Abdelghafar 1

Ganatallah

Professor Zofin Taher

SOCS 101-2

26 September 2023

Assignment 1: Arranged marriages versus Love marriages.

The thought of spending the rest of your life with one Individual can be strikingly

stressful for some people especially if it is not the person that fills you up with butterflies but it’s

a person that your parents find suitable for you due to ‘their higher level of experience in life and

relationship’; arranged marriages have been historically been prominent in many cultures and

still remains common in South Asia and the Middle East. Although arranged marriages have

their benefits such as cultural similarities of partners, similar values and family connections are

strengthened, some of the risk factors are that love is not found within them, spouses may not

trust each other and may quite feel unhappy. In comparison to arranged marriages, love

marriages provide more freedom and independence to individuals as they choose a life partner

for themselves based on their choices and preferences despite that fact love marriages have a

higher rate of divorce.

Why do love marriages do not last as long as arranged marriages?

As marriage is based on compatibility such as social status and caste not just love. In

arranged marriages the couple may be more accepting of each other’s differences and be more

willing to compromise and adapt to their partner’s needs while in love marriages, the couple may

tend to expect their partner to change to meet their own expectations and may be less accepting
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of difference which leads to one of the partners giving up or more of themselves to keep the

marriage floating.

According to my resource the divorce rate for arranged marriages is 4 percent while love

marriage divorce is 40 to 50 percent in the United States. Meanwhile, in India where the

percentage of arranged marriages is 90, the divorce rate is only 1 percent.

Which leads me to my hypothesis question; why are love marriages more common now

even though arranged marriages rates have proved that they last longer?

Arranged marriages might last longer but is it an enough scale to measure their success?

Especially when there is your kid’s future and mental health in the equation. According to my

resource nearly 50 percent of married couples in the U.S stay together for their kids when they

would otherwise divorce. There is an alarming link between a college education and a lasting

love marriage. Assuming that when you are in an educational environment where you are

empowered constantly to speak up, believe and take matters in your own hands; choosing your

life spouse should also be based on your needs whether they are love, company, or financial

support. Although, if arranged marriage is on the table do not accept it unless you want to not

because my parents know better or how the society is going to look down on you.

To sum it all up, marriage is a complex commitment that comes with good and hard times

whether its arranged or love marriage. Both have their benefits and compensations. The data that

was mentioned earlier states that arranged marriages last longer but it is not an enough scale for

their success when combined with higher level of education becomes a reason why love

marriages are increasing in popularity.

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Works Cited

Best 5 advantages and disadvantages of arranged marriage. Marriage Solution BD. (n.d.).

https://marriagesolutionbd.com/blogs/149/best-5-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-

arranged-marriage

Guru, W. (2023, August 9). Love marriage vs arrange marriage advantages & disadvantages.

Happy Wedding App. https://www.happywedding.app/blog/love-marriage-vs-arranged-

marriage-advantages-and-disadvantages/#:~:text=Compared%20to%20arranged

%20marriages%2C%20where,on%20their%20choices%20and%20preferences.

Haberfield, M. (2021, April 21). Arranged marriage vs. forced marriage: What’s the

difference? codeHER. https://www.codehergirls.org/post/arranged-marriage-vs-forced-

marriage-what-s-the-difference#:~:text=It%20is%20estimated%20that%20over,marriage

%20without%20their%20parent%27s%20involvement.

Bonani, & Team, O. (2023, June 14). 6 reasons why arranged marriages lasts longer than love

marriages. OnlineCounselling4U. https://www.onlinecounselling4u.com/blog/6-reasons-why-

arranged-marriages-lasts-longer-than-love-marriages/#:~:text=In%20arranged%20marriages

%2C%20the%20couple%20may%20be%20more%20accepting%20of,be%20less%20accepting

%20of%20differences.

Campbell, J. (2023, March 3). What percentage of couples stay together for the kids?. Divorced
Parents Club. https://divorcedparentsclub.com/what-percentage-of-couples-stay-together-
for-the-kids/
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Wang, W. (2015, December 4). The link between a college education and a lasting marriage.
Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2015/12/04/education-
and-marriage/