Cohabitation: Is It Wrong? Essay

Introduction

Relationships are extremely important in the life of different individuals and in the pursuit of ideal relationships many couples end up getting married. However, most couples end not getting married and choose to cohabit. Cohabitation has been regarded problematic by many in the society, but I do not agree with their assessment.

Overview

Cohabitation is a common practice among different societies in the world that has transcended time and age. A philosopher by name of Warren defines marriage from different viewpoints while opposing polygamy, incest and gay marriages. Warren talks of modern marriages as being a notion and that they cannot be counted as marriages.

According to Warren, he believes in marriage as being between one woman and one man. This is a fallacy based on believe of marriage as being a relationship between one and woman. The fallacy is based on his appeal to tradition; this assertion is not true because different communities had dissimilar forms of marriage^[1]. Although Warren admits that a marriage is between one and one woman, he does not agree to the definition of a commitment between an old person and a young girl as marriage.

Warren compares and groups incestuous, polygamy and gay marriages into one category; this is a fallacy since all these marriage are not similar in qualities^[2]. Warren does not give evidence on the similarities of same-sex marriages and incest.

He only argues that same sex marriages are appalling since it could only resemble incest. Polygamy has been practiced for centuries by the Islam religion that recognizes these practices. It would not be true to conclude that polygamy is the same as incest or pedophilia since all of them are different in the number of people involved in the marriage^[3].

The biggest fallacy in Warren’s definition of marriage is the fact that in traditional marriages men has more power and influence compared to women. In modern marriages, men and women have equal roles and women are not subservient to men as in the traditional marriage setup.

In my own assessment cohabitation is not dangerous since the practice resembles marriage. In the past before marriages were fully accepted and integrated in the society cohabitation was widely accepted form of lasting relationships. The acceptance of cohabitation has been due to various factors including lack of trust in marriages^[4].

Many married couples face problems such as mistrust, disagreements and lack of love. These problems are also experienced among cohabiting couples and thus it would be prudent to conclude that they are the same. A cohabitation relationship is loosely held since it is not recognized by law or religion.

According to modern law, couples in a cohabitation relationship of over three years are deemed as being legally married. Cohabitation is not dangerous based on the fact that separation is simple, unlike marriages whereby couples undergo painful divorces; cohabitation is not mired with same problems^[5].

Conclusion

Many people have different notions and believe on marriages, and with the current trend of marriages, some researchers have disputed some forms of marriages. A philosopher by the name of Warren argued that polygamy, same sex marriages and pedophilia did not qualify as a marriage. However, he does not differentiate the differences in the three marriages that make them not to qualify as accepted forms of marriage. We make use of Warren’s fallacies to explore cohabitation and its importance in the society today.

Bibliography

Vaughn, Lewis. The Power of Critical Thinking: Effective Reasoning about Ordinary and Extraordinary Claims. Boston, MA: Oxford University Press, 2009.

Footnotes

1. Vaughn, Lewis. The Power of Critical Thinking: Effective Reasoning about Ordinary and Extraordinary Claims. (Boston, MA: Oxford University Press, 2009), 31.
2. Ibid., 183.
3. Ibid., 180.
4. Ibid., 179.
5. Ibid., 192.