Marriage and fertility rates are falling around the world, upending social security planning and threatening economic growth. In Love Apocalypse, anthropologists present their insights into this society-altering demographic shift, drawing on their research into the ways love, romantic relationships, and family are being transformed by cultural, social, and economic forces. Each case study in this volume examines a unique cultural context from either Asia (China, South Korea, Japan...

Voluntarily Childfree: Identity and Kinship in the United States discusses what it means to make a life worth living without traditional parenthood. Themes include authenticity and autonomy, partnership and support, fulfillment of the need to nurture, freedom of choice, and a desire to leave the world a better place than we found it. Despite the stigmas of selfishness and solitude, the voices in Voluntarily Childfree speak poignantly of their commitment to a different typ...