'A man who is not married is only half a man', Dr. Johnson declared.
Some 250 years later, this sentiment is still believed, articulated and acted upon by a good number of us.
In a scene from the 1992 film When Harry Met Sally, Sally, who has recently broken up with her boyfriend, is talking with two friends, Marie and Alice. Marie is searching through her address book for names of men she could set Sally up with. Sally is reluctant. 'Don't wait too long,' cautions Marie, 'remember what happened to David Warsoff. His wife left him and everyone said give him some time. Don't move in too fast. Six months later he was dead.' 'What are you saying?' Sally asks, 'I should get married to someone else right away in case he's about to die?' 'At least you could say you were married,' Alice sighs.