Here it is... long ago in a galaxy far far away... women could not work or in anyway care for themselves by law. Fathers knew that they had to find men to care for their daughters once they passed. They did it by marriage. Which was a contract. This contract was for life. Otherwise the father wouldn't get the benefit of the bargain. Safety insured for their girls.

It was.. you get a woman to bear your children and have sex with forever and probably some money in the form of a dowry -- IF -- you take care of her *till death do you part*.

So if a guy cheated it was a breach of contract because it put the woman wife in danger that you wouldn't take care of her. You had to marry one woman and couldn't get a divorce because that destroyed the entire system. And would leave women uncared for.

When women got liberation - society just couldn't give up the system and devised ways to try to keep people "trapped" in these relationships. Because marriage overall is good for society. Not the individual. The story was recast as "love" yes people got married due to "love" and they stayed together because -- it was love and love, tru luv, was forever.

But then in the 60s that didn't work either. 50% of marriages broke up and even though it makes less sense than ever society continues to try to brainwash these ideas on society so that they can maintain people trapped in bad marriages and trapped in bad jobs because they have to provide for bad marriages and kids.