Marriage, a history : from obedience to intimacy or how love conquered marriage

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Title:

Author:

Coontz, Stephanie.

ISBN:

9780670034079

Personal Author:

Coontz, Stephanie.

Publication Information:

New York : Viking, c2005.

Physical Description:

xi, 432 p. ; 25 cm.

Contents:

In search of traditional marriage -- The era of political marriage -- The love revolution -- Courting disaster? The collapse of universal and lifelong marriage -- For better or worse? The future of marriage.

Abstract:

"In this book historian Stephanie Coontz takes us on a journey from the marital intrigues of ancient Babylon to the sexual torments of Victorian lovers to the current debates over the meaning and future of marriage. She provides the definitive story of marriage's evolution from the arranged unions common since the dawn of civilization into the intimate, sexually fulfilling but volatile relationships of today." "Marriage, a History is the one book you need to understand not only the nuances of modern marriage but also the debates over gay marriage, "living together," and divorce. Stephanie Coontz shatters dozens of myths about the past and future of married life and shows us why marriage, though more fragile today, can be more rewarding than ever before."--BOOK JACKET.

Subject Term:

Marriage -- History.

Copies:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Copy	Status
Searching... 1:IIEMSA	1:GEN-BOOK	33168020386369	306.8109 C775M 2005	1	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Just when the clamor over "traditional" marriage couldn't get any louder, along comes this groundbreaking book to ask, "What tradition?" In Marriage, a History, historian and marriage expert Stephanie Coontz takes readers from the marital intrigues of ancient Babylon to the torments of Victorian lovers to demonstrate how recent the idea of marrying for love is - and how absurd it would have seemed to most of our ancestors. It was when marriage moved into the emotional sphere in the nineteenth century, she argues, that it suffered as an institution just as it began to thrive as a personal relationship. This enlightening and hugely entertaining book brings intelligence, perspective, and wit to today's marital debate.