The evolution of 'responsible singleness'

A student-friend, Suharika,shared this (via whatsapp) interesting piece on the evolution of 'responsible singleness'.



Here's an excerpt:

"The year is 1885, 100 years ago. You decide to leave the farm and move to the city with your wife and kids. Suddenly you are no longer part of an extended family; you’re a nuclear family. You think of the relatives you left behind, and wonder what happened to your commitment and loyalty.

Now, shift centuries: today, at the end of the 20th century, we are going through the same process, only this time it is not the extended family we are outgrowing – it is the nuclear family. You cannot commit yourself to one person; you don’t have a spouse, a home and kids. Again the same pressures: where the hell is your commitment? Your loyalty? Your attachment? Isn’t it time you settled down? After all, you are already 28 or 32 or 36, or whatever. The dynamics are essentially the same. Why are we outgrowing the nuclear family? What are the forces behind this evolution? What is replacing the nuclear family?" (End of excerpt)

The author says that, "we are at the beginning of a massive recontexting of our social life". Are we? Please leave your views in the comments space.

Read the rest of the piece here.