I got a little insight about relationships from John Steinbeck's writings published online at The Paris Review, in a compiled interview, compiled as opposed to live or face to face, Steinbeck wrote "The human mind, particularly in the present, is troubled and fogged and bee-stung with a thousand little details from taxes to war worry to the price of meat. All these usually get together and result in a man's fighting with his wife for that is the easiest channel of relief for inner unrest."
Guys seldom argue with other guys, especially guy friends. They pick fights with their wives or girlfriends out of frustrations, stresses, and pressures. These days women might do the same, considering the stresses of being a career mom. If married or committed couples are connected fibers, like a knitted sweater or a quilt, it makes sense that life's burdens would take toll on the 'garment or covering'.
Remember this when writing a character who is strained and stretched by circumstances. He/she must find a "channel of relief for inner unrest." There are other outlets, too. Dean Koontz's character, Junior Cain, in From the Corner of His Eye, chose murder to lessen the turmoil in his soul. Montresor, in Poe's The Cask of Amontillado, carried a grievance in his heart towards a friend / acquaintance named Fortunato. Montresor avenged his grievance by burying Fortunato alive.
Visit The Paris Review website and read a few or all of the interviews, or do as I did and buy the interviews published in book form (the set wasn't out when I bought mine). You're going to enjoy the reads.
As writer's we can learn so much from legendary authors, not by reading only their stories, books, or biographies, but by adding to these diaries, letters, and interviews. What is your "channel of relief?"
Consider using a journal, short story, or poem, rather than a close connection, as your venting mechanism. It's less wounding and healthier. Any questions?
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