Argument papper draft #2 - Essay Example

Age and Relations Men all over the world tend to marry women who are two to three years younger than themselves with the age gap largest in Africa. Most adult men in Western societies prefer female partners who are in a way younger than themselves, while adult females generally prefer men who are older than them. According to Schiilling, in her book, on average, men prefer to have their partners about three years younger while women prefer men who are three years older than them. There is general tendency for older men to pair with younger women.

This has been observed worldwide and has been documented in almost all human societies. However, United Nations in 2000 asserts that there is variety in the average marital age difference across different cultures. For instance, in some African societies, the average difference in terms of age between married partners is three times that in most Western countries, revolving around 10 years in most cases. Moreover, 10 years appears to be the maximum acceptable difference on average for a romantic partner, particularly for women.

This is because differences beyond 10 years are not seen as normative by most societies. Another way to explain men and women’s partner age preferences is to think of heterosexual relationships in social exchange terms. Social exchange theory proposes that how we feel about a given social interaction or relationship fundamentally depends upon the costs to be incurred and benefit associated with it. Basically, when rewards are more than the costs to be incurred in a relationship, we tend to feel good about it and will in most cases stay in it and vice versa.

Conversely, an older man providing his resources for a young, attractive woman can be seen as a social exchange where he provides shelter, food, and security in exchange for sex with her bringing about an opportunity to procreate. Such an arrangement is likely to be seen as a favorable because it meets important needs for both partners. Another explanation for men and women’s partner age preferences is by considering the social role theory which argues that the traditional division of labor between the sexes has resulted in women assuming the social role of providing domestic labor and men fulfilling the social role of providing.

Thus leading women to look for financially stable men who are mostly older and men looking for younger women who look productive and attractive.The tendency for women to marry older men so as to have them provide for them is changing as more women are in the labor force as opposed to their traditional role of home keeping and the disparities in gender pay decreases as women and men now earn nearly the same amounts. This has contributed to more women getting married to men of their age and even younger across societies but more prevalently in the Western cultures.

In my opinion, love overlaps many obstacles including age. I believe that beautiful people are not determined by their skin or age but by how attractive they are. A beautiful smile may be more attractive than a young pretty face, such as varies intelligence, personality and maturity. I concur when Julia Roberts says that two people are connected at the heart, and it doesnt matter what you do, or who you are or where you live; there are no boundaries or barriers if two people are destined to be together.

Work CitedSchiilling, Sarah. 29 10 2007. 27 11 2014 .Shakespeare. Shakespeare online. 14 05 2014. Shakespeare. 25 11 2014 .Roberts, Julia. relationship quotes. 14 4 2014. 27 11 2014 .