The New Yorker's The Single American Women is an extended extract from the book All the Single Ladies, written by Rebecca Traister.
According to its website, the book is:
A nuanced investigation into the sexual, economic, and emotional lives of women in America. In a provocative, groundbreaking work, National Magazine Award finalist Rebecca Traister, “the most brilliant voice on feminism in the country” (Anne Lamott), traces the history of unmarried and late-married women in Amerca who, through social, political, and economic means, have radically shaped our nation.
The key statistic on this trend, at least in our opinion, is:
Today, only around 20 percent of Americans ages 18–29 are wed, compared to nearly 60 percent in 1960.
The article and book also point out "that In 2009, the proportion of American women who were married dropped below 50 percent. In other words, for the first time in American history, single women (including those who were never married, widowed, divorced, or separated) outnumbered married women."
This is not new news for regular readers.
We've long covered the important demographic trends around the decline of marriage and the increasing number of single Americans.
I'd also like to point out an important fact missing from the article.
The proportion of American men who are married has also fallen. And it's fallen at about the same rate as for women.
But I digress.
The article and book provide an interesting view on why this shift is happening with a strong focus on what it means for women.
I have to say I don't always agree with the author's point of view.
For example, although I agree today's school schedules are not family or women friendly, they were not originally designed to subjugate women as the article states. Most school schedules were originally designed so kids could help out on the farm and with other family work.
But this is just a quibble.
Overall an interesting article and book and well worth reading.
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