The Economist has reported on global trends in marriage.

Marriage idealizes permanence, and yet it is changing more rapidly than at any time in its history.

Almost everywhere it is becoming freer, more equal and more satisfying. The Economist explains wedlock has become so good that it is causing trouble.

The most benign changes are taking place in poor and middle-income countries (where most people live). Child marriage, once rife, is ebbing. So is cousin marriage, with its attendant risk of genetic defects, though it is still fairly common in the Middle East and parts of Asia. Relations between husbands and wives have become more equal (though not equal enough).

As women earn more and the stigma of divorce fades, more men are finding that they cannot treat their wives as servants (or, worse, punching bags), because women can credibly threaten to walk away.

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