MARRIAGE, MOTHERHOOD
AND MONEY
ID
1, SECTION FOUR, FALL 2002
Cecilia A. Conrad
Dept. of Economics
Pomona College
Carnegie 202
607 -2970
Office Hours: Wednesdays, 9:00-10:30
am; 1:30-2:45 pm or by appointment.
Description of Seminar
This seminar will use an interdisciplinary approach to study
the institution of marriage and, secondarily, of motherhood. Marriage
appears to be less popular today than 50 years ago. In 1950, nearly seventy
percent of American women were married by age 24. In 1990, slightly more
than a third were. Even more striking is the increased incidence of motherhood
without marriage. In 1957, less than fourteen percent of births to U.S.
teenagers occurred outside of marriage. By 2000, unwed births accounted
for seventy-eight percent of births to teens. Why has marriage become
less attractive? Is marriage on the verge of obsolescence? What can or
should the government do to promote marriage? We will use models of human
behavior developed by economists, sociologists and other social scientists
to explore these questions and, in the process, compare and critically
evaluate these analytical frameworks.
Quoting from the Pomona College catalogue, “The aim in Critical Inquiry
is to engage students actively in their own education, to encourage them
to challenge established truths, and to develop their ability to express
their ideas effectively, both orally and in writing.” This section will
also emphasize the effective use of charts to illustrate quantitative
data. There will be formal, in-class oral presentations; opportunities
to serve as discussion leaders; and a public policy debate. To achieve
the goals of the seminar, your informed participation in class discussions
is imperative.
Office Hours: Wednesdays, 9:00-10:30 am; 1:30-2:45 pm or
by appointment.
Books Required for Purchase
Coontz, S. The Way We Never Were.
Gutttentag, M. and P. Secord Too Many Women: The Sex Ratio Question
. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 1983.
Tucker, M. Belinda and Claudia Mitchell, eds. The Decline in Marriage
Among African Americans. New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1995.
Writing Assignments
1-2 Page Response Papers. (20% of Grade)
i. September 5, 2002 – Do liberals and conservatives really disagree about
the promotion of marriage as social policy?
ii. September 12, 2002 – Does Coontz use statistical evidence effectively?
iii. October 1, 2002 – Did the “slave family” generate surplus for
the slave owner?
iv. October 15, 2002 – Have the gains from marriage declined for African
Americans relative to other racial groups?
v. December 5, 2002 – How does the existence of transnational families
challenge existing theory?
3-4 Page Essay: Is Marriage Obsolete? Due September 24,
2002. (20% of grade)
3-4 Page (including tables) Short Research Paper and Presentation:
What has happened to marriage rates in Country X and why? First Drafts
due Nov. 14th. Revised Papers due November 21st. 25% of grade
8-10 Page Research Paper/Policy Brief. (30 % of grade) Possible
topics include (i) Does an increase in the economic independence of women
reduce the incidence of domestic violence? (ii) What explains the growth
in the proportion of babies born outside of marriage? (iii) Do income
transfer programs reduce incentives for marriage? (iv) Does cohabitation
yield the same benefits as marriage? (v) How does public policy affect
the sexual division of labor in the home? (vi) Are arranged marriages
more successful?
i. Proposal and Annotated Bibliography – October 8, 2002
ii. First Draft – December 3, 2002
iii. Final Draft – December 13, 2002
5. Other Assignments (5%)
a. Library passport
b. Class Participation (including debate on last day of class)
Syllabus
a. Family Politics
Sept. 5th: Kuttner, Robert. “Introduction: The Politics
of Family.” American Prospect. Vol. 13, #7. April 8, 2002.
http://www.prospect.org/print/V13/7/intro.html
Sept. 5th: Fagan, Patrick F. “Encouraging Marriage and Discouraging
Divorce.” The Heritage Foundation Backgrounder No. 1421, March 26, 2001.
http://www.heritage.org/library/backgrounder/pdf/bg_1421.pdf
Sept. 5th: Sawhill, Isabel. “Is Lack of Marriage the Real
Problem?” The American Prospect Vol. 13 no. 7, April 8, 2002.
http://www.prospect.org/print/V13/7/sawhill-i.html
b. Marriage Nostalgia
Sept. 10th. Coontz, Stephanie. "Nostalgia as Ideology,"
The American Prospect Vol. 13 no. 7, April 8, 2002.
http://www.prospect.org/print/V13/7/coontz-s.html
.
Sept. 10th Coontz, Stephanie. The Way We Never Were
. New York: Basic Books, 1992. Introduction & Chaps 2&3.
Sept. 12th Coontz, Stephanie. The Way We Never Were
. New York: Basic Books, 1992. Chaps. 4,5 & 7.
c. The Economics of Marriage
Sept. 17th . Blau, Francine and Marianne Ferber. The Economics
of Women, Men and Work. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1992. Chapter
3 (Electronic Reserve).
Sept. 19th . Engels, Fredrick. The Origin of the Family,
Private Property and the State. Chapters Two. (Electronic Reserve)
Sept. 19th . Humphries, Jane. “Class Struggle and the Persistence
of the Working-Class Family.” Cambridge Journal of Economics. V.1 (Sept.
1977): 241-58 (Electronic Reserve)
SEPTEMBER 24, 2002 Library Research Instruction
Session – Learning Room, Honnold-Mudd
d. Case Study: The Black Family in Slavery and Freedom
Sept. 26th . Moynihan, Daniel. The Negro Family: The Case
for National Action. U.S. Department of Labor Office of Policy Planning
and Research March 1965.
http://www.dol.gov/asp/programs/history/webid-meynihan.htm
Oct. 1st . Stevenson, Brenda E. “Black Family Structure
in Colonial and Antebellum Virginia: Amending the Revisionist Perspective.”
In The Decline in Marriage Among African Americans. M. Belinda Tucker
and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan, editors. New York: Russell Sage Foundation,
1995.
Oct. 1st . Gutman, Herbert. The Black Family in Slavery and Freedom
, Chapter One. (Electronic Reserve)
Oct. 3rd . Octavia Butler Lecture
Oct. 8th . Discussion of Butler Lecture
Oct. 10th . Movie/video TBA
Oct. 15th . Tucker, M. Belinda and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan.
“Trends in African American Family Formation: A Theoretical and Statistical
Overview.” In The Decline in Marriage Among African Americans. M.
Belinda Tucker and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan, editors. New York: Russell
Sage Foundation, 1995.
Oct. 15th . Schoen, Robert. “The Widening Gap Between Black
and White Marriage Rates: Context and Implications,” In The Decline
in Marriage Among African Americans. M. Belinda Tucker and Claudia
Mitchell-Kernan, editors. New York: Russell Sage Foundation, 1995.
Oct. 17th . Darity, William A. and Myers, Samuel. “Family
Structure and the Marginalization of Black Men: Policy Implications.”
In The Decline in Marriage Among African Americans. M. Belinda
Tucker and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan, editors. New York: Russell Sage Foundation,
1995.
Oct. 17th . Edin, Kathryn. “What Do Low-Income Single Mothers
Say About Marriage?” Social Problems. V. 47 (Feb. 2000): p. 112-33.
(Electronic Reserve)
e. The Sex Ratio Question
Oct. 24th . Gutttentag, M. and P. Secord Too Many Women:
The Sex Ratio Question. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 1983. Chapters
1 & 2
Oct. 26th . Gutttentag, M. and P. Secord Too Many Women:
The Sex Ratio Question. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 1983. Chapters
4&5
Oct. 29th . Kiecolt, K. Jill and Mark A. Fossett. “Mate
Availability and Marriage Among African Americans: Aggregate and Individual
Level Analyses.” In The Decline in Marriage Among African Americans
. M. Belinda Tucker and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan, editors. New York: Russell
Sage Foundation, 1995.
f. Child Care, Housework and Leisure
Oct. 31st . Barbara Ehrenreich Lecture
Chapter from Nickel and Dimed
October 29th . Folbre, Nancy and Julie A. Nelson. “For
Love or Money or Both?” Journal of Economic Perspectives, Vol.
14 (Fall 2000): 123-140. (Electronic Reserve)
Nov. 5th . Hartmann, Heidi. “The Family as the Locus of
Gender, Class and Political Struggle: The Example of Housework,” Signs:
Journal of Women in Culture and Society. V. 6 (Spring 1981): 366-94.
(Electronic Reserve)
Nov. 7. No Class Meeting
g. More Case Studies: Japan and Around the World
Nov. 12th . Retherford, Robert D., Naohiro Ogawa, Rikya
Matsukura, “Late Marriage and Less Marriage in Japan.” Population and
Development Review. V. 27 (March 2001): 65-102. (Electronic Reserve)
Nov. 14th . Student Led Discussion/Presentations
Nov. 19th . Student Led Discussion/Presentations
h. What’s Best for Kids?
Nov. 21st . Joelle Greene – Guest Lecture (Readings distributed)
Nov. 26th . Waite, Linda J. and Maggie Gallagher. The Case
for Marriage. New York: Doubleday, 2000. Chapter 9. Electronic Reserve.
Dec. 3rd . Lang, Kevin. “Does Growing Up with a Parent Absent
Really Hurt?” The Journal of Human Resources. V. 36 (Spring 2001):
253-273.
i. Transnational Motherhood
Dec. 5th . Hondagneu-Sotelo, Pierrette and Ernestine Avila.
“’I’m Here, But I’m There’ The Meanings of Latina Transnational Motherhood.”
Gender and Society. V.11 (October 1997): p. 548-571.
http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0891-2432%28199710%2911%3A5%3C548%3A%22HBITT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-I
Dec. 5th . Salazar Parrenas, Rhacel. “Mothering from a Distance:
Emotions, Gender, and Intergenerational Relations in Filpino Transnational
Families.” Feminist Studies 27 (Summer 2001): 361-390. (Electronic Reserve)
j. Public Policy, Marriage and Motherhood
Dec. 10th . Debate: Should the State Subsidize Marriage?