Are we all living our lives in one stereotypical way?

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I really don't know, but this is one thing which has been troubling me from a long time, and now that I work so far away from home, away from all of my near and dear ones, that this question pops into my mind more than ever. What do we all do? We are made to study in the best institutes which our parents can afford, we select a branch of study while going into college which has the maximum potential of giving us a good, stable career. Once college is over, we may get placed in a job, or we have to look for it for a while. Once that phase is over, we are just caught in that job for ever more, striving day in and day out to get increments, promotions and onsite opportunities. Then when our parents find that we are earning a nice fat wad of money, they go off and have us married. I really don't get it. Just because we are earning well, does that mean we need to marry and have kids? And of course, after marriage, all your salary becomes your wife's property and all your enjoyments should involve her or God save your life!!! The kids will grow up and chip into your earnings in a much bigger way, with all the new gadgets they see everyday in the hands of their pampered schoolmates, and for the sake of their prestige, you also have to follow suit!! In short, YOUR life no longer remains YOURS. And then, after a long and tiring journey of a lifetime, you finally retire, but then you are too old to have any fun. So is life nothing more than this? I seriously can't find any meaning in all this charade. Do you?