. Thus, leading towards the right partner for their lifetime, whereas in a love marriage, an individual may choose a wrong partner based on ‘want’ rather than their ‘needs.’ Secondly, the high degree of compatibility of parents’ help and support formulate the divorce rate in arranged marriages low. The globally average divorce rate on arranged marriages is 4% (UNICEF, Human Rights Council, ABC News, 2012). Divorce rates: Sweden-54.9%, US-54.8%, Russia-43.4%, UK-42.6%, Germany-39.4%, Israel-14.8%, Singapore-17.2%, Japan-1.9%, Srilanka-1.5% and India-1.1%. The aforementioned statistics conclude that the divorce rates are below 55%. In some countries such as India, the rates are low than expected. This is due to their family’s culture and religion. As religions play a vital role in countries like India, as their religion restricts them to perform divorce for the reason that divorce is looked down upon. Thus, their religion, leads the couples to compromise with each other, resulting in a low divorce rate. Lastly, arranged marriage does not only strengthen the bond between the couple but it also strengthens the religion and family bonding. If the relationship with family is strong, your heaven exists, otherwise your life is black and white (Aline, 2001). Furthermore, Aline shows the importance of the family bond. Arranged marriages are advantages towards family bonds, as a child trusts its parents’ choice. Whereas a love marriage without the parent’s content, breaks the family. Looking at aforementioned evidences, it is proven that arrange marriages decreases divorce rates and strengthens a family bonding. Arrange marriages have the benefit of being dedicated, liberal and compliant. A strong sense of commitment is the powerful advantage of an arranged marriage. Arranged marriage is based on mutual trust and understanding rather than just ‘love at first sight’ (Sahani, 2013).To clarify, the partners, therefore, tend to show love and respect towards each other rather than showing some other exterior sides. Commitment brings both of the partners together and the love eventually grows. At the same time, low expectations can play a huge role in arranged marriages which can lead to an unexpected successful marriage. In this case, the marriage works out well because the things aren’t as bad after all (Fox 1975). Low expectations lead to low disappointments. None of the partners know exactly what to expect from the other, so they are eventually happily surprised by what their marriage has become or has yet to become. Arranged marriage couples have the tendency to adjust with persistence and forbearance. Patience and tolerance is the key towards the success of one’s victorious end (Gandhi, 1948). Gandhi was a great man, who fought against the British individuals without being violent. As arranged marriage couples depict Gandhi’s act by accepting their spouse without any complaints. Additionally, they try to strengthen their bond by respecting and accepting each other. Consequently, arranged marriage couples have the tendency for acceptance, patience and moderation to strengthen their alliance. Even though arranged marriages have many disadvantages, it has many more advantages by which it creates a strong bond and the relationship lasts longer than loved ones. Alas, arranged marriage couples have the power to understand, accept and compromise with each other, in order to depict their parents’ respect and tradition. Compared to love marriages, arrange marriage have higher chances of being successful. Physical attraction can be blinding. Mutual trust and strong commitment are what are needed to make a strong bonding in the marriage. Without those components, relationships don’t last for long. Hence, along with mutual trust and strong commitment, love eventually grows which makes the arranged marriages last longer than love marriages. To begin with, arranged marriage couples have the demand and desire to understand each other. In arranged marriages, love grows more by time for the couple, day by day. ‘Love is expected to grow as the spouses learn more about each other as the years go by’ (Myers, Madathil and Tingle, 2005). As a couple spends more time with each other the bond gets stronger. Therefore, understanding each other over a period time eventually will result in long lasting union. In arranged marriages, couples with different perspectives, ways of thinking and goals are committed to live together. ‘When you’re appreciative toward your spouse, he reciprocates’ (Seth, 2008). The partners in arranged marriages have a type of understanding where the couple spends time with each other to understand their needs and desires. Moreover, as the couple approaches to understand each other, this results in a western dating mode; where each partner tries to impress the other, in order to make the couple successful. In arranged marriages, the partners have the potential time to know each other well. They both try to adapt to each other’s culture and traditions with logic in order to keep the relation to last longer. By questioning rather than accepting traditional statements about the need to be together, the original collection both make us understood