Acclaimed historian Stephanie Coontz provides a myth-shattering examination of two centuries of the American family, sweeping away misconceptions about the past that cloud current debates about domestic life.

First published in 1992.

Introduction to the 2016 edition -- The way we wish we were: defining the family crisis -- 'Leave it to Beaver' and 'Ozzie and Harriet': American families in the 1950s -- 'My mother was a Saint': individualism, gender myths, and the problem of love -- We always stood on our own two feet: self-reliance and the American family -- Strong families, the foundation of a virtuous society: family values and civic responsibility -- A man's home is his castle: the family and outside intervention -- Bra-burners and family bashers: feminism, working women, consumerism, and the family -- 'First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Mary with a baby carriage': marriage, sex, and reproduction -- Toxic parents, supermoms, and absent fathers: putting parenting in perspective -- Pregnant girls, wilding boys, crack babies, and the underclass: the myth of black family collapse -- The crisis reconsidered -- Epilogue to the 2016 edition: for better AND worse: family trends in the twenty-first century -- Acknowledgments -- Notes -- Index.