In the Name of the Family: Rethinking Family Values in the Postmodern Age [Paperback]

Judith Stacey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1997

Prominent cultural critic Judith Stacey offers a ringing rebuttal to the rhetoric of "family values" with this powerful argument for accepting family diversity-including a strong new case for legal same-sex marriage.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

A collection of essays by Judith Stacey, a professor of sociology and women's studies at the University of California, Davis, that acknowledge concerns about the disintegration of the traditional family, while attacking the efforts of right-wing conservatives to reinstate the family of the 1950s through fear and advocacy of male dominance. Using studies of blue-collar, low-income families, single-mothers and gay and lesbian households, Stacey illustrates that far from being examples of failure or despair, these families are models of ingenuity and flexibility. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

As the male-dominated, patriarchal, modern nuclear family fragments, American society, declares Stacey, has entered the age of the postmodern family?no single pattern is dominant, and only a minority of U.S. households contain married couples with children. In a forceful, scholarly critique, she argues that much family-values rhetoric serves as a sanitized decoy for class and race prejudices, and she attacks "family-values warriors" Dan Quayle, Pat Buchanan and Jerry Falwell as antifeminist, antigay and politically reactionary. Professor of sociology and women's studies at UC Davis, Stacey (Brave New Families) charges that a right-wing, pro-family campaign, joining forces with centrist think tanks and policy institutions, has shaped the family ideology and politics of the Clinton administration. Advocating legalized homosexual marriages, she considers gay and lesbian families instructional models for meeting the challenges to flexibility, self-help and creativity that the postmodern family demands.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Beacon Press (September 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807004332
• ISBN-13: 978-0807004333
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.5 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #851,611 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Book!, January 22, 1999

By 

Indienne - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Name of the Family: Rethinking Family Values in the Postmodern Age (Paperback)

in clear, pithy language,the sociologist Judith Stacey explains why current Dan-Quayle-style "family values" moralizing is out of step with the more fluid family arrangements of our era. She shows the damage "pro-family" ideologues have done by devaluing single mothers, live-togethers, gay and lesbian parents -- denied custody, punitive welfare "reform," etc -- an eye-opener!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a great read, June 22, 2006

By 

C. Dean (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Name of the Family: Rethinking Family Values in the Postmodern Age (Paperback)

Stacey describes the changes in and the politics of "the family" in ways that are unsurpassed for their insight and clarity. The fact that this work comes from a particular political orientation is not something she tries to hide, and she persuasively argues, here and elsewhere, that the claim to pure objectivity in family-related research is dangerous. At the same time, she is remarkably balanced, recognizing that orientations toward the family do not neatly line up along the lines of political parties, religious affiliations, or social classes.

5.0 out of 5 stars Good condition, September 21, 2009

By 

Gwenneth Willoughby "gas" - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: In the Name of the Family: Rethinking Family Values in the Postmodern Age (Paperback)

Purchased this book for my college goer. He was very pleased with its good condition as if it were directly from a store shelf. Also, he got it pretty fast.