Q. そもそも、「結婚制度」自体が時代遅れではないですか？- Isn't the institution of marriage outdated?

A. 夫と妻の性固定的な役割がなくなりつつあり、結婚＝妻が夫の家庭に入って経済的に夫に女性が依存するという社会でもなくなってきました。また、社会や文化が結婚を当然視するとかいうこともなくなってきました。つまり、結婚制度は、古い社会の性固定的な役割意識や男性による女性支配を必ずしも意味しなくなっています。したがって「結婚制度」自体を否定する必要性は小さくなったのではないでしょうか。

今日においても、人々は「結婚」に感情的な意味や価値を見い出し、それにより社会的な認知を得て、文化的な関係を築くという意味は減じていません。つまり結婚制度は現代でも意味を有すると考えられます。

「結婚制度」は、世俗化や市場化の流れの中で、その性格を柔軟に変化させ続けることで持続してきました。同性婚を認めることは、時代に相応しい結婚制度の発展であると言えます。

Q. Isn’t the institution of marriage outdated?

A. As the traditional roles of husband and wife are fading, so too is the definition of marriage being that a woman enters the man’s family and she became dependent on her husband financially. What’s more, the concept of marriage as something that is socially and culturally an expected step of life is also changing. It can no longer be said that the institution of marriage is a testament to past generations’ rules of the expected roles of husband and wife, man and woman. With that, there is no need to deny this “Institution of Marriage” to any one group of people.

Even today, many people are discovering the emotional meaning and value behind marriage; therefore, marriage is still seen as an institution that receives mainstream recognition and creates cultural connections. In summary, even today the institution of marriage has meaning.

Against the background of evolving trends in secularization and commercialization, the institution of marriage has remained throughout history by being flexible in its attributes, and recognizing same-sex marriage can be argued as a development suitable for the present.