Digital Commons Network^™

Straight Is Better: Why Law And Society May Legitimately Prefer Heterosexuality, George W. Dent

Faculty Publications

America is embroiled in a culture war over homosexuality. The homosexual movement demands the end of “heteronormativity” - the social and legal preference for heterosexuality. It insists that “Gay Is Good” - just as good as heterosexuality. This article presents a defense of heteronormativity; it argues that straight is better. In particular, it argues that naturally conceiving, bearing and raising children is intrinsically good for parents; that it is both intrinsically and instrumentally good for children to be raised by their biological parents who are married to each other; and that traditional marriage is both intrinsically and instrumentally good for …

“Mutual Comfort”: Courtly Love And Companionate Marriage In The Poetry Of Sir Philip Sidney And Edmund Spenser, Amanda Taylor

Quidditas

The interaction between courtly love poetry and the development of companionate marriage has received little critical attention. Rather, critics of courtly love poetry focus on authorial ambition and self-presentation. This paper explores how the revision of the courtly love genre in the poetry of Sir Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser participated within the societal transformation toward companionate marriage. The individualized female characters in their poetry shatter courtly stereotypes, but the relationship options presented either fragment the sequence, as in Sidney’s Astrophil and Stella, or enable it to drive forward to completion, as in Spenser’s Amoretti and Epithalamion. I …

If You Will It, It Is No Dream: Balancing Public Policy And Testamentary Freedom, Orly Henry

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

"Feminist Fairy Tales" Female Agency And Subversive Message In Fairy Tales Of The Traditional European Canon, Marisa Reichert

Theses & ETDs

The thesis is situated in the context of previous feminist literary critique of fairy tales, attempting to answer common questions of whether fairy tales can be considered "feminist" or pro-woman. The author uses tale type AT 425A from the traditional European canon of fairy tales to examine this question and attempt to answer it. This tale type, The Search for the Lost Husband, is based on the plot structure and themes of Apuleius's second-century AD work, The Tale of Cupid and Psyche, and is a story about arranged marriage from the wife's perspective. The thesis first discusses the history of …

A Typology Of Coping In Couples Undergoing Fertility Treatment, Brennan Peterson, Matthew Pirritano, Lone Schmidt

Marriage and Family Therapy Faculty Presentations

Poster presentation about the use of cluster analysis to identify clinically meaningful groups of infertile couples, and how such profiles can be used by medical and mental health professionals.

Patriarchy, Christianity, And The African Hiv/Aids Epidemic: Rethinking Christian Marriage In Light Of The Experiences Of Hiv Positive Women In Tanzania, Melissa Danielle Browning

Dissertations

Given that women and girls carry the heaviest burdens of the African HIV/AIDS epidemic, their lived experiences should be the starting point for any pedagogy of prevention. In light of this claim, this dissertation project uses qualitative fieldwork with HIV positive women living in Mwanza, Tanzania to ask why marriage is an HIV/AIDS risk factor. By beginning with women's experience as a hermeneutical lens, this dissertation seeks to establish a creative space where African women can imagine new alternatives to HIV/AIDS prevention that would promote human flourishing and abundant life in African communities. The aim of this dissertation is to …

Negotiation Of Face Between Bereaved Parents And Their Social Networks, M. Chad Mcbride, Paige W. Toller

Communication Faculty Publications

For many bereaved parents, talking about their child's death and their grief experiences is a way to cope with grief. Unfortunately, communicating with others often proves difficult for parents and their social networks, often because of face threats. The purpose of the present study is to identify how the face needs of parents and their social network is communicatively negotiated. Fifty-three bereaved parents were interviewed and the data analyzed, resulting in a theme of protection. The findings highlight ways in which both the parents' and others' positive and negative faces were co-managed. These findings highlight the complex nature of facework …

