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Let's Get Married. Prod. by Ben Loeterman. Frontline with Ben Loeterman Productions, Inc., 2002. 60 mins. (PBS Video, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314-1698; 800-344-3337; <[email protected]>; <http://shop. pbs.org/education/> [Sept. 15, 2003])
This Frontline episode explores the contemporary marriage movement promoted by evangelical Christians, a handful of prominent social scientists, and elected officials, including the current resident of the White House. From George W. Bush on down, proponents of premarital celibacy and marriage education charge that wedlock has been endangered by developments that significantly undercut the naturalness and necessity of male breadwinning and female dependence.
The typical story they tell is that the marital cornerstone of civilization has been besieged by antireligious forces associated with cultural liberalism-including the sexual revolution, women's economic autonomy, and ideologies such as "children's rights"-in ascendance since the 1960s. Yet conservatives have had...