that what makes a couple and what deepens the appreciation for the human needs that coupling meets (Kimmel, 2002). As a matter of fact Kimmel states that questioning your spouse may lead to better understanding rather than expecting what it is and how it is. The more questions asked, the more the couple would understand each other. The arranged marriage couple tends to respect their partner’s culture and traditions. Therefore, this relationship results in a respectful relationship. Above all, couples in arranged marriages tend to spend more time with their partner to make their relationship long lasting, flourishing and passionate. Involvement of parents in arranges marriage is beneficial as they know their child’s desires more than anyone. One should marry someone whom their parents know very well. As parents raise up their child and they are aware of their child’s preference. The key consideration is that the potential mate should be situated with a set of relations who are known through prior association to another person in that effective network (Epstein 1961). As a matter of fact, parents ensure that what is right and what is wrong for their child. Therefore, approaching the decision of their child’s spouse, they are comprehensible and specific on their decision to ensure the right match for their child. Thus, leading towards the right partner for their lifetime, whereas in a love marriage, an individual may choose a wrong partner based on ‘want’ rather than their ‘needs.’ Secondly, the high degree of compatibility of parents’ help and support formulate the divorce rate in arranged marriages low. The globally average divorce rate on arranged marriages is 4% (UNICEF, Human Rights Council, ABC News, 2012). Divorce rates: Sweden-54.9%, US-54.8%, Russia-43.4%, UK-42.6%, Germany-39.4%, Israel-14.8%, Singapore-17.2%, Japan-1.9%, Srilanka-1.5% and India-1.1%. The aforementioned statistics conclude that the divorce rates are below 55%. In some countries such as India, the rates are low than expected. This is due to their family’s culture and religion. As religions play a vital role in countries like India, as their religion restricts them to perform divorce for the reason that divorce is looked down upon. Thus, their religion, leads the couples to compromise with each other, resulting in a low divorce rate. Lastly, arranged marriage does not only strengthen the bond between the couple but it also strengthens the religion and family bonding. If the relationship with family is strong, your heaven exists, otherwise your life is black and white (Aline, 2001). Furthermore, Aline shows the importance of the family bond. Arranged marriages are advantages towards family bonds, as a child trusts its parents’ choice. Whereas a love marriage without the parent’s content, breaks the family. Looking at aforementioned evidences, it is proven that arrange marriages decreases divorce rates and strengthens a family bonding. Arrange marriages have the benefit of being dedicated, liberal and compliant. A strong sense of commitment is the powerful advantage of an arranged marriage. Arranged marriage is based on mutual trust and understanding rather than just ‘love at first sight’ (Sahani, 2013).To clarify, the partners, therefore, tend to show love and respect towards each other rather than showing some other exterior sides. Commitment brings both of the partners together and the love eventually grows. At the same time, low expectations can play a huge role in arranged marriages which can lead to an unexpected successful marriage. In this case, the marriage works out well because the things aren’t as bad after all (Fox 1975). Low expectations lead to low disappointments. None of the partners know exactly what to expect from the other, so they are eventually happily surprised by what their marriage has become or has yet to become. Arranged marriage couples have the tendency to adjust with persistence and forbearance. Patience and tolerance is the key towards the success of one’s victorious end (Gandhi, 1948). Gandhi was a great man, who fought against the British individuals without being violent. As arranged marriage couples depict Gandhi’s act by accepting their spouse without any complaints. Additionally, they try to strengthen their bond by respecting and accepting each other. Consequently, arranged marriage couples have the tendency for acceptance, patience and moderation to strengthen their alliance. Even though arranged marriages have many disadvantages, it has many more advantages by which it creates a strong bond and the relationship lasts longer than loved ones. Alas, arranged marriage couples have the power to understand, accept and compromise with each other, in order to depict their parents’ respect and tradition. Compared to love marriages, arrange marriage have higher chances of being successful. Physical attraction can be blinding. Mutual trust and strong commitment are what are needed to make a strong bonding in the marriage. Without those components, relationships don’t last for long. Hence, along with mutual trust and strong commitment, love eventually grows which makes the arranged marriages last longer than love marriages.

