Marriage Or No Marriage, Which Is Better?

[oneinam]

No financial answers pls. Please suggests the advantages and positives of marriage vs living together.

[woofgang]

its not financial but legal. An unmarried dependent has no more rights in law than a stranger.

[ethandron]

You have a joint mortgage, a joint bank account, and children together. That's commitment to me, not a piece of paper, or standing up in front of people making promises which an awful lot of people don't keep.

[hc4361]

ethandron, married couples have all that as well as the bit of paper.

[ethandron]

Indeed they do hc, well, most of them I would assume, so why the need for the bit of paper and the promise, which in my opinion is meaningless?
It strikes me that lots of people get married but can't see beyond 'the wedding day'. Takes more than a white frock and a shed load of money spent on a party (£18,000 is I believe the average cost of a wedding today) to make a long and happy marriage.
I have nothing against marriage, Im just not sure I'd bother.