Just a Gwai Lo

Dave Pollard, writing in March about Against Love : A Polemic by Laura Kipnis: “Much of the latter part of the book is focused on the psychological gymnastics of all three (or more) parties in the polygon of adultery, from the rationalization that hiding the affair is to protect the feelings of the cuckold, to the feelings of self-hatred and self-flagellation of the 'sinner(s)'. She also discusses the awkward mechanics of the ultimate break-up of either the marriage or the affair (or both), and the degree to which children of the relationship become hostages, or excuses for deception, or excuses for the boredom that gave rise to the deception. Of course the book also talks about famous infidelities in high political circles, and the twisted hypocrisy of conservatives' opposition to same-sex marriage, as well as the equal-opportunity-for-misery desire of lesbians and gays to gain access to the sad and repressive regulation of 'official' marriage rather than 'settling for' merely the legal and resource rights that come with equivalent-to-married status. And there's also a discussion of the pragmatic phenomenon of "serial monogamy" -- the fall-back that there's nothing wrong with marriage per se, it's just that we were all married to the wrong person.”