Starting a family and getting married is a matter of worry for the youth, regardless of gender. Furthermore, the relationship between the two genders is something that has become very dire.
Some of our young men and women are beginning to consider characters from Turkish, Arab and Western soaps as benchmarks measuring what their ideal partners should be like. There is also a danger in the dramatic message that these soaps — which are either made to gain money or conjure an idealistic image of the societies they portray — subconsciously present to their audiences. American dramas give prominence to American characters, who — through media exposure — have now become internationally respected. Accepting ideas subconsciously without noticing the dangerous negativities of those ideas makes us easy prey to other cultures.
Relationships between men and women have become dire in such a way that, for example, wives reply to their husbands with supplications beseeching God to make them sick. The breakdown of relationships between husbands and wives is the responsibility of both concerned parties; this may be according to varying degrees.
When marriages sour, husbands and wives look for the other’s mistakes when they should instead be looking for a way of improving their relationship, something that would not only benefit them but wider society. Nowadays, some wives even hold parties celebrating their divorce. Even if a divorce is a disengagement from a miserable life, should it be a cause for celebration? Another important question is this: What sort of alienation will those sons and daughters of ours studying abroad suffer when they return home? If we, who are living at home, have been influenced by other cultures through our satellite channels and electronic media, how much will our sons and daughters who have actually lived in developed societies be influenced? How will they accept the Kingdom’s social norms and traditions, which undermine personal opinion and freedom? How will they accept marrying a prospective partner on only their parents’ recommendations?
