ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents an overview of some closing thoughts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book uses qualitative data to interrogate the nature of late modern heterosexual partnerships. The overall picture that emerges is one of increasing expectations of equality which are undermined by the social reality of living in a co-resident heterosexual partnership. The book supports a more sceptical approach, which emphasizes the continuities which characterize heterosexual relationships, rather than focussing on posited changes. While emotional and domestic labour remain largely female responsibilities, it cannot be assumed that lived heterosexual relationships are gradually moving towards an egalitarian ideal. Feminist theorists have argued that only certain groups in society are able to capitalize on late modern discourses of equality. However, the presented evidence suggests that even dual-career, childless, middle-class couples have failed to realize many of the possibilities described. The book focuses on a small number of affluent heterosexual couples whose accounts are inevitably partial and socially situated.
