Marriage, divorce and millennials: ‘throw-away’ culture

Differing generations are often marked by characteristic turns of phrase. For those deemed “baby boomers”, well-trodden epithets such as ‘make do and mend’, or ‘waste not, want not’ have become a sort of identifying mark, expressing a dominant cultural idea of the time. While older generations may be associated with a sense of frugality, their younger counterparts have developed a drastically different reputation.

With most mobile phone companies providing free or low-cost upgrades after a two-year period and fast fashion clothing stores selling cheap items not designed for years of wear, millennials (those currently between 28 and 43 years old[1]) are part of what has been termed a ‘throw-away’ culture.

So, is being part of this temporal, materialistic culture something that impacts on attitudes towards marriage and divorce? Well, possibly. It certainly seems to be the case when we look at popular culture. As has been previously outlined, the concept of a ‘quickie divorce’ is an erroneous one, given that it can take over a year for a final order in divorce (what used to be known as a decree absolute)to be granted. But even so, couples are still choosing to end their marriages after very brief periods of time. Kim Kardashian is just one famous example, with her 2011 marriage to NBA player Kris Humphries ending after 72 days; Britney Spears being another – who sought to annul her Las Vegas marriage to childhood friend, Jason Alexander after a mere 55 hours.

While divorce rates are highest for those who marry young, there isn’t currently any research to suggest that this is because young people value their marriages any less than people who marry later in life. In fact, the research we do have shows that, in America at least, young people are becoming far less likely to enter into relationships, let alone marriages. Perhaps, with the newer post-millennial generations being focussed on success, wellbeing, ethical buying and investing in quality – this may be impacting how they approach their romantic lives as well. However, with apps like Tinder, Hinge and Bumble making a ‘hook-up’ as simple as a swipe right and ‘success’ on these apps coming with a price tag for subscribing, relationships are as commodified as ever – even before they reach the marriage stage. They remain one of the most common ways to meet a partner, even with the backlashes against dating app culture[2] being on the rise[3]

But what about those who do marry? Pete and Becky, who were newlyweds in their early 20s, said the actions of people like Kim Kardashian had no bearing on their own marriage: “Our marriage is what we make it.” Pete told us, “What other people do within their own marriages is no reflection on ours. If you start thinking like that you could say that domestic violence has tainted marriage for everyone, but it doesn’t work like that. We’ve made a lifelong commitment to each other, and we intend to honour it.”

Even though her marriage came to an end, newly divorced Grace felt the same way: “No one enters into a marriage expecting it to end. If you’re stood in front of all your friends and family swearing ’til death do you part then you’ve really got to mean it. Looking back, I know it wasn’t the right decision for either of us, but at the time it felt like it was, and I think that’s what’s important.”