Anyone who loves Julia Roberts like I do, can probably give us a play by play of those opening few scenes of My Best Friend's Wedding, when Julianne nervously contemplates the possibility of Micheal trying to collect on a twenty year old promise. Laughable right? But most things in romance movies are dreamt up from some kernel of reality, aren't they?
I think they are.
I've heard of the marriage pact. How it starts can vary. Maybe a boy and girl have never even experienced love, sitting in a tree house, wondering if they'll end up like their quarreling parents. They get along great, so a brilliant plan is born. Or it happens later, after the fiftieth broken heart. In desperation they search for something that would atleast guarantee a happy ending, a light at the end of the tunnel. This is when it would seem it's a little more complicated. If you know love, would you really contemplate marrying someone, you didn't love, lust after, long for? So are you suggesting settling down with a friend when all hope is lost, OR do you actually have feelings for that friend you have never explored or admitted??
I know this may sound all hypothetical and crazy, but I have heard of marriage pacts between more than a few people. Being single again, I ran across a book with the same name and it got me thinking. I searched my Kindle a little more and found there were actually several ficticious, although believable stories or some variations of the convenient covenants. So, I decided to read them.
Coming soon, reviews of;
A Thousand Roses, by Numi Ash
The Marriage Pact, by M.J. Pullen
One Day, David Nicholls (also made into a movie, in theatres 8/19/11)
...followed by more discussion and maybe, I'll share my own story of a marriage pact. :)
I can't say I know of anyone who has made this agreement... but it is an interesting one. Sort of a "marriage of convenience," but I'm not sure how it would work in today's world. Would they have kids?
ReplyDeleteThe biggest question for me is, what happens if one of them finds love AFTER they get married? Married people (who married for "love," or professed to) cheat on each other all the time, but how would two friends who are not in love remain faithful? The thought makes me uncomfortable. Still, it's interesting enough to think about, and obviously makes for compelling fiction and film, too.
This Cherilyn... every time I comment, I am angry at blogger again. :(
ReplyDeleteI agree.... it could be debated and debated forever. Funny thing is, I could probably stand on either side, depending on my life at that moment...and my mood. LOL!
Despite my very conservative views, I have some contrary opinions about personal choice.
Just finished "One Day" by David Nicholls. Loved it. Comes out in film on the 18th and I will be there. Meanwhile... I power on to read the other two, before reveiwing all here. :)
It seems along the lines of, "I'll go to the dance with you if no one else asks you."
ReplyDeleteSome people would say it's sweet and reassuring. Others would say, if they want to be with you in the end, why not ask before someone else does and not risk losing out on being with them all together!
Sometimes people want to make sure that the other person has the chance to make their own decisions first. It's secretly loving them without making them feel the burden of it. Sometimes it is all about timing.
No one wants to be alone in the end. Loving someone is not just about having them with you the whole time. Sometimes loving someone is letting them live their life and being for them in the end.
It's romantic in my eyes. Loving someone so much that you would commit to being there in the end no matter where life takes them, while acknoledging the fact that it may very well be themselves that ends up alone in the end.