Marriage and the State

Description

Dr Clare Chambers (Faculty of Philosophy, Jesus, Cambridge)

At CRASSH I shall start a book, Marriage and the State, looking at how marriage should be regulated in modern societies. There is feminist literature criticising marriage, but surprisingly little discussion of the institution within liberal political thought. My book will engage with this literature, and will argue that state-recognised marriage is much more problematic for liberalism than is commonly recognised. Since liberalism is the dominant approach in contemporary political philosophy the implications of this claim are far-reaching: fundamental aspects of liberal theory such as neutrality, equality and the claims of children must be re-thought. As well as engaging these philosophical questions the book will develop an innovative model for the regulation of personal relationships, and thus will have direct public policy relevance.

Work-in-Progress seminars
The work-in-progress seminar features the work of our termly Visiting Fellows and Early Career Fellows.

Seminars begin at 12.45 and end at 2pm. Presentations are no more than 25 minutes long to allow plenty of time for discussion. Tea, coffee and sandwiches are provided. All welcome. The seminar is open to all – no need to register.

Readings for the Work in Progress sessions are available by clicking on the  link on the right.  People attending from outside the Centre can request access to the readings by contacting Michelle Maciejewska for information.