Nathanael Smith

The Verdict of Reason (eBook, ePUB)

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

The Verdict of Reason explains why same-sex "marriage" can't be the real thing and shouldn't be recognized in law.

Part I focuses on the limited task of showing that there is a rational basis for recognizing only marriage between a man and a woman. Marriage is a way of binding oneself. Society does not recognize in individuals an unlimited power to bind themselves. Sometimes it makes promises and contracts legally binding and requires people to fulfill them. Sometimes it leaves people free to walk away from promises without legal consequences. Two reasons for choosing to recognize some promises as legally binding and not others are (a) tradition, and (b) "telos," the Aristotelian word for purpose or natural flourishing. Natural flourishing is best understood today in light of sociobiology, also known as "evolutionary psychology," and it includes instincts oriented towards reproduction. Both of these factors favor recognition of straight marriage, but not same-sex "marriage." So it's rational to treat them differently.

Part II, more ambitiously, works out a definition of marriage. The starting place for the argument is an understanding of men, women, and their differences in light of sociobiology. The asymmetric desires and jealousies of men and women give rise to perilous genetic conflicts of interest, leading to exploitation and misery. But they are also capable of coming together in a union of genetic interests that results in a harmony of instincts. That's why marriage should be permanent and exclusive. Historically, while marital customs have changed, there has been a consistent core meaning, namely: marriage is a publicly acknowledged relationship, more or less permanent, between a man and a woman, such that sex can occur between them without dishonor to the woman. That definition is consistent with polygamy, which has been practiced in most human societies. But Christianity imposed monogamy on marriage and made the obligation of sexual fidelity reciprocal. Marriage is perfected by romantic love, which sublimates the harmony of instincts. For same-sex couples, different instincts are in play, resulting in different moral obligations. Same-sex relationships cannot be the same thing as marriage.

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Produktdetails

• Verlag: Nathanael Smith
• Erscheinungstermin: 26. April 2023
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781981209309
• Artikelnr.: 67849331