Chapter nine

Chapter 9 describes the conditions of those people who are not in heterosexual marriages, such as those who chose to remain single, cohabit, or who are gay or lesbian. The chapter shows that the population of single people is diverse, but that there are a number of methods to describe the population (related to race, age, and other demographic variables). It goes on to describe why it is that people may be single, noting macro-level factors, demographic variables, and individual reasons that support a person’s postponing of or lack of desire for marriage. Race is also indicative with African-Americans and Latinos having a high populaiton of singles, while Asian Americans have an extremely small population of singles. The chapter then moves on to the topic of cohabitation, showing that numbers of cohabitors has increase and so has acceptance of cohabitation. The book distinguishes several different forms of cohabitation: dating cohabitation, premarital cohabitation, trial marriage, and substitute marriage. Furthermore, it breaks down the population of cohabitors demographically, showing trends by age groups, gender, race, social class, and religion. There are both benefits and costs of cohabitation: benefits include independence, lack of legal obligation, and not having to deal with in-laws; costs include loss of identity, feeling entrapped, and weaker commitment. The final thought on the topic is that cohabitation does not lead to better marriages. Concerning gay and lesbian couples, the chapter makes the following observations: gender shapes the relationship more so than sexual orientation, similar power relations and problems/conflicts exist in homosexual relationships as heterosexual ones, homosexual couples of different races or ethnicities experience relationships differently. Same-sex marriages and unions are becoming more socially acceptable, with an increasing number of states permitting marriage and a majority of Americans (54%) supporting same-sex unions. Lastly, the chapter describes communes as a residential option that has a long history and continues to exist but in a way different than it did in the past, avoiding problems (e.g. of ownership) adapting to the times. Today, we can still see dorms and residential programs such as those for single mothers as instances of communes.

 

Something Interesting:

I found the ‘marriage squeeze’ section an interesting example of how impersonal conditions such as demographics might affect one’s personal life – that if one is in some other environment they can have different experiences. Also, I would like to know how one goes about distinguishing whether someone has been ‘squeezed’ out of the marriage market or whether they just haven’t found someone yet.

 

Discussion Point:

Do you think that cohabitation before marriage has positive or negative effects on marriage? The book attempts to understand gay and lesbian relationships with respect to heterosexual relationships. Do you think that it is proper to understand one in relation to the other and why?

 

 Ali Mosser