who was chosen for me because of other reasons, like how much money he makes, or his family connections etc.
I didn't mean these kind of arrange marriages, I don't consider these factors important to long-term commitment.
Nucleus, I don't mean to judge, and I was only pointing out that arranged marriage is idealised when really it has as many flaws as a love marriage. I never claimed that people don't cheat in both kinds of marriages. All I am saying is that it doesn't matter when the "commitment" comes in the relationship - because the commitment means nothing if the people don't really mean it and adhere to it.
In my opinion, lust and love is very important in a marriage. Some arranged marriages see lust and love develop, some don't. I can't imagine marrying and living together with someone I don't love and am not s.e.xually attracted to - who was chosen for me because of other reasons, like how much money he makes, or his family connections etc. I know that this is the norm in some cultures, but it wouldn't fly with me. Also, after I have seen some documentaries on human pair bonding I realise that lust and attraction definitely have their role in producing stronger humans with desirable characteristics. For example, there was one show that talked about smell. Male subjects sniffed t-shirts worn over a few nights by various women. The men had to say which t-shirt attracted them the most. (No perfumes etc. allowed for the females, only natural body smell). When they tested the immunities of the male and female subjects and looked at the t-shirts and corresponding women the men chose, the immunities complimented each other (meaning broad spectrum - each having some immunity that the other doesn't have). This means that if those two mated and produced a child, their child would receive the immunity from both parents and be healthier and stronger. With all of our senses and instincts humans know how to indentify a good mating match. Even if a pair bond doesn't work out in the end, it could be true that any children produced are strong and healthy, which is needed for propagation of the species. Essentially, nature doesn't seem to care about marriage - it only cares about strong offspring.
I can't gather what exactly you are trying to say. Arrange marriages have as many flaws as love marriages, but love marriages are better since lust is very important in love; is this you are trying to say?
By the way, I'm not arguing love, but I guess our definition of love is wee bit different.