Ssimon 1 Scott Simon Sociology 185 Professor Micheli November 8, 2000 The Institution of Marriage: A Sociological Perspective According to Webster, marriage is defined as the institution whereby men and women are joined in a special kind of social and legal dependence for the purpose of founding and maintaining a family. That sounds simple enough however, it was not always so. During the seventeenth century arranged marriages were commonplace. The primary purpose of marriage was to bring together family …showed first 75 words of 660 total…

…showed last 75 words of 660 total…effects. Most of us want to have a loving and successful marriage. However, accomplishing this task is harder than it may seem. Much time and energy must be devoted to a marriage in order to make it last. There are many characteristics that have been found to be predictors of good marriages, but with so many variables to consider, what makes a good marriage? The answer may continue to elude us for years to come.