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Arranged Marriage, Pros And Cons (Essay Sample) 2023

Arranged marriage, pros and cons.

How Can I Get Essay For Free and Is it realistic to expect a low-cost, High-Quality Essay from a Cheap Paper Writing Service ?

Arranged marriage refers to a marital union between a man and a woman, whereby families and relatives identify and select spouses for their children with or without their input or choice. These marriages have long been a practice of numerous cultures, particularly before the 18th century. However, some communities do practice them to date. Some people consider such marriages as old-fashioned despite research finding that document their divorce rates at two percent as compared to love marriages that attract a rate of fifty percent in some countries. Thus, these unions bring great things, but they also attract negative aspects.

Arranged marriages eliminate the stress associated with dating. The pressure people undergo when finding potential spouses to settle down with is often overwhelming, discouraging, stressful and mostly result in heartaches. It is because one has to meet several people, some of whom are uninterested in marriage, some do not fit with one’s marital requirements, and others who are a potential match are uninterested in matrimony. However, an arranged marriage eliminates all these scenarios, as one is sure the people they meet want marriage, and they do not have to worry about conflicting personalities as marriage presents a perfect opportunity to adjust.

Parents and family find the right spouse for their children and secure their future in arranged marriages. Every parent endeavors to give the best to their children while hoping they live happy lives as possible. Arranged marriages present families the opportunity to ensure this by taking upon themselves to find the right husband or wife. Due to the immense wisdom and experience parents have about marriage, they precisely choose a son or daughter in law from a respectable family, who share a similar religion, are equally educated, well settled in life and wealthy. The selected spouse thus results in a perfect match that outcome in a happy marriage and a secured life.

These unions assure family harmony. Whenever an individual takes a potential spouse to their family, there is the possibility of them not approving or liking them or having a good relationship with their families. Arranged marriage eliminates this as both families knowingly fix their children to the family of their choice. Also, before agreeing, parents conduct extensive research on the other family before approval. Hence, eliminating reasons to hate or argue with them. Consequently, good relationships and connections that are long-lasting result.

Contrary, this type of marriage robs off individuals of their right to choose. When a family and relatives decide their child’s spouse, it makes it impossible for the child to raise concerns, fears, and objections, even when they dislike or are incompatible with the potential spouse. It, therefore, makes such individuals powerless and hopeless. Hence, practically push them into forced arrangements that rouse unhappiness, depression, and misery.

People wedded through arranged marriages lack ownership of the nuptials. These people rarely feel in control of the institution as everything about it, including, whom to marry, when to wed and the type of wedding to have are a choice and plan of their families. Additionally, even after marriage, families control and weigh in on their actions and plans. Thus, the married couple misses opportune moments for them to bond, own the process and the resulting marriage. Moreover, it instills lack of decisiveness and direction for the institution.

In conclusion, arranged marriages avail numerous benefits that pave the way for long-lasting successful marriages for many couples. However, it is worth noting that lack of freedom and control of the choice of a spouse one ends up married to, increasingly results in these marriages failing.

5 reasons arranged marriages may not work in this modern era

A rranged marriages have been a traditional practice in many cultures worldwide, but as societies evolve, the relevance and success of such marriages are often questioned.

Here’s a list of reasons, why arranged marriages might face challenges in contemporary settings:

1. People know what they want now

In modern times, individuals often have a clear idea of what they want in a partner and a relationship. With the rise of personal choice and autonomy, people prefer to select their own partners based on mutual love, interests, and values rather than having a spouse chosen for them.

This shift in preference can lead to dissatisfaction or lack of commitment when partners are arranged without these personal criteria being considered.

2. Changing attitudes towards divorce

The stigma surrounding divorce has significantly diminished compared to previous generations. More people now view divorce as a viable option if the relationship doesn’t work out, rather than staying in an unhappy marriage.

This reduced fear of ending a marriage could lead to less willingness to compromise or work through challenges in arranged marriages, where the initial emotional connection might not be as strong.

3. More women are focused on careers now

Women are increasingly prioritizing their careers and personal goals, similar to their male counterparts.

In many cultures that traditionally practiced arranged marriages, this shift can create conflicts if the arrangement does not support the career and personal aspirations of the woman.

The traditional expectations in arranged marriages often do not align with the modern, empowered role women are increasingly adopting.

4. Cultural integration and globalization

As societies become more multicultural and people from different backgrounds intermingle, the cultural reasons for arranged marriages are becoming diluted.

People are exposed to diverse ways of life and relationship models, which can make traditional arranged marriages seem restrictive or outdated.

The influence of global media and narratives celebrating romantic love also contribute to a preference for "love marriages" over arranged ones.

5. Shift in priority towards personal growth and compatibility

Modern individuals often prioritize personal growth, mental health, and emotional compatibility in their relationships. Arranged marriages, which might focus more on social, economic, or familial compatibility, may overlook these crucial aspects of a partnership.

People now seek a deep, personal connection and understanding from their spouse, elements that are not guaranteed in arranged settings.

While arranged marriages still work and may even thrive under the right circumstances, these evolving social dynamics suggest why they might not be as successful or appealing in today’s era as they once were.

Each of these reasons reflects significant societal changes that influence personal relationships and marital expectations, suggesting a need for adaptation in the practice of arranging marriages to better suit the aspirations and needs of modern individuals.