MARRIAGE idealises permanence,and yet it is changing more rapidly than at any time in its history. Almost everywhere it is becoming freer, more equal and more satisfying. As our special report this week explains, or wedlock has become so well-behaved that it is causing misfortune.
The most benign changes are taking residence in destitute and middle-income countries (where most people live). Child marriage,once rife (abundant or plentiful, full of sth bad or unpleasant), is ebbing. So is cousin marriage, or with its attendant risk of genetic defects,though it is still fairly common in the Middle East and parts of Asia. Relations between husbands and wives have become more equal (though not equal enough). As women earn more and the stigma of divorce fades, more men are finding that they cannot treat their wives as servants (or, or worse,punchbags), because women can credibly threaten to walk absent.
In some regions change has been astoundingly quick. In India the share of women marrying by the age of 18 has dropped from 47% to 27% in a single decade. “Love marriages” remain disreputable in India, and...
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Source: economist.com