Imagine your parents choosing who you should marry. Many years ago, arranged marriages were an important part of African and Chinese culture. This caused a lot of tension between parents and their children. The practice of arranged marriages has been lost over time. This caused parents to feel betrayed by their children when they married the person they wanted. In both the stories “Marriage is a Private Matter” and “Love Should Not Be Forgotten”, the main characters face challenges related to their arranged marriages. In “Marriage is a Private Affair”, Nnaemeka, Okeke's son, falls in love with a woman. named Nene, who was not her suitor. (The person his father chose for him) Okeke felt betrayed because of his son's decision to marry Nene. Nnaemeka tried to explain all of Nene's good qualities to her father, but Okeke didn't want to hear it. Throughout the story, Okeke refused to have a relationship with Nnaemeka because of his decision to marry whoever he wanted. Okeke described her son’s actions saying: “I will not be another Mrs. Ochuba. If my son wants to commit suicide, let him do it with his own hands. It's not my place to help him. Because Nnaemeka had no communication with his father, he sent his father a photo of him and Nene on their wedding day. Okeke sent back a letter telling Nnaemeka how disrespectful it was to send him a photo of him and Nene together. He cut the image in half and returned the part with Nene on it. The relationship between Okeke and his son was non-existent for eight years. Okeke has not changed her mind about her son's marriage. He still found it shameful, even though others were beginning to accept unarranged marriages. One day, Nene...... middle of paper ...... and end Okeke accepts that he was too harsh on his son's decisions and regrets not being able to separate himself from his son's life son. Shanshan also understands the meaning of love and what it means to her. She decides to remain single until she falls in love. As Shanshan says: “Perhaps because law and morality would have bound us. But what a tragedy to simply conform to law and morality! Was there no stronger bond that united us? What Shanshan says makes perfect sense: marriage should be based on love and not just certain qualifications. The characters end up questioning their societies by recognizing the true meaning of marriage. That's love. Works Cited Achebe, Chinua. Marriage is a private matter. Evanston: McDougal Littell Inc, 2002. Manual. Jie, Zhang. Love must not be forgotten. Evanston: McDougal Littell Inc, 2002.Manual.