I'm not sure that several decades' worth of statistics have borne out Ms. Dix's opinion, but here are her thoughts on whether divorce is "hereditary" or not. This column was first printed on February 17, 1949.
Dear Miss Dix: The boy I am engaged to is all that a girl could want in a husband, except his folks have been divorced and each has married again and so have mine. Divorce on both sides. Does that mean that divorce is hereditary in our families? People tell me that if one’s parents are divorced, there is no chance of having a happy marriage. Is this true?
MISS BETTYE.
Answer - No. There is not a scintilla of truth in the belief that divorce is hereditary, and that if your father and mother were unhappily married your marriage is bound to be a failure. Indeed, so far as family fights being catching, the opposite is generally the case, and the children who have grown up in discordant homes usually make the most peaceful and considerate husbands and wives.
Their parents are an awful warning to them. They have seen the cat and dog lives their mothers and fathers have led. They have seen their homes broken up and their families scattered. They have suffered from the disaster that a high-tempered woman and a selfish man can inflict upon helpless children, and they are determined not to bring such a misfortune upon their own households. The children of broken homes want no divorce in theirs.
4 comments:
Really think it just depends on the people involved. But, it is not hereditary. :)
That DD is a hoot.
I'd almost be inclined to agree with Ms. Dix, but I think too that if children are exposed to, for instance, mom going through boyfriend after boyfriend, that could potentially model what relationships are supposed to be like and a daughter could very likely follow the same path.
It's interesting to me that divorce seems much more prevalent back then I had previously thought.
I think children many times grow up determined NOT to become their parents. And then sometimes, they act in the only way they know how... how they were raised. It all depends on the person and their character.
Susan at Charm of the Carolines
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