The mourning after : the effects of separation/divorce on the family

Abstract

Since the number of failed marriages is increasing rapidly in Malta, I thought it would be appropriate to delve into this subject deeply. Few people are aware of the pain caused by marital disruption. Many are ready to judge those whose marriage has failed and to warn their sons and daughters to keep away from them for fear they may become their potential lovers or potential school friends... and what a bad influence indeed! I have started by presenting, in the first chapter, the causes of marital discord. Initially I stated the factors that make a marriage healthy and then I went on to mention the illusions of marriage which may be responsible for many separations. Individuals enter marriage with many fanciful ideas and then find that it's not a bed of roses. The disappointments may be detrimental to the marriage. There are also other social factors that are changing marital patterns such as the increase of the woman in the work force, which makes her independent of her husband, gives her an opportunity to meet other people and have a separate life outside her family. Before the woman had little opportunity to survive without her husband : now she can walk out of an unhappy marriage and still manage to maintain herself and her children.