How Country Music Can Improve Your Marriage, Greg Hansen

BYU Studies

This light-hearted personal essay describes one man's "quest to become the Perfect Husband, the Ultimate Man, the Guy My Wife Dreams Of." Greg Hansen, a professional musician, has discovered one secret weapon: country music. "Before becoming the Highly Improved Guy I am today, I would come home after a long day in the recording studio, ready to de-stress and download, my full ration of words completely used up for the day. My wife would want to talk, but I just wanted the remote. Now, because I have memorized so many country songs on the way home, I always have the …

Creating Meaning In Engagement : Gender, Heterosexuality, And Commitment To Marriage, Erica Hunter

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This dissertation examines how heterosexual couples use engagement to create meaning in their intimate relationships. In-depth interviews with 44 men and women who identified as engaged to be married uncovered three pathways through which couples construct meanings of commitment to marriage within their partnerships. Neotraditional couples view marriage as a ritual tied to adult life and family planning. Promisemaker couples use engagement as a way of creating commitment to the partnership. Nestbuilder couples enact engagement because they viewed marriage as a natural step for long term commitments. Frameworks of gender, heteronormativity, and the ambiguity of courtship norms in post-dating culture …

Women's Economic Resources And Bargaining In Marriage: Does Egyptian Women's Status Depend On Earnings Or Marriage Payments?, Rania Salem

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This working paper reports on a study using Egyptian survey data to determine whether the effect of women's work on their status is mediated by the material transactions that accompany marriage. This perspective posits that marriage payments made to the bride, as well as assets she herself brings to the marriage, enhance her bargaining position. Analysis of the 2006 Egypt Labor Market Panel Survey panel data is used to explore the associations between women’s labor market activity, earnings, absolute and proportional marriage payments, and a measure of women’s status within marriage, namely their decisionmaking power. Consistent with the existing literature, …

Costos Del Matrimonio—Negociaciones Maritales En Países En Vías De Desarrollo, Sajeda Amin, Ashish Bajracharya

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Durante las dos últimas décadas, el Population Council ha acumulado una cantidad de información sobre las causas y correlaciones del matrimonio infantil y documentó sus efectos adversos sobre el bienestar de las mujeres y niñas. En muchas partes de los países en vías de desarrollo, el hecho de comprender el matrimonio infantil es central a la hora de diseñar programas que promuevan transiciones saludables para la edad adulta. La investigación del Council subraya la importancia de los rituales y las prácticas de intercambio matrimonial en todo el mundo y documenta la variación considerable en estas prácticas. Promoción de transiciones a …

Bereaved Parents' Experiences Of Supportive And Unsupportive Communication, Paige W. Toller

Communication Faculty Publications

This study examines bereaved parents' experiences of supportive and unsupportive communication using the optimal matching model of stress and social support (Cutrona & Russell, 1990). Analysis of the interviews revealed that parents described action-facilitating support as supportive, although information-giving was experienced as unsupportive. Regarding nurturant support, bereaved parents felt emotionally supported when family and friends were willing to talk about their deceased child. Parents also described network support as helping them cope with their grief. The results of this study indicate that listening, being present, and honoring the ongoing connection parents have with their deceased child are key ways …

Social Security Spouse And Survivor Benefits 101: Practical Primer Part Ii (Or Another Reason To Put A Ring On It), Francine J. Lipman

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Les Coûts Du Mariage—Les Transactions Matrimoniales Dans Le Monde En Développement, Sajeda Amin, Ashish Bajracharya

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Au cours des deux dernières décennies, le Population Council a receuilli une multitude d'informations sur les causes et les corrélats du mariage des enfants et documenté ses effets néfastes sur le bien-être des femmes et des filles. Dans de nombreuses régions du monde en développement, la compréhension du mariage des enfants est au coeur de la conception de programmes qui favorisent des transitions saines vers l'âge adulte. Les travaux de recherche du Population Council soulignent également l'importance des rituels et des pratiques d'échange matrimoniales dans le monde et éclairent les différences considérables entre ces pratiques. Promouvoir des transitions vers l'âge …

