According to Bio.com Zsa Zsa Gabor was married 9 times ("Zsa Zsa Gabor") . While Sam Lansky of Rolling Stone Magazine took the readers through the shortest marriage of today's stars, Britney Spears wedding to Jason Alexander which only lasted a very short 55 hours (Lansky). The perpetuation of the marriage participants is to instill one's goals, values and ideals into one's children. .
With the ever growing divorce rates, couples look at long term marriages of 30, 40, or 50 plus years and always ask "what is the secret to a successful marriage?" in an attempt to break the divorce trend that has enveloped today's society. Kelsey Borresen of The Huffington Post wrote "Tried-And-True Marriage Advice From Couples Married A Long, Long Time" where she asked 9 couples for their secret to a successful marriage. Though the answers she received differed from "When going to bedalways touch toes" to "Never hang wallpaper together" the jest of the advice is the same, these couples still love each other, even after 50 plus years. (Borresen). Samara O'Shea also of The Huffington Post wrote "How Many Marriages Actually End In Happily Ever After?" In her article she addresses the divorce rate of 40% to 50% (O'Shea). She states "that many of the remaining couples are together but aren't happy about it" (O'Shea). She then goes on to define a successful marriage as "Two people who've been married for 25 years or more and still take an active interest in each other. They are together purposefully rather than practically" (O'Shea).
Kramer states "Once both partners are allowed to be autonomous, the continuation of marriage becomes more truly voluntary. In this sense, an increase in divorce signals social progress," blaming the self-help movement of the 1970's for the skyrocket of divorce (James 487). Though Kramer is correct in his assumption that the women of the 1970's no longer required a man to support them, the increase in divorce rates did not signal social progress, it signaled the beginning of the "me" era.