2008 Woodie Awards
The Real Deal: The seven-year ditch
Paul McNeill
Issue date: 10/2/07 Section: Opinions
Gabriele Pauli, a politician known for her flame-red hair, leather outfits, and love of motorcycles, shocked Germany last week when she said marriages should expire after seven years. The renewal period would give couples time to reevaluate their relationships. If both parties are happy, the marriage continues. If either person is miserable, the marriage is immediately dissolved.
Fifty-year-old Pauli, who is twice divorced, is a longshot with little chance of holding public office. Pauli's rebel status allows her the freedom to suggest such a radical idea. Critics of Pauli use her failed marriages as proof that her plan is deeply flawed; supporters of her idea say if anyone knows why the concept of marriage needs rethinking, it's a divorcee.
If approached from a sensible angle and viewed with a reasonable eye, is Pauli's idea that crazy?
Calculating marriage and divorce rates in America is not an exact science because of inconsistent statistics and conflicting studies. Despite differing reports, most experts agree that 40 to 50 percent of first marriages end in divorce. Second marriages have only a 30 percent success rate. Three-fourths of third marriages don't last. More people are waiting until they are older to wed. And it doesn't take a national census to prove that many currently married couples are less than satisfied with their nuptials.
Many studies research the reasons for divorce, but few reports explore the real reasons couples tie the knot. The motives behind marriage might provide a clue to the high rates of failed or gloomy relationships.
Many couples cite love or lifelong commitment as the reason to walk the aisle, ignoring that those two entities can exist and might even thrive without a marriage certificate. Few couples acknowledge the hidden agendas behind marriages: diamond rings, gold bands, wedding presents, ceremonial pageantry, elegant receptions, illusions of guaranteed fidelity, societal acceptance and validation, family pressure, biological clocks, fear of perpetual bachelorhood, fear of becoming a spinster, pregnancies and reluctance to challenge the status quo.
Fifty-year-old Pauli, who is twice divorced, is a longshot with little chance of holding public office. Pauli's rebel status allows her the freedom to suggest such a radical idea. Critics of Pauli use her failed marriages as proof that her plan is deeply flawed; supporters of her idea say if anyone knows why the concept of marriage needs rethinking, it's a divorcee.
If approached from a sensible angle and viewed with a reasonable eye, is Pauli's idea that crazy?
Calculating marriage and divorce rates in America is not an exact science because of inconsistent statistics and conflicting studies. Despite differing reports, most experts agree that 40 to 50 percent of first marriages end in divorce. Second marriages have only a 30 percent success rate. Three-fourths of third marriages don't last. More people are waiting until they are older to wed. And it doesn't take a national census to prove that many currently married couples are less than satisfied with their nuptials.
Many studies research the reasons for divorce, but few reports explore the real reasons couples tie the knot. The motives behind marriage might provide a clue to the high rates of failed or gloomy relationships.
Many couples cite love or lifelong commitment as the reason to walk the aisle, ignoring that those two entities can exist and might even thrive without a marriage certificate. Few couples acknowledge the hidden agendas behind marriages: diamond rings, gold bands, wedding presents, ceremonial pageantry, elegant receptions, illusions of guaranteed fidelity, societal acceptance and validation, family pressure, biological clocks, fear of perpetual bachelorhood, fear of becoming a spinster, pregnancies and reluctance to challenge the status quo.
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Catherine
posted 10/03/07 @ 10:03 PM EST
I agree totally. Because here's the kind of thing that will happen: It'll come time to renew someone's marriage and in the process of all the paper pushing someone's spouse will die. (Continued…)
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