Costs Of Marriage—Marriage Transactions In The Developing World, Sajeda Amin, Ashish Bajracharya

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Over the past two decades the Population Council has amassed a wealth of information on the causes and correlates of child marriage and documented its adverse effects on the well-being of women and girls. In many parts of the developing world, understanding child marriage is central to designing programs that promote healthy transitions to adulthood. Council research also underscores the importance of rituals and practices of marriage exchange around the globe and documents the considerable variation in these practices. Promoting Healthy, Safe, and Productive Transitions to Adulthood Brief No. 35 synthesizes some broad themes that have emerged from research on …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Religion And Marriage On Self-Reported Health, Patrick Joseph Graham, Jr

LSU Master's Theses

A significant body of literature has focused on the effects of religion on health and marriage on health, as well as on religion and marriage. However, there is limited research on the effects of religion and marriage on self-reported health. Using the first and only wave of the Panel Study of American Religion and Ethnicity, ordinary least square regression models are compared to investigate the causal effects of religion and marriage on self-reported health. In the analysis, it is found that religion and marriage, as forms of social support, individually have significant affects on self-reported health as the literature indicates …

Perry V. Schwarzenegger: Is Traditional Marriage Unconstitutional?, George W. Dent

Faculty Publications

This is a brief defense of the constitutionality of California's Proposition 8, which limits marriage for purposes of California law to a relationship between one man and one woman.

Availability Of Spousal Privileges For Same-Sex Couples, Lisa Yurwit Bergstrom, W. James Denvil

University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class

No abstract provided.

Marriage, Parentage And Child Support, Naomi R. Cahn, June Carbone

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

While child support calculations have become a matter of routine, the parental determinations, on which they rest, have not. Marriage once served as a system to channel childrearing into two-parent families. Within this system, the marital presumption discouraged efforts to inquire too closely into circumstances that might rebut a husband’s paternity and the stigma against non marital births and divorce eliminated much of the need for such determinations. Today, forty-one percent of American births are non marital and Americans lead the world in family instability. Yet, no comprehensive system has arisen to replace marriage or the marital presumption. This articles …

On Equality: The Anti-Interference Principle, Donald J. Kochan

University of Richmond Law Review

This essay seeks to summarize the general equality concept and proposes that equality requires that the government engage in anti-interference with individual choices and activities, so long as these things create no negative externalities for others. If we are serious about respecting equality, such interference actions should be avoided. Adopting an "anti-interference principle" is a necessary foundation for achieving the goal of true equality. The primary point is that equality matters. The purpose of this essay is not to survey the vast political, jurisprudential, and academic debate on equality, but instead, to take a broad look at the philosophical concept …

Polygamy, Publicity, And Locality: The Place Of The Public In Marriage Practice, Allison Anna Tait

Law Faculty Publications

This Article offers a reading of State v. Holm that highlights the Utah court's struggle to define marriage and presents the court's eventual definition of marriage as one that is based on visual indicators.

Same-Sex Marriage, Same-Sex Cohabitation, And Same-Sex Families Around The World: Why ‘Same’ Is So Different?, Macarena Saez

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This paper briefly explains the situation of same sex couples in countries that have opened marriage to individuals of the same sex, offers a summary and analysis of the status of same sex unions in several countries that have not opened marriage to same sex couples, and provides a comparative analysis of the most recurrent arguments used in the processes of recognition and denial of same sex unions in the countries reviewed.

