Before continuing to read this article, you must first empty your mind of any negative notion you have of the term “prostitution.” Instead, simply view prostitution as a function that serves a purpose to some members of a society, regardless of a particular society’s judgment on that action. We must think of prostitution as meeting the needs of some members of our society, providing them with services and thus continuing its existence in society.
Stripped of tiered cakes, white gowns and joint checking accounts, marriage is the exchange of sex for a social contract, baring a striking resemblance to the exchange of sex for money, like prostitution.
Marriage was, at one point, the only socially acceptable mode of having sex — but that’s all changing. As our society continues to become more sexually liberated, a large portion of couples will no longer choose the union of marriage.
Some time ago, I came across an article on CNN presenting to its readers the possibility that marriage was becoming “obsolete.” The article went on to quote a TIME/Pew poll stating that 40 percent of Americans believe marriage is becoming obsolete.
Why would a cultural institution that predates written human history all of a sudden tumble down the mountain of social relevancy and join the likes of cassette players and horse-drawn buggies? As I read more articles on the topic, they all cited social trends such as no longer needing the financial security marriage traditionally brought women and the rising number of couples choosing to cohabitate rather than tie the knot.
Traditionally, marriage has been the most secure way for women to gain financial and social stability. Money has long been a staple in the marital scene with dowries and bride prices dating back, yet again, to before written history of mankind.
However, money alone has historically had one sidekick to which marriage also depended on, and that was the chastity of the bride. Women’s main value throughout many cultures has been their chastity — the ability to abstain from sexual intercourse until the time when they were married. Women were seen as bringing one thing and one thing only to the transaction between her parents and the potential husband: virginity. To lose one’s virginity meant not only social ruin, but also loss of marriageability.
How, you may ask, could thousands of years of bartering women for money, power and sex be usurped? As our society progresses, the rules and norms of sex are changing faster than ever. The idea that marriage is the only socially acceptable way to procure and have sex is being challenged by the influx of cohabitation.
Our society is becoming one where sex is not regulated to marriage; cohabitation allows two people to make a long-term commitment to one another, live together, and have a family. This phenomenon is stripping marriage of its prostitution-like qualities; there is no exchange of sex for financial or social stability, but simply two people living together.
Now what does all this mean for the institution of marriage? Will there really be a day when Vera Wang, the bridal registry at Belk and the stale bridal cake industry cease to have a flow of potential buyers? I say no.
In fact, I see this draining of the bridal pool as having a very positive effect for marriage in the future.
Those who do choose marriage will do so not out of societal pressure, but out of a sincere belief in marriage as a legal commitment to someone you care about.
 
Joshua Bryant is a junior majoring in English. He can be contacted at
[email protected].