I found the YouTube video, “the Defenders” to be not offensive as you warned but instead quite truthful because according to interpretations of the bible many of the marriages that we have today would not be morally acceptable. It also made a clear reference to the current controversy over gay marriage in the United States which as we all know is a hotly debated subject in politics. What I personally enjoyed about this video was that it showed how if we do not let one type of couple such as a gay couple the right to be married then who is to say that this won’t lead to further rules on who should get married? Also, after having watched this video I thought about how in the past interracial cultures were socially forbidden and looked upon with disdain by the majority of the population. Now, for the most part or at least I hope for the most part this type of marriage is socially accepted. I hope that one day this will be the same case with gay marriages because I think what is truly important when getting married is whether you love the person you are marrying and are committed to building a life with them. Not your sex or skin color.
This week, the readings about cohabitation, the state of marriage and child rearing were quite thought provoking. The article by Mannis about the rise of single mothers who have chosen this lifestyle challenged the traditional view of the family. In this article the women interviewed were economically stable and of an age where they thought they were ready to have children but at that point of their lives did not have a suitable partner to do this with. I think that the choice by these women were very logical and well thought out and I believe shows that women no longer believe they have to wait for their prince charming to sweep them off their feet in order to start a family. As the article described, the women who chose this path knew it would be challenging to raise a child on their own but were willing to accept such a challenge. I think another important aspect of this article was how the women described being encouraged by family and friends to do this. This shows a complete shift in ideas and what is considered social acceptable because 60 years ago socially, having a baby out of wed lock was one of the worse crimes you could commit.
The second article that showed to what degree the traditional view of the family has shifted and that I identified with, most likely because according to this article I am currently in a cohabitating relationship was the article by Le Bourdrais and Lapierre-Adamcyk. I was actually surprised the rate of cohabitation was so high in Quebec especially since there is a large population of practicing French Catholics. I believe that this article demonstrated the degree to which secularization has taken place in Quebec. It seems that this has led to a reworking of what is considered the traditional family. Personally, and in the case of many of my friends cohabitating just seemed to make sense. Economically, it made more sense to split the costs of one apartment instead of paying for two but still spending most of our time together. A wedding itself is also expensive and just not an option for many people so the “logical” answer would seem to be living together before becoming married or getting married at all.
1) 1) The Mannis article discussed a rise in the number of women who are choosing to become single mothers. In this article many of the women interviewed discussed how they were encouraged by those around them to raise a child by themselves. Do you believe a male who made this same decision would also be encouraged by those around them? Would this be viewed differently by others in society?
2) 2) Why do you think cohabitation has become socially acceptable by many in Quebec? Why do you think this is not the case in other countries like the United States?
3) 3) Do you agree that marriage no longer meets the needs of the postmodern family and this is why in Quebec it is being “replaced” by cohabitation? What is it about marriage that you think people are finding undesirable and therefore choosing to cohabitate instead of eventually becoming married?
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