Couples

An intelligent, thoughtful look at the ways people make couplehood work in a time of unprecedented expectations of romance, commitment, equality, fidelity, and happiness ever after  Historically speaking, people currently enjoy unrivaled freedom when it comes to choosing and building a relationship, yet new levels of cynicism and uncertainly coupled with new myths about how to live and love can compromise potential coupled happiness. Kate Figes argues here that, whether married or cohabiting, gay or straight, remarried or a couple living apart, the quality of one's intimate relationship is fundamental to long-term health and happiness, because the human need for commitment and love hasn't changed. She set out to answer the question How do people make it work? by interviewing 120 people from diverse backgrounds as well as surveying couplehood-related academic literature. This book offers no universal recipes for success, because relationships are far too complicated, individual, and important for easy answers, but learning what really goes on in other people's lives and how they sustain lifelong love can help readers understand their own partnerships and take responsibility for making them work. This incisive look at how people can learn to make love endure will correct myths about the state of modern relationships and may reassure readers that they are doing far better than they ever give themselves credit for.