Well marriage doesn't function in the way it used to in terms of deciding our fate but it's in our heads and it determines a lot of our actions. Like right now if you think about gay marriage - and they just started having the first gay marriages in New York - it shows what a potent idea marriage remains for people.
History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats.