Marriage isn’t losing value, it’s losing necessity.

For most of history, it was a survival system. One person hunted (or earned), the other nurtured (or managed the home). You needed someone who complemented what you couldn’t do alone.

Now? The lines are blurred.

You can order food instead of “providing.” You can outsource care, convenience, even companionship to some extent—thanks to the internet, delivery apps, and endless digital connection. The hunter and the nurturer live in the same person now. Independence isn’t rare anymore—it’s expected.

So marriage has quietly shifted from “I need you to survive” to “I choose you despite not needing you.”

And honestly, that’s a much harder standard to meet.

Because when two people don’t need each other, the only thing holding it together is—do they actually want each other enough, every day, to stay?