Love, Inc

The intersections of emotion and capitalism.

by Laurie Essig, Ph.D.

Marriage and Child Development

In the US we are confronted over and over again with the claim that marriage is necessary for the health and well-being of children. Just last week, the New York Times magazine ran an article suggesting that while monogamy is not important for marriage, keeping marriage together for the kids IS the most important goal we can have. Quoting gay sexpert Dan Savage, the article argues: Read More

For GOP Candidates, Only the Few, the Married, the Monogamous Are Real Americans

Maybe only married Americans should vote? Read More

Married with Children No Matter What

Experts say we should stay married no matter what for the kids. So did my mother. They were both wrong. Read More

Divorce Makes You a Bad Person... Again

Among educated Americans, getting divorced means you're a bad person. Read More

Time for a Love Revolution

Sex scandal after sex scandal might be a sign that we need a love revolution. Read More

Weinergate Boggles the Sociological Imagination

Sociology can explain why Weiner's political career is over. It cannot begin to explain why he ever risked such huge loss for so little in return. Read More

Did Technology Kill Love?

Many argue that new technologies are making real emotion impossible. But is that true or just a generational complaint about "kids today"? Read More

What if Parents Refuse to Buy Gender?

Do we have to gender our children? What happens if we refuse? Read More

Why We Wanted to Believe Botox Mom was a Real Monster

We wanted to believe that a mother could so desperate for her 8-year-old daughter that she would inject her with Botox. But why did we need such a monstrous mother and why didn't we see that it was all fake? Read More

"Ethnic" Cosmetic Surgery

American Plastic Ethnic cosmetic surgery is on the rise. But all cosmetic surgery is ethnic- it's just that most of it is white. Read More

Dr. Phil's Very Bad Advice

Dr. Phil's advice on raising boy children only increases anxiety and depression. What if people listened to the likes of me and allowed boys to become fully realized human beings instead of just fully straight men? Read More

Mixed marriages

Experts want to fix our sex lives, but should we let them? Especially when their motive is more profit than pleasure? Read More

The princess-industrial complex

Is pink a universal phase of childhood development or a result of the princess-industrial complex? Read More

Will We Marry Machines?

Scientists are inventing machines that are more and more like humans. Except for one thing—the machines are even better than we are. That's why in the future we'll want to marry our machines. Read More

The Conjugal Bed

Despite all the flowery rhetoric about love and romance, marriage is a property arrangement. The truth is: The second we say "I Do" we belong to the other person. Not just our stuff, but our bodies. We are supposed to confine our sexual desires to the conjugal bed. Marriage and monogamy go together like love and marriage. Read More

Gay Chicken

Two women can kiss and still be straight. It's a staple of porn and pop music. But now straight guys are kissing and they're doing it to prove how manly they are. Read More

Laurie Essig, Ph.D., is a professor of sociology and women and gender studies at Middlebury College.

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About Love, Inc

Love, Inc. is about the intersection of emotions and capitalism. Human emotions may be more or less universal, but how they are acted upon is firmly rooted in particular histories, cultures, and economies. In the US, how we feel is always a potential source of profit- from big white weddings to porn to romantic comedies. This blog is about emotions and the industries that profit from them.