Premarital Cohabitation

Premarital Cohabitation

Marriage is a highly respected bond between two people. There are some concerns, however, that marriage is falling out of fashion. Men and women who lived together used to raise eyebrows in society. Living together before marriage was considered "shacking up" or "living in sin". To some people in our society, this practice is still considered wrong. Cohabitation has become mainstream , but there is still fear that this idea causes problems in the future with marriages. When a couple chooses to live together before marriage it is not a sign that he or she is weak or has commitment problems. It is only showing that both people involved want to see how compatible they are in normal everyday living conditions. Many couples choose to go this route. There is nothing wrong with a man and a woman living together before marriage.

Society looks at this situation as a downfall to marriages. It really does not have anything to do with the marriage aspect. Couples in college may even live together. The situation does not always arise out of concern for marriage. Sometimes it is just a thought about helping with other issues. It does not propose a problem to society if two people choose to pay bills, feed themselves, and share common interests while living under the same roof. Critics will say that a significant amount of relationships fail once the couple has lived together and that cohabitation only ruins chances of happy, lasting marriages. I believe that a person deserves to know how his or her life will change once moving in with the other person in the relationship. There is no reason to just "take a chance" by moving in together once tying the knot. If there is no argument on either side of the relationship, what is the problem with two people sharing responsibilities? It doesn't even necessarily mean the couple is having sex, although in most cases it may be. Living together is a great way to experience "married life" with no legal consequences of divorce. It is always easy just to break up if things don't work out right. Since the 1970s, the amount of couples choosing to live together before marriage has increased by 700%. (www.geocities.com/maggi19)

Companionship, economic gain, and sexual gratification are three main reasons a couple chooses to live together. Cohabitation is most common among couples in the age range of 25-34. (Wikipedia) Many of married couples have lived together beforehand, sometimes even before the engagement.

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