Forty years ago, same sex couples were not legally accepted in any country. In the last thirty years, however, around 20% of the world has granted some rights …

Refusing To Write Like Henry James: Women Reforming Realism In Fin-De-Siècle America, Sarah Wadsworth

English Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

The Marriage Proposal In The Nineteenth-Century British Novel, Kimberly Ann Broughton

All ETDs from UAB

The proposal scene, as utilized by Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, and Charles Dickens, is a volatile and instrumental moment in the course of the marriage plot. Entering the marriage conversation through the narrow window of the proposal scene provides a new understanding of the nineteenth-century British author's working commentary on marriage. In the nineteenth-century British novel, the marriage proposal becomes a finite moment that the author uses to encapsulate a couple's central challenge and/or crystallize one of the novel's prevailing tensions. Total bliss and contentment rarely appear in the proposal scene; in fact, more often than not, the proposal uncovers …

How Husbands Can Support Their Wives In Achieving Weight Management Goals: The Development Of A Self-Help Resource, Christi Lynn Kush

Theses and Dissertations

The nationwide prevalence of obesity calls for more effective strategies for weight loss and maintenance of desired weight. The majority of weight loss programs focus on behavior change (diet and exercise) with some success, although lost weight is often regained. Interventions that boost the long-term effects of weight loss achievements are greatly needed. Marriage provides an ideal context for the lifestyle changes required for effective weight maintenance. Although well-intentioned, spouses may not know how to support their partner's weight loss efforts. Because women are more likely than men to attend to their spouses' health needs and women struggle more than …

Not Yet Married: The Implications Of Meanings Of Marriage On Youths In Singapore, Paulin T. Straughan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Marriage is a social construct that takes on different meanings as societies develop and mature. To understand why people get married, it is important that we understand what marriage means. This paper will discuss the social transformation of marriage in Asia using Singapore as a case study. To examine two demographic trends- delayed marriage, and the increasing proportion of people who remain single - this discourse also explores the constraints imposed by contradictions between traditional norms and modern expectations. In the midst of these ideological challenges, there are important implications for the practice of marriage among younger Singaporeans. We see …

Domestic Violence And State Intervention In The American West And Australia, 1860-1930, Carolyn B. Ramsey

Publications

This Article calls into question stereotypical assumptions about the presumed lack of state intervention in the family and the patriarchal violence of Anglo-American frontier societies in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. By analyzing previously unexamined cases of domestic assault and homicide in the American West and Australia, Professor Ramsey reveals a sustained (but largely ineffectual) effort to civilize men by punishing violence against women. Husbands in both the American West and Australia were routinely arrested or summoned to court for beating their wives in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Judges, police officers, journalists, and others expressed dismay …

A Diva Defends Herself: Gender And Domestic Violence In An Early Twentieth-Century Headline Trial, Carolyn B. Ramsey

Publications

This short article was presented as part of a symposium on headline criminal trials, organized by St. Louis University School of Law in honor of Lawrence Friedman. It describes and analyzes the self-defense acquittal of opera singer Mae Talbot in Nevada in 1910 on charges of murdering her abusive husband. Based on extensive research into archival trial records and newspaper reports, the article discusses how the press, the court, and trial lawyers on both sides depicted the killing and Mae’s possible defenses. Without discounting the sensationalism and entertainment value, to a scandal-hungry public, of stories about violent marriages, I contend …

Yours, Mine, Ours? Renovating The Antiquated Apartheid In The Law Of Property Division In Native American Divorce, Vickie Enis

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

Sibling Conflict Resolution Styles And Marital Conflict Resolution Styles, Fatimah Shalash

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

This study used qualitative methods to examine if there was a connection between conflict resolution styles used with siblings in adolescence and conflict resolution styles utilized in current romantic committed relationships. The Conflict Resolution Behavior Questionnaire (Reese-Weber, & Bartle-Haring, 2003) and Gottman‟s (1994a, 1994b) couple-conflict types as adapted by Holman and Jarvis (2003) were administered to 144 participants through an online questionnaire. Analysis of the CRBQ using a multiple regression indicated participant‟s self-rating of compromise, attack, and avoidant conflict resolution styles used with siblings when an adolescent predicted current self-ratings of compromise, attack, and avoidant conflict resolution styles utilized in …