The Family, Civil Society, and the State

by Wolfe, Christopher; Bandow, Doug; Blankenhorn, David; Bradley, Gerard; Carlson, Allan; Criner, Lawrence; Dilulio, John, Jr.; Fox-Genovese, Elizabeth; Gallagher, Maggie; Galston, William; Glendon, Mary Ann; Glenn, Charles L.; Hafen, Bruce; Himmelfarb, Gert

• ISBN13: 9780847692255
• ISBN10: 0847692256
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-09-03
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

The exact place of the family in a healthy political community, and the appropriate way to sustain it, are profoundly complicated and difficult questions. The distinguished contributors to this book endeavor to provide some answers. The first part of the book explores what is distinctive in the current situation of the family, and offers both optimistic and pessimistic assessments of the family in our time, as well as a historical overview. In the second part, authors look at the family today; demographics, economics, and social pathologies are all discussed.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Thoughts on the History of the Family	p. 3
The Family Crisis Today	p. 17
The Family in Extremis	p. 21
Delegitimating the Family: The Classical Liberal Roots	p. 27
The State's Assault on the Family	p. 39
Rawlsian and Feminist Critiques of the Traditional Family	p. 51
A Demographic Picture of the American Family Today - and What It Means	p. 69
The Indispensable Role of the Father in the Family	p. 79
Is the Economic Emancipation of Women Today Contrary to a Healthy, Functioning Family?	p. 87
The Legal Definition and Status of Marriage	p. 99
How Current Constitutional Law Undermines the Family	p. 119
The Moral Logic of No-Fault Divorce	p. 127
The Case against Divorce	p. 135
The Family in Capitalist America	p. 149
Television as a Medium Undermining the Family	p. 163
Family Values and Media Reality	p. 173
Government Tax Policy and the Family	p. 193
How Taxes Affect the Family	p. 199
Privatizing Welfare to Help the Family: The Biblical Center	p. 203
Reforming Welfare - the Right Way	p. 213
How Government Schools [May] Displace the Family	p. 219
The Sex-Ed Wars	p. 239
Forging a United Front on Family Policy: Premises and Suggestions	p. 251
A Conservative Perspective on Public Policy and the Family	p. 257
Index	p. 265
About the Contributors	p. 279
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