DIVORCE RATE IN AMERICAN FAMILIES

Decline of the American Family: Divorce rate in American Families

Decline of the American Family: Divorce rate in American Families

Introduction

Marriage is a God-given responsibility. Those who choose to pick it up without knowledge of its weight will tend to get hurt. Those who choose to lift it knowing, but without consideration will tend to hurt others. Individual right overrules public good when it comes to the family in this country, and it should not be so. The national divorce rate has significantly increased over the past several years. Currently that rate holds steady: 50% of all marriages end in divorce. Modern rights and entertainment that society thrives upon must be blamed. Unnecessary damage has been done because of the need to provide for ourselves. (Buckley, Jr., and William F., 2005)

        Social norms as well as a fear of appearing uneducated and lethargic have driven the women in this country into the open arms of businesses everywhere. In these two-income-households the wives are so autonomous that their role is forgotten and the marriage suffers the consequences. Similarly with the husbands, wives are more often with their male coworkers than their partners, building stronger relationships at work than at home. Consequently the propensity of adultery increases. Husbands, through this movement of women to the workplace, are now daily surrounded by an overabundance of women making the availability of sex outside the marriage much more convenient. Media greatly influences the decisions that are made by the public. We are a vastly conformist society, idolizing many celebrities. The marriages of those in the spotlight don't last long. Those of the famous that have lasting marriages aren't publicized as such. The ease of celebrities going from marriage to marriage misleads the public into thinking that marriage is a game. Several popular television shows contribute to the desensitizing of America's marriages to divorce. Television court series often show a broken family completely severing the ties of the marital bond. Sitcoms that portray the single parent as a desirable position are becoming more and more prevalent. This changes the view of divorce to an essential part of life. (Buckley, Jr., and William F., 2005)

Explanation

        In 1966, California Governor Edmund Brown urged for a reform in the state's fault-based divorce laws. Three years later, Governor Ronald Reagan signed the Family Law Act. Since that time, every state has implemented some form of no-fault divorce. These no fault divorce laws have made divorce more readily available, as well as easier to obtain as there are no charges to deny, and no responsible party. This also takes out the emotional and psychological hold backs of a divorce. Since no one is to blame, no real reason must be given. These three causes work together to produce the effect of the increase in broken homes, and two address kids. Feminists, entertainers, and politicians have made decisions to do, show, and allow things that should not occur in American families. Although divorce itself is rightfully blamed on those who put ...