Critical Perspectives on 21st Century Friendship

This anthology takes an international and cross-cultural approach to discussions about friendship by curating a set of diverse contributions situated in a transnational context. These interdisciplinary contributions take friendship seriously as a subject of feminist and legal study and hone-in specifically on polyamory, polygamy, and Platonic affinities, considering the sexual and non-sexual ties of affect and affinity that link a diverse range of contemporary friendships that exist cross-culturally. This highly original book teases out commonalities between experiences of affinity that are enmeshed with the differences between social, legal, and cultural frameworks that surround these relationships of affinity and affect, and troubles forms of government and legal regulation that prohibit or fail to recognize the consensual interdependence connecting diverse forms of human friendship. "a rare and truly interdisciplinary study of friendship as a theoretical concept. The editors traverse law, popular culture and academia as the contributors explore compassionate concepts that deserve more scholarly attention. The volume is a refreshing journey that helps provide a much-needed optimistic frame in an age of cynicism and propaganda.” -- Prof. Richard Jochelson.