Advantages And Disadvantages of Marriage: Marriage is a consensual and legally accepted union between two or more persons who are husband and wife. Marriage is a highly revered and admired union. It is equally a sacrosanct institution believed to be ordained my God. Marriage plays an instrumental role in cementing the society. Being sacrosanct, it is regulated by state, various religions and customs.
In that sense, inasmuch as marriage is a private affair, it is still subject to some regulations and societal standards and practices which must be complied with, particularly the prerequisites and marital causes. Just like every existing concept and practices, marriage also has advantages and disadvantages. It is arguable as to which preponderates over the other. Because, as it is seen, while some people are eager to get married some on the other hand are scared of same.
The general notion is that marriage is absolutely a beautiful thing especially when you are blessed with a beautiful one. In this article, the advantages and disadvantages of marriage are highlighted in this article.
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Advantages (Benefits) of Marriage
1. Companionship and sense of belonging: Companionship is one of the greatest gifts that come with marriage. Marriage is a union. It provides you a partner to be called yours and yours alone, whom to spend the rest of your life with. Marriage gives sense of belonging because you know then you belong to a new person who has accepted you wholeheartedly.
Psychologically speaking, sense of belonging is one of the topmost needs of man. Having sense of belonging boosts one’s self-esteem and increases productivity for the both parties to the marriage. This is the greatest feeling of marriage.
2. Emotional support: Good marriage guarantees emotional support because the two parties are committed to themselves and have emotional connection. Emotional support can be by empathy, validation, listening and encouragement. Emotional support is very helpful in relieving stress and anxiety. Good marriage, by emotional support guarantees security in the marriage as well.
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3. Experiencing love and sacrifice: Marriage is a union of love. In marriage, the partners tend to experience proper love from each other. Love is also shown by making sacrifices. There is no love without sacrifice. By partners sacrificing for themselves, they alleviate burdens from the other. This advantage is guaranteed in a good marriage, for this is in fact what marriage is all about.
4. Shared responsibility: Marriage deals away with individuality and makes way for communality. In that sense, couples by default are to worry about each other. The advantage is that two heads are better than one. Things are made easier when the responsibilities are shared. This is normally the case in good marriages. Couples do share chores, burdens, financial burdens, roles in training of the children of the marriage, and so on.
What is interesting about sharing responsibilities in marriage is that neither of the parties believes to be doing the other a favour. Regardless of how the responsibilities are shared, the end purpose is one, which is to make things work in the union. So, it is a collective responsibility.
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5. Inheritance rights: Asides responsibilities, marriage has certain rights that are accruable to the union. The instructive of them is the one of inheritance. In the eyes of the law, the parties to a marriage are regarded as one. In that sense, they are entitled to each other’s properties to the extent that is permissible.
Upon the death of a husband, the wife can inherit his properties. This right can only arise when there is a valid marriage. Also, husbands and wives can be named to inherit accordingly in a will written by either of them.
6. Tax benefits: There are some instances where the fact of being marriage reduces tax payment for the parties. They can be treated as one for the purpose of paying certain taxes.
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7. Enjoyment of conjugal rights: Conjugal rights are the rights and privileges arising from a marital relationship, particularly as it relates to love, affection and sexual relationship. Conjugal rights are very important advantage in marriage. Parties are reasonably entitled to enjoy sexual relationship by virtue of their marital union, for it becomes legal and utterly acceptable between them.
An unreasonable denial of this right usually leads to breakdown in marriage.
8. Marriage discourages promiscuity: Marriage certainly discourages promiscuity. Marriage is a union of commitment. It creates a sense of responsibility and belonging amongst the parties. Parties to a marriage are bound by the rule of fidelity. Any sexual relationship should strictly be with the marriage partner.
This sufficiently defines marital expectations. Playing strictly by the rule of fidelity, one would realize that marriage discourages sexual promiscuity which in turn reduces the spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs).
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9. Double-Way earnings and support: Marriage being a union of two or more persons, guarantees a double-way earning and support in the sense that incomes do come from both the husband and wife. This in turn, ameliorates financial burdens in the union.
The earnings of one spouse may make up for the losses of the other, and financial support is guaranteed only when the parties to the marriage have source of income.
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10. Maintenance of order in the society through family units: It is through marriage that family is formed. Family is the first and the smallest unit of socialization and influence. It is in the family that a child receives his or her first and continuous training. Marriage and the concomitant family afford opportunity to train the children, thereby fostering the maintenance of peace and orderliness in the larger society.
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Disadvantages (Problems) of Marriage
1. Increase in financial burden: With marriage, increase in financial burden is sure. This is because spouses have to worry about not just for themselves any longer but their partners as well. This is regardless of the fact that there is shared responsibility.
The burden increases the more when children are birthed.
2. Restriction on individual freedom: Marriage is reluctantly seen as bondage because it encages you with another person whom you are committed and accountable to. The moment one enters into marriage, his right to own himself and do whatever he pleases becomes subject to the interest of his wife and vice versa. Family responsibilities also contribute to restriction on individual freedom.
3. Decision-making and unavoidable family conflicts: Every day in a marriage is for decision-making. This can be tiring. In marriage, the interests of two or more persons are being considered at all point in time. This makes decision-making harder.
More so, conflicts will always arise in marriages, mostly as it concerns interests. What matters is how well they are avoided by doing the right thing, and how well they are managed when they arise.
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4. “Till death do us apart”: Marriage is a ‘forever’ commitment. This scares a lot of people off marriage. The risk of settling with the wrong person and getting stuck with the person is real. One may think that he has an option of divorce, but the truth is that divorce does not usually severe any marriage that has existed.
Why? Because, the court can make an order of maintenance in favour of and against either of the parties to a marriage and the order can last as long as eternity. This means that you could be paying maintenance to someone whom you have divorced.
5. Cost of wedding and marriage processes: A valid marriage must comply with certain laid-down procedures either under the custom or the statute. The process can be bureaucratic for either ways. Conducting the marriage proper is equally expensive even when one intends to do it on a small scale.
6. Possible depreciation and changes in expectations: A marriage may turn out not being what the parties originally hoped for. Things may go sour and the relationship may go sour too. Every day in marriage is a fight in favour of continuity and against unpleasant factors.
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Conclusion
Every day inside marriage is an intentional effort by both parties to make things work. As seen earlier, marriage is not without disadvantages. Truly, the disadvantages may be quite overwhelming but can be considerably utilized with the right attitude from both parties to make the best of the marriage.
Edeh Samuel Chukwuemeka, ACMC, is a lawyer and a certified mediator/conciliator in Nigeria. He is also a developer with knowledge in various programming languages. Samuel is determined to leverage his skills in technology, SEO, and legal practice to revolutionize the legal profession worldwide by creating web and mobile applications that simplify legal research. Sam is also passionate about educating and providing valuable information to people.