http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Lifestyle/Story/STIStory_338252.html
Marriage epitomizes the true essence of sacred and holy matrimony of two individuals who have pledged to be each other’s responsibility. Sadly, these treasured vows are so often taken lightly. Statistical evidence has shown that here in Singapore, divorce rates are not only climbing but couples calling it quits are getting younger. Our self-centred younger generation shifts the blame ever so easily and reasons for separation are alarmingly frivolous. Whatever happened to ‘till death do us part’? In the story I have chosen in the link above is an instance of how our younger married couples are falling apart because of ‘career and individual differences’. Of which it evinces my point of the ‘me’ mentality. Today, young married couples are finding it strenuous to sacrifice their own benefits and privileges for the betterment of the relationship.
Interpersonal communication means establishing a relationship and by doing so, satisfy our social needs and personal goals. DeFleur et al stated three processes of communication in relationships which are engagement, management, and disengagement. From what is observed and extracted, Glenn Ong and Jamie Yeo found it difficult and pointless to manage and maintain their relationship because of, most prominently, conflicting relational needs. Then finally the inevitable dissolution occurs in a positive and justified way. According to Knapp’s model of relational development, the couple have reached termination stage whereby both parties part ways and moved on from the relationship as seen from the article when ‘they were spotted at a recent event arriving and sitting separately’. Lastly to sum it up, the typical behaviours evident in their relationship are applicable to the theories and concepts of interpersonal communication.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
YAY FIRST (I think)
ReplyDeleteWow, you really have all the first hand information! Ok, maybe I'm just slow to know that they have seperated. It is just hard to believe that such a loving couple ended up like this.
I agree that couples these days don't take their relationship seriously enough. They often fall out just because of a small misunderstanding or a massive argument due to accumulated small misunderstandings.
But I guess its even harder for couples like Glenn Ong and Jamie Yeo who are public figures under the spotlight. The scrutinity of the media also may play a big part in their seperation...after all, a relationship is meant to be a personal issue between two people. Look at what happened to Rihanna and Chris Brown. Ouch.
Perhaps this seperation may be good for them in the long run, who knows? But I think it takes a lot of effort to maintain a relationship and couples should communicate effectively to let each other know what they feel.
Yes you are the first. Well I should agree with your take on couples these days and maybe it is sort of due to our low tolerance levels as compared to previous times. It is so clearly portrayed even in our workplaces. Gone were the days where there were lasting and loyal employees who stood by a certain enterprise for a lifetime. If the character and personality is already as such, what difference could it have in love life?
ReplyDeletenormal couples already face the stresses of working out problems with each other, and celebrity couples have the extra burden of relating their personal relationship to the public! (esp. their fans who have a vested interest in them)
ReplyDeletein this case, we see celebrity couples juggling different kinds of communications to different people, among themselves and to the outside world. in a way, the public can't exactly identify with what celebrities go through, simply because they are not celebs themselves.
personal life takes on a new meaning for celebs, since they have to deal with invasion of privacy. in Singapore i think this issue isn't so much of a problem.. but looking at Hollywood tabloids, we can track the lifestyles of those celebs who go through multiple marriages and divorces.
I wonder if the zealots back in the day performed executions once divorce papers were finalised.
ReplyDeleteAnywho. Yea it seems only yesterday i saw them jogging with their jack russell. Things are just so transient now. I think its primarily because the romance is dead. They do not have children to worry about, are not dependant on each other financially and have enough loving family and friends to keep them sane and wanted. (They've both moved on steadily to other relationships) Makes it easy to break up. Personal goals and gains stand stronger than puppy eyed idealistic dreams.
And hey aren't brown and rihanna going to get hitched? And didn't Vivian Chow countinue to be engaged after finding out her boyfriend cheating on her? Love transcends all. But when it fails, nothing, absolutely nothing can keep things from falling apart.
In my opinion, I would say that the rising divorce cases are caused by our society and environment. In today's world, as education gets more advanced, people start to think that careers are more important than family. is that really the case that money > family ? Well.. our society clearly prove the case. Many people, especially women, think that they should be considered equal to man, that they have the right to be the income source of the family. But is that really necessary in this case? If both man and women go to work, then who is going to take care of the family? As far as I know, our Asian cultures believe that women should stay at home to take care of the family while man goes to find job to feed the family. That's not too bad. isn't it right?
ReplyDeletetermination is never nice. more often than not, it leavs a sour taste in the mouths of both parties. there are so many differences but at the end of the day, if all these differences are not brought to the discussion table, then a relationship is going to fail. imagine this: what is one day, a strong wind blows. all the things that are hidden under the carpet will be blown out. there goes the relationship.
ReplyDeleteyes, compromise is necessary, but to what extent? do we compromise on our morality and principles? guess smaller issues such as weaknesses of one another ought to be solved good once and for all. this would help in the harmony in the relationship and provide a deeper sense of connection.
to superstar, it definitely tough for celebrities to maintain their scrutinized relationship. This is especially so in the case of Hollywood, where trivial details and arguments are magnified and blown out of proportion.
ReplyDeleteto zixing. Love did fail in the case of Annie and Harlem Yu. Mr. Yu caught his wife cheating behind his back and with that, he decided he has had enough of Annie’s philandering ways. As you had mentioned, absolutely NOTHING can keep the ever faithful husband from terminating his own marriage.
ReplyDeleteto fs29, I absolutely could not agree more. Headstrong Singaporeans are finding it harder to live with one another, and gender equality somewhat contributed to this premise. With the rising number of career-minded individuals, few would want to settle down at a young age which may hinder their ascent up the corporate ladder.
ReplyDeleteto shadysnapshots. Every problem solved means the relationship progressed another step forward and the mutual bond strengthened with experience. I believe the compromise of morals and principles are done at an earlier stage where personal needs and goals are identified, so hiccups in the future will not escalate and cause fissures.
ReplyDeleteCelebrities with the usual chaos in their personal lives are the fodder of media sales and ratings. Celebrities with quality relationships are ignored (Tom Selleck, for example). These celebrity musical chair relationships are obviously not a great image for our impressionable youth. Quite frankly, most divorces don’t need to happen at all. Weathering lousy times is a sign of character and commitment. Most of the time when folks and convinced they need to divorce, they are simplifying the situation because they haven’t taken the responsibility needed to help maintain a quality comradeship. The influence of media on couples comes into play here. I guess this is one of the main reasons of the high divorce rates especially at a younger age.
ReplyDeleteWell written article! :)
to cynera
ReplyDeleteVery true, this culture is imprinted and programmed into our youths mind, and as such, commitment becomes a lesser commodity. We cannot blame the media for such expressions because it is required of them to cook up news. Who would want to read into some ‘goody two shoes’ love for his family, instead people are more interested in big name splits and spats and thus, leading to such content saturation in the market.