Concept of Marriage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Concept of Marriage - Essay Example People in many African countries continue to practice polygamy and according to scholars, incidents of polygamy or plural marriage are highest in West Africa, where Senegal and Ghana have the â€Å"highest level of polygamy† at between 30 and 50% of all marriages (Hayase & Liaw 300). Despite the statistics, on a global scale, the traditional marriage between one man and one woman is the most common form of marriage. Proponents of traditional marriage argue that marriage is an institution which has stood the test of time and is a fundamental social institution. They believe that marriage between one man and one woman serves a variety of social purposes including the procreation of children, the establishment of a â€Å"stable household for raising children† and the promotion of the nuclear family unit. They also establish that â€Å"children need both a male and female parent for proper development† (Kolasinski 3). Furthermore, many advocates for traditional marriage also argue that homosexuality is wrong and should not be encouraged by society. By conferring the right to marriage and the benefits of this union on same-sex couples, they argue that is exactly what society is doing. Advocates for gay marriage emphatically argue that it is a civil rights issue and since marriage bestows certain social benefits, denying gays the right to marry infringes on their rights to equality. They further argue that marriage is not intrinsically tied to procreation and point to examples of artificial insemination to prove that lesbian couples can also give birth and rear children. It is also argued that civil unions – in lieu of actual marriage – fall short of the equality standard and promote the idea that same-sex marriage is both separate and unequal. The Supreme Court in Canada recently struck down the Marriage Act on the grounds that it was unconstitutional and similar challenges are being made