Andrew J. Cherlin, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, discusses how marriage has evolved over time. Marriage used to be a rite of passage into adulthood, and those who weren’t married had trouble fitting into society. Now adults are more likely to remain single, cohabitate, or divorce after being married. Even though divorce is more common, marriage is still important in America, and advocates of gay marriage
and defenders of traditional marriage fight over the definition of marriage-is it always between a man and a woman or may it also be a union between two people of the same sex.

One strength of the book is that the author compares marriage in the United States to marriage in several European and Scandinavian countries. He concludes that the United States places more emphasis on defending traditional marriage and encouraging individuals to marry.
The author also points out that the marriage rates for individuals of different socioeconomic groups differ; for example, people who do not have college degrees are more likely to cohabitate and have children before marriage. ( )