Linda C. McClain is Professor of Law and Paul M. Siskind Research Scholar at Boston University School of Law.

In this elegant and tightly reasoned book, Linda McClain argues that the family--though not necessarily traditional marriage--is central to the 'formative project' of fostering key civic virtues: capacity, equality,and responsibility. In a series of different situations she considers what might be an optimal balance among governmental, social, and family responsibilities for shaping good citizens. The Place of Families is sure to influence many heated debates, in courts and legislatures as well as journals, about the complex relationships between families and public life.

• Acknowledgments Introduction I. Fostering Capacity 1. The Place of Families and Government in a Formative Project 2. Families as "Seedbeds of Civic Virtue"? 3. Care, Families, and Self-Government II. Fostering Equality 4. Marriage Promotion, Marriage (E)quality, and Welfare Reform 5. Recognizing Same-Sex Marriage 6. Beyond Marriage? III. Fostering Responsibility 7. Rights, (Ir)responsibility, and Reproduction 8. Teaching Sexual and Reproductive Responsibility Epilogue Notes Index

Linda C. McClain is Professor of Law and Paul M. Siskind Research Scholar at Boston University School of Law.

In this elegant and tightly reasoned book, Linda McClain argues that the family--though not necessarily traditional marriage--is central to the 'formative project' of fostering key civic virtues: capacity, equality,and responsibility. In a series of different situations she considers what might be an optimal balance among governmental, social, and family responsibilities for shaping good citizens. The Place of Families is sure to influence many heated debates, in courts and legislatures as well as journals, about the complex relationships between families and public life.

• Acknowledgments Introduction I. Fostering Capacity 1. The Place of Families and Government in a Formative Project 2. Families as "Seedbeds of Civic Virtue"? 3. Care, Families, and Self-Government II. Fostering Equality 4. Marriage Promotion, Marriage (E)quality, and Welfare Reform 5. Recognizing Same-Sex Marriage 6. Beyond Marriage? III. Fostering Responsibility 7. Rights, (Ir)responsibility, and Reproduction 8. Teaching Sexual and Reproductive Responsibility Epilogue Notes Index