Proposals

Why do you want to get married?

Have you ever asked yourself the question “Why do I want to get married?”. Perhaps you have asked a friend that question. We often find single people ask the question as well as the question “Who is your ideal partner?”. Today, we will focus on the first question and look at the possible reasons for marrying. The key reasons to get married are:

  1. Marry for love – You hope to find that special one that you love and want to spend the rest of your life with him/her.
  2. Marry because you are pregnant – You get knocked up and have to get married for societal pressure or worried how people will perceive having a child before marriage. In some African societies, it is a taboo to be pregnant before marriage.
  3. Marry to have kids – You are getting old and really want kids, you settle for the next guy/girl just to have kids.
  4. Marry for provision – which could be for food, sex, security, money, etc. People marry to receive security, regular sex and have someone cook for them.
  5. Marry for companionship – afraid of being alone or dying single. Companionship could be considered a provision. We’ve decided to keep it as a separate reason.
  6. Marry for social status – People who marry celebrities or children from rich homes have a high chance to get that social recognition and respect.
  7. Marry for peer pressure – The older one gets, the more they find their friends are married. This leads to pressure to be married as your friends become unavailable, and all they talk about is husband and kids.
  8. Marry to please their parents – This could be to ensure their parents get to see their grandchildren or satisfy their parent’s wish/will.
  9. Marry for documents or papers – In countries where Africans are hoping to become residents, you can find some people marrying to get that paper.

Could your reason be different? We’ll like to know. Share your reason or thoughts in the comment section.

Photo: Lumi Morgan