Births out of Wedlock

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer discusses that the matter of births out of wedlock is a continuous issue that has its causation deeply linked to values, morals and beliefs. The writer points out that statistical information gathered by census bureaus and departments of health indicate that in nearly all industrialized nations, including the United States, the number of births out of wedlock has increased dramatically over the past thirty years. The writer maintains that the number of opposing explanations for the increase in the number of births out of wedlock over the past thirty years is equal to the variety of opinions concerning the act of having a child out of wedlock. This paper argues that the increase over the past thirty years in births out of wedlock is due to the concurrent increase in women's rights, with a specific emphasis on the increase in reproductive rights. The writer concludes that although it is possible that other explanations do exist for the increase in births out of wedlock, such as the epidemic of teenage pregnancies, for the most part the increase in births out of wedlock among adult women can be attributed primarily to the increase in women's rights, and not to a decrease in morality.

From the Paper:

" The number of births out of wedlock has continued to increase, and these increases can constantly be tied to the increases in women's rights and reproductive freedoms. As reproductive technology became more advanced, and as women gained more equal ground in the career force, more and more women began to choose the option of intentionally becoming pregnant out of wedlock. This explanation for the increase in out of wedlock births has been all but ignored by the far moralistic right who point to promiscuity and lack of moral behavior as the cause for increased out of wedlock births. On the contrary, many women are far from promiscuous, but have decided to put their desire for having a child and raising a family above society's dogma that children are only appropriate after marriage. Reproductive technologies now allow women to use sperm donors, and also allow women to wait much later in life before having children. Thus, the stigma associated with having a child out of wedlock has decreased in direct proportion to the increase in women's rights, which is concurrently related, in a positive manner, to the increase in births out of wedlock."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Akerlof & Yellen. (1996). An Analysis of Out Of Wedlock Births in the United States. http://www.brook.edu/comm/policybriefs/pb05.htm
• Ventura, S.J. (1995). Out of Wedlock Births Trends. http://casey.umd.edu/casey/web/ChildBeat.nsf/0/5afb57199daf3e21852566a800616638?OpenDocument
• Washintong State Department of Health. (2000). Total Births and Births to Unmarried Mothers. http://www.ofm.wa.gov/trends/htm/fig221.htm

More papers on Births out of Wedlock:

• Analytical Essay # 13750 : "Welfare Reform & Birth Rates"
• Essay # 16721 : "Broken Homes: Broken Children"
• Argumentative Essay # 147627 : "Government Social Welfare Programs"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: