The autonomy myth : a theory of dependency

In a paradigm-shifting book, Martha Albertson Fineman, the influential legal theorist, makes the case that the sexually-affiliated couple is not the optimal building block for contemporary families. Rather, society should be organized around "caretaking relationships," particularly those involving children or elderly dependents. Having previously argued in "The Neutered Mother" for the end of marriage, Fineman now moves beyond changes in the family itself to other adjacent social institutions, considering what types of adjustments are necessary to achieve a more just and realistic allocation of responsibility for dependency. Sure to cause an uproar in fields ranging from law to economics and social welfare, The Autonomy Myth offers an important new way to think about our society and its institutions.

Cornell Legal scholar argues agains pr-family legislation - indeed, against the very concept of the tradional family - and gives the lie to the idea that anyone in America is actually self-suffient. She insists that the sexually affiliated couple is no longer an appropriate building block for contemporary families and that society should be organised around 'caretaking relationships,2 particularly those involving children or elderly parents.'