Plural Marriage for Our Times: A Reinvented Option?, 2nd Edition: A Reinvented Option?

by Philip L. Kilbride, Douglas R. Page

Overview

In this book's first edition, Philip L. Kilbride showed polygamy as the preferred marriage pattern in most parts of the nonwestern world and explained how plural marriage is surfacing in western countries to address economic and spiritual crises. In Plural Marriage for Our Times: A Reinvented Option? Second Edition, Kilbride and his coauthor, Douglas R. Page, update and enhance this thesis in light of contemporary circumstances, new studies, and current legal debates.

This new edition examines plural marriage's benefits for children. It extends the discussion of polygamy and religion, especially the Muslim perspective on marriage and family; considers the illegal polygamy of immigrants; and looks at multiple marriage in African American communities, where "crisis polygamy" is a growing phenomenon. The authors suggest Americans consider plural marriage as a viable practice that can help reduce the divorce rate, better protect women and children, and serve as an alternative to the "fractured family" so prevalent in America today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313384790
Publisher:	ABC-CLIO, Incorporated
Publication date:	08/17/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	569 KB

About the Author

Philip L. Kilbride, PhD, is professor of anthropology at Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA.

Douglas R. Page, MBA, is a freelance writer and reporter.

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Values in the United States

The American Family

Marriage and the Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective

Plural Marriage as Sin: Euroamerican Asceticism in Historical Perspective

The Principle: Celestial Marriage among the Mormons

The Family Reinvented: Euroamerican Feminism

Crisis Polygyny: Man-Sharing in the African-American Community

African Polygyny: Traditional Patterns and Contemporary Changes

Plural Marriage as a Reinvented Option: Theoretical Reflection

Bibliography

Index

What People are Saying About This

Mary Johnson Osirim

"Kilbride's latest edition forces us to separate Ôfact from fiction' in the debates over polygamy. This work is wonderfully comparative, comprehensively researched and benefits from his astute work as an ethnographer among several different ethnic and religious groups in sub-Saharan Africa and the U.S. What's more, he provides a compelling, persuasive argument for the need to Ôrevisit' polygamy as a means of providing responsible care for children in the U.S. who experience family disruption. In this regard, there are clearly lessons that we can learn from Africa!"
— Mary Johnson Osirim, Professor and Chair, Department of Sociology, Bryn Mawr College

Janet Bennion

"Professor Kilbride provides a superb analysis of plural marraige as a viable alternative to American serial monogamy. He teaches us tolerance for customs which are widely practiced elsewhere in the world, but rarely understood in the United States. His refreshing child-centered perspective addresses the essential issue of how polygamy impacts the well-being of the family. In short, Professor Kilbride makes us aware of the growing presence of polygamy within the American marital landscape, especially with increased immigration from the Middle East, East Africa, and Southeast Asia."
— Janet Bennion, Professor of Anthropology, Lyndon State College; author, Women of Principle: Female Networking in Contemporary Mormon Polygyny (Oxford University Press, 1998).

Michael C. Robbins

"Plural Marriage for Our Times is a provocative and informative survey of polygamy world-wide containing several implications for marriage and the family in the U.S.A. I have used it in the classroom as both a text and supplemental reading with dazzling effect. I have found that students welcome its controversial perspective on options for meeting present and future challenges to durable pair-bonding."

— Michael C. Robbins, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Anthropology, University of Missouri