Are Arranged Marriages Better?

In the West, romance is king. It's a billion-dollar film and book industry. Dating apps are everywhere, and it seems virtually every new song is about relationships. And they all seem to tell the same tale: you meet, you date, you fall in love, you know the rest...

But that's not the whole story. For many people even today, they didn't date their spouses. Many barely knew the person they would pledge their lives to. As antiquated as it sounds, there are millions who still practice arranged marriages in the 21st century. Perhaps this isn't too surprising, given the popularity of shows about matchmakers on today's streaming services. Yet why are we fascinated by these shows? And why are so many still willing to leave one of the biggest decisions of their lives to someone else?

Is there something we can learn from arranged marriages, something we have lost in our romance-obsessed culture? Here today to help us analyze Western culture's addiction is someone who is in an arranged marriage and can speak to its benefits and setbacks. Sherene Joseph, an accomplished writer in her own right and someone who has lived in both an Eastern and Western culture, seems like the perfect person to help us navigate the difficult road of love and marriage as we delve into one of the most difficult topics we have ever covered.